Tracking

The trade gathering proceeded faster than the auction, concluding in less than two hours. Both guests and host parted satisfied. The old man had made a fortune, beaming at everyone. The participants departed through a secret passage. Once they emerged, they found themselves not in the stone house they had entered from, but in an alleyway, a testament to the old man's prudence. Stepping out of the alley, the group quietly split up and went their separate ways. Though Qin Sang had projected a formidable presence at the secret market, he was well aware that such posturing could never deter a true master. He remained exceptionally cautious to ensure he was not being shadowed. The night was moonless. Even immortal cultivators were inevitably influenced by the mortal habits of working at sunrise and resting at sunset. Unless necessary, few ventured out at night, mostly returning to their rented stone dwellings to cultivate in seclusion. In the dead silence of the alleyway, an imposing figure suddenly appeared—the masked, burly cultivator. His current behavior was completely at odds with his towering frame. He moved with utmost caution, glancing back every few steps with intensely vigilant eyes, much like a timid rat. The alleyway led straight beyond Stone Island. Reaching the edge of the island without incident, the burly man promptly channeled an escape art, blending into the night and quietly leaving Stone Island. Not long after his departure, the space at the end of the alley rippled. A vague figure emerged, then flashed into a wisp of dim light and tailed after him. Yet what this pursuer failed to realize was that while the mantis stalks the cicada, the oriole waits behind. After he left, another figure materialized in the exact same spot—Qin Sang. Gazing into the gloomy marsh, he pondered for a brief moment before activating the newly acquired Nether Silk Cloud, slipping away without a sound. Having witnessed three successive figures, the alleyway finally settled into silence. Outside the auction house, that sudden surge of familiarity had not drawn much of Qin Sang's attention; after all, the sensation had arrived abruptly and vanished just as swiftly. Yet in the secret market just now, the burly man's genuine voice, exposed in a moment of panic, had brought that sense of familiarity rushing back, awakening memories from several decades ago! The voice was not identical to the one in his memories. So much time had elapsed; the world changed, and people changed with it. They grew up, or they grew old. For immortal cultivators, however, such changes occurred at a far slower pace than in mortals. For that reason, though the man's voice carried much more weathering and roughness, it still retained several traces of its original timbre. That was precisely the source of Qin Sang's familiarity. Searching through his past memories, Qin Sang suddenly recalled someone, a person he never in his wildest dreams would have expected. Tan Hao! Back at Youshan Cultivation Market, Tan Hao had spoken up for justice and shot back at an unscrupulous merchant, enabling Qin Sang to purchase the *Nether Scripture* with its accompanying incantations at a low price. After entering the Kuiyin Sect together, Tan Hao had spent all his days in bitter seclusion within his cave abode, rarely showing his face. Qin Sang had become close with his younger brother, Tan Jie, but had never grown particularly well-acquainted with Tan Hao. Now that Tan Hao came to mind, the resemblance grew stronger the more Qin Sang thought about it. Even as a youth, Tan Hao had possessed a remarkably tall build that formed a sharp contrast with his brother's; as a grown man, he would naturally be even burlier. Yet this left Qin Sang even more astonished. How could it possibly be him? When the Kuiyin Sect's invasion of the Yuanzhao Sect failed and the sect collapsed like scattered monkeys from a fallen tree, Tan Hao and Tan Jie had not been sent to the Yuanzhao Sect as undercover agents, nor had they been chosen as sacrifices like Shi Hong. When the Kuiyin Sect was destroyed, no one was guarding the Yin Baleful Abyss, and the Yuanzhao Sect would not relentlessly hunt down such low-level disciples, so they had indeed possessed a chance to escape. Yet escaping did not guarantee survival—that was the venomous trap of the Kuiyin Sect and the Yanluo Banners. Once one used the Yanluo Banner to cultivate, only two paths remained. One was to strive toward the tenth layer of the Qi Refinement stage, only to be devoured by the Yanluo and turned into the banner's main soul. The other was to realize something was amiss with the banner early on, disperse one's cultivation, and start anew. When the Kuiyin Sect fell, Tan Hao was already in his twenties. With his aptitude, restarting as a rogue cultivator after dispersing his cultivation meant his chances of achieving Foundation Establishment were virtually zero. Moreover, even if Tan Hao had sensed the anomalies within the Yanluo Banner, he might not have been able to abandon it so decisively. The temptation of cultivating with Soul Pills was not something anyone could resist. Had Sun De not delivered himself to his doorstep, Qin Sang might never have unraveled the secrets of the Yanluo Banner to this day. Qin Sang had originally assumed Tan Jie, Shi Hong, and the rest were long dead. To suddenly discover someone who might be Tan Hao brought him a surge of joy alongside his surprise. He had few friends on the immortal path. During his time at the Kuiyin Sect, he, Tan Jie, and Shi Hong had supported one another, sharing a genuine bond. Yet despite running into an old acquaintance, Qin Sang did not rashly step forward to acknowledge him. For one, he had now joined Shaohua Mountain and could never reveal his past in the Kuiyin Sect. Even if he were to reunite with a friend, he would need to disguise himself. For another, after so many years, was Tan Hao still the same man? Had his disposition changed? Was he still that hot-blooded youth who drew his blade against injustice? The ambush from a year ago remained vivid in his mind. Yu Daiyue's drastic transformation had not stemmed from inherent malice, but had been driven by the desperation of a cultivation bottleneck. How many in the cultivation world were just like Yu Daiyue? More importantly, was Tan Hao still entangled with the remnants of the Kuiyin Sect? Tan Hao's abnormal cultivation level made it impossible for Qin Sang not to be vigilant, prompting him to trail behind and see Tan Hao's current circumstances for himself. From what transpired at the auction and the secret market, it was clear that Tan Hao's cultivation path had not been smooth. He had likely suffered a wound to his soul, exhausting all his resources just to buy healing pills—a plight somewhat resembling Yunyouzi's. Yet Tan Hao was far more destitute than Yunyouzi. Without the Taiyi Dan Sect backing him, even his magic tools were several grades inferior. In his desperation during the fight for the Spirit-Calming Pill earlier, the finest magic tool he could produce was merely a high-grade tool. Qin Sang still remembered the goodwill of Tan Hao's principled stand at Youshan Cultivation Market. If possible, he would not hesitate to lend a helping hand. Beyond that lay another reason: if Tan Hao remained in contact with the Kuiyin Sect, Qin Sang could follow the trail through him to root out the sect's remnants. Having broken through to the middle Foundation Establishment stage, armed with several magic tools and a talisman treasure, he was no longer the novice he once was. As long as he did not run into a False Core devil from the Kuiyin Sect, who would kill whom remained entirely uncertain. Resolving the trouble with the Heart-Devouring Insect even one day sooner would be a great relief. Then there were the Yanluo Banners. He had only six; if he could locate the Kuiyin Sect remnants, he might be able to gather all ten and assemble the complete Ten Directions Yanluo Array. *** While tailing Tan Hao, Qin Sang noticed something amiss. Upon closer observation, he discovered that another person was secretly stalking Tan Hao as well: The masked man who had contested him for the Spirit-Calming Pill. This person's motive was self-evident. At the time, the masked man had yielded the Spirit-Calming Pill cleanly and decisively, giving Qin Sang no sign of ill intent. Truly, a biting dog did not bark. The masked man carefully shadowed Tan Hao, never imagining that another pursuer followed behind him. Qin Sang promptly shifted his strategy, switching his target to the masked man. The three of them formed a peculiar procession, departing Stone Island one after another and venturing into the chaotic marsh.