Liang Yan sealed the courtyard's restrictions and stepped outside. He paused slightly, a glimmer of spiritual power flashing as he changed into a black robe, concealing his face beneath its hood.
Glancing toward Fengcang Cultivation Market, Liang Yan pondered briefly before immediately rushing down the mountain.
By now, the ripples from the Heart-Devouring Insect had already left Fengcang Cultivation Market and abruptly surged in speed. Evidently, that person had deployed a magic tool or an evasion art.
At this point, Liang Yan could roughly gauge the target's strength.
The speed was not particularly fast.
From this, he estimated the person was likely only in the early Foundation Establishment stage.
What Liang Yan hoped for most was naturally to control an expert in the late Foundation Establishment stage. That way, he could come and go freely through many perilous domains, helping him gather superior cultivation resources.
Still, early Foundation Establishment was not bad either—it remained a substantial asset, far better than someone in the Qi Refinement stage.
With these thoughts in mind, Liang Yan reached the foot of the mountain.
Quietly slowing his pace, he cautiously scanned his surroundings out of habit. Spotting nothing amiss, he silently activated an evasion technique, his silhouette vanishing from where he stood as he crept after his quarry.
Liang Yan had already broken through to the middle Foundation Establishment stage, which was precisely why he dared to give chase directly; without even relying on a magic tool, he could easily keep pace with his target.
From afar, he saw a streak of white light hurtling across the horizon, heading straight for the depths of the Ancient Immortal Battlefield.
He could faintly sense spiritual power fluctuations, perfectly matching Liang Yan's earlier guess—it truly was the early Foundation Establishment stage!
Enclosed in the white light was a shuttle-shaped flying magic tool of modest quality, merely a high-grade magic tool, consistent with the person's cultivation.
Liang Yan nodded to himself, yet he was in no hurry to strike. Instead, he kept to the outer limits of the Heart-Devouring Insect's range, tailing quietly from behind while observing both his surroundings and the target's movements.
For some time, Liang Yan followed patiently.
No one trailed behind them; from start to finish, the figure was completely alone.
They were now far from Fengcang Cultivation Market, and the surrounding terrain had begun to shift. Rolling peaks rose and fell, encroaching upon the sprawling bogs. Near Fengcang Cultivation Market, the mist had already been thin, and out here it had vanished almost entirely.
Even the lingering stench of rot had faded to a faint trace.
Suddenly, the escaping light ahead flickered and vanished without warning.
Liang Yan showed not the slightest trace of anxiety. Able to track the target's movements effortlessly via the Heart-Devouring Insect, he immediately wheeled around and darted toward the front-left.
"That direction... Tianfeng Mountain, Hui Valley, Myriad Beasts Ridge..."
Liang Yan murmured under his breath. The locations he named all lay in that direction. They shared a common trait: while lacking secret realms, cloud beasts gathered there in inexhaustible numbers.
Many cultivators hunted cloud beasts and gathered spirit-infused fiendish items there to earn spirit stones, and with good fortune, they might even stumble upon a spiritual ore vein.
Back when Liang Yan had been in the early Foundation Establishment stage, he had frequented those very areas.
Everything matched.
Liang Yan abruptly surged forward.
Having abandoned the conspicuous flying magic tool, the target's speed plunged drastically, allowing Liang Yan to catch up in no time.
Concealing his presence, Liang Yan silently materialized atop a mountain peak, gazing intently ahead.
Amidst the barren hills, everything appeared completely ordinary.
Liang Yan focused spiritual power into his eyes, fixing his gaze in one direction. Though the target remained invisible, someone with sharp spiritual perception could detect subtle ripples of spiritual power drifting from the spot.
The person was darting through the mountains, seemingly oblivious to the approaching danger.
At this sight, a sinister smirk tugged at the corner of Liang Yan's mouth. Without hesitation, he triggered his gu-controlling technique to awaken the parasite.
A shrill scream suddenly echoed ahead. A still-hazy figure tumbled out of the empty air, plunging headfirst into the bog at the foot of the mountain.
*Splash!*
Mud churned into surging waves.
Liang Yan had no intention of killing the target, so he merely commanded the Heart-Devouring Insect to grievously injure the person's origin soul. Leaving the victim unable to resist was enough; once captured alive, he could slowly break them to his will.
The toxic gu had worked like a charm!
This was a secret art devised by a Nascent Soul Patriarch, after all; Liang Yan had never entertained the thought that the Heart-Devouring Insect could fail. Even as he awakened the gu, he was already on the move.
In the blink of an eye, Liang Yan arrived. Green spiritual light flashed across his palm, and a ropelike magic tool shot forward like a nimble serpent. It was one of Liang Yan's most trusted magic tools—the Spirit-Binding Cord.
*Whoosh!*
Transforming into a streak of green radiance, the Spirit-Binding Cord darted with extraordinary agility. Just as it was about to plunge into the bog and bind the figure, an abnormal flash of light abruptly erupted from the mud.
The strange light alternated between black and white, dazzling the eyes.
Bizarrely, the moment the Spirit-Binding Cord collided with that strange light, it lost all coordination and tangled into a disorganized knot.
Before Liang Yan could react, a gust of sinister wind swept through the valley, and endless black mist billowed forth.
The black mist poured out from the bog. Within the mist, six ghost banners had been erected at some unknown moment, fluttering as they continuously unleashed evil ghosts and yin qi.
In an instant, the entire valley turned grim with ghostly energy, evil ghosts wailing as if the realm had transformed into the underworld itself.
Hidden within the black mist were countless eerie threads, surging silently toward Liang Yan.
The Ten Directions Yanluo Array was activated!
The person Liang Yan had been tracking was none other than Qin Sang!
By now, a full month had passed since Yunyouzi's departure.
A month ago, after seeing Yunyouzi off, Qin Sang had instructed Tan Hao to stay at Yinshan Pass to attempt his breakthrough, while he himself left Yinshan Pass and slipped into the Ancient Immortal Battlefield. Tan Hao was very familiar with the area around Yinshan Pass and had explained everything in detail to Qin Sang.
Though Qin Sang had expected a difficult search, it took only a few days to locate Liang Yan's cave dwelling in Fengcang Cultivation Market through Tan Hao's connections.
In recent years, Liang Yan had likely felt the danger subsiding and no longer deliberately concealed his tracks. Moreover, he kept Shi Hong by his side at all times, making him easy to find.
Since Liang Yan was cultivating inside the cultivation market, Qin Sang could not make a move there. Thus, Qin Sang began operating in the vicinity of Fengcang Cultivation Market, waiting for Liang Yan to leave.
Unexpectedly, Liang Yan was also an ascetic cultivator capable of enduring solitude. Having entered seclusion an unknown time ago, an entire month passed without the slightest sign of him emerging.
If this dragged on, there was no telling how long it would be before Liang Yan came out.
Right around that time, good news arrived from Tan Hao.
After receiving guidance from Yunyouzi, Tan Hao had gained insights and experienced a sudden surge of inspiration during his seclusion.
Knowing full well that the longer he delayed, the slimmer his chances of Foundation Establishment would become, Tan Hao decided to stake everything on a single throw. Without hesitation, he ingested both the Biying Pill and the Foundation Establishment Pill, successfully breaking through to Foundation Establishment in one fell swoop!
Even Qin Sang could not help marveling at this.
It was hardly rare for Foundation Establishment cultivators to spend eight to ten years in a single seclusion, and Qin Sang could not afford to wait indefinitely.
Once Tan Hao arrived, Qin Sang promptly altered his plan, resolving to unravel the Void Origin Seal on his origin soul and unleash the Heart-Devouring Insect as a test.
If Liang Yan knew this toxic gu art, it would definitely lure him out of seclusion!
Yinshan Pass bordered the righteous faction's sphere of influence, so the likelihood of Kuiyin Sect remnants lurking in Fengcang Cultivation Market was low.
Even if a late Foundation Establishment expert truly appeared, Qin Sang, armed with his array of treasures—especially the Nine Dragons Heavenly Chariot Talisman—could easily escape even if he could not kill the opponent.
Just to be safe, Qin Sang had Tan Hao keep watch at the entrance of Fengcang Cultivation Market to alert him if anything went wrong so they could react in time.
The gamble had indeed paid off!
Chapter 347