The Price

Thunder roared, and lightning flared with dazzling brilliance. Hovering in the air above the deep pool, Yu Hua was besieged by the swarm of flying-horned fish-dragons. Clearly, he did not possess the Demon-Intoxicating Saliva Yunyouzi had concocted, and had alerted these ancient beasts upon entering. Beneath Yu Hua, a massive, hemispherical light-blue barrier shimmered erratically, fending off the attacks of the flying-horned fish-dragons. Enraged, the flying-horned fish-dragons let out shrill, bizarre shrieks as endless bolts of lightning shot from their single horns, slamming into the barrier. A layer of lightning had already pooled over the barrier's surface like liquid thunder, making it appear on the verge of collapse. Even with Yu Hua's cultivation, he was entangled by the flying-horned fish-dragons and unable to break free for the moment. This showed just how terrifying the power of their divine abilities was. Fortunately, they had the Demon-Intoxicating Saliva; otherwise, had he and Yunyouzi alarmed the flying-horned fish-dragons, their chances of survival would have been grim indeed. "Zhao Yan fell by your hand?" Recognizing Qin Sang, Yu Hua instantly realized what had happened. Many things clicked into place in an instant. His gaze flickered darkly as he sneered coldly, "That useless trash! He controlled the Heart-Devouring Insect yet still ended up getting killed by you—truly unexpected. No wonder this old man couldn't find him all these years." "Wait!" "In that case... the Nine-Illusion Heavenly Orchid is in your hands!" A look of ecstatic frenzy suddenly surfaced on Yu Hua's face. He knew about the Nine-Illusion Heavenly Orchid! Qin Sang's heart tightened. Killing intent flashed in his eyes. Staring coldly at Yu Hua without a word, he abruptly waved his hand and unleashed a streak of golden light. The Spirit-Binding Cord shot forth like a flood dragon breaching water. In the blink of an eye, it swept right before Yu Hua, about to bind him fast. At this moment, Qin Sang was effectively joining forces with the flying-horned fish-dragons. Even though Yu Hua was at the False Core stage, taking him down was not out of the question. Such an opportunity was exceedingly rare, and Qin Sang naturally would not let it slip. To his surprise, Yu Hua made no attempt to dodge; instead, a sneer crept onto the corners of his mouth. *Crack!* The barrier rippled, jolting the liquid thunder into surging waves. A blast of lightning was actually shaken loose by the barrier and transformed into several wildly violent bolts of lightning. Exceedingly swift and eerily precise, they struck toward the Spirit-Binding Cord. Caught off guard, Qin Sang could not retrieve the Spirit-Binding Cord in time. With a resounding boom, the Spirit-Binding Cord was submerged in lightning. Its spiritual glow was directly shattered by the mighty lightning, and the tool itself dimmed as it fell to the ground, covered in cracks and clearly ruined beyond use. Qin Sang turned pale. Fortunately, he had reacted quickly and withdrawn his spiritual sense from the Spirit-Binding Cord in time, sparing himself from backlash. Yet a fine top-grade magic tool—and an exceptionally useful trapping tool at that—had been destroyed so easily, leaving Qin Sang deeply pained. So that was how the lightning sneak attack had come about. Though Yu Hua was unable to break free, he could borrow their force, adroitly redirecting the liquid thunder to counterattack. Ambushes against Yu Hua would be difficult to pull off under these circumstances. No wonder Yu Hua remained fearless. However, Qin Sang had never actually expected the Spirit-Binding Cord to bind Yu Hua. The moment the cord was destroyed by the lightning, an ethereal sword phantom quietly surfaced not far from Yu Hua's flank. The instant Yu Hua had forced him out of hiding, Qin Sang had split his focus to release the ebony sword, setting up the trap in advance and sending it stealthily gliding over. Because the gap between their strength was too vast, even though Qin Sang possessed the divine ability of "unity of man and sword, vanishing without a trace," he still feared being seen through, and could only maneuver the ebony sword with utmost caution. The Spirit-Binding Cord had merely been a feint to draw Yu Hua's attention and cover for the ebony sword—though the price had been steep, with the cord destroyed outright. Fortunately, the ebony sword had successfully crept up beside Yu Hua. *Whoosh!* The moment Yu Hua jolted the barrier, the ebony sword seized the chance to close in. Getting any closer would risk discovery and forfeit the element of surprise, so Qin Sang chose this exact moment to unleash the full power of the spirit sword. Sword qi erupted, thrusting toward Yu Hua! By the time Yu Hua noticed the ebony sword's presence, it was already too late to evade. Sensing the exceptionally keen aura of the ebony sword, he instantly recognized that this was no ordinary spirit sword. The sneer vanished from his face. Casting a venomous glance at Qin Sang, he abruptly flipped his palm and threw out two black spheres. Profound Yin Thunders! Qin Sang recognized them at a glance. Though the power of a Profound Yin Thunder was formidable, the current ebony sword was no ordinary item either. If struck by the Profound Yin Thunders, it might be damaged, but not critically; at most, it would require a longer period of nourishment. Compared to killing Yu Hua, such a price was nothing. With that thought, Qin Sang steeled himself. Not only did the ebony sword not dodge, but it accelerated even further. To his surprise, Yu Hua did not throw the Profound Yin Thunders directly at the ebony sword—he hurled them toward the barrier instead. Just as Qin Sang wondered why, a thunderous boom shook the cavern as the Profound Yin Thunders detonated right before the barrier. At this juncture, the barrier had been locked in a stalemate with the liquid thunder; the sudden explosion immediately shattered the balance. The moment the barrier ruptured, Yu Hua bellowed in fury and abruptly shifted his hand seals. The barrier fragments suddenly formed a tempest, harnessing the blast to sweep up a portion of the liquid thunder and surging straight at the ebony sword. Within that storm was not merely the power of the Profound Yin Thunders, but a terrifying convergence of the Profound Yin Thunders, a swarm of flying-horned fish-dragons, and a False Core stage master. If the ebony sword continued to pursue Yu Hua, it would take the full brunt of this frenzied energy! Qin Sang's expression changed drastically. The ebony sword was his life spirit sword, and the killing talisman upon it was intricately bound to his cultivation method; it could not be destroyed under any circumstances. No longer caring about chasing Yu Hua, Qin Sang hastily recalled the ebony sword. Yet unexpectedly, Yu Hua was now the relentless pursuer, forcibly steering the storm around to chase the sword. Swift as the ebony sword was, the tempest was faster. Seeing his life spirit sword about to be swallowed by the storm, Qin Sang's eyes nearly split with fury. With a roar, he slapped his palm forward, hurling out a black stone. The Black Dragon Stone swelled rapidly, intercepting just ahead of the storm as it crossed paths with the ebony sword, barely managing to block the tempest in the nick of time. Nothing remained in his field of vision save for blinding white light. A sharp pang seized Qin Sang's chest as a tremendous force slammed into him. Grunting in pain, he crashed heavily against the ice wall behind him, wracked with agony. When the white light dissipated, the passage before him—along with the Black Dragon Stone—had completely vanished, replaced by a cavernous void. *Rumble, splash...* Water rushed backward from the subterranean river, expanding the deep pool several dozen times over. Clutching his chest, Qin Sang looked pale. Fortunately, the Black Dragon Stone had detonated the storm, so he had only absorbed the shockwaves; otherwise, the consequences would have been unthinkable. Yet the price Qin Sang paid was staggering: two top-grade magic tools, the Spirit-Binding Cord and the Black Dragon Stone, were ruined, costing Yu Hua only two Profound Yin Thunders without inflicting a single wound on him. Instead, Yu Hua had decisively detonated two precious Profound Yin Thunders to escape his predicament. No matter how one calculated it, Qin Sang had come out on the losing end. *Is this the strength of the False Core stage?* Qin Sang was shaken to his core. His eyes narrowed as he caught sight of a gray silhouette darting into view, charging straight toward him. Looking toward the deep pool, the flying-horned fish-dragons had also been tossed about haphazardly by the shockwaves of the explosion. Qin Sang hastily swept his hand across his mustard seed bag, driving a large banner into the ground. Endless yellow sand instantly filled the ice cavern.