Magic Treasure

The Yellow Sand Banner enveloped the entire ice cavern. Under Qin Sang's control, more than ninety percent of the Yellow Sand Banner's power surged toward Yu Hua, disorienting his senses while alerting the flying-horned fish-dragons and guiding them in his direction. Qin Sang reacted quickly enough; he only had to steer events along their natural course, and the flying-horned fish-dragons immediately found Yu Hua. Yu Hua was once again attacked by the flying-horned fish-dragons, but this time he was already on guard. Moreover, this swarm of flying-horned fish-dragons had already been through a battle, heavily depleting their energy, and had been caught in the storm blast, leaving many injured. It was impossible for them to pin Yu Hua down as firmly as before. Qin Sang remained where he was. With a wave of his hand, he summoned the living corpse to shield him from the front. At the same time, banners appeared in his palms as billows of Yin qi surged, and he raced against time to set up the Ten Directions Yanluo Array. It wasn't that he hadn't considered luring Yu Hua inside to turn the tables using the Flying Yaksha, but on closer thought, pulling that off was simply too difficult. The Flying Yaksha ignored the living corpse, not him. Furthermore, Yu Hua could sense his location through the Heart-Devouring Insect. Using the living corpse to decoy Yu Hua while hiding in the shadows himself was equally impossible. The Ten Directions Yanluo Banners were extremely powerful, and with the flying-horned fish-dragons assisting him, all he needed was a chance to deploy the grand array. Unless driven into a corner, there was no need to stake everything on a single desperate gamble. *Crack!* A bolt of lightning tore through the yellow sand and struck toward him; Yu Hua had sensed Qin Sang through the Heart-Devouring Insect and repeated his old trick. Qin Sang had released the living corpse precisely to deal with Yu Hua's sneak attacks. The living corpse was not strong, and sending it to tangle with Yu Hua would only result in it following in the footsteps of the Spirit-Binding Cord and the Black Dragon Stone. The motionless, vacant living corpse suddenly snapped open its eyes, grabbed Qin Sang, and darted aside. To his surprise, after this sneak attack, Yu Hua made no further move. Qin Sang was secretly surprised and felt uneasy, but his hands did not pause. The Ten Directions Yanluo Banners whirled rapidly around him, and the embryonic form of the array gradually took shape. *Whoosh... Whoosh...* The whipping sand and Yin qi blended together into a murky gloom, and the Ten Directions Yanluo Array finally formed! Ten ghost banners stood erect, slowly rotating around Qin Sang as Yin soul silk drifted through the air. Covered in exhaustion, Qin Sang breathed a quiet sigh of relief. Daring not delay, he drove the Ten Directions Yanluo Array with all his might. Black flames erupted over the Yin soul silk, coalescing into a spear that tore through the air. Unexpectedly, midway through its flight, the Yin soul silk was suddenly halted, unable to advance even an inch. The yellow sand cleared. Seeing what lay before him, Qin Sang's heart sank straight to the bottom. Blocking the Yin soul silk were identical black flames! Glancing at Yu Hua, he saw that the man was using the same method to fend off the flying-horned fish-dragons' siege, only that the pool of lightning over his barrier had thinned out severalfold. Around Yu Hua, Yin qi churned turbulently, obscuring his figure. And flickering in and out of sight within the Yin qi were unexpectedly also Ten Directions Yanluo Banners! And there were ten of them! Qin Sang had never imagined that Yu Hua possessed a complete Ten Directions Yanluo Array! Back at the Yuanzhao Sect, from various details and the words of Meng Ruhui and others, Qin Sang had roughly deduced Yu Hua's background. Yu Hua was likely not a mole planted by the Kuiyin Sect, but an original disciple of the Yuanzhao Sect who had lost hope of reaching Foundation Establishment, had been tempted by the demonic sects, and willingly served as an insider in exchange for an opportunity. Before the plot was realized, someone like that could never have earned Yi Tiannie's trust. His standing in the Kuiyin Sect would not have been high—perhaps even lower than Zhao Yan's. Through their few interactions, Qin Sang had observed that whenever Yu Hua made a decision, he would first consult Zhao Yan, showing none of the haughtiness a Foundation Establishment cultivator should have displayed before a Qi Refinement junior, which confirmed this assessment. Logically, he should never have been bestowed so many Ten Directions Yanluo Banners. After all, even Martial Uncle Yue, who had served Yi Tiannie conscientiously, had only possessed four. This situation completely exceeded Qin Sang's expectations, throwing all his plans into disarray. Noticing the grand array around Qin Sang, Yu Hua said with surprise in his voice, "A complete Ten Directions Yanluo Array... Even at the height of the Kuiyin Sect, barely anyone possessed one. No wonder that boy Zhao Yan was no match for you! Good thing I didn't underestimate you!" Qin Sang turned a deaf ear to Yu Hua's words, not bothering to answer. He pushed the Ten Directions Yanluo Array with everything he had, hoping to divert Yu Hua's attention and create an opening for the flying-horned fish-dragons. The spiritual power in his body drained at a visible rate. The Yin soul silk could not advance half an inch, while the flying-horned fish-dragons remained unable to breach the barrier. Fighting one against two, Yu Hua did not fall into a disadvantage, but neither could he extricate himself from the predicament. However, if this stalemate continued, not only would he fail to defeat Yu Hua, but Qin Sang himself would run out of spiritual power and become unable to maintain the Ten Directions Yanluo Array. The situation was fraught with crisis, yet Qin Sang was calmer than ever before. Knowing full well that relying on the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners alone would never defeat Yu Hua, a look of resolve flashed in Qin Sang's eyes. He suddenly flipped his palm and slammed it hard against his dantian, pouring every last bit of spiritual power from his sea of qi into the Ten Directions Yanluo Array without reservation. He then threw his head back and swallowed a handful of medicinal pills before retrieving a talisman from his mustard seed bag—the very silver knife talisman treasure he had obtained from Luo Xingnan's relics. Replenished by Qin Sang overdrawing his sea of qi, the main souls in the Ten Directions Yanluo Array grew utterly exhilarated. For a time, the array's power surged tremendously, allowing it to sustain itself. Meanwhile, the meridians throughout Qin Sang's entire body throbbed with unbearable agony, as if sliced by knives. Yet he bore the pain, refining the medicinal energy from the pills, and the moment he accumulated a bit of spiritual power, he immediately channeled it into the talisman treasure. "Faster! Faster!" Qin Sang's eyes were bloodshot. Staring fixedly at the talisman treasure as its light grew brighter and brighter, he cried out frantically in his heart. At this moment, Qin Sang felt that time crawled at an agonizingly slow pace. A single instant felt slower than an entire day in the past! Finally, the talisman treasure trembled slightly and drifted free of Qin Sang's palm. Then, with a crisp snap, the talisman paper shattered, transforming into a small silver knife. In this situation, Qin Sang could not afford to conserve the silver knife talisman treasure's power any longer. Without hesitation, he unleashed its full potential. The silver knife pointed from afar toward Yu Hua, its tip trembling continuously. Just as Qin Sang was about to drive the talisman treasure forward, an abrupt change occurred! The area where Yu Hua stood was completely enveloped in Yin qi, obscuring what was happening inside. But just as Qin Sang prepared the talisman treasure, waves of ghostly howls suddenly echoed from within. Qin Sang immediately recognized that these ghostly howls came from the main souls of the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners. In their howls, there was neither joy nor pain. Only when enduring an overwhelmingly immense pressure, forcing out involuntary roars, could such a sound be made. What was happening? A surge of doubt rose in Qin Sang's heart. Having wielded the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners for so long, he knew them like the back of his hand, yet he had never heard such a sound before. *Could it be that the Ten Directions Yanluo Array possesses variations I don't know about?* No sooner had this thought crossed Qin Sang's mind... A gale of Yin wind whipped up violently on Yu Hua's side, churning the Yin qi into turmoil. Immediately after, the ghostly silhouettes of ten main souls slowly emerged from the mist. At this moment, their appearance was utterly bizarre, completely different from anything Qin Sang had seen before. These main souls were shrouded in bloody light. Undigested fresh blood lingered within their translucent forms, and threads of blood crisscrossed their bodies. And upon their shoulders, they carried a gigantic banner! Upon seeing this banner, Qin Sang's pupils constricted. The true Ten Directions Yanluo Banner! A magic treasure!