Harvest

"Soul-refining demonic tools?" The Yellow-Armored Man scrutinized the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners with an amused gaze. "From what I know, the Shadowless Sword hails from Shaohua Mountain, a righteous sect. In the Lesser Cold Domain, the righteous and demonic factions stand in opposition, and every righteous sect acts so sanctimonious. Who would have thought the famous Shadowless Sword of Shaohua Mountain would refine so many soul-refining demonic tools? I wonder how many lives you've slaughtered. If word of this gets out, it will surely cause an uproar, won't it? I just wonder if Shaohua Mountain will have the resolve to clean house." "Then I simply won't let word get out," Qin Sang replied flatly, completely unbothered by the man's threat. *Whoosh...* The banner array roared to life as boundless ghost fire surged forth. The entire formation, including Qin Sang himself, was swallowed by the sea of ghost fire. Waves of flames soared into the sky. A dull humming buzzed from the Mountain-Shaking Stele. The lower half of the giant monument was engulfed in ghost fire. Mysterious yellow qi steadily emanated from the stele, yet in the face of the ferociously aggressive flames, it seemed somewhat powerless. The mysterious yellow qi could only cling tightly around the stele, yet it was still steadily eroded away by the persistent ghost fire. The power of the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners was a cut above a talisman treasure, which was why they could block the stele's ambush with such ease and launch an equally fierce counterattack. The Mountain-Shaking Stele was no match for the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners, though it would not be shattered in an instant either. Seeing this, the Yellow-Armored Man's expression turned grave. He sneered, "I admit this set of soul-refining demonic tools is indeed extraordinary, but I wonder how long you can sustain it in battle." He could naturally tell that the consumption of the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners was certainly not small. In an intense clash, if the wielder depleted their spiritual power first, no matter how powerful the magic tool was, it would all be in vain. Qin Sang's cultivation had not reached the False Core stage, falling a step behind his own. Moreover, confident in the unique capabilities of his armor, the Yellow-Armored Man had no fear whatsoever of the Yanluo Banners. "Fall!" The Yellow-Armored Man roared, unleashing the full might of the talisman treasure. The characters inscribed upon the Mountain-Shaking Stele flared with mysterious yellow light. Its weight suddenly multiplied several times over as it forcibly suppressed the ghost fire and slowly descended. Dull, thunderous booms sounded where the ghost fire collided with the stele. Cluster after cluster of ghost fire was extinguished. On the other hand, the stele fared even worse. Its base began to fracture, starting as a hairline fissure that rapidly spread like a spiderweb across its lower half as it pressed downward. *Crack!* With a sharp snap, a corner of the stele finally sheared off. A large fragment plummeted and instantly vanished, swallowed by the ghost fire. The Yellow-Armored Man acted as though he had seen nothing, holding nothing back as he detonated the talisman treasure's remaining power. Amidst crackling ruptures, the stele disintegrated faster and faster, dissolving layer by layer before their very eyes as if devoured by the flames. In the end, only half of the stele's body remained, riddled with fractures. *Boom!* The Mountain-Shaking Stele suddenly exploded in its entirety. Violent shockwaves blasted out in all directions, driving back the ghost fire. At that precise moment, the armor worn by the Yellow-Armored Man suddenly erupted with a brilliant surge of mysterious yellow radiance. The originally separate plates of armor fused together seamlessly within the yellow light, leaving not a single gap, encasing even his face. The Yellow-Armored Man was transformed into a fully sealed armored warrior. Raising both hands high, the radiant glow of his armor gathered frantically into his palms, ultimately condensing into an imposing halberd. *Whoosh!* Halberd in hand, he gave a casual swing, easily slicing off a corner of the black stone. In the next instant, his figure vanished from where he stood and reappeared directly above where the Mountain-Shaking Stele had detonated. Under the cover of the violent gale, his body spun rapidly downward. Man and halberd descended like a falling star, thrusting fiercely into the sea of fire. The Yellow-Armored Man did not know that when he detonated the stele, a flame far deeper and purer than ghost fire had quietly emerged from the depths of the blaze. The Nine Nether Demon Flame! Within the Ten Directions Yanluo Array, the ten main souls held aloft the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners in unison. Qin Sang forced out his essence blood, secretly activating the magic treasure. Qin Sang had long made up his mind: under no circumstances could he let the Yellow-Armored Man escape! This place was laden with heavy restrictions. If he failed to resolve the battle swiftly and allowed his foe an opportunity, the man could easily flee to safety. Thus, Qin Sang did not hesitate to unleash the full magic treasure of the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners. He regarded the Yellow-Armored Man as a formidable adversary and had already learned that the man excelled most at close combat, leaving his opponents helpless with his sturdy armor and martial techniques. Now was the moment! The magic treasure not only consumed Qin Sang's essence blood, but also swallowed his spiritual power at an alarming rate, like a bottomless pit. A surge of Nine Nether Demon Flame welled up from the treasure. Following Qin Sang's intent, it shaped itself into a black sword and shot upward like an arrow loosed from a bowstring. At this moment, the armored man plunged down. Sensing an unusually sharp aura rising from the sea of fire, he felt no fear despite its extraordinary nature. Instead, he let out a sneer. "I knew you had an extraordinary spirit sword!" "Black magnetic sand!" Holding the halberd in one hand, he abruptly flung a handful of gray sand with the other. Black magnetic sand was a peculiar material developed by the artificers of the Heaven-Traversing Alliance. It possessed remarkable efficacy against spirit tools such as flying swords and daggers. Once the heavy sand adhered to a flying sword, it would render the blade exceedingly cumbersome and drastically diminish its power. *Whoosh!* The Nine Nether Demon Flame burst through the sea of fire. A sight that terrified the Yellow-Armored Man unfolded: the black magnetic sand not only failed to cling to the black sword, but was swallowed directly by it. How was this a sword? It was clearly a terrifying flame! *Rumble!* The Nine Nether Demon Flame revealed its true form, sweeping outward with an appalling aura. Qin Sang no longer concealed it and dispersed the ghost fire. Down on the ground, amidst the banner array, an exceptionally towering Ten Directions Yanluo Banner stood tall, causing the hairs on the Yellow-Armored Man's body to stand on end. "A magic treasure!" Terrified to the extreme, the Yellow-Armored Man let out a strange shriek. He halted desperately and turned to flee upward, but it was already too late. The Nine Nether Demon Flame surged forward, engulfing him whole. *Snap!* No matter how formidable his armor was, it could not withstand the Nine Nether Demon Flame. In an instant, the yellow radiance dissipated, and the armor was reduced to a lump of scrap metal, utterly ruined. Stripped of his armor, the Yellow-Armored Man was as exposed as if he were running naked in the street, facing the Nine Nether Demon Flame entirely on his own. The horrific fire was right before his eyes. No matter how desperately he channeled his spiritual power, it was of no use. The aura of death filled him with despair. Even more terrifying was an essence within the Nine Nether Demon Flame that struck directly at his origin soul. Under its influence, his very thoughts seemed to slow to a crawl. By instinct, he tried to draw another magic tool, but his movements were too sluggish, and he failed to produce it. *This is the end of me!* The Yellow-Armored Man closed his eyes in despair. His origin soul suffered heavy damage first, plunging him into unconsciousness. At the final moment, Qin Sang suddenly formed a hand seal, freezing the Nine Nether Demon Flame and preventing it from incinerating the man. With a flicker of movement, Qin Sang darted to the Yellow-Armored Man's side. Finding him still alive, delight showed on his face. He cast several restriction seals to lock away the man's cultivation, then stuffed several healing pills into his mouth. At long last, he had captured a False Core cultivator alive using his own strength. Furthermore, unlike the handsome youth, bringing this man out posed no trouble at all.