Flying Yaksha

Refining a living corpse into a Flying Yaksha could be broadly divided into four steps: Core Ingestion, Core-Body Fusion, Earth Fiend Core Piercing, and Corpse Core Evolution. Among these, the most perilous were Core Ingestion and Earth Fiend Core Piercing. During Core Ingestion, the refined corpse might fail to withstand the demon core's power, causing its sea of qi to lose control, its physical body to collapse, and ultimately body blowout and death. Even if one were fortunate enough to survive this step, one could still not afford to relax. During Core-Body Fusion, the demands placed upon the refiner were even greater. In this step, Qin Sang had to execute countless hand seals of extreme complexity to help the living corpse fuse with the demon core. Not a single moment's pause was permitted. The crux lay in spiritual sense. If spiritual power ran short, medicinal pills could replenish it. If spiritual sense ran dry midway through, one could only wait helplessly for failure to arrive. However, having been tempered by the *Origin Soul Sword-Nurturing Chapter*, Qin Sang's spiritual sense was a cut above that of cultivators at the same realm, so this step was actually the one he worried about least. Earth Fiend Core Piercing was meant to form a baleful core. The slightest misstep could trigger a violent clash between the earth fiend qi and the demon core, leading the core to self-detonate. Standing so close, Qin Sang would inevitably be caught in the blast; even if he did not die, he would lose half his life. Once the baleful core formed, the most dangerous phase would have passed. It would only remain for the baleful core to evolve into a corpse baleful core belonging to the refined corpse, and the Flying Yaksha would be successfully completed. In addition to all this, after the Flying Yaksha was forged, there was yet another hidden danger—the refined corpse's backlash! When a refined corpse was abruptly elevated to a Flying Yaksha, even a cultivator at the False Core stage would find it difficult to control, carrying an immense risk of backlash. Disciples of the Heavenly Corpse Sect had to make thorough preparations before refining a Flying Yaksha. When the refined corpse bared its fangs, they would first have to suppress it and steadily reinforce the soul imprint, relying on that imprint to slowly subdue the refined corpse and bring it back under control. Qin Sang had no need for that, as the jade Buddha also possessed the ability to strengthen his soul imprint. If the disparity in strength between him and the refined corpse were too great, it certainly would not suffice, but now he had no such worry. Even if the refined corpse advanced into a Flying Yaksha, it would be unable to break free. This saved Qin Sang a great deal of time. The jade box opened. Qin Sang tapped his fingers repeatedly, dispelling the restrictions within. A potent demon qi surged forth, accompanied by a biting chill. According to Manager Bao, this demon core had been harvested from an early Demon Core stage ice lizard. The icy chill of the demon core was completely different from the yin chill of earth fiend qi. Superimposed upon each other, even someone as strong as Qin Sang felt his body was on the verge of freezing stiff. Setting Yu Hua aside for the moment, Qin Sang drew the demon core before him, supporting it with an upturned right hand as he focused his mind entirely on the core. The beauty of a demon core represented tremendous power, an exquisite perfection achieved through transformation along the Great Dao—difficult to put into words and dazzling to behold. Qin Sang focused his gaze, composed himself, and cautiously sent his spiritual sense forward to perceive the aura of the demon core. After some time, once Qin Sang had grown thoroughly familiar with the demon core, he suddenly hooked a finger toward Yu Hua. In that instant, what looked like a thread flew out from Yu Hua's body, guided by Qin Sang toward the demon core. From this step onward began the contents of the secret art for refining a Flying Yaksha. The thread was actually the manifestation of the corpse-refining restrictions upon Yu Hua; through these restrictions, Qin Sang sought to let the demon core and the refined corpse become acquainted first. Following Qin Sang's movements, the threads across the demon core's surface gradually wove into a net. At first, the demon core showed fierce resistance, but as time passed, it seemed to begin accepting it. "Go!" Qin Sang gave the demon core a gentle forward shove. The demon core drifted toward Yu Hua, aiming unerringly for the dantian. At this moment, baleful qi roiled at Yu Hua's dantian, resembling a black hole. Seeing the demon core about to enter the dantian, Qin Sang's mind suddenly tensed, his eyes locked onto the core. *Whoosh!* The demon core slowly sank into the baleful qi. Right then, Qin Sang's expression abruptly changed. He discovered that under the demon core's stimulation, both the baleful qi and the spiritual power within Yu Hua's sea of qi were beginning to churn violently. The two forces, which had originally coexisted in harmony, had their balance shattered by the influx of demon qi, showing signs of imminent collapse. Making a snap decision, Qin Sang yanked the demon core straight back out! While soothing both sides, Qin Sang meticulously recalled every detail of what had just occurred, then continued to try again. Failure followed failure, yet changes were quietly taking place beneath the surface. Gradually, the earth fiend qi and Yu Hua's spiritual power no longer repelled the demon core so fiercely; instead, they were able to coalesce into a single force to jointly resist the demon core's pressure. This was good news. Only by cooperating seamlessly could they withstand the demon core's oppressive might. The demon core sank inch by inch into Yu Hua's body. Storms brewed again and again, only to be quelled in time by Qin Sang each time, until the demon core fully entered Yu Hua's dantian. Within the sea of qi, amidst an ocean formed of spiritual power and baleful qi, the demon core bobbed and drifted before settling firmly in the dead center. Suddenly, demon qi erupted, blazing with dazzling radiance. At that moment, Yu Hua's facial features contorted violently, and he let out a bizarre, ghostly wail filled with excruciating agony, which was sealed within the cavern by the restrictions Qin Sang had laid beforehand. Qin Sang looked tense. His spiritual sense swept across Yu Hua's entire body in an instant, terrified of missing any single flaw, and then he mobilized his spiritual power without holding back, pouring it frantically into Yu Hua's body to help suppress the demon core! Yu Hua's sea of qi was in utter turmoil, its energies in complete chaos. It was now like a bottomless pit; Qin Sang's spiritual power was quickly drained empty. Without pausing for breath, he swallowed a spiritual pill, then a second, a third... With veins bulging at the corners of his eyes, Qin Sang stared unblinkingly at Yu Hua. Finally, the chaos within Yu Hua's sea of qi subsided. The tangled mess of spiritual power and earth fiend qi gradually settled, each retreating back to its proper place, while the demon core also reined in its sharp radiance, floating quietly at the center of the sea of qi. Qin Sang let out a long breath, slowly withdrew his spiritual power, inspected Yu Hua, and immediately entered meditation to regulate his breathing and recover. Once restored to his peak, he proceeded to the second step and completed it smoothly. By this point, Yu Hua and the demon core appeared to be intimately attuned, but this was only an illusion; only when the demon core was refined into a corpse baleful core would it truly merge as one with Yu Hua. The next step was Earth Fiend Core Piercing, which was also the most perilous step! Qin Sang cleared his mind and rested for a long while before daring to begin. Yu Hua's sea of qi turned into a smelting furnace. The earth fiend qi and spiritual power within were like flames, roasting the demon core. Under unrelenting impacts, a breach was finally blasted through the demon power on the demon core's surface! Spotting the opportunity, Qin Sang immediately ordered Yu Hua to drive a wisp of earth fiend qi to tentatively surge toward the demon core. Yet before it could succeed, it was forced back by the demon power closing up again. Failure was completely normal as long as it did not spiral out of control, so one could not afford to be impatient. Before, Qin Sang had found his breakthroughs amidst failure after failure until he finally succeeded, so he felt no rush. Within Yu Hua's sea of qi, the two sides engaged in a tug-of-war. Time slipped by. Everything comes to those who persevere; at last, the first surge of earth fiend qi successfully broke through the demon power, made contact with the demon core, and decisively plunged inside! Immediately, it met with a fierce counterattack from the demon power and was repelled once again without success. Yet this was only the beginning.