External Core

Qin Sang stood in the shadows, fixing his gaze upon the grand formation. Even after observing it for a long time, he could not locate the formation core. The Qingyang Demonic Sect's mountain-protecting grand formation was the handiwork of a Nascent Soul cultivator and was exceedingly profound. Qin Sang only felt a bout of dizziness and confusion without finding the slightest clue, leaving him no choice but to give up. Still, he was well aware in his heart that even if he did find the formation core, he would not be able to force his way out. If he wanted to leave, he would have to wait for the Qingyang Demonic Sect to open the formation themselves. Qin Sang quickly turned over countermeasures in his mind. His whereabouts were already exposed, though the two who had discovered him were pinned down by the Ancestral Holy Fire and unable to send word. Yet this delay would not last very long. Once that Core Formation cultivator returned, rescued them, and learned the truth, he would immediately seal the mountain, pouring the entire sect's strength into an exhaustive manhunt that would not cease until Qin Sang was dragged out. Attempting to repeat his old trick by continuing to lurk in the dark and wait for a chance to leave was bound to fail. When that time came, the Qingyang Demonic Sect would have him trapped like a turtle in a jar, with nowhere to run. Qin Sang was currently in a weakened state. Before familiarizing himself with the power of the corpse core, he lacked the ability to charge into the cyan light to silence them. He even suspected that even if he mastered the corpse core, provoking the Ancestral Holy Fire without possessing Qingyang demonic fire would likely lead to his own doom before he could ever kill those two. He had experienced firsthand from close range just how terrifying the power of the Ancestral Holy Fire was. Had those two not cultivated the Qingyang demonic fire and been protected by that strange cyan banner, they would surely have been annihilated into ash by the cyan light in an instant. Though the cyan light was not the true body of the Ancestral Holy Fire, it was a manifestation of its purest power. Once unleashed, it was far more terrifying than the Nine Nether Demonic Fire within the Ten Directions Yanluo Banner! What about using a Xutian Thunder? Qin Sang pondered for a moment, then shook his head inwardly, dismissing the thought. The traces left behind after detonating a Xutian Thunder could not be erased in a short time, and he would still end up exposed. The Xutian Thunder was currently his most dependable trump card and definitely could not be used lightly. If he wasted a Xutian Thunder without achieving his objective, he would only plunge himself into an even more perilous situation. After pondering a while, Qin Sang decided not to act rashly. Since he could not get out, he should quickly find a place to familiarize himself with the corpse core. Once his strength recovered, anything he wanted to do would be much easier, which was far better than daydreaming here. He still had less than two shichen left. Just moments ago, Qin Sang had discovered that his progress in mastering the corpse core far surpassed Yu Hua's. If he exerted all his efforts, there was a considerable hope that he could master the power of the corpse core within this period. When that time came, he would possess strength rivaling that of a Flying Yaksha, and with both the ebony sword and the Xutian Thunder in his hands, he would not necessarily have to fear that Core Formation cultivator. That person was merely in the early Core Formation stage, after all. With this in mind, Qin Sang looked around and found a hiding place not far from the Qingyang Demonic Sect's mountain gate. Calming his heart and entering meditative absorption, he focused single-mindedly on sensing the corpse core inside his body. As time passed, Qin Sang's control over the corpse core grew increasingly effortless and smooth. As he became ever more familiar with the corpse core, an inkling of realization gradually dawned upon his heart. His past spiritual power and the corpse core's true essence were not on the same level at all. When Qin Sang channeled the power of true essence, although it lacked that intimate, seamless familiarity of his previous spiritual power, it encountered no obstruction when driven. It was truly a power at his disposal. It would not be an exaggeration to say that Qin Sang was no longer who he once was. However, this transformation was strictly at the level of true essence. His spiritual sense and physical body still remained in their original states. He had not, like a genuine Core Formation cultivator, stirred the qi dynamics of heaven and earth to converge the winds and clouds and undergo an all-around metamorphosis. This was his fatal shortcoming—unless Qin Sang accepted an irreversible corpse transformation, ceased restraining the true essence, and allowed his origin soul and physical body to endure the impact. The Flying Yaksha's strength lay in its physical body. Its elusive, ghost-like speed and its physique capable of going head-to-head with cultivators of the same rank were forged precisely because, while undergoing the corpse transformation, it continuously endured the tempering of the corpse core. Qin Sang was unwilling to undergo the corpse transformation, so his physical body saw little change, which was equivalent to giving up the Flying Yaksha's most potent ability. Reasonably speaking, Qin Sang's strength should have been inferior even to that of a Flying Yaksha. Yet as time went on, Qin Sang was astonished to discover that although he had not yet completely mastered the corpse core, the true essence power displayed by it had already surpassed that of Yu Hua, who possessed a formidable physique! Qin Sang estimated that once the corpse core was completely at his command, his strength would probably not be much inferior to that of a genuine early Core Formation cultivator! What was lost in one place was gained in another. This was something Qin Sang had completely failed to anticipate. Was it because he had used a golden core that had not lost its vitality, or because the fusion of earth fiend qi and Qiantian astral qi had brought about this transformation? Perhaps it was a combination of both. This discovery filled Qin Sang with wild joy and bolstered his confidence tremendously. Yet immediately afterward, Qin Sang also realized that his corpse core was entirely different from Yu Hua's. The composition of the true essence was exceedingly peculiar, formed by the golden core's own power fused with earth fiend qi, Qiantian astral qi, and corpse qi. Spiritual power was merely an insignificant portion of it; what mattered far more were the heavenly astral and earth fiend energies. Once the power of the corpse core was consumed, although it could gradually recover by absorbing the spiritual energy of heaven and earth, the recovery rate was agonizingly slow—negligible in the midst of combat—and even absorbing spirit stones hardly helped. If he wanted to recover quickly in battle, he would have to devour heavenly astral and earth fiend qi simultaneously. Earth fiend qi was easy to manage, but Qin Sang had no method of carrying Qiantian astral qi around with him. In other words, no matter how strong he was, he could only burst with power for a limited period. He had to find a way to slay or shake off his opponent before his true essence was exhausted. Why did this feel so much like the legendary external core? Qin Sang knitted his brows in thought. In the cultivation world, legends of external cores were not uncommon; they were something every cultivator dreamed of. Yet the true secret arts for an external core had never actually circulated in the open. Still, one could easily imagine. An external core was still a core; the secret art surely would not be any easier than forming a genuine golden core, and might even be harder. It was said that only Core Formation cultivators possessed the ability to condense and refine an external core. Whether Shaohua Mountain possessed an external core secret art was something Qin Sang was unsure of; he was not yet qualified to access secret arts of that caliber. However, he had once read an untitled, fragmentary ancient book on Pagoda Peak, which briefly mentioned external cores in a few scattered words. It bore many similarities to the corpse core within his body. Looking back, wasn't the Heavenly Yin Corpse Art's secret method for refining a Flying Yaksha essentially equipping a refined corpse with an external core? Deep within a damp trench. At some point, Qin Sang had already awakened from his meditative state. Opening his eyes, he wore a contemplative look. Then he slowly shook his head, putting these thoughts aside for the time being. After all, he had possessed the corpse core for too brief a time to comprehend it thoroughly, and there were bound to be overlooked details. Only after he reached safety and contemplated it carefully could he draw any firm conclusions. With that thought, Qin Sang rose to his feet. He could now roughly control the corpse core, and it had taken even less time than he had anticipated—merely a shichen and a half. The Qingyang Demonic Sect's Core Formation cultivator had still not returned. Qin Sang decided to wait no longer. He would return to Divine Astral Peak and stir up some trouble for the Qingyang Demonic Sect. He could not take the Qingyang astral essence with him, but he could destroy it. Once the Ancestral Holy Fire became unstable, they would likely have no energy to spare for making trouble for him.