Green Bronze Chunk

Both the Nine-Illusion Heavenly Orchid and the Three Light Jade Liquid were treasures of astounding value, enough to drive immortal cultivators mad. It wouldn't be surprising if even Dao companions turned on each other over them. Through their past experiences, supporting each other multiple times, he and Yunyouzi had forged a deep friendship. Now that this friendship was being tested by extraordinary treasures, would it change? Qin Sang hoped Yunyouzi would not do something disappointing. Qin Sang walked to the edge of the Nanming Li Fire, summoned his ebony sword, made his preparations, and watched Yunyouzi's movements. Yunyouzi sat cross-legged in the center of the spirit array with a solemn expression, holding the little bird spirit puppet on his palm, arm raised flat in front of him, facing the Nanming Li Fire directly. Under Yunyouzi's control, the cyan light from the spirit array gathered toward the little bird spirit puppet, ultimately merging into its body. At the same time, the puppet spread its wings and hopped on Yunyouzi's palm, its beak opening wide to greedily swallow the aura of the Nanming Li Fire. In the process, the puppet's bones and feathers grew increasingly vivid red, as if real flames were burning inside it and spreading outward, eventually engulfing the entire bird. After letting out a final chirp, it vanished, truly transforming into a ball of flame! Having swallowed the aura of the Nanming Li Fire and been assimilated by it, the flame on the little bird spirit puppet was now remarkably similar to the genuine Nanming Li Fire. "Go!" Yunyouzi flicked his palm slightly. Spreading its wings, the spirit puppet shot forward like an arrow released from a bowstring, charging straight toward the Nanming Li Fire and plunging into the flames in an instant. It aimed closely against the wall of the secret tunnel, where the Nanming Li Fire was at its weakest. *Poof!* Plunging into the Nanming Li Fire, the puppet was surprisingly not burned to ash immediately. In the depths of the flames, the shadow of a little bird appeared. The aura of the Nanming Li Fire it had absorbed over the years took effect; once released, it helped the puppet merge into the fire. However, this assimilation could not last, and the fire aura within the puppet was rapidly depleting. Even the accumulation of so many years could not withstand the burning of the true Nanming Li Fire itself. Once that aura was exhausted, the spirit puppet would perish. Even now, the puppet's body was shrinking at a visible pace; it could hold out for ten breaths of time at most. At the exact moment the spirit puppet threw itself into the fire, Qin Sang made his move as well. Becoming one with his sword, he flew forward upon it like a moth to a flame. Yunyouzi suddenly clenched his fist and barked in a low voice, "Open!" Within the flames, the spirit puppet flapped its wings furiously and danced amid the fire. Its dance was exceptionally graceful, yet devoid of melodic birdsong. In the dead silence, it carried a poignant sorrow—this was to be the little bird spirit puppet's final trace left upon the world. Using the little bird spirit puppet as a catalyst, Yunyouzi deflected a thousand jin with four liang. A tremor rippled along the edge of the Nanming Li Fire—which even Nascent Soul Patriarchs dared not touch—and a gap surprisingly opened between the fire and the wall. Qin Sang arrived just in time, shooting through the opening in a flash and successfully reaching the other side of the Nanming Li Fire. Brushing past the Nanming Li Fire, before he even had time to feel the demon fire's terrifying heat, a blast of icy baleful wind abruptly enveloped him. In an instant, he transitioned between worlds of ice and fire. Qin Sang shivered. His field of vision ahead was a ghastly white; the baleful wind seemed to churn with frigid ice shards, converging here with the Nanming Li Fire to create a wondrous spectacle where ice and fire coexisted. It was bitterly cold, but not yet unbearable; none of the cold-warding magic tools Qin Sang had prepared were even needed. Judging by the scene ahead, the baleful wind formed by sword qi was far fiercer than the Mystic Frost Baleful Wind. That things were manageable here was likely because the scorching heat of the Nanming Li Fire neutralized the wind's chill. Nevertheless, that extreme cold still distinctly lingered without weakening in the slightest, capable of directly invading one's origin soul. Had anyone else come here, their origin soul would have shattered within a few breaths, easily freezing them to death. The further one advanced, the closer to the sword mark and the true body of the sword qi, the more dreadful that chill became. Compared to this place, the Mystic Frost Baleful Wind paled like a small sorcerer before a great master. A Nascent Soul Patriarch could come and go as they pleased within the Mystic Frost Baleful Wind, but they would certainly never dare force their way through this sword qi baleful wind. With limited time, Qin Sang gave his surroundings a cursory sweep, then widened his eyes and looked ahead. Sure enough, the secret tunnel broke off not far ahead, forming a precipice. Between his position and the end of the tunnel stood a stone chamber, equal in size to the one holding the Nanming Li Fire. If Yunyouzi's information was accurate, the cauldron fragment lay inside that chamber. The stone chamber was filled to the brim with sword qi baleful wind as well, but Qin Sang had no fear and immediately dashed toward it. *Whoosh, whoosh...* The baleful wind howled, exerting immense pressure. Bracing against the wind, Qin Sang exerted all his strength, rushing up to the entrance of the stone chamber and peering inside. The sword qi baleful wind rampaged like knives through the chamber. Ancient restrictions clearly existed here, preventing the room from being torn apart by the wind. The chamber was completely bare; even if there had once been objects here, they would have long been swept away by the baleful wind. Yet in the center of the chamber, the sword qi baleful wind formed a vortex, within which a faint glimmer of green light flickered in and out of view. Qin Sang focused his gaze, piercing through the green glow to spot a fist-sized green bronze chunk. It was merely a piece of green bronze, mottled with rust, devoid of inscriptions or ancient characters. Its edges were sharp and jagged, resembling a fragment broken off from some bronze vessel that had fallen here. The green bronze chunk appeared exceedingly heavy. Though merely the size of a fist, it lay firmly upon the ground, remaining completely motionless no matter how wildly the baleful wind blew. Only set against the backdrop of this sword qi baleful wind could one sense its extraordinary nature—primitive, archaic, and imposing! Qin Sang looked at it, yet sensed no divine charm characteristic of a divine artifact from the bronze chunk. He hoped this would not end up being wasted effort. *Clang!* With a resonant sword ring, the ebony sword unleashed a burst of sword qi, slashing fiercely into the vortex of baleful wind. Qin Sang pushed off hard with his foot, charging into the center of the vortex amid the wind's disruption and reaching out to seize the green bronze chunk. Qin Sang was on high alert, but to his surprise, the green bronze chunk showed not the slightest reaction, allowing his hand to grasp it, sending a sensation of warmth through his touch. Eroded by sword qi baleful wind for countless years without suffering the slightest effect—this was precisely how a shard of a divine artifact ought to be! Qin Sang marveled inwardly, conceding that this chunk of scrap bronze was truly remarkable. He gripped the green bronze chunk and lifted with force, only for his body to suddenly sink; not only did he fail to lift the bronze chunk, but he nearly pitched forward himself. *How can it be this heavy!* Qin Sang cursed under his breath and hurriedly increased his true essence, channeling it into his hand, and finally picked the green bronze chunk up. By now, only three breaths of time had elapsed. Obtaining the green bronze chunk had proven far easier than Yunyouzi had imagined. Qin Sang even had leisure to search the stone chamber and inspect the bronze chunk. Standing here, he could see even more clearly: the stone chamber was completely empty, everything having been swept away by the sword qi baleful wind, leaving nothing behind except the green bronze chunk. Furthermore, whether Qin Sang sent his spiritual sense or true essence into the green bronze, both were like stones sinking into the sea, producing no reaction at all. Aside from being extraordinarily heavy, the green bronze chunk possessed no other peculiarities.