Captured Alive

Seeing the bone claw reach out with tremendous force toward the ebony sword, the light atop it looking somewhat peculiar, Qin Sang immediately made his decision. He swiftly formed an incantation gesture, and with a gentle sway, the ebony sword suddenly split into two identical rays of sword light. Both rays appeared completely real, making it impossible to tell which was the genuine treasured sword and which was an illusory sword phantom. "Sword light differentiation!" Du Han's scalp went numb. Never had he imagined that two divine abilities assiduously pursued by sword cultivators would be displayed before him by the very same person—and one who had clearly reached Core Formation not long ago. The two rays of sword light advanced side by side, bypassing the bone claw. Even with his eyesight, he could not discern which was real and which was false. There was no time for Du Han to hesitate. He could only make a desperate gamble, directing the bone claw to seize one of them while swiftly slapping his mustard seed bag and taking out a round mirror. It was impossible to tell what material this mirror was crafted from; it was entirely black. Both the mirror face and the frame shimmered with an obsidian sheen, perfectly seamless. This was the magic treasure the Li Witch Palace had bestowed upon Du Han after he broke through to Core Formation, named the Black Water Mirror. Originally, the Black Water Mirror was merely an excellent low-grade magic treasure. Later, he had unexpectedly obtained a piece of top-grade ore and hired someone to smelt it into the treasure. Though it failed to advance to a medium-grade magic treasure, its might ranked among the very best of low-grade magic treasures. *Crack!* At that moment, the bone claw successfully caught one ray of sword light. Yet after struggling for a brief moment, that ray abruptly shattered. It was the differentiated sword light. The other was the spirit sword's true body. *Whoosh!* The ebony sword was right in front of Du Han. The bone claw could not return in time to assist. Fortunately, Du Han had anticipated this. Disregarding the claw, he hurriedly poured all his strength into activating the Black Water Mirror, holding it before the ebony sword. Black water seemed to churn across the mirror's surface, rippling erratically before turning into a bolt of black silk that shot forth from the mirror to entwine the ebony sword. Right then, Du Han let out a sudden cry of alarm, stamped his foot violently, and darted aside. The next instant, a black ghostly claw thrust straight through his chest. Behind Du Han, the Flying Yaksha had closed in amidst the chaos, finally finding an opening for a sneak attack. Qin Sang had originally stationed the Flying Yaksha in hiding to assassinate Du Han's natal insect gu. Upon discovering that Du Han lacked one, he had changed his plan to launch a direct ambush against Du Han instead. This strike seemed to have struck home. Yet there was not the slightest trace of blood on the Flying Yaksha's claw. Moreover, Du Han's body grew increasingly translucent, eventually revealing a palm-sized figurine woven from some unknown straw. Its facial features were identical to Du Han's, lifelike to the extreme. A look of agony appeared on the figurine's face before it abruptly shattered into fine powder. Meanwhile, Du Han's figure materialized out of thin air not far away, his chest heaving, completely unharmed. Fear covered his face; he had clearly been terrified by the Flying Yaksha's ambush, cold sweat dripping down his back. *Seems to be some kind of secret technique like a death-substitute puppet?* Qin Sang's pupils constricted. He inwardly noted how truly troublesome this man was—bizarre methods seemed endless, allowing him to escape even an inescapable killing blow. However, Qin Sang felt no discouragement after missing the strike. He tapped gently toward the ebony sword. A layer of deep crimson swiftly washed over the sword's blade, and with a *whoosh*, a ray of blood-red light leaped onto the Black Water Mirror. Qin Sang had held back the Blood Filth Divine Light until now precisely for the Black Water Mirror. Although the bone claw was Du Han's life magic treasure, its quality fell short of the Black Water Mirror. That mirror was the strongest magic treasure in Du Han's possession, regarded by Qin Sang as the greatest threat. He had bided his time until now just to ruin it. Without the Black Water Mirror, Du Han would lose his greatest reliance. No matter how high his cultivation was, he would not escape Qin Sang's grasp. With his mind rattled, Du Han could only watch helplessly as the Black Water Mirror was submerged in that bizarre, bloody light. He instantly felt his connection to the mirror grow sluggish. The spiritual radiance atop the Black Water Mirror dimmed drastically, its divine ability crippled as it teetered precariously in the air. Du Han blanched, hurriedly attempting to recall the mirror for inspection, when a bloody silhouette caught the corner of his eye. Having failed in its sneak attack, the Flying Yaksha had casually slaughtered Du Han's disciple, hurled the corpse at Du Han, and closed the distance in an instant. Well aware of how terrifying the Flying Yaksha was, Du Han had no choice but to abandon the Black Water Mirror with an aching heart, hastily recalling the bone claw to strike at the monster. Having lost the invaluable straw death-substitute puppet and the Black Water Mirror in rapid succession, Du Han's will to fight evaporated completely. Any thought of killing Qin Sang had vanished; he only wanted to flee for his life. The succession of treasures Qin Sang had displayed gave Du Han the illusion of facing an old monster. Even among renowned masters who had spent many years in Core Formation, few possessed so many terrifying methods. Was this truly someone who had just formed his core? No wonder this man had no natal insect gu—he clearly had a life magic treasure instead! Deeply regretful, Du Han racked his brains for a way to break free while cursing his disciples as utter fools. Yet after preparing for so long, how could Qin Sang allow him to escape? Having ruined the Black Water Mirror, Qin Sang made no pause whatsoever. He instantly recalled the ebony sword, flicked his wrist, and three small banners whirled out from his palm, taking formation in midair. The Ten Directions Yanluo Banners swelled several tens of feet high. The surrounding temperature plunged sharply. Though the sun shone brightly high in the sky, the air turned chillingly ghostly. Qin Sang pushed the Ten Directions Yanluo Array with all his might. Since reaching Core Formation, he had practiced sword light differentiation and familiarized himself with the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners without interruption. His sword light differentiation had already yielded modest results, sufficient to confound an opponent at the very least. The Ten Directions Yanluo Array, however, still required a little time to prepare. "What kind of wicked artifact is this?!" The appearance of the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners once again shattered Du Han's understanding. Being proficient in arrays, he immediately recognized that this was a grand array formed by three magic treasures. Its might was bound to be extraordinary. The fear in Du Han's heart grew ever stronger. Sensing the approach of death, he exhausted every technique at his disposal trying to shake off the Flying Yaksha, even resolving to sacrifice his own life magic treasure. Talismans and Daoist arts flew in all directions. With its thick hide and iron flesh, the Flying Yaksha ignored them entirely, clinging tenaciously to Du Han. Relying on the durability of its physical body, weathering the bone claw's strikes to buy Qin Sang time to prepare the banner array was well within its capability. Meanwhile, Qin Sang shifted his hand seals continuously, finally completing the grand array! *Whoosh, whoosh...* A violent gale swept up. In an instant, ghostly wind billowed, and the surrounding area abruptly darkened. A black vortex seemed to appear on the surface of each ghost banner, from which an intensely frigid black flame surged forth, congregating in the center into a deep, impenetrable darkness! "Go!" Qin Sang pointed toward Du Han, his gaze icy. Saving the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners for last was meant to ensure nothing went wrong in capturing this man alive! The Nine Nether Demonic Fire transformed into a blazing dragon, hurtling toward Du Han. Scrambling in panic, Du Han commanded the bone claw to fend off the pincer attack of the Nine Nether Demonic Fire and the Flying Yaksha, utterly exhausted. Finally, with a loud crack, the bone claw abruptly shattered and was swallowed whole by the Nine Nether Demonic Fire. Du Han sank into despair. Qin Sang did not leave him so much as an opportunity to take his own life. Buffeted by the Nine Nether Demonic Fire, Du Han's consciousness grew dazed. When he came to, he found a hand gripping his throat.