"Fellow Daoist, you should know that when a demon beast forms its core, it undergoes an enormous metamorphosis, reaping far greater benefits than we human cultivators do. Demon beasts blessed with formidable bloodline divine abilities—such as the royal descendants of flood dragons and luan pheasants—frequently fight above their realm once their cores are formed, making them exceptionally difficult to handle. Rumors once spread of a dark turtle with Xuanwu bloodline at the late Demon Core stage that battled a human Nascent Soul cultivator and successfully escaped, seemingly without suffering very severe injuries. While that may have owed something to a dark turtle's innate defensive power, it also proves just how formidable such powerful beasts can be. Every year, word spreads of Core Formation fellows meeting tragic deaths in the jaws of demon beasts of the very same realm."
Instead of directly offering the information Qin Sang sought, the burly man launched into a rambling dissertation on demon beasts.
Qin Sang frowned. "Fellow Daoist, what does prattling on about things everyone already knows have to do with the island where the six-petaled butterfly violets grow?"
Unlike human cultivators, who refined external objects, demon beasts cultivated their own physical forms. Core formation was accompanied by a transformation of both flesh and bloodline power, causing their strength to soar instantaneously.
Demon beasts that had condensed their cores were notoriously hard to deal with. If one crossed paths with a beast of the same realm while alone, unless one possessed truly formidable means, it was best to weigh the risks carefully beforehand.
This was especially true in a place like the Demon Sea.
Before they entered the Demon Sea, Ran Luo had warned them repeatedly that when hunting demon beasts of equivalent realms, it was best to hunt in groups to avoid unfortunate mishaps.
Qin Sang, of course, was no ordinary cultivator; he had the Flying Yaksha as an ally and possessed a False Core within him, granting him sustained combat capability that far surpassed that of his peers.
The burly man chuckled. "It is well that Fellow Daoist understands this. Old Wu was only worried that you might be ignorant of the danger, suffer a defeat, and return to make a scene, ruining my reputation. The island where the six-petaled butterfly violets grow lies deep in the Demon Sea, and Old Wu calls it Red Leaf Island. Several demon beast tribes hold sway around it; Old Wu saw several great demons of the Demon Core stage with his own eyes. I was only lucky enough to escape with my life. No matter how many spirit herbs are there, I wouldn't dream of going back..."
As the burly man described the environment of Red Leaf Island, Qin Sang's expression turned solemn.
The burly man's aura was not a whit weaker than Du Han's. He was a Witch Clan cultivator and almost certainly commanded a spirit insect that had undergone its third metamorphosis.
It was no wonder he repeatedly mentioned escaping by the skin of his teeth; the waters around Red Leaf Island were indeed perilous.
"How much longer until the six-petaled butterfly violets on the island mature?" Qin Sang pressed.
The burly man scratched his head and gave a self-deprecating smile. "Old Wu knows little about spirit herbs. After returning, I sought out several people to identify them before learning they were called six-petaled butterfly violets. However, the remaining stalks were all budding. I estimate it won't take more than a few years."
Qin Sang inquired about several details, silently calculating the timeline in his head.
"Growing in such a place, it would be impossible to harvest the six-petaled butterfly violets alone, wouldn't it? If one were to invite fellow Daoists and mount a grand campaign to clear out the demon beasts just for a few spirit flowers, the price would be far too high—the gains wouldn't remotely justify the cost!"
Qin Sang adopted an intentionally dejected tone. "What price is Fellow Daoist Wu asking?"
The burly man gave a cunning grin. "That depends on how Fellow Daoist wishes to buy it. The location where those spirit flowers grow is extremely secluded; otherwise, the demon beasts would have swallowed them long ago. Without Old Wu's directions, even if you reached Red Leaf Island, you would never find them."
Even though the information was somewhat of a white elephant, he had no intention of handing it over for nothing.
Qin Sang pondered for a moment, then said, "Fellow Daoist is purchasing a talisman treasure, presumably to prepare it for a junior? Although a talisman treasure is powerful, it has an obvious flaw: its uses are limited, and it can only serve as an emergency measure. A high-quality magic tool, on the other hand, can accompany a cultivator as they grow..."
With that, Qin Sang produced a spirit sword.
This sword was one from the batch he had forged using cold metal, and it was the very last one remaining; all the others had been sold long ago.
The Cold Metal sword had already been gifted to Yagu, and Qin Sang was currently keeping it safe on her behalf.
Cold metal was as scarce in the Canglang Sea as any other rare material—something one could stumble upon only by sheer luck. This sword was entirely suitable to serve as the core of a magic treasure, ready to be melted together with top-grade demon bone in the future to forge a true magic treasure.
"Cold metal?"
Sensing the aura of cold metal emanating from the spirit sword, the burly man was indeed thoroughly tempted. Without hesitating for long, he agreed to the exchange.
Having obtained the locations of Red Leaf Island and the six-petaled butterfly violets, Qin Sang bid the burly man farewell and returned to the shop he had visited at the very beginning. Both the chart and the auction catalog were ready.
Qin Sang first glanced through the grand auction's catalog, but found nothing of urgent necessity. He then unfurled the chart.
From Tianwu Island to Dahuang Island stretched a vast, winding sea route, along which every island and its surrounding environment were entirely unique.
The circumstances of each island were exceedingly intricate.
The steward tactfully withdrew. Qin Sang examined island after island with patient focus, soon locating Duyan Island. The details recorded here were not as comprehensive as those in the jade slip Elder Zou had given him, but they served well enough as cross-verification.
After scanning quickly, Qin Sang finally discovered a region where fire-repelling sparrows congregated in large numbers!
Soon, however, the joy on his face gradually faded.
Among the fire-repelling sparrows that had been sighted, the strongest were merely at the Demon Spirit stage; not a single one at the Demon Core stage had ever been discovered.
This was good news. By their nature, a flock of fire-repelling sparrows could have only one king, meaning there was at most a single Demon Core stage sparrow in the area.
The problem, however, was that this region was far too remote.
The chart indicated that the location where the fire-repelling sparrows had been found lay deep within the Demon Sea. The closest island was named Huntian Island, yet traveling from Huntian Island to that area was fraught with tremendous danger.
Not only was the distance immense, but the journey required passing through territory after territory ruled by formidable demon beasts.
Even worse, several species of demon beasts in those waters were exceptionally adept at movement arts.
The notes stated that without late Core Formation strength, hunting demon beasts in that region was strongly discouraged. Otherwise, if one alarmed a swarm of beasts, even escaping would be out of the question.
Although Qin Sang possessed the sword qi thunderous roar divine ability, his flight speed was only comparable to that of a mid Core Formation cultivator—hardly enough to guarantee safety there.
"Unless I can gather all the flood dragon souls for the Nine Dragons Heavenly Chariot Talisman and unleash the full might of that secret talisman," Qin Sang murmured to himself.
Ten peak Demon Spirit stage flood dragon souls were practically impossible to gather in the Lesser Cold Domain, so Qin Sang had always maintained an attitude of leaving it to fate. In the Demon Sea, however, it was no impossible feat.
Only when all the flood dragon souls were assembled could the true power of the Nine Dragons Heavenly Chariot Talisman be brought forth.
If the Shangyuan Qingjing Palace had not exaggerated, Qin Sang was confident that combining the secret talisman with sword qi thunderous roar would give him an escape speed that, even if inferior to a late Core Formation cultivator, would not lag behind by much.
"It seems I must endure a while longer and first follow Elder Zou and the others to establish a foothold on Duyan Island. The distance between Duyan Island and Huntian Island is not excessively far. Once I have gathered the flood dragon souls, I can seek out the Everlasting Camphor; there is no need to rush for the six-petaled butterfly violets for now. The Primordial Concentric Rings are a secret magic treasure of the Yuling Sect with miraculous effects against demon beasts. They will provide tremendous assistance in the Demon Sea, so the sooner I forge them, the better."
Having made up his mind, Qin Sang put away his belongings. Accompanied by the steward's respectful farewell, he left the shop and began strolling through Tianwu Island.
Chapter 676