The spirit insect clamped down on the ebony sword in a single bite, gnawing with its fangs as strange, swirling vortexes of vapor poured from its maw. Amid a flurry of crunching sounds, the sword light was chewed to pieces, the fragments seemingly absorbed into the creature's fangs.
The ebony sword struggled free from the spirit insect's jaws, fortunately undamaged in its physical body.
"A third-metamorphosis insect gu?"
Qin Sang was shaken with uncertainty. This young man actually belonged to the Witch Clan.
There were Witch Clan cultivators on Douyan Island, but far fewer than human cultivators, given that the island lord was a human Nascent Soul cultivator. Those Witch Clan cultivators kept a low profile and took the initiative to maintain friendly ties with humans; since when had they become so brazen?
This spirit insect was known as the Essence Swallowing Insect, ranked within the top hundred of the Witch Insect Registry. Not only did this man possess inner armor, but he even had such a high-ranking natal insect gu!
The ebony sword could hardly suppress a natal insect gu that had reached its third metamorphosis.
Deciding decisively, Qin Sang recalled the spirit sword and retrieved the Black Water Mirror from his Qianjun Ring. Raising his palm, he sent the Black Water Mirror spinning out, its reflective surface aimed directly at the black-robed youth.
Within the dark, murky glass, there seemed to be an unfathomably deep space. Amid deafening crashes of giant waves, the spirit water sealed inside the magic treasure surged out, condensing into a fearsome, vicious black dragon that lunged at the young man.
Just then, Qin Sang noticed an odd change in the young man's expression. Narrowing his eyes, he stared intently at the youth's right hand. A silver glint flickered in his palm, resembling a spirit talisman!
The moment Qin Sang caught sight of that silver light, alarm bells rang loudly in his mind.
Seeing that Qin Sang had noticed his movement, the black-robed youth dropped all pretense. Thrusting his palm viciously toward Qin Sang, he let out a savage sneer. "Die!"
*Crack!*
A brilliant silver spirit talisman shattered in front of Qin Sang.
At that instant, the hair stood on end across Qin Sang's entire body, gripped by a feeling of imminent catastrophe.
Above his head, in what had been a cloudless sky, a cluster of dark clouds had appeared at some point. It was this very cloud that brought him an overwhelming sense of terror.
Filled with dread, Qin Sang did not even dare look up. His instincts acted faster than his conscious mind: he hurled the Black Water Mirror upward instead of at the youth, then sank his consciousness into his dantian, activating the Nine Dragons Heavenly Chariot Talisman without hesitation.
*Roar!*
A miniature phantom of a flood dragon suddenly appeared above Qin Sang's head, swooping downward and merging into his body.
The next instant, a crimson shield enveloped Qin Sang, adorned with swimming dragon spirits of extraordinary majesty. Transformed into an escape light blended of silver and red, he shifted several zhang sideways in the blink of an eye.
Just as Qin Sang fled, an extremely slender bolt of lightning descended from the heavens. It struck the Black Water Mirror, obliterating the magic treasure and piercing straight through it, striking Qin Sang's afterimage and brushing past him by a hair's breadth.
Failing to hit Qin Sang, the lightning struck the surface of the sea.
With an earth-shattering *boom*, the terrifying power within the lightning exploded. A crater nearly ten zhang across was blasted into the ocean surface, with streaks of silver light scattering like swimming fish in all directions.
Only after this power dissipated did the seawater slowly rush back together.
Witnessing this, Qin Sang broke out in a cold sweat.
If not for the Nine Dragons Heavenly Chariot Talisman and Sword Qi Thunderclap, and if not for the Black Water Mirror stalling it for a split second...
Had he been half a step slower and taken a direct hit from that lightning, he would have had no hope of survival! Qin Sang estimated that even a late Core Formation cultivator would be grievously wounded at the very least if struck by such lightning.
Qin Sang's expression turned grim as he glared at the black-robed youth, his gaze saturated with murderous intent.
The power of that thunder talisman was simply horrific—it was a battle-deciding trump card in any clash between Core Formation cultivators.
Had Qin Sang not possessed abundant means of escape, stayed sufficiently vigilant, treated the black-robed youth without the slightest contempt, and responded appropriately the instant something felt amiss, he might well have capsized in this young man's hands.
"Even the Thunder Decree Talisman couldn't kill you?"
The black-robed youth looked utterly stunned, clearly astonished that Qin Sang possessed such astonishing flight speed to evade a guaranteed kill.
Then, as he saw Qin Sang produce three demonic banners of extraordinary might, panic finally crept onto his face.
While Qin Sang's heart was still pounding, the black-robed youth was even more dismayed.
This Thunder Decree Talisman was a life-saving talisman bestowed upon him by his master. With the element of surprise, it could even slay late Core Formation experts, yet it had been cleanly evaded.
Moreover, the magic treasures Qin Sang summoned set his heart racing with dread. Despite his opponent's modest cultivation, the man possessed an alarming number of treasures. The black-robed youth began to regret provoking such a tough target.
Frantically driving his natal insect gu to pounce on Qin Sang, he reached toward his mustard seed bag to draw out another item. But at that moment, he suddenly felt a gust of fierce wind hurtling toward his back.
*Whoosh!*
Having hidden deep beneath the sea, the Flying Yaksha had finally closed in amid the chaos while the youth was preoccupied with Qin Sang and the Thunder Decree Talisman, seizing its chance.
The youth caught only a glimpse of a dark shadow from the corner of his eye. Paralyzed by shock, he had no time to react before the Flying Yaksha slammed a claw right into the center of his back.
Though his inner armor absorbed part of the blow, the terrifying force still surged into his body, instantly inflicting severe internal injuries. Crying out in agony, the black-robed youth was sent flying through the air.
Sensing its master's mortal danger, the natal insect gu let out a mournful wail and wheeled back to rescue him. Unfortunately, Qin Sang was faster. Teaming up with the Flying Yaksha in a pincer attack, he bore down on the black-robed youth.
Right then, a sharp whistle tore through the air in the distance: someone was rushing toward them at extreme speed.
Qin Sang's eyes narrowed slightly. The newcomer was surely an accomplice of the black-robed youth. Though there was only one person, judging by the momentum of the escape light, their cultivation was at least mid Core Formation. With his Blood Filth Divine Light already expended, it was unwise to take them on directly.
Furthermore, carrying several prized treasures, the black-robed youth had to hold a high status in the Witch Clan; he might have more than one accomplice nearby.
Abandoning his original thought of performing soul searching, Qin Sang immediately ordered the Flying Yaksha to kill him.
Heavily injured, the black-robed youth stood virtually defenseless. Barely dodging a sword slash, he was struck through the back of his head by a ghostly claw and died on the spot. His linked natal insect gu perished the moment its master died.
With a cold expression, Qin Sang recalled the Flying Yaksha, snatched the mustard seed bag from the youth's waist in one fluid motion along with the inner armor that had almost been destroyed, and then activated his secret talisman and Sword Qi Thunderclap to make his getaway.
Before departing, he even had the leeway to cast a blast of flame, destroying the black-robed youth's corpse to erase all traces.
Rather than heading toward Douyan Island, he chose the direction from which he had come.
Some unknown upheaval had occurred on Douyan Island, and before uncovering the cause, he had no wish to wade into murky waters. Other directions might harbor more of the youth's accomplices, so returning the way he had come toward the Fuhu Sea Area was the safest option.
Only after Qin Sang had slain the black-robed youth did the accomplice arrive, too late.
Seeing his companion's corpse being incinerated to ashes before his eyes, the newcomer's eyes nearly split with rage. He pursued Qin Sang in a frenzy, but his evasion technique fell far short of Qin Sang's, and the gap between them only widened.
Before long, the pursuer lost his quarry completely.
Across the boundless ocean, not a trace of Qin Sang remained.
Chapter 689