Signal

"Perhaps," the plump cultivator gave a wry smile. "Patrolling such a vast expanse of sea surrounding the island will not be easy and will take quite some time. Should we split up or stay together?" "I believe it would be best to stay together, just as we did on the way here. That way we can look out for one another and conduct a more thorough search," the scholar in green robes said mildly. "All right! Together it is!" the plump cultivator agreed readily. "Time is short, so let's waste no more of it. Let us set off at once." Just as they were about to leave, the scrawny old man suddenly turned his head, frowning as he asked, "Fellow Daoist Qin, what are you doing?" Only then did the others notice that while they were discussing how to patrol, Qin Sang had been squatting at the edge of the cold mist, holding a clump of grass frozen into a solid lump of ice, intently inspecting something. Qin Sang stood up, uprooting the grass from the ground, and said, "Has everyone noticed anything strange about this cold mist? When driving it away with true essence, it doesn't feel like pure cold energy, but rather like a spiritual fire burning up true essence. Furthermore, I discovered a peculiar thing. Look..." As he spoke, true essence flashed at Qin Sang's fingertip, melting the ice on the grass. Immediately after, the grass lost its green color at a visible rate, turning into something like black ash. With a casual flick of Qin Sang's hand, it drifted away as cinder and dust. Seeing this, the others could not help but click their tongues in wonder. "Fellow Daoist Qin is truly observant. I had already entered once before, yet never noticed such a strange quirk about this cold mist." The plump cultivator bent down to pluck a blade of grass, rubbed it between his palms, and it too turned to ash. Qin Sang smiled without speaking. One of the female cultivators chopped down a frozen tree, and after the ice melted, the exact same thing happened. Witnessing this eerie phenomenon, none of them could explain the reason behind it. "There is something strange about the cold mist. If it were ordinary cold energy, it would merely freeze vegetation to death; it would never turn like this," the female cultivator said with a grave expression. Under the scrutinizing gazes of the group, the plump cultivator could only smile wryly. "I have already sworn an oath on my inner demons that every word I spoke earlier was the truth, yet you still do not believe me. After entering the cavern, I genuinely did not encounter such a situation. Besides, I did not dare to exhaust my true essence in there and allow the cold mist to invade my body. When the time comes, if anyone feels their true essence depleting too rapidly, why not just retreat first?" "Perhaps it was precisely because of the strange nature of this cold mist that a Nascent Soul Patriarch was drawn to establish a cave dwelling here?" someone sighed. Unable to discern any clues, everyone had no choice but to shelve their examination for now. Concealing their presence, they departed the island to patrol the surrounding waters. They searched meticulously, not even overlooking the depths beneath the sea surface. Upon returning to the island, they discovered that the cold mist had expanded slightly farther outward. Wasting no more time, they held a brief discussion and made their way together toward the cavern. The restriction at the cavern entrance seemed to exist solely to contain the cold mist and did not bar entry to the group. Man-made stone steps had been built inside the cavern, but the dense cold mist blocked their vision, obscuring everything. The plump cultivator led the way while the others followed in pairs, walking side by side. Qin Sang took the initiative to bring up the rear alongside the scrawny old man. They kept close together, able to vaguely make out one another's movements even through the cold mist. The moment they stepped into the cavern, everyone gasped in unison. The power of the cold mist inside the cavern far surpassed that on the outside. A shiver ran through everyone, and they hurriedly circulated their true essence with all their might. Feeling the terrifying speed at which their true essence was burning away, they urged the plump cultivator to hurry. The plump cultivator did not hesitate, striding briskly toward the cavern depths, and the others rushed to keep up. The interior of the cavern was exceedingly winding. The deeper they went, the more open it became, unlike the cramped space near the entrance. They drew slightly apart from one another, summoning their respective magic tools as they peered warily toward the depths of the cavern. What Qin Sang brought out was the Ten Directions Yanluo Banner—three of them at once. Forming a formation with three banners, Qin Sang then pulled them into his palm. It took only a fleeting instant, but the demonic fire aura that suddenly surged and vanished just as quickly was still detected by the others as something unusual. Someone could not resist turning back to look, but failed to catch a clear glimpse of the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners. Uncertain of what they had sensed, they withdrew their gaze. "Fellow Daoist's magic treasure seems rather extraordinary," Qin Sang heard through the scrawny old man's voice transmission. Glancing sideways at him, Qin Sang replied indifferently, "Fellow Daoist flatters me. My cultivation is the lowest among everyone here, having broken through to Core Formation only a few years ago. Fortunately, I possess a magic treasure of decent power, which has allowed me to gain a foothold in the Demon Sea. In the end, magic treasures are mere external aids; cultivation is the true foundation." What Qin Sang said was also the truth. The scrawny old man chuckled dryly and said nothing more. At this moment, holding the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners, a wisp of Nine Nether Demonic Fire coiled around Qin Sang's fingertips while his expression remained entirely normal. Yet his mind was rife with doubts. Just now, when setting up the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners and secretly circulating the Nine Nether Demonic Fire, he noticed that the Nine Nether Demonic Fire was different from usual. As if sensing something, it displayed signs of restlessness. In all the time he had possessed the Nine Nether Demonic Fire, such a sign had never appeared before. Qin Sang flexed his fingers, doing his utmost to soothe it, but the Nine Nether Demonic Fire still could not be completely calmed. This sensation was not the excitement of encountering its own kind, but rather like facing an adversary it could not wait to destroy. Previously, among the opponents Qin Sang had faced who wielded spiritual fire, the one with the highest cultivation was that Golden Core cultivator from the Qingyang Demonic Sect. That person cultivated Qingyang Demonic Fire. Qin Sang had wielded the Nine Nether Demonic Fire in a fierce battle against him, yet the Nine Nether Demonic Fire had not displayed such a reaction back then. Could it be that he was simply too weak, so the Nine Nether Demonic Fire looked down on him? 'Could there be some kind of spiritual fire hidden deep within the cold mist, even more powerful than Wu Youdao's Qingyang Demonic Fire?' Qin Sang pondered inwardly. 'Do such powerful spiritual fires sense one another's presence when they draw near? What a pity that when I snuck into the Qingyang Demonic Sect back then, I didn't take the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners inside. Otherwise, the Qingyang Demonic Sect's Ancestral Holy Fire would surely have caught the Nine Nether Demonic Fire's interest, and I could have verified it then...' At this thought, Qin Sang's expression hardened. Staring toward the end of the cavern, his eyes flickered. If a spiritual fire with power no less than the Ancestral Holy Fire truly lay hidden deep within the cavern, it was no wonder that even the beast hide of a Transformation-stage great demon had been corroded so rapidly. By the same token, however, such a dragon's pool and tiger's den was definitely not a place where Core Formation cultivators like them could recklessly barge in. 'What is this man concealing?' Qin Sang did not believe for a second that the plump cultivator would honestly lay bare everything he knew. There was bound to be something hidden, though it might not necessarily be a spiritual fire. In the face of power of this caliber, no trick or tactic would avail. The plump cultivator had entered along with them; if he dared harbor illicit designs on a spiritual fire, he wouldn't escape either. Yet Qin Sang could not be certain whether his guess was correct. The Nine Nether Demonic Fire was an inanimate thing, incapable of providing him with explicit information. 'For now, the power of the cold mist is still tolerable. Let us see what the cave dwelling's first restriction looks like first.' Qin Sang muttered to himself, growing even more vigilant. Staring at the plump cultivator's back, he stood prepared to activate the secret talisman at any moment.