Resonance

Compared to the ebony sword, the two-headed hou posed the greater immediate threat. There was no time to recall his life spirit sword. With a darkened expression, the youth made a split-second decision and drove the golden ring crashing toward the two-headed hou. *Whoosh!* The golden ring swept sideways with momentum no less terrifying than the tempest, slamming violently into the mass of wind blades. A rapid succession of metallic clangs rang out within the storm. Countless wind blades shattered, utterly unable to breach the golden ring's barrier. The golden streak pushed through like splitting bamboo, piercing clean through the gale. Having shredded the storm, the golden ring whipped around to return. By then, the ebony sword had already arrived. The youth was just about to maneuver to rendezvous with his golden ring when, to his shock, the ebony sword abruptly dove downward, darting straight for his wrist. The youth instantly grasped Qin Sang's intention. The jade bracelet was his sole poison-warding treasure and his opponent's only avenue of attack. Naturally, he valued the bracelet immensely and had long been on guard against such an attempt, determined never to let his foe succeed. True essence surged through the youth's body. His armor erupted with divine radiance, firmly shielding the jade bracelet as he flew backward. The golden ring sped back to intercept, but it could not make it in time. Humming violently, it suddenly unleashed a flurry of phantom silhouettes. *Whoosh...* In the nick of time, the ebony sword was repeatedly enveloped by the golden ring's phantoms. *Crack, snap...* Crisp detonations sounded one after another as the ebony sword smashed through phantom rings. Though the ebony sword's momentum remained formidable, it was clearly impeded, its sword radiance visibly dimming. Several more phantom rings closed in, and the ebony sword slowed dramatically. It struggled with all its might, yet like a fish trapped in a cage, its speed plummeted. Right then, the ebony sword came to an abrupt, jarring halt, and a splash of blood light suddenly burst forth. *Splash...* The faint smile that had just begun to form on the youth's face froze. He stared blankly at his jade bracelet. His protective divine light had been utterly useless, pierced cleanly by the blood light. Tainted by the blood light, the jade bracelet's luster faded at terrifying speed, turning deathly pale in the blink of an eye. The cyan barrier enveloping the youth violently fluctuated before finally shattering. *Snap!* With a crisp crack, the jade bracelet snapped in two and fell to the ground. This jade bracelet was merely a poison-warding magic tool crafted from a rare, specialized spiritual material, designed exclusively to counter the purple mist. It possessed little intrinsic durability of its own, and after being contaminated by the Blood Filth Divine Light, it was destroyed on the spot. *Clatter!* The bracelet hit the ground. That crisp sound seemed to echo directly within the youth's mind like a thunderclap! With his protective barrier broken, the purple mist swarmed in. Snapping back to his senses, the youth hurriedly circulated his true essence to resist the venomous mist with all his might. His face twisted into a savage scowl as he glared viciously at Qin Sang, his killing intent soaring to the heavens! "You dare destroy my jade bracelet! You deserve to die!" The youth's features contorted as he bellowed in fury. The jade bracelet was his most vital lifeline. Without it, taking even a single step through the Purple Mist Deathland was excruciatingly difficult, requiring him to constantly divert strength to fend off the toxic mist, which drastically crippled his battle prowess. Had the jade bracelet not been a magic tool that required continuous activation, he would have tucked it deep within his dantian to keep it safe. Yet he never could have imagined his foe possessed so bizarre and venomous a technique as the Blood Filth Divine Light, which could directly strike at the core of a magic tool, rendering any protective radiance completely futile. *Whoosh!* The ebony sword flew back. Its mission accomplished, Qin Sang recalled the sword into his origin soul and brought out his Ten Directions Yanluo Banners. Hearing the youth's furious roar, he sneered with blatant disdain. "This poor Daoist would like to see who dies today..." Midway through his sentence, Qin Sang's expression shifted slightly, and he abruptly struck out with the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners. The ghost banners unfurled and arrayed themselves into a formation. Qin Sang and the two-headed hou instantly retreated inside. The next instant, a golden light shot toward him like a lightning bolt. Had Qin Sang been a split second slower, he would have been struck, and the golden light's target was aimed squarely at his sleeve. The youth's intention was glaringly obvious: as long as he killed the fat silkworm, the two of them would be back on equal footing, forced to endure the corrosive toxic mist together. That was why, upon losing his jade bracelet, the youth's first instinct had not been to flee, but to strike at Qin Sang with everything he had, seizing his only fighting chance. Qin Sang had consecutively unleashed the Nine Dragons Heavenly Chariot Talisman, Sword Qi Thunderclap, and sword light differentiation, nearly exhausting his full strength just to create an opening to destroy the jade bracelet. He would never allow himself to fall into the same trap. Highly alert, the moment he noticed the youth's twitch of movement, he had immediately slipped into the Ten Directions Yanluo Array. With astonishing might, the golden ring crashed heavily into the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners. The ghost banners shuddered violently. In an instant, the surrounding area seemed to transform into an Avici ghost realm steeped in chilling yin qi. As magic treasures of medium-grade quality, the golden ring and the Ten Directions Yanluo Banners fell into a dead heat. With the two-headed hou assisting from the side, they began to faintly suppress the golden ring. Qin Sang noticed immediately that the youth's strength was noticeably weaker than before, clearly hindered by the toxic mist. This was his chance! With a calm, steady countenance, Qin Sang rapidly shifted his hand seals. The Ten Directions Yanluo Banners trembled, and the Nine Nether Demonic Fire surged from the flags, converging into a single torrent that rushed toward the golden ring. Unexpectedly, the moment the Nine Nether Demonic Fire emerged, an inexplicable anomaly stirred within it, instantly perceived by Qin Sang. Such a sensation had occurred only once before. Back on Cold Flame Island, triggered by the cold mist radiating from the Dongming Cold Flame. Yet this time, the resonance was even stronger than before, carrying an almost impatient urgency. And the source of that resonance lay deep within the Purple Mist Deathland! This caught Qin Sang entirely off guard. He had never imagined the Nine Nether Demonic Fire would react here. Could there be some kind of spiritual fire hidden deep within the Purple Mist Deathland? Back on Cold Flame Island, the resonance had arisen because the cold mist was formed from the dissipated power of the Dongming Cold Flame itself. Could the purple mist here also be connected to a spiritual fire? Any spiritual fire capable of evoking a resonance from the Nine Nether Demonic Fire had to be extraordinary—perhaps of the same caliber as the Dongming Cold Flame. Cold Flame Island had first drawn hordes of demon beasts, and was later contested by a Transformation stage great demon and the Huntian Island Master. Qin Sang had wracked his brains just to steal away a single tiny wisp. Even that tiny wisp, once refined into a fire bead, had become his greatest trump card. Thus, upon detecting this reaction in the Nine Nether Demonic Fire, Qin Sang's heart flared with excitement. This time, the spiritual fire was hidden deep within the Purple Mist Deathland, with no one around to compete against him. If he could find it, he could refine at least several fire beads, and if he could subdue it entirely, it would be all the better. The Dongming Cold Flame possessed power that even the Huntian Island Master and a Transformation stage great demon dreaded! His only concern was not knowing where the spiritual fire lay hidden or how far away it was. If it rested at the absolute core of the Purple Mist Deathland, the toxins there would undoubtedly reach an appalling intensity, and he did not know whether the fat silkworm could endure it. Still, Qin Sang realized that now was not the time to ponder such things. He instantly banished all stray thoughts, forcefully suppressing the anomaly in the Nine Nether Demonic Fire, and directed it to counterattack the golden ring. To deal with this youth, Qin Sang had not hesitated to expend his only opportunity to use the Blood Filth Divine Light. If he merely drove the youth away, Qin Sang would hardly be satisfied. Since the youth harbored killing intent toward him, Qin Sang was not one to show soft-hearted mercy. There was no reason to let him leave alive. Though the youth's offensive appeared fierce, in truth, he could not sustain it for long. The threat of the toxic mist would only grow heavier. If he could not kill Qin Sang swiftly, his only recourse would be to flee—and only by escaping the mist's reach as quickly as possible would he stand any chance of survival.