Guidance

Among the countless sword marks, this one was the most inconspicuous, yet also the most peculiar. The moment he laid eyes on it, Qin Sang felt a sudden palpitation in his heart. He stared fixedly at the sword mark, forcing down the turmoil in his chest. Calm and impassive, he turned to glance at the cultivators searching behind him. Seeing that no one was paying attention to this spot, he feigned looking around while keeping his gaze locked on the mark. Sword marks crisscrossed the cliff wall in countless numbers. This was merely one among them, and nothing about it suggested it had been made recently. Yet the mark was extraordinary, imbued with a unique sword intent. The instant Qin Sang saw it, a sense of familiarity welled up within him. Inside his ebony sword, a killing talisman trembled, as though sensing something. To his shock, this killing talisman was not one of the first five from the *Origin Soul Sword-Nurturing Chapter*, but the unformed sixth killing talisman that Senior Qingzhu had created himself! Only someone who had cultivated this killing talisman could notice the distinction. Qin Sang was filled with astonishment. Unless Senior Qingzhu had taken an apprentice, the two of them were the only ones in the Canglang Sea who cultivated this technique. He had never been able to glean any word of Senior Qingzhu's whereabouts and had assumed something had happened to him. Only now did he realize that Senior Qingzhu was not dead—and had even left a sword mark here! Was it left by accident, or was there some deeper meaning? One thing was certain: if Senior Qingzhu were still alive, he would never give up searching for a way back. Coming to the Hall of Seven Kills and the Heaven Tower was entirely natural. In the Lesser Cold Domain, he still had old friends—and enemies bound to him by deep, bloody vendettas. As for why Senior Qingzhu had ultimately not returned—whether he had failed to find a teleportation formation or had met with some misfortune—that was impossible to know. Perhaps this sword mark could unravel his doubts. Qin Sang waited until the very last person departed. After searching bitterly for a long time, the others had found nothing. Everyone believed what that cultivator had said earlier, convinced that the Grand Shaman had most likely retrieved the treasure from deep within the valley. Seeing no hope left, they were unwilling to keep wasting time here. Qin Sang quietly searched all around, but found no second sword mark like it. Confirming that everyone was far away, Qin Sang returned to the cliff wall. After pondering for a moment, he spurred the ebony sword and lightly slashed a strand of sword qi toward the mark. This strand of sword qi was very slender, drifting toward the mark. Qin Sang had scrutinized it for a long time earlier without gleaning anything from it, uncertain whether Senior Qingzhu had left it inadvertently or if a secret was hidden within. Recalling what had happened back in the Ziwei Palace, he decided to test it with a sword strike. The shape of the sword qi matched the mark perfectly. Landing upon it, the qi dissolved without a sound. The sword mark did not change in the slightest. Suddenly, the black light nearby rippled, and dozens of black threads shot out abruptly, hurtling straight toward Qin Sang at astonishing speed. These threads were merely an insignificant fraction of the black light, yet they filled Qin Sang with dread. If struck by these threads, he had no doubt he would be riddled with holes like a hornet's nest. *Swish!* Light flashed around Qin Sang's figure as he shot back dozens of zhang. Seeing the threads finally retract, he breathed a sigh of relief. No wonder even the Grand Shaman and the Demon Lord dared not clash near the edge of the threads. These threads could actually sense fluctuations in true essence—even cultivators standing outside could not escape their reach. Once the black threads retreated and stability returned, Qin Sang went back to his original position. Looking at the unchanged sword mark, he fell into deep thought. It was as though he remembered something, and his eyes lit up. Then, his eyes narrowed slightly, and an inexplicable change came over his demeanor, subtle yet distinct. At this moment, he immersed his mind in the technique Senior Qingzhu had created. Though he cultivated this technique, he had not replicated Senior Qingzhu's path; his state of mind was not swayed by the technique, and relying on the jade Buddha, he had always maintained his true heart. Now, he actively immersed himself, harmonizing with the killing talisman, and slashed out another strand of sword qi. As he flew back to dodge the threads, Qin Sang stared intently at the sword mark. The instant the sword qi fell upon it, the mark indeed showed a different reaction. A faint glimmer flashed within the sword mark, and a dim sphere of light emerged from inside the cliff wall, popping lightly before shooting straight toward Qin Sang. "It really worked!" Qin Sang was overjoyed. Reaching out, he caught the sphere of light in his hand. To his surprise, the sphere of light suddenly dispersed. Qin Sang's expression changed, but immediately after, a piece of information entered his mind. To be precise, it was guidance! "It seems to point to a fragment nearby!" Qin Sang confirmed the guidance's content: Senior Qingzhu was actually directing him to a certain mountain peak fragment. There was nothing else besides that. *Did Senior Qingzhu leave this guidance specifically for me, or for an apprentice of his?* *If it was left specifically for me, then at least fifty years ago, when I fell from the Heaven Tower, Senior Qingzhu was still alive. Since we both came through the same teleportation formation, once he learned of the ancient corpse falling from the heavens, he would surely have connected the dots. Perhaps he was searching for me as well.* *Did he do this to tell me something?* *There is no telling when this sword mark was left. Senior Qingzhu not only disguised it well enough to leave guidance here that neither the Grand Shaman nor the Demon Lord could discover—which isn't something that can be achieved through a unique technique alone—what was his cultivation when he left it?* *If he had already reached Nascent Soul, why did he remain so obscure and unknown?* Qin Sang's eyes flickered, countless doubts rising in his heart. He warily glanced at his surroundings, then tapped his foot and flew out of the valley. Sweeping his gaze around, he sped off. Before long, Qin Sang appeared upon a floating rock fragment. He looked straight ahead. Ahead of him lay a fragment a size smaller than the valley. This was precipitous terrain, with a flight of stone steps winding upward toward an ancient palace nestled in the mountain. The ancient palace was built against a cliff wall, with a precipice directly behind it; beyond that, there was nothing noteworthy. The ancient palace lacked the protection of restrictions. Heavily damaged and dilapidated, more than half of its roof had collapsed, with only a corner clinging to the cliff face where broken tiles hung precariously. There were no plaques, dragon pillars, or anything inscribed with text. At a glance, this place looked just like any common fragment. It lacked even ancient restrictions; even if there had been treasures, they would have been looted long ago. Yet Senior Qingzhu's guidance pointed right here. Qin Sang's figure flickered as he concealed himself in the shadows, gliding silently onto the stone steps. Sensing nothing unusual, he quickened his pace toward the great hall. The hall was lofty; even through the crumbling walls and ruins, one could tell it must have been magnificent in the past. Standing before the hall, he attempted to search for other sword marks, but found none. After pondering for a moment, he fixed his gaze on the cliff wall behind the hall. The hall had clearly been utterly ruined; the most likely place remaining was this cliff wall. Senior Qingzhu had directed him here; it would not be without purpose. *Clang!* He swiftly laid down a Severing Spirit Formation around the area. At the same time, the ebony sword shot forth, slashing diagonally in a sword strike. As the sword qi met the cliff wall, it dissolved soundlessly, swallowed up by the rock. This familiar sight made Qin Sang's eyes light up brightly. Without hesitation, he continued to drive the ebony sword. Strands of sword qi vanished into the cliff wall one after another, and a faint light began to flicker across the stone!