Landou Island

It was very likely that the shopkeeper was a spy for the Witch Clan. Unfortunately, Qin Sang had failed to capture him and had no evidence. That shopkeeper was merely an early Core Formation cultivator, and the fiend demon qi surrounding him was thick, indicating he had relied on a Fiend Demon Pill to forcefully push his way into the Core Formation stage; it would be difficult for him to make further progress. For someone like that to make trouble for Qin Sang was no different from courting death. Qin Sang was not afraid of the shopkeeper, but he worried there were other spies in Tianxing City keeping an eye on his cave dwelling. After some thought, Qin Sang did not act rashly to retrieve his external incarnation. Instead, under the guise of Daoist Qingfeng, he leased a new cave dwelling nearby and observed in secret. Everything at his original cave dwelling was normal, the restrictions intact. Upon returning to Tianxing City and drawing close enough, Qin Sang could connect telepathically with his external incarnation. The external incarnation had not detected any signs of prying eyes either. At the same time, Qin Sang frequently contacted old acquaintances to gather news through various channels. Three days passed. Certain that no ambush was waiting, Qin Sang immediately relocated his external incarnation, while he himself continued to watch the original cave dwelling, intending to use the spot as bait. Unfortunately, things did not go as hoped; no suspicious individuals ever appeared. The shopkeeper had completely vanished. The Black Snake Mountain disciples and Witch Clan spies must have known how exceedingly difficult it was to murder a human Core Formation cultivator within Tianxing City, and wisely retreated. Thus, Qin Sang was spared a headache, but the trail went cold as well. Moreover, Qin Sang's inquiries bore little fruit; he was unable to confirm the origin of the mysterious figures. They were exceptionally secretive and low-profile, virtually unknown to others. "It seems if I want to uncover the identity of those mysterious figures, my only choice is to return to that sea area and search for clues myself..." Sitting in his new cave dwelling, Qin Sang pondered quietly. In truth, he knew very well that trying to trace this lead to cause trouble for Black Snake Mountain was nearly impossible. Black Snake Mountain had already achieved their goal and likely erased their tracks before fleeing far away. The reason he persisted with the investigation stemmed from his interest in that lightning control technique. The sight of being submerged in lightning that day remained fresh in his memory. If he could make the lightning control technique his own, not only could he harness the astral fiend power, but he would also gain a formidable asset. Seeking revenge against Black Snake Mountain was secondary. In their two clashes, he had not suffered any real loss; on the contrary, Black Snake Mountain had lost two Core Formation experts to his hand, suffering heavy losses. It was Black Snake Mountain that had reason to be furious. Of course, Qin Sang was not in the habit of waiting for enemies to come knocking at his door. He would certainly make Black Snake Mountain pay. If he could not find the lightning control technique elsewhere, perhaps he could pry it from the Black Snake Mountain cultivators. However, with the turmoil in the Demon Sea still unsettled, he could hardly storm into the Witch God Continent. "Before leaving, I must settle my external incarnation." Qin Sang muttered to himself, casting a glance at the incarnation meditating beside him. With the help of blood feeding, the external incarnation's cultivation speed was astonishingly rapid. In just a few months after the origin embryo was nurtured and formed, it had made successive breakthroughs and reached the sixth level of the Qi Refining stage, one level higher than this body had possessed when alive. This was precisely why Qin Sang had gone to great lengths to refine the external incarnation. Barring any mishaps, the incarnation's strength would certainly meet the requirements before the next opening of the Hall of Seven Kills. For the external incarnation to achieve Foundation Establishment, Qin Sang would need to assist with a secret art. This secret art could only be used once the external incarnation cultivated to the thirteenth level of the Qi Refining stage on its own, bringing the spiritual power in its sea of qi to its peak. With such rapid cultivation, however, as long as it had a peaceful place to cultivate, it would not take very long. "Tianxing City isn't safe; I might as well take it along to Landou Island. After I return from investigating that sea area, I plan to visit Landou Island anyway to look into Landou Sect's stellar cultivation method, which will probably take quite some time. Bringing the external incarnation nearby will allow me to provide blood feeding whenever needed. Landou Island also has cultivation markets, so there will surely be good cave dwellings..." Qin Sang made up his mind. With the Witch Clan spies showing no signs of appearing, he did not want to wait any longer. He took a lap outside the city, confirmed no one was tailing him, and departed with his external incarnation. Before leaving, in the spirit of giving Black Snake Mountain no peace of mind, Qin Sang spread word that the Witch Clan had infiltrated and slaughtered human cultivators on a massive scale; as for how much of an impact it would have, he could not tell. *** The sect grounds of Landou Sect were located north of Tianxing Island. The island where Landou Sect resided was called Landou Island. As the name implied, Landou Sect held undisputed dominance there, reigning supreme. However, Landou Island was vast, making it impossible for Landou Sect to occupy it alone. There were numerous sects and factions of varying sizes on the island, but none matched Landou Sect's strength and all had to live under its thumb. Over time, the situation had gradually shifted. Landou Sect had once wielded immense power and carried tremendous weight, boasting more than one Nascent Soul Patriarch within its ranks. For reasons unknown, it had steadily declined over the years and now possessed only two Nascent Soul cultivators propping up the sect, one of whom was the sect master. This sect master was approaching a thousand years of age and had still failed to break through to the mid Nascent Soul stage. With his next heavenly tribulation looming, survival was all but impossible. The other Nascent Soul cultivator was shrouded in mystery. Likewise advanced in years, rumors had spread long ago that he was gravely injured, and he had not been heard from since; he might have already passed away. Among the younger generations, there was no pillar to shoulder the burden either. Though Landou Sect remained a regional hegemon, its decline was all but inevitable. Various sects on Landou Island were growing restless, and shadows of outside forces stirred behind them. Because he was traveling with his external incarnation, Qin Sang moved cautiously, taking a month and a half to reach Landou Island. Along the way, they disguised themselves as master and disciple, putting on quite a convincing act. "Landou Sect's gate is situated in the largest mountain range on Landou Island, and nearby is a large cultivation market run by the sect itself. I intend to set my sights on Landou Sect's cultivation technique. While I certainly won't resort to outright robbery, for safety's sake, it's best to place the incarnation somewhere farther away..." After a brief deliberation, Qin Sang located an immortal cultivator nearby, inquired about the geography of Landou Island, and picked a destination. Flying for half a day with his external incarnation, he arrived before an elegant, verdant mountain. By now, to avoid attracting unwanted attention, Qin Sang had circulated the Spirit Concealment Art, suppressing his cultivation to late Foundation Establishment. Unless someone possessed cultivation far exceeding his own or had an investigative treasure, they would not see through his true strength. He retrieved the flying magic tool he had used in the past, the Nether Silk Cloud. Carrying his external incarnation, he flew toward the verdant mountain, then unobtrusively touched down and proceeded up on foot. Without needing the Heavenly Eye Butterfly, Qin Sang could tell at a glance that the light mist encircling the mountain peak was an illusion array, through which a single pathway led into the cultivation market. The scale of this cultivation market was second only to the one run by Landou Sect, jointly organized by several factions on Landou Island. Qin Sang strolled through it and saw that order was well-maintained; cultivators behaved themselves after entering and did not dare make trouble at will. Nodding inwardly, he arranged to lease a cave dwelling. The quality of the cave dwelling was inferior to those on Mount Baogu, but the external incarnation was still low in realm and did not require much spiritual energy, so it was more than adequate.