Concealing his figure, he searched the valley for a long time until he found a spot that offered an open view while remaining sufficiently hidden, then summoned the Yanluo Banner.
As he channeled his spiritual power into it, the Yanluo Banner fluttered without any wind. The demonic eye upon it came alive once more, surfacing on the face of the banner. It blinked several times, swept over Qin Sang with a sinister smirk, and diffused a puff of black mist that cloaked his form.
Finally, the demonic eye opened wide, staring directly toward the easternmost edge of the starry sky. Within its pupil lay a pool of chaos, flickering with strange, wondrous glints.
In less than two hours, Qin Sang had turned pale and broken into a heavy sweat, the very last wisp of spiritual power in his body thoroughly drained. He drew the demonic eye back into himself, returned to his cave dwelling, held a Soul Pill in his palm, and entered meditative cultivation.
Over the course of the night, Qin Sang activated the demonic eye twice. It remained fixed on the east, completely motionless. It seemed that seeing through the variations of the array formations across all of Huiyang Valley was not something that could be accomplished overnight.
Qin Sang nodded inwardly. At the very least, he was safe for the time being.
By now, he could also guess that the Kuiyin Sect was very likely preparing for a massive offensive against the Yuanzhao Sect.
The demonic eye was not merely spying on the shifting formations of Huiyang Valley; its true objective had to be the changes in the Yuanzhao Sect's grand sect-protecting array near the valley.
As for what had sparked the feud between the two great sects, Qin Sang did not know, nor did he care.
The Kuiyin Sect possessed three Golden Core Masters, whereas the Yuanzhao Sect had only two. The Yuanzhao Sect's sole reliance was the grand sect-protecting array said to have been laid down by two Nascent Soul Patriarchs whom their founder had invited long ago.
Once the Yuanzhao Sect's grand sect-protecting array lost its effect, their destruction at the hands of the Kuiyin Sect would be inevitable.
If that were truly the case, Qin Sang felt he might actually be safer.
In a great war between two sects, the decisive clashes would inevitably occur between experts of the Foundation Establishment and Core Formation stages. Lowly Qi Refinement cultivators like him could only drift with the tide.
Once the situation descended into chaos, no one would fix their gaze upon them. So long as he did not foolishly rush toward the center of the battlefield, escaping amidst the turmoil should not be difficult.
Moreover, holding the identity of a disciple in both sects gave him plenty of room to maneuver and adapt to the circumstances.
***
Twelve days later.
Late at night, inside the cave dwelling.
Qin Sang sat cross-legged on the water-heart bamboo futon, slowly exhaling a breath of turbid air. Suddenly, he opened his eyes, a sharp gleam flashing within them as a look of delight surfaced on his face. Then he opened his mouth, let out a yawn, and lay down on the ground fully clothed, falling fast asleep with soft snores.
Tending the herb garden, manipulating the demonic eye, and refining the medicinal power of the Qi Gathering Pill—for twelve days he had worked around the clock without a single moment of rest. Although cultivators could substitute sleep with meditation, he still felt an exhaustion deep in his soul.
Now that he had finally refined the Qi Gathering Pill's medicinal power, his cultivation had predictably advanced to the late sixth layer. Qin Sang naturally needed a good rest.
Sleeping deeply without dreams, Qin Sang woke feeling refreshed. Seeing that broad daylight had already filled the sky outside, he hurried out of the cave dwelling to continue another busy day.
After refining the efficacy of the Qi Gathering Pill, Qin Sang retrieved the stone milk.
Yang Yuanzang had already purged most of the impurities from the stone milk. Without much effort, Qin Sang obtained five drops of pure stone milk. Swallowing them and refining the essence, his breakthrough to the seventh layer came as effortlessly and naturally as water carving a channel.
Several days passed in this manner until Qin Sang sensed that the restrictions at the valley entrance had been triggered. Opening them, he saw Meng Ruhui standing at the mouth of the valley alongside an equally aged senior brother. The two were chatting and laughing, clearly very familiar with each other.
Qin Sang straightened his robes and walked up to greet them with a beaming smile.
Upon seeing Qin Sang, the smile on Meng Ruhui's face cooled somewhat. Pointing toward Qin Sang, he introduced them. "Senior Brother Jiang, the Huiyang Valley herb garden is currently being looked after by Junior Brother Qin Sang here. Junior Brother Qin, this is Senior Brother Jiang. He works at Changsheng Hall, is exceptionally well-versed in alchemy, and is in charge of harvesting spirit herbs. Junior Brother Qin, lead us to the herb garden... Huh? Junior Brother Qin, you broke through to the seventh layer?"
Meng Ruhui was thoroughly astonished. He clearly remembered that when Qin Sang first entered the valley a month ago, the fluctuations of spiritual power around him had still been quite faint, looking as if he had only just broken through to the sixth layer of Qi Refinement.
Just now, when Qin Sang flew out using a magic tool, Meng Ruhui had sensed that something was amiss. Only upon looking closely did he realize that Qin Sang had leaped across an entire stage.
"Qin Sang greets Senior Brother Meng, greets Senior Brother Jiang."
Qin Sang took the lead, saying in an even tone, "It was merely good fortune. During the Ascension Assembly, I discovered an underground demon nest in the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Ground and found over a dozen drops of century-old stalactite milk inside. I hadn't expected to break through after taking it."
Hearing this, Senior Brother Jiang said with envy, "Century-old stalactite milk is truly a miraculous medicine with long-lasting efficacy. After consuming it, its medicinal potency nourishes the meridians, conferring benefits for a year or two. To think Junior Brother Qin would possess such good fortune! Perhaps in just a few years, Junior Brother Qin's cultivation will surpass ours."
At these words, Qin Sang's heart stirred. No wonder after breaking through, he had felt his cultivation progressing a bit faster than before. He had assumed that his higher realm was allowing him to absorb spiritual power more quickly; he had not realized it was the lingering effects of the century-old stalactite milk.
Qin Sang also understood that Senior Brother Jiang's latter remark was merely polite flattery. Both of them were already at the peak of the thirteenth layer of Qi Refinement, stalled there because they could not overcome the bottleneck to Foundation Establishment. Barring any unexpected fortunes, it would already be impressive if he could catch up to them within a decade or two.
Right away, Qin Sang began to consult Senior Brother Jiang.
Meng Ruhui had said Senior Brother Jiang was exceptionally well-versed in alchemy, and it was indeed no exaggeration. With just a few pointers from him, Qin Sang grasped the medicinal nature of the century-old stalactite milk and learned how to bring out its effects to the fullest without wasting its potency.
"Who would have thought the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Ground still had century-old stalactite milk? It's about time we petition the Sect Master to search the area thoroughly. Still, a spirit medicine like this is something one can only chance upon, never demand..."
Having inquired about the location, Senior Brother Jiang said regretfully, "It is a pity Junior Brother Qin acted too hastily. Consuming it directly wasted a great deal of its medicinal strength. With so much stalactite milk, had it been brought to Changsheng Hall to be refined into pills, it might have helped Junior Brother Qin advance all the way to the late seventh layer."
Qin Sang smiled calmly. If he had brought the century-old stalactite milk out into the open, who knew whether there would still be any left for him?
Moreover, with his pitifully meager store of spirit stones, he had neither the means nor the capital to hire someone to concoct pills for him. To achieve his current result was already more than enough to satisfy him.
As the two walked ahead in conversation, Meng Ruhui followed behind in silence. Looking at Qin Sang's back and thinking of his youth, Meng Ruhui could not help feeling a pang of bitterness. A flash of jealousy flickered in his eyes, but he quickly shook his head and returned to his usual demeanor.
When they arrived beside the herb garden, Senior Brother Jiang, who had been enthusiastically imparting advice to Qin Sang, abruptly fell silent, a displeased look washing over his face.
Qin Sang stood to the side with an apologetic smile.
One's cultivation was the true foundation of everything. To focus on cultivating, he had lacked the energy to tend the herb garden properly, sometimes doing nothing more than scattering a handful of Nine Spirits Sand before leaving it be. Due to this lack of proper care, while the herbs had not withered or failed completely, they fell far short of Changsheng Hall's standards.
Meng Ruhui frowned in thought before speaking up: "Senior Brother Jiang, Junior Brother Qin only just took over Huiyang Valley and might not yet be familiar with everything. Besides, the duties here are indeed heavier than elsewhere. Why not give him a little more time?"
That Meng Ruhui was willing to help smooth things over came as quite a surprise to Qin Sang, and he cupped his hands to thank him.
Chapter 88