Chunyang Sect

"I never expected that a junior from my sect could cultivate this technique to such a level," Qingzhu said with deep emotion. "You obtained the jade slip I left behind. If you can truly continue cultivating through these two killing talismans and succeed in Nascent Soul formation, then I can consider my legacy passed on. I just never imagined that we would meet at such a time and in such a place. Fortune truly plays tricks on us." Qin Sang was just about to speak when Qingzhu waved his hand, cutting him off. "I know what you want to ask. What you are looking for is not here, but in the Inner Hall. You will only be able to reach it when the Hall of Seven Kills emerges on its own." Qin Sang was taken aback, thoroughly confused. He had teleported to the Hall of Seven Kills, yet had somehow ended up in the Western Frontier of the Witch God Continent, only to learn later that he had plummeted from the top of the Heaven Tower and been mistaken for a ten-thousand-year-old corpse. Did Qingzhu mean that the ancient teleportation array was not in the Heaven Tower at all? "Senior, please enlighten me," Qin Sang pressed immediately. "It involves far too many secrets. I cannot speak of it, and I must even do my best to avoid dwelling on it, so I cannot answer your questions. Right now, I have sealed off my memories, so he cannot do anything to me for the moment. But the instant he catches wind of my thoughts and learns those secrets, it will ruin everything, perhaps even plunging us into utter ruin." Qingzhu pointed toward his own chest and sighed softly. "I shouldn't have revealed myself today. But when I saw that carving of Jing'er's, I couldn't hold back and forcibly broke through his suppression. I must thank you, young friend, for bringing this news. It settles a deep longing in my heart, allowing me to fight with everything I have from now on. Even so, because of this, a flaw appeared in my guard, giving him an opening. What the final outcome will be is still very hard to say." Qingzhu spoke in veiled terms, but Qin Sang understood the gist of it. The 'he' Qingzhu referred to was the second consciousness within his body—ten to one, it was the demonic soul of his external incarnation revolting, attempting to devour the true body's origin soul and turn from servant to master. Suffering from this backlash, Qingzhu had been sealing his memories, guarding his mind, and resisting the demonic soul. "Senior, do you have a way to resolve this hidden danger? Though my cultivation is meager, perhaps I can be of some help..." Qin Sang said in a serious tone after a brief pause. In truth, ever since stepping onto the eighth floor, Qin Sang's heart had grown heavy with foreboding. This place was completely different from what he had imagined. A scene of utter desolation stretched before him, devoid of all life. There was no ancient hall, nor were there any traces of ancient restrictions; the odds of an ancient teleportation array existing here were exceedingly slim. He suspected that the eighth floor was not the top of the Heaven Tower at all. If Qingzhu was implying that the ancient teleportation array lay within the Inner Hall of the Hall of Seven Kills, he could only search for it by waiting until the hall emerged on its own to enter the Inner Hall. The location of the ancient teleportation array had to be extraordinarily secretive; otherwise, people would have discovered it long ago, uncovering Ziwei Palace and the Lesser Cold Domain. The Hall of Seven Kills emerged only once every few centuries. Qin Sang would have only a single opportunity, and the hope of locating the ancient teleportation array entirely on his own was infinitesimally small. Regardless of whether Qingzhu's words were true or false, he had no choice but to stand with him. "To possess such strength while at the mid Core Formation stage is truly rare," Qingzhu said, shaking his head. "Once you break through to the peak of the Core Formation stage, had I met you before my Nascent Soul formation, I fear I would have had to admit defeat as well. But you cannot help me. I can only rely on myself to fight for a sliver of hope. "To tell you the truth, your current predicament also has something to do with me. I will not deliberately conceal it from you, nor will I use it to coerce you into anything..." Here, Qingzhu paused slightly, then abruptly changed the subject. "Do you know of the Chunyang Sect?" Qin Sang's heart stirred. Not daring to speak rashly, he gave a nod. "After you leave, go to the Chunyang Sect and look for a sword cultivator surnamed Ning. He will come out to meet you and explain the whole story. When that time comes, I must also trouble you to pass this item to him..." Qingzhu's spiritual sense surged, manifesting a dense array of runes that coalesced into a crystal bead before him. Just as he was about to send it toward Qin Sang, another aura turned violently berserk. Muffled roars echoed from within his chest, and a beam of black light shot forth, striking the crystal bead. Qingzhu grunted, his spiritual sense shattered, and the crystal bead burst into fragments. Several more attempts yielded the same result, and the aura of Qingzhu's true body grew weaker and weaker, to the point where he could no longer even condense the crystal bead. "Forget it! Go!" Qingzhu let out a soft sigh and gave up. His tone carried a hint of urgency. "Great upheaval is coming here; it is no place to linger. I will soon be unable to suppress him. One final warning: the immortal restrictions have shifted, and the interval between the appearances of the Hall of Seven Kills may become shorter and shorter. Prepare yourself early. "Hurry, go!" The aura inside Qingzhu fell into complete turmoil. A deep, bloody hue welled up in the depths of his pupils. He hastily sat cross-legged on the ground, his body trembling violently. Qin Sang still had a belly full of questions, but seeing this display, he dared not remain any longer. Silently bowing to Qingzhu, he sped toward the Sword Path. At the mountain peak, Qingzhu sat motionless. A sinister cackle rose from within his body. "That man surnamed Ning is your lifeline?" "Let's see how much longer you can resist! The Yuanshen Sect, the Chunyang Sect... I will drag them all out, one by one!" "I had no idea we actually had a daughter. Once I completely devour you, I will thoroughly enjoy everything you created for me—cultivation, family... I'll guide your—no, our disciple and daughter! After all, I am you, and you are me! Hahaha..." Qingzhu remained unmoved, though his expression twisted contortedly. One eye surged with crimson bloodlust, monstrously wicked and berserk, while the other remained boundlessly gentle, gazing fixedly and tenderly upon the wooden sword resting across his knees. Half sword immortal, half demon! ... Sword Path. Qin Sang flew on his escape light without stopping for a moment until he returned to the entrance of the Sword Path. His expression was solemn, deep in thought. "This Qingzhu is no ordinary figure!" Bai, who had been on edge the entire time, finally let out a long breath of relief and dared to speak. "Not only has he reached the mid Nascent Soul stage himself, but his external incarnation's cultivation is in no way inferior to the true body—perhaps even higher. Heaven knows what happened to him to provoke such a backlash from his incarnation, reducing him to this state. Otherwise, seeing how well he treated you, we might have gained a powerful backer, making things much easier for us in the future." "Fellow Daoist Bai, what chance do you think Senior Qingzhu has of suppressing the demonic soul?" Qin Sang asked in a low voice, his eyes flashing. After a brief silence, Bai hesitated. "If I could regain my memories, perhaps I could spot some clues. But since he said he can only rely on himself, I doubt those were empty words. It's difficult for an outsider to gauge." Qin Sang nodded slightly, a hint of yearning surfacing on his face. "Did you notice that Senior Qingzhu is different from other cultivators? Perhaps because I am a sword cultivator myself, I could feel it all the more clearly. What was most terrifying was not his cultivation, but the sword momentum that accompanied his every gesture, as though he himself were a divine blade. According to ancient records, those capable of this at the Nascent Soul stage are destined to become peerless sword cultivators, and in this day and age, they are exceedingly rare. In our resource-starved era, Senior Qingzhu managed to reach a realm that even ancient sword cultivators yearned for. If nothing goes awry, he will undoubtedly become a figure standing at the apex of the cultivation world. I actually have great confidence in him."