The roar was peculiar; one could not tell what kind of ferocious beast had made it.
With a wave of his hand behind him, Qin Sang recalled the two-headed hou into the Primordial Concentric Rings, then crouched down and concealed his aura.
Looking at the cultivator fleeing for his life, a strange glint flickered in Qin Sang's eyes.
The man's escape light was actually bicolored—black and white.
Such an escape light was rare. Previously, Qin Sang had only seen it on cultivators of the Landou Sect's Yin-Yang branch. They cultivated the dual qi of yin and yang starting from the Qi Refinement stage, and only when casting their unique escape techniques would this peculiar light appear.
Could he be from the Landou Sect's Yin-Yang branch? It couldn't be Old Daoist Huayang, could it? Qin Sang mused internally.
The ferocious beast behind finally appeared.
From afar, it looked like a surge of black demonic wind. Even with Qin Sang's vision, he could only faintly make out the outline of the beast within—it resembled a hawk or falcon. A gentle flap of its wings closed the distance, its speed noticeably far greater than that of the cultivator.
"Roar!"
The beast roared ferociously. The demonic wind surged, shattering the rocks and crags along its path into pieces.
Within a few breaths, the beast closed in on the cultivator. After another roar, its maw gaped wide, and a ball of demon fire shot forth from the demonic wind.
Whoosh!
Wherever the demon fire passed, vegetation ignited and instantly turned to ash.
Feeling the might of the demon fire, the cultivator was terrified. Hurriedly forming an incantation gesture, his escape light jerked at an angle and plunged downward, yet he was still clipped by the edge of the flame.
With a cry of alarm, the cultivator tumbled into the mountains. Fortunately, he was not gravely wounded. Daring not delay for a moment, he cast his escape technique once more, fleeing frantically in any direction he could.
Hiding in the shadows and watching this pursuit, Qin Sang roughly gauged their strength.
The beast was menacing, its strength slightly inferior to a late Demon Core stage beast. Although the cultivator possessed a mid Core Formation stage cultivation, he was already injured and utterly powerless to fight back against the beast.
Qin Sang pondered briefly, his figure flickering as he surveyed the surroundings. Confirming there was no danger, he stealthily moved closer in the direction the cultivator had fled.
Swoosh!
The escape light tore through the air, wobbling crookedly as it flew over a mountain peak. The beast followed right on its heels.
Scorched by the demon fire, the cultivator's Daoist robe was tattered, and he had sustained serious injuries, despair written all over his face.
Just then, a sudden change occurred.
The moment the cultivator swept past the peak, a masked figure abruptly leaped up from the ground, cutting between the two to face the beast directly.
This person was none other than Qin Sang.
The beast reacted extremely swiftly. A vicious gleam flared in its eyes as it sensed danger from this person. Opening its sharp maw, it spat out a basin-sized mass of demon fire.
Qin Sang gave a cold snort. With a flash of his escape light, he effortlessly bypassed the demon fire, appearing at the beast's flank in the next instant.
He did not use the ebony sword; wielding another spirit sword, the might of his sword technique was not diminished in the slightest.
The beast gave a strange screech and flapped its wings furiously. Demonic wind coalesced, barely blocking Qin Sang's strike, but under Qin Sang's torrential assault, it quickly faltered.
Terrified out of its wits, the beast spun around and fled.
The burst of speed it showed when fleeing was even faster than before, but before Qin Sang, it was still far too slow. Enveloped by the sword wheel, it struggled for only moments before falling to his blade.
Blood showered the sky.
Qin Sang did not collect the carcass, retrieving only the beast's demon core. The ferocious beasts within the Hall of Seven Kills possessed an odd, baleful malevolence within their bodies, making them unusable for artifact forging or pill refinement.
The same was true for their demon cores, but such high-grade demon cores were uncommon, so Qin Sang kept it anyway.
By now, the fleeing cultivator had halted in the distance. Having escaped death by the skin of his teeth, his pleasant surprise was tempered by unease. Hesitating for a moment, he forcibly suppressed his injuries and took the initiative to fly back.
Having witnessed Qin Sang slaughter the beast with utter ease, the cultivator was profoundly shaken. Looking at Qin Sang with some trepidation, he cupped his hands and said, "Many thanks for lending a hand, Fellow Daoist."
Qin Sang glanced sideways at him. "Are you a cultivator of the Landou Sect?"
The cultivator dared not conceal anything, hurriedly replying, "Your vision is discerning indeed, Fellow Daoist. I am Mingyi, a disciple of the Landou Sect's Yin-Yang Peak. May I ask your esteemed Daoist title? Mingyi will never forget your life-saving grace, and in the future..."
Qin Sang waved a hand, cutting Mingyi off. "I've heard that your Landou Sect's Yin-Yang branch specializes in yin and yang, and your attainments in the Dao of Yin-Yang must be profound. I happen to take some interest in it. Would you be willing to explain a thing or two—the insights you've gained along your path of cultivation?"
Mingyi was taken aback, not expecting Qin Sang to make such a request, but he nodded repeatedly.
Qin Sang was only asking for cultivation insights rather than demanding sect techniques, which neither violated his sect's taboos nor prevented him from repaying the favor. Naturally, he had no qualms and answered every question posed to him.
Qin Sang gestured toward the direction of Flower Immortal Lake, conversing as they traveled. Mingyi complied with whatever he said.
Halfway through the journey, their discussion of the Dao came to an end.
As expected, though Mingyi's cultivation was far superior to that of Old Daoist Huayang's Dao boy and his comprehension of the Dao of Yin-Yang was deeper, he had not broken free of the mold of the first layer of the Yin-Yang Heavenly Dipper Secret Art.
Qin Sang was somewhat disappointed. His previous hunch had been correct: the subsequent cultivation methods created by Daoist Yin-Yang had serious flaws.
Mingyi was surprised to discover that Qin Sang also possessed unique insights into the Dao of Yin-Yang. Delighted by this discovery, he invited Qin Sang to visit his sect to discuss the Dao with his fellow senior martial brothers. To his surprise, Qin Sang shook his head, abruptly picked up speed, and vanished into the depths of the mountain range in the blink of an eye.
"My intervention today was merely on a whim. We are even now; you need not take it to heart, Fellow Daoist..."
Leaving behind only Mingyi, staring blankly in the direction Qin Sang had disappeared.
...
What a pity. If the Yin-Yang Heavenly Dipper Secret Art were viable, it could have served as an alternative technique after forming the nascent soul. Of course, such true legacy arts have many restrictions, and obtaining one wouldn't be easy either.
In truth, once I successfully form the nascent soul and my lifespan increases dramatically, my cultivation won't need to be as rushed as before. With Senior Qingzhu's brilliant precedent before me, perhaps I could try mending the Origin Soul Sword Nurturing Chapter myself.
Yet doing so would inevitably leave hidden dangers down the road; sooner or later, a day would come when I hit a dead end. It is not a long-term solution.
The mortal cultivation world is impoverished, and spirit herbs are hard to find. Cultivation is inherently arduous; perhaps only peerless geniuses can have it both ways!
Besides, the Nascent Soul stage is still a far cry from achieving immortality, far too early to be pioneering one's own Great Dao. When the tiger is away from the mountain, the monkey crowns itself king—a Nascent Soul Patriarch can only lord over this diminished world.
The best way is still to find a technique first, prioritizing raising my cultivation, and along the path of cultivation, observe the myriad sceneries to feel out the Great Dao best suited to me...
Qin Sang pondered these thoughts as Flower Immortal Lake drew ever closer.
He opened his palm, took out the command token Old Zou had given him, and after a moment's thought, put it away without activating the restriction within it.
Soon, at the edge of his vision, the beautiful scenery of Flower Immortal Lake came faintly into view.
The fat silkworm seemed to sense something as well, squirming restlessly in the spirit beast bag.
Flower Immortal Lake had two entrances, and Qin Sang was heading for the other one this time. He plucked the fat silkworm out, tucked it inside the armor on his chest, and accelerated toward Flower Immortal Lake.
Just then, a sudden, sharp whistling rushed through the air, and an escape light darted straight toward Qin Sang's direction.
Chapter 959