Chapter 1228: Inheritance

He arrived at an open area. Qin Sang spared no effort to stimulate his divine sense, sensing its changes.

During the process of subduing the spirit fires, he could feel that each one merged with his divine sense, as if it were a tiny flame clone of himself, tempering and strengthening his divine sense.

He had never purely fought other Nascent Soul cultivators using only divine sense, so he was unsure of his divine sense's exact current strength. However, he was certain it surpassed that of cultivators at the same level.

"This past year of arduous cultivation wasn't in vain; my divine sense has progressed significantly. Once the Fire Lotus Seed sprouts and I truly enter the second layer, my divine sense will experience another leap. Old Demon Mu likely couldn't bear to refine the Winter Nether Cold Flame, so he probably cultivated it whole, which should have helped him break through to the second layer. His divine sense would then be at least as strong as the Demon Lord's and others, perhaps even surpassing them. That's how he could escape the encirclement of both righteous and demonic factions, and later feign death at Mount Yitian, deceiving everyone's perception."

Qin Sang pondered for a moment, then withdrew his divine sense. With a spread of his hand, he summoned the Eighteen Demonic Banners.

This was his top priority.

Whoosh, whoosh... Twelve demonic banners flew straight into the air, forming a formation and releasing demonic flames.

Qin Sang could already control twelve demonic banners, so he continued without pause. The Fire Lotus Seed flashed from between his brows, flying to the center of the banner formation and merging with the demonic flames. Then he raised his hand and activated three more.

The three demonic banners integrated into the formation. They stabilized after a slight tremor, and Nine Nether Demonic Flames flew out from within them, circling the Fire Lotus Seed docilely.

Qin Sang was delighted by this. Controlling fifteen demonic banners simultaneously, he felt no loss of control. Without hesitation, he immediately tossed up the remaining three.

As for the very last banner, some of the demonic flame within it had been refined by Qin Sang, making it incompatible with the banner formation. Forcing it to integrate would unbalance the formation, doing more harm than good.

The other demonic banners created a gap, allowing these three to join.

Unexpectedly, as soon as the grand formation took shape, a sudden anomaly occurred: all eighteen demonic banners began to tremble violently.

The banner surfaces writhed wildly, flapping noisily.

The banner poles vibrated, some even starting to tilt.

The Nine Nether Demonic Flames surged even more violently, disrupting the surrounding spiritual energy into utter chaos. Streaks of demonic fire clashed with each other, on the verge of breaking out of the formation's bounds and escaping control.

Qin Sang's expression subtly changed. He channeled his full power, his fingers moving like a spinning wheel, as countless restrictions descended like a shower of flowers, submerging into the grand formation. Gritting his teeth, he used all his strength to stabilize the demonic banners, barely managing to quell the disorder. He would need to refine them for some time after returning before he could use them freely.

Both the demonic banners and flames regained stability.

The eighteen demonic banners stood erect in the void, forming a circle above Qin Sang's head.

In the center of the grand formation, with the Fire Lotus Seed as its core, the Nine Nether Demonic Flames formed a flaming black dragon, a majestic and awe-inspiring sight, truly radiating overwhelming demonic power!

With a thought from his divine sense, the demonic flames surged, clawing and biting, towards the mountain peak on the left.

Boom! The pristine white snow instantly melted.

Dust and smoke billowed, the ground trembled, and the mountains shook, as the peak collapsed.

Witnessing this sight, Qin Sang's eyes sparkled with delight. He praised it repeatedly, then, after several hearty laughs, he put away the demonic banners. He returned to Sandie Pass to continue his secluded cultivation.

Sandie Pass became a training ground for the demons from the Thousand Mountains Bamboo Sea and for Li Yufu and his companions.

Qin Sang had already revealed his identity, and had long since transferred Mei Gu and other Demonic Flame Sect disciples from Stone Stream Mountain.

Mei Gu was stunned for a long while when she learned that her master was actually a Demon King.

However, the Minor Cold Domain had always been a place where humans and demons coexisted, and there was an ancient alliance between them. The hatred and estrangement between them were not as great as in the Canglang Sea, so it wasn't difficult to accept.

Mei Gu was initially apprehensive, but later, seeing that her master had more than just her as a human disciple, treated both races equally, generously offered guidance, and also possessed profound knowledge of human cultivation, she felt relieved.

However, Mei Gu still had some doubts.

When her master first appeared, he was clearly in human form. Could it be that he was already a Shapeshifting Demon King at that time? Or did he have a special bloodline that allowed him to transform without reaching the Shapeshifting stage?

These were questions she was destined not to comprehend.

As for the other Demonic Flame Sect disciples, they had been suppressed by other major forces for too long. With such a powerful backer, they could finally raise their heads in pride. All of them were overjoyed; who cared if he was a Nascent Soul cultivator or a Demon King?

Thus, Qin Sang's forces were largely integrated.

In the future, as long as he found a suitable blessed land, he could establish a sect and found the lineage of the Azure Sheep Monastery!

First, the Thousand Mountains Bamboo Sea lineage: He would select a few demon cultivators to inherit the 'Heavenly Demon Refinement Scripture', and they would support each other with the human descendants.

Second, the Wanderer's legacy: His cultivation methods and alchemy skills would be carried forward by Li Yufu.

Third, the Demonic Flame Sect lineage: Led by Mei Gu, the 'Seven Yang Art', meticulously chosen by Daoist Dove-Robed, was a good inheritance.

As for Qin Sang himself, most of the cultivation methods and secret arts he practiced were not suitable for others. At most, he could leave behind some of his cultivation insights, and previously acquired cultivation methods, such as the 'Universal Demonic Sound' and so on.

Additionally, Qin Sang had always had an idea: to develop a lineage of sword cultivators within the Azure Sheep Monastery who would inherit the 'Azure Bamboo Sword Scripture', considering it Senior Azure Bamboo's legacy.

Senior Azure Bamboo had dedicated himself to the way of the sword, condensing his life's efforts into the 'Azure Bamboo Sword Scripture'. It didn't necessarily require cultivating the 'Soul Nurturing Sword Chapter'; any sword cultivator with sufficient talent could comprehend it.

Qin Sang merely drew inspiration from it; it was too much of a waste in his hands.

He had asked his senior sister for her opinion.

His senior sister didn't mind. "You are his chosen successor. I won't interfere; you have full discretion."

Bai Hanqiu wasn't suitable; her talent wasn't sufficient. He needed to find someone else.

The Minor Cold Domain was unlike the Canglang Sea. Most of the top-tier famous mountains and rivers were already occupied, so he would need to plan carefully when the time came. However, it was currently a chaotic era, a time for destruction and new beginnings. With his strength, he would certainly not lack opportunities.

Once the Azure Sheep Monastery was established, half of the Wanderer's wish would be fulfilled.

"Are you satisfied with this arrangement, Senior?" Qin Sang cradled the charred wood left by the Wanderer and murmured the question.

After forming his Nascent Soul, he could vaguely sense a faint true spirit within the charred wood, which would not perish in a short time.

The situation was unclear, so he dared not refine the charred wood for now, to avoid any mishaps that might render the Ebony Sword unusable. He also needed to carefully consider every step before acting.

As it involved the Wanderer's last trace of true spirit, the refining process certainly couldn't be as crude as before. No mistakes were allowed; no amount of caution was too much.

Qin Sang recalled Bing Han's invitation. Currently, he needed to continue refining the demonic flames and familiarize himself with the Eighteen Demonic Banners, preparing for his entry into the Blood Lake. After returning from the Blood Lake, he would visit the Void Spirit Sect to borrow some ancient texts and then make further plans.

The charred wood remained inert, unable to answer his question.

Qin Sang sighed softly, a hint of melancholy flashing in his eyes, before putting away the charred wood.

Messages frequently came from Boundless Valley.

However, the exact opening time of the Blood Lake remained uncertain.

The fires of war on Tianxing Plateau never ceased. However, the Sinister Abyss's momentum had clearly weakened significantly, no longer as aggressive as before. This was likely related to Old Demon Ye's scheme for the Blood Lake.

One day, Qin Sang, who was engrossed in cultivation, received a message from his senior sister.

Upon hearing the news, Qin Sang's heart filled with joy. His senior sister had actually comprehended the formation diagram of the Demon Binding Rope, and had messaged him, inviting him to Stone Stream Mountain to see if he had any suggestions.