Chapter 1328: Dirty Land

Qin Sang and Lu Boyuan gathered together, and through Lu Boyuan's introduction, Qin Sang met several unfamiliar desert cultivators.

Qing Jun stood nearby, gazing intently at the swirling mist as if lost in thought.

Five days passed in the blink of an eye.

After that, no new cultivators appeared.

Qin Sang casually glanced at the cultivators from the Small Cold Domain nearby; they were to cooperate with Demon Lord Tongyou and the demon race to explore another forbidden area. As his gaze swept over Earl Dongyang, the Earl noticed, raising his head to meet Qin Sang's eyes.

As if knowing what Qin Sang was thinking, Earl Dongyang's lips curved slightly, revealing a playful smile.

Qin Sang's gaze turned cold, and he looked away.

For twenty years, Earl Dongyang had remained quiet, seemingly having forgotten that Qin Sang had seized his Nascent Soul Puppet and severely injured him. Perhaps he was wary of Qin Sang's strength, concerned about implicating Shaohua Mountain, and intended to swallow his pride, giving up on seeking revenge.

However, Qin Sang did not care about his thoughts. Earl Dongyang posed no threat to him. Should Earl Dongyang dare to make a move, Bai He and the Nascent Soul Puppet that Qin Sang had already subdued would surely give him a tremendous surprise.

Qin Sang was thinking about something else. Based on the information he had previously obtained and what Earl Dongyang had said, Chen Yan's last attempt to rescue her master must have ultimately failed. Back then, Qin Sang had "sold himself" for Foundation Establishment, but Chen Yan's true goal was to rescue her master at any cost, showing the depth of affection between master and disciple.

Given Chen Yan's personality, she would never give up, even if there was only a one in ten thousand chance. However, since her departure, she had not appeared even during the last emergence of the Ziwei Palace. Now that the Immortal Gate was about to open, Chen Yan was still nowhere to be seen.

Chen Yan, a prodigy with a Heavenly Spirit Root, was already a Nascent Soul cultivator two hundred years ago. Her cultivation must be far more formidable now. Even if she hadn't broken through to the mid-Nascent Soul stage, inviting a few helpers shouldn't be difficult, should it? Had she given up on saving her master, or had something unexpected happened to her?

Sin God Palace.

Stale and deathly silent.

In the darkness, a faint light glowed, illuminating a seated figure next to an ancient seal. The person was like an old bell, having sat motionlessly here for countless years, their figure integrated with the darkness.

Sensing the fluctuations from the ancient seal, Old Devil Ye awoke from his meditation and slowly opened his eyes. For over twenty years, he hadn't moved a single step, and his injuries had long since healed.

He looked around him. The core crystals of the Nether Crystal Pagoda floated around him, constantly revolving slowly. However, the Nascent Souls were gone. Upon closer inspection, one could see a small figure imprisoned within each crystal sphere – these were the Nascent Souls, including Elder Tianzheng. Thin chains coiled around their limbs and necks. Their faces, however, were devoid of resentment, replaced by a blank, listless expression and vacant eyes, clearly indicating they had lost their sense of self. Trapped within the crystal spheres, there was no sign of struggle.

Old Devil Ye's gaze shifted, finally settling on the crystal sphere in the very center. Elder Tianzheng's Nascent Soul was imprisoned within it. Old Devil Ye gazed deeply at him. He then opened his mouth, spat out a drop of essence blood, and, guiding his spiritual sense, formed an unusually complex Blood Soul Curse in mid-air. It flashed and sank into Elder Tianzheng's glabella.

Elder Tianzheng's face contorted in extreme pain. Having struggled against Old Devil Ye for many years and now utterly exhausted, he had little power left to resist. His last shred of clarity was swallowed by the Blood Soul Curse, plunging him into deep despair and bringing him completely under Old Devil Ye's control. Suddenly, a mass of ghostly mist appeared within the crystal sphere, transforming into countless shadowy figures that clawed and lunged at Elder Tianzheng before ultimately coiling around him as tight chains.

Seeing this, Old Devil Ye let out a long sigh of relief. He hadn't expected the old fellow to be so difficult to deal with. The other Nascent Souls quickly collapsed, allowing Old Devil Ye to take advantage and refine them into the crystal spheres. Only Elder Tianzheng, still recovering from severe injuries, had continued to struggle fiercely even in despair, his resolve unwavering, leaving no opening. Furthermore, Old Devil Ye himself was injured, which was why it had dragged on until now.

"The Ziwei Palace is about to emerge! Release me quickly! Otherwise, it will be too late!" A shriek emanated from beneath the seal.

Old Devil Ye glanced indifferently. The demon was eager to escape and pulled such a stunt every few years; he naturally wouldn't believe it. His figure flickered continuously as Old Devil Ye swept to the edge of the forbidden area. Gazing toward the depths of Sin God Palace, he saw the anomaly in the sky, and a hint of surprise and eagerness flashed in his eyes.

The time had come!

"Throw down the jade bone! Quickly!" the demon shrieked, even more impatient than Old Devil Ye.

The jade bone had always been kept by Old Devil Ye at the edge of the ancient seal. The hope of escape was close at hand, but for twenty years, it could only be seen, not touched, which was truly torment.

This time, Old Devil Ye no longer hesitated. He grabbed the jade bone and flung it into the seal. A faint light flared, finally revealing the full extent of the seal. The area was unusually vast, surrounded by a swamp. The swamp was full of mud and filth. Within the swamp, a path made of stone slabs led to four stone pillars. Each pillar was dozens of meters high, standing majestically at the four cardinal points, their bases deeply embedded in the swamp, forming the seal.

At this moment, the mud pit in the center of the pillars churned, revealing a small opening from which the demon's voice emanated.

Old Devil Ye's figure flickered, splitting into four projections that flew towards each of the four stone pillars. He had previously stayed on the path, not daring to touch the swamp. The foul substances were corrosive, and the demon trapped here suffered inhumane torment constantly.

*Bang!*

The four projections formed an extremely complex hand seal, simultaneously pressing their hands onto the stone pillars. The seal vibrated.

*Gurgle, gurgle...*

The jade bone fell into the swamp and immediately sank. A burst of wild laughter echoed from the depths. Suddenly, waves of mud surged skyward, and a foul stench assailed the nostrils. This sight was utterly disgusting and nauseating.

From within the violently churning mud, a grey shadow shot out. Within the grey shadow was a skull. The moment the skull appeared, the seal reacted violently. Countless years had passed, but the fluctuations emanating from the stone pillars still possessed astonishing power.

Old Devil Ye's expression slightly changed. He gritted his teeth, performed a hand seal, and shook the seal. The seal's power rushed towards the grey shadow, like long whips tipped with sharp barbs, lashing mercilessly at the skull.

*Crack, crack, crack...*

The demon shrieked repeatedly as the skull frantically charged towards the jade bone. It was covered in cracks and seemed on the verge of exploding. Just as the skull was about to be destroyed, a soul shadow shot out, barely managing to plunge into the jade bone.

The seal's power immediately pursued, becoming even fiercer and more terrifying.

*Snap!*

The brocade skin on the jade bone's surface was instantly ripped open in places, leaving it tattered. A series of explosive sounds emanated from the jade bone. It was extremely tough, but if it didn't escape quickly, it would suffer the same fate as the skull.

Faint light flowed over its entire body, and countless eerie runes flickered into existence on the jade bone. Suddenly, a powerful aura erupted. Two soul fires ignited in its empty eye sockets, flickering violently. The jade bone, now possessed by the ghostly shadow, let out a piercing shriek and shot skyward!