Chapter 1377: Sun, Moon, Stars, and Hundred Flowers Valley

Upper District.

Qin Sang left one merchant association and walked towards the next. He was not in a hurry to meet Master Feng; his current inquiries were primarily to understand the situation in the Three Realms of the Northern Sea. These merchant associations were well-informed, and Qin Sang now had a general impression of the three realms.

"Sun, Moon, Star..." The sea chart the merchant had just shown him flashed through Qin Sang's mind. The three regions controlled by humans were called Sun, Moon, and Star. Among them, 'Moon' and 'Sun' referred to two of the Three Realms of the Northern Sea: the Crescent Moon Realm, where Qin Sang was, and the Hidden Sun Realm. 'Star' referred to a sea area called the Star Sand Archipelago. As the name suggested, this sea area had countless islands, as dense as grains of sand, and although its territory was vast, it was not counted among the Three Realms of the Northern Sea. The third realm was the Demon Realm, commonly known as Demon Island.

The Hidden Sun Realm, Crescent Moon Realm, and Demon Realm constituted the Three Realms of the Northern Sea, separated by tens of thousands of miles. The three realms roughly occupied the eastern, western, and northern regions of the Northern Sea. Among them, the Hidden Sun Realm was in the east, and the Crescent Moon Realm was in the west.

Crescent Moon Island had an elongated topography; its northern tip was not far from the Storm Belt, while its southern tip extended all the way to the southern part of the Northern Sea. The Hidden Sun Realm was the smallest of the three realms, said to be a perfectly regular circular landmass. Rumor had it that the weather there was the coldest, with perpetual snowfall, hence its name, Hidden Sun.

Demon Island was located between the Hidden Sun Realm and the Crescent Moon Realm, but not exactly in the middle; it was in the northern region. In between was a vast and boundless sea area, simply and crudely named the Boundless Sea. This area was not without islands and land, but none could compare to the three realms, and they all bordered the realms, making the situation exceptionally chaotic. Many fiends and bloodthirsty demon kings frequented this place, a mix of good and bad, a lawless land of constant slaughter. The Riftwind Archipelago in the Vast Waves Sea was a similar place, but it could not compare to the Boundless Sea. It was unknown whether those merchant associations had exaggerated their descriptions.

Rumor had it that Nascent Soul cultivators also needed to be cautious when entering the Boundless Sea, as many Nascent Soul cultivators had gone missing while traversing it. Therefore, although both the Crescent Moon Realm and the Hidden Sun Realm were controlled by humans, cultivators here did not know much about the Hidden Sun Realm. There was only one widely accepted fact: unlike the Crescent Moon Realm, which was fractured and disorganized with various factions, the Hidden Sun Realm was not. The entire Hidden Sun Realm was controlled by a super-force called the Profound Heaven Palace. According to their descriptions, the Profound Heaven Palace was likely not a loose organization like the Northern Star Alliance, but rather a sect, whose palace lord was a Grand Cultivator! One could imagine what a colossal entity the Profound Heaven Palace was!

The Demon Realm was naturally the territory of the demon race. The human and demon races of the Northern Sea, like the human and witch tribes of the Vast Waves Sea, harbored deep-seated enmity. In the Vast Waves Sea, firstly, the demons of the Demon Sea could be a target for redirected conflict, and secondly, the Witch tribe was in decline, confined to the Witch God Continent, which significantly eased tensions between the two races. The Northern Sea was different; the two races were like fire and water, with no possibility of reconciliation.

It was said that the Demon Realm was originally inhabited by humans, but they were all massacred by the demon race, who now solely dominated the Demon Realm. Furthermore,

The Star Sand Archipelago was located northeast of the Crescent Moon Realm's tip and also bordered the Demon Realm; the demon race had already swallowed most of it and was still pressing forward. The dragon ship had come from the Star Sand Archipelago to the Crescent Moon Realm. Qin Sang's departure point from the Storm Belt was precisely between the Crescent Moon Realm and the Star Sand Archipelago. If he had gone further east, he might have directly entered the demon race's sphere of influence.

The various merchant associations knew the most about the Crescent Moon Realm. This was also what Qin Sang cared about most. Since he was here, he would make the best of it. Barring any unforeseen circumstances, he would likely travel in the Crescent Moon Realm for a long time. Here, various factions held sway, and the situation was even more chaotic than in the Northern Star Realm, requiring Qin Sang to act cautiously. Master Feng was one of these overlords, renowned throughout the Crescent Moon Realm.

Pondering these thoughts, Qin Sang walked through several streets and arrived in front of a tall building. "Fengyang Tower..." Seeing these three large characters, Qin Sang knew he was in the right place, paused for a moment, then stepped inside. On the first floor, dozens of beautiful female cultivators greeted guests like butterflies flitting among flowers, a pleasant sight. However, after Qin Sang entered, he was received by an old steward, who led him to a quiet room on the second floor and served spiritual tea.

"Fellow Daoist Mingyue, what would you like to purchase? I will have someone fetch it immediately, ensuring your visit is worthwhile." The old steward said with a smile, personally pouring tea for Qin Sang. He was also a Core Formation cultivator, maintaining a respectful yet not subservient attitude, conversing with Qin Sang as an equal. However, the old steward's confident expression soon stiffened. The several spiritual items Qin Sang specifically requested were all exceptionally rare, and Fengyang Market could not provide even one. The old steward's eyes showed suspicion; he wondered if Qin Sang was deliberately teasing him. Core Formation cultivators should not be qualified to covet such items.

"This place isn't much better than the Northern Star Realm or the Vast Waves Sea!" Qin Sang had tested them slightly and now had a good idea. Indeed, they were all like caged lands, none particularly abundant. He just wondered if the Northern Sea cultivation world had any unique inheritances, like those of the Witch tribe, that could broaden his horizons. He paid no mind to the old steward's thoughts, gently turning the teacup with his fingers, pondering for a moment, then asked, "Does your merchant association have any secret manuals related to insect control for sale?"

"Insect control?" The old steward was startled, a little surprised. Insect control was a branch of beast taming, and a very obscure one at that; even sects renowned for beast taming rarely had practitioners of this path.

"Secret manuals for insect control, or secret techniques for cultivating spiritual insects, either would do." Qin Sang paused, then added, "If you have top-tier sword arts, you can bring them over as well; the price is negotiable." Top-tier sword arts could serve as mutual verification for the 'Spirit-Nourishing Sword Chapter'. However, Qin Sang did not hold much hope.

Seeing Qin Sang's confident tone, the old steward's doubts lessened slightly. After a moment's thought, he said, "I'm not sure what kind of sword arts you consider top-tier, but our association does indeed have a few treasured ones. I will have them all brought over for you to choose from. As for insect control manuals, Fellow Daoist Mingyue, you've come to the right place. Our association happens to have one, and it has quite a distinguished origin!"

Qin Sang immediately became interested upon hearing this. "I'd like to hear the details!" The old steward stroked his long beard, his face full of confidence, and said, "This insect control manual is called the 'Insect Flower Scripture', and it's confirmed to have originated from Hundred Flowers Valley. Since you are an expert in this field, surely you are familiar with the renowned Hundred Flowers Valley, aren't you? In the way of insect control, if Hundred Flowers Valley ranks second, I doubt anyone would dare claim first!" Qin Sang genuinely knew nothing about Hundred Flowers Valley, but he kept a straight face, nodded repeatedly, and urged the old steward to retrieve it.

An incense stick's time later, the old steward personally brought several secret manuals. Qin Sang only needed to glance at the first level to discern the quality of those sword arts; he casually set them aside and only paid for the 'Insect Flower Scripture'. Finally, he picked up the jade slip containing the 'Insect Flower Scripture'. It was indeed a secret technique for cultivating spiritual insects, with some unique aspects. Unfortunately, it was an incomplete text, recording only common spiritual insects, with very few extraordinary insect types, and no mention of the Heavenly Eye Butterfly, Fat Silkworm, or Fire Jade Centipede.