Chapter 1406: Improved Lifespan Worm Gu

The Tianmu Butterfly caught a fleeting glimpse, vaguely perceiving a certain scene. Yet, it brought a very dangerous feeling to Qin Sang. He couldn't explain it clearly to Valley Master Mu and the others, so he could only give an ambiguous warning. If they didn't listen, Qin Sang wouldn't press the issue. At the very least, he himself would definitely wait until the light pillar weakened before entering. Fortunately, all three, including Valley Master Mu, were shrewd and experienced, and their intuition told them that things inside were not simple, saving Qin Sang from needing to elaborate further.

"It's just, who knows how long we'll have to wait..." The cultivator surnamed Qi showed a worried expression, surveying their surroundings.

The Kongling Sea was no longer as calm as it once was. The after-effects of the light pillar formed the most violent storm, affecting the entire Kongling Sea. As far as the eye could see, towering waves were ubiquitous. In front of them, the seawater had collapsed, revealing a massive sea pit that exposed the source of the light pillar and the dilapidated Buddhist lotus.

Aside from the four of them, no other figures or boats were visible for the time being. But they all knew this was only temporary. Such a massive disturbance simply couldn't be concealed. Low-level cultivators were not a concern, but if any Nascent Soul cultivators were nearby, they would surely be drawn to it.

"Let's wait and see how things develop. Everyone should recover first to deal with any upcoming changes. If this drags on too long, it might turn into a battle for treasure..." Valley Master Mu couldn't help but smile bitterly as he recalled the time and effort he had invested in breaking the array. Not to mention other things. For this, his highly valued Xianyu Bee had self-detonated. Twice setting up the Sanling Panwang Array and crafting two altars also represented a massive expenditure. He had also made a deal with Qin Sang. He only hoped that the future gains would be able to compensate for his losses.

With the Buddhist lotus broken, the Sanling Panwang Array should no longer be needed below. Upon entering the Jinghai Sect, the Huoyu Centipede's own cultivation level would allow it to sense the Wanling Fruit. Valley Master Mu stopped the insect array.

Qin Sang waved his hand, and the Huoyu Centipede flew back into his palm. Its body, originally like fire jade, had become very dull and lost its luster. The Huoyu Centipede lay on Qin Sang's hand, unwilling to move even its side legs. Its entire body was stiff, and its aura was listless. If Qin Sang hadn't still been able to sense the Huoyu Centipede's consciousness, he would have thought it had turned into a statue.

*Snap!*

Qin Sang took out a jade bottle. Inside was spirit dew gifted by Valley Master Mu, which could alleviate spirit insect injuries. After entering the Jinghai Sect, the Huoyu Centipede would still be needed to guide the way, so every bit of recovery helped. The spirit dew dripped in front of the Huoyu Centipede, which immediately licked it clean. It revived slightly, its body swayed a little, and then it fell into a deep sleep.

Qin Sang glanced at it, then retracted his hand into his Daoist robe.

"Fellow Daoist Mu?" Qin Sang reminded Valley Master Mu that it was time to fulfill their previous deal. The Huoyu Centipede had rendered meritorious service by finding the entrance. Although they couldn't enter yet, that couldn't be blamed on Qin Sang.

Valley Master Mu sighed softly and, somewhat reluctantly, tossed a jade slip to Qin Sang. Qin Sang thanked him and quickly probed it with his spiritual sense. Of course, Valley Master Mu couldn't possibly hand over the entire legacy to him; the jade slip only contained the Baihua Valley's life-bound Gu-insect art.

Qin Sang had expected this, but after seeing the contents, he still couldn't help but sigh, realizing they indeed came from the same source. He truly hadn't been mistaken; the Baihua Valley's life-bound Gu-insect art was indeed an improved version of the Witch race legacy, a secret art suitable for human cultivation. Furthermore, the method of improvement was incredibly ingenious, greatly broadening Qin Sang's horizons. Even if Qin Sang cultivated the original version of the life-bound Gu-insect art, he wouldn't be able to achieve this. This made Qin Sang wonder if there truly existed a heaven-gifted genius in the world who, after obtaining a never-before-seen secret art, could conjure up such a method out of thin air.

However, this alteration was not without its flaws. Firstly, disciples cultivating the life-bound Gu-insect must possess a Water-attribute spiritual root and must bond with a spirit insect compatible with Water-attribute energy as their life-bound Gu-insect. Only then could they minimize the risk of the insect turning on its master. Qin Sang glanced at Valley Master Mu. No wonder the life-bound spirit insects of Baihua Valley disciples were all of this type, including Valley Master Mu's own. Secondly, even after the alteration, the spirit insects were not as intimately bound to their masters as the Witch race cultivators' life-bound Gu-insect.

The jade slip's content was limited to techniques below the Nascent Soul stage. However, Qin Sang didn't insist on more; this was enough for him to glean a great deal. Altering a secret art became more difficult the higher the cultivation realm. Qin Sang speculated that the Baihua Valley's legacy was limited, likely only reaching the late or even mid-Nascent Soul stage. He wondered if Valley Master Mu had risked everything to enter the Jinghai Sect precisely to find the path forward.

"Oh?" Qin Sang suddenly realized something. The Baihua Valley's legacy was inferior to the original version. Their relationship with their life-bound Gu-insect was not as intimate as his with the Tianmu Butterfly. His own chances of successfully enhancing the Tianmu Butterfly's spiritual capabilities should be higher than those of Baihua Valley cultivators!

This unexpected discovery greatly pleased Qin Sang. If he could find the Wanling Fruit later, his certainty of spiritual enhancement would be even greater! Unfortunately, the Huoyu Centipede wasn't a life-bound Gu-insect, so whether it could break through to the fourth transformation in the future would solely depend on its luck.

As for the Fat Silkworm, Qin Sang had been hesitating whether or not to use the spiritual ascension ritual on it. The Fat Silkworm wasn't his spirit insect, so the chance of success was certainly pitifully small, and wasting the opportunity would hardly be worthwhile. Moreover, the Fat Silkworm's abilities were singular; it could already easily resist the potent venom released by shape-shifting stage frogfish, which was sufficient for most situations. For now, there was no need to force its advancement. These thoughts flashed through his mind.

Qin Sang destroyed the jade slip in front of Valley Master Mu, then transmitted a wry smile and said, "No wonder you were so straightforward, Fellow Daoist. You cultivate life-bound Gu-insect, which occupies the position of a life-bound magical artifact. Even if I obtained this secret art, I couldn't cultivate it anymore."

Valley Master Mu burst into hearty laughter. "Our sect's legacy is unique and demands extremely high innate talent. Even if you possessed enough talent, Daoist priest, you've already missed the opportunity to cultivate it. Nevertheless, this was created by our ancestors through painstaking effort, and it should still provide you with some inspiration."

"Indeed, Fellow Daoist," Qin Sang nodded perfunctorily.

While the two communicated via spiritual transmission, the anomaly showed no signs of weakening; instead, its momentum grew increasingly stronger. It had fully doubled in size compared to before. Qin Sang and the others were forced to retreat a further distance.

Time slowly passed. Soon, a night had passed. It was now the morning of the second day. Qin Sang and the others tirelessly monitored every subtle change in the anomaly.

In the distance, a boat floated on the sea, with several figures standing on it. Two of them were Core Formation cultivators. Passing through the Kongling Sea, they saw the anomaly and, thinking a great treasure had appeared, were overjoyed and hastily came to seek it. Unexpectedly, they ran into four Nascent Soul grandmasters and couldn't help but tremble. Fortunately, the other party wasn't a ruthless lot and didn't kill them to silence them.

Before long, another cultivator's treasure ship floated over. It was also detained and restrained on the sea surface by a simple restriction, with no one daring to object. The Kongling Sea was safe, and had always been home to important shipping routes. More and more people and ships were drawn over, and all were detained. As for people from other locations, Qin Sang and the others could no longer keep track.

Another day and night passed in the blink of an eye. The anomaly intensified. So far, no Nascent Soul cultivators had appeared.

Just as they were burning with anxiety, the light pillar finally stopped expanding and began to wane!