Chapter 1451: Ice Soul Divine Light

Typically, early-stage Nascent Soul cultivators could no longer pose much of a threat to him. However, Qin Sang never underestimated any opponent, especially those from prestigious sects. While they might lack the experience and trials of rogue cultivators, and thus might not be as ruthless or decisive, they often had the advantage of inheriting powerful treasures from their sects.

His spiritual sense detected a hint of strangeness, yet there were no anomalies in his surroundings. Just then, the Heavenly Eye Butterfly also sent a warning, but its spiritual message carried a human-like hesitation, as if it wasn't entirely sure what it was perceiving. It was very similar to Qin Sang’s own sensation. Encountering such a situation for the first time, Qin Sang chose to trust his spiritual intuition and the Heavenly Eye Butterfly. Without the slightest hesitation, he shifted his escape light, abruptly moving several zhang away.

Within moments, Qin Sang saw one side of his light-gold energy shield covered by a visible layer of cold mist, which then condensed into thin ice right before his eyes. Unlike Shi Xue’s earlier Winter Talisman or Elder Mei’s ice shield, this layer of ice was entirely transparent, devoid of impurities or discoloration; one might easily miss it if not looking closely. Even through his protective aura, Qin Sang could feel an extreme cold, capable of freezing a Nascent Soul.

In the spot he had just vacated, a silent white mist rose. The white mist was filled with tiny ice shards, which then formed ice threads as fine as hair, manifesting mysterious runes that flashed into existence and then vanished. At that moment, extreme cold erupted, and the surrounding void seemed to freeze, giving the impression that all movement had ceased. Only now did a faint trace of white qi emerge, originating from the plain white figure rapidly approaching.

Qin Sang gasped, grateful that he had been cautious enough and had never underestimated any opponent. The newcomer’s cultivation level was similar to that of the green-clad woman, yet she had nearly plunged Qin Sang into a crisis—something neither Elder Mei nor Elder Lan had managed to achieve. Had he not swiftly distanced himself from that section of the void, he would likely have been frozen solid on the spot. Even if Qin Sang could have resisted the cold’s erosion and eventually broken free, the two individuals trapped in the sword formation would have seized the opportunity to escape and then encircled him. At that point, the situation would have reversed, and Qin Sang’s carefully laid plans would have been thwarted!

The newcomer was Liuli, who, seeing her senior sister in a critical situation, immediately intervened to help. As she activated her spell, Liuli’s eyes were engulfed in a profound, ocean-deep blue, and her entire demeanor shifted, becoming solitary and icy. Ice Soul Divine Radiance! Invisible, shapeless, and immaterial—it was a top-tier divine ability of the Great Dao of Ice and Cold! The so-called ice, ice shards, and white mist were merely anomalies generated in the external environment, occurring at the precise moment the Ice Soul Divine Radiance erupted. By the time an enemy noticed these anomalies, they would have already been struck! If Liuli’s Ice Soul Divine Radiance were cultivated to mastery, it would be even harder to detect before its eruption.

Seeing that her Ice Soul Divine Radiance had missed, Liuli was momentarily stunned, but her movements didn’t falter. A phoenix-shaped treasured sword appeared in her palm, and she thrust it forward while her figure rapidly flickered along the trail of white qi. Qin Sang glanced at the nearby mist, suppressing his curiosity about this divine ability.

During this brief delay, the Seven Souls Killing Formation had fully erupted. Though Elders Mei and Lan within the sword formation were in a sorry state, they had indeed not perished. Qin Sang’s thoughts raced. Taking advantage of the two elders still being entangled by the sword formation’s residual effects, he recalled the Gold Sinking Sword and directly countered the incoming sword light. Simultaneously, he reached for the corpse puppet bag at his waist, preparing to intercept the others himself, while allowing the Nascent Soul talisman puppet to capture the green-clad woman.

Just then, his peripheral vision caught sight of the phoenix-shaped treasured sword within the sword light. That single glance made his expression suddenly freeze. A figure involuntarily formed in Qin Sang’s mind, and long-forgotten memories were awakened. That figure was both strange and familiar; though only a few fragmented memories remained, every event associated with them was deeply etched into his mind.

Back then, during his first entry into the Ziwei Palace, it was Chen Yan who wielded this very sword to block Dongyang Bo, enabling Qin Sang to break free from his control and escape to the Canglang Sea. Qin Sang suddenly turned his head to look at the plain white figure. The veil could not obstruct the Heavenly Eye Butterfly’s vision, and that perfect face precisely matched the person in his memory.

“It’s her!” Qin Sang’s heart jolted. The newcomer was Chen Yan, and surprisingly, Chen Yan was from Xuantian Palace! This was something Qin Sang had never anticipated. Chen Yan’s master had been trapped in the Ziwei Palace for so long, yet her sect had sent no one to rescue her, abandoning Chen Yan—who was only at the Qi Refining stage at the time—to struggle alone in a foreign land, dependent on others, as she desperately sought a way to save her master. To save her master, she had sacrificed her reputation, cultivated a demonic harvesting technique, and fallen into Dongyang Bo’s schemes. Qin Sang had originally assumed Chen Yan’s master was a rogue cultivator with no relatives or friends; he never expected her to have such a prominent background. The Xuantian Palace Master was a Grand Cultivator and could certainly traverse the storm belt. Dongyang Bo would never have dared to harbor any ill intentions when facing the Xuantian Palace Master. Yet, Chen Yan’s master had been missing for so long, and surprisingly, no one had gone to search for her.

When he decided to come to the North Sea, Qin Sang had anticipated the possibility of encountering Chen Yan, as the number of Nascent Soul cultivators in the North Sea was neither exceedingly large nor remarkably small. He had worried that Chen Yan might have been deluded by Dongyang Bo into cultivating the so-called Stone Bridge Zen. It was Chen Yan who had provided him with the opportunity to establish his foundation, and it was also her cooperation in hindering Dongyang Bo that allowed him to escape the latter’s clutches and continue his pursuit of immortality. Qin Sang held no ill will towards Chen Yan, believing the best outcome for them would be to forget each other and live their separate lives. He had never imagined they would reunite under such circumstances.

“She possesses a Heavenly Spiritual Root and has been in the Nascent Soul stage for nearly three hundred years, yet she remains in the early Nascent Soul stage. I have, in fact, surpassed her. Could it be true, as Dongyang Bo claimed, that she is suffering from the hidden dangers of the demonic harvesting technique?” This thought flashed through Qin Sang’s mind, leaving him with a complex mix of emotions. In an instant, his mind was flooded with various thoughts, yet his actions didn’t falter. Despite their past entanglements, he and Chen Yan had barely communicated and remained strangers to each other. He wouldn't alter his plans because of her.

“Clang!” The Gold Sinking Sword, without deviation, blocked the phoenix-shaped treasured sword. Two streams of sword qi, like two clashing storms, collided violently. As expected, the phoenix-shaped treasured sword proved no match and flew back.

Liuli, who followed closely, had a deep blue glow reappear in her eyes. She had already cast the Ice Soul Divine Radiance again, her expression subtly pained. Repeatedly activating this divine ability was clearly a great burden on her.

“Junior Sister, be careful!” Seeing her Junior Sister arrive, Shi Xue was overjoyed, but simultaneously, a strong worry emerged in her heart, prompting her urgent warning. “This devil is too terrifying; Junior Sister is no match for him!”

Just then, the profound blue in Liuli’s eyes suddenly fluctuated intensely. She abruptly looked up, gazing directly at the masked figure. For a moment, her gaze held a hint of bewilderment. Their eyes met. After more than two hundred years, their eyes met again, but this time on a battlefield.

“Oh? She seems to have recognized me?” Qin Sang noticed Chen Yan’s reaction and mumbled silently. The dangerous premonition resurfaced, and he didn’t hesitate, launching his sword in an immediate attack. His sword split into a myriad forms, slashing away the extreme cold!

At that moment, the two elders were just about to regroup and aim their magic treasures at Qin Sang. But at that very moment, the hand poised to open the corpse puppet bag suddenly stiffened. Qin Sang’s eyes filled with intense vigilance, as if facing a formidable enemy!