Chapter 1473: Others' Perspectives

In the world of immortal cultivation, top cultivators generally avoid forming enmities unless they can kill the opponent on the spot without leaving any future trouble, or if the conflict involves enormous interests that cannot be encroached upon by others.

Even if misunderstandings arise, as long as it doesn't escalate to a life-or-death struggle, the best approach is to find a way to resolve it. At worst, they can simply avoid each other in the future.

Since Old Demon Hunmo couldn't get a handle on Qin Sang, sending someone with a formal invitation to turn hostility into friendship was quite logical.

However, Qin Sang knew well that the old demon was cunning and acted without scruples, so he couldn't be judged by normal standards.

Assuming the invitation reflected Old Demon Hunmo's true intention to seek peace, it certainly wasn't a sincere apology. It was likely related to that 'great opportunity.'

Old Demon Hunmo was clearly looking for an accomplice, or perhaps just cannon fodder.

In this day and age, there weren't many things that could make Old Demon Hunmo act so cautiously, which indeed held considerable appeal for Qin Sang.

However, whether this matter would be beneficial or detrimental remained to be seen.

Old Demon Hunmo himself lacked confidence, indicating that it wouldn't be easy to succeed.

Qin Sang had personally witnessed Old Demon Hunmo visiting Great Sage Tianpeng. This was likely no coincidence and probably related to the same matter, suggesting Great Sage Tianpeng was another helper Old Demon Hunmo had invited.

With Great Sage Tianpeng, Old Demon Hunmo, and himself, there would be three late Nascent Soul stage experts involved. This undertaking certainly carried immense risk.

Another possibility was that Old Demon Hunmo was using this as bait to lure him out.

Old Demon Hunmo and Great Sage Tianpeng might be secretly colluding to set a trap and ambush him.

However, this seemed like an excessive amount of effort for such a plot.

The exact timing of Qin Sang's appearance was completely beyond Old Demon Hunmo's control, and Great Sage Tianpeng couldn't possibly wait idly with him indefinitely.

Furthermore, if Old Demon Hunmo genuinely intended to ambush him, the invitation would surely have exaggerated the benefits of the opportunity, rather than being so ambiguous.

What truly made Qin Sang suspicious was Old Demon Hunmo's mention of a "common enemy."

The transaction between him and Tong Lingyu involved a sacred object, which Xuantian Palace wouldn't actively publicize to avoid damaging its reputation. Later, he also joined Listening Snow Tower under a different identity.

Old Demon Hunmo probably didn't know yet that the misunderstanding between Qin Sang and Xuantian Palace had been resolved, and that Qin Sang had even become a guest elder there.

Meanwhile, Qin Sang was perfectly aware of the dealings between Old Demon Hunmo and Xuantian Palace.

The old demon had cooperated with Xuantian Palace to stage a grand act, deceiving everyone and pushing for the early convening of the Ten Thousand Devils Convention. How could that be construed as enmity?

Unless something had happened during Qin Sang's years of travel that caused the two sides to turn against each other. This could also explain why Old Demon Hunmo hadn't invited the Xuantian Palace Master and Grand Elder.

Hmm, perhaps they had already been invited, but Xuantian Palace was powerful, and Old Demon Hunmo, being isolated, needed to find other helpers to counterbalance them.

The more Qin Sang thought about it, the more plausible it seemed.

It would be best to wait until he returned to Xuantian Palace to ask Tong Lingyu before making any decisions.

Additionally, while the possibility of Old Demon Hunmo ambushing him was low, it was still necessary to be prepared.

Qin Sang wasn't planning to meet Old Demon Hunmo right now. While he was less apprehensive of Old Demon Hunmo than before, he wasn't willing to easily expose the Sun God Tree just for a skirmish.

Although the Sun God Bird was powerful, its timing had to be precise. If the opponent was prepared, the chance of failure would increase significantly.

He wanted to wait for an opportunity to deliver a decisive blow, giving Old Demon Hunmo a true surprise.

Qin Sang quickly weighed the pros and cons, then looked up at the black-robed youth and said calmly, "You may leave. Tell fellow Daoist Hunmo not to spy on Hundred Flowers Valley again."

"Understood!"

The black-robed youth bowed respectfully and immediately exited the main hall.

Qin Sang didn't explicitly say whether he would go or not, but the youth didn't dare to ask further; the mere act of leaving the invitation was explanation enough.

Moreover, his grandmaster hadn't demanded an exact reply before he left.

After the black-robed youth departed, the banquet concluded hastily.

Thereafter, Qin Sang remained in Hundred Flowers Valley to learn insect manipulation techniques from Valley Master Mu.

Hundred Flowers Valley's heritage spanned many years, with insect manipulation as its foundation. Generations of ancestors had collected various insect manipulation arts from all over the world, not just limiting themselves to the Witch Clan's vital insect-gu techniques.

Qin Sang absorbed these essences voraciously, gaining tremendously.

Previously, he had been completely at a loss on how to cultivate spirit insects after their fourth transformation. Now, by combining what he learned here with the ancient texts he'd seen in the Spirit Control Sect, he was able to cross-reference the information.

Although he still lacked a definitive method, he gradually gained some ideas about what types of spiritual objects to seek for different spirit insects, which would help narrow the scope of trial and error in the future.

During this process, Valley Master Mu also discovered that Qin Sang's accumulated knowledge in insect manipulation wasn't as shallow as he had imagined; Qin Sang was truly a fellow practitioner.

On a whim, Valley Master Mu spontaneously asked Qin Sang for his insights on the Hundred Flowers Valley heritage.

He had previously passed on the parts of the heritage pertaining to cultivation before the Nascent Soul stage to Qin Sang.

Qin Sang had intended to do so anyway, so he didn't hold back and immediately began to speak at length.

What Qin Sang had inherited was a genuine secret art of the Witch Clan. After his discourse, Valley Master Mu felt greatly enlightened, and even several problems that had troubled Hundred Flowers Valley cultivators for years were unexpectedly solved.

Valley Master Mu was utterly astonished. After pondering for a long time, he asked Qin Sang to swear an oath and reveal the complete heritage.

This was precisely what Qin Sang wanted.

In the Canglang Sea, he had been limited by his cultivation and had only obtained parts of the vital insect-gu techniques before the fourth transformation. This was precisely why the Sky-Eye Butterfly's progress had been slow after breaking through its fourth transformation.

Now that he couldn't return to the Canglang Sea, he could only hope the Hundred Flowers Valley heritage would offer him some inspiration.

"The founding ancestor obtained an incomplete heritage," Valley Master Mu sighed. "For generations, the cultivation of the vital spirit insects of Hundred Flowers Valley's ancestors generally stalled in the early stage of the fourth transformation. Even the exceptions were due to unique, unreplicable fortuitous encounters. The most troublesome aspect is that the higher the vital spirit insect's cultivation, the more signs of resistance against its master appear..."

Qin Sang knew in his heart that this heritage wasn't merely 'incomplete' in the sense of being damaged; it was fundamentally a partial version.

The Witch Clan was uniquely blessed, able to tame vital insect-gu without fear of backlash. Qin Sang also relied on the Jade Buddha for this. Other human cultivators, however, lacked such methods.

The Ghost Mother had altered the Witch Clan's heritage, using other methods to circumvent hidden dangers. Now it seemed there were limits to these methods, and the path of Hundred Flowers Valley cultivators was destined to be a dead end.

He wondered if the Ghost Mother had been powerless to do more, or simply hadn't put in her full effort.

There wasn't much content in the Hundred Flowers Valley heritage concerning spirit insects after their fourth transformation.

This content confirmed one of Qin Sang's suspicions: vital insect-gu indeed underwent changes after the Nascent Soul stage, and simply feeding them with essence blood provided limited improvement. No wonder the Sky-Eye Butterfly's progress had been so slow.

Unfortunately, this knowledge was created by the Ghost Mother to suit Hundred Flowers Valley and was not entirely suitable for Qin Sang and his Sky-Eye Butterfly. Qin Sang couldn't fully absorb it, only draw inspiration.

Only by finding the Ghost Mother could he obtain the complete heritage.

All problems seemed to lead back to the same point.

Three months later.

Qin Sang bade farewell, and Valley Master Mu personally escorted him for a hundred *li*, clearly reluctant to part.

This journey proved to be a win-win.

Qin Sang not only gained much inspiration but also obtained numerous pill formulas and spiritual medicines from Hundred Flowers Valley for cultivating Fire Jade Centipedes.

After bidding farewell to Valley Master Mu, Qin Sang continued southward, traversing the Crescent Realm until he reached its southernmost point, then turned east.

The Boundless Sea was incredibly vast yet barren. Qin Sang selected a few islands known to be occupied by famous old monsters, approached them slightly, and if his sword spirit showed no reaction, he would swiftly depart.

Flying swiftly, Qin Sang stopped midway to return to the Ghost Mother's cave dwelling, where he met Tan Hao.

For the past few days, Tan Hao had been preparing himself, ready to enter closed-door cultivation and attempt to reach the Nascent Soul stage.

When cultivators sought to form their Nascent Soul, there was little help others could provide.

Qin Sang only shared some of his own experiences in forming a Nascent Soul, carefully avoiding any discussion of the fundamental Great Dao, so as not to mislead Tan Hao.

That evening, Qin Sang left the cave dwelling and set off once more.

Hidden Sun Realm.

Spring returned to the land, and ice and snow melted.

The White-Headed Snow Mountain took on a greenish hue.

Mortals seized this most precious time of the year to go out and cultivate their land.

At this moment, the Hidden Sun Realm finally gained a touch more vitality.

The sky was cloudless for thousands of miles.

In mid-air, Qin Sang concealed his escape light and traveled by sword.

As he observed the vastly different scenery of the Hidden Sun Realm, he murmured softly to himself, "It's been eight years..."

In the past eight years, Qin Sang had only briefly stayed in Tianpeng Mountain and Hundred Flowers Valley. The rest of the time, he had been almost constantly on the move, weary from travel.

Concerned about missing the Xuantian Palace Holy Land, Qin Sang had tried his best to travel quickly. The core issue was not finding any clues; while his body didn't feel tired, his mind was somewhat weary.

In another year, the Ice Demon Crystal would recover.

Qin Sang decided to return to Listening Snow Tower first.

Along the way, he rarely saw any cultivators.

During his travels, Qin Sang had heard some news: Xuantian Palace and the demon race had reportedly fought fiercely several times. Xuantian Palace had been slightly at a disadvantage, but only lost some parts of the outer sea, while its mainland territory remained unaffected.

Strangely, even during the most intense phases of the conflict, there was no news of the Xuantian Palace Master making a move.

Now, both sides were in a stalemate.

Great Sage Tianpeng had probably realized it was impossible to quickly crush Xuantian Palace and was no longer as aggressive as he had been eight years ago. With the Holy Land on the verge of opening, Xuantian Palace naturally wouldn't initiate an attack, and so the situation had stabilized.

Before long, Listening Snow Tower came into view.

Qin Sang activated his guest elder token, passed through the mountain protection formation without alarming anyone, and headed straight for his cave dwelling, intending to rest well for a few days.

As he activated the token, on the main peak, Shi Xue sensed something and awoke from her meditation.

"He's finally back!"

Shi Xue confirmed it was Qin Sang, breathed a sigh of relief, hastily stood up, and pushed the door open.

Qin Sang had been gone for eight years without a word. Although there were few beings in the world who could threaten him, accidents were always a possibility.

Shi Xue quickly crossed the jade bridge, entered the valley where Floating Snow Tower was located, and raised her hand, sending out a streak of light.

With a soft creak, the wooden door opened.

Shi Xue walked inside and saw Liuli sitting cross-legged on the cold jade bed.

For the past few years, Liuli had remained with the cold jade bed, rarely leaving Floating Snow Tower.

At this moment, Liuli's eyes were tightly closed, and she sat motionless in meditation.

There were no overt phenomena within Floating Snow Tower, but Shi Xue could sense a subtle yet incredibly powerful, strange fluctuation around Liuli.

Shi Xue watched quietly until the fluctuation gradually dissipated, then called out, "Junior Sister."

Liuli opened her eyes, which regained their luster. Her tone remained cool as she asked, "Senior Sister, is he back?"

"He just returned to his cave dwelling. I haven't gone to see him yet."

Shi Xue nodded, then hesitated for a moment before asking, "Junior Sister, have you made up your mind?"

Liuli calmly ended her cultivation, her voice unwavering. "Only he can accomplish this matter."

"Why don't you wait a moment? I'll go sound him out first?" Shi Xue said, a reluctant expression on her face.

Liuli straightened her clothes, stood up, and slowly stepped down from the cold jade bed, gently shaking her head. "That is my own affair; there's no need to trouble you, Senior Sister."

"You are my junior sister, and this matter also concerns our Listening Snow Tower. How can you say it has nothing to do with me?"

Shi Xue's brow furrowed into a frown, and she asked hesitantly, "Junior Sister, why are you unwilling to engage in dual cultivation with him, yet you agreed to this matter?"

"It's different."

Liuli looked out at the vast world beyond Floating Snow Tower, remained silent for a long time, then spoke in a calm tone.

"How is it different? To outsiders, what's the distinction?" Shi Xue pressed.

Liuli withdrew her gaze and looked at Shi Xue strangely.

Shi Xue lowered her head and said dejectedly, "Fine, I won't interfere in matters between you two anymore. Handle it yourselves! I don't want to inadvertently make things worse again, like last time."

As they spoke, the two sisters walked out of Floating Snow Tower, treading on the snowy path towards Qin Sang's cave dwelling.

Liuli's expression remained as usual.

Shi Xue followed behind, watching Liuli's retreating back, a trace of worry flashing in her eyes.

A short while later, the two women arrived at the small building.

Qin Sang had already sensed their arrival. He withdrew the spirit formation and personally came out of his cave dwelling to greet them, bowing. "Chairperson Shi, Immortal Liuli, I trust you are well. I, this humble Daoist, had intended to wash away the travel dust before visiting the two of you, but I have been rude."

As he spoke, he subtly observed Liuli.

Liuli hadn't deliberately concealed her cultivation, so Qin Sang easily saw that she was still at the early Nascent Soul stage.

This indicated that her last breakthrough had completely failed.

Was the imprint of the *Profound Female Jade Cauldron True Scripture* truly that troublesome?

Qin Sang's brow furrowed slightly. With Liuli's exceptional talent and Xuantian Palace's immense power, he was surprised they couldn't resolve this.

"It was presumptuous of us to disturb you, Daoist." The two women returned the bow.

Shi Xue also secretly observed Qin Sang. "Daoist, was your journey to the North Sea smooth?"

Qin Sang gestured for the two women to enter his cave dwelling and personally brewed a pot of spiritual tea. "I encountered some twists and turns, but fortunately, it was thrilling but without major incident. This spiritual tea was an unexpected discovery of mine in the demon realm. While it may not compare to Listening Snow Tower's immortal tea, it has a unique flavor. Please help me taste it and give your opinion."

Shi Xue took a sip, immediately felt the fragrance lingering in her mouth, and praised it, "What wonderful tea! I didn't expect Daoist to be able to enter the demon realm as if it were uninhabited. I was worried you might be discovered by a demon king and encounter danger."

"Mere trivial skills, nothing to boast about." Qin Sang smiled faintly. "I wonder if that information was of any help to Xuantian Palace?"

Shi Xue nodded. "The Grand Elder has repeatedly mentioned publicly that Daoist Mingyue should be properly rewarded, as only you dared to delve deep into the demon realm for investigation. Through this information, we were able to estimate the demon race's approximate military strength, allowing us to plan effectively and make calm arrangements, thus avoiding unnecessary casualties. After publicly announcing your status as a guest elder, Listening Snow Tower's situation has also significantly improved."

"It's good that it didn't backfire," Qin Sang nodded, then asked about the matter he was most concerned about. "The Holy Land should be opening soon, right?"

"All factions have long been impatient, just waiting for the sacred object to absorb enough energy before opening the Holy Land. The Grand Elder will strongly advocate for your participation then..."

At this point, Shi Xue's tone paused slightly, and she glanced sideways at Liuli, who was quietly sipping tea.

Qin Sang picked up his teacup, took a sip of the fragrant tea, and used the rising tea mist to subtly observe the two women.

He keenly noticed that Shi Xue had seemed hesitant to speak since arriving, indicating there was surely something on her mind. Judging by her demeanor, it might be related to Liuli.

Or rather, it might concern Liuli's cultivation and the mark of the evil technique.

However, Liuli's expression showed no abnormality whatsoever.