Chapter 193: Mountain People, Mountain Affairs

Wielding the Misty Cleave Sword, Qin Sang activated a fiery red sword qi, compressing it to about three meters in length. Initially somewhat ethereal and fluctuating, it gradually solidified under his control.

Once the sword qi stabilized, Qin Sang, his gaze sharp as lightning, stared at the Misty Cleave Sword for a long time before suddenly uttering a soft command: "Open!"

The sword hummed with a prolonged cry, and the Misty Cleave Sword abruptly vibrated. The sword qi surged violently, like clouds caught in a strong wind.

A crack appeared in the sword qi, widening rapidly. The qi peeled away from the spiritual sword, transforming into a fiery red mass that burned like a fierce flame before visibly dissipating.

Qin Sang dared not delay. Following the requirements of the *Thousand Mysteries Sword Array*, he fully unleashed his spiritual sense and spiritual power, trying his utmost to gather the peeling sword qi and prevent its dispersal.

Once the sword qi had somewhat stabilized, he separated a wisp of his spiritual sense and guided it into the qi, attempting to condense it according to the methods taught in the sword art.

As Qin Sang condensed it, the sword qi fluctuated intensely, at times compressed, at times stretched, gradually approximating the shape of a spiritual sword, finally barely maintaining a sword-like form.

However, it was still far from meeting the requirements of the *Thousand Mysteries Sword Array*. As soon as Qin Sang released his suppression, the sword qi would immediately dissipate. Success required the sword qi to be condensed to a certain degree, capable of maintaining the form of a spiritual sword for a prolonged period. This was also the greatest challenge of the *Thousand Mysteries Sword Art*.

Just as Qin Sang attempted to continue, *Poof!*

Without warning, the sword qi suddenly exploded, sending needle-thin streams of qi shooting out in all directions, threatening to riddle the cave dwelling like a hornet's nest.

Qin Sang's expression darkened slightly. He promptly dispelled the wisp of spiritual sense within the sword qi, then waved his hand to extinguish the qi. He frowned in thought for a moment before standing up.

The cave dwelling was too small. If he lost control of the sword qi and it exploded, the dwelling could collapse, and damaging the spiritual vein would be a greater loss. With this thought, Qin Sang put away the Misty Cleave Sword, tidied up his belongings, sealed the cave dwelling, and flew towards Soaring Dragon Mountain on his sword.

Everything at Return Dragon Temple remained as it was. Since Qin Sang took residence, he had sealed it off with clouds, never revealing himself to mortals. The villagers below the mountain had gradually grown accustomed to this.

Inside, there was a message talisman from Senior Brother Wen, informing him that he had not yet found anything related to the depleted spiritual spring. Qin Sang then remembered that he had forgotten to mention this matter to Senior Brother Wen last time. He quickly sent a reply, asking a few other questions as well.

Since Gu Tiannan and his disciples used Return Dragon Temple as their cave dwelling, the spiritual energy there was naturally not bad, and cultivating sword arts did not demand overly stringent spiritual power.

Qin Sang sat cross-legged in the courtyard. This time, he did not use the Misty Cleave Sword but directly summoned his Ebony Sword.

After a month of nurturing, the Ebony Sword had already melted the golden-threaded cedar wood into its core. Its sword embryo now possessed an added purity and jade-green hue compared to before. As for whether it could withstand a second Killing Talisman, Qin Sang was still unsure. All he could do was gather as much spiritual wood as possible to enhance the Ebony Sword's strength, preventing it from becoming a bottleneck to his cultivation.

As the Ebony Sword was his nascent spiritual sword, it was much easier to control than the Misty Cleave Sword. Qin Sang effortlessly reached the previous stage, reflecting on his earlier failure.

The sweltering summer finally passed, giving way to the harvest season. While toiling, the villagers at the foot of Soaring Dragon Mountain always looked up at the mysterious mountain peak. Whenever they spoke of it, they would become excited and chatter endlessly.

The peak was perpetually shrouded in mist, home to a Taoist temple where, according to legend, immortals resided. In just a few years, countless seekers of immortality had arrived, drawn by the temple's fame.

Some built huts outside the mist and prostrated themselves daily, never receiving a response. Yet, they never gave up, believing their devotion was not sincere enough, and that the immortal master was testing them.

Others, disregarding the danger, ventured into the mist, wandering disoriented for several days. Upon waking, they would find themselves back at the foot of the mountain, famished. Among them were many high-ranking officials and chivalrous wanderers.

The increasing number of seekers gathering here caused housing prices in the village to soar, gradually transforming it into a small, increasingly prosperous town.

The villagers, however, benefited. Many saw opportunities and started other businesses, able to live well without relying on farming. They felt grateful to the immortals on the mountain, and their worship was even more sincere than that of the seekers.

Little did they know, there were no immortals in the mountain temple, only a lone cultivator diligently pursuing immortality.

Qin Sang sat alone in the courtyard, motionless for two months, his figure appearing incredibly solitary. Unaware of the happenings below the mountain, covered in fallen leaves and dust, his entire being was immersed in his spiritual sword.

*Whoosh!*

A streak of crimson light shot through the air, then swiftly returned, hovering alongside the Ebony Sword. It was a small, blood-red sword, which, upon closer inspection, appeared somewhat illusory, formed entirely from sword qi.

Qin Sang opened his eyes, gazing at the crimson sword with a hint of excitement. After three months of arduous cultivation, he had finally mastered this sword art!

However, a single strand of sword qi was extremely weak and insufficient to form a sword array. Qin Sang immediately immersed his spiritual sense into the crimson sword again.

Ten days later, the small sword gently flickered and split into two. Both strands of sword qi became exceptionally ethereal, struggling to maintain their shape. Qin Sang's expression tightened. He used all his might to suppress them, finally managing to prevent the sword qi from collapsing.

Before long, the small sword, now composed of two strands of sword qi, slowly took shape.

Qin Sang smiled faintly and also conjured the Ebony Sword. The three small swords pointed their tips towards the center, forming a triangular configuration. As more sword qi strands split off in the future, they would form a disc, similar to when Wu Yuesheng made his move.

When cultivated to its peak, the *Thousand Mysteries Sword Array* could split into sixty-four strands of sword qi, forming an array with the Ebony Sword. However, the more sword qi strands that split, the higher the demands on the cultivator.

Qin Sang could clearly feel the qi connection between the Ebony Sword and the sword qi. He only needed to focus on controlling the Ebony Sword to command the sword array.

To Qin Sang's delight, when the Ebony Sword's qi formed the sword array, the killing intent carried by the sword qi was also amplified, exerting a stronger impact on an opponent's mind.

*Whoosh!*

The sword qi retracted, and the Ebony Sword flew back into Qin Sang's glabella.

Condensing two strands of sword qi was sufficient for now; he could take his time with more later. He had already stayed at Return Dragon Temple for over three months. He wondered how his cave dwelling was doing and if that section of tree root could really mature the spiritual spring.

Qin Sang stood up, and a flash of light on his Dharma robe swept away the fallen leaves and dust. His gaze swept around, summoning the message talisman sent by Senior Brother Wen. After reading its contents, his expression shifted slightly. He pondered for a moment, then flew directly towards his cave dwelling on his sword.

From start to finish, he did not glance down at the mountain.

Quietly submerging underwater, he activated the Dark Turtle Shell Array. Qin Sang's steps were hurried. As soon as he entered the cave dwelling, an expression of immense surprise and delight suddenly appeared on his face: the spiritual energy within the dwelling was twice as dense as when he had left!

Qin Sang immediately flashed to the edge of the pond and looked at the spiritual spring.