Chapter 636: Thinking of Little Cold Domain

"No, no..." Cui Xuanzi shook his head repeatedly, not quite sure what Qin Sang meant. He stroked his beard and smiled, "I would be delighted if you could join the Five-Insect Sect; my only concern is that my humble abode might not meet with your approval."

Unexpectedly, the Mute Girl stood up directly, walked in front of Cui Xuanzi, and knelt down to bow. "Disciple greets Master!"

Qin Sang didn't stop her, sighing inwardly. The Mute Girl was very clever; she had already understood his intentions. To formally acknowledge Cui Xuanzi as her master in his presence was likely the best choice, and her action could indeed be called decisive.

After settling the Mute Girl, Qin Sang and Cui Xuanzi discussed serious matters.

"Junior has followed Senior's instructions and contacted many friends, doing my best to help Senior investigate. However, most of them found nothing..." Cui Xuanzi's expression was a little awkward.

"I know a steward from a merchant guild. This guild has a mysterious origin; its business spans over half of the Western Territory, and its intelligence network is excellent. According to him, in the past two hundred years, only one Nascent Soul cultivator has emerged from the Western Territory. This individual only achieved Nascent Soul cultivation after leaving the Western Territory, betraying their sect, and joining a large sect outside, then breaking through all the way to successfully form a Nascent Soul. Few among our Witch Tribe are skilled in swordsmanship, and it's even rarer in the Western Territory. None of them match Senior's description. Even outside the Western Territory, I haven't heard of a Nascent Soul ancestor named Qingzhu."

Qin Sang frowned inwardly. Ancestor Qingzhu was known as the Sword Demon in the Minor Cold Domain; he walked the path of slaughter, and his sword techniques were so unique. If he had also landed in the Western Territory back then, he would surely have been remembered after even a single public appearance. Yet there was no news of him whatsoever. To cultivate the 'Spirit Cultivating Sword Chapter', one must participate in slaughter and comprehend the Path of Slaughter, making it difficult to keep a low profile. Could Ancestor Qingzhu have made a teleportation error and died accidentally back then? Qin Sang shook his head, finding the idea too preposterous.

"What about the others?"

Cui Xuanzi replied, "I also asked him to help me acquire the Myriad Ages Camphor and Soul-Guiding Grass. My friend has heard of them, but according to him, both of these are rare wonders of the world. The guild itself has no record of ever acquiring either of these spiritual materials, and finding them in the Western Territory would be like searching for a needle in a haystack. In fact..." Cui Xuanzi paused, cautiously observing Qin Sang's expression. "To his knowledge, spiritual materials and elixirs of this caliber are difficult to find even in the entire Canglang Sea. If Senior wishes to find them, I'm afraid it will require immense luck."

Hearing this, Qin Sang's eyes flashed, filled with extreme surprise. The Myriad Ages Camphor being rare was understandable, as it was, after all, a wonder of the world. But why was the Soul-Guiding Grass so scarce? In the Minor Cold Domain, while Soul-Guiding Grass was rare, at least at the Demonic Sect's auctions, one would occasionally appear, used by demonic cultivators to aid their cultivation.

The Canglang Sea was vast; just one Witch God Continent could be as large as several Minor Cold Domains combined. How dare this merchant guild steward claim that Soul-Guiding Grass was hard to find in the entire Canglang Sea? Unless this person was ignorant and speaking nonsense... Qin Sang suddenly had an ominous premonition. He asked in a deep voice, "Your friend seems knowledgeable; his position in the guild must not be simple, right? I wonder if he has any connections to procure elixirs that aid in Core Formation. I want to buy them for my junior disciples. Price is not an issue."

"Aid in Core Formation?" Cui Xuanzi gave a wry smile. "To be frank with Senior, this junior once had the same idea. Only after inquiring with that steward did I learn the truth. Such divine elixirs, even if they only offer a slight aid to Core Formation, will attract countless factions vying for them every time they appear, even among the human race. They are even rarer among our Witch Tribe. How could they possibly appear in the Western Territory?"

Hearing this, Qin Sang finally realized where the problem lay. It sounded like the Canglang Sea region was far more barren than the Minor Cold Domain!

The Minor Cold Domain had ancient immortal battlefields, and ancient secret realms could be unearthed from time to time. Sometimes, with luck, an entire herb garden could be found, and valuable spiritual items often emerged. For example, as for spiritual items that aid Core Formation, Mount Shaohua alone could provide each of its Pseudo Core Formation disciples with a single Kanli Golden Core. The other Eight Orthodox Sects and Demonic Sects would not be far behind. Only rare heavenly treasures like Snow Spirit Lotus and Iris Flower would be extremely scarce.

Qin Sang had originally thought that the storms outside the Canglang Sea region were similar to ancient immortal battlefields. Furthermore, with such a vast area as the Canglang Sea, resources should have been richer than in the Minor Cold Domain. Only now did he realize how scarce spiritual elixirs and materials were in the Canglang Sea region!

Qin Sang had suffered enough during his own Core Formation and knew how difficult it was. Without even spiritual elixirs to aid Core Formation, how low must the chances of Core Formation be for human cultivators in the Canglang Sea region? The Witch Tribe had their Natal Spirit Bugs; did humans also have other means? What kind of future could one have cultivating in such a barren place? Qin Sang suddenly longed for the Minor Cold Domain immensely.

However, for now, he was only hearing Cui Xuanzi's one-sided account. Seeing was believing. Waves of thought surged in Qin Sang's heart, but his expression remained calm.

Cui Xuanzi continued, "Regarding the Fire-Repelling Sparrow demonic beast Senior inquired about, it's also not found in the Western Territory. However, that steward said there are rumors of Fire-Repelling Sparrows appearing in the Stormy Sea Region. Senior might be able to search there..." Cui Xuanzi spoke rapidly, detailing all the information he had gathered to Qin Sang, and then handed Qin Sang a jade slip.

Inside the jade slip was a simplified topographical map covering most of the Western Territory. It sparsely marked some perilous and secret realms that had long been known in the Western Territory, which was exactly what Qin Sang wanted. However, these places were all deep within the Western Territory. Could he have drifted from such a distant place? Qin Sang wondered inwardly.

In addition to that, there were also several rumored spiritual insect nests, which Cui Xuanzi had gathered according to the list of exotic insects Qin Sang had given him. Qin Sang's eyes lit up. Although resources were extremely scarce here, there were quite a few exotic insects, all of which were not found in the Minor Cold Domain.

He was currently undecided on which exotic insect to choose as his Natal Spirit Bug. Each exotic insect possessed extraordinary divine abilities, and Qin Sang felt they were all suitable. However, these exotic insects had unique talents, were deeply hidden, their whereabouts were uncertain, and they were difficult to find. Moreover, these were merely unsubstantiated rumors; whether they could actually be captured remained unknown.

"Well done, you've certainly done your best..." Qin Sang nodded. Midway through his sentence, he suddenly frowned and turned his head to look outside the hall. He saw that outside the Five-Insect Sect, amidst the mountains, dozens of escape lights of various colors were rushing directly towards the Five-Insect Sect, creating an imposing display.

At this moment, Cui Xuanzi finally sensed the anomaly outside. He flashed out of the hall, and seeing the aggressive uninvited guests, his expression immediately changed drastically. "All disciples, heed my command! Activate the mountain-protecting formation!" Cui Xuanzi shouted urgently. The disciples of the Five-Insect Sect also became aware, and flew out from the mountains one after another, falling into a panic.

'Boom!' All the peaks moved in unison, emitting dazzling beams of light. They converged in the air, transforming into a real lotus flower. At this moment, a burst of arrogant laughter rang out from outside. "Old Cui Xuan, honored guests are at your doorstep! Instead of coming out to greet us, you activate your mountain-protecting formation? Is this how you treat guests?"

Qin Sang remained seated in the main hall, unmoving. He took a sip of clear tea.