Chapter 706: Insect Shadows

By the time the five people on the other side of the light barrier realized something was wrong, Qin Sang and the gaunt old man had already decided the victor. The gaunt old man had perished in the demonic flames, while Qin Sang was completely unharmed.

When they rushed out, the battle had already ended.

After killing the man, Qin Sang swiftly retreated. The gaunt old man's body was quickly incinerated by the Nine Nether Demonic Flames, leaving only a pile of ashes on the ground.

Seeing this scene, everyone's expression changed instantly. They hastily conjured their magical artifacts and pointed them at Qin Sang, as if he were a great devil.

"What are you doing? Why did you kill him?"

The short, stout cultivator bellowed, glaring angrily at Qin Sang.

The others were also filled with shock. Separated by the light barrier, they hadn't heard what Qin Sang and the gaunt old man had said.

On one hand, they were unclear about the full story and shocked that the usually taciturn Qin Sang had suddenly attacked a companion. Cultivators at this level usually had a few lives on their hands, but for Qin Sang to kill someone without provocation while still outside the cave dwelling was something no one had expected.

On the other hand, they were also shocked by Qin Sang's strength, as he was able to instantly kill a cultivator of the same realm!

It was important to note that they weren't confident they could reliably defeat the gaunt old man either.

Didn't that mean if Qin Sang harbored killing intent, anyone present would be unable to escape?

Qin Sang distanced himself from them, his expression showing no fluctuations. Then, the cold mist surged, and two Flying Yakshas landed beside him, like personal guardians, confronting the five people opposite him.

Seeing the ferocious appearance of the Flying Yakshas, everyone gasped. They finally understood why the gaunt old man had died so quickly, with almost no chance to fight back.

These two Flying Yakshas were truly terrifying.

The aura of one of them was no less formidable than that of a genuine Core Formation cultivator. The other was weaker, but could still play a significant role in restraining opponents and could not be ignored.

Coupled with the strange demonic flames controlled by Qin Sang, if suddenly attacked from two sides by Qin Sang and the Flying Yakshas, even a Mid Core Formation cultivator would probably only be able to choose to flee.

"Fellow Daoist Qin..."

The scholarly cultivator in green swallowed hard and cautiously asked, "What exactly happened? We are now in front of the Nascent Soul cave dwelling and will soon be able to enter it. If there's any conflict, why couldn't it be resolved calmly, in front of everyone, instead of resorting to ruthless killing?"

Qin Sang remained silent, his gaze stern as he scanned each of the five faces.

If the gaunt old man had accomplices, the short, stout cultivator was the most likely suspect. The other four were also not above suspicion. They were all cunning and sly individuals who concealed themselves very well, so Qin Sang couldn't discern any clues.

After seeing Qin Sang kill the gaunt old man, with everyone feeling threatened, they already regarded Qin Sang as their greatest enemy. It would be impossible to explain the full story and gain their trust with mere words.

Even with his strength, Qin Sang dared not challenge all of them simultaneously.

The signal had already been sent. Staying in the cave would mean being trapped. Explaining things to them now would be a waste of time and unnecessary.

He estimated that the gaunt old man's accomplices were likely not strong enough to be invincible; otherwise, there would be no need for such deceptive tricks.

However, firstly, the cave was narrow, making it difficult to fully utilize his secret talismans. Secondly, everyone present was suspicious of each other. He didn't know how many of them were the gaunt old man's accomplices, making it impossible to distinguish friend from foe. Fighting alone was definitely not feasible.

What worried Qin Sang most was the strange cold mist in the cave.

In his speculation, the cold mist might be related to some powerful spiritual fire. If someone could activate a spiritual fire, killing them would be as easy as turning over one's hand.

A wise person does not stand under a tottering wall.

Leaving the cave first and escaping the danger would make things much calmer. After the gaunt old man's accomplices arrived, he would observe the situation before deciding his next move.

Although treasures were tempting, one needed to be alive to claim them.

Moreover, it wasn't even certain if there were treasures inside the cave dwelling. Qin Sang now felt that this place was more like a sweet but dangerous bait—someone else's hunting ground!

Thinking of this, Qin Sang revealed a faint smile. In the eyes of the others, however, it looked like the sinister grin of a devil, and especially in this environment, they couldn't help but feel a chill.

The hands of the two female cultivators holding their magical artifacts trembled slightly.

"Fellow Daoist Lan," Qin Sang said, "out of the principles of our alliance, I, Qin, must give you a reminder."

Qin Sang pointed to the gaunt old man's ashes. "This person, taking advantage of the chaos when the light barrier was breached, secretly sent out a signal. I don't know who he was contacting, but fortunately, I detected it. If you were colluding with this person, then consider I said nothing. If not, you might want to think carefully: we are being corroded by the cold mist and will have to exert all our strength to break the restrictions. What will happen if we are trapped here by others, and what will be our fate?"

Qin Sang was fearless, his expression calm.

Hearing Qin Sang's words, the scholarly cultivator in green and the others' expressions changed repeatedly, as they were half-convinced, half-doubtful.

But they had already subconsciously become wary of the short, stout cultivator.

After all, this person was the instigator and thus the most suspicious.

"Silence!"

The short, stout cultivator sharply interrupted Qin Sang and urgently shouted, "Don't listen to this devil's allure! It must be that his conspiracy has been exposed, so he killed to silence the witness. Now he's spreading rumors, intending to sow discord among us and scheme for the ultimate treasure. Do not fall for his poisoned scheme! Let's kill him first. The five of us have absolutely nothing to fear from him..."

Qin Sang scoffed, disdaining to argue.

"I have said all I need to say. I shall take my leave!"

Before his words even faded, Qin Sang waved his hand, retracting the Flying Yakshas. Then, dragon-like roars emanated from within him. He transformed into a streak of light, rushing back the way he came, instantly vanishing into the depths of the cold mist and leaving the others looking at each other in bewilderment.

The cold mist surged, and a figure emerged from the mist, swiftly landing on a branch of an ancient tree at the edge of the hill. As soon as he appeared, a sudden azure color appeared in the void before him, revealing the exquisite form of the Celestial Eye Butterfly.

Qin Sang's face revealed a gentle smile. He used his finger to support the Celestial Eye Butterfly, while his other hand gently stroked it, as if to encourage it.

"Insect shadow?"

After communicating with his Natal Gu Insect, Qin Sang received more precise information. What the gaunt old man had released seemed to be a spirit insect; its shadow flew high into the sky and then vanished.

"Are they transmitting signals to each other through spirit insects? That sounds very much like a method of the Witch Race. It's a bit like the Green Looper Coins, but not as covert; it seems they need to eliminate the interference of the cold mist to do it. These six people are all human cultivators. Could someone be colluding with the Witch Race to harm their own kind?"

Qin Sang's face showed a pensive expression as he looked up at the surrounding sea.

A verdant sea and blue sky, with white clouds scattered about; everything seemed normal.

Immediately, Qin Sang's gaze sharpened abruptly. He stared intently at the distant northern horizon, where a white cloud was rapidly approaching.

This cloud moved through the sea of clouds, approaching his direction at an astonishing speed. Seeing the cloud's speed, Qin Sang's expression changed abruptly.

Qin Sang suspected that the white cloud contained the gaunt old man's accomplices, but he couldn't tell how many people were inside. He knew he couldn't stay here long. He stomped his foot hard, activated a secret talisman again, and swiftly departed in another direction.