Chapter 721: Deceive the East to Attack the West

After he was out of the Black-Armored Man's sight, Qin Sang continued flying discreetly for some time. Once he confirmed no one was following him, Qin Sang suddenly stopped.

He turned his head towards Cold Flame Island, a look of hesitation on his face.

After a brief moment of contemplation, he looked around, landed on a nearby small island, and surprisingly set up a concealed spirit formation to hide himself on the island.

A sudden idea had just come to him, but he wasn't sure if it was feasible.

He deployed the Ten Directions Yama Banner, activating the Nine Nether Demonic Flames.

The demonic flames gathered into a ball. Qin Sang crooked his finger, and it obediently settled into his palm. Qin Sang gazed at the Nine Nether Demonic Flames, feeling the aura emanating from them, and fell into deep thought.

Undoubtedly, the power displayed by the Nine Nether Demonic Flames was only comparable to a mid-grade magic treasure, a world apart from the Cold Flames.

Even a small wisp of Cold Flame was more terrifying than the Nine Nether Demonic Flames.

But this was not the true form of the Nine Nether Demonic Flames. Its true essence was sealed within the Ten Directions Yama Banner, suppressed by the banner pole forged from Profound Iron, and the power it displayed on the surface was merely the tip of the iceberg.

Neither Qin Sang nor the former Old Ancestor Kuiyin could control the Nine Nether Demonic Flames without the demonic banner.

The Profound Iron pole was very mysterious, its restrictions profound, causing the Nine Nether Demonic Flames to fear it.

As his artifact forging skills rapidly advanced, Qin Sang's understanding of the Profound Iron pole deepened. He had once considered using it to forge other magic treasures, but now he dared not even contemplate it.

Daoist Jiupao had attempted to forge a Natal Magic Treasure with the Profound Iron pole, but the insights he left behind were merely wishful thinking. Had Daoist Jiupao not been killed and successfully seized a new body to be reborn, getting a chance to try, he would surely have faced the bitter fruit of failure and wasted precious top-grade spirit stones.

The restrictions within the Profound Iron pole were exceptionally profound and integrated seamlessly, so powerful that even Old Ancestor Kuiyin could not reshape them.

It was only because the Profound Iron pole was damaged for some unknown reason that a slight flaw appeared, allowing it to be ingeniously separated, but its true essence was not harmed.

Without the Profound Iron pole, the Nine Nether Demonic Flames, like the Cold Flames, would be impossible for anyone to subdue.

So then, among the various spiritual flames and demonic flames, was there a distinction in strength and grade?

This thought had always been on Qin Sang's mind. Having come into close contact with the Winter Underworld Cold Flame and comparing it to the Nine Nether Demonic Flames sealed in the Ten Directions Yama Banner, he felt that the Nine Nether Demonic Flames should be stronger than the Winter Underworld Cold Flame.

This could also be seen through Old Ancestor Kuiyin and Master Dongming.

Master Dongming failed to break through to the late Nascent Soul stage, while Old Ancestor Kuiyin, with the Ten Directions Yama Formation, could dominate the Minor Cold Region—and this was only part of the Nine Nether Demonic Flames' power.

As for the undivided Winter Underworld Cold Flame, he naturally dared not covet it.

The power of spiritual flames was also related to their quantity.

Compared to such a large mass of Cold Flame, the Nine Nether Demonic Flames sealed within the three Ten Directions Yama Banners were too few and might even be devoured in return.

However, with the split Winter Underworld Cold Flame, there might be a chance.

Qin Sang's cultivation level wasn't even fit to carry the shoes of the Misty Heaven Island Master, but he possessed something that Nascent Soul cultivators did not.

As both were spiritual flames, could he, with the help of the Ten Directions Yama Banner and the Nine Nether Demonic Flames, suppress the rampaging Winter Underworld Cold Flame and take it away?

Qin Sang knew very little about natural spiritual flames, and this was merely a conjecture.

If he could take away a wisp of the Winter Underworld Cold Flame, even if he couldn't subdue it in the end, it could at least serve as a means of attack, catching enemies off guard and launching it to destroy them.

At the very least, cultivators in the late Core Formation stage would only be able to flee when facing the Winter Underworld Cold Flame.

This risk was worth taking!

He wasn't afraid of offending the Misty Heaven Island Master and Old Demon Mu, as both the Inner and Outer Seas were vast and boundless. He was a solitary individual, so at worst, he would just hide for a while longer and act discreetly in the future.

What could they do to him?

Thinking of this, Qin Sang resolved to try.

The only obstacle was the Black-Armored Man; as it would take some time for him to collect the Winter Underworld Cold Flame, he needed to lure him away first.

Qin Sang waited patiently on the island for a full five days. It was only at noon on the sixth day, with the sun shining brightly, that he quietly left the island to execute his flame-stealing operation.

After leaving the island, Qin Sang released the Twin-Headed Hound, hid his Yang Ring, and whispered a few words to it.

Before the Twin-Headed Hound had even finished listening, its two heads shook rapidly, refusing outright.

Qin Sang tried both coercion and persuasion, but the Twin-Headed Hound would not yield.

This plan would surely fail if the Twin-Headed Hound wasn't willing to execute it wholeheartedly.

Qin Sang sighed helplessly, and after a moment's thought, said, "If you help me steal the Winter Underworld Cold Flame, I promise you that once I break through to the late Core Formation stage, I will immediately grant you your freedom!"

The Twin-Headed Hound abruptly lifted its head, staring at Qin Sang with a suspicious expression.

"I swear on my inner demons... will that suffice?"

Protected by the Jade Buddha, Qin Sang was not afraid of inner demons, but he would not deceive a monster beast. Once he reached the late Core Formation stage, the Twin-Headed Hound's usefulness would diminish greatly, so he could simply find another.

The Twin-Headed Hound let out a low growl, seemingly warning Qin Sang not to break his promise. Then, it extended its wings and flew silently north, intending to take a wide arc to approach Cold Flame Island from behind and draw the Black-Armored Man's attention.

The Black-Armored Man was ordered to guard this place, so any movement from a monster beast would surely alert him.

Although the Twin-Headed Hound's cultivation was a stage lower, it possessed life-saving divine abilities like the Shadow Clone Art. It didn't need to engage the Black-Armored Man in close combat and should be able to stall him for a while.

However, Qin Sang couldn't predict how much time the Twin-Headed Hound could buy him, so he prepared for failure.

After releasing the Twin-Headed Hound, Qin Sang's gaze sharpened slightly, then he summoned his scroll painting, his figure vanishing on the spot, and silently approached Cold Flame Island.

Just now, he had already tested the Black-Armored Man's perception range. Upon reaching this range, he stopped, quietly submerged himself underwater, and remained motionless.

At the same time, he released the Heavenly Eye Butterfly.

The Heavenly Eye Butterfly concealed itself and continued flying forward, scouting on Qin Sang's behalf.

The Black-Armored Man's cultivation was too high, so Qin Sang didn't dare let the Heavenly Eye Butterfly get too close. It was enough for it to simply observe the Black-Armored Man's movements clearly.

Small ripples disturbed the surface of the sea.

The Heavenly Eye Butterfly quietly rested on a wave crest, rising and falling with the undulations. Soon after, gusts of sea wind began to blow from the east, and the waves gradually grew larger, a very common occurrence in the Demonic Sea.

However, the Black-Armored Man was alerted and surfaced.

Everything around him appeared normal, but the Black-Armored Man frowned slightly. Suddenly, his gaze sharpened, fixing on an empty spot to the east. His palm flashed, and a black spear appeared, which he then hurled with force.

The spear's shadow moved like lightning, and the moment the sharp sound of tearing air began, the black spear arrived instantly.

*Boom!*

Under the powerful impact of the black spear, a crooked figure was forced out of thin air, appearing quite disheveled.

The Twin-Headed Hound spread its green wings, steadied itself on the sea surface, baring its fangs at the Black-Armored Man and letting out a low growl, appearing very fierce.

"A monster beast!"

The Black-Armored Man's expression grew solemn.

He did not rush to attack the Twin-Headed Hound. With his other hand, he subtly flipped it over, and a jade talisman, somewhat similar to a sound transmission talisman but with runes several times more intricate and complex, slipped into his palm.

Holding the jade talisman face down, the Black-Armored Man's gaze remained fixed on the Twin-Headed Hound, but his peripheral vision slowly scanned inch by inch, searching for traces of other monster beasts.