Chapter 727: Thundercloud

In the Human World

In the Human World

The Winter Nether Cold Flame was covered by a thin layer of restriction.

This restriction carried the aura of the Nine Nether Demonic Fire, faintly tinged with gray-black, but it couldn't obscure the pure, brilliant azure glow of the Winter Nether Cold Flame.

Qin Sang reached out and held the cold flame, carefully sending a wisp of his spiritual consciousness through the restriction.

As the azure light within the Winter Nether Cold Flame flashed, Qin Sang immediately lost perception of that wisp of spiritual consciousness; it was effortlessly obliterated by the Winter Nether Cold Flame.

Qin Sang's expression held a hint of helplessness.

For months, this wasn't his first attempt, and each time ended similarly. He still had no clue how to subdue the Winter Nether Cold Flame.

"Could it really only be refined into a single-use magical artifact, like the Void Heaven Thunder?"

Qin Sang murmured to himself.

Skilled in artifact refining, he naturally thought of solving the problem through this craft. After days of contemplation, he realized that forcibly compressing the Winter Nether Cold Flame with the Nine Nether Demonic Fire might allow him to condense it into a fire bead.

If refined into a fire bead, the cold flame's power would burst forth instantly, its might far exceeding that of the Void Heaven Thunder. Perhaps few below the Nascent Soul stage could withstand it. The drawback, however, was that it could only be used once.

"To condense such a rare cold flame into a single-use fire bead... it's too wasteful. And refining a fire bead isn't that simple; I'd need to at least break through to the middle Core Formation stage before I could even attempt it."

Qin Sang hesitated, reluctant to proceed.

After several more attempts, the Winter Nether Cold Flame remained unyielding, so Qin Sang put it away again.

Green Oriole Island.

It was named after a small bird called the green oriole found on the island. These birds were not demonic beasts; they were harmless and much beloved.

Green Oriole Island was one of those small islands without a Nascent Soul expert presiding over it. Although it had a protective island array, it appeared exceptionally vulnerable in the face of a beast tide. As Qin Sang walked through the streets of Green Oriole Island, he noticed that the houses on both sides were extremely crude stone chambers and dwellings.

After circling Green Oriole Island, Qin Sang purchased the most detailed sea chart of the island's vicinity, easily pinpointed the location of Red Leaf Island, and then left the island alone.

Red Leaf Island was east of Green Oriole Island.

Few cultivators resided on such small islands, and the explored sea area around them was limited. Red Leaf Island happened to be outside this explored range, and its surroundings were densely populated with demonic beasts, making it a perilous place that Green Oriole Islanders spoke of with dread.

After traveling some distance from Green Oriole Island, and seeing no other cultivators, Qin Sang released his Two-Headed Ghoul. Man and beast sped across the sea, heading directly for Red Leaf Island.

Red Leaf Island was quite far from Green Oriole Island. Even with Qin Sang and the Two-Headed Ghoul traveling day and night, it took over half a month. He wondered what treasure that burly Wu Clan man was searching for, venturing so deep into these waters.

Upon approaching Red Leaf Island, even someone as strong as Qin Sang dared not proceed carelessly.

Here, disturbing demonic beasts wouldn't result in just a few creatures, but successive waves of them. These beasts would call their companions, forming groups that could instantly trigger a small beast tide, trapping him and leading to his demise.

Sending the Two-Headed Ghoul back into slumber, Qin Sang took out a scroll, concealed his presence, and constantly monitored the movements of the Primordial Unity Conjoined Rings, moving forward with extreme caution.

Not long after he started, the Yin Ring within Qin Sang's body began to vibrate incessantly.

The density of demonic beasts here was even greater than in the Thousand Monster Sea, astounding Qin Sang.

Fortunately, the Primordial Unity Conjoined Rings had not yet sensed the aura of any Core Formation stage great demons. The lesser demons couldn't detect Qin Sang's movements, allowing him to advance with confidence.

But this good fortune didn't last. After traveling a short distance, the Yin Ring suddenly vibrated intensely. Qin Sang's expression shifted slightly, and he had no choice but to take a detour.

What should have been half a day's journey took Qin Sang a full day and night. It wasn't until late into the night that he finally saw the outline of Red Leaf Island. No wonder the Wu Clan man spoke of Red Leaf Island with such lingering fear.

Lying submerged on the water, he observed Red Leaf Island from afar.

Red Leaf Island was small, covered with ancient trees whose leaves were a fiery red. Under the cold moonlight, the red leaves merged into a continuous expanse, looking like a red cloud floating on the sea.

Mists swirled perpetually around the roots of the ancient trees, making the island appear even more like a celestial realm where red clouds and a sea of mist overlapped.

"Good luck, no trace of demonic beasts."

Qin Sang reached the edge of Red Leaf Island, cautiously surveying his surroundings, and secretly let out a sigh of relief.

Only after landing did he discover that there wasn't a single blade of grass on Red Leaf Island; the only existing plant was the red-leaf ancient tree. Moreover, the island was eerily quiet, with no insects or beasts.

As he entered the forest, Qin Sang grew even more vigilant. The mist on the island was not miasma, but it was exceptionally dense, creating a pervasive white fog that obscured vision, and his spiritual consciousness could only extend a short distance.

Recalling the Wu Clan man's directions, Qin Sang looked left and right, slightly adjusted his course, and headed straight into the depths of Red Leaf Island.

Walking among the ancient trees, the ground beneath his feet was covered with ubiquitous, vertically protruding stone shards, as sharp as blades.

This terrain, perhaps formed by seawater erosion, had countless dense crevices between the stone shards, from which a continuous stream of white mist emerged.

The roots of the ancient trees also burrowed deep into these stone crevices.

The journey was remarkably calm. Qin Sang quickly reached his destination, where an exceptionally tall ancient tree appeared before him. Its gnarled roots, like giant pythons, were thick and powerful, with the tallest reaching two human heights.

The roots intertwined, forming an umbrella-shaped root system.

Qin Sang climbed above the roots and searched for a while, finally finding a cavity between two withered roots, just large enough for a person to pass through.

As the Wu Clan man had said, following this cavity would lead to the Six-Petaled Butterfly Orchid.

Mist also filled the cavity. Qin Sang released his Flying Heaven Yaksha, ordering it to go ahead, and had the Two-Headed Ghoul guard the entrance before he climbed in.

The ancient tree's root system was unimaginably complex and vast. The cavity twisted and turned, extending unknown depths beneath the ground. Eventually, the tree roots began to thin out, replaced by stone walls on either side. It was like an underground canyon.

Just then, Qin Sang paused slightly, listening intently, and was surprised to hear faint rumbling sounds from ahead.

The Flying Heaven Yaksha, which was leading the way, was unharmed. Qin Sang hesitated for a moment, then continued forward.

The rumbling grew louder, echoing continuously underground, deafening. Just as Qin Sang frowned in secret, he received a message from the Flying Heaven Yaksha, and his expression brightened. He accelerated his pace.

*Crack! Crack!*

Deep within Red Leaf Island was an empty underground cavern.

Qin Sang and the Flying Heaven Yaksha landed one after another, stepping into water, and looked up.

The cavern itself had no thick fog, but at its top, dense, cloud-like mist had condensed. Even more peculiar, in the unknown depths underground, the mist cloud glowed with flashes of electricity, with exceptionally thin lightning bolts appearing and disappearing.

Illuminated by the lightning, the features of the cavern were not difficult to see. Qin Sang's gaze swept across, and in the depths of the cavern, he spotted several familiar Six-Petaled Butterfly Orchids.

The exotic flowers were in full bloom, all mature.

Just as Qin Sang was about to fly over to gather them, the Heavenly Eye Butterfly, which had been dormant in his spiritual sea, suddenly awoke for unknown reasons and seemed eager to emerge. What attracted it, seemingly, was the thundercloud.