Chapter 761: The Ninth Person

After they left, lightning flashed and thunder roared around the ancient divine platform.

Lesso vented his fury; heavenly lightning danced wildly. Fierce beasts wailed across the land, their very corpses struck into dust by the divine thunder.

Once Lesso calmed down, silence returned to the ancient divine platform.

After a while, a figure appeared near the platform; it was Qin Sang.

From the moment Xiang Yi and the others began to decipher the ancient prohibition until the fierce beasts attacked, Qin Sang had been nearby. However, he found no opportunity to act and could only watch as they completed their task and left.

Qin Sang didn't continue to follow them because there would be even less chance to act later, so he decided to give up.

From their previous conversation, Xiang Yi had promised to help Cui Ji and the Fatty retrieve treasures, meaning the three would not separate for the time being. Tracking them alone after leaving the purple mist would carry too great a risk of exposure.

Furthermore, Qin Sang had his own matters to attend to and couldn't keep following them indefinitely.

This didn't mean Qin Sang had given up on revenge. The future was long, and with his enemy in the open and him in the shadows, he would eventually find an opportunity.

Qin Sang stood beneath the ancient divine platform, not daring to get too close.

Having just witnessed Lesso's slaughter of the fierce beasts, he still felt a lingering fear.

He hadn't been able to clearly see what Xiang Yi did. Noticing that the prohibitions on the ancient divine platform were still intact, he was somewhat surprised. He circled it but couldn't discern anything.

Even if there were treasures, Xiang Yi had already taken them.

Knowing Lesso's power, Qin Sang dared not easily touch the ancient prohibitions on the platform. After a moment's hesitation, he decided to retreat.

"Putting other matters aside, I should head straight to the Sky Pagoda. There's still plenty of time now. This time, I must at least find clues about the ancient teleportation array. Of course, finding it directly would be even better..."

Qin Sang pondered these thoughts, about to summon his Two-Headed Ferret to leave the Purple Mist Deathland as quickly as possible, when he seemed to sense something and sharply turned around.

"Who's there!"

He stared intently at the purple mist, a sudden chill seizing his heart, his expression changing.

In the purple mist, a figure faintly emerged, slowly approaching him. Qin Sang felt himself locked by two gazes—it was a stranger!

Someone had actually been following him without his prior detection.

Qin Sang had only appeared after confirming Xiang Yi and the others had left. Could there be a ninth person who entered the Purple Mist Deathland with them?

Who was this person?

Were they drawn by the commotion of Lesso's divine thunder, or had they been tracking them all along?

Were they merely passing by, or did they have a purpose?

Qin Sang's mind raced, his nerves taut. He found himself locked by a faint, elusive aura. The other party seemed supremely confident, strolling leisurely, not choosing to ambush.

Of course, ambushing an opponent entirely undetected in the purple mist was difficult, unless, like Cui Ji, one chose a moment when the opponent was besieged by fierce beasts.

Qin Sang swiftly summoned his Two-Headed Ferret and his magical artifact, standing ready for battle.

The figure became increasingly clear, finally stepping before Qin Sang. It was a young man with a hooked nose, his eyes as sharp as an eagle's, his gaze like lightning as he scrutinized Qin Sang.

Seeing this person, Qin Sang's heart suddenly sank.

This person's aura was actually stronger than Xiang Yi's. He was very likely a peak Core Formation stage expert, the strongest opponent Qin Sang had encountered since reaching Core Formation!

"Who are you, sir! What is your intention in following me?" Qin Sang demanded, his voice deep.

The poisonous mist of the Purple Mist Deathland was no trivial matter; it was known as one of the Seven Kills Palace's three great toxic lands. Very few cultivators dared to venture into it. To encounter each other in such a vast Purple Mist Deathland was certainly no coincidence!

The young man glanced at Qin Sang and his Two-Headed Ferret, his expression showing a hint of disdain. In fact, he was only a step away from reaching the Nascent Soul stage, and his cultivation level was indeed sufficient to look down on Qin Sang.

"Are you from the Northern Star Alliance, or the Righteous and Demonic Paths, or perhaps a spy bought by the Witch Clan? A Three-Transforming Spirit Worm like that is rare among our human cultivators."

The young man spoke, asking a question that left Qin Sang bewildered.

Qin Sang noticed the young man staring at his sleeve and immediately realized the person knew about Fatty Silkworm's existence. His heart tightened, and he quickly urged Fatty Silkworm to hide carefully.

Fatty Silkworm was his reliance for moving freely within the purple mist. If Fatty Silkworm were killed, he might as well surrender immediately.

Northern Star Alliance, Righteous and Demonic Paths, Witch Clan...

Whether the young man was careless or intentional, he had named almost all the major factions openly present in the Canglang Sea Region, but had specifically omitted the Western Gloom Alliance.

Qin Sang didn't understand why, but his expression remained unchanged as he retorted, "So, you are from the Western Gloom Alliance?"

The young man neither admitted nor denied it, saying coldly, "To have infiltrated Xiang Yi's group and escaped during the chaos caused by the fierce beasts shows decent strategy. I'm curious, which other force is eyeing the Eastern Pole Alliance, and how many secrets do they know? If you confess honestly, I can promise to leave your body intact. Your evasion technique is passable, but trying to shake me off is wishful thinking."

Qin Sang's eyes flickered; he caught some hints in the young man's words.

The young man seemed to have been following them all along, yet none of the eight people, including Qin Sang, had detected the slightest abnormality, which demonstrated his astonishing strength.

He also seemed to have been affected by the beast chaos. He didn't realize that Cui Ji's ambush had forced Qin Sang out of the group, instead thinking Qin Sang had a different objective and used the opportunity to escape.

"I've heard that the three great merchant alliances are united, advancing and retreating together. Given your strength, your position in the Western Gloom Alliance must be extraordinary, wouldn't you say? Cui Ji bears the Alliance Master's command, yet you secretly followed him. If the Eastern Pole Alliance Master were to find out..."

Qin Sang sneered, hoping to buy time and elicit more information.

The young man was confident. Qin Sang, unperturbed, secretly observed him.

The young man held a spirit sword in his hand and possessed no treasure similar to the bone lotus, yet he could move freely in the poisonous mist. Qin Sang noticed a faint, almost imperceptible green glow on his body, which seemed to be repelling the poisonous mist.

Initially, Qin Sang thought the green glow emanated from the young man's magical robe.

Upon closer inspection, he realized it was likely emanating from the jade bracelet on his left hand.

The jade bracelet was a poison-warding treasure!

If he were to directly use the Fire Orb, there was indeed a good chance he could kill this person outright. However, this was the Purple Mist Deathland, and he might not need to use his trump card directly to deal with him.

Unlike Cui Ji, this person had never witnessed the power of the Blood Filth Divine Light and was likely unprepared, giving Qin Sang a high chance of success.

If he could disable the jade bracelet, and the young man had no second poison-warding treasure, how much of his strength could he then unleash?

Qin Sang glanced at the ancient divine platform and said in a deep voice, "The treasures on the platform have already been taken by Xiang Yi. You didn't dare show yourself earlier, and now you're not rushing to pursue him. What good would killing me do?"

"Treasures? So, you're unaware of the platform's secret?"

The young man frowned, scrutinizing Qin Sang, a hint of surprise in his expression.

Qin Sang was taken aback. He indeed hadn't clearly seen Xiang Yi's actions on the platform and didn't know if Xiang Yi had taken a treasure.

The young man saw through him, a mocking expression appearing on his face, and he sneered, "So you're just a clueless piece of trash. What use are you to me?"