Chapter 785: Guidance

Among the many sword marks, this one was the most inconspicuous, yet the most unique.

Upon seeing the sword mark, Qin Sang's heart immediately stirred.

He stared intently at the sword mark, forcefully suppressing the agitation in his heart. He calmly turned to glance at the cultivators searching behind him. Seeing that no one noticed him, he pretended to be searching around, though his gaze remained fixed on the sword mark.

Countless sword marks crisscrossed the stone wall, and this was just one of them. It showed no signs of being recently left.

The sword mark was very special, imbued with a unique sword intent. The moment Qin Sang saw it, a sense of familiarity welled up within him. A Kill Talisman within his Ebony Sword vibrated, as if sensing something.

To his shock, this Kill Talisman was not one of the first five from the *Primordial Spirit Sword Cultivation Chapter*; instead, it was the sixth, yet-to-be-formed Kill Talisman, personally created by Senior Qingzhu.

Only those who had cultivated this particular Kill Talisman would notice the difference.

Qin Sang was filled with surprise.

Unless Senior Qingzhu had taken a disciple, only he and Qin Sang in the Canglang Sea had cultivated this technique.

He had been unable to find any trace of Senior Qingzhu and had thought he met with an accident. Now he knew that Senior Qingzhu was not only alive but had also left sword marks here!

Was it left unintentionally, or did it hold a deeper meaning?

It was certain that if Senior Qingzhu were still alive, he would not have given up searching for a way back. Therefore, it was only natural for him to have come to the Seven Kills Hall and the Heavenly Pagoda.

He still had old friends and sworn enemies in the Minor Cold Domain.

But why Senior Qingzhu ultimately didn't return—whether he failed to find the teleportation array or encountered something else—remained unknown.

This sword mark might be able to resolve his doubts.

Qin Sang waited until the last person had left.

Despite a long and arduous search, he found nothing.

Everyone believed what that person had said earlier, assuming the Great Shaman had likely retrieved the treasure from within the valley. With no hope remaining, they were unwilling to continue wasting time there.

Qin Sang calmly searched around but found no second sword mark resembling the first.

Once he confirmed everyone had departed, Qin Sang returned to the stone wall. After a moment's thought, he activated his Ebony Sword and lightly sent out a stream of sword qi towards the mark.

This stream of sword qi was very fine, drifting towards the sword mark.

Qin Sang had meticulously examined the mark for a long time but couldn't discern anything from it. He was unsure if Senior Qingzhu had left it unintentionally or if it contained some secret.

Recalling an incident at Ziwei Palace, he decided to test it with a single sword strike.

The sword qi's shape perfectly matched the mark. It landed on the sword mark and silently dissolved.

The sword mark showed no change.

Suddenly, a fluctuation appeared in the nearby black light, and dozens of black threads shot out, darting towards Qin Sang at astonishing speed.

These threads were only an insignificant part of the black light, yet they greatly startled Qin Sang. If struck by them, he had no doubt he would be riddled with holes.

Swish!

Qin Sang's figure flashed with light, retreating dozens of feet. A wave of relief washed over him as he saw the threads finally retract.

No wonder the Great Shaman and the Demon Lord dared not engage in combat near the edge of these threads. They could actually sense fluctuations in true essence, meaning even cultivators outside the main area weren't safe.

Once the black threads had retracted and stabilized, Qin Sang returned to his original spot. He gazed at the sword mark, which still showed no change, and fell into thought.

He seemed to recall something, and his eyes lit up.

Then, he slightly closed his eyes, and his demeanor subtly, yet inexplicably, shifted.

At this moment, he immersed his mind in the cultivation technique Senior Qingzhu had created.

Although he cultivated this technique, he hadn't replicated Senior Qingzhu's path. His mental state remained unaffected by the technique; he had always maintained his true self with the aid of the Jade Buddha.

Now, he actively immersed himself, aligning with the Kill Talisman, and sent out another stream of sword qi.

As he retreated to dodge the threads, Qin Sang stared intently at the sword mark. The moment the sword qi landed, the mark indeed underwent a different change.

Suddenly, a faint light flashed within the sword mark, and a weak orb of light emerged from inside the stone wall. It gently bounced and shot towards Qin Sang.

“It really worked!”

Overjoyed, Qin Sang reached out and caught the orb of light.

Unexpectedly, the orb of light suddenly dissipated. Qin Sang's expression changed, but he immediately received a piece of information.

More precisely, it was a directive!

“It must be a fragment nearby!”

Qin Sang understood the directive: Senior Qingzhu was instructing him to go to a particular mountain fragment, and nothing more.

“Did Senior Qingzhu leave this directive specifically for me, or for his disciple?

“If it was specifically for me, then at least fifty years ago, when I fell from the Heavenly Pagoda, Senior Qingzhu was still alive. As we both came through the same teleportation array, upon learning about the ancient corpse falling from the sky, he surely could have made a connection and might even have been looking for me.

“Is he trying to tell me something with this?

“The sword mark doesn't indicate when it was left. Senior Qingzhu not only disguised it remarkably well and left a directive here, but even the Great Shaman and the Demon Lord failed to discover it. This isn't something that can be achieved merely through a special cultivation technique. What was Senior Qingzhu's cultivation level when he left this sword mark?

“If he had already formed a Nascent Soul, why has he remained unknown?”

Qin Sang's eyes flickered, and a myriad of questions arose in his mind.

He vigilantly scanned his surroundings, then pushed off, flying out of the valley. With a swift glance, he rapidly flew away.

Before long, Qin Sang appeared on a fragment of mountain rock.

He looked straight ahead, where a fragment slightly smaller than the valley lay.

This was a very perilous area, featuring a stone staircase that wound its way up to an ancient hall nestled in the mountains.

The ancient hall was built against the stone wall, with a cliff directly behind it. Aside from that, there was nothing else noteworthy.

This ancient hall had no protective enchantments and was severely damaged and extremely dilapidated. Even most of its roof had collapsed, with only a few fragile tiles precariously clinging to the corner against the cliff face.

There were no plaques, dragon pillars, or anything else bearing inscriptions.

At first glance, this place seemed like any other common fragment, lacking even ancient enchantments. Even if there had been treasures, they would have been plundered long ago. Yet, Senior Qingzhu's directive pointed precisely here.

Qin Sang's figure flashed, vanishing into the shadows. He silently glided onto the stone steps, feeling nothing unusual, then quickly walked towards the great hall.

The great hall was very tall; it was evident from the broken walls and ruins that it must have been incredibly magnificent in the past.

He stood before the great hall, unsuccessfully searching for other sword marks. After a moment of contemplation, he fixed his gaze on the stone wall behind the hall.

The great hall had clearly been thoroughly destroyed. The last possible location of anything hidden would be this stone wall.

Senior Qingzhu wouldn't have directed him here without a purpose.

Zing!

He swiftly set up a spirit-blocking array around himself. Simultaneously, his Ebony Sword shot forth, cutting diagonally with a single stroke.

He watched as the sword qi landed on the stone wall, silently dissolving and being absorbed by it.

This familiar sight made Qin Sang's eyes light up. Without hesitation, he continued to activate his Ebony Sword, and stream after stream of sword qi vanished into the stone wall, causing faint lights to flicker across its surface!