Chapter 952: Green Bamboo

Silence reigned behind the door.

Qin Sang summoned a fiend-corpse, which took the lead and ascended the stone steps. He and his avatar followed. The fiend-corpse's footsteps echoed through the long stone staircase, and soon it reached the end, stepping through the door.

To his surprise, beyond the door was another visibly dilapidated hall. Strangely, the hall had only this one door, with no other exits. Inside the hall was an incomplete array. Qin Sang appeared at the doorway, surveying the hall and the incomplete array.

"It seems to be some kind of spirit-gathering array," Qin Sang murmured to himself. He discerned some clues, realizing that when the array was complete, it was a spirit-gathering array, and a more intricate one than any he had seen before.

After a careful inspection, confirming there was nothing else and no trace left by Senior Qingzhu, Qin Sang went to the other side of the hall and examined the wall. There had to be another exit in the hall. He summoned the Ebony Sword, activated its sword energy, and made a test slash towards the stone wall. The sword energy merged into the stone wall and vanished.

"Just as I thought." A look of joy appeared on Qin Sang's face. He continuously unleashed sword energy, all of which was absorbed by the stone wall. Soon, a door appeared on the wall, very similar to the one in the ancient hall of Ziwei Palace.

The fiend-corpse stepped out first. A moment later, Qin Sang followed.

"This place?" Qin Sang looked at the surrounding scenery, a strong look of surprise on his face. The exit of the ancient hall was also on a stone wall, but outside was a desolate landscape. The fiend-corpse was currently standing on the stone wall. Qin Sang's figure flickered, and he floated up as well, surveying his surroundings with even greater astonishment.

For now, he would call it the eighth level of the Sky Tower. This was a vast expanse, probably no smaller than the seventh level. However, this level had no towering peaks, but rather an open, empty area with some undulating mountain ranges that were not very tall. What was surprising was that this level was the most intact space Qin Sang had encountered since entering the Sky Tower. The previous seven levels were all shattered and broken; even the large mountains on the seventh level had been smashed. Yet, the eighth level was completely intact, with the ground and mountains undamaged, as if the war had not reached this place.

However, compared to the seventh level, this place was incredibly oppressive. The space was exceptionally dim, with heavy black clouds drifting above them. It was unclear what substance they were made of, but they hung so low that they seemed to touch the mountaintops, pressing down like a weight on one's heart. The ground and mountains were completely exposed, with no trace of green; not even withered vegetation could be seen. Everything was the same black color as the clouds. Deathly silent and barren. The eighth level of the Sky Tower was a place that had utterly died.

Qin Sang's expression grew solemn. For some reason, a wave of desolation washed over him.

"Would anything still remain in a place like this?" Qin Sang mumbled, his gaze searching everywhere. "Could the ancient teleportation array be here?" As far as his eyes could see, everything was desolate black. Distant mountain shadows undulated, but there were no man-made structures visible. Qin Sang knew he would have to search himself; Senior Qingzhu had not left a single word of guidance.

The good news was that the entire space was extremely quiet, with no fierce beasts inhabiting it. He summoned the Ebony Sword, chose a direction, and, together with his avatar, began searching for any potential restrictions. This space was indeed vast, so they had to act quickly. The direction Qin Sang chose contained a very tall mountain peak.

Soon, Qin Sang arrived at the base of the mountain, concealed his form, and swept towards the summit.

"Huh?" Reaching the summit, Qin Sang gazed in all directions and finally spotted something unusual in one particular direction. At the very end of that direction, there was a neat black line, appearing like a sheer cliff where the land abruptly ended, making it very peculiar.

After a moment of thought, Qin Sang flew down the mountain, deciding to take a look at the cliff edge first. Crossing over one black mountain range after another, just as he was about to approach the sheer cliff, Qin Sang's figure suddenly froze, his face filled with horror. His Heavenly Eye Butterfly, Bai, urgently warned him in his mind: "Careful! Someone's there!"

Qin Sang was horrified to discover that a person was standing on a mountain next to the sheer cliff! This person was tall and slender, standing as straight as a pine tree, with hands clasped behind their back, facing away from them and gazing into the sheer cliff. They stood perfectly still, and not a single breath of aura could be felt from them. Before this, his Heavenly Eye Butterfly had been on alert but had surprisingly failed to detect this person's presence. It was as if this person had appeared out of thin air, like a phantom.

A chilling jolt went through Qin Sang. He watched as the person slowly turned, their gaze like a knife, instantly fixing on Qin Sang. Qin Sang's concealment and escape techniques were as good as nothing under this person's gaze.

"Senior Qingzhu!" Upon seeing the person's face, Qin Sang's expression changed dramatically, and he exclaimed in a choked voice. He had seen Senior Qingzhu's portrait in Shaohua Mountain. The legends of Qingzhu had always been celebrated in Shaohua Mountain. Tales of him raging for a beauty, cleaving Sword Gate Mountain with his sword, single-handedly assailing the Yuan Mists Sect, and slaying Golden Core cultivators with his sword—each deed was enough to make one's blood boil and fill one with yearning. Although Shaohua Mountain had deliberately ignored this person's existence to save face for the Yuan Mists Sect, it couldn't stop the enthusiasm of his admirers. Senior Qingzhu's portrait had continuously circulated among the disciples.

At this very moment, Qin Sang had actually met the real person. Senior Qingzhu's whereabouts had always been a mystery. Qin Sang had begun to suspect that he had found the ancient teleportation array and returned to the Lesser Cold Domain. After finding Spirit Turtle Island, he then learned that Senior Qingzhu had been confronted by enemies, fought a great battle, and his whereabouts became unknown. He had originally thought the chances of seeing Senior Qingzhu again were slim, but now they had suddenly reunited. What was strange was why Senior Qingzhu was here.

For a moment, Qin Sang's thoughts raced. Undoubtedly, Senior Qingzhu must already be a Nascent Soul stage expert; otherwise, it would have been impossible to easily fool the Heavenly Eye Butterfly's perception. However, Qin Sang didn't know Senior Qingzhu's true temperament, or if he was truly as clear-cut in his likes and dislikes as the legends claimed. His heart immediately grew highly vigilant, and his entire body tensed up.

"I..." Qin Sang opened his mouth, about to say something, when he suddenly felt that something was amiss. Qingzhu stood in the darkness. After seeing Qin Sang, the corners of his mouth curved slightly, revealing a sinister smile that made Qin Sang's heart leap.

"A Demonic Embryo Seed, another fellow who doesn't know what's good for him..." Qingzhu scoffed, his voice ringing in Qin Sang's ears with an inexplicable chill that pierced to his bones, making him shiver. "I didn't expect an unexpected gain. It seems you are the successor he chose?"

"No! You're not..." Qin Sang's heart jolted with alarm. This person had Senior Qingzhu's face, yet referred to Qingzhu as 'him'. Judging by his tone, he seemed remarkably familiar with both Qingzhu and the Demonic Embryo Seed cultivation method.

"Could it be..." Qin Sang instinctively glanced at his avatar beside him, his figure trembled, and a three-colored escape light suddenly appeared as his main body swiftly retreated, choosing to flee without hesitation. At the same time, his avatar did the opposite of Qin Sang, charging towards Qingzhu with a blood-colored sword in hand.

Seeing this, a flicker of disdain appeared in Qingzhu's eyes, and the sinister smile on his face deepened, as if he were looking at a dying plaything.