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Chapter 364: Demonic Qingyang Sect
Qin Sang prepared everything he needed and first went to Sunken Cave to retrieve the living corpse.
After being nourished by malevolent qi for this period, the living corpse’s Qihai had fully recovered. Qin Sang found a secluded spot, summoned the living corpse, and tested its strength.
Although the living corpse's original body was Liang Yan, its combat techniques were limited, and it could not replenish its Earth Malevolent Qi during battle. As a result, its strength was inferior to that of a true middle-stage Foundation Building cultivator. However, it was undoubtedly far stronger than an ordinary malevolent corpse.
If an early-stage Foundation Building cultivator encountered this living corpse, they would have to be extremely cautious—one careless mistake could lead to an injury, allowing corpse poison to invade their body, bringing about a fate similar to Senior Sister Qingting’s.
Qin Sang was quite satisfied. After collecting some artifacts from Shopkeeper Wu’s store, he rode his Nether Cloud and headed straight east toward Tianduan Mountains.
In less than a month, Qin Sang arrived at Tianduan Mountains, near a branch of the Heavenly Corpse Sect. This location was where three major spiritual eyes converged, making the terrain rather mysterious. It was likely that a senior brother from Shaohua Mountain had already claimed it as a cave dwelling.
Qin Sang had no desire to revisit old places. He merely recalled past experiences and thought of familiar faces like Senior Sister Qingting and Yu Dayue. His evasion light paused briefly as he glanced in the direction of the Heavenly Corpse Cave before turning northeast.
Due to the dominance of the Cunyang Sect, the demonic sects had either migrated north, retreated deeper into Tianduan Mountains, or become extremely low-key. At first, Qin Sang encountered only a few demonic cultivators.
However, as he ventured into the core territory of the demonic sects, his appearance changed significantly.
Now, he wore a hooded cloak and a black robe. His aura remained normal, unlike the eerie presence of most demonic cultivators. However, he carried a black coffin on his back.
This black coffin was the simplest corpse-nurturing artifact recorded in the Heavenly Yin Corpse Art.
Corpse Puppet Pouches were extremely difficult to refine, so most disciples of the Heavenly Corpse Sect had no choice but to use these black coffins.
Apart from preserving and nurturing refined corpses, the black coffin had no other functions. Its refinement process was not overly complicated. After acquiring the jade slip from Shopkeeper Wu, Qin Sang experimented a few times and successfully crafted one.
Inside the black coffin lay a malevolent corpse, faintly exuding corpse qi. With this disguise, no one could say he didn’t look like a demonic cultivator.
Since Qin Sang remained low-key and focused solely on traveling, he avoided unnecessary conflicts. Finally, he arrived at the designated meeting place on schedule.
Endless Valley.
It was said that all malevolent and bloodthirsty qi in the world converged here. The valley had given rise to countless blood fiends and ghostly creatures, with numerous yin beasts and demonic monsters lurking within, their nature twisted into brutal, bloodthirsty killers by the valley’s sinister influence.
However, the most dangerous aspect of the valley wasn’t these monsters—it was the countless ancient barriers hidden within. Some of these barriers were even more terrifying than spatial rifts.
Worse still, certain areas contained a chaotic mix of both spatial rifts and ancient barriers. Even Spiritual Infant cultivators had to detour around them. Endless Valley was undoubtedly one of the most perilous locations within the Tianduan Mountains.
The valley was divided into three zones.
Most cultivators could only operate in the first zone.
Entering the second zone required at least Foundation Building cultivation. Even so, within the vast expanse of Endless Valley, Foundation Building cultivators could only traverse a few well-explored routes, always remaining vigilant—one misstep could mean death and destruction.
Countless immortal cultivators had perished in this place.
As for the third zone, the true inner valley of Endless Valley, calling it dangerous was an understatement. Every step taken there was a step into death itself.
Qin Sang learned this information from a demonic sect's market called Qingyang Market.
Qingyang Market was still a considerable distance from Endless Valley, but it was widely renowned. The demonic sect behind it, Demonic Qingyang Sect, was even more famous throughout the Small Cold Domain.
This was because Qingyang City, one of the seven great strongholds of the Ancient Immortal Battlefield, was named after a grandmaster of the Demonic Qingyang Sect.
The Demonic Qingyang Sect was best known for its supernatural ability—Demonic Qingyang Fire. Not only was this fire immensely powerful, striking fear into the sect’s enemies, but its origins were also extraordinary. It was said to be a secret art of the Demonic Qingyang Sect, created by refining Divine Qingyang Gale, one of the Celestial Gale Qi that existed above the heavens.
Above the heavens, heavenly gales raged endlessly, capable of corroding the soul and devouring flesh.
The higher one ascended, the more terrifying these gales became. Even Spiritual Infant cultivators lacked the ability to pass through the gale region and collect Celestial Gale Qi from the heavens.
The founder of Demonic Qingyang Sect, upon obtaining this secret art, scoured the immortal cultivation world. Eventually, he discovered a mountain where Celestial Gale Qi had descended and condensed into Qingyang Gale Essence—this very mountain later became the site of Demonic Qingyang Sect’s headquarters.
Overjoyed, he used this discovery as the foundation to establish his sect.
Although the Demonic Qingyang Sect was no longer as prosperous as it once was, it remained a dominant force among the demonic sects in the Tianduan Mountains. In particular, the sect’s protective array was something even Spiritual Infant cultivators preferred not to provoke.
After gathering information about Endless Valley at the Demonic Qingyang Sect, Qin Sang understood why Wandering Man had arranged to meet here.
Because of the ruthless bloodthirsty qi permeating Endless Valley, the valley entrance was shrouded in blood miasma throughout the year.
This blood miasma was not only highly toxic but also bitterly cold. Cultivators could not simply rely on spiritual power to resist it and had to find alternative means.
The Demonic Qingyang Sect’s Demonic Qingyang Fire happened to restrain the blood miasma to some extent. The sect refined strands of demonic fire into artifacts, selling them to cultivators planning to enter Endless Valley—making them the best protective items available.
Although Qingyang Market was a demonic sect's market, it wasn’t much different from the ones Qin Sang had encountered before. The cultivators within the market adhered to the rules set by the Demonic Qingyang Sect, preventing frequent violent conflicts.
Having already removed his black coffin, Qin Sang waited for Wandering Man.
In the meantime, he wandered around Qingyang Market, focusing on gathering information about demonic sects specializing in corpse refinement. He hoped to uncover some clues, but after extensive inquiries, he found no evidence linking any sects to the Heavenly Corpse Sect.
After returning to his rented courtyard, Qin Sang cultivated for a while. When he emerged from meditation, he frowned slightly—the appointed time was approaching, yet Wandering Man had not arrived.
Has something delayed him?
Just then, Qin Sang sensed someone triggering the barrier outside the entrance.
His expression turned cautious as his spiritual consciousness swept across the area. When he saw that the person outside was Wandering Man, he was overjoyed. Quickly rising to his feet, he welcomed him inside.
"I followed the secret marker you left behind to find this place. I made you wait a long time, please forgive me, Brother Qin!"
Wandering Man looked travel-worn, indicating he had hardly rested on his journey.
As he stepped into the courtyard, he offered an apologetic smile and explained, "As soon as I returned to my sect, I began the preparations. Unfortunately, one essential item proved incredibly difficult to refine. I failed twice in a row, nearly exhausting my spiritual materials before I finally succeeded. I barely avoided disaster—truly, it was sheer luck!"
"As long as you’ve prepared everything, Senior..."
Qin Sang hadn't actually waited for too long, and he hadn't wasted his time at Qingyang Market either.
The two entered the house and took their seats.
As soon as Wandering Man sat down, he immediately asked, "Brother Qin, how long have you been here? You should be aware of Demonic Qingyang Fire’s usefulness by now, right?"
Qin Sang nodded and took out two jade pendants from his Mustard Seed Pouch.
"I bought two with the best quality. Will they be enough?"
