Chapter 1199: Divine Pattern (II)

Soon afterward, Qin Sang left the forest with his incarnation.

The three men were not dead. Qin Sang had simply sealed them within the forest using a Golden Core barrier. As for when they would be freed, that depended on when Jinhen Mountain discovered them.

Qin Sang did not wish to cause unnecessary trouble. If he killed three true disciples, Jinhen Mountain would never let the matter rest.

At such a chaotic time, as long as no one died, Jinhen Mountain would likely not pursue the matter desperately over a mere Golden Core inheritance.

"If we still can’t find anything, the only option will be to make some noise, break into the various forces around Jinhen Mountain, and question them one by one."

Qin Sang looked westward and thought to himself. So Corpse Ghost Immortal’s surname was Chen, and he came from Nanyin Mountain Range west of Heavenly Scar. Unfortunately, the Golden Core cultivator surnamed Wu who was on good terms with Corpse Ghost Immortal is currently fighting on the front lines. It will be impossible to capture him for questioning any time soon. I can only go to the Nanyin Mountain Range first. These three have never seen Tan Hao either, so there is no telling whether Tan Hao came here before, or if he went directly to the Nanyin Mountain Range.

Among the three disciples of Jinhen Mountain, one had once served as the Daoist attendant of the Golden Core cultivator surnamed Wu. When Corpse Ghost Immortal had visited him, that disciple had been present and overheard the Golden Core cultivator address Corpse Ghost Immortal as Daoist Chen. Thus he knew that the man had once cultivated in Nanyin Mountain Range.

Qin Sang suspected that Corpse Ghost Immortal had only come to Jinhen Mountain to absorb Earth Malevolent Qi and refine corpses after obtaining the inheritance of Heavenly Corpse Sect. With that in mind, he decided to try his luck in the Nanyin Mountain Range.

Without delaying in the slightest, he set off immediately. After crossing Heavenly Scar once more, Qin Sang headed straight for Nanyin Mountain Range.

He arrived at noon on the third day, having already investigated the forces within Nanyin Mountain Range along the way.

The terrain of Nanyin Mountain Range was quite peculiar. Along the border of Heavenly Scar, rows of mountain peaks formed a semicircle, then extended outward in successive rings.

The region was filled with treacherous mountains and dangerous waters. There were no top-tier sects nearby, and most inhabitants were rogue cultivators. However, these forces all had various ties with the great sects outside.

Qin Sang sent out his incarnation and repeated the same tactic. Unfortunately, although he baited out a few ill-intentioned individuals, none of them knew anything about Corpse Ghost Immortal.

Realizing that this approach would not work, Qin Sang simply sought out the various factions within Nanyin Mountain Range directly.

Some of these factions were cultivation families, others were alliances of rogue cultivators, and some were branch sects.

After making a circuit of the area, Qin Sang noticed that the defensive arrays protecting the cultivation families and rogue alliances were relatively weaker.

One cultivation family’s array even had a major flaw. Others would have had difficulty noticing it, but the Sky-Eyed Butterfly detected it immediately. Qin Sang could infiltrate without causing much disturbance, saving him considerable trouble.

A family producing two Golden Core cultivators would normally be considered prosperous. But in times of war, prosperity mattered less. They only hoped to survive the battlefield.

Fortunately, the Li Family was better off than factions with only a single Golden Core cultivator. Both Golden Core cultivators had not been drafted simultaneously. At least one could remain alive, and they could rotate between the front lines.

Li Yutian had just been replaced by his grandfather and withdrawn from the front lines. He planned to recuperate at home for a while.

Recalling the scenes of mountains of corpses and seas of blood, Li Yutian still felt lingering fear. Even Golden Core cultivators could not ensure their survival on such chaotic battlefields. Death could strike at any moment.

The only good news was that he had been able to witness battles between Spiritual Infant cultivators firsthand. Through continuous fighting, his progress had been rapid.

He could not understand why those Spiritual Infant grandmasters refused to live peacefully and instead insisted on invading the Tianxing Alliance. After all, the resources of Sin Abyss had not yet been exhausted.

Outside the cave dwelling, two maids stood guard.

Suddenly Li Yutian’s voice came from inside. "Pass down my order. I have gained a new insight and will enter seclusion to break through. No matter what happens, do not disturb me."

The two maids were overjoyed. Li Yuntian had already reached the peak of the early stage of the Golden Core Realm. If he broke through again, the family would have two middle-stage Golden Core experts. Moreover, Li Yuntian was still young. He might even have the potential to reach the Spiritual Infant Realm.

The two women bowed and withdrew. When they saw the barrier light appear over the door, they felt no suspicion at all.

Inside the cave dwelling, however, Li Yutian stood frozen in terror, staring at the cloaked figure who had appeared out of thin air.

"A Spiritual Infant grandmaster!" Feeling the terrifying pressure, Li Yutian’s face filled with despair.

Qin Sang appeared before him like a ghost. He placed a hand on Li Yutian’s head and directly searched his soul.

On the battlefield, this man had killed countless cultivators from the Two-Domain Alliance. Qin Sang naturally showed him no mercy. After obtaining the information he wanted, Qin Sang erased Li Yutian’s corpse and every trace of his presence before quietly departing.

The Li Family remained completely unaware.

Only when the other family patriarch returned later and forcibly opened the cave dwelling did they discover that Li Yutian had vanished. There was not a single trace inside the cave dwelling. It was as if he had evaporated into thin air, becoming a great unsolved mystery of Nanyin Mountain Range.

Afterward, Qin Sang and the fat chicken split up. They found further opportunities and created several more mysterious disappearances, though their targets were only Foundation Building cultivators.

By cross-referencing various pieces of information, Qin Sang gradually gained a clearer understanding of Corpse Ghost Immortal.

His name was Chen Heng. He had always been a rogue cultivator. Originally he had been entirely unremarkable. Like many low-level cultivators, he spent years wandering Heavenly Scar, barely scraping by. Then one day, for unknown reasons, he encountered some opportunity and his cultivation advanced rapidly.

Step by step, he eventually broke through to the Golden Core Realm and became a Golden Core cultivator.

Chen Heng cultivated a wood-based art. His wood-based spiritual power was extremely pure, and his supernatural abilities were formidable. He had gained some reputation in Nanyin Mountain Range.

According to Li Yutian’s memories, however, Chen Heng had nothing to do with corpse cultivation at that time and did not bear the title Corpse Ghost Immortal.

Only about a hundred years ago, something unknown occurred. Chen Heng suddenly left Nanyin Mountain Range and vanished without a trace. Everyone assumed he had died somewhere outside. And that assumption was correct.

From this, Qin Sang concluded that Chen Heng had obtained the corpse refinement technique of Heavenly Corpse Sect sometime after leaving Nanyin Mountain Range and before arriving at Jinhen Mountain.

Yet Qin Sang still had no clues about Heavenly Corpse Sect itself.

Chen Heng had no relatives or friends in Nanyin Mountain Range. If he had obtained the corpse refinement technique elsewhere, the trail would likely end here. Qin Sang would have to return to the Tianxing Highland and seek out the Golden Core cultivator from Jinhen Mountain.

However, since he was already here, Qin Sang decided to continue investigating within Nanyin Mountain Range. From the memories of Li Yutian and others, he searched for major events that had occurred in the region during the years before Chen Heng left, such as the emergence of ancient ruins.

In the end, Qin Sang identified four locations, all deep within Heavenly Scar. Three of them were hidden realms sealed by ancient barriers. Ancient treasures had once emerged from the ruins within, causing considerable commotion.

The fourth was located extremely deep within Heavenly Scar. For unknown reasons, a violent disturbance had once erupted there, surging upward from the abyss and sweeping through ancient barriers. Many cultivators searching for treasure in Heavenly Scar were unable to escape in time and were either killed or severely injured.

Later, experts from Nanyin Mountain Range attempted to investigate further, but the depths were far too dangerous. In the end, they were unable to determine the cause of the disturbance.

After uncovering this information, Qin Sang decided to personally enter Heavenly Scar to investigate.

Hidden realms accessible to Golden Core cultivators posed no difficulty for Qin Sang. He required no special preparation. He followed the cliff wall downward without pause.

Many cultivators were searching for treasure in Heavenly Scar, risking their lives. None of them noticed that someone had just passed by them.

The deeper Qin Sang went, the darker the surroundings became, and dangers lurked everywhere. There were even two ancient barriers that Qin Sang himself avoided cautiously.

Soon he arrived before the first hidden realm.

The entrance lay within a mountain fissure, filled with brilliant multicolored light. After the previous upheaval, the chaotic ancient barriers had once again sealed the opening.

The Sky-Eyed Butterfly perched on Qin Sang’s shoulder, its wings pointing toward the entrance.

After observing for a moment, Qin Sang sensed the message conveyed by the butterfly and smiled. He summoned the Golden Sinking Sword and struck with a single exquisite slash.

The ancient barriers reacted instantly, converging toward the sword light. The cliff wall trembled violently as rocks shattered and flew.

At the same time, a gap appeared in the ancient barriers. Qin Sang seized the opportunity and slipped inside.

In the next instant, he appeared beside a lake. The lake had long since dried up. The surrounding palaces had collapsed into ruins, leaving only broken walls and shattered structures.

It was obvious that someone had already looted this place.

Qin Sang released his spiritual consciousness, searching every corner carefully. He found nothing related to Heavenly Corpse Sect. Without disappointment, he exited the hidden realm and headed for the next location.

The second hidden realm sealed an entire mountain range. Ancient halls stood throughout the mountains, suggesting that it had once been extremely prosperous.

Qin Sang even discovered a rather rare spiritual herb there, but still found no trace of Heavenly Corpse Sect.

Continuing deeper, he reached the third hidden realm.

The entrance to this hidden realm was chaotic, even containing spatial rifts. It had already been destroyed by the collision of ancient barriers. Working together with the Sky-Eyed Butterfly, Qin Sang painstakingly broke through the barriers and eventually found a fragment of the hidden realm’s ruins. Still, he did not find anything.

"Everything depends on the fourth place." Qin Sang lowered his gaze toward the abyss below, where endless darkness stretched out.

Guided by the Sky-Eyed Butterfly, Qin Sang dove downward without hesitation. Two full hours passed before he finally located the source of the earlier disturbance.

Unexpectedly, after passing through the most dangerous region, the area below opened into a vast barren expanse. Even fragments of ancient barriers were unusually scarce.

Seeing this scene, Qin Sang felt something was off. He ordered the Sky-Eyed Butterfly to fully activate its supernatural ability and began searching cautiously.

The barren land was even larger than he had expected. It took Qin Sang nearly an hour to reach the opposite edge.

Suddenly, his gaze fixed upon a smooth stone wall that gleamed like a mirror.

Moments later, his eyes abruptly widened, shock filling his face. "This aura... Divine pattern! It’s actually the unique barrier of the witch race!"

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