Chapter 670: Chapter 670

The tamed demonic beasts were immensely strong and capable of casting simple spells. With their ceaseless day-and-night travel, the caravan moved much faster than anticipated.

By the second day, Qin Sang had already become acquainted with the two other people sharing the carriage.

Although Ran Luo also rode in the same cart, she had responsibilities to assist Elder Zhou in coordinating the caravan, so she seldom showed herself.

The other two were a man and a woman, both at the early stage of the Core Formation Realm. They showed no surprise at Qin Sang’s unorthodox appearance and did not question him.

The man was named Ning Kun and, like Ran Luo, was a manager of the Qiongyu Merchant Guild.

However, Qin Sang noticed shortly after boarding that although Ning Kun’s cultivation was high, his qi and blood were clearly deficient, as though he was injured. He later learned that Ning Kun had recently arrived at Pingbo Port after escorting one of the guild’s merchant ships.

During that voyage, they had been attacked by a demonic beast that stirred up trouble at sea. Ning Kun fought fiercely to defend the ship and managed to steer it out of danger, but suffered serious injuries in the process.

He had intended to recuperate in Pingbo Port but was forced to set out again while still wounded.

The female cultivator was a follower of the Quanzhen School[1] and had the Dharma name of Huiwen, did not belong to the Qiongyu Merchant Guild. She was a longtime family friend of Ran Luo and had been invited by her to join the journey.

"Good thing Elder Zhou returned in time and noticed something was off with the witch race. If we had realized any later, it would’ve been too late. Now it all makes sense why those top-tier human forces that left Pingbo Port over the last few months... We thought it was a coincidence, but clearly they caught wind of it early."

Huiwen patted her chest in lingering fear, looking as carefree and naive as ever.

Qin Sang understood well that anyone who had reached this level of cultivation could not be judged by appearances. He turned to Ning Kun and asked, "Your guild is affiliated with the Dongji Alliance. How did you not receive word sooner?"

The more factions Qin Sang interacted with in Pingbo Port, the more he came to understand the Dongji Alliance. This major merchant alliance held a position among the human race no weaker than the top sects.

It was hard to believe they hadn’t noticed the witch race’s movements.

Ning Kun, still pale and visibly weakened, replied with a faint voice, "Our guild’s core operations are based in the Eastern Sea of the human territories. The branch in Pingbo Port isn’t deeply rooted. Not long ago, Elder Zhou made some connections with the island master of Duyan Island while visiting the Stormy Demonic Sea. Duyan Island is closer to the witch race’s Tianwu Island, so we decided to open this route. We never expected something to happen. As for the Dongji Alliance itself, internally it’s not exactly united..."

As he spoke, Ning Kun shook his head with an expression that hinted at unspoken complications.

Qin Sang had already learned that the human and witch races maintained different strongholds in the Stormy Demonic Sea.

The witch race occupied an island called Tianwu Island, while the human race used teleportation to reach a separate island named Desolate Island. The two were far apart, and connecting them had taken enormous effort on both sides.

Between Tianwu Island and Desolate Island, the two races jointly stationed their experts across a chain of islands to establish a secure route and fend off the demonic beasts.

Those who entered the Stormy Demonic Sea to hunt beasts used these islands as bases of operation.

Yet the territory claimed by either race was only a tiny speck within the vastness of the Stormy Demonic Sea.

Aside from Tianwu and Desolate Islands, none of the others were truly safe. Attacks by beast hordes that destroyed entire islands and massacred their inhabitants were not uncommon.

Tianwu and Desolate Islands had long been established, and the surrounding demonic beasts had mostly been cleared. To harvest great rewards, one had no choice but to venture to the more dangerous islands.

From Ning Kun’s tone, Duyan Island was likely one of the major hubs along this route. These islands were powerful strongholds, and their masters were often Spiritual Infant grandmasters. To form ties with the island master of Duyan Island, Elder Zhou was clearly no ordinary figure.

Qin Sang’s thoughts stirred. By the looks of it, joining the Qiongyu Merchant Guild had indeed been a wise choice.

"So that’s how it is!" Qin Sang nodded, then shifted the topic. "I wonder what the two of you think about the recent disturbance among the witch race. Could it be related to the Seven-Kill Hall incident from some time ago? I heard some rumors back in Pingbo Port. Apparently, even several top-tier powers led by Spiritual Infant grandmasters were caught up in it."

Naturally, he was most concerned about Seven-Kill Hall. He had investigated it while in Pingbo Port but had found little. Upon hearing that Ning Kun had recently arrived from the human territories, he took the opportunity to steer the conversation in that direction.

Ning Kun suspected nothing and shook his head. "I don’t think the two are connected. The appearance of that ancient corpse in Seven-Kill Hall is no longer a secret. It was all anyone talked about recently, and the whole matter is pretty clear by now. The witch race couldn’t even enter Seven-Kill Hall. It’s a hidden realm belonging to our human race and has nothing to do with them. Besides, signs of unrest in the witch race were evident right when Seven-Kill Hall opened, but no one paid attention back then. And if there really were a connection, why haven’t the witch race’s Spiritual Infant experts shown up, especially now that the situation on our side has supposedly settled?"

"It’s been resolved? The fallen ancient corpse has already been found?" Qin Sang was surprised.

"I think so. I heard that the corpse was carrying a major treasure from Seven-Kill Hall. Even the Spiritual Infant grandmasters would covet something like that. If they hadn’t found it, would they really give up so easily? Oh, right. I also heard that the righteous and devilish sects clashed several times during the search. They nearly triggered a war that could’ve dragged in countless factions. Maybe the higher-ups decided to suppress the turmoil to prevent internal conflict and instead continue the search in secret," Ning Kun said uncertainly.

Qin Sang nodded in agreement. He felt Ning Kun’s speculation made sense.

In Canglang Sea, the human forces had the upper hand and had driven the witch race back to the Witch God Continent. Still, the witch race was not to be underestimated. They possessed many Spiritual Infant grandmasters and remained a constant threat.

If internal strife broke out among the human race, the witch race would certainly seize the opportunity. The high-ranking human powers would never allow that to happen.

So far, he remained safe and unharmed. No one had ever discovered his involvement.

Sky Tower was layered with barriers, shrouded in celestial clouds, and further masked by corpse qi.

The scene displayed within the crystal revealed that the ancient corpse had only appeared for a very brief moment. The few Spiritual Infant grandmasters nearest to Sky Tower had only just arrived when the corpse vanished, giving them no chance to see through its true identity.

Huiwen had been listening to their conversation the whole time and found it exceedingly dull. She suddenly interjected, "Daoist Qingfeng, I don’t believe we’ve met before. For Sister Ran Luo to invite you to ride with her, what exactly is your relationship? Is she hiding a little secret from me?"

Her face was full of playful mischief as she winked at Qin Sang.

Qin Sang felt this female Daoist was rather improper. She didn’t refer to herself as a "poor nun," yet referred to herself as "servant."[2]

Ning Kun, who seemed to know the inside story, explained, "Manager Ran holds Daoist Qingfeng’s artifact refinement skills in high regard. I, too, am quite hopeful that Daoist Qingfeng will become an Outer Sea Guest Cultivator for the Qiongyu Merchant Guild."

"Artifact refinement?"

Huiwen cried out in surprise, her expression brightening with delight. "Daoist, you can refine astras?"

Qin Sang gave a wry smile. "You two overestimate me. I’ve no idea if my humble skills would even be worth Elder Zhou’s attention. I merely have a modest understanding of artifact crafting and am confident I might outdo the average cultivator by a small margin. But due to my limited cultivation, I’ve yet to successfully forge a proper astra."

1. The Quanzhen School (全真: Quánzhēn, "All-True", Complete Perfection, Integrating Perfection or Complete Reality) is currently one of the two dominant denominations of Daoism in China. ☜ Orıginal content can be found at N0velFire.ɴet

2. In ancient China, women often refers to themselves as "servant." The original Chinese word for this is "qieshen"(妾身), which can also mean "concubine". However, as a female Daoist, they usually referred to themselves as "poor nun" or "pinni"(贫尼). ☜