Chapter 83: Insect Poison Outbreak

It seemed he had been pushed to his limit.

Qin Sang's eyes flickered as he said calmly, "Why are you in such a hurry? I just need to verify the goods first. What if your jade slip doesn't contain the map?"

Eventually, the muscular youth still threw the jade slip to Qin Sang. After Qin Sang confirmed that the jade slip indeed contained the map, he agreed to a truce.

Both simultaneously retracted their spiritual energy, keeping a close eye on each other as they slowly retreated, wary of the other breaking their word.

When the muscular youth was almost out of sight, Qin Sang finally put away his ebony sword and fled into the distance, riding the Wind-Riding Technique.

The muscular youth stared in the direction Qin Sang had left, still full of resentment. Then he suddenly remembered something and hastily raised the talisman treasure in his hand, revealing several cracks of varying thickness on its surface.

This was a sign that the talisman treasure's power was nearly depleted; it could be used at most one more time before being completely destroyed.

In this battle, both of his vital treasures had been severely damaged.

Deep pain appeared in the muscular youth's eyes. He carefully put away the talisman treasure, then cursed a few times in the direction Qin Sang had fled, which somewhat relieved his frustration. After taking a spiritual pill, he flashed to the side of the pond. With a wave of his hand, the water in the pond churned, and a large cyan banner floated to the surface.

After collecting the banner and burning the bait, the muscular youth pondered for a moment, then controlled his cyan leaf magical artifact and vanished into the rift valley.

By this time, Qin Sang had found a hidden spot to heal his injuries.

The clash between the two had pushed them both to their limits. Qin Sang's spiritual energy was completely depleted, and he was more overdrawn than last time; his bravado in front of the youth was merely a bluff.

However, he estimated that the muscular youth was in a similar state, otherwise he wouldn't have given in so easily.

A full two hours passed before Qin Sang emerged from his hiding spot, his face still pale, indicating that a full recovery was not so easy.

Qin Sang took out both the map and the jade tablets.

Qin Sang couldn't be sure if there was a trick to the map given by the youth, but he couldn't afford to be careless. So, he cross-referenced it with the jade tablets. When the fourteen jade tablets were placed together, the mists on them thinned, allowing him to vaguely see the nearby terrain.

The core area of the Eight Trigrams Forbidden Zone.

By this time, five reefs on the edge of the small island were already occupied. Besides the two Foundation Establishment cultivators, Yu and Luan, from the Yuanzhao Sect, there was also a man and a woman.

If Qin Sang had seen these two, he would have recognized them instantly. The man was none other than Senior Brother Ruan Nanfeng, who was close to breaking through to the eighth layer.

The woman, on the other hand, was an unknown rogue cultivator whose cultivation was profound, no less impressive than Ruan Nanfeng's.

Clearly, these two were among the first to distinguish themselves in the Immortal Ascension Assembly.

The five individuals each occupied a reef, meditating silently, no one speaking.

Just then, Luan Shan suddenly opened his eyes, raised his hand, and unleashed a burst of spiritual energy towards a point in the void. Where the energy vanished, a gate of light appeared.

Fourteen jade tablets emerged first from the gate of light.

Luan Shan nodded slightly, "Not bad in strength."

Following closely, a figure flew out from the gate of light, accompanying the jade tablets.

Luan Shan frowned slightly and said blandly, "Good luck."

The one who appeared at this moment was Qin Sang. The map given by the muscular youth was correct, and Qin Sang easily avoided various dangerous areas. He had already collected enough jade tablets and ignored a few rogue cultivators he met along the way, finding the entrance to the core area without much trouble.

Qin Sang traveled by wind, his gaze sweeping over the five people seated on the edge of the small island. He flew over and landed on a reef, bowing in greeting, "Qin Sang greets the two Martial Uncles, and the two Senior Brothers and Senior Sister."

Ruan Nanfeng and the woman nodded in acknowledgment to Qin Sang.

Zhao Yan, meanwhile, observed Qin Sang with interest and proactively introduced him, "Junior Brother Qin, this is Martial Uncle Luan Shan, and this is Martial Uncle Yu Hua. My name is Zhao Yan, you can just call me Senior Brother Zhao."

"Martial Uncle Luan, Martial Uncle Yu, Senior Brother Zhao..."

After Qin Sang saluted each of them, he heard Martial Uncle Luan say, "The Immortal Ascension Assembly is not yet over. Go find a reef and meditate. Do not enter the island and disturb it, or you will be immediately expelled from the forbidden zone. Once all twelve individuals have arrived, we will return to the sect together."

Qin Sang naturally had no objection. He glanced at the mysterious small island, then followed the instructions, sitting cross-legged on a reef. However, he didn't immediately enter meditation. Instead, he lowered his head slightly, his eyes flickering as if deep in thought.

Just then, Qin Sang suddenly felt something unusual. He nonchalantly raised his head, only to see Zhao Yan staring at him with a playful expression. A chill ran down his spine, but he feigned indifference and smiled at Zhao Yan, then cleared his mind, circulated his cultivation technique, and entered meditative practice.

It was unknown how much time passed before Luan Shan opened the gate of light again, and two more men emerged together, still recognized.

After another period, Luan Shan opened the gate of light consecutively, and two more people entered.

By this point, everyone knew that more people would arrive faster as the Immortal Ascension Assembly was nearing its end, so they no longer entered deep meditation.

Qin Sang noticed that, besides himself and Ruan Nanfeng, another Senior Brother from the Kuiyin Sect named Liu Yi had also stood out. He was also one of the five who had broken through to the seventh layer of Qi Refinement.

Strangely, ever since entering the core area, Liu Yi had seemed preoccupied. He sat on the reef looking dejected, as if he had encountered some difficulty.

Liu Yi fidgeted restlessly on the reef. Suddenly, he clenched his fists, looked up abruptly, and began, "Two Martial Uncles, your disciple has something to report..."

He was halfway through his sentence when Liu Yi's face twisted in pain, and his voice cut off abruptly. Then, a layer of black mist spread across his face, emitting a foul odor. His body swayed and toppled into the lake, never to be heard from again.

The sudden turn of events startled everyone, causing them to fly into the air. Yu Hua, meanwhile, flashed to the reef where Liu Yi had been, retrieved his body, and after examining it, said calmly, "It appears he was poisoned by some kind of insect venom, which lay dormant until now. Senior Brother Luan, are there venomous insects rampant in the forbidden zone?"

When he mentioned "insect venom," Yu Hua glanced meaningfully at Qin Sang and Ruan Nanfeng.

Qin Sang felt a chill run through him. He saw a profound look of horror hidden in Ruan Nanfeng's eyes as well.

Could this Martial Uncle Yu also be a spy for the Kuiyin Sect? If even Foundation Establishment cultivators had been infiltrated, just how many Kuiyin Sect members were lurking within the Yuanzhao Sect?

He had briefly considered reporting it, as he wasn't afraid of the Heart-Eating Worm's threat, but thankfully, reason immediately suppressed the thought.

Thinking back now, Qin Sang couldn't help but feel a wave of lingering fear.

Luan Shan, seemingly unaware of the subtle interaction between them, said indifferently, "I haven't been in charge of the Immortal Ascension Assembly for long either, but I've heard there are poisonous swamps inside, so venomous insects must inhabit them. This youth was poisoned and completely unaware; his death is nothing to regret. Junior Brother Yu, just toss the body outside to avoid polluting this tranquil place. We'll simply let one more person qualify later."

Yu Hua clapped his hands and chuckled, "No rush. Let's leave it here as a warning to the later disciples, to make them more cautious, lest they wander the cultivation world and die without knowing how."

Liu Yi's body was left on the reef. The other disciples kept their distance, and after a while, the twelve individuals finally arrived.