Chapter 34: Master Yuanjue

Years ago, Master Yuanjue went traveling outside the Great Sui and vanished without a trace.

Legend has it he went in search of an opportunity to break through the innate realm; other legends say that as his time approached, he was unwilling to accept death and went in search of the immortals.

Who could have known that Master Yuanjue would return to the Great Sui at this very moment, and that Qin Sang would happen to run right into him.

That roar just now must have been the "Lion's Roar," the renowned ultimate technique of Xuanji Temple, famous throughout the martial arts world.

True Qi taking physical form and condensing into a fist to shatter the air—this was the first time Qin Sang had witnessed such a scene.

Qin Sang's figure flashed repeatedly as he drifted backward. The monk, Mang, let out a cold snort and swung his arm violently.

*Swish!*

A chain of fine iron tore through the air. Under the moonlight, it shot toward Qin Sang like a crystalline stream of water.

Unexpectedly, halfway through its flight, the chain suddenly lost its momentum. After flying a short distance further, its strength was exhausted, and it fell to the ground with a loud *clatter*. The monk Mang's eyes rolled back, and without warning, he fell straight backward.

*Thud!*

Mang's corpse kicked up a cloud of dust and a few fallen leaves upon hitting the ground; he no longer drew breath.

All of this happened in the blink of an eye. Master Yuanjue glanced at Mang's corpse, then turned to stare fixedly at Qin Sang and the black banner in his hand, a sharp light flashing in his eyes.

"You are a cultivator!"

Holding the Yama Banner, Qin Sang stood his ground at a distance. With a cold gaze and a flat tone, he said, "Old monk, I have no desire to create much slaughter. If you leave now, I will grant you a way to live."

His words sounded grand, but in his heart, Qin Sang was secretly crying out in distress.

After Yama had killed Mang, Qin Sang had ordered it to kill Master Yuanjue, but Yama had actually disobeyed.

Normally, when Yama encountered living beings, it was like seeing delicious food; without Qin Sang's command, it would impatiently rush forward to savor fresh souls.

Now, facing the old monk, it seemed to be in fear, cowering to the side, not daring to step forward.

Though the old monk was aged, the vitality in his blood was astonishingly vigorous—the likes of which Qin Sang had never seen. Furthermore, the old monk's True Qi was quite peculiar; his fist shadows were as red as fire, making him appear like a blazing sun, the natural nemesis of ghosts and spirits.

The black-clad demon could use the Yama Banner to perish alongside an immortal master who wielded a flying sword, yet now it feared a mere innate-level expert among mortals.

Qin Sang vaguely guessed the reason.

Even on the battlefield, Qin Sang did not allow Yama to devour too many souls.

Firstly, he feared exposing his identity; secondly, he feared that if Yama became too powerful, it would turn against him.

Qin Sang had long ago discovered a characteristic of the Yama Banner: if Yama devoured enough souls, the holes in the banner would repair themselves.

Presumably, when the Yama Banner was whole again, Yama's strength would also return to its original state.

Qin Sang did not know what realm the black-clad demon had been in during his lifetime, but it was certainly higher than his own. The demon could suppress a peak-strength Yama, though the Jade Buddha might not be able to.

Out of caution, Qin Sang only allowed Yama to devour dozens of souls at a time before recalling it. At that point, Yama could provide three Soul Pills, which was enough for him to use for a while.

He had originally planned to increase Yama's strength bit by bit only after breaking through to at least the fifth level of the *Nether Scripture*, but he had not expected that the vigorous vitality of an innate expert could strike fear into Yama.

Qin Sang had long heard stories from Bai Jianglan about innate experts slaying immortal masters with sword light; it seemed that cultivators could not underestimate mortals, especially since he himself was a half-baked amateur who knew nothing.

Shouts and knocking sounds came from outside the manor gates. Someone loudly called for the instructor, but there was no response from within. Then, the main gates were forcibly smashed open.

The old monk's roar just now had attracted all the patrolling constables and militiamen around the county yamen.

At this point, he could no longer afford to be careful. Qin Sang could only abandon his usual caution and allow Yama to go out and devour souls to increase its strength, while he suppressed the panic in his heart and put on an act, hoping to bluff the old monk.

To his surprise, after hearing Qin Sang's words, Master Yuanjue showed no fear; instead, his eyes flashed with the light of pleasant surprise.

Qin Sang suddenly realized something: if Master Yuanjue had gone traveling to seek immortality, what would he do if he truly encountered a cultivator bluffing in front of him?

The words he had just spoken were entirely redundant; he had revealed his cowardice before a seasoned veteran of the martial world!

Feeling Master Yuanjue's gaze grow increasingly greedy, Qin Sang could not help but feel immense regret.

Sure enough, Master Yuanjue narrowed his eyes, stared at Qin Sang for a moment, and suddenly let out a sneer, "Playing gods and ghosts!"

Qin Sang suddenly felt a sense of impending doom. His internal alarms blared as he stomped heavily on the ground, his body drifting upward.

In an instant, Master Yuanjue appeared where Qin Sang had originally stood. A ball of fiery red force condensed in his palm and was struck out violently, actually snapping an old tree behind him.

*Crack!*

The tree trunk snapped in the middle, and the massive canopy crashed down.

What a terrifying innate expert!

Qin Sang felt his skin crawl. Knowing he had no chance of victory against Master Yuanjue, he turned and bolted.

Seeing this, Master Yuanjue was greatly delighted. His eyes sparkled with excitement as he laughed wildly, "Where did this brat come from? Hand over the cultivation methods, and this poor monk will spare your life!"

The first sentence was still behind him.

The second sentence was right at his ear.

As the final sentence rang out, a figure flashed before Qin Sang. As if taking a leisurely stroll, Master Yuanjue took a single step, surpassing Qin Sang and blocking his path.

A withered palm, appearing slow yet moving with sudden speed, reached out to grab him.

Qin Sang's hair stood on end. He exerted his full strength to use the *Shadowless Steps*, dashing left and right like a headless fly, but no matter how erratically he scrambled, that palm remained constantly before him.

"You damn thing, come back!"

Qin Sang desperately activated the Yama Banner incantation, cursing inwardly, only to see the palm rapidly enlarge before his eyes. A sense of bitterness and intense resentment filled his heart.

"My life is over!"

Unexpectedly, Master Yuanjue did not directly snap Qin Sang's neck; instead, he snatched the Yama Banner from Qin Sang's hand.

Master Yuanjue took a look at the Yama Banner, his eyes flashing with wild joy. He looked at Qin Sang as if looking at a treasure trove. His finger shot out like lightning, about to strike a pressure point to seal Qin Sang, when his body suddenly stiffened.

Overjoyed, Qin Sang let out a low roar and charged forward, knocking aside Master Yuanjue's arm. He snatched the Yama Banner back and stabbed it fiercely into the vital spot of Master Yuanjue's neck. Qin Sang used every ounce of his strength, driving almost the entire pole of the Yama Banner into him.

*Pfft!*

Blood sprayed across Qin Sang's face. A fountain of blood erupted from Master Yuanjue's neck, and he fell backward onto the ground.

Qin Sang slumped onto the ground, panting heavily like a bellows. Looking at the motionless Master Yuanjue on the ground, his heart was still racing with lingering fear.

Master Yuanjue was the most terrifying enemy he had encountered since coming to this world; innate experts were indeed fearsome.

After the initial panic, Qin Sang could not help but reflect.

Over the past year, he had been invincible. No matter how high the expert, they could not stop Yama. His mindset had inevitably changed; he had stopped respecting mortals and felt he could travel anywhere in the world at will.

It was only after nearly losing his life that he became suddenly alert. From now on, no matter what opponent he encountered, he must be cautious.