Chapter 43: The Emperor's Shroud?

"Fellow Daoist, I am very saddened. You have destroyed the friendship between us."

"I have an Imperial Weapon and was trading with you honestly, yet you thought of playing dirty. You are truly inhuman."

Qin Sheng let out a long sigh. "Lost trust is hard to mend; the holes gouged into a tree do not heal with the passage of time. However, I am willing to give you a chance."

"I am simply... kind!"

Duan De asked cautiously, "Immortal Qin, what do you mean?"

Qin Sheng smiled. "Fellow Daoist, you know it. A calamity of blood!"

Duan De felt like spitting blood. Back at the Demon Emperor's Tomb, he had already lost several spiritual weapons to those four words, and now it was happening again!

"I really have nothing left," Duan De argued.

The Heaven-Swallowing Demon Lid shook slightly. Qin Sheng stared at Duan De and said with a beaming smile

"Fellow Daoist, you can try rephrasing that."

Duan De's heart raced from the shaking of the Demon Lid, and he immediately became honest.

"This jade bottle is a divine weapon of a Great Power. Once something is placed inside, it will surely turn into a pool of pus and blood within fifteen minutes. At the same time, it can hold all the waters of the five lakes and four seas."

Duan De threw the jade bottle over with a look of immense heartache.

"Not bad, not bad." Qin Sheng stowed the jade bottle away and then looked at the black bone fragment.

"..."

Duan De cursed Qin Sheng in his heart. Gritting his teeth, he threw the bone fragment over as well.

Qin Sheng nodded in satisfaction and said again, "Fellow Daoist, you are topped with misfortune and shrouded in baleful aura. You also carry a sinister object on you that will likely endanger your life."

"But rest assured, I have always been a man of justice and compassion; I won't just leave you to your fate," Qin Sheng lamented.

"Meeting me can be considered your good fortune."

Seeing Qin Sheng looking at the tattered cloth on his body, Duan De immediately shook his head.

"This really won't do!"

"It will do."

"No!"

Duan De was very resolute this time. Qin Sheng did not hesitate and directly activated the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Lid.

Reasoning!

"Ah!"

Duan De let out a strange cry. Radiance overflowed from his body, and the tattered cloth erupted with unprecedented light and divine might. The droplets of blood upon it fell away, re-evolving back into blood.

"Qin! You bastard! Scoundrel! Black-hearted maggot!" Duan De cursed loudly.

"Your surname is also Qin now," Qin Sheng replied leisurely.

As the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Lid faced the tattered cloth, the black blood evolved into the Six Paths of Reincarnation, a terrifying sight.

But no matter how many flashy tricks were used, the Demon Lid remained immovable, suppressing the eternal heavens.

Boom!

The heavens collapsed and the earth sank as a streak of black light appeared a hundred thousand miles away.

"By the heavens, damn it all! I will definitely come back!"

Watching Duan De escape by some unknown means, Qin Sheng shook his head with a smile.

"Why run? I wasn't actually going to do anything to you."

Duan De had never intended to take Qin Sheng's life; from beginning to end, he only wanted to plunder him.

Qin Sheng had no intention of stopping him either; he neither could nor needed to.

However, if one were to treat Duan De the way he treated Ye Fan, they would certainly be fleeced of even their underwear by this immoral Taoist.

When dealing with this fat man, one had to guard against being tricked, but also take the initiative to trick him. That was the correct way to interact.

One absolutely could not let him think you were an easy target, otherwise, he would bully you to death.

No, even if you died, he would go and dig up your grave!

"Time to slip away." Qin Sheng also vanished.

The commotion here was too great; even an Extreme Dao Imperial Weapon had appeared, which would surely alert others.

...

"What on earth is this thing?"

Qin Sheng looked at the tattered cloth in his hand, studying it repeatedly, yet he could not discern its origin.

He hadn't taken the entirety of Duan De's cloth; he had only used the Heaven-Swallowing Demon Lid to tear off a palm-sized corner, which didn't even contain the most important bloodstains.

This palm-sized scrap could be considered Duan De's way of "cutting off a tail to survive."

Recalling the scene when Duan De used the cloth, Qin Sheng speculated

"Could it be a shroud?"

After all, Duan De had spent several lifetimes dealing with tombs and corpses.

"An Emperor's Shroud? That's possible. This immoral Taoist might not have much else, but he certainly has plenty of Emperor corpses."

However, there was no doubt that even an Emperor's Shroud could not be as powerful as a true Imperial Weapon.

"Regardless of its realm, a shroud is a treasure."

Qin Sheng happily stowed the cloth away. This time, he had undoubtedly made a massive profit.

A Great Power's jade bottle, a mysterious shroud, a Source Technique bone fragment, and most importantly, the Dao-Life Mother Stone—a massive harvest!

The Holy City.

Qin Sheng only returned after hiding outside for over ten days, but even so, he heard many rumors.

"A few days ago, a mysterious person used an Extreme Dao Imperial Weapon to confront someone, nearly sinking the Eastern Wasteland!"

*I didn't intend to sink the Eastern Wasteland, though?*

"It's too terrifying. I heard a million miles of land collapsed."

*Don't talk nonsense; it couldn't have covered such a vast area.*

"It seems the source mines of the Four Symbols Sacred Ground were also shaken down, leading to a massive loss of source stones."

*Hmm? The place where I traded with Duan De was over a hundred thousand miles away from the Four Symbols Sacred Ground's mines. How could it have affected them?*

The rumors in the Holy City became increasingly absurd, bearing no resemblance to what the actual participant, Qin Sheng, had experienced, leaving him speechless.

Walking through the Holy City, Qin Sheng passed by various stone workshops. Seeing the bustling scenes inside, he felt a bit restless.

During this time, he had carefully contemplated the Source Emperor's Source Techniques and had gained much; now, he was eager to try them out.

"Practice is the sole criterion for testing truth," Qin Sheng muttered to himself.

"Armchair strategy won't work; one must accumulate more experience to improve one's mastery of Source Techniques."

At the Four Symbols Stone Workshop, Qin Sheng stopped outside the door.

*It's your turn!*

"Junior Brother Qin Sheng?" At that moment, someone called out.

Qin Sheng turned his head and saw a group of people walking toward him from a distance.

"Zhou Siyang?"

This was a candidate Holy Son from the Yaoguang Sacred Ground, from the Four Poles Secret Realm.

After Qin Sheng had sent out a divine deity to defeat that Chen Han, Elder Li had given him a list of all the candidate Holy Son-level disciples in Yaoguang so he could recognize them.

Otherwise, being out in the world without recognizing even one's own sect members would be quite awkward.

"What is the matter, Senior Brother Zhou?" Qin Sheng's expression was calm, showing no particular enthusiasm.

Zhou Siyang came from Qingyang Peak, and this peak had a very poor relationship with Longwen Peak, almost like fire and water.

"Haha."

Zhou Siyang said with a laugh, "I heard long ago that Junior Brother Qin had arrived in the Holy City. I went looking for you before to host a welcome banquet, but I couldn't find any trace of you. Today, I finally see you."

"There is no need for a banquet," Qin Sheng shook his head.

"Junior Brother Qin, this is the pride of the Nangong Clan, Fellow Daoist Nangong Fang. His Source Techniques are superb. And this is..."

Zhou Siyang introduced the people beside him, all of whom were young talents from various sacred grounds and great clans. He continued

"I see Junior Brother is entering the Four Symbols Stone Workshop. Could it be that you are also interested in source stones?"

"Just walking around," Qin Sheng replied.

"Ha, Brother Nangong has made progress in his Source Techniques this time and intends to test his skills at the Ji Family's workshop."

Zhou Siyang said, "Junior Brother can join us. When the time comes, Fellow Daoist Nangong can give you some guidance. You might even have a great harvest."

Nangong Fang glanced at Qin Sheng. "I don't provide guidance to just anyone, but I have heard of your name, Fellow Daoist Qin."

"How about this: I will provide guidance if you give me seventy percent of the profit from the cut source stones."

"Why do I only get thirty percent?" Qin Sheng said.

Zhou Siyang laughed. "Junior Brother, you must be joking. The seventy percent belongs to Fellow Daoist Nangong."

Qin Sheng was amused. "I spend the money to buy the source stones, and if nothing is cut, I bear the loss alone. But if there's a profit, I have to give him seventy percent?"

*Then I might as well be a beggar on my knees!*

"Of course, not just anyone can receive guidance from Fellow Daoist Nangong," Zhou Siyang said with a smile.

"I have no interest. If you want to go to the Ji Family workshop, then go. Don't bother me." Qin Sheng turned and walked into the Four Symbols Stone Workshop.

*What "Source Technique Clan"? They're nothing.*

Even the true body of the Source Emperor had been astonished upon meeting him, crying out to pass down his Source Techniques. He could refuse them if he wanted.

*I don't need to resurrect the Source Emperor; I shall surpass him!*