Chapter 393: The Barrier

A battered figure was racing through the passage.

Behind him, the black flames relentlessly pursued, and Yu Hua was drawing closer. Yet Qin Sang did not look back as he fled, his expression shifting unpredictably.

He held an object in his palm—a long talisman paper resembling gray jade. It emitted a mysterious radiance that was difficult to look away from.

The ice hall lay just ahead.

The pursuer was right at his heels.

Meanwhile, the spiritual power that had just barely recovered in his Qihai was barely sufficient to sustain the Nine-Dragon Heavenly Chariot Talisman. He was already at his limit.

There was no time for hesitation.

Determination flashed in Qin Sang’s eyes. Without warning, he raised his other hand and skillfully activated a series of barriers, layering them onto himself.

These barriers came from the

Heavenly Yin Corpse Art

and were meant to complement the Heavenly Corpse Talisman. Some of them were derived from Wu Shang’s writings, which Qin Sang had modified slightly.

Never had he imagined that one day he would be using them on himself.

Having long since committed them to memory, his execution was swift and precise. In a single motion, he flipped his palm and unhesitatingly pressed the Heavenly Corpse Talisman onto his forehead.

Inside his primordial spirit's space...

The Heavenly Corpse Talisman drifted toward his primordial spirit.

A shiver ran through Qin Sang’s body. At that precise moment, he burst into the ice hall.

Boom!

Qin Sang tumbled to the ground, his vision momentarily going black. A massive ghostly hand, tinged with blue-black hues, suddenly filled his sight.

Fortunately, just as the ghostly hand was about to strike his forehead, it abruptly halted. Through the gaps between its fingers, Qin Sang could see the flicker of struggle in the yaksha’s eyes—Wu Shang’s lingering will had once again restrained it.

Whoosh!

A fierce wind howled through the passage as black flames surged. Yu Hua had arrived.

The yaksha twisted its neck toward him before vanishing on the spot.

Qin Sang exhaled deeply in relief. A quick assessment of himself revealed that his consciousness remained unaffected by the Heavenly Corpse Talisman.

But the situation was dire; there was no time for a thorough check.

Qin Sang sprang to his feet and rushed toward the side chamber where Wandering Man had entered. He had only just started moving when the sound of shattering glaze rang out behind him, followed by Yu Hua’s furious roar.

Hearing this, Qin Sang turned back, feeling a pang of regret.

As expected, Yu Hua had been ambushed by the yaksha. However, at the critical moment, a protective artifact resembling a breastplate flew out from Yu Hua’s chest.

Not only had this artifact automatically shielded its master, but its defenses were formidable. Though it was shattered by the yaksha’s strike, it had successfully blocked the deadly sneak attack!

Yu Hua emerged unscathed!

"Who’s there?!"

Yu Hua was utterly shocked after his defensive artifact was shattered by a single strike.

But he quickly realized something was amiss—the yaksha was not human.

The corpse poison lingering on the yaksha’s claws made Yu Hua instinctively shudder. He sucked in a sharp breath, thankful that his artifact had spared him from disaster.

"Why is there a flying yaksha here?"

In the immortal cultivation world, Core Formation Realm refined corpses were known as flying yaksha. They were elusive and possessed terrifying strength.

However, for a naturally born zombie to undergo transformation into a yaksha was exceedingly rare. The conditions were more demanding than a human cultivator reaching the Core Formation Realm. As a result, they were almost never seen.

Yu Hua never expected to find one here.

From the corner of his eye, he noticed Qin Sang’s silhouette disappearing into the side chamber. A surge of confusion rose within him.

Why hasn’t the yaksha attacked Qin Sang first, considering he has disturbed it? Why has it chosen to ambush me instead?

Is the yaksha Qin Sang’s corpse puppet?

The thought made Yu Hua shake his head inwardly.

A mere middle-stage Foundation Building cultivator possessing a yaksha? Impossible. Even if he has one, he will never be able to control it.

Unless, there is another secret that I am not aware of.

But the yaksha had no intention of giving Yu Hua time to contemplate. Having missed its first strike, it vanished and reappeared directly behind Yu Hua.

Sensing danger, Yu Hua instinctively dodged.

The two figures became entangled in a chaotic battle.

Yu Hua exerted every ounce of effort to evade. He was finally beginning to grasp the yaksha’s terrifying power. From the moment he was ambushed until now, only a few exchanges had taken place, yet he had already brushed against death multiple times.

A chill ran down his spine, his heart pounding in sheer terror, drenched in cold sweat.

"Demonic Flames of Nine Hells!"

Yu Hua finally seized an opportunity. He glared at the yaksha, which was attacking once more, and roared skyward. In an instant, endless black flames surged forth from the astra, sweeping forward as if to engulf the yaksha completely.

The ghostly claw that had just reached out abruptly recoiled upon touching the black flames. The yaksha let out a shrill scream and retreated rapidly, its gaze fixed intently on the Yan Luo Banner of Ten Directions.

In its pitch-black eyes, an unmistakable fear flickered.

Yu Hua was slightly surprised that the yaksha feared the flames to such an extent. A wave of delight surged within him, and he sneered coldly. "A mere corpse dares to act arrogantly before me?"

Before he had even finished speaking, the yaksha’s figure vanished again. The sneer on Yu Hua’s face vanished instantly. He swept his gaze around warily, but the surroundings remained undisturbed. With a cold snort, he immediately activated the Demonic Flames of Nine Hells, forming a fiery shield that enveloped his entire body.

At the same time, he deliberately scattered a portion of the flames, transforming them into countless flickering flames drifting outward.

The next moment, Yu Hua suddenly snapped his head toward an empty space and bellowed, "Come out!"

...

Outside, the living corpse that Qin Sang had left behind witnessed everything clearly.

Qin Sang was not surprised by the outcome.

Even the Ghostly Threads of the Yan Luo Array had shown a degree of restraint over the yaksha. The demonic flames, which were countless times stronger, were very likely the yaksha’s natural bane.

And indeed, Qin Sang had guessed correctly.

This demonic flame was extraordinarily powerful—something unlike anything he had ever encountered.

Yu Hua’s own strength was not enough to kill the yaksha, but by wielding an astra that could restrain it, he could certainly hold his ground against it.

If Yu Hua figured out the yaksha’s weaknesses and had the chance to turn on him, Qin Sang would be in grave danger.

Since the yaksha was clearly afraid of the flames, it was unable to unleash its full strength, meaning that Yu Hua’s situation was not critical. In such a scenario, Qin Sang dared not intervene, nor did he have the strength to do so.

His spiritual power had been severely depleted. He had been relying on spiritual pills to sustain himself, but his Qihai and meridians had suffered heavy damage. He was nearing his limit.

Hurriedly, he swallowed a healing pill. Until his injuries recovered, he dared not consume more pills or absorb spirit stones to replenish his spiritual power. Otherwise, before Yu Hua could even kill him, he would explode from within.

Suppressing his anxiety, Qin Sang began to observe his surroundings. After scanning the side chamber, he finally understood why Wandering Man had needed more time.

At the chamber’s end, there was no ice wall—instead, there was a dark screen formed by a barrier behind which nothing could be seen.

To enter, the barrier had to be broken first.

Qin Sang suddenly turned toward the ice hall—his living corpse had just been destroyed by Yu Hua!

As expected, Yu Hua was getting close to understanding the yaksha’s nature.

This was not yet a desperate situation. Qin Sang still had a plan, but he needed more time and a quiet space to recover and prepare.

"Five-Elemental Breaking Sword!"

With a flick of his finger, five spiritual swords shot out.

Over the years, Qin Sang’s mastery of barriers had improved by leaps and bounds. While he was not as fast as Wandering Man, he was no longer struggling in such situations.