Chapter 421: Demonic Sect

Qin Sang cast a glance in the direction of Qingyang Market, a cold smirk appearing at the corner of his lips.

Inside his Mustard Seed Pouch, there were still a few artifacts that suited his needs, and he set aside a few for personal use.

Before his ebony sword completed its devouring process, years of tempering had inevitably led to urgent situations where there was no time to set up arrays. This had resulted in the destruction of the Thousand-Raven Urn and the multi-colored parasol in Endless Valley. Only the Yin-Yang Luopan, with its unique properties, had managed to survive.

Recently, he had been relying solely on his ebony sword in battle, making his tactics somewhat monotonous. These artifacts would serve as a good supplement.

Other than that, the rest of the items were of little significance, and Qin Sang categorized them before storing them away.

Eliminating Daoist Jiupao’s subordinates while making a hefty profit—this was truly killing two birds with one stone. After a moment of contemplation, he chose not to continue toward Qingyang City but instead rode his Nether Cloud and flew toward Qingyang Market.

He was satisfied with the death of Silver Flame and knew he could not afford any further actions in the short term.

Daoist Jiupao was no fool. If every encounter seemed like a coincidence, then it most certainly was not.

It was better to return to Qingyang Market and focus on cultivation for the time being.

...

Qingyang Market

After altering his appearance, Qin Sang entered the market and returned to his cave dwelling for a brief rest, washing away the dust from his journey. He then set out on foot toward a building named Tiange Tower.

Standing five stories high, adorned with intricate carvings and painted beams, Tiange Tower was one of the tallest buildings in Qingyang Market.

Its reputation matched its grandeur. In both Qingyang Market and the surrounding immortal cultivation world, it was a household name. The tower was said to be owned by a merchant association under a powerful faction and specialized in selling artifacts—especially offensive ones, such as spiritual swords.

Qin Sang had made quite a name for himself in Qingyang Market. Several factions had approached him, and after entrusting the Sword Pavilion to Ning Youwei, he agreed to Tiange Tower’s offer and became their honored guest.

The artifact refinement techniques Qin Sang had inherited originated from the Xuling Sect. After his ebony sword had devoured the Infinite Blood Mulberry Wood, he essentially possessed experience in refining astras, an advantage unmatched by other artifact refinement masters.

In the immortal cultivation world, top-grade artifacts were a rarity.

Qin Sang had mastered the art of crafting spiritual swords, and his success rate in refining high-grade artifacts was exceptionally high—making him a perfect fit for Tiange Tower’s needs.

Tiange Tower was highly satisfied with Qin Sang. Whether he was away for training or in seclusion, sometimes vanishing for months at a time, they had no choice but to endure.

"Daoist Master Qingfeng, you’ve finally returned!"

Upon spotting Qin Sang in his Daoist robes, the tower’s aged manager was overjoyed and rushed forward, grumbling incessantly.

"Daoist Master, you’re as elusive as a dragon! You’ve been gone for nearly a year! The young masters of Qingyang Sect refuse to accept anyone else—they’ve been waiting for you, hoping and longing until they’ve nearly lost their minds! If you hadn’t shown up, they would’ve torn my old body apart!"

Qin Sang glanced sideways at the manager's exaggerated display and chuckled. "A grand establishment like Tiange Tower, afraid of those little brats from Qingyang Sect? If they dare lay a finger on you, just have your backers send people over to hold their elders accountable."

Tiange Tower’s origins were shrouded in mystery, and its backers were likely unafraid of Qingyang Sect. However, since Qingyang Market was Qingyang Sect’s territory, a certain level of restraint was necessary.

"A powerful dragon cannot suppress a local serpent!"

The old manager shook his head solemnly. "Daoist Master, how long do you plan to stay this time?"

Qin Sang did not beat around the bush. "I intend to stay for several days. Send out a transmission talisman and have them all come over."

The manager was elated. "Excellent! I’ll see to it at once. Daoist Master, please rest in the fire chamber first."

Qin Sang, well-versed in the routine, made his way to the rear hall of Tiange Tower. A hidden passage extended from the hall to an underground fire vein. This fire vein was relatively small—far smaller than the one beneath the Lightning-Devouring Falcon’s nest—but its flames were stable, making it ideal for artifact refinement.

As he descended, the air grew increasingly hot, and the stone walls gradually turned crimson.

Upon reaching the deepest chamber, Qin Sang retrieved a command token and activated his private fire room.

The room was simply furnished—just a stone platform with a furnace positioned atop the fire vein.

The furnace, however, was no ordinary one. It was layered with numerous barriers, absorbing the fire’s power while keeping the flames docile and easily controlled.

Before reaching the Core Formation Realm, cultivators could not command Pill Fire. Thus, earth fire was the best alternative for refining pills and artifacts. With the barriers keeping it in check, there was no need to expend energy suppressing the flames, significantly increasing the success rate.

Seated cross-legged on the stone platform, Qin Sang waited for his visitors, lost in silent contemplation.

He agreed to Tiange Tower’s recruitment, intending to make money while using the opportunity to interact with disciples of Qingyang Sect and discreetly gather intelligence about them.

With this goal in mind, Qin Sang treated all Qingyang Sect disciples equally, regardless of their cultivation level or the amount of compensation offered. As long as they made a request, he would almost always comply.

This included many disciples at the Qi Refining Realm.

Although they hailed from Qingyang Sect, Qi Refining cultivators were merely at the bottom of the immortal cultivation world. The strict rules within the market made it difficult for them to leverage their sect’s name for advantage. Finding a suitable artifact was already a challenge, and commissioning a custom-made one was even harder—it would cost a fortune, far beyond what they could afford.

Qin Sang’s pricing was fair, and he readily accommodated their requests. Moreover, he excelled at refining flying swords—artifacts renowned for their agility and formidable power—making him extremely popular.

Over the years, through deliberate interactions and calculated flattery, he had built genuine relationships with many Qingyang Sect disciples, deepening his understanding of the sect.

The so-called demonic sects were not all bloodthirsty and ruthless factions that resorted to slaughter at the slightest provocation.

Unless driven by profit, many demonic sects sought to maintain some form of order—an order that benefited their own survival and kept their sect running smoothly, at least within their own territory.

Many sects were labeled as demonic simply because their unique cultivation arts or philosophies were deemed unacceptable by the righteous path.

The Demonic Qingyang Sect was one such sect.

From the moment its disciples joined, they cultivated Demonic Qingyang Fire. Their first step was to receive a fire seed bestowed by the sect. By refining and merging with this fire seed, they could then absorb Qingyang Gale Essence to strengthen the fire. As the fire grew in power, so did their cultivation.

However, since Demonic Qingyang Fire was derived from Qingyang Gale Essence, its nature was extremely violent.

Cultivating this fire was no easy feat. Most disciples perished due to fire backlash during the process, reduced to ashes with nothing left of their bodies—a truly miserable fate.

Yet after their deaths, the fire seed they once nurtured would remain and continue to grow stronger.

At that point, the Demonic Qingyang Sect would retrieve the fire seed. What purpose these reclaimed fire seeds served, Qin Sang did not know.

This reminded him of the Yan Luo Banner of Kuiyin Sect—there were some striking similarities between these two demonic sects.

However, the Kuiyin Sect was even more ruthless. Even if one endured unimaginable hardships and managed to withstand the backlash of King Yan, they would still become the primary soul of a ghost banner, leaving them with no path to survival.

The Demonic Qingyang Sect, at least, left its disciples with a sliver of survival chance. As long as one could suppress the fire seed’s backlash, there was a chance to break through to the Foundation Building Realm or even the Core Formation Realm.

The retrieval of the fire seed only occurred after death.

Once a disciple reached the Core Formation Realm, they stood at the top of the sect and could instead reap the benefits of the fire seed’s retrieval process.

Even so, a cultivation method that treated its disciples as mere tools was fundamentally at odds with the righteous path. It was only natural that such a sect would be labeled as demonic.