Chapter 449: External Core

"Daoist, you must be joking, right?"

Manager Bao’s cheeks trembled with disbelief. He held back for a moment, but ultimately couldn't restrain himself—he slammed the table and shot to his feet.

"Do I even need to explain how rare natural treasures and spiritual objects that aid in Core Formation are?"

"And just that demonic core, still retaining its vitality within ten years of separation—if I had the ability to kill a Demonic Core Realm demonic beast, why would I even need your living corpse?"

"Besides, there’s a rumored secret art that allows such demonic cores to be refined into External Cores. Wouldn’t it be much better for me to take it to a Golden Core cultivator for trade instead?"

"It's just a refined corpse—you’re asking for an outrageous price... Or could it be that I unintentionally said something offensive and have angered you, causing you to mock me?"

Furious, Manager Bao scolded Qin Sang without holding back.

Qin Sang let out a soft chuckle. He was well aware that trying to exchange a living corpse for a demonic core of that rarity was nothing short of wishful thinking.

Tapping his fingers lightly on the table, he said in a calm tone, "So, Manager Bao only finds a demonic core that still retains its vitality unacceptable... Does that mean an ordinary demonic core is still within the realm of possibility?"

"You..."

Manager Bao opened his mouth, scrutinized Qin Sang carefully, then sat back down, lowering his head as though lost in thought.

After a long pause, he finally looked up and asked in a steady voice, "How many living corpses can you provide?"

Qin Sang was surprised.

Did this man truly have a way to obtain one?

But recalling the difficulty of refining living corpses, Qin Sang sighed lightly and said, "I cannot say for sure. Even producing a single one is difficult... However, I can promise you this—if I do decide to sell, I will come to your shop first."

"Good! It's a deal!"

Manager Bao, thrilled with the promise, instantly forgot his earlier frustrations and beamed with excitement. "I’ll be waiting for your good news, Daoist!"

Upon leaving the shop, Qin Sang turned his head slightly and glanced back.

He had not expected to find hope for refining a flying yaksha here.

He did not dare to hope for a demonic core less than ten years removed from its host, but even acquiring an ordinary demonic core was no easy feat.

He possessed the strength to kill a Fake Core Realm cultivator, yet the highest-quality living corpse embryo he currently had in his Corpse Puppet Pouch was only at the late stage of the Foundation Building Realm—clearly failing to meet Manager Bao’s requirements.

That particular one had once belonged to a member of the Kuiyin Sect, one of the Four Demonic Flame Envoys of the Demonic Flame Sect.

With the Small Cold Domain cultivators being summoned here, the Demonic Flame Sect was no exception.

The battlefield was the best place to dispose of corpses without raising suspicion. Even Daoist Jiupao would not find it unusual.

Qin Sang had been closely monitoring the movements of the Kuiyin Sect members. Even if no opportunities arose, he would create them himself—silently eliminating Daoist Jiupao's subordinates whenever possible, doing his utmost to delay the recovery of his injuries.

Among the Demonic Flame Sect cultivators who had perished here, most had fallen at Qin Sang’s hands.

Capturing a Fake Core Realm expert alive and refining them into a living corpse—compared to obtaining a demonic core, he wasn't sure which was more difficult.

But having another path meant having another sliver of hope.

Without hesitation, Qin Sang left Misty Island, was transported to another point within the grand formation, then rode the clouds back to his cave dwelling, resuming his secluded cultivation.

Within the cave dwelling, the glow of spiritual energy flickered.

A batch of spirit stones had been entirely drained of their spiritual power, turning into worthless rocks.

Qin Sang, however, remained seated with his eyes closed. Without hesitation, he tossed out another batch of spirit stones. He had done this countless times already and no longer felt the pain of parting with them.

As his cultivation art circulated through several cosmic orbits, Qin Sang withdrew his consciousness from his primordial spirit space and turned his gaze toward his Mustard Seed Pouch. Finally, he took out two jade bottles containing spiritual pills.

These were two bottles of Lilong Pills, obtained from Yu Hua's remains, which Qin Sang had been reluctant to use until now.

Upon opening the jade bottle, a rich medicinal fragrance wafted through the air.

Qin Sang greedily inhaled the scent a few times before flicking his finger. A spiritual pill flew out, landing precisely in his mouth.

The pill dissolved instantly, transforming into a surge of warmth that flowed through his body. Feeling his cultivation improving at an astonishing rate, Qin Sang sighed inwardly before calming his mind once more, focusing on refining the pill’s medicinal power.

Days went by...

Mu Yifeng and the others completed their mission and returned to report to Stargazing Island. After doing so, they left a flying talisman outside Qin Sang’s cave dwelling before going their separate ways.

According to Stargazing Island’s assignments, all teams took turns patrolling the area, searching for spatial fluctuations.

Once a mission was completed, they were free to act as they wished until the next round of assignments began.

Qin Sang remained completely unaware of the outside world, fully focused on refining the Lilong Pills. One by one, the spiritual pills in the jade bottles dwindled until the first bottle was empty.

Before long, the second bottle was also finished.

His cultivation art continued to operate as he instinctively reached out with his spiritual power to grab another pill. Unexpectedly, his grasp met nothing but air. He snapped out of his meditation, staring blankly at the empty jade bottle before letting out a soft sigh.

There was no doubt about the potency of the Lilong Pills. After consuming two full bottles, his cultivation had soared significantly.

Unfortunately, he was still a long way from the Fake Core Realm.

"I estimate... it will take at least two more years," Qin Sang muttered to himself.

Using inner vision, he examined his Qihai, evaluating his progress. Without relying on medicinal pills, he would need two more years of arduous cultivation to reach perfection and step into the Fake Core Realm.

If he were to spare no expense in acquiring more pills, he could shorten the time.

Once he reached the Fake Core Realm, he could begin preparations for Core Formation.

However, he still had no leads on the spiritual object needed to aid in the process.

From the time he broke through to the late stage of the Foundation Building Realm, just over ten years had passed—time that also included the delays caused by his investigation into the Demonic Flame Sect.

Thanks to the

Primordial Spirit Sword Nourishment

and various spiritual medicines, his cultivation speed was among the fastest compared to others at his level.

It was worth remembering that he had wasted over thirty years in the early stage of the Foundation Building Realm. It was only through the aid of the Dark Patterned Heyun Pill that he managed to break into the middle stage.

Yet, Qin Sang was still dissatisfied. News of the Ancient Immortal Battlefield had been spreading more frequently. The seven strongholds were now completely sealed off, and the Spirit Tide had arrived, growing more intense by the day.

What concerned him most, however, was the situation in the Yuncang Marshlands. This fragile peace—who knew how much longer it would last? Qin Sang could already sense the undercurrents of turmoil.

He had no idea what the Small Cold Domain and the Tianxing Alliance were searching for, but once they found it, war would be inevitable.

That was why he pushed himself relentlessly, never daring to relax for even a moment. Every bit of effort, every resource, was poured into his cultivation—just barely keeping him on pace.

When chaos erupted, every bit of strength meant another chance at survival.

"Time waits for no one!"

Qin Sang clenched his fists, suppressed his distractions, and sank into meditation.

However...

This time, Qin Sang was only able to cultivate in peace for two days. On the third day, he was abruptly awakened by an unusual disturbance from his command token.

His expression changed drastically as he hurriedly took it out. The command token radiated an intense red glow—so bright it was almost blinding!

Red light signified the strictest order.

In the first year, he had seen it often. Every time it appeared, it signaled a large-scale battle involving thousands of cultivators!

But in this final year, it was the first time he had seen it again.

Qin Sang’s expression darkened, shifting unpredictably. Finally, he couldn’t hold back and cursed under his breath.

"...Couldn’t it have waited just two more years?!"

Despite his frustration, he dared not disobey orders. Hastily, he gathered his spirit stones from the cave and took one last careful look at the dwelling he had lived in for the past three years.

After such a long period of relative peace, sudden upheaval was never a good omen.

When he opened the door, Mu Yifeng and the others were already gathered outside, fully equipped and ready to depart. Their expressions mirrored his own—tense, apprehensive, and uncertain.

After confirming the team’s numbers, Qin Sang gave the order.

"Move out!"