Chapter 469: Schemes in the Dark

"Yes!"

The handsome young man secretly pulled out a talisman paper, just about to activate it.

Granny Jing, however, seemed to have overheard their conversation. From the bright moonlight above, a stream of lunar brilliance suddenly flowed forth. The moonlight appeared gentle, like flowing water, yet it moved with astonishing speed.

It descended like a river of stars from the heavens, and in the blink of an eye, it surged toward the young man.

"Tricks of the petty kind!"

The Star-Controlling Elder let out a cold snort. Reaching out, he plucked at the stars as if commanding troops on a battlefield. In an instant, he rearranged the stars in the sky into a killing array.

Starlight burst in all directions, no longer fusing into one, but instead condensing into a net of stars.

That starry net sliced like blades, cutting off the moonlight.

The lunar river, transformed from moonlight, shattered into scattered fragments.

But the Star-Controlling Elder had ultimately been a step too slow. He failed to block all the moonlight, managing to intercept only half. Even so, the moonlight that slipped through wasn’t enough to be a threat. With the young man’s cultivation, he could still handle it.

He raised his sword with both hands, light surging along its blade as he met the incoming moonlight.

A muffled grunt escaped him as his face flushed red.

Unexpectedly, the moonlight twisted into a long whip and lashed viciously at his sword.

Caught off guard by the immense force, the young man wasn’t injured, but his body was sent flying backwards. He tumbled dozens of zhang through the air before he barely managed to dissipate the force.

At that very moment, Qin Sang, who had been watching from the outskirts, suddenly moved.

He had sensed Granny Jing’s gaze upon him and understood her intent without hesitation. "Leave this one to me," Qin Sang said at once, "Senior, focus on the other two!"

He hadn’t left because he couldn’t. Ever since the three from the Yuanshen Sect spotted them, he and Granny Jing had been in the same boat.

No matter what, those three had to die.

Qin Sang trusted that Granny Jing was no fool. If she dared ambush Leng Yuntian, she must have been confident in her strength.

Even so, Qin Sang hadn’t recklessly joined the fight. He had waited for Granny Jing’s clear signal before making his move.

Now that she’d tasked him with the handsome youth instead of one of the Golden Core cultivators, Qin Sang let out a quiet breath of relief. If forced to, he could throw everything he had—including two astras—into stalling a Golden Core opponent for a short while, but he would be dancing on a knife’s edge.

He wasn’t arrogant enough to believe he could defeat a Core Formation cultivator, even one with a suppressed cultivation.

If it came down to life and death, revealing his astras would be a small price to pay.

Thankfully, Granny Jing was confident enough to take on two Golden Cores alone.

Compared to that, the young man was far easier to deal with.

He was a Foundation Building cultivator, and Qin Sang didn’t fear him at all.

He unleashed the Cold Gold Sword to clear a path.

Its shimmering light radiated an intense chill as it pierced toward the young man’s back.

Qin Sang followed closely behind, swift as lightning, the Yin-Yang Luopan glowing in his hand.

His timing couldn’t have been better. The young man had just been whipped away by the moonlight and was in a sorry state. As his figure fell and tumbled through the air, he had yet to regain his balance, leaving his back wide open.

Yu Shanting was still entangled by the Luan bird.

The Star-Controlling Elder was fully focused on maneuvering his star array to deal with Granny Jing.

No one could save the young man now.

In an instant, the Cold Gold Sword drew within a hair’s breadth of its target. As a top-grade artifact among top-grade artifacts, its might spoke for itself. The young man was enveloped by sword qi, a layer of white frost forming over his entire body, his movements visibly slowed.

It looked as if his life would be claimed by the sword in the next breath.

Suddenly, the young man turned his head and glanced at Qin Sang, a mocking sneer on his face. He abruptly opened his right palm and flung it backward with force.

Whoosh!

Countless glimmering flecks burst forth, and among the shredded talisman fragments, a faint black gleam flashed and vanished. A small, dark hammer had been hidden within.

A talisman astra!

The black hammer moved with terrifying speed, bypassing the Cold Gold Sword and flying straight toward Qin Sang.

In his vision, the hammer rapidly grew in size. He could see it clearly—the hammer had two pointed, chisel-like ends. Qin Sang had no doubt that if it struck his head, it would bore a bloody hole straight through.

So, the young man had been on guard against him all along.

It wasn’t surprising. In such a vast plaza, the fact that he and Granny Jing appeared together made it impossible to deny they were allies. The Yuanshen Sect would never have believed otherwise and must’ve been quietly preparing for this moment.

He had watched coldly from the sidelines earlier, and they hadn’t moved against him directly. Instead, they laid a trap and secretly readied a talisman astra, hoping to eliminate the weakest among them in one fell swoop before turning their full attention to Granny Jing.

Perhaps even the blow from the moonlight that sent the young man flying was part of their plan.

If not for Granny Jing’s strength far exceeding their expectations and holding her ground against two Golden Core cultivators, they would have been able to spare the effort to deal with him. At this moment, he would likely be facing far more than just the handsome young man.

Qin Sang let out a silent sigh. Had it not been for his years of experience on the battlefield, he might very well have fallen for the trap.

Whoosh!

Faced with the oncoming black hammer, Qin Sang remained calm in the face of danger. He raised the Yin-Yang Luopan high, firing a beam of white light.

Though the quality of the Yin-Yang Luopan couldn't compare to that of a talisman astra, no matter how powerful a talisman astra was, it couldn’t outright ignore the defense of a top-grade artifact. Besides, Qin Sang never relied solely on artifacts.

The black hammer was struck by the white light. Though the suction force didn’t slow it down, it did veer slightly off course.

And that was enough!

Qin Sang had long been prepared. His figure flickered rapidly, dodging the sneak attack with ease. Coldly, he turned his gaze toward the handsome young man.

The Cold Gold Sword, having failed to strike, was recalled instantly.

"

Hmm?

"

The young man hadn’t expected Qin Sang to so easily evade the talisman astra’s ambush. He glanced over in surprise, playing with the black hammer as he sneered. "So your reputation isn’t just for show. You’ve got some tricks after all! Shadowless Sword... I’d like to see just how capable you are, daring to show such disrespect to Senior Brother!"

Qin Sang now knew who the so-called senior brother was.

Miao Xinglan.

Hailed as the number one expert of the Yuanshen Sect, renowned for his formidable cultivation. He was the one the sect had dispatched to Zhitian Peak this time.

Because of Senior Qingzhu, Shaohua Mountain and the Yuanshen Sect had irreconcilable enmity that even extended to their disciples.

Qin Sang had no interest in getting caught up in those grudges, nor did he wish to make enemies needlessly. But after being targeted repeatedly by Yuanshen Sect disciples, there was no reason for him to keep enduring.

Even a Buddha had a temper.

So, seizing an opportunity, he’d joined forces with Senior Brother Rong to teach Miao Xinglan a lesson. Though no real harm was done, the feud was cemented from that point on.

Judging by the way the handsome young man looked at him, he clearly had a close relationship with Miao Xinglan. No wonder he was so hostile.

Swish!

The black hammer shot forth again.

Qin Sang swiftly retreated, simultaneously putting away both the Yin-Yang Luopan and the Cold Gold Sword. A faint blue light then rose from the center of his palm, gradually morphing into a round mirror.

Another talisman astra!

He had seized this one from a Fake Core Realm cultivator of the Tianxing Alliance. Since the handsome young man harbored treacherous intentions, Qin Sang saw no reason to act nobly himself.

He had already prepared this talisman astra in secret.

Unfortunately, though the young man spoke arrogantly, he had remained vigilant throughout the battle. Qin Sang never found the right moment to strike with his talisman astra. Now that he was being pressed by the black hammer, he had no choice but to reveal it.

𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

The round mirror rose high into the air, flying directly to meet the hammer.

Bang!

The two talisman astras collided fiercely, then recoiled and separated.

After a brief clash, the two transformed into streaks of blue and black light, weaving through the air, chasing each other between Qin Sang and the handsome young man.