Gateway of Immortality

The clone leaped swiftly between the rocks and trees on the cliffside. Just as it landed on the branch of an ancient tree, an unexpected change occurred.

Without warning, a beam of green light shot out from the forest. Within the light, there was a vibrant green vine.

The vine twisted like a snake, coiling and extending, and in an instant, it shot toward Qin Sang’s clone. The vine swiftly wrapped around the clone, binding it tightly.

"Haha!"

A burst of wild laughter echoed from within the forest. A scruffy Daoist, his hair disheveled, flew up to the treetops. His entire body was drenched in blood, covered with rotten grass and leaves. Broken ice spikes protruded from his arms and legs, making him appear very battered, but his injuries were far less severe than Qin Sang had expected.

The scruffy Daoist glared fiercely at the clone bound by the vine and said viciously, "Dare to ambush me? Let me show you the power of the Spirit Binding Technique!"

Then, the Daoist raised his head and looked toward the mountaintop, chanting something under his breath. Suddenly, a whistling sound came from the peak, and three beams of black light shot out—they were fragments of the Wishing Shield.

Qin Sang, who was hiding on the mountaintop, looked furious and shocked.

Had he not been so cautious, if he had boldly gone down to loot the corpse or greedily tried to pick up that shield fragment, he would have undoubtedly fallen into the Daoist’s trap and faced a grim fate.

"Sword transformation!"

The Daoist shouted, and with two sharp bang sounds, the Wishing Shield fragments merged in mid-air like three sharp swords.

The Wishing Shield was no longer in its original shield form but had transformed into a strange three-edged black sword, each with ferocious blood grooves, making one’s heart tremble at the sight. The sword tips gleamed with a chilling light, as if they were imbued with sword energy. There was no trace of damage anymore, and instead, the shield was now unleashing power far exceeding that of a middle-grade artifact.

Looking at the transformed Wishing Shield, the Daoist’s face was full of pain. His eyes showed even deeper hatred as he glared at Qin Sang\'s clone. With a wave of his hand, the black sword immediately changed direction, piercing straight into the clone’s body.

Splash…

The black sword passed through and embedded itself into the ancient tree, causing water to splash everywhere.

The Daoist’s pupils suddenly constricted, his expression drastically changing. An uneasy feeling gripped his heart, and he hastily looked up, only to see a brilliant flash of lightning, like a bolt from the blue.

The Daoist was utterly terrified and tried to flee in panic, but how could his speed compare to that of lightning? He barely took half a step before the yin thunderbolt struck him right in the forehead.

Boom!

The full force of the yin thunderbolt exploded, splitting the giant tree branch beneath the Daoist\'s feet. With a loud crash, a large crater appeared on the ground, and inside lay a charred figure.

Still feeling cautious, Qin Sang condensed several ice spikes and shot them into the crater. After seeing no signs of movement from the Daoist, he finally relaxed and leaped off the cliff.

When he landed at the edge of the crater, Qin Sang suddenly stopped, a look of surprise flashing across his face. The Daoist was in such a miserable state, yet there was still a faint breath of life left in him. Ṟ

After a moment of thought, Qin Sang put away the spirit stone in his hand and took out the Yan Luo Banner. Summoning King Yan, he commanded it to devour the Daoist’s soul.

Qin Sang had always been curious about the Daoist’s beast-taming abilities. The yellow oriole had fled when Qin Sang first attacked, and its whereabouts were now unknown. Although it had no combat abilities, it could be useful for scouting.

However, King Yan was easily detected by immortal cultivators and struggled to get close. Moreover, it tended to cower when facing such opponents, making it unreliable in battle.

If the Daoist hadn’t been on the brink of death, King Yan wouldn’t have dared to rush in and devour his soul.

Qin Sang still couldn’t understand where King Yan’s ferocity had gone, the same ferocity it had shown when it turned against him in the past.

Unexpectedly, when King Yan flew out of the Daoist’s body, it hadn’t captured the soul but was only holding a small wisp of green light.

Qin Sang was greatly surprised. He took the green light and examined it, discovering it was just a trace of primordial spirit.

After a moment of contemplation, Qin Sang suddenly remembered that when he previously commanded King Yan to extract Saint Yuanjue\'s soul, it only lasted for half the usual time. Yuanjue, an innate stage master, had a soul that was more solid than that of an ordinary person. For an immortal cultivator who had refined their soul into a primordial spirit, the soul would be even stronger.

Qin Sang hadn’t expected King Yan to be ineffective against immortal cultivators, which left him feeling disappointed. His gaze swept over and fell upon the Mustard Seed Pouch still intact and hanging at the waist of the Daoist. With a sweep of his hand, Qin Sang took the pouch, then cast a flame to incinerate the Daoist\'s body.

Without rushing to inspect the contents of the pouch, Qin Sang swiftly moved to the side of an ancient tree. He dug out the deformed Wishing Shield from within the tree trunk and then flew up to the treetops, vigilantly scanning the surroundings.

The battle between him and the Daoist had caused quite a commotion. He wasn’t sure if anyone else had been drawn over. Having used several spells and artifacts in succession, more than half of his spiritual power was already depleted. If he encountered another formidable enemy, he was certain he wouldn\'t stand a chance.

Seeing no signs of anyone approaching, Qin Sang used an evading method, fleeing a great distance in one go and finding a hidden spot to take refuge.

He placed the two jade tokens together, but there was no reaction at all. After examining them for a moment, he put them back into the Mustard Seed Pouch.

Aside from that, the Daoist’s Mustard Seed Pouch contained nothing of value—just a foundational wood-based cultivation art and a few mundane martial arts techniques. There wasn’t even a single beast-taming method, nor a single spirit stone.

What caught Qin Sang’s attention the most, however, were a dozen large pouches of blood stored in the bladders of some unknown animal. The bladders were washed spotlessly clean, without a trace of stench.

Blood packs…

Staring at these items, Qin Sang was speechless for a long time.

In his previous life, Qin Sang’s family background wasn’t good. He worked hard to finish his studies, and his first job was very demanding. He worked tirelessly without allowing himself any slack, and when he could no longer bear the stress, the only way he could unwind was by watching action-packed movies. That was one of his few ways of relaxing.

Now, seeing props that looked like something out of those movies, he couldn’t help but feel a wave of nostalgia.

There was also a jade slip that contained information about the Wishing Shield. After reading it, Qin Sang’s expression shifted, and he silently cursed for quite a while.

He had thought that apart from the jade token, the biggest reward was the Wishing Shield. But to his surprise, the shield was already destroyed!

It turned out that, besides its ability to automatically protect its owner, the Wishing Shield had another feature: it could change form and transform into a flying sword, instantly concentrating the power of the three shield fragments to unleash an attack with the sharpness of a high-grade artifact.

This transformation could happen in a split second, catching an opponent off guard—a truly strange and unpredictable ability.

But there was only one chance for this transformation. After becoming a sword, all three fragments of the Wishing Shield would shatter.

Upon examining the shield closely, Qin Sang saw that the three black fragments were indeed covered in cracks and could no longer be used.