Gateway of Immortality-Chapter 396: The Corpse Transformation

Qin Sang diverted a portion of the Demonic Flames of Nine Hells, blocking the flying yaksha from advancing.

At the same time, fearing that Yu Hua might still have the strength to retaliate, Qin Sang drove the remaining flames forward, utterly destroying the Yan Luo Array of Ten Directions. Only after confirming that Yu Hua had fallen unconscious, completely unable to resist, did he regain his composure. He swiftly moved to Yu Hua’s side, sealed Yu Hua's Qihai, and set up a barrier to begin the process of refining Yu Hua into a living corpse embryo before storing him inside the Corpse Puppet Pouch.

With its target gone, the yaksha seemed confused, standing motionless for a moment before vanishing—returning to its lair.

Qin Sang retrieved the scattered Five-Elemental Breaking Sword and turned his gaze toward the barrier.

He did not choose to exit the ice hall.

Firstly, after the Flying-Horned Ichthyosauruses' nest had been destroyed, he had no idea how they would react—whether they would leave the dark pool or roam the passageways. In his current state, escaping if he encountered them would be nearly impossible.

Secondly, he feared Yu Hua might have accomplices waiting outside.

By contrast, the space beyond the barrier was a rare safe haven, with the yaksha guarding the entrance.

It was safer to heal first, then plan an escape.

Once Qin Sang was transported back to the ice hall, he collapsed onto the ground.

Looking back on everything that had transpired—from delaying the yaksha for Wandering Man, to encountering and killing Yu Hua—it had all happened in an astonishingly short time. Yet, he had sustained severe injuries, and his mind had been under constant strain, without a moment's respite.

Now, all he wanted was to sleep soundly, ignoring everything else.

But that was impossible.

Summoning his strength, Qin Sang pushed himself up with his arm. Suddenly—Gasp! A sharp gasp escaped his lips as his face twisted in pain, his upper body hunching forward like a shrimp. Gripping his dantian, he clenched his jaw, enduring the excruciating pain.

Cold sweat dripped onto the icy floor, instantly freezing into tiny beads.

Just that one movement had tugged at his Qihai, sending a searing agony through his body as if a blade were tearing him apart.

After a long while, Qin Sang finally felt a little relief. Peering inward at his condition, he found his blood and essence nearly depleted, and his Qihai and meridians were in ruins—a devastating mess. A bitter smile formed on his lips.

Since encountering Yu Hua, he had repeatedly overdrawn his Qihai, forcefully refined medicinal pills, and even fed his blood and essence to spirits. Though he had taken some healing pills whenever he got the chance, the damage to his body had still been immense.

Now, his injuries had worsened to a critical state—his Qihai and meridians were in a dire condition.

Even with pills, full recovery would take time—a simple quick fix wouldn't be enough.

Sighing, Qin Sang pulled out a bottle of spiritual pills and swallowed them. A wave of cool medicinal energy spread through his meridians, easing his injuries slightly.

After a brief meditation, Qin Sang reopened his eyes and turned his attention to Yu Hua. Condensing a sphere of ice water, he splashed it onto Yu Hua’s face.

With a shudder, Yu Hua regained consciousness.

"You—"

The moment Yu Hua saw Qin Sang, his expression changed drastically. He immediately realized his predicament and struggled, only to find that his entire body was immobilized. His spiritual power was sealed, rendering him as powerless as a mortal.

But Yu Hua quickly regained his composure, and Qin Sang couldn’t help but admire his ability to stay calm.

"Zhao Yan’s death was not unjust!"

Though trapped, Yu Hua still carried the pride of a beast unwilling to bow its head. His gaze turned dark and calculating as he stared at Qin Sang. "When you were in Yuanzhao Sect, you were only in the Qi Refining Realm, weren’t you? You had just been implanted with the Heart-Devouring Insect by Yi Tianye, then sent to Yuanzhao Sect... How did you resist the Heart-Devouring Insect?"

"You want to know?"

Qin Sang’s expression was amused. "But I’m not telling you."

"You!"

Yu Hua’s face flushed red with rage, his teeth grinding furiously. "You think keeping me alive will make me submit to you? Hah! Stop dreaming, fool!"

Qin Sang sneered. "Don’t worry, I’ll make sure to send you off properly. But first, I have some questions for you."

Before the last word even fell, Qin Sang raised his hand and activated a spell. The Spirit Seizing Spell landed directly on Yu Hua!

He had no intention of wasting time with mind games.

Besides, he could see through Yu Hua—this old devil had already resigned himself to death. Against such a calculating and treacherous opponent, torture wouldn’t work—he would likely feed false information, leading Qin Sang into a trap before his death.

The Spirit Seizing Spell took effect instantly. Yu Hua’s eyes turned vacant, his mind falling into confusion. Seizing the opportunity, Qin Sang wasted no time—he began his interrogation!

Yu Hua’s cultivation was far superior to Qin Sang’s, and the effects of the Spirit Seizing Spell were limited in duration. Thus, Qin Sang prioritized the most pressing questions.

The first question: the method to break the Heart-Devouring Insect's gu.

The second question: the identity, cultivation level, and current injuries of the surviving Golden Core cultivator from the Kuiyin Sect, as well as the whereabouts of the remaining members of the Kuiyin Sect.

Just as he was about to ask his third question, Yu Hua’s eyes suddenly rolled back, and his primordial spirit began deteriorating at an alarming rate.

Qin Sang’s brows furrowed deeply. He immediately extended his spiritual consciousness into Yu Hua’s primordial spirit space, only to find it dim and crumbling, on the verge of complete collapse.

Is this the result of the Demonic Flames of Nine Hells?

The decline of Yu Hua’s primordial spirit was happening too quickly. Without hesitation, Qin Sang forced a Heavenly Corpse Talisman into Yu Hua’s primordial spirit space, integrating it with Yu Hua’s primordial spirit.

If he could successfully draw in corpse energy and refine Yu Hua into a living corpse, he would gain a powerful refined corpse, dramatically increasing his strength.

However, the final step of refining a living corpse was notoriously difficult.

Qin Sang carefully considered the risks. With his current middle-stage Foundation Building cultivation, the success rate was not promising. To play it safe, it would be best to wait until he reached the late stage of the Foundation Building Realm before making another attempt.

As he held Yu Hua’s body, Qin Sang’s gaze fell upon Yu Hua’s neck, and suddenly, his brows knit together in a deep frown. An inexplicable urge surged from the depths of his soul—an overwhelming craving for blood and essence, something primal and instinctual...

Lifting his arm, Qin Sang examined himself. His skin was unnaturally pale, devoid of any trace of blood, and a faint chill seemed to radiate from within.

These were clear signs of corpse transformation mentioned in Wu Shang’s records.

However, Wu Shang, lacking the Jade Buddha, had been completely dominated by the Heavenly Corpse Talisman. His urge was far more intense, forcing him to constantly devour cultivators' blood and essence just to delay his corpse transformation.

Qin Sang exhaled slowly, his expression unshaken.

The moment the Heavenly Corpse Talisman had touched his primordial spirit, he had become certain that for as long as he wished, he could use the Jade Buddha to expel the talisman from his primordial spirit at any time.

Once the Heavenly Corpse Talisman was removed, the corpse transformation should cease. If Wu Shang’s writings were truthful, the corpse refinement's barriers he had modified provided a way to reverse the transformation.

But there was one thing Qin Sang wasn’t sure about. If I chose to condense a corpse core using corpse refinement techniques, the corpse transformation would advance significantly. If I fully transformed into a flying yaksha, would I still be able to reverse the process after removing the Heavenly Corpse Talisman?

"This path... should only be taken as a last resort," Qin Sang murmured to himself.

Within his primordial spirit space, Qin Sang saw the Heart-Devouring Insect's gu latch onto his primordial spirit. Through Yu Hua, he had already learned the secret art to neutralize the gu.

Yet, suddenly, Qin Sang had no desire to remove it.

With a complete understanding of poisonous gu techniques and his mastery of the Xuyuan Seal, he could suppress the fluctuations of the Heart-Devouring Insect's gu to an absolute minimum.

From Yu Hua, Qin Sang had extracted a wealth of information.

For instance, the Kuiyin Sect’s surviving Golden Core cultivator was only at the early-stage Golden Core Realm, currently hiding near Qingyang City. However, his injuries were severe, and he had yet to fully recover.

Because of this, the Kuiyin Sect's remaining members gathered under him had gone into hiding, assuming new identities under an organization called "Demonic Flame", and were actively searching for healing elixirs.

Silently, Qin Sang activated the secret art, combining it with the Xuyuan Seal, sealing the Heart-Devouring Insect's gu within his primordial spirit.