Qi Yuanshou had an ordinary appearance and wore a plain white robe. Despite being three entire stages above Qin Sang, his aura was subdued and unassuming, lacking any oppressive presence, making him appear approachable.
"Qin Sang pays respects to Senior Brother Qi."
Qin Sang greeted, bowing alongside Yu Yangzi, who then introduced Qin Sang to Qi Yuanshou, explaining his background before quietly taking his leave.
"Junior Brother Qin, as we’re from the same sect, you won’t need to take the Shadow Guards test. Here is your Shadow Guards token. From now on, you’ll be a member of the Shadow Guards, so please give your best effort in fulfilling the tasks given by the sect and Xuanlu Stronghold."
Qi Yuanshou took out a token and offered it to him with a warm smile.
Qin Sang accepted the token, noticing that it was an artifact, distinct from Yu Yangzi’s. It was a black iron token, bearing only the single character "Shadow," with no other markings.
"Just drip a drop of blood onto it," Qi Yuanshou instructed.
Following his guidance, Qin Sang let a drop of blood fall onto the token, which absorbed it and immediately formed a connection with him, allowing him to store it within his body effortlessly.
"With this token, Junior Brother Qin, you may come directly to me. Once you enter the Ancient Immortal Battlefield, nearly every small town or market along the path will have a Shadow Guards base. You only need to activate the token, and someone will connect with you, relaying messages and offering some assistance…"
Qi Yuanshou smiled and shook his head. "This is merely my duty… As a newcomer to the Shadow Guards, there’s no rush to assign you tasks right away. You may first train in the Ancient Immortal Battlefield to familiarize yourself with it. Within five years, return to me to receive a task, if only to silence those who might talk."
Qin Sang felt curious. It seemed that Qi Yuanshou, despite managing secular affairs at Xuanlu Stronghold, was always available for consultation. Did he not need to go into seclusion for cultivation?
He then recalled that Qi Yuanshou was already a practitioner in the Fake Core Realm, where progress remained stagnant until successfully forming a true core.
For such a master, even years of seclusion might yield little, making it understandable that venturing outside the cave dwelling might offer better chances for breakthroughs.
"Thank you, Senior Brother Qi, for your care, but…"
Qin Sang then shared with Qi Yuanshou the same intentions he had expressed to Yu Yangzi. As fellow disciples, there was no need for concealment.
"Oh? Is that so?" Qi Yuanshou raised his brows in mild surprise. "It seems Junior Brother Qin has chosen a rather unique cultivation art; your courage is admirable. Since you are keen, let me check…"
Although slightly surprised, Qi Yuanshou did not probe further. He placed his palm on a warm jade stone set on the table, then shook his head after a moment. "Junior Brother Qin, it seems you arrived at an inconvenient time. The tasks in the outer region have already been taken, and there likely won’t be any available soon… However, if you’re unwilling to wait, there is a decent task, though it requires venturing deeper into the Ancient Immortal Battlefield. The objective is simply to extract a spiritual ore from a mine, with low risk. Ten people are going, including Junior Brother Mu Yifeng, who has taken on this task as well."
Qin Sang didn’t know Mu Yifeng and had no plans to rely on others for protection. After the previous incidents with Sun De and Wu Yuesheng, he knew that the supposed bond among fellow disciples couldn’t always be trusted, and the only person he could rely on was himself.
"Senior Brother Qi, which region does this task involve?"
Upon hearing this, Qin Sang nodded thoughtfully. Between Xuanlu Stronghold and the forces of the demonic sects lay the barrier of Yinshan Stronghold and Chungang City, offering some protection in the middle region.
But the inner region was a chaotic no-man’s land, entirely outside the sect’s control, and encounters with demonic sect cultivators were highly likely—perhaps even remnants of the Kuiyin Sect.
Armed with several fine artifacts, Qin Sang was confident in facing early-stage Foundation Building cultivators, but against more powerful opponents, he would have no choice but to flee.
"I leave it entirely to Senior Brother Qi’s discretion," Qin Sang responded with a respectful bow.
A series of hurried footsteps sounded outside the door.
Qi Yuanshou was briefing Qin Sang on the mission details when he abruptly stopped, calling out in a clear voice, "Junior Brother Mu, come in."
Qin Sang stepped aside.
The door opened, and a burly man strode in. His rugged features and unkempt appearance gave him a rough air, yet his steady demeanor and aura rivaled even Senior Sister Qingting’s, having already reached the threshold of the middle stage of the Foundation Building Realm. ℟ᴀꞐȰᛒÈŚ
"Greetings, Senior Brother Qi!"
Mu Yifeng glanced at Qin Sang, then cupped his fists in respect toward Qi Yuanshou. His voice boomed, shaking the rafters.
"Junior Brother Qin, this is Junior Brother Mu Yifeng… and this is Junior Brother Qin Sang…" Follow current novels on novel fire.net
Qi Yuanshou introduced them to each other before turning to Mu Yifeng. "Junior Brother Mu, Junior Brother Qin has also taken on this mission to mine Qianyang Quartz. The two of you can partner up for added security."
Mu Yifeng greeted Qin Sang warmly, laughing heartily, "It’s great to have Junior Brother Qin with us! I was worried about keeping those rookies in line. Senior Brother Qi must have told you—mining Qianyang Quartz means sneaking into a lair of Cloud Beasts. Any slip-up and we risk drawing attention, not only failing the mission but losing our lives as well."
Qin Sang replied, "I know very little about the Ancient Immortal Battlefield, so I’ll be relying on your guidance, Senior Brother Mu. I’ll follow your lead on this mission."
As he spoke, Qin Sang recalled what Qi Yuanshou had explained earlier.
Qianyang Quartz was a rare spiritual ore that contained Qianyang Qi, a vital material for crafting artifacts imbued with intense yang energy. This ore had become nearly impossible to find in the Small Cold Domain, with only scattered veins left in the Ancient Immortal Battlefield.
However, nearly every spiritual ore deposit in the Ancient Immortal Battlefield was occupied by Cloud Beasts, making extraction difficult.
This particular vein of Qianyang Quartz lay deep underground, and above it was a vast lair of Cloud Beasts, home to hundreds of thousands of Cloud Beasts. They were numerous and incredibly powerful, to the point that even Golden Core cultivators would avoid disturbing them. As such, large-scale mining was impossible—cultivators could only sigh in regret at the inaccessible resources below.
Unexpectedly, the Qianyang Quartz there occasionally "grew" out on its own.
Such occurrences were not rare in the Ancient Immortal Battlefield. Deep underground, spiritual materials and herbs tainted by Cloud Beast essences would gradually surface as they transformed.
Before a Cloud Beast completed its transformation, its essence would not fully integrate with these materials. If captured at this stage, it was possible to purify the materials of Cloud Beast essence and restore them to their original form. If the materials remained largely intact, they could still be used for artifact refinement and alchemy.
Eventually, Xuanlu Stronghold discovered a concealed route that bypassed the Cloud Beasts’ detection, allowing Shadow Guards to sneak into the mine periodically and harvest a considerable bounty.
The reason for dispatching ten Shadow Guards at once was that the vein contained not only Qianyang Quartz but also the potential for finding Qianyang Crystals!
Qianyang Crystals could be used to forge astras!