The spiritual insect Qin Sang was searching for was called the Twilight Stink Bug. Its appearance resembled that of a mundane stink bug, and it favored dark, damp environments, feeding on yin qi day and night, hence its name.
After leaving the Bear Mountain region, Qin Sang assumed a false identity and visited several marketplaces to make contact with various factions and gather information. In the end, he selected nine types of spiritual insects as his targets.
Among them, five were listed on the Supernatural Insect Register. Some of them Qin Sang knew how to cultivate, while others he did not.
Still, with the Crimson Fire Gilded Gold in his possession, he was not too worried about cultivation before the third metamorphosis. The abilities of these supernatural insects were all highly unique and quite tempting.
The other four were ordinary spiritual insects. Though their potential was not high, their supernatural abilities were formidable. They could provide significant assistance during the Core Formation Realm and served as Qin Sang’s backup choices in case nothing better could be found.
The rumors and records he had gathered were not necessarily reliable.
The insects might have migrated, encountered natural enemies, been captured by someone, or even undergone metamorphosis and left their habitat. Any of these were possible.
Qin Sang believed that if he could locate even one of the nine species he had chosen, it would already be a fine result.
His standards were high, and he had prepared himself mentally to spend considerable time and effort on the hunt.
The Twilight Stink Bug was one of the five supernatural insects.
It was highly praised on the Supernatural Insect Register.
During its first two metamorphoses, the Twilight Stink Bug's abilities were unremarkable. This was common for many spiritual insects. It was only during the third metamorphosis or later that they underwent a complete transformation.
After the third metamorphosis, the Twilight Stink Bug could condense the yin qi within its body into weapons. These weapons were extremely fast and sharp, rivaling real spiritual swords and astras. Moreover, when the bug lay dormant, it emitted no detectable aura at all.
When it struck, it was as sudden and fierce as lightning.
For an insect tamer, acquiring a third-metamorphosis Twilight Stink Bug was equivalent to gaining a razor-sharp hidden sword. It consumed neither spiritual consciousness nor true essence, making it exceptionally difficult to defend against.
Qin Sang was very fond of it.
That was why the Twilight Stink Bug became his first target.
However, its ranking on the Witch Insect Register was even lower than the Ghost-Headed Wasp, positioned near the bottom. No one dared choose it as their life-bound insect gu.
The reason was its extreme difficulty in metamorphosis. Its long lifespan and slow growth made it a poor choice. Without proper methods, a Core Formation cultivator might not see their bug reach the third metamorphosis within their lifetime.
Among the cultivation methods Qin Sang had gathered for supernatural insects, one included the Twilight Stink Bug.
Yuling Sect had found a partially incomplete method in an ancient cultivator's texts. It involved preparing several kinds of cold yin spiritual elixirs to accelerate the growth of the Twilight Stink Bug by several times when used together.
A cultivator had once spotted a second-metamorphosis Twilight Stink Bug on this very plain. But before he could react, the insect had vanished into an underground cavern.
Qin Sang had only this single piece of information. If he wanted to capture a Twilight Stink Bug, he had to first locate that cavern.
"I’ve already searched most of the plain. Why haven’t I found the cave? Was there an earthquake that altered the terrain?"
Qin Sang frowned, scanning the vast expanse of wilderness. He decided to change direction.
He had barely taken a few steps when he let out a quiet murmur and abruptly stopped. A flash of sword light shot out beneath his feet as he soared a thousand zhang to the left and hovered in mid-air, peering down.
The entrance to the cave had been completely concealed by wild grass. Qin Sang was about to use his sword to clear it open, but after some thought, he sheathed his ebony sword and silently slipped into the cavern.
The cave was deep. Qin Sang fell for nearly the time it took to burn one incense stick before he saw a rift in the ground. The underground air was cold and bone-chilling. This was exactly the environment the Twilight Stink Bug favored.
However, upon seeing the rift, Qin Sang began to feel a headache coming on.
He had not expected the area to be so vast, with countless branching tunnels. It was even more complicated than the Sunken Cave. Searching for a tiny Twilight Stink Bug in such a place was like finding a needle in a haystack. ᴛhis chapter is ᴜpdated by NovєlFіre.net
What a pity that the flying yaksha could not venture far from him. If they could split up, the efficiency would be far greater.
Twilight Stink Bugs loved cold environments, and the stronger they were, the more this held true. Qin Sang decided to head directly to the deepest parts of the cavern.
He summoned the yaksha and dove swiftly downward. The deeper he went, the colder and more eerie it became. Once he judged the environment sufficiently frigid, Qin Sang retrieved several jars and vials from the Thousand-Jin Ring, each containing powders or liquids, and began scattering them along his descent.
These were all secret concoctions used to lure insects. Some had been purchased from witch cultivators, while others he had refined himself based on Yuling Sect’s formulas. He had prepared a large quantity in advance.
This method was effective for certain types of spiritual insects.
Qin Sang was not sure whether it would work on the Twilight Stink Bug, but he figured it was worth a try.
The cold intensified to a terrifying degree, seeming to seep into his very bones. Forced to activate his true essence for protection, Qin Sang continued descending. After a while, he unexpectedly heard the faint sound of flowing water from below.
Startled, he went to investigate and discovered that the yin qi had merged into an underground river, turning the water a murky gray. That was why it had not frozen.
Standing at the edge of the underground river, Qin Sang looked upward.
All the way down, he had scattered more than a dozen vials of insect-luring medicine, yet not a single spiritual insect had been drawn out.
This, too, was a good sign.
Except under special circumstances, every spiritual insect possessed its own territory and would not tolerate intrusion from others. If another spiritual insect had appeared, it would have meant that the Twilight Stink Bug was no longer here.
Qin Sang observed the environment of the cavern carefully, then began to search along the river, combining his spiritual consciousness with the insect-luring medicine, scanning every nook and cranny.
The cavern resembled a massive labyrinth. He searched for an entire day and found absolutely nothing.
In the end, Qin Sang gave up and returned to the place where he had descended.
He walked to a protruding rock by the underground river. After closely examining the surrounding terrain, he activated a thought, and the yaksha leapt into the river, hiding in the depths.
Then, Qin Sang retrieved a jade vial from the Thousand-Jin Ring.
Inside the jade vial was a crimson-red viscous liquid, dense and sticky like a chunk of ruby, shimmering with a mesmerizing glow. Flickers of golden light flashed from within the fluid from time to time, making it appear quite extraordinary.
This was the fruit of the Scarlet Gold Vine—Crimson Fire Gilded Gold.
Spiritual insects of the Small Cold Domain were rare, and ever since Qin Sang had obtained the Crimson Fire Gilded Gold, he had found no chance to use it. He had stored it until now, and finally, it was time to let it shine.
The reason Qin Sang dared to rely on mere fragments of rumor and venture alone into the depths of Xijiang to hunt for insects was precisely because of this item.
The Crimson Fire Gilded Gold could assist spiritual insects in undergoing metamorphosis and had an intense allure for them. It was far more effective than any insect-luring medicine. This was an advantage no one else had.
Now that the standard medicines had failed, Qin Sang had no choice but to use the Crimson Fire Gilded Gold.
He did not need much. Simply releasing a trace of its aura would be enough.
At the same time, Qin Sang opened the insect basket at his waist and took out several Ghost-Headed Wasp larvae.
The larvae of other spiritual insects were also excellent bait, especially those that had undergone bloodline mutations. Their allure was even stronger. With both bait and Crimson Fire Gilded Gold combined, Qin Sang did not believe that the Twilight Stink Bug could remain indifferent.
At this point, Qin Sang no longer had any interest in cultivating Blood-Winged Ghost-Headed Wasps.
Having lost the potential for metamorphosis, no matter how many he had, they could only pose a threat to Foundation Building cultivators at most.
Qin Sang activated his true essence to hold the Blood-Winged Ghost-Headed Wasp larvae in place, wiped away their consciousness, then opened the jade vial and carefully drew out a thread of Crimson Fire Gilded Gold to coat their bodies.
He flung several of them into the distance, leaving behind one larva with the thickest coating. That one he placed atop a stone platform.