Gateway of Immortality
Chapter 515: So-Called Fortuitous Opportunity?

Chapter 515: So-Called Fortuitous Opportunity?

"Forget it."

Qin Sang shook his head. In any case, he had no interest in sightseeing inside the Corpse Puppet Pouch.

The Heavenly Yin Corpse Art described two types of tools for storing refined corpses. In the first half of the manual, only low-ranking disciples were allowed to use Corpse Coffins, which were far too conspicuous, requiring one to carry a giant coffin on their back. It was impossible not to draw attention.

Even so, it was still difficult to acquire an ordinary Corpse Puppet Pouch. Most demonic cultivators on the path of corpse refinement used this method to store their refined corpses.

This included the disciple of the Demonic Qingyang Sect who had purchased his refined corpse.

Qin Sang had already anticipated this scenario and had prepared a Corpse Coffin long ago. All those troublesome preparations he had done earlier had been to guard against exactly this situation.

He stood the coffin upright.

Opening the lid, Qin Sang stepped inside.

A flash of black light shimmered from the coffin, which shrank slightly, adjusting perfectly to match Qin Sang’s physique.

He sensed its fit, then stepped out of the coffin and returned to where he had just been sitting cross-legged. From his Mustard Seed Pouch, he retrieved the jade box containing Daoist Jiupao’s Golden Core.

There, he would complete the first two steps of refining the flying yaksha: drawing the core into his body and merging himself with the core.

He intended to infiltrate the Demonic Qingyang Sect as a refined corpse.

Aside from the ebony sword hidden within his primordial spirit and the barely-known Xutian Thunder, he could bring no external items with him.

The Yan Luo Array of Ten Directions, the Yan Luo Banners of Ten Directions...

Even the Nine-Dragon Heavenly Chariot Talisman that had once rested in his dantian had already been removed and stored within his Mustard Seed Pouch. Before entering the Demonic Qingyang Sect, he had hidden it just outside the mountain gate.

This time, he would enter the mountain with absolutely nothing. One could never be too cautious.

Had the flying yaksha not been seriously injured, he would have had a better grasp of the situation. But opportunities were fleeting, and there was no way he could afford to wait until the flying yaksha fully recovered.

He had already obtained Daoist Jiupao’s Golden Core for quite some time now, and it still gleamed with mesmerizing brilliance, radiant and full of life, as if it were still alive, glowing with marvelous hues.

Qin Sang released the seal on the jade box and held the Golden Core in his hand.

Of the two steps, the first—drawing the core into his body—was the most dangerous. His dantian might not be able to withstand the impact of the Golden Core, which could result in the Qihai spiraling out of control, leading to bodily collapse and explosive death.

Holding the Golden Core, Qin Sang focused on the rippling waves of power it emitted, while also recalling every detail from the last time he had refined the flying yaksha.

He remembered clearly that the most perilous moment had come during the Earth Malevolent Qi's charge at the core. But that was a matter for later. What mattered now was how to infiltrate the Demonic Qingyang Sect.

Despite its risks, the core infusion had gone relatively smoothly last time. This time, since he was doing it for himself, control should come even easier.

The second step was simpler and posed little danger.

While deep in thought, Qin Sang continued familiarizing himself with the Golden Core.

In truth, he had been doing this ever since acquiring it. Thus, it didn’t take long before he hovered the core before him and slowly guided it toward his abdomen.

As he moved, he activated the barriers on his body, forging a connection between himself and the Golden Core to reduce its repulsion.

Time passed slowly as the core inched closer and closer to his dantian.

A familiar scene unfolded. The Golden Core gradually became wrapped in a barrier. At first, it resisted, but as time went on, it slowly calmed down.

"Go in."

With a sigh, Qin Sang pressed the core toward his dantian.

Whoosh...

A surge of malevolent qi erupted as the Golden Core sank inside.

A searing pain struck him all at once.

Qin Sang furrowed his brow, enduring the agony with gritted teeth. He waited until the chaos within his dantian reached its peak—until it was on the verge of collapse—before suddenly willing the Golden Core to retreat.

He was experienced and patient, repeating the process again and again, silently observing every change. Since it was his own body this time, the progress was far quicker than when he had refined Yu Hua.

At last, the Golden Core fully entered his Qihai and settled firmly in its center.

At that moment, the Golden Core suddenly erupted with a terrifying burst of power that swept out in all directions.

No wonder Yu Hua, who had already become a lifeless corpse at the time, had let out such a pained cry during the same stage of refinement. That kind of pain was indeed almost unbearable.

Qin Sang had anticipated this. With both palms open, he immediately summoned two items into his hands—one grasped a large handful of pills, while the other held several Lesser Yin Magnetic Bottles.

He did everything he could to suppress the Golden Core. When his spiritual power was exhausted, he consumed the pills; when the Earth Malevolent Qi ran dry, he replenished it using the Lesser Yin Magnetic Bottles.

All proceeded smoothly. The chaos gradually subsided, and the brilliance of the Golden Core dimmed, now suspended quietly within the Qihai.

Qin Sang let out a quiet sigh of relief, only to find that nearly seventy to eighty percent of both his pills and the Earth Malevolent Qi within the Lesser Yin Magnetic Bottles had already been depleted. Fortunately, in the next step—charging the core—half of the burden would be borne by Celestial Gale Qi, significantly reducing the need for Earth Malevolent Qi. There was no need to prepare too much more.

An hour later, Qin Sang began the next step: merging himself with the core.

He turned his inner vision inward toward his Qihai. At his silent command, the Golden Core slowly began to rotate. It appeared to have harmonized fully with him, but Qin Sang knew that he still couldn't control it—not truly. All of it was merely the illusion caused by barriers.

At last, it was done. Qin Sang looked outside his cave dwelling and saw that dawn had broken.

After examining himself thoroughly and confirming that the Golden Core wouldn’t suddenly rebel, Qin Sang rose and exited the cave. He turned and swept his gaze around once more, carefully erasing every trace of his presence before flying straight toward the Demonic Qingyang Sect.

On the way, he took out two Mustard Seed Pouches.

One was his own, which contained heavy treasures like the Yan Luo Banners of Ten Directions. He intended to hide it somewhere near the Demonic Qingyang Sect.

The other had been prepared in advance. Aside from the Xutian Thunder, it was filled with Lesser Yin Magnetic Bottles, artifacts, spirit stones, spiritual pills, and other resources—all of decent quality. Altogether, they were roughly equivalent to the entire fortune of a middle-stage Foundation Building cultivator.

Having lost the Sword Qi Thunderclap supernatural ability, Qin Sang felt increasingly uncertain. After much deliberation, he decided to carry the Xutian Thunder with him as a precaution.

The Xutian Thunder looked utterly unremarkable. When not activated, it was merely a dull gray bead, and the lightning along its surface wouldn’t flicker continuously.

Qin Sang tossed it into the Mustard Seed Pouch, hiding it amidst other miscellaneous items. There were even some similar-looking beads mixed in with it. The Xuling Sect hadn’t produced a new Xutian Thunder in a very long time. Even its own disciples might not recognize it, let alone outsiders.

This powerful artifact was on the verge of becoming a legend. If not for Granny Jing’s guidance, Qin Sang wouldn’t have recognized it either.

In addition, there was also a jade slip containing corpse refinement techniques from the Heavenly Corpse Sect, but Qin Sang had made numerous alterations to it.

The most crucial part—the method to elevate a living corpse to the level of a flying yaksha—had been modified to require both Earth Malevolent Qi and Celestial Gale Qi working in tandem.

As for the strength of the finished flying yaksha, Qin Sang deliberately suppressed its described level, presenting it as no more than a Fake Core Realm creature.

He had also erased all mention of the backlash effects associated with corpse refinement, ensuring that whoever obtained the secret technique would use it without hesitation.

The flying yaksha was too powerful. Even if no flaws were explicitly written, the sheer strength would naturally arouse suspicion. Qin Sang couldn’t afford to drag things out indefinitely. But a creature at the Fake Core Realm was still within an acceptable range.

Indeed, he had no intention of selling himself at a trading market. There were far too many variables.

He planned to gift a disciple of the Demonic Qingyang Sect a so-called "fortuitous opportunity."

Once everything was packed, Qin Sang retrieved the corpse of a survivor from the Kuiyin Sect that he had prepared in advance.