Chapter 13
Three Talents Market?
Liu Meng tucked the ten Three Talents Coins away, but another question arose in her mind.
Three hundred li to the west lay the territory of Three Talents Market. How large was the Profound Female Sect’s territory?
She sent the question through the token.
Hearing the question, Qin Shuang seemed amused and let out a faint chuckle.
“You don’t actually think the Profound Female Sect is the entirety of our sect, do you?” Qin Shuang’s voice came through the token, tinged with a hint of mockery. “The Profound Female Sect is only one of our four ‘mountain gates.’”
“The ‘Three Talents Market’ I mentioned is also one of our sect’s mountain gates. Most of the sect’s resources are produced and traded there, and you can buy most of what you need there, too.”
“But whether it’s the Profound Female Sect or Three Talents Market, both belong to a single sect—the Great Dao Heavenly Demon Sect!”
“This is our sect!”
“The Great Dao Heavenly Demon Sect...” Liu Meng silently repeated the name. An unprecedented sense of oppression weighed on her heart. It seemed that simply knowing its name had placed an immense pressure on her.
Her intuition told her that this sect was no worthless rabble, but a terrifying behemoth!
How had she ended up in a sect like this?
Hell mode right from the start?
But soon, she lifted her head, the confusion vanishing from her eyes, and spoke into the token. “That’s not enough.”
“Not enough?” Qin Shuang made a puzzled sound from the other end. “What isn’t enough?”
“Your sincerity isn’t enough.” Liu Meng’s gaze instantly sharpened. “Don’t forget, you nearly killed me just now. Ten Three Talents Coins aren’t enough to make up for that.”
To be honest, Liu Meng had no idea what the Three Talents Coins were actually worth, but her tone was utterly firm, as if the matter were nonnegotiable.
The other end of the token fell silent for a brief moment.
A moment later, Qin Shuang’s lightly amused chuckle rang out. “Heh... Tell me, what else do you want?”
“That secret art from just now,” Liu Meng said without hesitation. “I want to know exactly what it is, what it does, and how I’m supposed to use it properly.”
“Oh? You’re interested in that?” Qin Shuang’s tone grew light, as if the secret art didn’t matter much to her. “Very well. There’s no harm in telling you.”
“The True Explanation of Slaying the Three Corpses and Condensing the Dao is actually the companion cultivation art of a magical artifact. That artifact is called a ‘Soul Banner.’”
“A Soul Banner?” Liu Meng repeated the name, already forming a guess in her mind.
In his previous life, he had read plenty of novels, so he wasn’t unfamiliar with things like “Soul Banners.” Naturally, he knew what sort of “magical artifact” this was.
“That’s right, a Soul Banner.” Qin Shuang paused, seeming to gather her thoughts. “A Soul Banner’s strength depends entirely on the quality of the souls it contains. Ordinary souls have too many impurities and too much resentment, making them useless. But those who cultivate this secret art refine their own souls into the purest, most condensed Immaculate Soul Body in the world. Such a soul is the perfect main soul for a Soul Banner!”
“Do you know? A perfect Immaculate Soul Body can increase a Soul Banner’s power several times over!”
“You could even say that only with an Immaculate Soul Body can a Soul Banner be considered complete!”
An Immaculate Soul Body?
A complete Soul Banner?
Liu Meng’s thoughts stirred, and she immediately said, “Give me the complete secret art, and we’ll be even for your attempt to scheme against me.”
“Don’t rush. Let me finish,” Qin Shuang said with another laugh. “This secret art actually has a major flaw.”
“Anyone cultivating this art must do so of his own free will, wholeheartedly. Throughout the process, he must be filled with boundless hope for the future, believing that once he succeeds, he’ll rise to the heavens in a single bound and be reborn. Only in this state of mind can he successfully cultivate the secret art and temper his soul into its most perfect form.”
“If he’s forced into it, or has already given up on life, then what he cultivates will be nothing but a worthless, ruined soul.”
“Do you still want this secret art?”
Liu Meng’s voice was as calm as still water. She didn’t need a moment’s hesitation. “I do.”
“All right.” Qin Shuang agreed readily. “I’ll send you the complete art formula shortly. First, inscribe the secret art’s mark onto a Soul Banner. Then find someone to cultivate it. Once he succeeds, the Soul Banner will absorb him automatically. But I can’t give you a Soul Banner; you’ll have to get one yourself. And you’ll have to find someone to cultivate the secret art yourself...”
“Thank you.”
“No need... You’re courting death!”
Before the words had even faded, Qin Shuang’s voice suddenly turned hurried and sharp!
“You witless fool! How dare you scheme against me!” Qin Shuang shouted. The roar of spiritual power erupting mingled with her voice, as if Qin Shuang were fighting something nearby. “Be extra careful yourself! Remember, don’t fall into anyone else’s trap...”
Bzz, bzz—
Before Qin Shuang could finish, the light on the Sound Transmission Moon Token suddenly flashed, and the connection was cut off completely.
The stone hall fell silent once more.
Liu Meng stood motionless, the cold token in her hand.
Yet a pressing sense of crisis gripped her tightly!
She had never imagined that Qin Shuang... would run into danger, too, in such a short time!
What about her?
Could she also be targeted?
Although she had broken through to the first layer of Qi Refining, her foundation was still unstable. Her cultivation was even weaker than Qin Shuang’s, and she had no means of fighting anyone.
If someone attacked her cave abode now, her fate would probably be no better than Qin Shuang’s.
This was the Demonic Sect!
The Demonic Sect, where the strong preyed on the weak!
No! She had to improve her strength as soon as possible! Only then could she protect herself and her main body!
She needed pills to stabilize her cultivation, talismans for self-defense, formations to protect her cave abode, and, more than anything... a magical artifact for battle!
A thought surfaced clearly and forcefully in her mind.
She needed a Soul Banner, too!
She would soon have the complete art formula for the True Explanation of Slaying the Three Corpses and Condensing the Dao.
And the “material” needed to refine the main soul... might be incredibly difficult for others to obtain, requiring them to go to great lengths to deceive and lure someone.
But for her, it was the simplest thing in the world.
Because she had countless clones!
She could simply summon a new clone and have him willingly cultivate this secret art, refining himself into the most perfect “Immaculate Soul Body”!
By then, she would naturally have a powerful Soul Banner!
“Soul Banner, Soul Banner...” she murmured.
That was right!
Right now, she needed a Soul Banner!