"True essence, physical body, and spiritual consciousness... If one can cultivate all three in unison, the benefits would indeed be immense. But the resources, time, and effort required, as well as the difficulty, are far more than threefold. And with heavenly tribulations ever looming above like a sword, advancing is life, stagnation is death, so who dares divide their focus? In the ancient immortal cultivation world, such cultivation might have been possible. But in this age, with secret arts lost and resources depleted, it is almost impossible for anyone to truly walk that path. Hence, most cultivators choose the simplest route: spells. And spiritual roots have become the sole standard to measure one’s talent." Qingzhu shared his understanding.

"When I was transported to Canglang Sea, I was only a single step away from forming my Spiritual Infant. Yet because my killing intent split and my primordial spirit was gravely wounded, it took me more than a hundred years and countless methods to finally heal enough to succeed in forming it. This proves that essence, energy, and spirit are inseparable; damage to even one of them will have an effect. The Soul-Cleansing Liquid has such miraculous effects for the same reason."

Qin Sang pondered silently. The Nine-Illusion Heavenly Orchid and the Soul-Cleansing Liquid were both external aids.

Once his Sky-Eyed Butterfly grew to the peak of the third metamorphosis, it too could help him break through bottlenecks.

Unknowingly, he had already gathered quite a few means to assist in forming his Spiritual Infant.

If Qingzhu’s words were true, then he would have to give equal weight to both Heavenly Demon Body Refinement and Primordial Spirit Sword Nourishment.

Qin Sang became lost in thoughts.

Once he cultivated Heavenly Demon Body Refinement to the peak of the third stage, and with the Star Essence Infusion, he might be able to directly step into the fourth stage.

By then, his physical body alone would rival that of a Spiritual Infant cultivator. This would surely aid his progress.

He had suffered bitterly while reaching the Foundation Building and Golden Core Realms, and he understood just how difficult cultivation was for someone with five-elemental spiritual roots.

There was only one stalk of Nine-Illusion Heavenly Orchid, unlike the Soul-Cleansing Liquid which remained effective after consumption. He would have to use it only when completely certain of success.

After giving a few more words of guidance, Qingzhu returned to the main topic.

"Do you know that the Primordial Spirit Sword Nourishment was originally hidden within Ziwei Palace, in a place much like Nether Valley? When the Shaohua Mountain's founding grandmaster first obtained this art, he also found a fragment of a spiritual sword. Only those who successfully cultivate this art can gain the recognition of the sword fragment. Even Dongyang Bo could not command it, so the sword fragment eventually fell into my hands."

"Senior, you mean..." Qin Sang held his breath.

"That's right!" Qingzhu said, not keeping him in suspense, "If nothing goes wrong, another part of the Primordial Spirit Sword Nourishment should be hidden within Nether Valley. Whether it is the second part or not, we will only know once we retrieve it. Back then, after racking my brains, I found myself unable to further deduce the art. When I discovered the Nether Valley, I was overjoyed. But I soon realized that the valley contained an extremely dangerous ancient barrier, one that only a Spiritual Infant grandmaster could hope to break..."

As he spoke, they arrived outside the great hall filled with sword qi that guarded Nether Valley.

"To enter a mountain of treasure, only to return empty-handed." Qingzhu’s face was filled with regret. "To make matters worse, I forcefully severed my primordial spirit and cultivated this art, causing my killing intent to accumulate until it birthed a devilish soul. After being gravely wounded this time, that devilish soul found its chance. Stimulated by the sword qi within this hall, it rebelled and nearly escaped my control. In the end, I was forced to use the spiritual sword fragment to seal the devilish soul within this very hall. I thought this place was desolate and uninhabited, but as fate would have it, the ancient devil was sealed beneath this mountain. The devilish soul was later corrupted by him, giving rise to countless troubles that linger to this day..."

Qin Sang supported Qingzhu cautiously as he listened in silence.

"After sealing the devilish soul, I escaped Seven-Kill Hall with great difficulty, only to find myself in an unfamiliar cultivation world. I wandered for years before settling on Linggui Island, seldom interacting with other powers. I secluded myself there, nursing my wounds while striving to form my Spiritual Infant.

"For more than a century afterward, unable to enter the inner hall and retrieve my devilish soul, I tried every method I could think of, including teaching disciples and meditating on the Dao. By sheer luck, I managed to break through and form my Spiritual Infant despite my damaged primordial spirit. But that success planted the seed of disaster. Unless I reclaimed my devilish soul, the road ahead would forever be filled with peril.

"Decades later, when Seven-Kill Hall emerged for the second time, I planned to subdue the devilish soul, reclaim the spiritual sword fragment and the art, and then return to the Small Cold Domain to avenge myself and reunite with old friends. But heaven had other plans." Qingzhu sighed long and deep.

Qin Sang knew the crucial revelation was coming. Why had he been transported to the Witch God Continent? What had Qingzhu encountered afterward? The answers were about to unfold.

Qingzhu gave Qin Sang a meaningful glance. "After Seven-Kill Hall emerged, I first entered the trial realm left behind by the Four Saints, then reached Nether Valley smoothly. Just as I was about to subdue the devilish soul, I discovered it was missing! And then, you were suddenly transported here from Ziwei Palace. Everything I had planned was thrown into chaos by you and the sword spirit within you."

"Sword spirit?" Qin Sang froze for a moment, then realized that Qingzhu must be referring to the gray qi inside his body.

"It’s the sword spirit of the spiritual sword fragment? Wasn’t it placed within me by you after I arrived at Seven-Kill Hall?" He was astonished. This was completely different from what he had imagined.

Qingzhu paused, then shook his head. "Why would I invite more trouble upon myself? The sword spirit within you sensed the spiritual sword fragment after you entered Seven-Kill Hall and attempted to draw it back. This caused an anomaly in the fragment that was sealed within the devilish soul’s body. At that time, the devilish soul had already been released by the ancient devil and taken possession of a new body. His strength far surpassed mine. Fortunately, the fragment’s seal was not yet broken, so his memories remained sealed as well. When the sword spirit within you resonated with the fragment inside the devilish soul, he traced the disturbance here and nearly discovered the barrier within the hall of sword qi, as well as the Nether Valley itself."

Qingzhu reached out and pressed his palm gently against the wall of the hall. An illusory door appeared. They stepped through the barrier and entered Nether Valley.

Qingzhu looked back once and said, "I originally intended to subdue the sword spirit by force, but it turned out to possess extraordinary intelligence and had already recovered a portion of its power. Once it sensed my presence, it hid within your body and carried you across the world to evade me. If the devilish soul had found Nether Valley and the ancient teleportation array, recovered his memories, and released his killing intent, the situation would have become irreparable. Desperate, I used a Minor Teleportation Talisman to forcibly send you out of Seven-Kill Hall, separating the sword spirit from the spiritual sword fragment."

"When I woke up, I found myself on the Witch God Continent. So it was you who sent me away with that talisman? But why has the sword spirit in my body always remained in its gray qi form, showing no sign of activity for a hundred years?" Qin Sang could hardly believe what he was hearing. It sounded like a tale from another world.

He had been gravely wounded and unconscious at that time. To think that the sword spirit had possessed his body and caused such chaos was beyond imagination.

"Exactly. The Minor Teleportation Talisman was an ancient spirit talisman I discovered by chance within the upper celestial barriers. Its origin was extraordinary. When activated, it could instantly transport the user elsewhere, escaping mortal danger. It's a priceless lifesaving treasure. However, the direction and destination of its teleportation could not be controlled. Here, you would most likely have been sent into the storm belt, where survival was nearly impossible. I used it on you because your body was surrounded by corpse qi, so I thought you were already dead."

Qingzhu continued thoughtfully, "Now that I think about it, the talisman must have been influenced by the sword spirit, which redirected you to the relatively safe Witch God Continent. But that would have come at great cost to the sword spirit itself, forcing it into a deep slumber. Otherwise, when the witch race later opened Seven-Kill Hall for the first time, when both I and the devilish soul were present, it would have stirred the fragment again, and you would have been discovered instantly."