Gateway of Immortality-Chapter 249: Threat

The Scarlet Gold Vine underwent a strange transformation.

As Qin Sang had expected, the moment Di Que picked the fruit, his disguise was immediately seen through by the monkey horde.

A roar thundered like a storm, nearly toppling the underground cavern!

All the monkeys instantly forgot about Qin Sang and turned their attention to Di Que at the center of the lake. Fury and brutality blazed in their eyes.

Among them, the divine monkeys Qin Sang had cultivated exuded an aura that rivaled that of Di Que!

A great battle was about to erupt!

Everything was unfolding as Qin Sang had planned, but when his gaze crossed the vast lake and met Di Que’s, he noticed that Di Que seemed utterly indifferent to everything around him. Instead, he was staring directly at Qin Sang.

Their eyes locked in midair, and Di Que’s face betrayed no panic, only a hint of mocking amusement.

Qin Sang’s heart skipped a beat.

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Then, within the primordial spirit space, the faint tremor of the Thousand-Transformation Divine Sound, left by Di Que, reverberated through his mind, followed by the elder’s voice like a thunderclap.

"To think I’d sense the presence of a Heart-Devouring Insect through Qin Brother’s primordial spirit. It’s been so long! As I recall, the Heart-Devouring Insect is a unique method of the Kuiyin Sect. Brother Qin's identity is not simple at all!"

Qin Sang’s expression changed drastically, his body freezing as his hands and feet turned ice-cold.

When the Thousand-Transformation Divine Sound infiltrated his primordial spirit space, he had concealed the Heart-Devouring Insect with his spiritual consciousness, but Di Que had seen through it. Could he be from the Kuiyin Sect?

No!

If Di Que were from the Kuiyin Sect, with his cultivation level, he would have been able to control the Heart-Devouring Insect long before, even outside the ruins, and would have discovered my true identity.

Judging by his tone, he had not detected the Heart-Devouring Insect itself but had sensed its presence in Qin Sang’s primordial spirit space. This suggested that Elder Di Que had encountered the insect before and knew it was a technique of the Kuiyin Sect.

For Qin Sang, the Heart-Devouring Insect was the greatest secret, second only to the Jade Buddha. If his identity were exposed, even if he escaped the cavern, once Di Que reported it to Shaohua Mountain, he would be eradicated.

The only comforting thought was that Di Que had no intention of killing him.

To Di Que, Qin Sang was likely a successful infiltrator within Shaohua Mountain.

If the old man had other intentions, keeping Qin Sang alive would surely be of greater value than killing him.

Qin Sang’s mind raced in a turmoil of thoughts. His feet felt rooted to the ground, and he dared not move an inch.

Di Que suddenly made a move. His figure darted like lightning, flying toward the edge of the lava lake.

The monkey horde, preparing to surround Elder Di Que, was caught off guard as the sea of flames Qin Sang had conjured suddenly shifted. Amid the roaring winds and waves, a vast divine sound force erupted, enveloping a conch-shaped astra.

Before this, Qin Sang had never noticed the presence of the conch.

The conch astra emitted a loud whooo as its power, combined with the Thousand-Transformation Divine Sound, surged at an astounding rate.

The Thousand-Transformation Divine Sound Qin Sang had previously wielded was merely a fraction of this power. It was like an iceberg in the water—the more powerful power had remained hidden, waiting for this moment to erupt.

This concealment was flawless. Qin Sang had not noticed, and neither had the monkeys!

From the very beginning, when Di Que had sent him to scout, Qin Sang had found it odd.

The Thousand-Transformation Divine Sound Di Que had given him possessed the strength of a Core Formation Realm cultivator, but Qin Sang, a mere Foundation Building cultivator, was able to control it effortlessly without any strain. It defied logic.

Then, on repeated scouting missions, facing numerous dangers, including life-threatening crises, the Thousand-Transformation Divine Sound had shown no signs of disturbance, with Qin Sang narrowly escaping by relying solely on his own wits.

This slightly eased Qin Sang’s suspicion, and with a glimmer of hope, he thought that perhaps the Thousand-Transformation Divine Sound was special, allowing it to be shared with others.

After all, sound-based supernatural abilities were extremely rare, so it wasn’t unimaginable that it could have strange properties.

It wasn’t until now that he realized the power had always been under Di Que’s control. The old man seemed to be fully focused on sensing the fluctuations of the monkeys, but in reality, he was multitasking, controlling the Thousand-Transformation Divine Sound.

Qin Sang’s ability to freely control the Thousand-Transformation Divine Sound had only been an illusion created by Di Que!

Understanding this, Qin Sang’s expression grew bitter. He had believed he had created a powerful enemy for Di Que, but in truth, he had been nothing more than bait, helping the elder gather most of the monkey horde in one place.

All the monkeys fused within the magma lake were drawn to him. When the conch emerged from the water, the Thousand-Transformation Divine Sound’s power, now greatly enhanced, transformed into ropes that quickly coiled around the flying monkeys, then tightened abruptly, imprisoning them all in an instant.

At that moment, a massive cocoon appeared at the edge of the lava lake.

The monkeys inside the cocoon struggled violently, the cocoon rising and falling as if it had a life of its own, breathing.

This imprisonment wouldn’t last long. Soon, cracks began to form all over the cocoon, and it seemed ready to be torn apart. But thanks to the cocoon, the monkeys had a brief moment of vulnerability.

Boom!

The cocoon shattered completely, and the divine monkeys surged forward in pursuit.

Elder Di Que had not yet managed to escape from the lava, but he coldly watched the barrage of staff strikes rain down, before suddenly spitting out a thunderous command.

"Control!"

The conch trembled violently, and the divine sound became a shield.

The staff strikes collided with the sound shield.

Di Que’s face turned pale, his body blasted backward like a cannonball, but this worked to his advantage. He used the conch to clear a path, flying out of the lava lake and crashing into the stone cave’s wall.

He straightened up, wiping the blood from the corner of his mouth, and with a sinister smile, he glanced at the enraged monkeys in the lava lake. Then, he spread his palm and looked at the intact fruit, laughing heartily.

Qin Sang stood frozen, watching Di Que’s movements.

Di Que paid no attention to Qin Sang. Holding the Scarlet Gold Vine fruit in one hand, he carefully focused his spiritual power in the other, transforming it into a sharp blade, and poked at the fruit’s skin. To his surprise, the Scarlet Gold Vine fruit was incredibly hard. After several attempts, increasing the force each time, the fruit remained unscathed.

He hadn’t expected the fruit to be this tough. Not even a Core Formation Realm cultivator could damage it.

Di Que furrowed his brow, rubbing the fruit thoughtfully. After a long pause, his eyes suddenly lit up, and he hurriedly retrieved a jade slip, pressing it to his forehead.

After a moment, he opened his eyes, his gaze filled with excitement as he turned his attention back to the fruit. He extended a finger and quickly began drawing strange runes on the fruit’s surface using his spiritual power.

Qin Sang, standing to the side, suppressed the unease in his heart.

He was also curious about the fruit. As he focused, he noticed that these runes were unfamiliar to him. They seemed to carry the essence of artifact refinement, combined with a hint of alchemy. It was quite peculiar.

One by one, the symbols merged into the fruit, and Di Que’s actions grew faster. Finally, the fruit began to change.

It was like a piece of ordinary fruit slowly decaying in nature, but in front of Qin Sang, this spiritual fruit’s decay accelerated by a thousandfold.

In the blink of an eye, the golden skin lost its luster, turning dark gold, then gray, and finally black, before shattering completely.

The inner flesh was revealed.