A Lone Shadow Walked Alone

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Qin Yi knew that Meng Qingying was taking a very risky move.

If Yu Fuzi's so-called senior uncle refuses to cooperate with her, or if the cooperation fails, she will be completely exposed in the Profound Yin Sect's headquarters and will not even know how she died. However, she has no other way. Without taking such a risk, it is impossible to assassinate Qi Wen, who is in the enemy's key location, even with Qin Yi's cooperation.

Unless they give up and watch Qi Wen recover and return to his own sect to fight again.

Qin Yi was inclined to give up; he shouldn't have taken such a risk. So what if the opponent had an advantage? Playing it safe and methodically still offered a chance of victory, and he could even offer assistance.

If they're worried that the Profound Yin Sect's entire strength will be used to help Qi Wen, making him even harder to deal with in the future, then what's wrong with the Ten Thousand Dao Immortal Palace helping Meng Qingying? Even if they can't persuade the entire Immortal Palace to take sides, they can at least get their chess-obsessed uncle involved and mobilize the subordinates of the Battle Hall.

Everyone has connections!

Meng Qingying couldn't possibly be unaware of this principle, yet she still persisted. She must have some unspeakable troubles. It's not his place to make decisions about other people's affairs based on his own assumptions.

Or perhaps... Meng Qingying simply didn't believe he would go to such lengths to help?

Yes, that last sentence of hers had that kind of meaning. Perhaps after thinking it over, she didn't think Qin Yi was capable of going all out to help her. Since she saw no chance of winning in the future, she might as well take a risk.

Looking back at many of Meng Qingying's actions, it seems she was always taking desperate risks beyond her capabilities. She dared to refine the Ancient Corpse of Huiyang, and used the fate of an entire nation as a pawn to scheme against a lecherous monk far more powerful than herself. Perhaps there truly was a very urgent atmosphere forcing her to take steps forward with a near-certain death.

Meng Qingying's talent may not be higher than Minghe's, and she has far fewer resources, yet she has managed to keep up with Minghe's pace in cultivation. That's how she achieved it through hard work. Before everyone knew her, during Meng Qingying's journey to Feng Chuqin Xin, she had experienced countless perilous situations.

This path is naturally much more difficult, and one could perish at any moment; it's somewhat like "seeking only a sliver of hope."

Therefore, he walks on the Great Way, while she enters the Netherworld.

It was not that she didn't trust their "cooperative" relationship, but also her true opinion about their respective paths.

After thinking it over, Qin Yi finally advised, "Let's give up this time. We can make a decision later; I can help you then."

Meng Qingying glanced at him calmly and said slowly, "That means placing all your hopes for the future on what you think and what you do. Obviously, I can't make such a decision for someone who said a year ago that if Minghe wanted to kill me, he would still help her kill me."

Qin Yi remained silent.

"I can only rely on myself." Meng Qingying repeated the words she had said when evaluating her dao companion on the airship, "Most of the time, a person can only rely on themselves."

Yu Fuzi's eyes darted back and forth between the two faces, then he suddenly grinned. "You're discussing how to kill my sect's guests in front of me, aren't you afraid I'll betray you?"

Qin Yi said calmly, "Unless you don't want those Spirit Stone anymore. Even if you betray us and kill us, you won't get any Spirit Stone. You'll be lucky to get a fingernail-sized one as a reward. And as for why we're here, I'm afraid you'll have a hard time explaining it."

Yu Fuzi laughed and said, "Since you see things so clearly, why not increase the stakes and do the deal together?"

"Oh?" Qin Yi looked at him. "What are your thoughts?"

"There's no point in negotiating with my martial uncle about this," Yu Fuzi said. "First of all, our point is that we don't want to interfere in the internal affairs of the Myriad Images of the Universe at all, not to choose sides. Secondly, even if my martial uncle were willing to cooperate with you, he's not the sect leader and can't challenge the sect leader. So even if he helps you successfully kill Qi Wen and leave, how will my martial uncle face the sect leader's reprimand?"

Meng Qingying nodded. "That's right. I was indeed hesitant about whether asking your martial uncle would be helpful, but since it wasn't useful to him, perhaps you are?"

Yu Fuzi chuckled, "I'm not some nobody; I'm a steward, you know. Getting you an identity and disguising yourself as a disciple of this sect to get close to Qi Wen's Secret Hall is a piece of cake. The rest is up to you. Whether you come to me or your martial uncle, you can't expect us to kill for you, can you?"

Meng Qingying asked in surprise, "Why are you going to such lengths to help?"

Yu Fuzi tucked his hands into his sleeves and said leisurely, "Finding another senior uncle means having another person to share the Spirit Stone with. I can eat them all by myself, so why bother..."

Meng Qingying narrowed her eyes. "Aren't you afraid the sect will discover you're colluding with outsiders?"

Yu Fuzi's expression turned somewhat ferocious. "The great path is found in peril. If I follow the steps and rules blindly, when will I be able to ascend?"

Despite her somewhat ugly and ferocious expression, Meng Qingying's eyes held a hint of melancholy and empathy.

Qin Yi shook his head slightly.

Yu Fuzi extended his hand to Meng Qingying: "Give me the Spirit Stone for this transaction first."

Meng Qingying gave an awkward grin, but before she could speak, Qin Yi had already placed a huge, top-grade water-type Spirit Stone on the ground. "Seeing the snow-capped mountain scenery here, this Spirit Stone should be of use to you, right?"

Yu Fuzi's eyes instantly lit up like sparkling Spirit Stone.

Meng Qingying turned to look at Qin Yi smiled helplessly, "Don't look at me, this was originally yours. To be honest, in my personal opinion, I still don't really approve of you taking the risk of assassination."

Meng Qingying smiled and didn't argue with him, but her meaning was firm.

Qin Yi didn't argue further. Meng Qingying had her own opinions, and since they were cooperating, he would cooperate. "What's the point of makeup if you look like this?"

For cultivators, makeup techniques are meaningless. Even if you disguise yourself as a burly, masculine woman, it's easy for people to see through your disguise as a slender young woman. Of course, cultivators can adjust their appearance themselves, but unfortunately, Meng Qingying's physique is too different from the average person here, which requires professional Transformations.

Meng Qingying said, "Give me a hand. I know you know Transformations; you should be able to transform more than just yourself, right?"

Qin Yi's Creation Golden Chapter could indeed transform not only himself, but also people and objects. He couldn't remember when he had shown this ability to Meng Qingying...

He sighed and reached out to touch Meng Qingying's brow.

A charming and alluring little enchantress suddenly transformed into a burly and tough woman.

Meng Qingying was very surprised to see her tomboyish appearance in the mirror, because even with her own cultivation, she couldn't see her true form... Qin Yi's Transformations was at a very high level!

"Your Technique Method is quite interesting." Meng Qingying looked herself up and down in the mirror, clicking her tongue in amazement. "It's simply a marvel of creation."

Yu Fuzi, standing to the side, remarked, "Indeed, to be able to transform an ugly woman into such a beautiful one is truly a miraculous sorcery."

Qin Yi and Meng Qingying stared at him in unison, while Yu Fuzi retorted, "What? Ugly is ugly, and we can't even say that?"

Meng Qingying gritted her teeth and snatched the token from Yu Fuzi's hand.

This is a Profound Yin Sect. It can emit the unique aura of the Profound Yin Sect to confuse people and can also pass some inspections.

No sect in the Land of Chaos has a very strict system, and the Profound Yin Sect is no exception. Especially now that the Profound Yin Sect is in seclusion and there are no outsiders in the sect, no one bothers to strictly verify everyone's identity. The badges are just for emergencies.

As a large sect, it's normal that some marginalized disciples aren't known to everyone. At this moment, Meng Qingying could simply swagger along the main road of the Profound Yin Sect without anyone noticing.

With a willing insider to help, many things become very simple.

The only thing to be careful about is concealing the aura of one's own Cultivation Method, which is Meng Qingying's forte, as she is able to blend into form and shadow.

She's not strong enough yet... Once she reaches the true cultivation stage, she can freely merge with shadows, and this kind of stealth won't require Qin Yi's help to transform; she can move freely wherever there are shadows. Unfortunately, that's a realm that can't be achieved at the Cloud Ascension stage...

It was already dark when she stepped out of the cave abode. Meng Qingying walked slowly through the Profound Yin Sect's mountain gate, occasionally seeing people coming and going, but as expected, no one paid her any attention.

She slowly walked towards Qi Wen's location, still thinking about Qin Yi's worried look when they parted.

Meng Qingying sighed.

She couldn't afford to give up this opportunity and wait for Qi Wen to recover so they could fight again in the future. It wasn't simply a matter of not trusting Qin Yi... even if she did, she couldn't.

She can cooperate with others, but she cannot entrust her future success or failure to the promises of others.

Once that dependence takes hold, a person becomes weak, their heart loses its resolve, and their blood loses its ferocity. Once betrayed, they will blame heaven and earth. Such a Meng Qingying, needing no competitors to snipe her, is no longer qualified to challenge the Heavenly Realm.