Chapter 12: Unexpected Alliances and Spatial Traverses

Quan Haoqing committed the name to memory. He smiled and said, “My surname is Quan, my given name is Haoqing. Fellow Daoist can also call me by this name.”

Ye Qingfeng looked at Quan Haoqing with surprise, as if implying that he too was using a false name.

As the two walked side by side, Quan Haoqing inquired, “Are you aware of the risks involved in exiting through a spatial node?”

Ye Qingfeng nodded. “I am, but I haven’t experienced it firsthand. This is my first time venturing into a secret realm.”

“Is that so?”

Quan Haoqing then earnestly began to inform Ye Qingfeng of the necessary precautions, and Ye Qingfeng, like a diligent student, absorbed all this knowledge.

In that moment, the two, who had both concealed their true names, temporarily set aside their past grievances, truly resembling newfound mentors and friends.

‘He truly is a good person. Perhaps we should turn our conflict into friendship?’

Ye Qingfeng gazed thoughtfully at Quan Haoqing. ‘If I treated him better, even became sworn siblings with him, then even if my identity were exposed, he wouldn’t be so cruel as to kill a brother, would he?’

Noticing Ye Qingfeng’s overly intense gaze, Quan Haoqing felt his cheeks flush. “Hmm? Is there something on my face?”

Without thinking, Ye Qingfeng asked, “What do you think of me?”

Quan Haoqing’s body stiffened. ‘This, this, this… could she mean *that*?’

‘True, she’d seen him completely exposed; it seemed impossible not to take responsibility. But he hadn’t expected Ye Qingfeng would actually be willing to let him take responsibility.’

“I think you’re absolutely wonderful, but, uh, isn’t this a bit too fast?”

“Hmm?”

Ye Qingfeng looked at Quan Haoqing, puzzled. “You don’t want to?”

‘It made sense. Ever since her transformation, their encounters had been nothing but trouble, culminating in a life-or-death battle. Suddenly wanting to forge a good relationship was indeed asking a bit much.’

“No, no, no, it’s just, it’s a bit sudden. I simply didn’t expect Fellow Daoist wouldn’t mind.”

Quan Haoqing was filled with emotion. He hadn’t been on the path of cultivation for long, yet he was already about to gain a Dao companion, and one of such high caliber. It was just that his current circumstances and status felt somewhat incompatible with hers.

Quan Haoqing asked earnestly, “Is there anything I need to prepare? Although my current status is humble, I will do everything in my power. I know I’m not yet worthy of being a suitable… (Dao companion).”

“Huh?!”

Ye Qingfeng stared at Quan Haoqing, utterly bewildered.

‘Was this person truly so loyal to his sworn brothers? They’d barely begun to interact, yet he was already acting as if he’d lay down his life. For a moment, Ye Qingfeng even felt a pang of guilt.’

“Ahem, well, it’s just about making friends. There’s no need to be so serious. Since you don’t mind, let’s consider our past grievances completely settled from now on.”

Quan Haoqing: “…”

Seeing Quan Haoqing frozen in place, Ye Qingfeng waved her small hand before his eyes, asking with concern, “Are you alright?”

“Oh, I’m fine.”

Quan Haoqing, mimicking Ye Qingfeng’s earlier gesture, gently patted his own cheeks.

‘One of life’s three great delusions: she’s fallen for me.’

Quan Haoqing had certainly experienced it.

The main reason was that Ye Qingfeng spoke without any sense of herself as a woman, which easily led to misunderstandings.

Without making Ye Qingfeng wait too long, Quan Haoqing’s expression returned to normal, a faint smile gracing his lips. Had it not been for the lingering blush, it would have seemed as if the misunderstanding had never occurred.

“Fellow Daoist is magnanimous, not even minding to befriend me. How could I possibly refuse?”

Ye Qingfeng’s head bobbed like a rattle-drum. Their relationship certainly wouldn’t become as close as sworn siblings just because of this, but at least it was a good start. Now, she simply needed to express more goodwill.

Of course, vigilance was still essential.

A certain individual named Liang Tong had already taught her a profoundly deep lesson.

****

Arriving before the spatial node, they gazed at the constantly twisting, kaleidoscopic vortex, which resembled countless multi-colored pythons coiled together.

This sight caused Ye Qingfeng, who was witnessing such a scene for the first time, a wave of physical discomfort, her urge to vomit almost uncontrollable.

Just then, a sudden dark curtain rose, obscuring Ye Qingfeng’s vision. Ye Qingfeng instinctively moved to strike, but Quan Haoqing’s broad palm stopped ten centimeters from her eyes, close enough to completely cover her sight without making physical contact.

His voice was gentle, his tone soft.

“When you first see it, don’t stare directly. Focusing too intently on the twisted spatial patterns can cause a cultivator below the Nascent Soul (TL Note: A cultivation realm, often translating to ‘Returning to Origin’ or ‘Origin Reversion’ realm) to experience qi deviation and physical discomfort. My apologies, I should have warned you beforehand, but I completely forgot.”

“Thank you.”

Ye Qingfeng took a few deep breaths, then shook her head, dispelling the nauseating sensation. She then inquired, “Do we enter directly now?”

Quan Haoqing, who had been observing Ye Qingfeng’s reaction from the side, nodded inwardly. Ye Qingfeng was indeed encountering a spatial node for the first time. He then asked seriously, “Do you remember what I told you earlier? Once inside the spatial node, with my cultivation level, I won’t be able to look after you. Are you confident you can do everything I instructed? Don’t harbor any 侥幸心理 (TL Note: A Chinese idiom meaning to rely on luck or to take a chance), as many rogue cultivators have lost their lives to spatial tremors due to carelessness.”

“While I’m displeased with the deductions imposed by those sects, at least what’s lost are merely external possessions. As long as one’s life remains, nothing is truly unrecoverable.”

Ye Qingfeng glanced sideways at Quan Haoqing. ‘This fellow truly has principles, seeing as he had no obligation to remind her of these things.’

“No problem.”

Aside from the unprepared “first sight kill” of spatial distortion, Ye Qingfeng didn’t find the precautions Quan Haoqing mentioned to be particularly difficult. After all, she had once been a Nascent Soul realm cultivator, and her control over internal spiritual energy surpassed Quan Haoqing’s.

Once she found a safe place to consolidate her cultivation, few of the Marrow Cleansing realm cultivators she had encountered would be her match.

“No problem, let’s go.”

With that, Ye Qingfeng surprisingly entered the twisted spatial node first. Quan Haoqing paused for a moment, then chuckled softly and followed.

Upon her first entry into the twisted spatial node, Ye Qingfeng felt as though she were a sailboat adrift on tempestuous waves amidst a fierce storm.

The spatial tremors continuously shook her physical body like a violent squall. Failing to maintain her balance amidst these tremors would be akin to a sailboat capsizing and sinking into the sea, perishing beneath the spatial distortion.

However, she could handle these tremors; they were even easier than she had anticipated.

The spiritual energy imbued with Xuan Yin power circulated within her, making Ye Qingfeng like a reef in the ocean, standing firm and unmoving amidst rolling thunder and raging winds and waves.

Quan Haoqing experienced the same; under the augmentation of the Blazing Starfall Tome Art, he felt for the first time that these spatial tremors were nothing remarkable. He even had enough reserve energy to observe Ye Qingfeng’s condition. Seeing that her state was even better than his own, he clicked his tongue in wonder.

Based on her previous reactions, Ye Qingfeng was supposedly encountering a chaotic spatial node for the first time, yet her expression was composed, and the spiritual energy within her showed no signs of disorder.

If Ye Qingfeng wasn’t lying, then her talent could truly be described as astonishing.

The spatial tremors gradually weakened, signaling that the exit was drawing nearer. Remembering that several of his enemies were likely lying in ambush outside, a cold sneer curled Quan Haoqing’s lips.

‘This young master’s life and wealth aren’t so easily plundered!’

****

“By my reckoning, that kid should be emerging soon, shouldn’t he?”

“He wouldn’t have known we were lying in ambush here and left through another node, would he?”

“If he exited through someone else’s node, that kid either bled heavily or was completely devoured. If he somehow managed to escape, consider him lucky.”

“Heh, if he really comes out of here, who knows how much we’ll make. He probably doesn’t realize we never even entered the secret realm; we just planned to butcher him.”

“Let’s just hope he doesn’t come running out in nothing but his underwear, hahaha.”

****

Outside the spatial node Quan Haoqing had opened, several plunderers, in their peak condition, were intently staring at the node, chatting and laughing. Little did they know, not far away, two hidden figures behind a rock were watching their spectacle.

“Shouldn’t they be grateful you didn’t emerge in just your underwear?”

Ye Qingfeng teased Quan Haoqing, who gave her a speechless look. The more time he spent with her, the more he realized that while this woman possessed an exceptionally beautiful exterior, her inner spirit was truly… interesting?

‘Why did she feel like a carefree, unrestrained wanderer?’

Quan Haoqing said nonchalantly, “Indeed. If they knew about the considerable gains I made in this secret realm, they’d probably be so ecstatic they’d relocate their ancestors’ graves eighteen generations back overnight.”

“By the way, you don’t actually need my help, do you? Those people are still foolishly believing that the spatial node they’re guarding is the real one.”

Ye Qingfeng watched the group, who were telling jokes like clowns, and said with a strange expression, “You could leave anytime you wished.”

Quan Haoqing explained logically, “But then I wouldn’t be able to ‘rob the rich to aid the poor,’ would I? Doesn’t Fellow Daoist Ye find these benevolent individuals to be quite handsome, full of vigor, with rosy complexions, clearly resembling the Wealth-Scattering Boys under the God of Fortune? Without Fellow Daoist Ye, I wouldn’t be blessed enough to enjoy this gift from the God of Fortune.”

Ye Qingfeng (￢＿￢): “So you want me to help you rob them?”

Seeing Ye Qingfeng’s expression, Quan Haoqing assumed she was unwilling to engage in such somewhat unsavory acts.

‘Well, he’d always felt that Ye Qingfeng was some pampered young miss from a prominent family, out causing trouble. It was natural for her to be disinclined to get involved in such dirty business.’

However, his request was initially made solely to help Ye Qingfeng escape, so he had no complaints.

“Then why didn’t you just say ‘robbery’? Let’s be clear: helping you deal with them is one thing, but splitting the spoils is another. Considering you provided information and helped me get out, how about you take sixty percent and I take forty?”

Quan Haoqing: “…”

He began to reflect on himself. ‘When had his judgment of people become so inaccurate? Alas, he had ultimately judged by appearance, which was regrettable and required introspection.’

“Fifty-fifty is fine. The extra share is my thanks for Fellow Daoist’s willingness to befriend me, how about it?”

Ye Qingfeng’s eyes sparkled with lively light, like stars in the night sky. Her fair, jade-like fingers swayed left and right before Quan Haoqing’s eyes, and a charming, mischievous smile played on her lips as she said, “No, the smaller share will be considered an investment in your future, or perhaps a favor owed.”

The originally aloof and detached ice goddess instantly transformed into a lively, cunning ‘bad’ girl next door. Especially when she spoke these words, Ye Qingfeng unconsciously leaned closer to Quan Haoqing. The fresh, virginal scent that wafted towards him and her peerless beauty, now so close, made his heart involuntarily pound faster. His once handsome face began to grow hot and flush, and gazing at her cherry-red lips, he felt his own lips dry and his tongue parched.

“Uh, how could I possibly be worthy…”

Ye Qingfeng’s delicate brows immediately furrowed, her tone carrying four parts displeasure and six parts regret. Her exquisite features also dimmed considerably. “You disagree?”

Seeing this, Quan Haoqing hastily explained, “Ah, no. That’s perfectly fine, then.”

‘The more beautiful the woman, the more complex her thoughts.’

Quan Haoqing sighed, feeling that merely contemplating Ye Qingfeng’s moods, which shifted like the weather at sea, had exhausted him more than spending three days and nights poring over Buddhist scriptures and Daoist texts.

What he didn’t know was that, fortunately, his prompt agreement had dissuaded Ye Qingfeng from her plan to backstab him.

Ye Qingfeng’s idea was simple: to make Quan Haoqing owe her enough favors to cancel out their previous grievances.

Along the way, she had indeed considered simply eliminating Quan Haoqing to prevent future trouble. After all, while her current identity was difficult to discern, Quan Haoqing, as the master of the Blazing Starfall Tome Art, had an exceedingly high chance of knowing her true identity. It was impossible to conceal it forever. In that case, it would be better to strike first while her identity remained unexposed and Quan Haoqing’s guard against her was not so deep.

However, on one hand, Quan Haoqing’s character throughout their journey had indeed been commendable; even when conflicts arose, he had treated her with sincerity and expressed a desire for a good relationship. On the other hand, she could tell that despite Quan Haoqing’s constant friendliness towards her, he always maintained a tense posture. Even during moments of panic, he never presented Ye Qingfeng with a clear opportunity to exploit.

It made Ye Qingfeng wonder if the young man suffered from some kind of persecution complex; who could be so perpetually nervous, as if someone were constantly trying to hunt him down?

Although she had no concrete evidence and possessed no art of physiognomy, she had a strong feeling that this young man had the potential to become an extremely formidable figure through his cautious nature. In that case, turning conflict into friendship was not a bad strategy!

As someone already burdened by a blood feud, she truly had no need to create more discomfort for herself. Yes, that was it.

Since Quan Haoqing had agreed, it was time to start accumulating favors.

‘Let’s start with these “Wealth-Delivering Boys.”‘