Refining the Mountains and Rivers

Qin Yu knew he could no longer wait. It wasn't that he wanted to save the five remaining people, but it was clear that the more cultivators Yun Shi swallowed up, the stronger she would become.

So as Yun Shi walked towards Rice Paper and the woman's eyes widened with panic and despair, Qin Yu pushed apart the darkness. The clear sound of footsteps entered everyone's ears.

Yun Shi turned his head and stared at the darkness outside of the light, and where Qin Yu was stepping out from. She was unexpectedly calm as she said, "You're actually alive."

Qin Yu said, "You probably knew that already."

Yun Shi didn't reply to that. She asked, "The reason you came out is to stop me from killing them?"

Qin Yu nodded, "Although I don't have a responsibility to do that, there is a need for me to do so. I cannot allow you to eat them."

Yun Shi smiled, "You have the confidence that you can save them?"

Qin Yu turned his hand and the iron lump appeared in his palm. It rapidly turned crimson, as if there was magma roaring within it. "I do."

Crimson rays of light shout out, tearing through the darkness like countless arrows. Thus, the real appearance of this place was revealed in front of everyone. It was a giant translucent furnace that floated in the darkness.

Before, the darkness that floated in the air had penetrated through the furnace to come here. It was also this darkness that blocked the Saints' probing senses, causing everyone here to vanish from all perception.

Yun Shi's smile vanished as she stared at the iron lump in Qin Yu's hand. "Qin Yu, if it weren't for that thing I would have already killed you!"

"But I am still alive. Moreover, I know that this thing has enough strength to destroy you." Qin Yu spread out his fingers and the iron lump floated in place, releasing a humming sound.

The eyes of the five cultivators shined as if they had been saved from the precipice of death.

"Qin Yu, kill her!"

"Finish her off, don't hesitate!"

"Hurry up!"

Qin Yu was expressionless. He didn't even glance at them, completely unmoved by their pleas and demands.

Yun Shi's lips curled up in a sneer, "Why don't you do it?"

Qin Yu said, "You know that I can kill you, yet you can remain so calm. It's clear that things aren't as simple as they seem."

Yun Shi smiled, "You really are everyone's Big Brother Qin. You are the most intelligent one here." She paused and said, "I can give you an answer, but before that, you should answer one of my questions first. When did you discover that I woke up?"

Qin Yu said, "After this thing was activated."

Yun Shi looked at his eyes, "You aren't telling the truth."

Qin Yu shrugged.

Yun Shi said, "If you don't want to say it then don't say it. Who here doesn't have their own secrets?" She lifted a finger and pointed at the furnace around them, "For instance, this thing. At the start it existed in the Endless Sea. I have no idea whose it is or where it came from, but its effects are wonderful. Not even a Saint's thoughts can pierce through it, so this allowed me to smoothly conceal myself in the past."

Then she pointed at Qin Yu, "As for that thing in your hand, it is technically the source of fire for this furnace. But it did great harm to me in the past, so I sealed it away a long time ago and hid it in some inconspicuous corner of this courtyard. I never thought that it would eventually fall into your hands and be activated by your blood. Perhaps this is what they call destiny."

Qin Yu said, "Get to the point."

Yun Shi's lips curved upward. "The important point is that after stimulating its strength, you may be able to kill me, but you will also activate the furnace that is deeply sleeping in this place.

"Qin Yu, since you've been hiding away in the darkness for all this time, you should have seen the complete picture of this courtyard I arranged. With this great furnace as the blueprint, I built an imitation. But, its power is far from being comparable to the great furnace itself."

Qin Yu frowned, "You're saying that if the furnace is activated, we will all die here?"

Yun Shi clapped her hands, "That's right, that's the situation we're in right now. I know that you won't believe me easily, so you can try it out yourself."

Her smile widened, "Or perhaps you've already realized something isn't right…after all, it was your blood that activated the source of fire for this great furnace. You should have a better understanding than I do."

Qin Yu remained silent.

But this silence undoubtedly showed that Yun Shi was right. The expressions of the other cultivators all changed.

The reason was simple. With the iron lump in hand, Qin Yu had the strength to kill Yun Shi. But doing this would activate the great furnace and drag them all into the underworld together.

This was the same as dying with your enemy. Unless Qin Yu had no other choice, he wouldn't take this path. Another way to express it was that as long as Yun Shi didn't do anything to Qin Yu, the chance of him doing it was slim.

Then, thinking about it from another perspective, if they were in Yun Shi's position, what would they do?

Just thinking about it caused everyone's hearts to sink. As long as Yun Shi could persuade Qin Yu with enough benefits, he would be willing to stand to the side!

At that time, they would still be chunks of meat on the chopping board. They could be eaten in 108 different ways.

And most importantly, these cultivators discovered that it wouldn't be difficult for Yun Shi to do this.

What to do?

Before the cultivators could think of a plan, Yun Shi spoke up. Her first words immediately caused their hearts to sink to the ground. "Qin Yu, let's cooperate."

"Qin Yu, don't trust her! If you save us, I will generously reward you!" Rice Paper cried out loud.

But what came in response was Yun Shi's undisguised sneer, "Save you? You already know so many things. If you leave here alive, I will die, and I will die a miserable death. Since that's the case, why don't we all go together. At least we can accompany each other in hell."

Rice Paper's breath caught in her throat and anger and shock flashed in her eyes. She suddenly realized this was true. If Qin Yu saved them, Yun Shi would do everything in her power to stop him. Even if they all had to die together in the end, she couldn't allow them to freely leave.

The five cultivators weren't stupid. They finally began to respond. The reason Yun Shi told such a long story was not because she was talkative, but because she had expected some possibilities and prepared a contingency plan.

Qin Yu knew the current situation and also knew she wasn't lying. As things stood, she would not entertain any hopes of saving them.

Because saving them was equal to forcing Yun Shi to go crazy and dragging them all to their deaths.

Since he couldn't save them, he might as well push the boat and use these five people that were going to die anyway to make a deal with Yun Shi. This was the most economical and logical choice.

Moreover, they were already dead in the eyes of the Saints. Even if they were eliminated now, there wouldn't be any troubles.

The more the five cultivators thought about this, the more they panicked!

Yun Shi's mocking gaze swept over the group before landing on Qin Yu. Her expression turned gentle, "Big Brother Qin, if you didn't save me before, I fear I would have died already. So no matter what my current status is, I still owe you a favor…"

Qin Yu coldly sneered, "You owe me a favor, so that is why you want to kill me?"

Yun Shi furrowed her eyebrows. She started to feel regret over her earlier impatience. Thinking about it, the reason Qin Yu suddenly left was probably because he sensed danger and escaped in advance. If she had been more stable in her performance, maybe he would have died already. Why would there be further twists and turns?

Before she could organize her thoughts and say something else, she was interrupted by a wave from Qin Yu, "Cut the small talk. If I don't stop you, what advantages are there for me?"

If he didn't stop her, then he would certainly stand to the side.

The complexions of the five cultivators changed. The situation they worried about the most had finally occurred.

Rice Paper screamed, "Qin Yu! If you dare to cooperate with her, my master will not let you go!"

Ruan Jing, Soaring Sky, Zhou Lei, and Soul Hook all cursed inwardly. To say such words right now, did she want to die sooner or something?

As expected, Qin Yu gave her an ice cold look and said, "If you kill them, can you do so without leaving a single trace behind?"

Yun Shi smiled. "Certainly. Big Brother Qin, rest assured that as long as I kill them in this furnace, even the Saints will not be able to detect a problem."

She paused and continued to say, "As for the advantages…the name human bead is quite appropriate, so I will continue calling it such. I won't eat the five of them but will kill them off and condense their human beads. I'll give them all to Big Brother Qin."

Qin Yu laughed in anger, "Yun Shi, do you think I am stupid? I have no intention of touching those human beads!"

Yun Shi said, "Big Brother Qin, there's no need for you to lose your temper. Since I gave you this promise, I will naturally remove the backdoors I secretly arranged inside them. Those human beads will become pure strength that will increase your cultivation. Of course, only when you agree and eat those human beads will I feel relieved that you won't tell anyone of what happened here today."

Qin Yu's face was dark and cloudy. There was a burning heat in his eyes. He knew what effects the human beads had. And, these five cultivators were all peak powerhouses that had eaten an enormous amount of human beads before this.

If he killed them, the human beads they produced would be of an astonishingly high quality. Eating them would drastically increase his strength.

Yun Shi's smile widened. "Big Brother Qin, this is the best possible choice for me and you. Why continue hesitating?"

Qin Yu looked up, his eyes brilliant. "Yun Shi, if you dare play any tricks with me, I will activate this source of fire and kill you!"

Yun Shi said, "I am fully aware of Big Brother Qin's strength, so how would I dare have any other thoughts?" She hesitated and then said, "But to resolve the secret controlling backdoor hidden in the human beads, we must sign a cooperation contract. As long as you and I become a part of the contract, the backdoor will be invalid against you."

Qin Yu's fingers gripped tightly onto the iron lump, "What do we do to sign the contract?"

Yun Shi said, "It's simple. We'll just touch our palms together and I'll handle the rest…rest assured, you control the source of fire for this great furnace, so I would never take any risks."

Qin Yu coldly sneered, "I don't think you would have the courage. Then come on!"

He reached out a hand, touching Yun Shi's palm with his. When their palms touched, Yun Shi looked up at Qin Yu and smiled.

"Big Brother Qin, it seems you don't know the secrets of a spirit body born from the heavens and earth, one possessing a near endless soul. Otherwise, how would you dare to touch me?"

"You…"

Qin Yu's face flashed with anger. Then, he froze in place. At the same time, Yun Shi fell face-down on the ground. When their hands touched, her soul instantly intruded into his body through their hands.

Born with a spirit and bred from the heavens and earth, Yun Shi's soul was different from that of other living beings in the world. She possessed all kinds of terrifying abilities. Assimilating a soul and transforming it into a part of her own was her specialty.