Wait… I’m a Druid in a Cultivation World?! - Chapter 111

“Have you found those twin sorceresses?”

Seeing the message from Meng Yan, Qi Ping’s heart remained largely untroubled; he was confident he could handle two cultivators at the ninth level of Qi Refinement.

It was just that he had originally planned to cultivate uninterrupted until he reached the eighth level of Qi Refinement. Being interrupted now brought a faint tinge of regret.

However, returning to his cultivation later wouldn’t significantly impact him.

He had accepted a task, and he would see it through faithfully.

Since Qi Ping had already given Meng Yan his word, he would naturally fight alongside him in the time to come, doing everything within his power to help Meng Yan achieve victory and preserve his life.

This was the principle Qi Ping adhered to, as his understanding of his own Dao Heart grew clearer and firmer.

To take, one must also give back.

He held his own inner scales of judgment. He would not act like those petty individuals who only know how to take without giving, nor would he allow himself to be bound and shackled solely by a sense of obligation.

Seeing that the hour of Zi was approaching, Qi Ping made careful preparations.

Bees, Ya Ya, talismans… He dared not be the slightest bit negligent in his combat preparations and planning.

Even with ample confidence, the possibility of capsizing in a narrow drain existed. There were far too many examples of those who, through carelessness, were killed by enemies weaker than themselves.

Moreover, the combat power of these twin sorceresses when working together had nearly overwhelmed Meng Yan—a disciple of an elder who had comprehended the true intent of law. No one could say for sure if these two were hiding even greater strength.

After making complete preparations, Qi Ping transformed into a Mo Jia Bee and approached the agreed-upon location just before the Zi hour.

Before entering the designated spot, Qi Ping first dispatched his bee swarm to carefully scout the area.

Through the bees’ observations, he saw that Meng Yan was already waiting there ahead of time.

What surprised Qi Ping was that even though the bees’ reconnaissance was very discreet, Meng Yan still detected some anomaly. Fortunately, the number of bees was small, and they retreated promptly, avoiding provoking Meng Yan to investigate further.

His perceptual acuity seemed even sharper than that green-clothed woman’s.

After confirming there was no danger, Qi Ping resumed his human form, adopting the face of that middle-aged man, while using the Fetal Breath Art gifted by Meng Yan to conceal all his aura.

A short moment later, Qi Ping saw Meng Yan standing under a tree, his figure robust and solid like an iron tower.

“Brother Qi, I’ve finally been waiting for you!”

Upon seeing Qi Ping’s figure, Meng Yan revealed a smile.

“My apologies for keeping you waiting, Brother Meng!”

“Your timing is just right!”

“What’s the situation with those two sorceresses? You mentioned they seem to have other helpers with them?”

“Some scum from the Tianhuo Pavilion. His strength isn’t remarkable—an ordinary ninth level Qi Refinement cultivator. He wouldn’t even be a match for Ya Ya. With your assistance, Brother Qi, his presence won’t make much difference.”

“Good. How should we proceed with the fight?”

“They, along with that Tianhuo Pavilion disciple, are currently on Tianqing Mountain, preparing to jointly open a hidden cave dwelling. It’s the former abode of a Foundation Establishment cultivator. But in truth, over a decade ago, an elder from the Qingyuan Sect cleared it out completely. Apart from the defensive formation, there’s nothing of value inside. We’ll move in to surround and kill them once they’ve expended significant energy attacking the formation.”

At this point, Meng Yan shook his head slightly, a hint of helplessness in his expression.

“These talented sect disciples always think they are favored by fortune. They love exploring secret realms and fighting for resources on their cultivation path. But they fail to realize that some places are specifically designed as traps and graves for them…”

These words sent a chill through Qi Ping’s heart.

Meng Yan’s statement didn’t just apply to those talented sect disciples; many rogue cultivators harbored the same mindset.

But Qi Ping had always felt that talk of serendipitous encounters was the most unreliable, especially concerning things like secret realms and legacies.

He could never quite grasp one thing: under what circumstances, and with what mindset, would an individual or a sect specifically leave behind opportunities and inheritances for later generations?

Having pondered the fundamental nature of humanity on this matter multiple times, Qi Ping always concluded that the likelihood of a trap far outweighed that of a genuine opportunity.

This was also why he had always been wary of tales about secret realms and fortuitous encounters.

The world of cultivation certainly held instances of inexplicable kindness, but Qi Ping was unwilling to believe such a thing would happen to him, or rather, he was unwilling to gamble on it happening to him.

Why would anyone willingly give away what they had painstakingly accumulated over a lifetime to strangers?

Searching his own heart, Qi Ping knew he would absolutely never do such a thing.

So, more than relying on chance encounters, Qi Ping believed in mutual benefit and cooperative Win-win.

Recalling his past experiences:

He had saved Sister Nan, and through their subsequent interactions, earned her trust, which eventually led him, by a twist of fate, to obtain the Insect Rearing Manual.

Acquiring the Lihuo Crow was also based on long-standing trust and cooperation with Boss Gao.

And what about the Demon Insect King beneath the Blood Ginseng? If he had recklessly dug down and entered initially, the outcome would most likely have been his soul shattered by the Insect King.

In summary, Qi Ping did not believe in unconditional love.

Sister Nan, Boss Gao, Old Man Zhou—they were willing to trust him based on his past actions and character, a principle Qi Ping strictly adhered to.

Building on trust, cooperating through mutual exchange of benefits, allowing both parties to gain sufficiently…

Qi Ping even felt that without Boss Gao’s endorsement, he might not have had the chance to connect with Meng Yan.

It was just a pity that most people suffered from survivor bias, always thinking that they might be the special one, that they might be the lucky one…

Meng Yan’s words today served as another warning for Qi Ping: Do not trust seemingly fortuitous opportunities!

The cave dwelling those sorceresses now happily believed they had luckily discovered was clearly nothing more than a monitoring device and trap set up by the Qingyuan Sect.

This also made Qi Ping more wary of the cave dwelling on Mountain #7 in Sector Jia, where Sister Nan had obtained the Insect Rearing Manual.

Without absolute certainty and complete preparations, he must never, ever attempt to open it!

Otherwise, he might be stepping into a fatal trap!

Upon reaching the foot of Tianqing Mountain, Meng Yan suggested they wait here for now.

During this time, Meng Yan occasionally glanced at a strange black stone in his hand.

Qi Ping couldn’t detect any abnormality or change in it; it seemed only Meng Yan could perceive something.

Although curious, since Meng Yan didn’t offer an explanation, Qi Ping didn’t ask. Instead, he made a conscious effort not to let his gaze linger on the object, silently reminding himself to be even more cautious. The world of cultivation was full of too many unknown methods; it was easy to inadvertently fall into someone else’s trap.

This subtle action of Qi Ping’s inadvertently raised a sliver of goodwill in Meng Yan’s heart.

Cooperating with an ally who understood boundaries was indeed more comfortable and inspired more trust. Who knew what a foolish ally with no sense of propriety might do at a critical moment?

After the two had waited at the foot of Tianqing Mountain for quite a while, a smile finally tugged at the corner of Meng Yan’s lips:

“Brother Qi, the time has come. We can make our move!”