The Star Wheel Pupil evolved after the Myriad Phenomena Star Wheel Scripture broke through to the eighth layer.
However, before Mu Qingqing could feel happy for a few minutes, she suddenly felt an intense pain spread through her body. Every bone, even every cell, was undergoing division.
The agony felt like being ripped in half.
"What the hell! This is too painful!"
It wasn't just Mu Qingqing feeling the pain; Xin Ci, in the mental space, was also suffering.
Their pain was identical, a heart-wrenching,
shattering agony that caused both of them to lose consciousness simultaneously.
When Xin Ci and Mu Qingqing finally woke up, they found themselves able to see each other face-to-face, and not within the mental space.
This time, they hadn't switched personalities; they both appeared at the scene, as two separate individuals.
Xin Ci stared blankly at Mu Qingqing before him, finding it almost unbelievable.
The scene he had longed for was unfolding right before his eyes. He instinctively reached out and pinched Mu Qingqing's cheek.
Mu Qingqing, inexplicably pinched, suddenly came to her senses. She slapped his hand away and exclaimed indignantly, "Ouch! That hurts! Why did you pinch me?"
"Ah! Sorry, I thought I was dreaming..."
"Then didn't you pinch yourself?"
Hearing Xin Ci's foolish remark, Mu Qingqing rolled her eyes at him, exasperated.
Xin Ci still found it hard to believe. In the past, he and Mu Qingqing had always shared a single body.
He had even tried to refine a body for Mu Qingqing before, but it had failed.
Now, Mu Qingqing possessed a complete body and was truly standing before him.
Xin Ci couldn't help but ask excitedly, "Qingqing, how did you do it?"
Mu Qingqing heard him and, turning her bright eyes, explained, "It's probably because the Myriad Phenomena Star Wheel Scripture broke through to the eighth layer."
When she first received the Myriad Phenomena Star Wheel Scripture, the system had told her that she could gain her own body upon reaching a certain level of cultivation.
But she hadn't expected it to require reaching the eighth layer; the scripture was nearly complete before this effect manifested.
It was such a rip-off!
However, this was good. She no longer needed to rely on Xin Ci's body to survive in this world.
Mu Qingqing thought gleefully to herself and stood up, wanting to experience her own body.
Yet, as Xin Ci watched Mu Qingqing walk just a few meters, she suddenly vanished into thin air before his eyes.
Xin Ci was suddenly startled and called out for Mu Qingqing in all directions.
"Qingqing, where are you? Why did you disappear so suddenly?"
"I'm in the mental space."
Mu Qingqing's voice quickly came from his mind.
What?
Xin Ci found it strange. Why had Mu Qingqing returned to the mental space?
Soon after, Mu Qingqing emerged from the mental space again, her expression solemn. She took a few steps again, as if trying to verify something.
As expected, after Mu Qingqing's verification.
If she moved more than ten meters away from Xin Ci, she would be forcibly sent back to the mental space.
It seemed that cultivating the Myriad Phenomena Star Wheel Scripture to the eighth layer only allowed her to have a body but not to be far from Xin Ci's side.
But thinking about it, it made sense. Her initial mission was to help the male lead complete the main storyline and ascend to the Eternal Realm, so naturally, she had to stay by his side to provide assistance.
Xin Ci, however, didn't dwell on these details. As long as Mu Qingqing was alright, her having a body was a good thing.
Now that the冥神 demon beast named Ba Niu had been dealt with by Mu Qingqing, it was time for them to disengage the Mind-Phase World and check on Mo Qian and Luo Ning Shuang.
To avoid attracting attention, Mu Qingqing would temporarily remain hidden within Xin Ci's mental space.
Xin Ci also transformed back into his previous female form and deactivated the Mind-Phase World.
Outside
Mo Qian and Luo Ning Shuang stood on the cliff, gazing at the vast, deep blue barrier that enveloped the land in the distance.
Some time had passed since Mu Qingqing had entered to fight that Emperor-level 冥神 demon beast.
Due to the barrier, they couldn't see what was happening inside.
Both were very worried about Mu Qingqing's safety. Luo Ning Shuang was about to use her identity token to notify the Kill Heart Holy Court and request the four great hall masters to intervene.
However, before Luo Ning Shuang could retrieve her identity token,
the deep blue barrier began to dissipate, and a graceful figure emerged from within, slowly approaching them.
Mu Qingqing had already returned to the mental space. Now, facing them was Xin Ci, who had transformed into the female form.
"Senior!"
"Junior Sister Mu!"
Seeing that Xin Ci was unharmed, Mo Qian and Luo Ning Shuang finally breathed a sigh of relief and showed expressions of joy.
Amidst their surprise, Mo Qian and Luo Ning Shuang also noticed that the Stone Forest Valley had been leveled, indicating a fierce battle had taken place.
The previously mountain-sized 冥神 demon beast had its head severed, and its colossal body lay motionless.
Mo Qian and Luo Ning Shuang looked at the deceased 冥神 demon beast with shock.
This was an Emperor-level 冥神 demon beast; even a Great Emperor might not be able to defeat it.
Yet, this woman before them had successfully slain it. What kind of power was this?
When Mo Qian looked at Xin Ci, he felt a strange sensation.
He somehow felt that the senior before him had become somewhat different, emitting a familiar aura.
What was even stranger was that her True Essence realm had dropped from the peak Saint Emperor to Four-star Heavenly Venerate.
Mo Qian and Luo Ning Shuang both assumed that she had used a secret technique that depleted her True Essence realm to defeat the Emperor-level 冥神 demon beast.
This would explain how she could defeat Ba Niu despite being of a lower cultivation level.
What they didn't know was that the person before them was not Mu Qingqing, but Xin Ci.
Due to the breakthrough in the Myriad Phenomena Star Wheel Scripture, as the main personality, Xin Ci's True Essence realm had also increased from Two-star Heavenly Venerate to Four-star Heavenly Venerate, as his soul was of the same origin as Mu Qingqing's.
Seeing their slightly puzzled expressions, Xin Ci guessed their thoughts.
Since his identity as Xin Ci could not be revealed yet, he went along with their assumptions and said, "That 冥神 demon beast was indeed powerful. I used a secret technique, burning through a major cultivation realm, to barely manage to kill it."
Upon hearing Xin Ci's explanation, Mo Qian and Luo Ning Shuang's doubts lessened.
With the Ba Niu demon beast eliminated, the crisis was over.
Mo Qian had initially come to the Water Marsh Country only to hunt down a few bone demons, but he hadn't expected to get involved in so much.
He cupped his hands to Xin Ci in thanks and said earnestly, "Thank you, Senior, for your assistance. Including the incident in the Sky Pit Secret Realm, you have saved my life twice. Although both times were unintentional on your part, I, Mo Qian, will never forget this kindness."
"In the future, if you ever need my help, Mo Qian will surely assist you with all his might!"