Chapter 479: Broken Tide

"This moment, that moment."

These six characters appeared especially calm, even a bit ruthless, in the private chat window, like a perfectly timed splash of cool water poured over Qin Wen's mind, which had been heated by the announcement and rainbow flattery.

Qin Wen stared at the reply, the smile at the corner of their mouth stiffened for a moment, then gradually faded.

They felt a bit aggrieved, thinking that Wuya Dalao was perhaps too unfeeling; they had just faced life and death together, accomplished a great feat, and now, in an instant, it had become so… bureaucratic?

But soon, that sense of grievance was suppressed by reason.

Cheng Shuili was right.

This moment, that moment.

In the Instance, they were temporary partners, comrades who had each other's backs.

Now, they had returned to the everyday road world. Cheng Shuili was the leader of Black Feather and also the leader of the entire Long Guo region, so whether she accepted them was no longer a simple matter.

Moreover, being away from Wu Ya, Qin Wen's brain, which had been heated by admiration for her, cooled considerably.

Qin Wen did not reply; they began to seriously contemplate what they truly wanted.

Rather than saying they wanted to join Black Feather, it was more accurate to say they still wished to team up with Cheng Shuili.

Thus… after Cheng Shuili had gone a long time without hearing back from Qin Wen, assuming the other had abandoned the idea of joining Black Feather, a strange private message arrived.

【Qing Qing's one kiss】: That… that…

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】:?

She sent the message, and the other side remained silent for a while.

Cheng Shuili was still at a loss, about to attend to her own matters, when another message came.

It was still rambling, with no real point.

Cheng Shuili suddenly got a bad feeling; perhaps this person had done something that wronged her, which is why she didn't dare to speak up, right?

Or maybe something else? In any case, it certainly wasn't anything good.

Cheng Shuili stared at the private chat page for a while, but the other side remained silent.

She took a deep breath, forcing herself to shift focus back to the long blade she had just obtained.

【Shuili's Echo】

【Description: A weapon echo forged by Chen Huan based on achievements in the final Instance. The blade is inscribed with a silent elegy and the faint light of dawn, and can be named by the user as a long blade!】

【Attributes:

1. Lava: The blade harbors inexhaustible lava energy, which can be activated at will to inflict continuous burning damage on a target.

2. Containment: It can at any time transform into pure energy echo and be stored within the user, requiring no inventory space.

3. Echo: Grants the user twenty points of attribute bonuses!】

【Special Ability:

Shadow Slaughter: (Unlock required)???

Return to Ruin Pull: (Unlock required)???】

【Status: Bound (Cheng Shuili).】

Shuili's Echo?

Isn't Qin Wen's dagger called "Kiss's Echo"?

Weird.

The name is really odd.

Seeing that she could name the blade herself, she finally exhaled a sigh of relief.

As for the name…

The thought just surfaced, and the system popped up a panel recommending a name for her.

Molten Heart.

Cheng Shuili stared at the two characters, growing increasingly dissatisfied.

All the factions had already used the system‑recommended names—Black Feather, for instance—so now that it was this Echo's turn, she couldn't just heed the system's suggestion so rashly.

This blade… might as well be called…

"Broken Tide."

Cheng Shuili whispered it in her mind.

The name rolled off her tongue, with a hint of grandeur.

The rise and fall of tides is natural.

And the blade in her hand is meant to cut off the black tide that devours everything, also the flood of obstacles on the road ahead.

The name, like her own, evokes water imagery and also hints at the blade's dark‑red power—a mighty force capable of evaporating the tide.

Her mind set, she no longer hesitated.

The long blade hummed; near the guard, two sharp, flowing engraved characters silently appeared—'Broken Tide'. The script resembled ice crystals formed instantly as a wave split by an invisible force, yet its edges faintly glowed with the dark‑red sheen of solidified lava.

With the name fixed, Cheng Shuili let out a long sigh, finally able to continue reading.

The three attributes listed under Attributes again surprised Cheng Shuili.

Lava and Containment were practical enough, and the Echo's numerical bonus was ample.

No matter how you look at it, this is a weapon powerful enough to replace Night Hunt.

Cheng Shuili thought, pulling out Night Hunt as well.

Night Hunt was also a very important weapon for her.

Since entering this world, she had wielded many weapons, many with attribute bonuses. From the initial two points to the twenty points this Broken Tide could grant, only Night Hunt…

Only Night Hunt truly gave her attribute points; other weapons offered no bonus unless used.

This simple, unadorned gift held extraordinary significance.

She sighed, simply held a retirement farewell ceremony for Night Hunt, then carefully put Night Hunt back into the Abyssal Ring as a keepsake.

Afterwards, Cheng Shuili's thought moved, and Breaking Tide instantly turned into a flowing light, withdrawing into her body.

That warm and mighty power lay dormant in her arm, giving her a sense of solid steadiness.

The matter of the weapon was settled, and the private chat notification tone sounded again persistently.

【A kiss from Qing Qing】: Lao Da Lao Da! I've decided!

Cheng Shuili frowned slightly, diverting a bit of attention.

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: Speak.

The other side seemed to be choked again by her terse, almost cold reply, and only after a few seconds did they send the next segment.

【A kiss from Qing Qing】: I don't want to join Black Feather anymore! I want… I want to apply to be your exclusive partner! Or… uh… a member of the Special Operations Team? That is, the kind that only follows your commands, doesn't participate in the faction's daily affairs, and specifically goes into Instances with you to handle high-difficulty events! Okay?

Cheng Shuili looked at this line of text and was stunned for a moment.

This Qin Wen…… his train of thought is quite unconventional.

Is she trying to maintain independence and freedom while also clinging tightly to this big thigh?

She gets all the benefits, so what can Cheng Shuili gain?

Qin Wen is indeed capable, but not every monster in the Instances is like this instance's manipulator.

Furthermore, in the Chenhuan realm, Beichen has already been certified; this time it's because of the Great White's problem that this manipulator boss, which shouldn't appear at such a time, has shown up.

She didn't think any further, but directly replied:

【Wu Ya Zuo Fei Ji】: What am I after?

This counter-question was blunt to the point of being almost cruel.

On the other side of the screen, Qin Wen's face flushed red all at once, half from embarrassment, half from the panic of suddenly being enlightened.

Yeah, she only thought about not wanting to be bound by faction rules, wanting to follow a big shot to reap benefits and also seek excitement, but to Wuya Lao Da, this proposal basically entails only giving with no return.

A partner who doesn't participate in daily affairs, doesn't heed the faction's dispatch, and only teams up for high-difficulty and interesting tasks?