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Novel: [Night Without Borders]
Chapter 68: [Returning to the World of Daylight]
Author: [Chen Dong]
Translator: [Shadow Knight AK]
Editor: [Shadow Knight AK]
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The desert was "offended" once more, and the entire world changed color.
Sand and stones flew through the air, and the night mist surged like crashing waves, slamming against the towering mountains that flanked the rugged path.
Qin Ming stared in disbelief.
"What is the Mountain Lord doing? With such immense power, why can't he just take the normal route? This urine smells far too pungent and irritating!"
At that moment, Meng Xinghai used a secret technique to transmit a message to him: "In a few days, come to Chi Xia City to discuss the situation. The Cui Clan, a thousand-year-old family, still values its reputation. If they change their minds and don't try to bury you in this remote place, the problem might not be too severe."
Qin Ming turned back amidst the sandstorm to express his gratitude to the new City Lord.
Meng Xinghai, Li Qingyue, and Cui Hong swiftly fled the desert, its environment far too harsh to endure.
On the rugged path in the distance, Xu Sheng's face darkened.
"What's happening again today? It's even worse than yesterday!"
He desperately wanted to quit.
Even as an experienced traveling merchant, he felt the danger was overwhelming. This profession had no future. Not just his team, but even he himself was so terrified he wanted to scream.
"Everyone, don't panic. This has nothing to do with us. We've always revered the Desert..." Xu Sheng began, but before he could finish, he felt a woman cling to his back, sobbing.
Her sharp nails scraped incessantly against his neck.
On the dark path, nothing was visible.
The woman's wailing was utterly chilling: "Wooo... I saw so many dark shadows! I'm so scared!"
Xu Sheng's composure crumbled.
"Aren't you a mutant creature? What are you afraid of?" he thought.
Now he was truly terrified.
The woman's furry, slender hands gripped him with nails like iron hooks, impossible to pry loose.
He made up his mind: if they reached Chi Xia City safely this time, he would immediately change careers and never be a traveling merchant again.
...
"If you keep offending the desert like this, won't you make enemies?" Qin Ming said, his mouth full of sand.
Battling the fierce wind and swirling sand, he quickly pulled out a gray robe to cover his head and face.
"Don't worry," the Mountain Pig replied, flicking its tiny tail as it nimbly trotted across the yellow sand. "I'm a member of the Esoteric Sect. I carry a Desert Sacrifice Ritual Artifact, which allows me to pass through safely."
Qin Ming froze.
"This little pig is a member of the Esoteric (mysterious or secret) Sect?"
"We don't really need to be this reckless, do we?" he couldn't help but ask.
The Old Mountain Pig explained, "We need to guard against the White Wolf secretly tracking us. In the Desert, whoever has performed a Blood Sacrifice ritual is the one who fears the most. If it dares to show its face, we'll scare it to death."
Qin Ming now understood the situation.
The White Wolf was the new Mountain Lord, and it had performed a mysterious ritual in the mountains, worshiping the Beast God's tomb, which had greatly enhanced its cultivation.
"The Beast God... is dead?" Qin Ming asked, his expression shifting.
The mini Mountain Pig replied, "It was just a powerful creature. Who knows if it's really dead? That place might just be its pelt tomb, which the White-Eyed Wolf found. Otherwise, with its previous cultivation level, it would have been eating my farts back there. Now look at me, running for my life. Ah, how the wheel turns. My luck hasn't been good these past two years."
"Something's nearby!" Qin Ming warned, drawing his Jade Iron Sword and holding it defensively before him.
Yellow sand churned across the desolate plains, thick fog roiled, and shadowy figures flickered in the distance.
More than a dozen teams carrying eerie, emerald-green flames approached, casting a ghastly, verdant glow across the landscape.
The Mountain Pig remained calm. "Don't worry. What's strange becomes familiar, and what's strange defeats itself. I carry the Desert Sacrifice Ritual Artifact; they can't harm us."
The green flames flickered wildly as colossal beasts, tens of meters tall, strode past, their putrid stench like rotting flesh mingled with the acrid smell of burning corpses.
Qin Ming remained vigilant, gradually adjusting to the spectacle.
Though the bizarre phenomena swirled around them, none attacked.
He simply averted his gaze.
"You're from an Esoteric Sect, aren't you? I thought members of such sects revered the Desert, believing it to be a realm connected to the Divine Spirit."
The Old Mountain Pig scoffed. "There's more than one Esoteric Sect. Some revere the Divine Spirit, worshiping it and seeking to harness its power through meditation. Others are far more ambitious, aiming to subdue these 'phenomena' or 'realms,' claiming them for themselves and ascending to godhood."
Qin Ming was astonished, gaining a new understanding of both the Esoteric Sects and the Desert.
The Old Mountain Pig must have joined one of the more ambitious sects, judging by his attitude.
"I'm not going any further," Old Mountain Pig grumbled, his mouth full of sand. "Pitch your tent here. I need a nap. By the way, have you really met the One-Armed Sword Dao Grandmaster?"
Qin Ming replied, "Yes, I have. He transmitted his sword techniques to me through the dense fog, like a spiritual resonance, almost like a dream."
Old Mountain Pig's expression turned grave.
"Could he have taken the path of the Outsiders?"
"Have you met my Master too?" Qin Ming asked.
"My father did. He personally witnessed him cleave the then-Mountain Lord in two with a single strike. The sword's flash tore through the night, severing the torrential rain—it was terrifying!"
After a moment, Qin Ming asked, "You mentioned repaying a debt of gratitude and settling a karmic debt in the mountains. How come I don't remember ever saving you?"
Old Mountain Pig gritted his teeth. "That White Wolf was truly venomous and ruthless. After severely wounding me, he didn't kill me outright. Instead, he shattered my spirit, reducing me from a dignified Mountain Lord to a mere beast driven by instinct. He wanted me to become prey for other predators in the mountains, to die a miserable death."
"I was lost then, with only brief moments of clarity each day. Most of the time, I was just an ordinary wild boar—truly a pig fallen into the plains, bullied by dogs. I even remember you trying to shoot me with your bow and arrows back then, you little brat."
Qin Ming was certain now: this was indeed the Great Mountain Boar, the massive creature weighing over 1,500 pounds that had once relentlessly pursued him.
"Fortunately, this old boar had a backup plan. As the saying goes, 'A cunning boar has three dens.' I'd prepared some extremely rare spiritual substance and hidden it in my second den—you know, the one beneath the Blood Snake Nest."
"After you cleared out the snakes, my primal beast form was nearby, regaining a sliver of consciousness. I charged in, recovered most of my vital energy, and escaped the mountains. Though you didn't intentionally save me, you inadvertently gave me a chance to turn things around. Since we've crossed paths again, let's settle this karmic debt."
Qin Ming never imagined that beneath the Blood Snake Nest, instead of the Third Mutation blood snakes Old Liu had suspected, there would be a boar's den.
Soon, earth-shattering snores erupted from the tent buried under the yellow sand.
Though it looked like a miniature pig, the noise it made was deafening. Even the dark shadows lurking nearby seemed unable to bear it, retreating into the distance.
Of course, it was also possible that the Old Mountain Pig's terrifyingly yang-dominant blood energy, which circulated through its body as it slept, was obscuring those ominous signs.
Its nap stretched straight into the next day.
The desert had returned to calm, the strange omens and thick fog completely dissipated, leaving only absolute darkness.
"Let's go!" the creature said, leading the way.
Qin Ming, however, hesitated to leave immediately, fearing Cui Hong might be waiting outside to ambush him.
"We'll stick to the desert's edge," the Old Mountain Pig said, equally wary. "I don't want to risk the White Wolf still hunting me."
Occasionally, the creature would venture onto the rugged mountain paths, mimicking the calls of peculiar birds.
Soon, Qin Ming saw several Talking Sparrows fly from the nearby mountains to report to it.
Envious, Qin Ming asked the Old Mountain Pig if it could do him a favor and send a Talking Sparrow to Chi Xia City, specifically to the City Lord's Mansion.
Cui Hong had searched every inch of the road without finding Qin Ming, then immediately set off to find Cui Chongyi, utterly exhausted.
"Ghost Fire!" Qin Ming whispered at the desert's edge, noticing a hazy patch in the distance.
"Hmm, what a great place! That's a Fire Spring, usually hidden from view. It's only visible now because we're so close. Any further away, the desert's darkness would swallow everything, making it impossible to see."
The Old Mountain Pig was delighted.
This desert oasis was the perfect hiding place, and it had no intention of leaving the desert just yet.
"Meng Xinghai comes from a thousand-year-old clan. He's definitely more ruthless than Ling Xu. Since he wiped out Golden Rooster Ridge, this hideout probably isn't safe either. Let's abandon it and retreat early."
Qin Ming had just approached the area when he overheard a group of men talking.
This was another occasional hideout used by the Golden Bandits, usually only occupied by a few ordinary bandits.
"Let's head to Maple Leaf City. Meng Xinghai is too dangerous to provoke. Even the Golden Bandits' big shots don't want to cross him."
"Prepare to move out. The past two days have been filled with howling winds and ghostly shadows. Even though we're used to it, it still gives me the creeps."
"Count the men. One, two, three... ten?!"
The bandit leader panicked.
This was just a temporary hideout, unlike Golden Rooster Ridge, which housed a large force.
Only nine men were supposed to be guarding the place.
How had an extra person appeared?
"One, two... ten!" He counted again, refusing to believe it, and his hair stood on end.
The other bandits panicked too, exchanging nervous glances.
Something felt off about each other.
They had just covered the Fire Spring with a stone slab, plunging the hideout into near-total darkness.
"Run!" They scattered in a frenzy.
...
Five days later, a Talking Sparrow flew back from Chi Xia City, carrying a single page of parchment.
Meng Xinghai, the new City Lord of Chi Xia City, informed Qin Ming that the Cui Clan's attitude had softened.
"For the next few years, I cannot go to Qing He City, where the Cui Clan resides, nor should I travel to Qing Xing City. I must not use the name Cui Chonghe, and I cannot claim to be a Cui Clan scion for the time being. I may be able to return to the Cui Clan after several years."
Qin Ming studied the message.
The words weren't the Cui Clan's exact words but rather Meng Xinghai's interpretation, delivered as a subtle warning.
"What is Qing Xing City?" he pondered, and a hazy image of a smiling young woman surfaced in his mind, seemingly connected to that city.
He rubbed his aching temples, dismissing the thought. He needed to undergo his Fourth Stage of Awakening as soon as possible to fully recover his memories.
Then everything would become clear.
Qin Ming had originally planned to abandon Chi Xia City and seek refuge in a more distant place.
However, after sensing Meng Xinghai's goodwill, he began to believe that the city might actually be safer than he had thought.
Qin Ming knew that Meng Xinghai's assistance wasn't likely motivated by any particular appreciation for his talent.
After all, they had only just met, and Meng Xinghai had no reason to interfere in the Cui Clan's internal affairs.
"Thank you, Li Qingyue," Qin Ming murmured, standing beside the Fire Spring in the desert, gazing at the dark night sky.
Meanwhile, within the City Lord's Mansion in Chi Xia City, Li Qingyue was conversing with Meng Xinghai, discussing Qin Ming.
"Given his current situation, those of us who know him well should avoid getting too close. Otherwise, his circumstances might worsen. After leaving the Cui Clan, I suspect many of his so-called 'friends' will avoid him like the plague, severing all ties and treating him like a stranger."
...
Qin Ming stayed in the desert oasis for eleven days before finally preparing to depart for Chi Xia City.
Cui Hong had indeed wandered the desert outskirts with Cui Chongyi for several days, hoping to see Qin Ming again, but they never managed to catch up with him.
"Take care," Qin Ming said to the Old Mountain Pig, "and may you one day reclaim your position as Mountain Lord of Blackwhite Mountain."
"Forget it," the Old Mountain Pig replied, shaking his head with an air of enlightenment.
"I've seen through it all. Black White Mountain can only be controlled by someone with earth-shattering power. After all, it once held all factions in its suffocating grip. Though it has collapsed, it's still not a place for ordinary beings to rule. Almost every Mountain Lord throughout history has met a tragic end."
"This place suits me just fine," the Old Mountain Pig continued. "I'll play the fool in plain sight while secretly plotting my revenge, lying low in this dark desert where no one can touch me. A gentleman's vengeance may take a hundred years, but it will come."
Qin Ming set out on his journey.
Two days later, as he approached Chi Xia City, he gazed at its radiant glow from afar.
The city's Fire Spring must be of high grade, he surmised, capable of illuminating the night as brightly as day.
As he approached the city, Qin Ming's emotions surged.
Though it was his first time here, he felt no sense of unfamiliarity.
Vague images surfaced in his mind—fragments of his past experiences in Qing He Great City.
After two years of seclusion in a dark, remote place, he was finally returning to a city with "daylight."
Qin Ming's thoughts raced.
In recent days, the shattered fragments of his memories had been gradually reassembling, and he was slowly recalling people and events.
"When I was still Cui Chonghe, I had many old friends in Qing He City. I knew important members of numerous great clans and even befriended some Outsiders. I interacted with direct descendants of several thousand-year-old aristocratic families. I was surrounded by friends, with acquaintances everywhere."
He sighed.
Now, returning to the world of "daylight" as Qin Ming, how many of his former acquaintances would still recognize him?
How many would even acknowledge him?
Perhaps even if they met, they would no longer recognize each other.
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END OF CHAPTER
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