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Novel: [Night Without Borders]
Chapter 31: [Piercing the Night]
Author: [Chen Dong]
Translator: [Shadow Knight AK]
Editor: [Shadow Knight AK]
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For a fleeting moment, Qin Ming felt as if his deepest thoughts had been seen through.
The inferno that had engulfed the entire village two years ago seemed to erupt from his memories into reality — the searing heat, the acrid stench of burning flesh, the shattered walls and corpses strewn across the ground, and the ethereal Feather-Robed Youth — all resurfaced vividly.
But the moment he turned around, he had regained his composure, his heart at peace.
Although the woman before him had witnessed his near-death, his wretched state two years ago, she couldn't possibly understand his true experiences.
If they had shared a deeper connection or past, they wouldn't have remained in the vicinity of Yinteng (Silvervine) Town for so long without encountering each other again until now.
Qin Ming adopted a sincere expression.
"Miss Xie, please tell me what happened. Who cared for me back then? As you must have seen, I suffered a severe head injury and still have no memory of those days."
Xie Lingxi thrust her ten-foot-long Greatsword into the ground and glanced back at him.
"There was a man and woman, both in their early thirties, traveling with you. From what I overheard, you were on the verge of collapse, and they could only leave you to fend for yourself."
Qin Ming pondered, murmuring to himself, "I was on the verge of death, yet they still took me on a long journey. Why?"
Xie Lingxi's long black hair cascaded down her back, reaching over seven feet in length.
Her features were strikingly defined, and her beautiful eyes shone like starlight.
"I only overheard a few words," she said. "They intended to take you to a remote region, far from the Liuguang City. If you survived, they hoped you would settle there permanently."
At that moment, a slender maid arrived with tea. The two teacups on her tray were noticeably different in size.
"My young mistress once gifted you a Qi- and blood-nourishing pill," the maid said. "Though not particularly precious, it was offered with genuine kindness."
"Ah, thank you... Miss Xie," Qin Ming said, bowing immediately.
Miss Xie had shown him kindness without ever mentioning it; he wouldn't have known if the maid hadn't come to the rear courtyard.
"You may leave," Xie Lingxi said, waving her hand to dismiss the fair-skinned maid.
Qin Ming clasped his hands in a formal greeting. "Would Miss Xie please recall any other details from that day? I would be very greatful if you could tell me."
"You were dressed in rags, stained with blood," Xie Lingxi said. "Even when new, your clothes would have been quite ordinary."
Qin Ming nodded. During his Second Awakening, he had seen his younger self wearing patched and mended clothes. It was no surprise that his childhood had been difficult, but he couldn't understand why it had led to such a deadly disaster — with the entire village engulfed in flames.
After a moment of reflection, Xie Lingxi continued, "The two people who brought you here were primarily investigating the Spiritual Great Mountain, which had been activated by the Heavenly Light. Since they had discussed settling you in a remote area along the way, they likely brought you here as a convenient detour."
She explained that they had only encountered the pair twice on the road, and her current understanding was based on piecing together fragments of their hurried conversations.
Qin Ming fell into a daze.
What was the true connection between him and that man and woman?
They didn't seem particularly close, yet they had saved his life.
At the same time, what was the significance of this Spiritual Great Mountain activated by the Heavenly Light?
He desperately wanted to ask, but felt it would be impolite to press for too much information.
...
"Heh heh heh," the purple-eyed raven chuckled in the smaller living room of the front courtyard, watching the woman draped in a black fur cloak. "Those two youths mistook you for Miss Xie of the Xie Family, ha ha ha..."
"Your laughter is so unpleasant!" The woman extended a slender, luminous finger toward the raven, which immediately took flight, nimbly dodging the gesture.
"I never imagined," the raven remarked, "that such a remote region would produce two promising talents. I suspect that the sickly, foul-mouthed youth, once fully healed and restored to his true potential, will prove quite remarkable as well."
"The youth who struggles with words already has a master," the woman replied. "It's clear someone is using extraordinary methods to treat his condition."
"They say that when the Heavenly Light pierced the night sky two years ago, this area was the dimmest among the dozens blessed by its radiance, receiving only a meager trickle of spiritual energy," the raven mused. "But perhaps that's not the whole story. To find two decent youths in these nearby villages... it's quite unexpected."
The woman took a delicate sip of tea.
"My teacher, a scholar of heaven and earth, possesses unparalleled insight. His predictions are likely accurate. The Heavenly Light that erupted two centuries ago may never have fully manifested here, its energy accumulating until now. With the convergence of two distinct Heavenly Lights, the unique resources born from this fusion will undoubtedly be extraordinary!"
She lowered the hood of her cloak, rose to her feet, and said, "We should leave now. Senior Brother Xie will be very busy today. I never imagined his daughter would act so rashly, taking matters into her own hands and choosing the path of the Giant Spirit God. It's causing him endless headaches."
...
In the end, Qin Ming couldn't resist asking the noble lady before him for guidance.
She had no obligation to answer his questions, and even if she refused, he would simply leave with a thick skin.
As long as he wasn't embarrassed, it wouldn't matter.
Xie Lingxi explained, "After the sun set, it never rose again. The moon and stars vanished completely. The Heavenly Light is a rare phenomenon — a beam of light that unexpectedly pierces through the night sky. It occurs irregularly, sometimes every few decades, sometimes every century. When it strikes, it can give rise to rare resources in the surrounding area."
Qin Ming expressed his sincere gratitude.
Miss Xie hadn't put on airs but had directly answered his question.
"Miss Xie is beautiful and even more kind-hearted, unlike..." he began, then paused, realizing that if Xie Lingxi were proportionally scaled down, her face would be no larger than the palm of his hand. Her figure possessed perfect golden-ratio curves, but because she had chosen the path of the Giant Spirit God, everything about her was now vastly larger than normal.
"Unlike... what?" Xie Lingxi prompted.
"Unlike some people, who glare back twice at you if you accidentally glance at them," Qin Ming replied casually.
"Are you talking about my junior aunt in the front courtyard?" Xie Lingxi asked, her expression shifting.
The woman who had just left the Old Noble's residence froze in her tracks, while the purple-eyed Raven circling overhead cackled, "Caw caw caw..."
"That's so unpleasant!"
....
Qin Ming felt too awkward to freeload a meal at the Old Noble's residence.
He felt he had already gained so much today; the information alone made the trip worthwhile.
As he approached Twin Tree Village, he was still mulling over Xie Lingxi's words, having pondered them for much of the journey.
"I believe that with each of my three awakenings, those lost memories will eventually resurface," he murmured, his gaze firm.
Qin Ming realized the Old Noble was far from ordinary, and his daughter was exceptionally strong.
Despite her young age, she already stood nearly five meters tall, indicating she had made significant progress on the path of the Giant Spirit God.
"The two who brought me here — the woman with a red mole on her right eyebrow and the man with unusually long arms — I wonder if they'll come to the Great Mountain again to harvest resources from the special Nodes," Qin Ming mused.
He also learned that Luoyue (Fallen Moon) City was a sizable settlement located a great distance from here.
Soon, news arrived from Cao Long, Wei Zhirou, and Mu Qing: they would enter the mountain in two days!
With this confirmation, the High-Ranking Figure of Chi Xia City had reached an agreement with the High-Level Lifeforms of the Great Mountain.
The aberrants would relinquish all the territory they had previously expanded into.
The areas outside the mountain where people used to hunt and gather herbs were now freely accessible.
However, venturing deeper into the Great Mountain's dangerous zones would depend entirely on individual skill and one's own risk.
The High-Level Lifeforms had promised not to engage in secret hunting, but the mountain teemed with other dangerous creatures, leaving outsiders to fend for themselves.
The High-Ranking Figure of Chi Xia City had made a similar pledge, vowing not to intervene secretly.
Clearly, even after driving out the invading High-Level Lifeforms, the Great Mountain would remain far from peaceful.
Even if the High-Ranking Figure refrained from bloody hunts, the old guard of various clans and other terrifying aberrants within the mountain would clash in the densest Night Mist regions.
Any deep foray would inevitably lead to bloodshed, regardless of one's status or origins.
"I can guide you, but only within the outer zones," Qin Ming immediately informed Mu Qing and the others. "I won't set foot in those unknown territories!"
"Sigh, we wouldn't dare venture too far anyway," Mu Qing, Cao Long, Wei Zhirou, and the others lamented. "Those are the old geezers' turf — they'd go berserk and slaughter anyone who trespasses."
The main concern was that people from other regions were also converging on the area, making even the outer zones far from safe.
Because the news had spread that rare resources were now emerging at certain Nodes that can be harvested.
Over the next two days, Qin Ming observed the various factions mobilizing.
It wasn't just the outsiders who have come from afar; local organizations such as the Three-Eyed Sect and Jin Ji (Golden Rooster) Ridge were also actively preparing.
The Three-Eyed Sect was shrouded in mystery, rumored to have members in distant cities, with their presence in this region merely a foothold.
Normally, the sect's local members would flaunt their High-Ranking Figure's influence to intimidate others, always declaring their affiliation and boasting of their top-tier experts before any conflict, urging opponents to "weigh their options carefully."
But today, they had changed their tune.
Someone approached Xu Yueping to negotiate, adopting a far more subtle and less aggressive approach.
"We're all locals here," the sect member began. "When we make special discoveries, we should share them. The rare resources of this land naturally belong to us. Look at that Great Mountain — it stands firm, never shifting, a constant companion throughout our lives. Even in death, we'll rest beside it. The Three-Eyed Sect, rooted in this land like that mountain, will endure forever..."
Old Liu, unable to bear Scarface Lao Er's words any longer, interrupted, "Scarface Lao Er, why don't you just be straightforward like before? You should roll up your sleeves, slam your knife on the table, and put your foot on the bench to threaten us. Tell us to reveal any special Nodes we find in the mountains to you. Otherwise, after the people from Chi Xia City leave, you'll remain here as enduring as the Great Mountain, and you'll take revenge on us. Is that what you mean?"
"Exactly! I wanted to say it that way too, but the higher-ups told me to be less aggressive this time. Now that you have get the message. I'm leaving!" Scarface Lao Er of the Three-Eyed Sect turned and strode away.
Soon after, the people from Jin Ji (Golden Rooster) Ridge arrived. Though they had once been notorious bandits and had since been recruited into the government, they still remained a source of fear for the surrounding villages and towns.
This was because Jin Ji (Golden Rooster) Ridge had trained Jin Ji (Golden Rooster) Knights — fierce warriors perfectly suited for ambushes in the mountains.
Their golden Ground Chickens, corresponding to second-stage mutant creatures, combined with their mounted riders, made them exceptionally dangerous.
...
"We're entering the mountains soon..." You Liangyun sat in his meditation chamber, a jade jar resting on the table before him.
Inside was a spiritual substance that, when consumed, would grant him a Second Awakening.
With two days remaining before the expedition, he had ample time to fully elevate his life's essence.
Originally, he hadn't planned to act so quickly, preferring to further refine his newly awakened foundation.
But now, his expression shifted erratically between cold resolve and hesitant uncertainty.
He couldn't bear the thought of failing to accompany the woman to Liuguang City.
"Have you completed the investigation?" You Liangyun asked the person outside the chamber.
"Yes, everything's been confirmed. After entering the mountains, it's best to avoid contacting him for the first two days. He'll likely be traveling with Mu Qing, Cao Long, and their group. Once they've familiarized themselves with the terrain, we can approach him."
"Good!"
Two days later, the various factions began their ascent into the mountains.
To Qin Ming's astonishment, Old Liu donned armor, strapped a massive broadsword to his back, and perched atop his sturdy, yellowish-brown dog.
He wasn't alone in this spectacle.
Yang Yongqing, armed with twin blades, rode astride a Black Goat whose shoulders towered above an adult man's, transforming into a Black Goat Knight.
"Enter the mountains!" Cao Long, Wei Zhirou, Mu Qing, and their team set off.
They represented only a small fraction of Chi Xia City's young forces; larger contingents from various organizations and families were also converging on the Great Mountain.
"Attention! Humans detected! Two-legged beasts approaching!" A Talking Sparrow screeched overhead shortly after they entered the mountain.
These birds, capable of human speech, were cunning and incredibly swift, now acting as messengers to the mountain's creatures.
The key words were "human" and "two-legged beast," terms the mutated aberrants of the mountain understood through these transliteration words.
"Shoot it down!" Cao Long ordered.
"There's a massive horde of two-legged beasts! Bigger than three-meter-tall bears!"
The Talking Sparrow had clearly undergone mutation.
It wasn't just alerting the mountain's aberrants; it was also sending messages to other human teams, hoping to incite infighting.
Cao Long flew into a rage, personally drawing his bow and nocking an arrow.
...
"Boom!"
Suddenly, five-colored mist and haze erupted from the mountain's depths, soaring into the sky and shocking everyone.
Had the most mysterious treasure already ripened and was about to emerge, even before they had truly entered the mountain?
"Oh, My Mountain God! The Four-Radiance Mist-Haze Land has appeared directly! Charge!"
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END OF CHAPTER
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