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Novel: [Night Without Borders]
Chapter 82: [The Flowing Stream]
Author: [Chen Dong]
Translator: [Shadow Knight AK]
Editor: [Shadow Knight AK]
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As the underground Fire Spring gradually revived beneath the night sky, ice and snow melted, forming trickling streams that converged into a mountain stream.
Qin Ming had chosen this relatively open mountain forest for its strategic advantage.
He was now surrounded by Dai Shifeng and ten of his trusted subordinates.
"They're here!" Dai Shifeng whispered urgently.
The Hall Master had already arrived on his raptor, so why hadn't the City Lord's Manor forces appeared yet?
Qin Ming remained silent.
To secure their full support at this stage, he couldn't afford to hold back.
He needed to fully unleash his unique value.
A black raptor circled overhead.
Ge Qianxun observed the scene below, cautious and hesitant to descend immediately, carefully surveying the surrounding forest.
With early spring approaching, the weather was no longer bitterly cold.
The White-Robed Youth, perched on the back of a Silver Raptor, wore white robes that fluttered in the wind, giving him a refined and elegant appearance.
He looked down at Qin Ming and spoke calmly, "Now that you've fallen to this position, how does it feel?"
"Feet on the ground. Not bad," Qin Ming replied, meeting the gaze of his former acquaintance.
The White-Robed Youth nodded. "Once you sat among the clouds, now you've been cast down into the dust. Yet your composure remains remarkably steady."
Qin Ming's expression remained impassive.
"You don't need to put on this kind of act with me," he said. "We both know each other well enough."
"But you're not the man you used to be," the White-Robed Youth replied calmly, his voice soft. "I'm speaking to you with genuine sincerity. Is there anything wrong with that?"
The youth appeared to be around sixteen or seventeen years old.
Qin Ming stared at him. "For the sake of our past friendship, and out of respect for a certain someone, I'll give you one piece of advice: let the past be. Don't stir up trouble now. It won't end well for anyone."
"Friendship?" the White-Robed Youth scoffed, his hands clasped behind his back as he gazed at the tall, slender figure standing in the forest. "There's no need to dwell on that. And as for 'respect,' that's a concept long lost between us."
"We're tired of seeing each other," Qin Ming said, his face hardening with coldness.
"Indeed. I find you increasingly distasteful myself. Some of our former acquaintances have remarked that you've finally returned to your rightful place."
Qin Ming dropped all pretense of courtesy.
"Since there's no friendship left, there's no need for further pretense. What are you doing here, putting on this act? Trying to flaunt your noble lineage and aristocratic grace? I've seen through your charade before. So get lost."
The White-Robed Youth remained unfazed.
"Back in the day, you were the center of attention, surrounded by admirers like the moon by stars. Even your mount was a mutated Creature that had undergone four Mutation. And now you're wielding a war hammer? Haha!"
Qin Ming didn't get angry; instead, he smiled faintly and said, "It seems I made you quite uncomfortable back then. Does Wang Caiwei know you're here? If she found out, would she personally break your legs?"
"Shut up!" the White-Robed Youth hissed from the back of the Silver Raptor, his voice icy. "Returning to your current position isn't enough. Only your complete disappearance, never to appear again, would ensure stability—for all of us."
"After hearing so much from you, I'm already disgusted," Qin Ming said, shaking his head as he tossed his hammer to the ground.
"Do you understand the vast difference between heaven and earth?"
"That's the gap between our worlds now."
The youth stood with his hands clasped behind his back, his white robes fluttering like snow as he perched atop the Silver Raptor high in the sky, radiating an otherworldly grace.
Yet his words were harsh, his cold demeanor unsettling.
He gazed down condescendingly. "Do you understand?"
"The vast difference? I understand it perfectly. Perhaps you haven't grasped it fully yourself. Let me help you." Qin Ming unslung the long bundle from his back.
He swiftly tore it open, revealing a heavy, ornate bow.
Without another word, he drew the bowstring taut like a full moon, aimed northwest, and released.
With a twang, an iron arrow whistled through the air, piercing the clouds and soaring into the heavens!
As Qin Ming drew his bow, the White-Robed Youth urged his Silver Raptor to ascend rapidly.
He wasn't particularly concerned; he knew Qin Ming had been stranded in the remote wilderness for two years, never progressing beyond the Path of Awakening until recently.
After such a long delay, how strong could his archery skills possibly be?
"Thwack!"
The Silver Raptor was struck by an arrow, and the White-Robed Youth's expression twisted in shock.
Though only one wing was injured, it disrupted the raptor's balance, causing it to wobble violently.
With a whoosh, Qin Ming fired his second iron arrow.
Feathers shattered, blood stained the raptor's abdomen, and it lost the strength to maintain altitude.
The creature spiraled downward, barely managing to avoid a direct crash.
Meanwhile, Ge Qianxun, Hall Master of Xin Yi Hall, made the opposite choice, urging his black raptor to dive toward the ground.
"You're certainly experienced!" Qin Ming drew his bow again.
The iron arrow streaked across the sky like a shooting star, piercing the black raptor's skull in a single shot, killing it instantly.
In the sky, the White-Robed Youth's face paled completely.
He realized Qin Ming could have killed his flying mount with a single arrow, but had deliberately controlled the pace.
Looking down, he saw a stretch of muddy ground where melted snow had formed a stream—precisely where the Silver Raptor was about to crash.
Meanwhile, Ge Qianxun had come well-prepared.
He controlled the black raptor's wings, preventing them from folding, and glided toward the dense mountain forest.
Most importantly, he was flying very close to the ground.
Even so, when Qin Ming's second iron arrow struck, Ge Qianxun panicked.
In his frantic attempt to dodge the arrow, he lost control of the raptor's wings, sending both himself and the dying creature plummeting into the dense foliage.
Ge Qianxun's subsequent actions astonished Qin Ming once again.
He shed the raptor's corpse, revealing a bat-winged black garment that allowed him to glide at low altitude, crashing headlong into the thicket.
Fortunately, his proximity to the ground, combined with the protective Heavenly Light surrounding him, prevented serious injury.
Though he snapped countless branches, he managed to land relatively unscathed.
On the other side, the White-Robed Youth struggled to redirect the Silver Raptor toward a nearby mountain peak.
But Qin Ming now controlled the rhythm of the battle.
With a single arrow, he pierced the base of the raptor's right wing, forcing it back on course.
"You—!" The White-Robed Youth panicked.
High in the sky, the raptor bucked violently, threatening to flip over.
No longer able to maintain his composure or aloof demeanor, he abandoned his dignified posture, threw himself flat against the Silver Raptor's back, wrapped his arms around its neck, and urged, "Steady yourself! Land quickly!"
Qin Ming fired two more arrows, perfectly controlling the rhythm to guide the Silver Raptor's descent.
When it was just above the ground, he released his final arrow, which pierced its skull with a sickening thwack.
"Ah..." the White-Robed Youth cried out in terror before crashing into the muddy swamp beside the river with a wet splosh, along with his dying mount.
Despite activating his Heavenly Light protective barrier, the impact left him dazed and reeling, his internal organs aching.
Now he was covered head to toe in mud, his once pristine white robes stained beyond recognition, his handsome face smeared with grime.
"Ah..." he groaned, not from serious injury, but from sheer humiliation.
"What have I become?"
"The vast difference between heaven and earth—do you understand now?" Qin Ming called out from the distance.
"Cui Chonghe—no, Qin Ming!" Though he hadn't coughed up blood, the White-Robed Youth's vision swam with stars.
He was utterly humiliated, his rage boiling over.
In the past, he and his like-minded friends had reveled in refined pursuits, gathering in mountain forests to compose poetry, exchange verses, and drunkenly recline by Fire Springs beneath the pines, reveling in their carefree elegance.
Now, he had fallen into the mountains and forests, becoming a mud-covered figure in the wilderness, experiencing a twisted version of the "Winding Stream Wine Cup (Wine-Cup Floating on the Water)" game.
With a sharp crack, Qin Ming's arrow shattered the hairpin atop the grimy youth's head, instantly disheveling his hair and obliterating any semblance of noble refinement.
In the forest below, Ge Qianxun landed safely and exhaled deeply, relieved to have survived such a dangerous moment.
Dai Shifeng, leading ten loyal subordinates, arrived at the scene immediately.
"Old Dai, why aren't you..."
"Hall Master, you're surrounded!" Dai Shifeng declared sternly.
Ge Qianxun wanted to dig out his ears.
He was certain he hadn't misheard—his own men had surrounded him?
"Dai Shifeng, have you gone mad?" he roared.
Dai Shifeng replied coldly, "Former Hall Master, you're the one who's gone mad!"
Ge Qianxun was indeed on the verge of madness. His deputy had not only brought men to besiege him but also addressed him as "Former Hall Master"—a blatant act of rebellion and power grab!
"Former Hall Master, you've betrayed Xin Yi Hall. Do you even remember the meaning of 'Xin Yi'—trust and righteousness?" Dai Shifeng demanded.
Ge Qianxun was about to explode with rage.
Before he could even discipline his subordinate, he was being slapped with such a grave accusation.
Where was the justice in this?
"You dare to commit treason!" Ge Qianxun slowly stretched his limbs, preparing to purge the traitorous element first.
After killing Dai Shifeng, he would decide on his next move.
Dai Shifeng's voice rose even higher.
"Ge Qianxun, you've embezzled Xin Yi Hall's private assets, planning to abscond with the Day Gold. You're the true traitor and instigator of chaos! Moreover, you're the infamous Golden Bandit, infiltrating our hall with sinister motives, usurping power for years, and undermining our very foundation. Your crimes are unforgivable!"
"Old Dai, you were indeed too talented to be my subordinate, but you won't have any more opportunity. I'll eliminate you first!" Ge Qianxun snarled, abandoning any pretense of accusations.
At this point, physical annihilation was far more effective.
Qin Ming stepped forward. "Every wrong has its source, and every debt must be repaid. Ge Qianxun, let's settle accounts!"
"We have no personal grudges," Ge Qianxun replied, his gaze fixed on Qin Ming. "Only the payment my employer promised to pay."
"You stole the Sun Family's secret manual and murdered Old Man Sun, and now you're harassing the old woman and her grandson. I learned the Sun Family's Hammer Technique and consider myself one of its inheritors. Today, I've come to collect a blood debt on their behalf." Qin Ming advanced, hefting his massive hammer.
Ge Qianxun, ever cautious, didn't bother assessing his opponent's true strength.
With a swift movement, he vanished into the forest, attempting to flee.
But his expression twisted in shock.
The Young Man moved with incredible speed, appearing before him like a phantom, swinging the massive hammer in a devastating arc.
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END OF CHAPTER
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