Chapter 34: The Truth and Lies
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
Qin Ming felt all his exhaustion disappear as soon as he stepped into the crevice. It wasn’t an illusion—this place, where he had once narrowly escaped death, had completely changed.
He looked up, seeing that the exit was about four meters above him. Nearby, silver threads, delicate as spider silk, stretched across the underground, connecting and spreading in all directions. When his body brushed against them, they gave off a faint warmth.
Holding a short sword in one hand and a long-handled black iron hammer in the other, Qin Ming walked forward. Last time he had fallen here by accident and hadn’t explored further, but now he wanted to see what lay ahead.
The ground was uneven, with jagged stones scattered around. It was damp, and droplets of water occasionally dripped from the stone walls on either side of him. The path ahead grew increasingly narrow, until soon he was brushing up against the rocky walls with his shoulders.
Though it was underground, it wasn’t dark. The crisscrossing silver threads provided some light, glowing softly, but they didn’t harm him when he touched them. As he continued forward, his body brushed the walls, leaving him slightly damp.
Eventually, he reached a narrow opening, just wide enough for one person to pass through. Beyond it, the space opened up into a wide area. The ground was smoother here, with fewer stones scattered around.
In this new space, the silver threads had grown thicker, crisscrossing in intricate patterns, almost as if giant spiders had spun webs here. Some threads even had a faint golden hue, and the area was filled with a light mist.
Standing there, Qin Ming felt a new sensation. His body relaxed, the tension that had gripped him before slowly melting away. A warm feeling washed over him, like soaking in a Flame Spring. He frowned slightly, wondering if this place was somehow connected to the strange shifts in the mountain. Was it because he had already survived one ordeal here, and his body had adapted? Or was something else going on?
Qin Ming vividly remembered the last time he had been here. His heart had pounded so loudly it had echoed in his ears like the beat of a drum, his chest felt like it was about to explode, and his blood had surged through his veins at a terrifying speed. He had even thought he heard the sound of a waterfall.
Reflecting on everything that had happened since he left that day, the biggest change was in the technique he had been practicing—what he called his “wild path.” For years, he had seen no progress, but after narrowly escaping death, his training had suddenly triggered a reaction.
He now understood that his technique wasn’t as wild as he had once thought. It had been recorded in an ancient silk scroll, a method he had been fixated on since childhood.
“Someone told me the scroll couldn’t be mastered. Most of it had been torn up and burned…” he muttered.
There were only twenty or so pages left, and while it was still possible to train in it, it required someone who had already practiced the technique to guide him. Unfortunately, those who had mastered it were all long gone.
“Without a guide, no one to help me, yet I still managed to master it. Could it be related to this place?” Qin Ming wondered, various thoughts swirling in his mind.
“Could it be that to master the technique from the scroll, you need the protection of someone from the past and to enter one of these dangerous special nodes?” Qin Ming thought deeply as he moved forward, cautiously examining the thick golden threads.
As he ventured further, he spotted violet light shimmering along the threads that pierced through the stone walls. The scene was magnificent, and though the threads glowed, they didn’t harm his body.
…
Outside the mountain, in a dense forest, a black raven with purple eyes flew swiftly. Suddenly, a thick fog rose ahead, blocking its path.
“Who’s there?” The raven immediately became alert, its purple eyes glowing with mysterious symbols as it gradually discerned the figure hidden within the fog.
A massive owl, nearly as tall as a person, perched on a large tree. Its wings moved as dexterously as human hands, flipping through the pages of a leather-bound book.
“Long time no see. Fancy a drink?” the owl asked, its voice echoing through the fog. It tucked the book under one of its wings.
“I’m on patrol, no time for that,” the raven refused, a hint of wariness in its tone.
“What are you now, some sort of errand bird? This isn’t even your territory! You’ve really fallen from grace, haven’t you? Guarding some old geezer’s door?” the owl mocked, blocking the raven’s way, clearly displeased.
The raven’s purple eyes flashed. “Listen, Old Owl, I’ve got business to attend to. I’ve found a promising young lad and need to check on him. Get out of my way.”
If Qi Huai En knew about this, he’d surely break out in a cold sweat. He, like You Liang Yun, hadn’t yet earned the raven’s approval and was still under observation.
The owl tilted its head. “You’re really not going back to the dark fog world? You come from a noble line, one of the great bird families. Your bloodline is one of the highest forms of life—why would you lower yourself like this? Are you intending to change your form and become a two legged, living among the humans?”
The raven nodded. “Yeah, why not? I’ve got the talent to change my form. Haven’t there been other humans who transformed into anomalies near the deadly lands? Why can’t we take a different path and find something that suits us?”
The owl scolded, “That’s ridiculous! You’re supposed to be a proud raven, not some human! If you try that, I swear I’ll pluck every feather off your body and turn you into a bald, two-legged beast!”
The two began to bicker, their voices growing louder.
“Mind your own business! Don’t block my path!” the raven snapped. “If you mess up my plans, there will be consequences. If they catch wind of that boy too soon, it could all go wrong. He’s got potential, and I’ll need him to fetch something for me from the human world. You know what I’m talking about, so step aside!”
You Liang Yun had mentioned making a move on Qin Ming in two days, but if the opportunity arose, it could happen earlier.
Just then, a mutant sparrow came flapping through the trees, screeching, “Master Raven! There’s been an incident! Something terrible’s happened!”
The raven broke free of the black mist, appearing in the open air. “What is it?”
“Master Raven, I was doing as you asked, but then a three-meter-tall bear showed up, leading a group of two-legged beasts, chasing me down. I only escaped for a moment, but by the time I got back, everyone was dead. I smelled the blood, but I’ve got no idea how they died.”
The raven followed the sparrow to the scene, carefully sensing the area. With its sensitivity to life and death, it closed its eyes briefly before opening them again, murmuring, “Qi Huai En is dead, but I don’t sense the boy’s death here. Interesting. Was Qi Huai En killed by someone else, or did he fight the boy and lose his life?”
It waved its wing, dismissing the sparrow.
“If the boy’s really this strong, I might not even need to involve myself. There’s no point in sending him to Glimmer City now,” the raven muttered before flying off.
Deep in the mountains, You Liang Yun was reporting to a woman dressed in a black fur cloak, “Qi Huai En tested Qin Ming but found him lacking. The forest was chaotic. When I left, there was intense fighting in the woods.”
The raven swooped down, landing on a low tree. “Qi Huai En went to save someone, but he ended up dead. A shame.”
“You stay here,” the cloaked woman said to You Liang Yun.
“What?” You Liang Yun froze for a moment, then immediately bowed, his face flushed with excitement.
Deep within the mountains, the vibrant glow of the rainbow mist gradually faded. Ling Xu and Wei Mo both rose to their feet, tossing aside their wine cups and jars without a second thought.
Ling Xu gave a slight shake of his long blade, and instantly, a section of his leather boots tore apart, revealing part of his toes. He then lightly patted his chest, and the white robes he wore ripped open, showing his lean yet defined body. Though not particularly muscular, his smooth physique glistened under the fading light of the mist, as if someone had traced golden edges along his muscles.
Ling Xu deliberately made himself look ragged and bruised. With a quick swipe of his fingers, streaks of blood appeared on his skin, perfectly faked. His skills in deception were flawless.
Wei Mo spoke up, a smirk in his voice. “The mighty Lord Ling, always spotless and elegant, and now look at you. I bet people will be talking if they see this.”
Even as he teased, Wei Mo was doing much the same, pulling off several red armor plates and tucking them into his robes, making himself appear just as worn and battered.
Elsewhere on the mountain, a large tabby cat had cornered a massive black panther, smearing the panther’s blood across its own fur in disgust. To complete the disguise, it sprinkled a few glowing spiritual particles around itself. Not far away, a mantis beast was doing the same, covering itself with similar markings.
Clearly, the leaders of Scarlet Dawn City and the mountain’s anomalies were unwilling to let other powerful beings come and snatch the rare treasures hidden within the special node. But killing these skilled intruders outright would only provoke retaliation, drawing the wrath of major organizations down upon them.
Earlier, they had worked together to drive away a group of high-level creatures migrating in from another region, eager to claim this land. In the process, they had slain one particularly powerful creature, siphoning off its potent energy and triggering an explosion at the special node. The rainbow mist had been bait, designed to lure outsiders into a competition.
Now, Ling Xu, the tabby cat, and the other high-level beasts of the mountain were pretending to battle one another, dragging the fight out and keeping their real intentions hidden from view. Of course, not all of it could be an act. For instance, Old Weasel had been caught up in a genuine battle with a rival, and the mysterious Lord of the Mountain had even stepped into the fray.
Their plan was working well enough—several masters had already perished near the rainbow mist, and others, both high-level beasts and powerful members of the great organizations, had been badly injured.
…
As Qin Ming delved deeper into his training using the ancient technique from the silk scroll, he felt something change inside him. His entire body seemed to open up, light and free, as though a mysterious warmth was flowing through his veins, washing away his fatigue. From head to toe, it was like being cleansed by some unseen force.
The glowing threads that crisscrossed the crevice wove through the air, their shimmering lights intertwining like a spider’s web. For someone like Wang Nian Zhu, who had undergone a second awakening, these threads could be dangerous. People like him would need the blood of spiritual creatures to maintain their strength. But for Qin Ming, staying here posed no harm. In fact, he felt stronger the longer he remained.
“Is this technique supposed to be practiced in a place like this?” Qin Ming wondered aloud, doubt flickering in his voice.
He glanced down at the ancient silk scroll in his hand. Its pages were worn and yellowed, an artifact from a time long past. No one could answer his questions now. Those who knew the secrets of the scroll had either died or vanished, and the knowledge they had left behind was fading into history.
Suddenly, the ground beneath his feet trembled violently, shaking the walls of the crevice. Qin Ming staggered, nearly losing his balance.
In the world outside the crevice, where the rainbow mist was slowly fading, powerful beasts and experts from various secretive organizations stood locked in a tense standoff. Their faces were pale, and their eyes burned with frustration. None of them had managed to enter the node, the source of the mystical mist.
But then, something changed. The light within the node suddenly vanished, as if it had been snuffed out. For a moment, everything was still. Then, without warning, a new surge of rainbow mist erupted in the distance, far more brilliant and intense than anything they had seen before.
“What… another one?” someone whispered, disbelief heavy in their voice.
“No, wait!” another voice called out. “The rare treasures have moved! They’ve shifted along the spiritual veins to a new location!”
Ling Xu, Old Weasel, and the other high-level beings froze, stunned by what they were witnessing. There was no longer any need for deception or subtlety. The real node—the true source of the rainbow mist—had just revealed itself.
Suddenly, the entire mountain range shook again, more violently than before. Blinding light cut through the black night sky, illuminating the world below. Another spectacular phenomenon unfolded before their eyes.
“I’ve never seen anything like this!” Ling Xu shouted, his voice barely audible over the roaring winds. “Ten colors! The light is like massive pillars holding up the night sky! What kind of rare treasure could be coming into existence?”
Even the most powerful beings, those who had seen countless wonders, were struck speechless. This far surpassed anything they had ever imagined.
Without a second thought, every single fighter, no matter how injured they were, disappeared from their previous positions. The original node, the rainbow mist they had been fighting over, was abandoned. Instead, they raced toward the new, even grander spectacle of light and power, where endless streams of glowing rain fell from the sky, drawing them all toward the heart of the mountain’s secrets.
In an instant, no matter how badly injured they were, every single fighter vanished from their previous positions, abandoning the rainbow mist behind as they raced toward the even more extraordinary display of light and power.