Night Without Borders Chapter 208
Chapter 208: Ninth Awakening
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
The heavens and earth were engulfed in a dense, viscous darkness. Sun Tai Chu stood atop the clouds, his expression growing graver by the moment. He murmured, “It’s not just this area… it’s the entirety of the Kun Lun territory!”
If that were true, it would be unimaginably terrifying.
After all, Kun Lun was a legendary land. From ancient times, the murals etched into the stone cliffs of this realm had depicted the activities of near-immortal creatures and pseudo-god entities, along with countless records and descriptions.
“What kind of monstrosity has emerged from the Secret Sect?” asked the shadowy figure behind Sun Tai Chu, his voice trembling as a chill ran down his spine.
The world always said that the Immortal Path was dazzling, teeming with talent, and that the lands beyond revealed unparalleled strength. Yet, some paths had never waned in power since time immemorial.
The foundation of the Secret Sect was profoundly deep and terrifying, touching every domain. The more one understood it, the more fearsome it seemed.
Sun Tai Chu’s visit to Kun Lun was not solely for the auspicious beast. He had sensed something amiss, and even this slight probe had confirmed his suspicions.
Behind him, the shadow whispered, “Is it the rise of an entirely new supreme powerhouse?”
Then, as though struck by realization, the shadow’s head shot up. “Or could it be the rebirth of an ancient god with even loftier ambitions?”
Sun Tai Chu, a manifestation of pure yang consciousness aura, parted the pitch-black clouds and gazed across the vast Kun Lun territory. His eyes were profoundly deep.
In the secret realm, deep within a mountain cavern, Qin Ming lay in a feverish daze. His body was searingly hot, blood scabs covering him entirely, forming layers like dragon scales.
In his hazy state, he dreamt of himself transforming into a massive serpent. Amidst torrential rain, he was struck again and again by thunderfire. His scales fell off, his body shattered, and he bled profusely.
The serpent continuously raised its head in defiance, only to collapse repeatedly, unable to withstand the might of the thunderfire. Eventually, its entire body was charred, its bones broken. After a long period of stillness, a faint vitality emerged from its shattered form, mingling with the extreme yang left by the frostfire. In an impossible situation, it slowly revived.
Tearing apart its old body, bloodied and battered, it struggled free, striving to transform into a dragon.
The process was excruciatingly arduous and fraught with torment. On the brink of death, it burrowed deep underground, hibernating to gather strength.
In the mountain cavern, the blood scabs on Qin Ming’s body cracked and fell away, signaling a new growth phase. His Dragon-Snake Force underwent a transformation.
As the Dragon-Snake Sutra circulated, the yin attribute energy within it was tainted by the yang attribute, as though struck by thunderfire, leaving traces of extreme yang.
Of course, this was only a partial yin-yang transformation. The most significant change was the unprecedented potency of the newly awakened power, signifying a genuine metamorphosis.
As the blood scabs fell away, Qin Ming’s body neared its ultimate limit, stepping onto the threshold of his ninth awakening. His physique began to ascend.
At this point, the fragmented demonic seeds within him had long been obliterated, reduced to streams of light, ground to near-nothingness.
The Dragon-Snake Force within him transformed into two tangible roots, one resembling a snake and the other a dragon. They burrowed into the fragmented demonic seed’s soil, absorbing its nutrients.
Finally, the soil of the demonic seeds exploded. The violent upheaval eradicated them completely, their last desperate counterattack attempting to sever the dragon-snake roots.
Qin Ming’s body ruptured once more, his flesh and blood a mangled mess, but it soon regrew into dragon-scale-like scabs, akin to a hibernating serpent or flood dragon. Life stirred within him.
“The dragon battles in the wilderness; its blood is dark yellow.” This time, Qin Ming dreamt of endless, brutally intense battles. It was as though he were personally involved, constantly fighting on a chaotic, blood-soaked battlefield.
He writhed, enduring a storm of violence. His body shattered and reassembled repeatedly, enduring axe strikes, divine sword piercings, and yet more thunderfire strikes.
He survived death to be reborn, his flesh and blood regenerating again and again, growing stronger each time. Finally, he achieved a qualitative transformation, a complete rebirth. A dragon’s roar echoed across the land as he soared into the skies.
At the same time, the dragon-scale scabs on Qin Ming’s body exploded outward, dispersed by a surge of pure yang energy.
Within his blood and flesh, an actual dragon’s shadow appeared, ascending into the sky amidst the daylight. It was utterly astonishing.
Fully awake now, Qin Ming’s newly awakened power coursed through him, transforming his entire being. He had not just reached the edge of his ninth awakening; he had boldly crossed into it.
This awakening was swift and intense, far beyond the ordinary.
Golden lines intertwined across his skin as jade-like radiance flowed, swiftly forming a golden-threaded jade garment around him. His physique continuously heightened as the Celestial Light Force surged.
Qin Ming confirmed that he was undergoing his ninth awakening, and it didn’t seem like it would take long.
He reflected on his changes. In the past, after each awakening, he needed rare items like fallen fruits or five-colored spiritual branches to stimulate the Celestial Light Force. But now, it was unnecessary.
The Dragon-Snake Force had advanced in tandem.
Moreover, he had time before breaking into the Outer Saint realm to continue practicing the Golden Cicada Sutra and the Immortal Butterfly Sutra, integrating them further.
Indeed, Qin Ming’s ninth awakening neared completion in less than half a day.
The enhancement to his physique through the Dragon-Snake Sutra was exceptionally intense. Most importantly, his Celestial Light Force transformed, gaining legendary characteristics.
It became more domineering, its power unmatched. This mirrored a portion of the Sky-Supporting Ancestor’s traits. In his heyday, the ancestor had shaken the Night Fog World with his divine strength, his hands said to be able to lift the heavens.
Evidently, the Dragon-Snake Force, in its early stages, was a critical component of the ancestor’s foundational techniques. This belonged to the rare, extraordinary skills recorded on a single page of true transmissions.
Even without fully integrating the Dragon-Snake Force, Qin Ming already felt its wondrous effects.
Within his flesh and internal organs, a luminous dragon coiled, then soared. A dragon’s roar reverberated through his entire body, transforming into dragon-scale-like luminous rain that fused into his limbs and bones.
Qin Ming felt an illusion that he could overturn mountains.
“Ah, what a pity. This is only the Sky-Supporting Ancestor’s most specialized domain. Pure strength and dominance. If I could incorporate the traits of the other ancestors into my ninth awakening, it would be perfect.”
He focused on using the Dragon-Snake Sutra to complete his transformation, finding it difficult to juggle anything else.
“Everyone says the ninth awakening is incredibly difficult. Only aberrants can tread this path. Others stall after the seventh awakening, needing great medicines to break into the Outer Saint realm and continue onward.”
Indeed, historical records noted that the more formidable the aberrant’s foundation, the more terrifying their ninth awakening would be.
Qin Ming pondered what set his ninth awakening apart. Despite the immense power and resemblance to the Sky-Supporting Ancestor’s path, it still fell short of his expectations.
His extraordinary talent and deep foundation should have allowed for even greater accomplishments.
As Qin Ming puzzled over this, his ninth awakening approached its conclusion, bringing with it a new ability.
A warm current surged to his eyes, blurring his vision. For a brief moment, the world’s shapes and colors became indistinct, sparking unease. However, he calmed himself.
He believed there was no cause for alarm or adverse change.
Soon, his vision cleared. Exiting the mountain cavern, he gazed upon the “twilight” of the secret realm. Everything appeared sharper and more vivid.
Focusing his gaze, a warm current flowed through his eyes. He could see the intricate veins on a distant leaf and the dew drops glistening on blades of grass atop a faraway mountain. It was astonishingly real.
“Is this akin to spiritual eyes?” Qin Ming was intrigued. He sensed this ability extended beyond mere sight and awaited further discoveries.
In the forested terrain, he unleashed the Dragon-Snake Force. Instantly, this overwhelming power tore through the surroundings like a rampaging beast, shaking the trees and quaking the ground.
He mused that if he encountered the silver-clad young demon again, even in a frenzied state with activated fragmented demonic seeds, he wouldn’t feel fear.
His hands emanated intertwining black and white light, accompanied by the sound of dragon roars.
“It’s unfortunate that the Dragon-Snake Sutra touches on only a portion of yin-yang transformation. The Golden Cicada Sutra contains profound truths, which I can integrate later.”
As Qin Ming prepared to merge the Dragon-Snake Force, his Celestial Light Force would undergo another transformation, growing even more terrifying.
“Hm?” Suddenly, something caught his attention. The glowing pathway he had seen before was now gone, causing him to frown.
Without a doubt, he had obliterated and crushed the two fragmented demonic seeds, selectively absorbing the nutrients from their “soil” rather than fully integrating them like the silver-clad young demon.
“No matter. There’s still another ‘two-demonic-seed’ individual hunting for me. Just as the tiger hunts its prey, the human hunts the tiger.” Qin Ming took a deep breath and began merging the Dragon-Snake Force. The process wasn’t difficult. Utilizing the principles of the Silk Script Sutra, he seamlessly unified the forces. The sixth extraordinary skill rapidly coalesced.
Finally, with a deafening roar, the luminous dragon soared, and his radiant Celestial Light Force absorbed another skill, achieving perfection. A surge of explosive power coursed through his body.
Each time Qin Ming merged an extraordinary skill, his Celestial Light Force underwent qualitative improvement.
This was undeniably the fundamental source of his skyrocketing combat prowess.
“Now, with six extraordinary skills integrated, I fear no legendary Celestial Light Force during the awakening stage,” Qin Ming murmured, brimming with confidence.
In the awakening stage, the highest achievements in the Six Rulers Sect were from those with triple Celestial Light Forces. The Rulai Sect had its Nirvana Golden Body practitioners, while the Sky-Supporting Sect’s were known as “Heaven-Shakers.”
Testing his newfound strength, Qin Ming easily obliterated a section of the mountain wall, carving a massive cavity with sheer force.
He was momentarily lost in thought. The improvement was overwhelming.
“Sigh,” he lamented. The awakening stage allowed nine opportunities, and he had used them all. Would he be able to advance as swiftly in the Outer Saint realm?
According to many accounts, the awakening stage marked a steep decline in progression after the second realm. Certain limitations were immutable.
The primary concern was that the speed of advancement could not keep pace with other paths, leading to falling far behind peers until their shadows disappeared from sight.
Qin Ming grew pensive, contemplating his future.
Despite his confidence, the experiences of predecessors cast a shadow. The path ahead was rugged and unlit.
“I must forge forward, maintaining this current state. There must be no slowing of my cultivation,” he resolved, his expression resolute.
Suddenly, Qin Ming sensed a subtle heat emanating from his body. Was the transformation not yet complete?
Carefully attuning himself, he detected faint traces of nascent energy lingering within his flesh. The first stage of the awakening had indeed concluded, but it seemed as though further potential was brewing.
His eyes glimmered with unusual light, like flickering flames. Glancing toward the distant forest, he pondered whether the other “two-demonic-seed” expert was still searching for him.
He whispered, “It seems I still have the chance to use the Golden Cicada Sutra to facilitate another awakening, perhaps even delving into Rulai’s specialized domains.”
In the secret realm, within the region inhabited by the Beyond Pure Land disciples, many were engaged in fervent discussion.
Once again, someone had “set out on the path.”
Li Qing Xu, dressed in a feathered robe and exuding an ethereal aura, wielded a purple bamboo rod as he walked along a glowing pathway, his figure growing fainter in the distance.
A mixture of shock, envy, and jealousy filled the onlookers as they recalled the rumors surrounding his journey. For some time, speculation had run rampant.
“What if… he’s defeated and knocked off that path? It would be quite embarrassing,” muttered a competitor from the past.