Chapter 21: The Blood Bamboo Grove
This novel is translated and hosted on BCatranslation
Under the dim night sky, the mountains stood tall and silent, like ancient giants guarding their secrets. Thick groves of larch, hazel, and birch trees huddled together, their branches stripped bare by winter. Each branch held mounds of white snow, a quiet, wintry embrace in the stillness of the night.
Qin Ming trudged through the deep snow, the crunch of his boots the only sound breaking the silence. He had crossed several mountains, each one steeper and more treacherous than the last, but now he was finally nearing his destination—the Blood Bamboo Grove.
He knew he had ventured far beyond the outer regions, deeper than he’d ever gone before. On his way, he had seen the shadows of mountain beasts prowling and heard the eerie cries of strange birds echoing through the trees. But here, everything was eerily quiet, save for the low, mournful howl of the wind.
A shiver ran down Qin Ming’s spine, and it wasn’t just the cold. The mountain creatures avoided this place; none of them dared to come near.
It was still the dead of winter. Snow blanketed the ground, and if the Flame Springs were alive with heat and life—when the blood snakes came out to hunt—this place would be even quieter.
“Wow, it’s actually pretty cool,” Qin Ming muttered under his breath as he stood at the edge of a mountain valley, squinting down into the darkness.
The Blood Bamboo Grove lay sprawled below him in the valley. Even in the faint light, he could make out the bamboo groves standing strong against the wind and snow, their fiery red stalks striking against the blanket of white. It was a strange, haunting beauty.
The entire valley was filled with blood bamboo. The stalks, the leaves—everything was a vivid red, like red coral forming a dense forest amidst the snow.
“This place is wild,” he whispered, awestruck.
Most people wouldn’t come this far just to admire the scenery. The blood snakes that lived here had a reputation fierce enough to keep even the bravest mountain patrols at bay.
Qin Ming couldn’t see any light from the Flame Springs, suggesting they might have gone out for real. But he didn’t dare step into the valley just yet. He suspected that under the frozen ground, embers might still be burning—maybe the Flame Springs weren’t completely extinguished.
He decided to circle the area, checking out the terrain. Climbing up a high slope, he looked down into the valley again. Sure enough, right in the center, he saw a faint red glow flickering.
He paused for a moment, thinking. Then he turned and left the quiet valley. Heading towards a part of the mountain where strange birds and beasts were more common, he managed to catch a rabbit in the snow.
“Sorry, little guy,” Qin Ming muttered as he hefted the plump snow rabbit. He returned to the edge of the Blood Bamboo Grove, stood on the high slope, and tossed the rabbit towards the faint red glow at the valley’s center.
The rabbit landed in the thick snow with a soft thud, sending up a spray of white powder—not too far from the dimly glowing Flame Spring.
Almost immediately, a thin red line shot out from the grove, skimming over the snow at an incredible speed. It struck the rabbit, piercing it clean through.
Qin Ming tensed, his eyes narrowing as he focused on the valley’s center. Golden ripples shimmered faintly across his skin, a sign of his heightened awareness.
There was no doubt about it—a blood snake, about three feet long. Just like the rumors said, its body was as hard as iron, and it could leap into the air like an arrow, striking its prey with deadly precision.
“Definitely a nasty little critter,” he muttered, frowning. “And that’s just a small one. If a big snake, several meters long, shows up, that’ll be a real headache.”
The real issue was that even in this freezing cold, the blood snakes were still active, moving through the ice and snow—if only for short bursts. That made things much more complicated.
He watched as more thin red lines appeared from the red glow. These snakes were all a few feet long, but this time they didn’t shoot out like arrows. Instead, they crawled slowly over the snow towards the rabbit, their hard heads piercing into its body.
These snakes were different from ordinary ones. They weren’t as vulnerable to the cold as he’d expected; they didn’t freeze solid right away.
“Looks like I’m giving you guys a winter feast, huh?” Qin Ming said quietly, keeping his eyes on the Blood Bamboo Grove. The blood snakes were clearly sucking the warm blood from the rabbit.
Named for their strange connection with blood, these snakes fed in a way that lived up to their name. Unlike regular snakes that swallowed their prey whole, they drained their food quickly—probably because they didn’t want to stay out in the cold snow for too long. After a few minutes, they began moving back toward the nearly extinguished Flame Spring.
“Hold on a sec,” Qin Ming murmured, noticing that two of them didn’t return to their nest right away. Instead, they slithered quickly around the grove, like they were searching for something.
At the same time, he spotted a larger snake’s head emerging from the red glow. Its bright red tongue flicked out repeatedly, tasting the air.
“Great, just what I needed,” Qin Ming thought, frustration creeping in. This deadly creature was strong and alert—much more dangerous than other mutated beasts he had encountered.
He considered using poison—maybe lure them with poisoned bait. But he quickly realized that wouldn’t work. The big snake didn’t eat at all, and the smaller ones seemed to let one of them taste it first.
Qin Ming watched as the two smaller snakes, each about three or four feet long, finished their patrol around the grove. Their speed slowed, and they finally slipped back into their habitat.
“At least the cold affects them—that’s something,” he mused as he headed back down the slope, retracing his steps.
He needed to bring some weapons. If he was going to enter the Blood Bamboo Grove, he’d have to wear three or four layers of the patrol group’s armor. He didn’t want to risk getting ambushed by the blood snakes; if their iron-hard heads pierced his skin, even he would be in serious trouble.
It didn’t take him long to dig up and transport the iron spears, armor, and other gear, hiding them near the Blood Bamboo Grove.
“To deal with blood snakes, this sharp longsword from Fu En Tao is actually better than the long-handled black hammer,” he thought.
Using heavy weapons to attack larger creatures was effective—you could smash their heads with one blow. But when it came to slender snakes, a longsword was more practical.
Qin Ming wondered when the Flame Spring in the Blood Bamboo Grove would completely go out. The longer it took, the weaker the blood snakes would become. But he didn’t have much time; the final negotiations between the leaders and the top-level beasts in the mountains were set to wrap up in the next few days.
“I’ve probably spooked them today, made them more cautious. I’ll come back tomorrow,” he decided. Time was tight, but waiting one more day wouldn’t hurt.
“I should be able to handle this nest of blood snakes… I think,” he thought as he made his way back. Feng Yian, Shao Cheng Feng, and the others had wanted to target the Blood Bamboo Grove, but he’d dealt with them.
He knew he couldn’t afford to be careless; he had to stay alert.
On his way back, he noticed three large birds sprinting through the forest, moving incredibly fast. They carried riders on their backs, darting through the dense woods ahead.
“Are those folks from Golden Rooster Ridge?” Qin Ming wondered, ducking behind a tree.
They were three mutated ground-running birds, each taller than a person, strong enough to carry riders swiftly through the mountains. Only Golden Rooster Ridge bred such creatures around here.
He’d heard of the place. It had a Flame Spring close to level two. Initially held by bandits, it was eventually brought under control.
Because the mutated birds they bred were so useful, even the mountain patrols sometimes enlisted their riders to scout the terrain.
“Golden Rooster Ridge is pretty far from here. Why’re their people showing up?” Qin Ming wondered aloud as he watched the trio disappear into the distance. One rider was in fine armor, different from the locals, and his getup didn’t match the other two.
“Wait, is he from Scarlet Dawn City?” Qin Ming muttered, his brow furrowing. The black armor was different in style from the ones worn by the Cao, Wei, or Mu families. Had to be someone from another powerful family.
Seeing they weren’t heading toward the Blood Bamboo Grove, Qin Ming continued home.
As he dragged his catch and was about to leave the mountains, he spotted four unusual figures.
Two of them weren’t wearing armor. Instead, they were cloaked in fancy black robes woven with metal threads, covering them from head to toe—even their faces.
“Who are these guys?” Qin Ming thought, puzzled. The mountain-sweeping operation hadn’t even started yet, but things were already getting busy around here.
The other two looked like locals, probably in their early thirties. One of them flashed a smile and called out, “Hey there, kid! Know if there’s a place around here where a ground fissure gives off silver light?”
Qin Ming quickly figured they were searching for a special node. It seemed the two in black robes were from Scarlet Dawn City, too.
“Yeah, just head that way. Walk straight for about three miles, and you’ll find it,” Qin Ming replied, pointing them in the direction. That spot wasn’t exactly a secret; plenty of people knew about it.
“Why don’t you show us the way? We’ll give you a piece of night silver,” the man suggested with a grin.
Qin Ming took a few steps back. “Nah, I’m kinda scared of that place. Plus, I need to get home. Haven’t caught much lately, and my mom’s waiting for me.”
“Let’s go,” one of the black-robed men said, his voice unexpectedly young.
Relieved, Qin Ming was about to leave when the next words from the black-robed man made his blood run cold.
“Kill him. Our presence here shouldn’t be known,” the man said casually, as if he were commenting on the weather.
Qin Ming stared in disbelief. Who were these people? Deciding someone’s fate so easily—they didn’t care about regular folks at all.
He’d met people like Cao Long, Wei Zhi Rou, and Mu Qing from Scarlet Dawn City. They were always polite, even if it was just for show. At least they didn’t make others feel uneasy.
But these black-robed men? They were ruthless, as cold as stone. Without hesitation, they ordered the two locals to kill him.
“Hey, we’re all from around here! You can’t do this!” Qin Ming protested, his voice rising.
One of the locals gave him an apologetic smile. “Sorry, kid. We’re supposed to be escorting these distinguished guests. We have to do what they say.”
“Wait, who are you guys?” Qin Ming asked, his eyes narrowing.
“We’re from the Three-Eyed Sect,” the two men said, advancing toward him.
In an instant, Qin Ming moved like a blur, charging forward with lightning speed. The short sword in his left hand slashed across their throats before they even knew what was happening.
The two men from the Three-Eyed Sect were stunned, terror flashing in their eyes. They’d thought he was just some ordinary hunter—the prey he carried wasn’t even that big. But now they were bleeding out, and the boy moved too fast to grasp.
The black-robed men saw Qin Ming rushing toward them. Noticing the long-handled black hammer he pulled from his back—an exceptionally heavy weapon—their expressions shifted to alarm.
Swinging the hammer with his right hand, Qin Ming aimed for one man’s head. At the same time, the short sword in his left hand thrust toward the other.
Since they’d decided to kill him to keep their presence secret, there was no point in talking. He had to strike first.
The air filled with the sharp, metallic clangs of battle—fast, intense, and unforgiving.
After a few exchanges, Qin Ming gauged their strength. One was a second-time awakened individual; the other wasn’t much of a threat, having only awakened once.
He concentrated all his effort on the stronger one—the real danger.
If this had been earlier, he might have faced a tough fight. But after studying the sword manual that day, his combat skills had improved dramatically.
“Clang!”
After several clashes, the stronger man’s long sword was knocked aside by Qin Ming’s black hammer, his arm trembling from the impact.
The man’s eyes widened as Qin Ming’s hammer swung toward his chest at a speed he couldn’t match.
The hammer struck, caving in his chest. Blood sprayed from his mouth as his life faded fast.
“Trying to beat me with a blade?” Qin Ming muttered, handling the black hammer like it was a toy. Without a glance at the fallen man, he turned to face his remaining opponent.
The last man was terrified. He’d just been pushed back, and his companion was already dead—it was too fast. How could this kid, who looked like just another hunter, be so deadly?
He knew he was no match. Without a second thought, he turned and fled into the forest.
“Let’s see how you handle this!” Qin Ming shouted, flinging the black hammer with all his might.
With a heavy thud, the hammer flew through the air. Not far off, the man’s head shattered like a smashed melon.
Qin Ming didn’t waste a moment. He quickly cleaned up the scene, wiping the blood off his hammer with snow. Dragging his prey, he made his way home.
But unease gnawed at him. More people were entering the mountains—all sorts. He couldn’t stay away from the Blood Bamboo Grove for too long.
After a quick meal, he quietly returned to the mountains.
“Every day that passes, the Flame Springs dim more—that’s good for me,” Qin Ming thought. “But I gotta watch out for outsiders trying to snatch the goods.” For now, he could only stay and keep watch.
He didn’t leave until late at night. No one would choose to act at that hour—the darkness didn’t bother the snakes much, but it limited any awakened ones.
The next morning, he entered the mountains early and found that the red glow at the valley’s center had indeed faded significantly.
With this discovery, he decided to wait a bit longer. At the latest, he’d make his move before the night was over.
An hour later, the entire mountain suddenly lit up. Earthly light surged upward, and a rain of luminescence filled the sky, illuminating everything.
The glowing ground, the flowing rosy clouds—it was mesmerizing. Qin Ming couldn’t help but be captivated.
Especially here, with the fiery red bamboo forest contrasting against the white snow—it formed a unique, splendid scene.
“What’s that?” Qin Ming noticed a group approaching in the distance.
He didn’t panic but quietly retreated into the shadows. If they were coming for the treasures in the Blood Bamboo Grove, he’d let them blaze the trail.