Chapter 25: Second Awakening
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
The night was deep, the world as dark as ink. Everything had lost its color, and the entire village was reduced to vague silhouettes. The wind howled through the trees, making them sway like ghostly figures against the moonless sky.
Qin Ming was busy working on the blood snake. The skin of this spiritual creature was incredibly hard to peel. Its scales were tougher than refined iron, and every strike with a hatchet made a sharp, ringing sound. If he wasn’t careful, those crimson scales could slice his fingers—they were like shards of finely forged metal. If someone made armor out of them, its defensive power would be astonishing.
“Come on, stupid thing,” Qin Ming muttered under his breath, tossing the hatchet aside. He decided to use a sharper tool instead. Two days ago, Mu Qing had given him a black metal hammer and a short sword.
He picked up the short sword and tested its edge. It wasn’t as sharp as the one used by the green-faced man, but by gripping it tight and applying more force, he could manage to skin the snake.
Focusing hard, Qin Ming began peeling away one end of the snake’s skin with the short sword. Then he pulled down hard, finding it much easier than cutting directly. Several Sunstones around him emitted a soft glow, illuminating the blood snake’s body in a reddish light. The creature looked like a piece of polished jade, glowing eerily in the darkness.
As the crimson skin was gradually peeled away, the exposed flesh was snow-white and delicate. The snake’s gallbladder, unlike the dull color of ordinary snakes, shimmered blue and transparent, like a precious gemstone.
“Wow,” Qin Ming breathed, noticing the rich spiritual energy emanating from both the snake meat and the gallbladder. They even glowed faintly. “No wonder those people from Scarlet Dawn City dropped their pretenses and were willing to kill and rob for it.”
He cut the snake meat into sections with the short sword, washed them carefully, and set a pot of water to boil. “If I can get my second awakening sooner, I’m not waiting till morning,” he murmured, his voice filled with determination.
In this unpredictable environment, he felt a pressing urgency. Strange and dangerous people were showing up, and big families and organizations from Scarlet Dawn City were arriving one after another. Who knew what would happen next in these mountains?
“They’re all looking for ‘nodes’—special areas where weird stuff happens,” he mused. “Places where five-colored smoke and clouds show up. They’re so desperate for clues they’re offering rare, high-level scriptures as rewards.”
Since the magnetic fields in the mountains went all wonky, Flame Springs had been turning on and off, and all sorts of weird things had been happening.
“And there’s this group of advanced creatures migrating from afar, bringing their families and grabbing resources in the mountains,” Qin Ming pondered aloud. “Maybe this so-called migration is just a cover. Could these top-level beings be looking for something too?”
The snake meat was now simmering in the pot, and a rich aroma filled the air, snapping Qin Ming out of his thoughts. His mouth began to water.
Outside, the wind and snow raged on, but inside, the fragrant snake stew filled the room. Qin Ming’s appetite grew stronger as he waited for it to cook thoroughly.
“This smells amazing—and it tastes even better!” he exclaimed after taking the first bite. His eyes lit up with delight. This kind of spiritual creature was tastier than any ordinary snake, like comparing night to day.
He had been a bit squeamish about eating snakes, but now he didn’t care. To him, this was like “dragon meat” from legend. After just a few bites, warmth spread through his body. The effect was immediate; the spiritual essence was already working.
“The snake gallbladder… I could steam it or soak it in strong liquor,” he thought aloud. “Too bad I don’t have any wine at home. Guess steaming it is.”
As he ate the snake meat, he placed the shimmering blue gallbladder into the steamer. It contained some kind of mysterious spiritual essence, and he needed to watch it carefully.
After a while, the gallbladder, which looked like a large blue diamond, was thoroughly cooked. Qin Ming couldn’t wait any longer and took a bite of the “main course.”
“Oh… my gosh, this is so bitter!” he blurted out, his face scrunching up in disgust. His tongue felt numb from the bitterness. Glancing at a nearby mirror, he saw that his lips had turned blue.
He knew snake gallbladders were bitter and had been ready for it, but the concentrated essence of this one was way worse than he’d imagined.
Even the snake meat didn’t seem appealing anymore; he was overwhelmed by the bitterness. He quickly took a sip of the fragrant snake soup to wash it down, but it didn’t help much. The bitter taste still clung to his tongue.
“Seriously, even a dog wouldn’t eat this,” he grimaced. “And here I am, trying to build a foundation. Can’t let a little bitterness stop me.”
The gallbladder was too big to swallow whole, and he figured chewing it would help absorb the spiritual essence better, speeding up his second awakening. His good mood from the meal was almost ruined. Looking at the remaining half, he gritted his teeth.
“Well, no turning back now,” he sighed. “Might as well finish it.”
He continued to chew slowly, enduring the intense bitterness. After finally finishing the entire gallbladder, he looked in the mirror again. His lips looked like they’d been painted a vivid blue, giving him an odd, almost alien appearance.
“Good thing I ate this late at night,” he chuckled. “If anyone saw me now, they’d think I was some kind of monster!”
But the gallbladder’s effect was powerful. Not long after it reached his stomach, his whole body felt hot, as if he had a high fever. Qin Ming stayed calm and kept eating the snake meat—not just to suppress the bitterness but also to add more spiritual energy to his body.
Gradually, he felt like a furnace of vitality, driving away the harsh winter cold. His entire body began to glow faintly.
“The effect is kicking in!” he thought excitedly.
Grabbing the long metal hammer, he stepped out into the courtyard to practice the killing moves from the sword manual. For a while, the snow on the ground swirled up into the night sky. Mist surrounded him, faint light shimmered over his skin, and vitality surged within. Each swing of the hammer produced sounds like wind and thunder.
His energy and spirit kept rising. He knew the second awakening had begun. It was a process, not something that happened in an instant. But he could clearly feel the changes. His strength was increasing, his muscles and tendons seemed to be stretching, his senses were sharpening, and his vision was improving.
“Every time, the process of awakening is so exhilarating,” he thought. “Feeling myself grow stronger—even the dense night seems lighter.”
Active energy surged within him. His body felt purified and renewed; his muscles and bones vibrated with power. Under the night sky, he was like a glowing furnace. It was as if a secret flame burned within his flesh, cutting away old impurities, promoting awakening, tempering his energy and spirit, accelerating the vibrant changes in his body.
Qin Ming swung the hammer tirelessly, pushing himself until his hair was wet and he was drenched in sweat. Only then did he return indoors. He sat quietly, feeling the changes within.
“I wonder if I’ll grow taller after this second awakening,” he mused. According to Old Liu, the changes could vary greatly depending on the breathing techniques and meditation practices used.
“Guess I’ll find out soon enough.”
Qin Ming was already half a head taller than most people, and after the first awakening, he’d grown nearly two inches. Earlier that evening, he’d chatted with Old Liu and Xu Yue Ping about awakening. They noted that his height hadn’t changed much—some people grew an entire head taller.
Old Liu, with his rich life experience, had been close to older mountain patrollers in his youth and had heard many stories.
“Some breathing techniques make your body swell like a balloon with each awakening,” Old Liu had said. “But only part of it is solid; the rest is like clay. So many methods require you to suppress further growth at a certain point.”
He added, “There are secret techniques that are extremely precious. Practice them, and you might experience mysterious changes—like developing a third eye. Some sacred legends come from this.”
“Those texts are rare,” Old Liu continued. “Even big families can’t get them.”
While drinking, Old Liu had looked at Qin Ming and remarked, “I think your height hasn’t changed much.”
Qin Ming remained calm. In a couple of days, he’d know what kind of changes his own method would bring. For the first time, he felt that staying here was somewhat isolating. He guessed that people from Scarlet Dawn City knew all about these things while he was piecing together bits of information. Plus, some didn’t rely on awakening at all; they had other paths. Those were beyond his reach for now.
After sitting quietly for a long time, he felt hungry again. The second awakening’s changes were obvious. He began eating the snake stew, replenishing his body’s needs with the rich spiritual energy.
Finally, after a cold wash, he went to sleep in the silent night. Before drifting off, he vaguely saw a “golden-threaded jade garment” appearing on his skin—silver light covering his body, golden threads interweaving. It looked mysterious.
He transitioned from light sleep to deep sleep, then to a state between dreaming and waking. He felt deeply relaxed, his body and mind at ease. Yet part of his consciousness remained active.
In this half-awake state, he seemed to see a dusty black cloth covering his subconscious, blocking his vision of what lay beyond. But during the second awakening, the dust was gradually blown away, and the cloth lifted at one corner. He saw himself as a small child, memories long forgotten.
Though half-asleep, Qin Ming realized that the second awakening was enhancing not just his body but also his mind. Blurred childhood memories surfaced.
In a trance, it was as if someone whispered in his ear, “This path… though it has great origins, can’t be practiced anymore.”
Then, through the lifted corner of the cloth, he saw a rough hand holding a thin ancient book, opening it to the first page before his younger self…