Chapter 37: The Big Explosion
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
Qin Ming was quite familiar with this area. Without wasting any time, he found a pile of rocks in the snow, picked up a long, flat stone, snapped it in two with a sharp twist, and tossed it toward the place he’d just left. Then he quickly disappeared into the dense forest.
He figured only someone like him—young, curious, and new to this game—would bother to come and check it out. The old guys wouldn’t stop for something so trivial. After all, the outer layer of the stone was worthless.
The main reason no one cared was because of the dazzling treasure the woman in green had pulled out earlier. It was so bright it couldn’t be hidden, lighting up the entire night sky. All the high-level creatures and big organizations had chased after her, eager for the rare treasure. Who’d want a useless stone when a rare gem was in sight?
Even though the woman in green had swiftly absorbed the mysterious treasure, her forehead still glowed like a beacon, leading everyone right to her.
Sure enough, after a while, some newcomers arrived, searching for the discarded stone.
This was the outer area of the mountain, where you wouldn’t find any top experts. The old-timers and elites were all deep inside the mountains, where the important events were happening.
Before long, six or seven newcomers started fighting over the broken stone Qin Ming had thrown away.
Even though his face remained calm, Qin Ming felt a ripple of excitement inside. After all, the scrap he’d picked up came from the mountain’s most mysterious treasure. The sight of the ten-colored beam shooting into the sky was unheard of, not even mentioned in books. And to make things crazier, it had fused with the rainbow mist.
He imagined the big organizations and high-level creatures who hadn’t arrived in time must be kicking themselves. For two years, everyone had agreed that the light which descended on this area was the dimmest, meaning it wouldn’t be a place of abundance. The assumption was that it was destined to be barren.
But now Black and White Mountain had “exploded” with riches!
What made it even more intense was the possibility that this event involved another type of celestial light from two hundred years ago. Even the top brass in the capital would lose sleep over this. Back then, they had come in full force, only to leave with barely anything, furious enough to want to flatten the mountain.
It was obvious that within days, the name Black and White Mountain would resound once again throughout the vibrant cities.
From his spot in the woods, Qin Ming crushed the half-broken stone in his hand. As expected, there was nothing inside. He held the other half, hesitating. The noise caused by the main treasure had been so terrifying that even this scrap could hold some power.
Even if it didn’t create a big scene, just a small spark of fire from it could set the whole forest ablaze.
After all, the early night had passed. Now, in the deep, dark night, any unusual occurrence would stand out like a sore thumb.
A short while later, Qin Ming left the forest and followed his usual routine, leaving the remaining half of the stone in the mountains.
There was no rush. He calmed himself down. After the storm blew over, people would still be talking about the mysterious treasure from Black and White Mountain, shaking the world. Nothing else would matter.
At that moment, the treasure was causing chaos in the night sky. All sides were closing in on the woman in green, and even some high-level creatures were bleeding.
“Faster!” A woman wrapped in a black fur cloak urged, standing on the back of a giant black bird. Her tall figure glowed faintly, blocking the wind and snow.
The purple-eyed raven beneath her grumbled, “Tang Jin, easy for you to say! I’m flying as fast as I can. That’s a golden roc up ahead, one of the fastest creatures around. The fact that I’m even keeping up makes me a rare bird!”
“Hah, that woman’s fierce! She just made a high-level creature bleed out in midair!” The raven’s voice trembled slightly, and its speed slowed down.
“Don’t be afraid. She’s distracted right now. Hurry and catch up!” Tang Jin urged again, pulling out a pale yellow rope that looked surprisingly ordinary.
“You didn’t take that rope from your teacher’s rafters, did you? Isn’t that the one tied to—”
“Not that one!” Tang Jin snapped, urging the raven forward.
The bird flapped its wings harder, gradually closing the distance.
Up ahead, a red lightning bird had caught up with the woman in green, only to be gravely injured moments later.
In the dark sky, the giant roc she stood on moved swiftly. The woman in green didn’t seem to be doing much, but the gold snowflakes around her twisted and sped up a thousand times. The snow cut through the air, forming strange patterns that sliced into the red lightning bird, making it bleed instantly.
The red lightning bird let out a piercing screech, its body seemingly on fire as a wave of scarlet light exploded from it. It hung in the air like a blazing red sun, illuminating the night sky.
In the blink of an eye, the golden snow melted away under the heat. But before it vanished, the gold light surged, turning into a downpour of golden rain. The rain stretched into thin lines, weaving a deadly net in the air.
With one final cry, the massive red lightning bird was shredded into dozens of pieces by the golden threads. Its blood, flesh, and even its feathers—rich with spiritual energy—were sliced apart, falling to the dark ground below.
The purple-eyed raven gulped, wanting to turn around and flee. But Tang Jin acted quickly. The ordinary-looking rope in her hand suddenly lit up, shooting forward toward the woman in green.
“Someone from Glimmer City?!” The woman on the golden roc recognized the rope the moment she saw it, immediately identifying Tang Jin’s origins.
“Are you sure about this?” the purple-eyed raven asked, clearly nervous.
“Just go! We need to get close, no matter what! If we can grab even half of the treasure, it’ll be worth it!” Tang Jin poured her energy into the glowing rope, sending it speeding toward the woman.
…
That night, Qin Ming slept soundly. He believed in being content with what he had, and even the small gains he’d made were enough to satisfy him. The most mysterious treasures were far out of his reach anyway, so he wasn’t going to waste time longing for them.
The next day, as he entered the mountains with Mu Qing, Cao Long, and Wei Zhi Rou, he heard all sorts of shocking news.
“It was terrifying! The night sky was burning in the distance. Some of the top fighters from the big organizations, and even some high-level creatures, were killed, and they still couldn’t stop the woman in green.”
“The problem is, there weren’t enough flying creatures to keep up. If the real experts could fly, things would’ve turned out differently.”
“Word is that Lord Ling Xu almost broke his leg slapping it in frustration. He regrets not buying a super-fast flying mount. He got so mad, he ran back to Scarlet Dawn City.”
The rumors kept flying, making everyone in the mountains nervous, afraid of drawing the ire of the high-level creatures.
Apparently, someone had even seen the usually calm and monk-like old weasel running through the forest, holding his donkey over his head in a fit of rage, shaking the trees around him.
“Can’t blame him,” Cao Long said from his seat on a giant ox. “Anyone would be spitting blood if they were robbed like that.”
“True. I’m not going near the deep mountains anymore,” said a voice from the treetops.
Cao Long looked up in surprise, spotting a talking bird. Without hesitation, he hurled his spear at the tree, snapping its trunk with a loud crack.
The bird dodged gracefully, soaring away into the night.
Old Liu, a seasoned hunter, chuckled. “No need to get worked up. Don’t worry. When spring comes, and that bird starts nesting, I’ll help you catch its chicks. Might not catch it, but we’ll get its little ones.”
Cao Long clapped his hands in delight. “Perfect! I’d love to raise a few of those birds. Maybe even catch the one from earlier.”
The two of them struck up a lively conversation about catching rare birds.
Before long, Old Liu mentioned, “There aren’t many special spots left in the mountains, but there are still some hidden places. They’re just extremely dangerous. Some of them are home to creatures that have mutated three times. Do you dare mess with them?”
Cao Long’s eyes widened. “There’s still places like that left? I thought the old-timers had already cleared the outer regions. We didn’t even bother looking because we assumed there was nothing left.”
As for the deeper mountains, he wouldn’t go near them—not even with Mu Qing and Wei Zhi Rou by his side. That was way too risky.
Old Liu patted his chest proudly. “I know this mountain like the back of my hand. There are places no one else can find, but I know every inch of them.”
Cao Long’s face lit up. “Deal! If we find something valuable, you’ll get your fair share.”
Mu Qing and Wei Zhi Rou nodded in agreement. Rather than waste time searching for rare nodes, it was better to head straight for a known source of spiritual material.
Qin Ming already knew where Old Liu was planning to take them. The old man had mentioned it one night over drinks.
It was the Fire Bat Cave, located in a tunnel leading deep into the mountain. The path was long and winding, and inside was a Flame Spring where a large colony of fire bats lived. The strongest one had already mutated three times.
The fire bats themselves didn’t have spiritual material, but their droppings nourished a red plant that could help people regenerate and heal.
Qin Ming had been considering sharing his fire snake with Old Liu and Lu Ze at the right time, but it seemed Old Liu had his own methods.
Their trip to the Fire Bat Cave wasn’t without trouble. Some members of the group got hurt, but with Cao Long, Wei Zhi Rou, and Mu Qing leading the way, there wasn’t much to worry about. Apart from leaving behind some seeds, they harvested all the red plants from the cave.
Old Liu was overjoyed, cradling a bundle of glowing red grass. The plant was only three inches tall, but it was packed with life and spiritual energy.
Before the early night fell, Qin Ming hunted down a wild ox. He took the chance to hide the half stone in the animal’s belly, then rejoined Cao Long and the others.
It had been a while since he’d hunted, so bringing back prey seemed reasonable. More importantly, his relationship with the group had grown stronger. Even if someone was watching the people leaving the mountains, they wouldn’t bother questioning Qin Ming as long as he was with Cao Long, Mu Qing, and Old Liu. Everyone left the mountains safely with their spoils.
That night, Qin Ming didn’t even stop for dinner. Once he got home, he immediately started examining the half stone.
“What’s going on?” he muttered, feeling uneasy. He’d noticed something was off when he took the stone from the mountain earlier. The faint pulse he’d expected wasn’t there.
Now, holding it with both hands and concentrating, he still felt nothing unusual.
Since adapting to the strange energy from the crack in the earth, Qin Ming had developed a keen sense for anything nourished by the celestial light. But now, he couldn’t sense anything.
Taking a deep breath, he carefully chipped away at the stone’s surface. If he felt any reaction, he’d stop and wait a few days before cutting it open.
But as he shattered most of the stone, nothing happened. No signs of movement at all.
Just as his heart sank, his fingers brushed against something—something mysterious hidden within. There were no reactions, no glowing light, nothing at all.
“What is this?!” Even as calm as Qin Ming usually was, this discovery nearly made him jump out of his skin.