Chapter 63: A Chance Encounter
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
The huge, crimson bird swooped down under the dark sky, its powerful wings stirring up gusts of wind, sending snow flying everywhere.
“Thank you, Senior Red Roc, for the ride!” Cui Hong leaped down to the ground and politely bowed to the giant red-feathered creature, treating it with the utmost respect, almost like a revered elder.
Cui Chong Yi, a young man in splendid robes, followed suit, bowing as the great bird departed.
“Uncle Hong, is this really where we’re staying?” Chong Yi frowned at the barren landscape ahead. “It’s so desolate. That small town doesn’t seem to offer much. Couldn’t we have arranged a better place for him?”
“Young Master, please don’t call me Uncle Hong. I really can’t afford such familiarity.” Cui Hong quickly waved him off. He looked to be in his thirties, with long arms that seemed even longer due to his martial arts training.
His face was sharp like it had been carved from stone, his eyes keen as he scanned the surroundings. Only after confirming there was no danger did he sigh, “I’m just following orders.”
Cui Chong Yi nodded, realizing pushing further on this topic wasn’t right. He wasn’t even twenty yet, and a small mole near his left eye gave him a slightly distinctive look. Though the mole might hint at sentimentality, his personality was anything but gloomy. He was chatty, even lively.
“Come on, Uncle Hong, we’re out here traveling together. No need to be so formal. I’ll be relying on you to watch my back while I’m out training, so let’s just keep things casual between us, alright?” Chong Yi spoke cheerfully.
Cui Hong didn’t argue, instead he began leading Chong Yi toward Silver Vine Town.
“What’s going on here?” Cui Hong’s expression changed as soon as they arrived at the edge of town. The estate they had come to visit was deserted.
After asking around, he finally relaxed a bit. It turned out the family that lived there hadn’t left Silver Vine Town, but had simply moved to a larger house in the town center.
They continued asking directions until they arrived at the new house.
“Suspicious target spotted.” Somewhere in Silver Vine Town, a little bird with glossy feathers took flight.
A while later, shouts echoed from the large house in the center of town. Cui Hong’s voice was furious, “I gave you enough day gold back then, and this is how you repay me?! Don’t think you’ll get to keep your life now!”
Cui Chong Yi stood up too, his face dark as he slammed his palm down, smashing the tea table into pieces.
“It wasn’t my fault!” the man, in his early forties, stammered, his face drained of all color. “After he woke up, he suddenly clutched his head and started yelling like he’d gone mad. He ran off on his own, and I didn’t dare approach him. When I went to look later, he was already gone.”
Cui Hong’s eyes narrowed dangerously, glowing as if two golden lanterns had been lit within them. He reached out one powerful, long arm and grabbed the man by the collar, lifting him effortlessly.
“He’s fine, I swear!” The man’s face turned pale as he spoke in a rush. “Just a few days ago, I saw him on the street, looking perfectly healthy. He was with some old man visiting the Wu family. He looked like he was doing really well—that illness must be cured!”
“The Wu family?” Chong Yi asked. “Who are they?”
“Their ancestors were quite something—master archers and spearmen. They were undefeated in this entire region back in the day. Though their glory has faded, I figure the young man might be trying to learn some awakening techniques from them.”
Cui Hong released the man, his expression shifting from one moment to the next. He muttered, “Has he truly found a new beginning in this remote place?… Ah, well.”
He frowned, remembering the orders from the stern middle-aged man back in the Cui family—they had been to let Cui Chong He live a normal life here.
“Let’s find Chong He first,” Chong Yi said.
Cui Hong went to visit the Wu family to gather information.
Chong Yi, on the other hand, stayed outside, wanting to experience the local atmosphere of this remote area. He didn’t wander far, just down the street from the Wu residence, browsing the prices of local specialties in a shop.
“Wow, even the birds here are bold,” Chong Yi said as he dodged a small black bird that almost flew right into him.
From a tall locust tree nearby, a white owl looked down at him with half-closed eyes, muttering to itself, “Not just the accent of someone from the noble families in the big city, but his reflexes suggest a certain level of skill too. Sorry, kid, but I’m taking you in for a bit. Whether you’re the right person or not, I’ll figure that out later. For now, you’ll help me douse the fire and prove I’ve been doing my job.”
…
Outside Twin Trees Village, Old Liu showed no reluctance as he came to see Qin Ming off. He had experienced many things in his years, and this was just another farewell for him.
“If things don’t work out outside, come back and keep me company in my old age,” Old Liu said.
“Geez, old man, you really don’t know how to say anything nice, do you?” Qin Ming laughed. “I haven’t even left yet, and you’re already talking like I’ve failed.” He turned to take one last look at the village. In the night, the twin black and white trees stood out, bathed in the glow from the Flame Spring.
Old Liu spoke again, “Don’t underestimate Black and White Mountain. This place was once an absolute land of death, feared by all. Someday, its legend will rise again!”
Qin Ming looked at the mountain, feeling a pang of reluctance. After all, he had lived here for two years.
“Any advice for the journey?” Qin Ming asked.
Old Liu replied, “Most folks are good, but don’t let your guard down. You’re mature enough to understand. Keep an eye out in the city. But let me tell you about two types of people you’ll find outside—ones to be careful of.”
Qin Ming had only asked casually, not expecting a real answer, but Old Liu went on.
“First, the old traveling merchants. Don’t underestimate them, no matter how they look. To roam the lands covered by the Eternal Night for decades takes more than ordinary skills. Some of these merchants—you might never know their true identities, whether they’re simply traders or on some other quest.”
Qin Ming nodded seriously, understanding the weight of Old Liu’s words. He was planning to leave with a merchant caravan today.
“And then, there are the mountain wardens. If they’ve lived to be a hundred and still go in and out of the dark mountains regularly, steer clear. You have no idea what they really are.”
Qin Ming nodded gravely and bid Old Liu farewell.
“The caravan you found for me leaves from Mount Emei. Should I, uh, take a detour and help you deal with those monkeys in the mountains—settle an old score from your youth?” Qin Ming teased.
“Get out of here!” Old Liu grumbled.
Qin Ming laughed, his laughter echoing as he disappeared into the snowy wilderness.
…
When Qin Ming joined the merchant caravan at Mount Emei, he was surprised to find a familiar face. The young man had once delivered tea to him and Old Liu when they were studying a rare manuscript at the Wu household.
“Qin Ming?” Wu Zheng exclaimed, then smiled. “Traveling with someone you know is always a good thing.”
“You’re headed to Scarlet Dawn City too?” Qin Ming asked.
Seventeen-year-old Wu Zheng nodded. “Yeah, I want to see the world. Anyone in my family who’s ever achieved anything started by visiting Scarlet Dawn City.”
Qin Ming almost wanted to mention Old Wu’s exploits there—how he had blown two day coins in a single night, dazzled by the sights, and how that extravagance had nearly ruined the Wu family.
“Remember what you’re there for. Don’t get carried away,” he said instead.
“I’m going to be the next great archer and spearman!” Seventeen-year-old Wu Zheng declared, filled with ambition and dreams of the future.
The caravan leader was Xu Sheng, a man in his early thirties. Unlike the old merchants Old Liu had warned him about, Xu Sheng’s age put Qin Ming somewhat at ease.
Xu Sheng was well-known locally, frequently traveling between Scarlet Dawn City and these remote areas, trading goods, and occasionally leading paid groups between the regions.
“Listen up,” Xu Sheng called to the group. “Ahead is a desert that spans this land. It’s pitch black—absolutely no light. If you fall into it, you’re done for—no one’s ever made it out. Stay close to me, keep to the path along the mountain’s edge, and for heaven’s sake, don’t speak carelessly at the desert’s border. You’ll just be asking for trouble if you do.”
On the second day of their journey, Xu Sheng warned them repeatedly as they neared the desert. The desert was lifeless, with not even the tiniest Flame Spring. Even the most powerful masters would be lost there—unable to see anything, they’d quickly succumb to despair.
They were crossing a vast plain, surrounded only by night and snow. As they approached the desert, vegetation became scarcer and scarcer.
Though it was still twilight, the area ahead was already as dark as midnight, as if an enormous abyss was swallowing everything.
“What’s in the desert that makes it so dangerous to even speak?” someone asked.
Xu Sheng answered, “Even the highest-ranked creatures don’t dare cross the desert. If they’re scared, you should be too. And anyone who doesn’t respect the desert’s power is just asking for misfortune. This isn’t a joke—every desert is like this.”
“But why?” the person pressed.
“Do you really want to know?” Xu Sheng snapped. “There are dozens of stories. Take your pick. One says that these deserts are sacred to certain deities, and anyone who disrespects them will suffer their wrath as a light punishment.”
The group fell silent. If “light punishment” meant losing your life, they didn’t want to think about what “heavy punishment” might be.
“Aren’t those so-called deities just powerful beings?” someone muttered.
“For you, they might as well be gods. Now shut up, or you can leave the caravan,” Xu Sheng barked.
…
Meanwhile, Cui Hong was sitting in the mountains, facing off with an elderly white elephant, listening to its long-winded chatter.
The day before, Chong Yi had been snatched by a massive bird, and Cui Hong had panicked, giving chase deep into the mountains until he learned that a Lightning Beast had mistaken Chong Yi for someone suspicious and taken him away. Fortunately, his life wasn’t in danger.
Cui Hong eventually found the spot, only to be confronted by the old elephant—a creature of unknown power sitting cross-legged in the forest, looking like a wise elder. What made things worse was the fact that it had four tusks, all white as snow.
Cui Hong had felt overwhelmed, assuming he had encountered some mystical descendant of the legendary six-tusked white elephants.
That was until the old elephant accidentally knocked one of its massive tusks loose, revealing it was just a fake, temporarily attached.
Furious, Cui Hong realized he’d wasted precious time. He had thought he was dealing with something extraordinary, but it was just a trickster.
Boom!
A fierce battle erupted in the forest.
…
On the third day, Qin Ming got a glimpse of the darkness of the desert. For an ordinary person awakened, they’d be completely lost in the pitch black—you couldn’t even see your own hand in front of you.
Even with his sharp senses, Qin Ming felt unnerved. Luckily, they stuck close to the mountains that bordered the desert, using the towering peaks as landmarks. As long as they followed the path, they’d be alright.
As for traveling through the mountains themselves—it was almost impossible. The place was filled with all sorts of dangerous creatures, and the terrain was unbelievably treacherous.
Suddenly, there was a tremendous crash ahead. Boulders tumbled down from the mountain, nearly crushing the people at the front of the caravan.
“Back up!” Xu Sheng yelled.
The group watched as a massive, glowing white elephant stood on its hind legs, fighting fiercely with a human. The elephant swung its trunk, each strike flashing like a blade.
Besides the two tusks in its mouth, the elephant had two more attached to its upper limbs, which it wielded like swords.
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
Qin Ming’s eyes narrowed. Even in the dim light of this dark land, he could clearly see the figure battling the elephant.
The glowing elephant illuminated the man’s features.
“That man—long arms, around thirty, with sharp, chiseled features… He looks just like one of those two people I’ve been recalling lately!”
Qin Ming was stunned. He had run into one of the very people who had saved him all those years ago, here, in this desolate place.
Cui Hong, skilled as he was, had a keen sense for being watched. He turned his gaze toward the caravan, his heart pounding as his eyes locked onto the person he had been searching for.