Chapter 65: The Decision of Parents
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
The winter night was cold, but Xu Sheng, the seasoned merchant, was sweating. He knew the desert too well, and that knowledge only made him more fearful.
Something big was definitely happening tonight.
People were panicking, afraid of the unknown. If only they knew the truth, perhaps they wouldn’t be so scared. The darkness made everything worse. You couldn’t even see your hand if you held it right in front of your face.
Everyone felt blind, unable to control their life or their future, leaving everything to fate. Qin Ming, however, was doing a bit better. He could faintly make out the things around him. He stayed calm, gripping his white jade metal knife, ready to swing it if needed.
Suddenly, a woman sobbed behind him, and the sound made everyone’s hearts skip a beat.
“I’m sorry…” the woman cried.
“Then let me go,” a man replied, his voice hoarse and weak. “My neck’s bleeding. My head’s about to fall off.”
…
Not far from the group led by the merchants, Cui Hong was drenched in sweat. After luring away the old elephant, he had quietly returned. He had made a deal with the beast, ensuring that Cui Chong Yi would be safe, so he first came back to find Cui Chong He.
Cui Hong knew a bit about the desert’s mysteries. At his level, as long as he didn’t push his luck, he could pass through the edge without much trouble.
He walked along the mountain wall, only to find himself circling the same spot several times. He quickly murmured a calming spell and activated a secret technique, finally managing to move forward again.
But as he looked back by accident, a chill ran down his spine. Something was following him.
In the thick, endless night fog behind him, there were two huge eyes, cold and indifferent, their gleam piercing through the fog.
The eyeballs were as big as houses, and they were getting closer!
He couldn’t see the creature’s outline, but he could tell it was enormous.
Cui Hong felt a shiver. For someone as powerful as him to not notice it until he turned back by accident—it was unsettling.
In front of the creature, there was a blood-red lantern, relatively small, like the ones people hung outside their homes. It cut through the fog as if someone were holding it, leading the massive beast.
Cui Hong didn’t dare waste any time. He quickened his pace. He had never seen anything like this before. If it was something that came out of the desert, even he wasn’t confident he could handle it.
The fog grew thicker. Even Cui Hong began to lose his senses. He stumbled off the rocky path, almost falling into the desert.
Something was wrong. His feet were wet and sticky. The sand had water on it, still steaming, and he had stepped right in it.
He quickly leaped back to the mountain path, his face darkening as he smelled something pungent. It reeked of urine. Who had done this?
The desert was getting stranger. The heavy fog churned like waves.
Cui Hong glanced back and saw those giant eyes closing in!
Under the lantern’s glow, he could faintly see it—a massive white-furred beast.
“It’s much faster than me. It’s extremely dangerous—it can catch up!” Cui Hong realized.
But as the desert seemed to change, the beast narrowed its eyes and turned away, running back. The red lantern quickly followed, fading into the distance.
“This is bad. It seems like something has angered the desert,” Xu Sheng said, uneasy. This kind of thing was rare. Who would dare act recklessly in a place like this?
The vast desert’s fog surged like waves, slamming against the cliffs. Because of this, Xu Sheng was able to reorient himself.
“What do we do?”
“Don’t panic. It’s none of our business,” Xu Sheng said, trying to calm everyone down.
The woman stopped sobbing, and the torchlight ahead was dimming, nearly disappearing.
Suddenly, someone spoke, trembling, “Xu, Xu Sheng, something’s touching my ankle. It’s covered in stiff hair—it tore my pants!”
It wasn’t just him. Several others felt it too.
Qin Ming vaguely saw a small creature and was about to swing his white jade metal knife.
“Don’t move!” Xu Sheng ordered, but then he fell silent. It was his turn—something was rubbing against him, like he was a tree stump.
“We need to head up the mountain!” He knew they couldn’t leave the edge of the desert before dawn.
The group climbed quickly, taking a gentle slope to reach the lowest part of a nearby cliff. It was still nearly a thousand meters high.
“We’ll rest here tonight. Once the fog clears tomorrow, we’ll continue,” Xu Sheng said.
“Can’t we travel through the mountains?” someone suggested, clearly terrified of the desert.
Xu Sheng shook his head. “The mountains ahead are thousands of meters high, and every part has dangerous creatures. Merchants like us never try to cross these mountains.”
To everyone’s surprise, the man who had earlier cried out that his neck was about to fall off wasn’t dead—he had just lost a lot of blood. Once he was on the cliff, he avoided the woman in the gray robe like she’d given him a fright.
“I’m sorry. It’s my first time traveling far. I was just too nervous. I accidentally hurt you,” the woman said.
“It’s… fine!” the man replied, stepping back.
The young boy nearby paled, quietly glancing at the few black hairs in his hand. When the wind howled, he caught a glimpse of fur under the woman’s gray robe.
The night wasn’t as dark here. The boy wasn’t sure if he was seeing things, but he didn’t dare look again.
“Good, everyone’s safe,” Xu Sheng sighed in relief. As a merchant who often traveled with a group, it wasn’t unusual for them to encounter strange things.
Earlier, at a small town where they resupplied, Xu Sheng had told them they might have to sleep in the wilderness for a couple of days.
Though some suspected he was trying to make extra money, they still ended up buying expensive tents from the town.
Deep into the night, Qin Ming was woken by loud snoring. He quickly drew his white jade metal knife, ready for a fight.
This was ridiculous. How could there be another person in his tent, snoring?
In an instant, Qin Ming tracked the source.
It was a pig!
Qin Ming lit a small fire and saw it clearly. It was a tiny pig, just a bit bigger than his hand.
The pig woke up too, staring at Qin Ming with its small eyes.
Despite its size, the pig looked unusual. Its white tusks extended out of its mouth—definitely not something a young pig should have.
The little wild pig bared its teeth in what almost looked like a smile, startling Qin Ming so much he nearly swung his knife, but he held back. This was too weird.
Today had been nothing but strange occurrences near the desert.
As he looked closer, Qin Ming noticed some black scales on the pig’s face. It seemed familiar.
He remembered when he was recovering from a severe illness. During a hunt in the mountains, he’d come across a massive wild pig, weighing over a thousand jin. It had chased him for a while, going berserk.
That night, when the Moonbug appeared, the giant pig had trembled, retreating and burying itself in the snow.
That giant pig also had black scales on its face, similar to this one.
But the big pig, though mutated, still acted like a wild beast, lacking any intelligence.
This little pig, however, seemed different—its eyes weren’t filled with madness. They were deep, almost wise.
Though it was tiny, Qin Ming couldn’t shake the feeling that it was more like an old boar.
Qin Ming didn’t make a move. He stared at the pig for a moment, then sheathed his knife and retreated to the edge of the tent.
Soon, the tent was filled with the pig’s loud snoring.
The next morning, the fog wasn’t as thick. Xu Sheng counted everyone and let out a sigh of relief—no one was missing. Everyone, human or otherwise, was alive.
Qin Ming noticed some people glaring at him, even seeming a bit angry.
A middle-aged man looked at him and said, “Young man, you look so proper. How could you make such a racket while sleeping? Last night, I thought it was thunder, so I came out to check—only to find it was you snoring!”
Qin Ming opened his mouth but couldn’t say anything. He felt wronged. Should he tell them it was a pig snoring?
“Yeah, kid, you’ve got some lungs! I thought it was a winter storm!” an old man added.
Wu Zheng, with dark circles under his eyes, looked annoyed. He’d chosen to sleep near Qin Ming for safety, not knowing Qin would snore so loudly.
“Let’s not waste time. Boil some water, eat, and let’s move,” Xu Sheng urged.
After an hour on the road, everyone’s faces changed. Someone was moving quickly toward them through the fog.
“Relax, it’s a human,” Wu Zheng whispered.
No one spoke. In these parts, meeting a person was almost as dangerous as meeting a monster. Their group even had some non-humans with them.
Soon, Xu Sheng’s expression changed. He recognized the figure—it was the man who had fought the old elephant the day before. He had long arms, sharp features, and piercing eyes.
Qin Ming knew the long-armed man had come for him, so he stepped forward.
“You all can go,” Cui Hong said, waving at the merchant group.
Xu Sheng hesitated but eventually sighed. Whether the man meant harm or not, it was beyond his control. He had to protect the others.
“Take care, kid,” Xu Sheng called as he led the group away.
Wu Zheng looked back several times before finally catching up.
“Young master!” Cui Hong greeted.
Qin Ming stepped back, saying, “I’m not worthy of such a greeting. Two years ago, you saved me. I should be the one thanking you.”
“It was my duty,” Cui Hong replied.
The desert was dark, and silence filled the air.
Qin Ming’s emotions were all over the place. He had so many questions, but seeing the complex look on Cui Hong’s face yesterday, he realized this reunion might be nothing like he’d imagined.
“Young master, have you… recovered?” Cui Hong asked, his eyes sharp.
“Just call me by my name. ‘Young master’ feels strange,” Qin Ming said.
“Alright then… Chong He, have you recovered?”
Qin Ming wanted to correct the name but hesitated. Since everyone knew him as Cui Chong He, he might as well accept it for now.
“Yes,” Qin Ming replied. He knew that no matter what he said, Cui Hong would know if he was lying. Since the Cui family had sent someone, they must have investigated Silver Vine Town and Twin Trees Village.
“Sigh.” Cui Hong sighed after Qin Ming confirmed. His expression turned conflicted—he seemed troubled, hesitant, even a bit guilty.
“Is something wrong?” Qin Ming asked, feeling uneasy.
“Chong He, do you want to leave this remote place and go to the city?” Cui Hong asked.
Qin Ming stayed silent. They were already on their way. Did he really need to answer?
“Chong He, I’m sorry. I have my orders. You can’t leave this area. You’re meant to live as an ordinary person—wealthy and safe. Everything will be arranged for you,” Cui Hong said, full of apology.
“What do you mean? Are you going to cripple me?” Qin Ming stepped back, entering the desert. His bad feeling was confirmed. The long-armed man’s arrival brought no joy—only chaos, crashing into his fragmented memories.
His steps faltered, his head pounding.
“Who ordered this?!” he shouted.
Cui Hong hesitated but eventually answered, “Your father.”
“And my mother?!” Qin Ming yelled, stepping back further.
“Before I came here, your mother gave the same instructions,” Cui Hong replied.
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
Qin Ming felt like his head was going to explode. His body swayed in the desert. No wonder his life felt pieced together, fake even. Some of his deepest beliefs had shattered.
How could parents do this?
He remembered being ragged, bloody, and frostbitten, struggling to survive in the ice and snow. After being brought to Twin Trees Village, he saw Lu Ze and his wife, who would rather endure hunger and cold themselves than let their sons Wen Rui and Wen Hui suffer. He believed all parents should be like that. If it were him, he would do the same.
“Why?!” Qin Ming gritted his teeth, fighting the pain and trying to remember what had happened.