Chapter 68: Return to the World of Light
This novel is translated and hosted on Bcatranslation
The desert had been “offended” once again. The entire landscape changed color, the sands whipped up, and the night fog surged like furious waves crashing against the towering mountain beside the rugged path. Qin Ming was stunned, his mouth hanging open. What on earth was the mountain lord up to? With such great abilities, couldn’t he just take a normal route? And seriously, the smell—it was way too strong, like an assault on his senses!
At that moment, Meng Xing Hai used a secret method to send a message to Qin Ming. “A few days from now, come find me in Red Glow City to get an update. The Millennial Clan still values their reputation. If the Cui family changes their mind and doesn’t pin you down here in this remote place, then it won’t be too bad.”
Qin Ming turned his head back, squinting through the sandstorm, nodding his thanks to the new city lord. Meng Xing Hai, Li Qing Yue, and Cui Hong quickly dashed out of the desert—this area was just too harsh.
Meanwhile, far away on the rugged path, Xu Sheng wore an expression of sheer frustration. “What’s going on now? Another incident today? And worse than yesterday!” He wanted to just throw his hands up and quit. Being a traveling merchant was getting far too dangerous. There was no future in this job. Forget the group he was leading, even he was scared enough to want to scream out loud.
“Everyone, stay calm. This has nothing to do with us. We’ve always respected the desert…”
Before Xu Sheng could finish, he felt a girl latch onto his back, whimpering. Her sharp fingernails scraped against his neck, making his skin prickle. The dark path was pitch black, nothing could be seen, and her sobs were chilling, “Boo… I see a lot of shadows. I’m so scared…”
Xu Sheng lost his composure entirely. “Wait, aren’t you supposed to be the weird one? What are you scared of?!” Now he was really terrified. Her fluffy “delicate hand” had claws like iron hooks, and he couldn’t pry them off. He made up his mind—if he could just reach Red Glow City safely this time, he’d quit being a traveling merchant for good.
…
“You really think it’s a good idea to keep messing with the desert like this? It’s probably going to hold a grudge, right?” Qin Ming tried to speak, but his mouth filled with sand. He squinted against the wind and swirling grit, quickly pulling a gray robe over his head and face.
“Nah, no worries,” the Old Mountain Boar said, flicking its tiny tail and stepping lightly across the sands. “I’m part of the Secret Sect. I’ve got a ritual vessel from a ceremony we did here, so I can move around without a problem.”
Qin Ming was taken aback. Wait, this was a member of the Secret Sect?
“We really don’t have to be this intense about it, you know?” He couldn’t help but ask.
The Old Mountain Boar grunted, “We’ve got to watch out for that White Wolf. If it’s tailing us, it’ll freak out when it realizes someone did the blood sacrifice ceremony here before. Scare it right off.”
Qin Ming understood now. The White Wolf was the new mountain lord. It had performed some mysterious ritual in the mountains, worshipping the Beast God’s tomb, and its powers had grown immensely afterward.
“Beast God… it’s dead?” Qin Ming’s eyes widened with curiosity.
The Mini Wild Boar snorted. “Just a powerful creature. Who knows if it’s really dead? It could just be its fur that got buried. That White Wolf found it, and without that, it wouldn’t even stand a chance against me. But look at me now—I’m the one running for my life. Ugh, talk about karma. The last two years have not been kind to me.”
“Wait, something’s out there…” Qin Ming said, raising his White Jade Alloy Blade in front of him.
All around them, the sandstorm raged, the mist boiled, and shadows flickered. Greenish torchlight shimmered—a dozen groups approached, their dark green torches painting the air an eerie, sickly green.
The Old Mountain Boar stayed calm. “Relax. Just ignore them. If you don’t freak out, they won’t bother us. With my ritual vessel, they won’t harm us.”
The green torches danced, and massive beasts, several stories high, walked by, their stench like rotting flesh, mixed with the foul scent of burning bodies. It was disgusting. Qin Ming was on edge at first but eventually got used to it. The strange signs and eerie shadows didn’t attack, so he just averted his eyes.
“Aren’t members of the Secret Sect supposed to be all respectful and reverent of the desert? You know, thinking it’s some divine place?”
The Old Mountain Boar snorted. “Not all Secret Sects are the same. Some worship divine beings, they revere them and try to channel their power. Others, though, are more ambitious. They want to control those ‘phenomena’ or places, turn it to their own use, and become gods themselves.”
Qin Ming was surprised, gaining a new understanding of the Secret Sect and the desert. The Old Mountain Boar must have joined one of the more ambitious branches; otherwise, it wouldn’t have this kind of attitude.
“Let’s not keep going right now,” the Old Mountain Boar said, spitting out some sand. “Put up your tent. I’m gonna take a nap here. By the way, did you really meet that one-armed Blade Grandmaster?”
Qin Ming nodded. “Yeah, I did. He taught me blade techniques through the fog—it felt like a mental connection, almost like a dream.”
The Old Mountain Boar looked serious. “Could it be that he’s following the ways of the People Beyond the Boundaries now?”
“You know my master?” Qin Ming asked, curious.
“My father saw him once,” the Old Mountain Boar replied. “He saw him strike down the mountain lord at the time with a single blade stroke—split the night and cut through a storm. It was terrifying!”
Later, Qin Ming asked, “You mentioned something about repaying a debt, some karmic connection in the mountains. I don’t remember saving you though?”
The Old Mountain Boar gritted its teeth. “That White Wolf is seriously vicious. After injuring me, it didn’t kill me straight away. Instead, it shattered my spirit, turning me back into a regular wild boar—wanted me to become prey for the other beasts, to die miserably in the mountains. Back then, I was lost. I was only clear-headed for short periods, the rest of the time just an ordinary boar. And I remember you—you even tried to shoot me with an arrow!”
Qin Ming was taken aback. It was that massive boar—the one that had chased him endlessly.
“Good thing I had a backup plan,” the Old Mountain Boar continued. “Like they say, a cunning boar has three dens. I’d hidden a rare spirit essence in my second den—beneath the Blood Snake’s nest. When you wiped out those snakes, I was nearby, got a bit of clarity, and charged in. That’s how I recovered most of my strength and escaped the mountains. You didn’t mean to save me, but it gave me a second chance. So now, let’s call it even.”
Qin Ming hadn’t expected that. There hadn’t been any three-times-mutated Blood Snake in that nest, like Old Man Liu had suspected—instead, there was a boar’s den underneath.
Soon after, loud snoring echoed from the sand-buried tent. The Old Mountain Boar might look like a precious pet, but the noise it made was enormous, so much so that the nearby shadows seemed disturbed, retreating further away. It could also be that the fearsome blood energy flowing through the Old Mountain Boar while it slept was just too overpoweringly yang, scaring off the shadows.
It slept until the next day. By then, the desert was calm, the strange signs and the mist were all gone, leaving nothing but utter darkness.
“Alright, let’s go!” the Old Mountain Boar said, leading the way.
Qin Ming wasn’t eager to leave just yet, worried that Cui Hong might be waiting for him outside.
“Let’s stick to the edge of the desert for now. I’m not keen on leaving either,” the Old Mountain Boar said. It was worried that the White Wolf hadn’t given up and might be lurking outside to ambush it.
Occasionally, it would wander up onto the rugged path, mimicking an odd bird call. Qin Ming watched as a few Language Sparrows flew down from the mountains, reporting back to the Old Mountain Boar.
Qin Ming’s eyes lit up. He turned to the Old Mountain Boar, asking if it could do him a favor—send one of those sparrows to Red Glow City, to the city lord’s mansion.
Cui Hong had searched the entire path but found no trace of Qin Ming. Afterward, he hurried to look for Cui Chong Yi, feeling utterly drained.
“Ghost lights!” Qin Ming muttered as they reached the desert’s edge, noticing a hazy area within the vast desert.
“Hey, that’s a nice spot,” the Old Mountain Boar said, sounding pleased. “That’s Fire Spring. Usually, people keep it covered, but it’s exposed now. Lucky for us. If we were a bit farther away, the desert darkness would swallow everything, and we wouldn’t see it.”
The Old Mountain Boar was thrilled. This desert oasis was perfect for it to hide in; it didn’t want to leave the desert just yet.
“Meng Xing Hai’s from a Millennial Clan, definitely stronger than Ling Xu. Since he took out Golden Rooster Ridge, this base isn’t safe either. We should leave soon,” the Old Mountain Boar said.
As they approached, Qin Ming overheard a group talking. This was one of the Golden Bandits’ lesser-used hideouts, usually manned by a few ordinary bandits.
“We should head toward Maple Leaf City. Meng is too dangerous. Even the big bosses don’t want to mess with him,” one bandit said.
“Pack up. The last two days, there’ve been howling winds, ghosts everywhere—even if we’re used to it, it’s still creepy,” another added.
“Count heads. One, two, three… ten?!”
The bandit leader went pale. This was just a small base, not like Golden Rooster Ridge with its large force. Only nine of them were supposed to be here, so how was there an extra person?
“One, two… ten!” He counted again, and chills ran down his spine.
The others were terrified too. They looked at each other, each thinking something was wrong. They’d already sealed Fire Spring with the stone slab, so there was barely any light left.
“Run!” They panicked and scattered.
…
Five days later, a Language Sparrow returned from Red Glow City with a letter. The new city lord, Meng Xing Hai, informed Qin Ming that the Cui family’s stance had softened.
“For the next few years, I can’t go to Qinghe City, where the Cui family is, or to Thousand Star City. And I can’t use the name Cui Chong He or claim to be part of the Cui family. Maybe after a few years, I’ll be able to return.”
Qin Ming read the letter, realizing that Meng Xing Hai had rephrased the Cui family’s message into a more polite warning.
“Thousand Star City? What’s that?” He thought about it, and a blurry image of a smiling girl surfaced in his mind—someone linked to that city.
He rubbed his aching temples, deciding not to dwell on it. Soon, he would undergo his fourth awakening and fully restore his memories. Then everything would be clear.
Qin Ming had originally considered leaving Red Glow City for somewhere farther away. But seeing Meng Xing Hai’s goodwill, he figured it might be safer there for now.
Qin Ming knew that Meng Xing Hai probably wasn’t helping him out of admiration—after all, they had only just met, and there was no reason for him to get involved in the Cui family’s internal matters.
“Thanks, Li Qing Yue,” Qin Ming murmured, standing by Fire Spring in the desert, gazing at the pitch-black night.
Meanwhile, in the city lord’s mansion in Red Glow City, Li Qing Yue was talking to Meng Xing Hai about Qin Ming.
“Given his situation, it’s best for those of us who know him to keep our distance. Otherwise, it might make things worse for him. But after leaving the Cui family, his so-called ‘friends’ will probably want nothing to do with him anymore. They’ll cut ties and pretend they never knew him.”
…
Qin Ming stayed in the desert oasis for eleven days before deciding to head to Red Glow City. Cui Hong had indeed roamed the edge of the desert for several days with Cui Chong Yi, hoping to see Qin Ming once more, but it didn’t happen.
“Take care. I hope you reclaim the mountain lord’s position on Black and White Mountain someday,” Qin Ming said, bidding farewell to the Old Mountain Boar.
“Nah, forget it,” the Old Mountain Boar shook its head. “I’ve realized that without overwhelming power, there’s no way to hold that place. It’s crushed everyone who’s tried. Even though it’s fallen apart, it’s still not somewhere ordinary beings can take over. Almost every mountain lord has met a bad end.”
The Old Mountain Boar sighed, a look of realization on its face. “This place is good enough. I’ll stay hidden in the dark desert—no one can touch me here. Revenge can wait a hundred years if need be.”
Qin Ming set off. Two days later, he was nearing Red Glow City. From afar, he could see its bright glow—the Fire Spring there must be quite powerful, lighting up the city even during the shallow night, making it as bright as day.
As he approached, Qin Ming’s emotions surged. Though he had never been there before, he felt no unfamiliarity.
Images flashed in his mind—vague memories from his time in the grand city of Qinghe. After two years of hiding in the dim and distant places, he had returned to a city of ‘daylight.’
Qin Ming’s thoughts churned. Lately, his shattered memories had slowly pieced themselves back together, and old friends and events were resurfacing bit by bit.
“Back when I was still Cui Chong He, I had many old acquaintances in Qinghe City. I knew important figures from many major clans. I’d even met some of the People Beyond the Boundaries, and had connections with a few direct descendants from the Millennial Clan. Back then, I was surrounded by friends.”
He sighed. Now, returning as Qin Ming to the world of ‘daylight,’ how many of those old friends would still be there? How many would greet him if they met? Chances were, even if they did meet, they would not recognize him.