Eternal Night

The day the sun set and never rose again...

***Eternal Night. Heaven and earth lay shrouded in darkness, as though an unfathomable abyss were about to swallow everything.

Daylight had long since become the past, a legend.

Across the vast frozen earth, bitter winds howled and blizzards crashed down, piling half a man's height deep upon the ground.

Double Tree Village was half-buried beneath the snow.

There were only forty or fifty households here, a village seemingly forgotten by time. In the darkness, the clustered houses showed only vague outlines.

Amid the moaning gale, quite a few rooftops swayed faintly, as if they were about to be torn away.

Qin Ming was terribly weak. Hunger woke him now, his stomach growling without pause. In the frigid night, the thought of any food at all made him swallow saliva.

Not to mention steaming meat or succulent fruits—even the thought of a cold, hard bun brought sweetness surging into his mouth and saliva flooding beneath his tongue.

The world was frozen solid, and both inside and outside the house were so dark it felt suffocating.

Qin Ming wrapped his tattered quilt tighter around himself. Even the heated brick bed could not ward off the bitter cold outside. The air he breathed into his lungs felt like icy shards scraping through them, carrying a faint sting.

He restrained himself and stopped thinking about food. Otherwise, sour fluid would rise from his stomach and mouth.

After calming himself somewhat, he suddenly realized that his mind was clear now, no longer muddled as it had been before. Could the "strange illness" be leaving him? Though hunger and cold pressed in from all sides, a long-standing illness finally showed signs of turning. Light returned to his eyes as he waited for Shallow Night to arrive.

As time passed, the wind gradually weakened, and the goose-feather snow that had been whipped through the air slowly turned into scattered little flakes.

Movement came from the neighboring courtyard, followed by voices. It was a young married couple, Lu Ze and Liang Wanqing.

"Where are you going? Are you bringing food to Qin Ming again?" Liang Wanqing's voice gradually rose.

"He was gravely ill. He's only sixteen or seventeen and lives all alone. It's pitiful," Lu Ze said quietly.

"Do you know there isn't much food left at home either? If this keeps up, the two children will go hungry!" Liang Wanqing said emotionally.

"The blizzard has stopped. We'll find a way," Lu Ze said, Looking At the pitch-black heavens and earth.

Hearing the couple argue, Qin Ming felt deeply ashamed. He no longer wanted to accept Lu Ze's kindness. In times like these, no household had it easy.

He had already risen from the heated brick bed. Even after putting on his cotton clothes, he still felt cold, so he found an old fur coat in the cabinet and wrapped it around himself. He paced back and forth through the pitch-black room, rubbing his hands constantly.

After his severe illness, his tall body had become somewhat thin. Even his black hair, hanging past his shoulders, had lost some of its luster. His handsome face was slightly pale, but his clear eyes were bright and spirited. Though illness still colored his features, he possessed an air of steadfast resolve.

A month ago, he had struggled to escape from the mountains. At the time, his hands and feet had already begun to turn black, and he had remained gravely ill ever since.

As for the several companions who had traveled with him, they had died on the very day they returned.

Plagued by the "strange illness," Qin Ming had been considered unlikely to survive by many people.

Yet he had endured until now, and he was clearly getting better.

Thought Of the unknown dangers in the mountains, he still felt lingering fear even now.

The darkness outside changed, as though ink had fallen into a small amount of clear water and diluted. Shallow Night arrived—the so-called "daytime."

Clearly, it was only slightly better than Deep Night. The world remained steeped in darkness, and distant scenery could not be seen clearly.

The Courtyard Gate was pushed open, and Lu Ze arrived. Strong and sturdy, he used an iron shovel to push the snow to both sides, quickly clearing a path to the door.

Qin Ming opened the door, which had been sealed shut by snow, and called out, "Brother Lu."

Lu Ze carried a glowing cloth bag and poured its contents into a stone basin in the snow. A pile of brilliant red stones tumbled down, clinking crisply as their light cut through the night.

These were Sun Stones. Their very name carried people's beautiful hopes for this era, and now they illuminated the courtyard.

Lu Ze said in surprise, "Little Qin, you seem much more spirited."

Qin Ming invited him inside and truthfully told him what had happened. His mind was no longer muddled; he was likely truly recovering.

Lu Ze said Qin Ming's life was hard to take, that surviving the "strange illness" from the mountains was truly Not Easy. He poured the remaining glowing stones from the cloth bag into a copper basin in the room, and the entire room immediately shone brightly.

Sun Stones came from Fire Spring. Though fiery haze billowed from them, they were nowhere near as warm as the human body. After several hours, they would extinguish on their own and had to be returned to Fire Spring to be nurtured anew.

"Here!" Lu Ze handed over a food box.

Qin Ming had been gravely ill for a month. His stored food had run out many days ago, and he had relied entirely on Lu Ze's aid. Having overheard the couple's argument not long before and learned that their circumstances were not good either, he felt guilty.

"Hurry and eat it while it's hot." Lu Ze was a straightforward man who repaid kindness. Back then, he had become lost in the boundless black Dense Forest, and Qin Ming had called his name again and again, guiding him back.

Looking at the steaming black-flour bun, Qin Ming's intense hunger made him want to swallow saliva.

"Why are you standing there? Your body isn't well yet. You can't recover if you go hungry. Are you still being so formal with me?" Lu Ze directly placed the food box in his hands.

"Brother Lu!" In the end, Qin Ming did not stand on ceremony. He tore off a piece of the bun. It felt coarse to the touch, but he wolfed it down, finding it sweet and fragrant in his mouth.

"If anything comes up, call for me." Lu Ze turned and left.

As his hunger receded, Qin Ming became more energetic. Every discomfort in his body was fading, and he was certain his lingering illness was about to leave him.

He wanted to go outside for some air and take a walk. He pushed open the Courtyard Gate and came out onto the street. The weather was exceptionally cold, and white mist billowed from his mouth and nose with every breath.

During Shallow Night—the "daytime" of this era—the fiery haze of Sun Stones flowed from every household, lending the street a faint glow as well.

"Qin Ming, is your body all right now?" someone noticed him.

"Little Qin, let me take a look." Grandma Zhou from North Street caught hold of him and examined him from every angle, finding that his complexion was much better than the last time she had seen him.

Qin Ming smiled and greeted them, telling them that he truly was almost recovered.

There were not many people at the intersection, but all wore incredulous expressions. Could someone afflicted by the "strange illness" actually recover? "Little Qin, even if you're getting better, don't rush to go outside. It's dangerous out there now," Grandma Zhou reminded him, Looking At the ink-splashed black world beyond the village.

The other neighbors also looked troubled. The times were bad, and the lack of food was now a major problem. If this continued, people would starve to death.

Qin Ming noticed that Grandma Zhou, once kind and benevolent, now lacked color in her face. Her body had grown so thin and frail that she seemed likely to topple over with a gust of wind.

After the others left, Grandma Zhou carefully took several pieces of dried Earth Sweet Potato from her pocket and pressed them into Qin Ming's hand.

Qin Ming hurriedly pushed them back. The Old Woman was already so advanced in years and wore hunger plainly on her face—how could he possibly accept the rations she needed to get by?

Every household had cleared the road near its own home, but not thoroughly. Snow still remained, crunching beneath Qin Ming's feet as he exhaled white vapor and walked onward.

Near the Village Entrance, he stopped.

Before a larger courtyard stood a small threshing ground. A Black Mountain Goat, as tall as an adult's shoulder, pulled a stone mill and ground mutant wheat like silver grains into powder.

Not everyone lacked food. Clearly, the household at the Village Entrance was doing fairly well.

Qin Ming stared at the Black Mountain Goat, his eyes shining. Now that even food and warmth had become problems, he had naturally not eaten meat for a long time. He craved it beyond measure.

The Black Mountain Goat was rather large, with thick horns and a somewhat fierce appearance. Sensing Qin Ming's gaze, it seemed startled, and its raised tail drooped at once.

"Little Qin, you've recovered? Surviving a great disaster means blessings will follow." A solidly built, bearded middle-aged man stood at the Courtyard Gate. Thinking Qin Ming was looking at the mutated grain beneath the millstone—Silver Wheat—he continued, "There are many mouths in my family, and we go through food too quickly. This is also our last store of grain."

"Uncle Yang, you're impressive. Even in times like these, you can Take Care Of such a large family," Qin Ming said with a smile. Naturally, he did not believe the man had only one bag of Silver Wheat left.

After greeting Yang Yongqing, Qin Ming continued all the way to the Village Entrance.

Fire Spring lay ahead, illuminating the surrounding area brightly.

It had been piled up and enclosed with stones, forming a pool roughly sixteen feet across. The stone enclosure was no higher than the knee, and within it lay a crimson radiance.

In this season of blizzards, although the Fire Spring inside was close to drying up and no longer gushed forth in streams, flames still coiled around it.

Two trees stood in the pool—the origin of Double Tree Village's name. One bore pitch-black leaves, the other snow-white leaves, and neither withered in winter.