Harmonizing with Light and Dust

In the shallow night, Qin Empire Ming carried the Long-handled Black Gold Hammer on his back and a short sword at his side. Wind sprang beneath his feet as if he were about to lift off the ground, and he rushed into the dense forest at tremendous speed.

He felt a sense of urgency. The nobles from Red Haze City had arrived; once they set foot in the mountains, they would certainly scour the land for all kinds of Spiritual Matter.

He did not want anyone to beat him to the Blood Bamboo Forest. That place concerned his Second New Life.

The night mist had dispersed, though the forest was still somewhat dim. Yet with his eyesight, he could clearly make out the distant scenery.

"The Blood Bamboo Forest won't be so easy to enter. There must still be danger inside."

Otherwise, Feng Yi'an and Shao Chengfeng would have acted long ago. Why wait until death left them with regrets?

"I was getting too restless."

Icy snowflakes drifted onto him, some even slipping down his collar. The chill gradually calmed Qin Empire Ming.

The way he had rushed along just now was no different from Old Man Liu last night—he had practically wished for wings beneath his ribs, so he could fly into the Blood Bamboo Forest and pick up frozen Blood Snakes.

"Calm your heart." Qin Empire Ming slowed his pace and adjusted his breathing amid the mountain forest.

Wasn't it only Second New Life? Even if he failed to obtain Spiritual Matter, he could still break through smoothly with his own foundations.

"When the heart is unsettled, mistakes come easily." Qin Empire Ming stepped over the thick snow, advancing neither hurriedly nor slowly. Gradually, he became steady and calm.

The Blood Bamboo Forest was bound to be extremely dangerous. Even with a Second New Life Evolver like Fu Entao among them, the Mountain Patrol Group had not dared to act for so long. That alone said enough.

Qin Empire Ming moved soundlessly through the dense forest. At last, he dug out the Sword Manual from its hiding place. Its old leather pages had curled at the edges and were heavily worn, showing that someone had often leafed through them in the past.

The entire book was not thick, yet it carried mottled traces of antiquity. He did not know where Fu Entao had found it.

"Read the crystallized toil of those before me, and calm my heart." Qin Empire Ming sat down in the woods.

Before long, he was thoroughly captivated and immersed himself in the book.

Without realizing it, he rose from the snow. He held the leather-bound volume in one hand and gripped the Long-handled Black Gold Hammer in the other, wielding it as a long saber.

It was originally a heavy weapon, yet in his hands it seemed as light as a wooden mallet. He swung it freely, and little by little, it took on a natural, unrestrained beauty.

To achieve New Life, one needed to practice the corresponding scriptures, such as the Black Night Meditation Art and Willpower Skill. They could improve all aspects of the body, including strength, flexibility, and speed.

The various laws of combat, meanwhile, were techniques. They made use of the body's strength and speed to achieve efficient offense and slaughter.

Qin Empire Ming's physical qualities were extremely strong, surpassing even a Golden Foundation. Yet his combat methods had never undergone systematic training; most were practical scattered forms.

Some came from the Wild Style New Life Method he had practiced for years, borrowed from those special movements. Others he had learned from old hunters in the village.

His actual combat ability was formidable, tempered in the mountains.

The forest at night was dangerous. Hunting in such an environment meant facing attacks from all manner of savage birds and beasts. A reaction half a beat too slow meant death.

Though most of what he practiced consisted of scattered forms, enough to be called a Wild Style, their killing power was truly formidable. Fighting beasts for one's life followed no rules; it relied on strength, speed, and the ability to adapt on the spot.

That was precisely why Fu Entao found him exceptionally troublesome. There was no fixed pattern to be found in Qin Ming's attacks, no trace to follow.

Now, as Qin Empire Ming read the Sword Manual, combining it with his experience fighting savage beasts and his insights gleaned between life and death, he became utterly absorbed. Without noticing, he held the book in one hand and the hammer in the other, constantly changing his "saber forms" according to his realizations.

As Qin Empire Ming absorbed the painstaking insights of those before him, he swung with greater force when his excitement rose. Though there was no saber light, saber intent spread through the air, sweeping the snow from the ground into the sky. The Long-handled Black Gold Hammer became a streak of lightning, tearing through the forest's stillness.

He "swung his saber" at a large tree. In an instant, the thick trunk exploded. That "slash" was simply too violent. Some creatures nearby had been eyeing him like tigers eyeing prey and lurking in the shadows for a long time, but now they all fled with their tails tucked between their legs.

Among them was a mutated Black Tiger over four meters long. Yet it turned and ran without hesitation.

"You still dare spy on me here? You won't leave?" Qin Empire Ming spotted a Human-faced Vulture far larger than others of its kind, circling close to the trees only about twenty meters above the ground, unwilling to depart.

He had just grasped the Throwing Blade Stance from the book, and immediately put it into action. The heavy "hammer saber" in his hand vanished into the night in an instant, soaring into the sky.

Splurt!

Blood splashed through the air, and feathers danced across the sky.

The mutated Human-faced Vulture had a wingspan of several meters and had originally been extremely vicious. Yet now it was as fragile as porcelain, blasted apart by Qin Empire Ming's Throwing Blade Stance!

His arms possessed the strength of a thousand jin. There was no suspense in that strike. The Long-handled Black Gold Hammer smashed the enormous vicious bird to pieces, reducing it beyond recognition as great chunks of flesh and tangled feathers rained down.

Some creatures in the distance saw this and immediately fled at a mad dash. They felt that this Two-Legged Human-Beast was exceptionally ferocious and that they had to stay far away. This area was no longer a place they could remain.

"Excellent saber technique!" Qin Empire Ming praised, carrying the Long-handled Black Gold Hammer as he began practicing again.

To him, this Sword Manual was like a lamp in the night mist, illuminating the road ahead. It fused his various practical combat experiences and his Wild Style-leaning combat methods together, rapidly elevating them.

Qin Empire Ming read with fascination. By the end, he had nearly forgotten himself, trapped within it and unable to extricate himself.

He practiced every saber form from beginning to end. Though he could not claim complete enlightenment, his combat skills had indeed improved, and his strength had risen markedly.

This Sword Manual was worth studying. It gave him profound insights and was immensely valuable!

"If Fu Entao had mastered this Sword Manual, he really would have been troublesome." Qin Empire Ming muttered to himself. But if Fu Entao could have fully comprehended this book, he would not have remained at Second New Life.

This was more than a Sword Manual. It also contained certain studies of the New Life Method, which greatly inspired him.

For example, the book mentioned "Heavenly Light." It first appeared during Third New Life, yet it would run through the entire New Life Realm. Even after New Life was completed, one could not do without deeply studying Heavenly Light.

Heavenly Light, in this era where the sun had vanished, carried people's beautiful wishes and bore boundless hopes.

The Heavenly Light mentioned in the book was naturally not the radiance of the sky that people longed for. It was instead a kind of light within the body, bestowed with a beautiful name.

After a person underwent Third New Life, this "Heavenly Light" would initially manifest. It was born within the body, a sign that one's level of life had risen.

At that point, a New Life Evolver's strength would increase greatly. They could fight all kinds of dangerous creatures bare-handed, and all of it was naturally bestowed by "Heavenly Light."

For once Heavenly Light was born in the body, Heavenly Light Force would emerge. It was a special force with extremely powerful penetrating and tearing abilities.

Otherwise, compared with gigantic beasts, New Life Evolvers were far too delicate and small. How could they possibly contend with such colossal creatures?

The emergence of Heavenly Light Force allowed New Life Evolvers to tear open the scales and armor of mutated giant beasts. That force could pierce their tough, solid flesh.

However, within the New Life Realm, Heavenly Light Force could only be spread across the body's surface and extended a short distance beyond one's fists and feet. It could not yet be projected into weapons.

In truth, Heavenly Light Force was merely a broad term. When divided further, there were many kinds. This book had probably passed through many owners, and its pages contained all kinds of insights, notes, and annotations, each left by different hands.

One of them had greatly revered a certain kind of Heavenly Light Force, leaving behind this lament: How I wish I could cultivate Tathagata Force!

For a New Life Evolver from a Wild Style background like Qin Empire Ming, the various records and descriptions in the book filled him with longing.

Unfortunately, although the Sword Manual mentioned the names of several strange and powerful Heavenly Light Forces, it did not record how they could be cultivated.

Qin Empire Ming became lost in thought and pondered for a long time.

Further on, the Sword Manual became somewhat unsuitable for him to read. He had not yet reached that level.

However, among the insights left by those before him, he discovered a highly practical secret method called "Harmonizing with Light and Dust," which could keep oneself safe.

After studying it carefully, cold sweat broke out on him, and he felt fortunate to have discovered this record.

According to those before him, the gaze of Higher Lifeforms was terrifying. With a single glance, they could see the strength or weakness of life force within other living beings. Even in the dead of night, they could "see" biological fields strong or weak.

That was terrifying. Lower lifeforms had no secrets before higher lifeforms.

Especially after Heavenly Light was born within a New Life Evolver or creature, to Higher Lifeforms, it was simply like cluster after cluster of firelight in the darkness.

"I have to master it quickly!" He wiped away cold sweat, suddenly feeling that the mountains were a dangerous place.

Fortunately, Harmonizing with Light and Dust was merely a practical secret method, not some profound, difficult, obscure scripture.

"Visualize emptiness and stillness; let the body be like withered wood, the heart like cold ashes. Conceal life force and gradually make it faint; this may also dim the spirit and vitality." He slowly gained some understanding and could be considered a beginner.

Qin Empire Ming sat quietly there for a long while, silently contemplating and probing. Gradually, he discovered more of its mysteries. Harmonizing with Light and Dust could conceal part of one's life force, allowing one to blend among ordinary people.

Moreover, this "degree" could be controlled. Once cultivated to a certain level, even if Heavenly Light was born in the body after Third New Life, it could still be concealed when necessary.

Only then did Qin Empire Ming let out a long breath.

But after thinking it over carefully, he gave a mute laugh. Perhaps his sense of danger was too strong. Even if a Higher Lifeform passed through this place and could see the strength of his life force at a glance, it probably would not care, right? After all, he had only undergone New Life once. In the eyes of such creatures, he was merely one among the countless living beings of the mountains.

Then he thought of the higher-ups of Red Haze City. Since they could negotiate and confront the mysterious lifeforms in the mountains, they should possess equivalent abilities as well.

"Trying to swallow too much only leads to indigestion. What I learned today is enough. I need to consolidate it, master it, and firmly grasp it all!" Qin Empire Ming rose to his feet, found a secluded spot, and buried the Sword Manual again.

Without question, he had gained enormously today. After carefully studying those saber forms and integrating his own realizations, his strength had increased tremendously.

Qin Empire Ming muttered, "If I were to meet Fu Entao, Feng Yi'an, and the others now and fight them again, I think it would be much easier."

Most importantly, this book had broadened his horizons, allowing him to understand many things he had never encountered before.

"Fu Entao is actually not a bad person. He gave me a good book."

After leaving this dense forest, he headed toward the Blood Bamboo Forest.