All in Night Prefecture Have a Duty to Defend Their Land [Two Chapters Combined]

In the vast, uninhabited area, the night was as dark as ink.

As expected of one of the most popular mounts among the young nobles of the Great Yu Dynasty, the Thunder King Bird flew precisely along the way it had come, as if it were an old horse that knew the way well, under the long night.

A group of Hunter-Gatherers, their eyes sharp, rode on powerful flying beasts, hot on their heels.

This was the first time Qin Ming had ever received such extraordinary treatment, being chased by more than a dozen experts at the Fourth Realm.

To be precise, there was another Master with them, and although he, like Jin Yuan, was physically broken and his Mental Field was torn apart, he was still the greatest threat.

Further away, many more Hunter-Gatherers from the Third Realm followed.

Clearly, they didn't want to let go of the big fish— Jin Yuan, a Master-level figure who was too conspicuous. They regarded strongmen of this level as important targets for revenge.

"Senior, how are you? Are you feeling unwell?" Qin Ming asked.

It must be said that the Master-level figure is truly amazing. After piecing together Jin Yuan's shattered body, he was already able to sit on the bird's back.

However, his battle suit was torn, his entire body was covered in crimson, and the cracks on his neck, chest, spine, and thighs were clearly visible and still oozing blood.

"It's alright, I won't die," the old man said weakly.

Qin Ming took out the Auspicious Beast Blood and handed it over. Even though it was not as effective as the first time he took it, the rich Spiritual Matter it contained should still be of great use in healing wounds.

Jin Yuan didn't hold back this time, gulping down a large mouthful. This Blood Medicine was useless against his shattered Mental Field, but at least it could keep his body from falling apart.

Qin Ming asked, "Senior, time was too tight just now, is there anything your body is lacking...?"

What was clearly a terrible situation still caused the Five Elements Palace Master's lips to tremble slightly upon hearing his words. Jin Yuan replied, "Generally speaking, it's alright."

"Ah, something was ultimately overlooked?" Qin Ming exclaimed in surprise.

Jin Yuan shook his head and said, "It's nothing, just a few old teeth. I've been wanting to replace them for a while now."

Qin Ming breathed a sigh of relief. As long as he didn't lose a piece of his skull, a fragment of his heart, or anything else, everything would be fine.

"So, we're already close to the edge of the no-man's-land, faster than I thought!" Qin Ming exclaimed with delight.

They broke through the darkness, where Fire Spring appeared ahead, and a vast mountain forest came into view. After crossing it, they came to a great grassland, where mythical creatures resembling celestial horses galloped about.

Suddenly, a dragon's roar resounded through the sky.

That was a storm of consciousness, sweeping over fiercely.

The Thunder King Bird accelerated and changed its flight path, nimbly avoiding the attack.

Behind them, flames swirled, and a red monster flapped its wings, closing the distance considerably; it was surprisingly no slower than the Thunder King Bird, known for its speed.

"They have reinforcements, several more experts have arrived, and that Fire Dragon might catch up with us," Jin Yuan said.

The Fire Dragon in the Early Fourth Realm resembles a lizard-crocodile, has a pair of huge fleshy wings, and its whole body is filled with fire. It is almost as fast as the strange birds in the Late Fourth Realm. It has just swallowed the Secret Medicine and has begun to accelerate.

The Master among the Hunter-Gatherers, whose body had been pieced back together, stood on the dragon's back alongside the Fire Dragon Knight, staring intently in their direction.

"Come on, let's fight again!" Jin Yuan stood up, intimidating his opponent.

In the end, the Master-level expert among the Hunter-Gatherers restrained himself. He knew that his opponent was truly willing to fight to the death and had been prepared to take him down with him from the start.

Now, they have the upper hand and can completely surround and hunt down the other side.

"You cannot escape; you will all die in the end," shouted a Hunter-Gatherers at the Mid Fourth Realm, his mental energy surging intensely.

Their mounts had all taken Secret Medicine, increasing their speed, intending to wait for the Thunder King Bird to be exhausted before taking down their opponent.

"Do you know what happened to your companions? Most of them were killed, and they died horribly!" an old Hunter-Gatherers laughed, his beard and hands stained with blood.

Of course, they were all communicating telepathically, since their mounts were all far faster than the speed of sound.

"Your two ships of men are truly pathetic. Your so-called experts, who are at the same level as me, couldn't even withstand four of my strikes. I cleaved them and their mounts in two in the night sky, drenched in their hot blood. It was quite a treat."

Some Hunter-Gatherers laughed loudly behind them, provoking Qin Ming and Jin Yuan.

They weren't exaggerating; the bloodstains on their armor were intentional, meant to highlight their ferocity and bravery.

"So many famous figures, so many genius girls, I smashed them all with one blow!" shouted a burly man with a thick beard.

The Fourth Realm experts from the Two-Headed Werewolf Race and Fire Lizard Race also joined in the laughter.

A cold glint appeared in Jin Yuan's eyes as he stared intently at them.

Immediately, the Hunter-Gatherers terrified. After all, he was a Master. If he targeted one of them and attacked, they would probably not survive.

Qin Ming turned around and said, "A bunch of stray dogs, your stronghold has just been wiped out and more than 90% of your forces have been wiped out. What face do you have to be arrogant in front of me? Just barking!"

This immediately struck a nerve with the group of Hunter-Gatherers. Their homeland was gone, wiped out by the combined forces of several Ancestor and the Sun Elf Race. This was a pain that was hard to heal in their hearts.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have traveled hundreds of thousands of miles to seek refuge with the demons of the God's Fall Plain in order to avenge their nemesis.

A middle-aged Hunter-Gatherers, now fierce, said, "Regardless, we felt good just now. Every knife drew blood, every blow broke bone. Now it's your turn."

Although Qin Ming's killing intent surged within him, his expression remained calm as he coldly spoke, "That day, in the decisive battle in the desert, I single-handedly slew 158 of your younger generation, suppressing them to the point of being unable to raise their heads. Among them were several seed-level prodigies. Did I boast to you? By the way, half a day ago, when I encountered you, I also killed more than a dozen of you. You are nothing but a band of bandits, utterly vulnerable!"

He didn't use any exaggerated words, but the bloody truth was very damaging, deeply wounding these Hunter-Gatherers.

This is a group of seasoned bandits. Their descendants and nephews, all eager to conquer this beautiful land and obtain resources from various ancestral Ancestral Court to improve themselves, rushed to join the expedition. In the end, they were all wiped out, not one of them escaped back. Now, their eyes are red with rage.

A lean, middle-aged man exhaled a stream of energy like lightning, saying, "I will definitely skin you alive, tear you to pieces, and use your soul oil to make the flame for a lamp, refining you for over a hundred years!"

Qin Ming turned around and said, "Why are you getting so worked up? Let's talk this out!"

A burly man with a ferocious expression said, "Kid, I hope you're still this glib when I catch you. I'll make you lick my shoes for a hundred years!"

Qin Ming chuckled and said, "What's wrong with you all? You were laughing just now, and you turn on me in an instant. You keep bringing up a hundred years at a time. Do you even have that many years to live? Since you care so much about your nephews and nieces who died in the desert, you might as well go and reunite with them sooner rather than later."

"You little brat, I'll let you talk back for now, but I'll teach you a lesson later!"

The group of pursuers stopped uttering threats; their attempts to provoke the enemy had backfired, leaving them with a heavy heart. The thought that their powerful Nomadic Hunting Civilization had been destroyed filled them with unbearable grief.

"Be careful of that ghost; it's been following us and is lurking nearby," Jin Yuan warned discreetly.

It drifted in the night sky, never truly leaving.

"How did it come to target us?" Qin Ming asked gravely.

This involves Earth Immortal, and even if it's just a layer of its Immortal Skin that's been peeled off, it's still incredibly frightening.

Jin Yuan said, "Either it has its eye on you, making you suitable for it to possess or seize your body, or it has its eye on the two of us severely injured Master, wanting to devour our souls to replenish itself."

In short, the immortal Immortal Skin followed with intense malice.

"Be careful." Jin Yuan already knew what Qin Ming was going to do.

"Yes!" Qin Ming nodded solemnly.

He turned around and shouted, "You band of bandits, do you intend to chase me all the way to the God's Fall Plain? You're destined to be crushed by the senior figures there!"

He then added, "There are still many Ancestor in the desert, who may have already begun their return journey and could catch up with you soon. You are about to die."

"Speed up!" A group of Hunter-Gatherers' eyes flashed with cold light as they fed their mounts Secret Medicine. They had already caught up to this point and couldn't give up; they wanted to quickly take care of the two ahead.

Qin Ming his voice, instructing the Thunder King Bird to slow down slightly, allowing the others to close the distance.

"Sizzle!"

Someone drew a bow and shot an arrow, seemingly distorting the night sky.

Master Jin Yuan formed Spiritual Field around his body, shredding dozens of Arrow Feathers.

"Almost there!" Qin Ming saw the forest appear ahead and the Fire Spring increase in number; he knew he was about to reach his destination.

During this process, the eighteen riders drew closer, and the Hunter-Gatherers laughed and stopped firing arrows, believing they would soon be able to surround and hunt their opponents.

Qin Ming turned around and saw them all grinning maliciously. Their blood-stained armor, gleaming butcher knives, and heavy iron rods were all extremely glaring. A chill ran deep in his eyes.

On the land, in a vast primeval forest, Fire Spring converge to form lakes, making this place exceptionally radiant.

Qin Ming rode the Thunder King Bird, suddenly Chongxiao and rapidly ascending. Moreover, fearing that it might be unstable and that he might alert certain "beings," he also hurled a long spear towards the ground.

Boom!

Suddenly, a gigantic tongue of fire shot into the night sky from the ground, thousands of meters long, like a tidal wave, shattering the thick night fog.

The commotion was extremely terrifying, louder than Heavenly Thunder, deafening.

Even though Qin Ming was prepared, he almost fell for her advances.

The terrifying shockwave, the massive sonic boom, and the expanding fiery red runes meant that if he were to touch them, he would surely be trapped in a desperate situation.

The Thunder King Bird tumbled through the turbulent night fog, but fortunately, it was not affected by the light emitted from that enormous tongue.

It could be said that they were barely on the borderline, essentially stepping on a death line.

Qin Ming had no choice but to take this risk; he worried that hiding at a sufficiently safe height would allow a group of pursuers to escape as well.

"Ah..."

A group of Hunter-Gatherers screamed in terror. They were in high spirits, chasing their prey, when suddenly they found themselves in grave danger.

Even Qin Ming managed to avoid it, let alone those who were unprepared.

Back when Qin Ming and his group were traveling to the desert in their spaceship, they were attacked here, and he had a very deep impression of this place.

According to Yu Gensheng, this tongue of fire might be a mysterious and terrifying "natural phenomenon".

Another possibility is that this was the "legacy" of a great figure in the Esoteric Sect who entered the depths of the Night Mist World to break through a barrier, but an accident occurred, and that Ancestor failed.

The enormous, fiery red tongue, covered in dense runes, imprisoned everyone behind it; not a single Hunter-Gatherers could escape.

The Fire Dragon howled in agony; its enormous body was like a mosquito in front of this "tongue".

The Hunter-Gatherers's armor shattered instantly, "dissolving" within the runes; even Master at the Mid-Fifth Realm couldn't withstand it.

His pieced-together body disintegrated in an instant, his Consciousness Spirit Light trying to break free, but the "tongue" instantly "stuck" him back together.

Even though Qin Ming and Jin Yuan had hidden far enough away, they were still terrified. The Thunder King Bird, suspended high in the sky, was trembling slightly.

That "tongue" was truly terrifying, definitely possessing the combat power of a "powerful Ancestor".

The mounts wailed, but could not struggle at all, and quickly turned into blood and bones.

"You!"

The Hunter-Gatherers gazed at Qin Ming in the distance, filled with anger, grief, and frustration, but they could do nothing about it.

Their physical bodies were destroyed instantly, and their Divine Intent could not escape either; it was torn apart in an instant and quickly "licked clean."

At this moment, only the howling of a vengeful ghost remained.

The Immortal Skin was also stuck to the fiery red tongue, the runes eroding it until it was incredibly dull, making it difficult to break free for a time.

"Although it's related to Earth Immortal, it's not as powerful as I imagined," Qin Ming said, opening his Eye of New Life to observe it.

Puff!

Finally, the enormous, mountain-like tongue spat it out, as if it were filled with utter disgust.

It must be said that the skin of the Earth Immortal is really tough, as it was not damaged. However, it became extremely dull, lost its luster, and stopped bleeding.

It wobbled and disappeared into the night, its speed greatly reduced.

"If you cause any more trouble in the future, I'll take you to Double Tree Village and fly Old Man Liu's kite to wear you out!" Qin Ming stared at its departing afterimage.

Jin Yuan said, "Your contribution this time is considerable. More than a dozen experts at the Fourth Realm, and a half-crippled Master, were wiped out. This is definitely half of the elite force of that group."

Qin Ming said, "If it weren't for your severe injury to that Master, I wouldn't have been able to achieve this merit; I would have died long ago."

He really wanted to wait here and wipe out the group of the Third Realm pursuers behind him, but to be on the safe side, he decided to continue on his way. After all, there were still Master among the Hunter-Gatherers behind him!

The Thunder King Bird complained that it had been flying for almost a day and was very tired, needing to rest.

"Alright, let's rest nearby." Qin Ming naturally agreed, as they were counting on it for the rest of the journey.

Just as they had rested enough, the group of young Hunter-Gatherers who had been following the Fourth Realm expert arrived.

After repeatedly investigating and confirming that there were no Master-level figures present, Qin Ming and Jin Yuan immediately took action.

Jin Yuan, watching from the sidelines, was truly shocked to see Qin Ming wielding the Thunder King Bird and cleaving through the Third Realm Hunter-Gatherers.

Although he had long heard of Qin Ming's extraordinary talent, he was still quite surprised to witness him kill a Hunter-Gatherers was a level higher than himself.

Because Qin Ming's speed in killing enemies was too fast, and he used various methods of the Five-Element Extraordinary Art.

The more he looked, the more shaken he became. As the Mutton Fat Jade Iron Saber continued to slash, the Five Elements Divine Light shone in all directions, and all the people and flying beasts in mid-air were killed.

Jin Yuan felt that this young man was even more powerful than those Ancestor in their youth!

"Your Five-Element Extraordinary Art Skill is quite good."

"Please enlighten me, senior." After sheathing his sword, Qin Ming killed all eighteen riders without even getting his clothes stained with blood, thus avenging the Bloody Grudge of those who had perished.

Jin Yuan nodded, becoming more and more satisfied with him. No wonder Yu Gensheng had mentioned asking him for guidance many times.

"Alright, let's talk on the way." On the way, the Master began to talk to Qin Ming about the Five Elements Divine Skill.

The most crucial aspect is mastering five Extraordinary Art related to the Five Elements. As for the methods of controlling them, although they are secret, they are not difficult to learn.

Qin Ming had already mastered the River Luo Scripture and the Wu Ji Scripture, and had even perfected Li Fire Scripture Secret Treasure. Now, listening to his explanation was like having his window lattice opened.

Before this, he had been practicing various methods of the Five Elements Theory on his own, and he would have mastered it sooner or later; this was just an earlier step.

"Five-Colored Divine Light, five-elemental escape techniques, Five-Colored Sword Wings, Five Finger Mountain..."

Along the way, Qin Ming was refining his skills. Some of them he had already mastered, while others, which were somewhat rough before, he had now thoroughly mastered.

The more Jin Yuan taught, the more unsettled he became. This young man was learning things too quickly, and he had already dabbled in many of the secret techniques himself.

It can be said that the two had a very pleasant conversation along the way, and all the topics were related to the Five Elements.

The night was endless as the Thunder King Bird traversed the sky, resting several times along the way, and finally approached the God's Fall Plain on the sixth day.

Jin Yuan sighed, "We must never be careless. The Night Mist World is full of dangers. If we hadn't coveted the ancient Grotto-Heaven that might exist in the sky, none of this would have happened. Alas!"

He survived a bloody battle in the desert, but nearly died on his way home.

"Night Prefecture, we're finally back." Jin Yuan gazed ahead.

Night Prefecture, land shrouded in darkness.

These are the names used by the Immortal Path, the Esoteric Sect, and the New Life Path to refer to the territory that has already been developed.

After learning of the dangers in the distance, they abandoned names such as Divine Land and Eastern Land.

As for those derogatory terms used by distant civilizations: the East Corner, the dusty corner, they would naturally not accept them.

Cangwu City, a famous city on the edge of the world, is three hundred miles away from the God's Fall Plain and is considered the largest city in the western part of Night Prefecture.

Qin Ming and Jin Yuan successfully entered the city, where they needed to rest and report on the situation they encountered along the way.

Of course, Qin Ming didn't need to worry about these things; Master Jin Yuan would personally meet with some important figures.

This formidable pass, renowned throughout the western frontier, once withstood countless attacks from demons and monsters; outside the city, rivers of blood flowed and demon corpses littered the ground.

"Currently, no major battle has broken out on the God's Fall Plain." Qin Ming was quite surprised to learn the latest situation after returning.

Currently, in the peripheral regions of the world, although there is no bloodshed, the atmosphere is extremely tense.

The Ancestor who remained behind and the powerful figures from the forbidden lands all came from the west, each guarding a territory. Even when Kunling was unsealed, the powerful figures from the Ghost Path and the masters from the Immortal Dojo Present World also appeared.

In Night Prefecture, all masters, regardless of race or path, must defend their territory if faced with an invasion by foreign enemies.

These are rules established long ago by the Ancestor of each path and the creatures of the forbidden lands.

This time, a great commotion actually occurred deep within the God's Fall Plain. It is said that a large number of demons of various races have arrived from the southwest, forming a super alliance.

Even Godlike creatures have appeared, and there's more than one of them, seemingly poised to storm into Night Prefecture and raze the Ancestral Court of all religions.

Clearly, they had connections with the Nomadic Hunting Civilization and communicated with each other, which is why they chose this Nodes time to attack.

At that time, in this edge of the world, on the western front of Night Prefecture, the tension was so high that the air seemed to freeze, and a bloody battle was about to break out.

Some of the creatures in the desolate lands are very strong, but their confidence immediately wavered after seeing the situation on the other side.

At a critical moment, a mysterious powerful figure appeared in Night Prefecture, venturing alone into the God's Fall Plain to negotiate with the Godlike creatures.

On that day, many people saw that although the mysterious powerhouse was surrounded by towering Immortal Mist, his form seemed even more terrifying than that of a demon, enormous in size, with a faint black outline visible in the shadows.

At that moment, a human Grandmaster's voice trembled, and his eyes reddened slightly, as if he recognized who it was.

"Ancestor!" someone heard him whisper.

However, the enormous black monster did not resemble a human at all.

"It is said that on that day, the mysterious powerful figure, carrying an old decree left over from the ancient Jade Capital, went alone. Mysterious characters illuminated the void, and some Godlike creatures retreated directly."

Otherwise, a major war would have already broken out.

However, the Demon Coalition did not withdraw, and became increasingly restless. They were backed by a powerful force and could launch an attack at any time.

This is something that people in Cangwu City are still talking about to this day.

Now that the Nomadic Hunting Civilization has been wiped out and more Ancestor have returned, the atmosphere on the God's Fall Plain has not eased but has become even more tense.

Therefore, Qin Ming did not see a single acquaintance in the city; they had all gone to the border.

Night Prefecture has a long-standing tradition of defending against external enemies, but it never wanted the war to occur within its borders. Now, all its forces have advanced westward to the edge of the world.

The Western Territory border is too long, but fortunately there are quite a few experts from each of the roads and the Jedi, each guarding their own territory and able to contact each other instantly.

The fact that Grandmaster Level figure was standing at the forefront clearly indicates that he had his sights set on the important figure on the other side.

"It's rumored that experts from the Three Great Dynasties have all arrived and are all deployed, so there's a high probability of another Great Wilderness Expansion."

There were even rumors that the River God of the Shuyu River had been summoned.

Upon hearing this, Qin Ming felt a headache coming on. This seemed to concern the fate of his clan, and a major battle was about to begin, with all forces from all sides mobilized. This was far more important than fighting the Nomadic Hunting Civilization.

Some renowned figures, upon learning that Qin Ming had murdered over a dozen Fourth Realm experts on his return journey and subsequently slain nearly twenty Third Realm Hunter-Gatherers, were both astonished and extremely pleased and satisfied.

If Hunter-Gatherers from the Fourth Realm were to break through, the sheer number of them would already be quite destructive. This renowned elder immediately credited Qin Ming for his contribution.

"Your body..."

"Senior, I'm fine now, I can go to the front lines," Qin Ming said. Everyone he knew was at the front, and he naturally wanted to go too.

Besides, his injuries had indeed healed long ago.

"Alright, go to Green Maple Town, 500 miles away. They're short of a junior expert to oversee things there. Even though you're only at the Second Realm, that should be enough."

Qin Ming set off that very day.

He knew Night Prefecture's fighting style; the main battlefields were all the Ancestor.

As for the others, they were assigned to the long border of the Western Territory, with experts of corresponding levels each stationed in their respective areas.

Green Maple Town is relatively remote. If a major battle breaks out, small groups of demons will definitely break in from here. Theoretically, having people of the Third Realm guarding such a remote place is enough.

After Qin Ming arrived, adhering to the principle of defending against external enemies, he sat cross-legged on a large mountain outside the town, gazing at the distant horizon.

He already knew that the Demon Coalition was extremely powerful and had mobilized many top-tier clans, making it an unprecedented event.

It is said that some of the most renowned powers in the Demon Civilization, such as: Hanging Sky Ridge, Fire Phoenix Mountain, Azure Flood Dragon Palace, Longevity Temple, Demon Emperor Hall, Thunder Cloud Cave... have all been mobilized.

Initially, even Godlike creatures appeared one after another, which shows their determination.

The decrees left over from the old days of Jade Capital seemed to have a certain deterrent effect, causing some deities to retreat.

However, the current situation remains far from optimistic, with the shadow of war now completely looming over the world's periphery.

"A great battle could break out at any moment. I can't afford to waste my supplies. So be it!" Qin Ming muttered to himself as he sat cross-legged on the high mountain.

Recently, he has been practicing various Cultivation Method every day, and he has never stopped even when he is traveling on the back of the Thunder King Bird.

The gleaming leaves of the Vajra Treasure Tree were almost all picked clean by him, Xiang Yiwu, and Wu Yaozu. He would eat some every day, and there are still some left.

Today, Qin Ming chewed up and swallowed all the remaining twigs and leaves.

Then, he devoured the dazzling Vajra Fruit in just a few bites. Instantly, his eyes flashed like lightning, his entire body turned golden, as if cast from some Exotic Metal, and radiated light.