Great Explosion

Qin Ming was very familiar with this area. He immediately found a pile of rubble in the snow, picked up a long, narrow stone that looked extremely similar, snapped it in two with force, and tossed it into the area from before before swiftly vanishing into the dense forest.

He reckoned that only young New Life Evolvers driven by curiosity, like himself, would rush over to take a look. The old hands would not stop at all, because the stone skin of mysterious produce was of no use.

Most importantly, the thing the Green-Clad Woman had taken out was too dazzling. It could not be hidden or covered up, instantly illuminating the entire night sky. Every Higher Aberrant and person from the major organizations had followed her down.

With a peerless treasure in sight, who would want a lousy stone?

Even though the Green-Clad Woman had decisively absorbed that mysterious produce, her brow was still glowing now, practically like a guiding lamp.

After some time, sure enough, people came searching for the discarded stone skin.

This was the outer region of the mountains, where there were no real experts. The old hands and able-bodied adults were all active in areas with Special Nodes.

A short while later, six or seven New Life Evolvers actually started fighting over that snapped long stone.

This time, although Qin Ming's expression remained utterly calm, ripples rose in his heart. After all, the "scrap" he had picked up came from the most mysterious kind of produce in the mountains.

Such a spectacle as a Ten-Colored Light Pillar reaching the heavens had never been heard of. It was not even recorded in books, let alone the fact that it had merged into one with the Five-Colored Haze.

He reckoned that the major organizations and Higher Lifeforms that had not arrived earlier must have regretted it until their intestines turned green.

All sides had once reached a consensus: the Heavenly Light that had descended two years ago was the dimmest in this region. They believed it could not be a land of abundance and was destined to have meager produce.

And now, Black White Mountain had actually undergone a "great explosion"!

In particular, this very likely involved another kind of Heavenly Light that had accumulated over two hundred years ago. Even the higher-ups of the Royal Capital would probably be unable to sleep if they learned of it.

Back then, they had arrived in great force, only to gain very little in the end. They had been so enraged that they had wanted to level the mountains here.

Clearly, within a few days, the name of Black White Mountain, silent for many years, would once again spread through the many splendid cities beneath the night mist.

Standing in the dense forest, Qin Ming crushed the half of the stone that showed no fluctuations. Sure enough, there was nothing inside.

Holding the other half, he hesitated somewhat. The commotion caused by the "main ingredient" had been too terrifying. Even if the scraps were far inferior, they were surely not ordinary.

Not to mention some spectacular phenomenon appearing—even if a streak of "flowing fire" ignited here, it would probably set off the entire forest.

After all, Shallow Night had already ended. Under a night as deep as ink, any unusual sign would stand out all the more glaringly.

Before long, Qin Ming walked out of the forest. Following his usual rule, he left that half of the stone in the mountains.

There was no need to rush. He calmed himself and decided to wait until this storm had fermented before doing anything further. The most mysterious produce of Black White Mountain was destined to become the talk of everyone and shake all directions; everything else would become insignificant.

In truth, that most mysterious produce had already set the night sky ablaze. All sides were intercepting the Green-Clad Woman, and Higher Aberrants had already spilled blood.

"Faster!" urged the woman draped in a black fur cloak.

Standing on the back of a massive black bird, Tang Jin's tall, slender figure glowed as she shielded herself from the wind and snow.

The Purple-Eyed Crow said, "Tang Jin, it's easy for you to say when you're not the one flying. I'm nearly flying myself breathless! That's a Golden Peng—hardly anyone can rival it in speed. The fact that I can keep closing the distance already makes me an oddity among crows!"

"Gasp, that woman is fierce! She made a Higher Lifeform spray blood across the night sky in no time!" the Purple-Eyed Crow cried out, its speed slowing slightly.

"Don't be afraid. Take advantage of her being held up and catch up immediately!" Tang Jin urged. A pale yellow hemp rope that looked utterly ordinary appeared in her hand.

"You didn't take down the rope from your teacher's roof beam, did you? Wasn't it tied to a..." the Purple-Eyed Crow exclaimed.

"Not that one!" Tang Jin urged it to accelerate again.

The crow flapped its wings and gradually drew closer.

Ahead, although the Red Lightning Bird, the fastest of them all, had caught up to the Green-Clad Woman, it was severely wounded in the blink of an eye.

Under the night sky, even the goose-feather snow drifting around the Green-Clad Woman atop the Golden Peng was dyed gold by her mysterious methods. It filled the sky as it danced about, yet moved hundreds or thousands of times faster.

She stood on the Peng's back and seemed to make no movement at all, yet the brilliant golden snowflakes had already traced out countless inexplicable paths.

They slashed at the Red Lightning Bird from every angle, tearing through the light around its body and covering it in blood in an instant.

The Higher Aberrant Red Lightning Bird was ferocious. It let out a piercing cry, its body seeming to burn as vast quantities of crimson light erupted outward in every direction.

It hung there like a red sun in the sky, illuminating this stretch of night.

All the golden snowflakes melted in an instant. But terrifyingly, they were not completely evaporated. Instead, the golden radiance suddenly surged, turning into an endless drizzle.

Every golden raindrop stretched infinitely longer, then crisscrossed through the air.

A miserable bird cry rang out. The enormous Red Lightning Bird was actually sliced into dozens, even hundreds, of pieces by the dense threads formed from those golden raindrops.

Whether its flesh or its feathers rich with spirituality, all were severed by the golden threads. Not a single part remained intact as it fell toward the pitch-black earth.

The Purple-Eyed Crow bared its beak, badly wanting to turn around and flee, but Tang Jin on its back made her move. That plain, unremarkable straw rope blazed with light, extending outward as it shot toward the Green-Clad Woman ahead.

"People from Flowing Light City?!" The Green-Clad Woman on the Golden Peng recognized Tang Jin's origins the instant she saw the straw rope.

"Can this work?" The Purple-Eyed Crow had no confidence at all.

"Charge over at once and ram her head! No matter what, we have to find a way to take half of the Heaven-bestowed item!" Tang Jin pushed the straw rope with all her strength as golden light bloomed from it.

That night, Qin Ming slept soundly. Those who knew contentment were always happy; even a slight gain was enough to satisfy him. The most mysterious produce was too far beyond his reach, and he did not covet it or spare it a thought.

The next day, after entering the mountains with Mu Qing, Cao Long, Wei Zhirou, and the others, Qin Ming heard a great deal of explosive news.

"Terrifying! The distant night sky was burning last night. More than one or two experts from certain major organizations and Higher Lifeforms died, yet they still failed to stop that Green-Clad Woman."

"The main issue is that there are too few aberrants capable of flying. If true great experts could all take to the sky, it would have been an entirely different situation."

"They say Ling City Lord nearly slapped his thigh apart in regret for not buying a flying mount with extreme speed. He was so furious that he ran straight back to Red Haze City."

People discussed it heatedly. All sorts of news arrived, leaving everyone entering the mountains uneasy, afraid of drawing the ire of Higher Lifeforms.

Someone had seen the Old Weasel, usually quiet and steady as a lofty monk, actually holding up its donkey while racing wildly through the mountains for a long time, smashing apart vast swaths of forest.

"Understandable. Whoever got intercepted like that would probably be so angry they spat blood," Cao Long said as he sat upright on the back of a giant bull.

"You're right. I don't even dare enter the deep mountains now," said a lifeform from the treetops.

Cao Long was stunned. Who was speaking in midair? He suddenly looked up, spotted the Talking Finch, and immediately lost his composure, hurling the Great Spear in his hand straight at the tree.

Crack! The entire canopy above came rumbling down when its main trunk was severed.

The Talking Finch traced a graceful arc through the night, flying away with exceptional agility.

Old Man Liu advised, "There's no need to be angry with it. Don't worry—when early spring comes and it begins breeding, this old man will help you vent your anger. If we can't do anything to it, can't we at least catch its offspring?"

Cao Long immediately clapped his hands. "Great! I'll raise a few Talking Finches. It would be best if we could catch that one from just now as well."

For a time, Cao Long and Old Man Liu chatted away, getting along remarkably well.

Not long afterward, Old Man Liu casually mentioned, "There are only so many special Nodes in the mountains, and they're hard to find. But there are other opportunities in the mountains too, just extremely dangerous. For example, some areas are inhabited by lifeforms that have undergone the Third Mutation. Would you dare make a move?"

Cao Long said, "Are there still places like that left? Some old hands already got there first. They were sweeping through the mountains yesterday. I'm afraid there isn't much Spiritual Matter left in the outer regions."

As for the depths of the mountains, he would never set foot there. Even joining forces with Mu Qing and Wei Zhirou would not be enough; that was not a place they could risk entering.

Old Man Liu patted his chest. "Of course there are. I know these mountains far too well. There are places others cannot find at all, yet I know them like the back of my hand."

When Cao Long heard this, his eyes immediately lit up. "No problem. If we can get some decent gains, we'll definitely give you a share too."

Mu Qing and Wei Zhirou both nodded in agreement. Rather than searching for uncertain Special Nodes, it was better to head straight for a hidden place with Spiritual Matter.

Qin Ming immediately knew where Old Man Liu wanted to take them. Old Man Liu had also told him about it during their drinking session that night.

Fire Bat Cave lay within an underground cavern leading toward the interior of the mountains. The path was deep and secluded, requiring them to travel far inside.

There was a Fire Spring within, and a large colony of Fire Bats lived there. The strongest one had already undergone the Third Mutation.

There was no Spiritual Matter inside Fire Bats, but their droppings, when deposited nearby, helped a kind of spiritual scarlet grass grow.

It could help someone achieve Second New Life.

Qin Ming had originally been considering that, at an appropriate time, he could share the Fire Snake, which was no longer of much use to him, with Old Man Liu and Lu Ze. He had not expected Old Man Liu to have his own means of obtaining it.

The trip to Fire Bat Cave had some twists and turns. Some youths from the three teams were injured, but with Cao Long, Wei Zhirou, and Mu Qing holding the line, there was no real suspense.

Aside from leaving behind some seeds, they uprooted all the red grass there.

Old Man Liu was delighted, carrying a clump of fiery red, glowing plants in his arms. This grass was only three inches tall, yet it contained abundant vitality and spirituality.

Before Shallow Night arrived, Qin Ming hunted a wild ox. He found a chance to stuff that half of the stone into its mouth and down into its belly, then rejoined Cao Long, Mu Qing, and the others.

He had not hunted for a long time. Bringing back prey now was perfectly reasonable, especially since he had formed an excellent relationship with this group.

Even if someone stood guard outside the mountains, sizing up those leaving, they would not inspect Qin Ming and Old Man Liu while they walked together with Mu Qing, Cao Long, and the others. They all smoothly carried their respective gains out of the mountains.

That evening, Qin Ming did not even have time for dinner. As soon as he returned home, he began studying that half of the stone.

"What's going on?" His heart sank slightly. When he had taken the stone out of the mountains that day, he had already felt that something was wrong. He had not sensed that faint fluctuation.

Now, after calming his mind and concentrating, he held it in both hands, yet still felt nothing unusual.

Ever since he had been eroded by the Earth Fissure and adapted to it, Qin Ming had possessed an extraordinary, special perception for mysterious produce nourished by Heavenly Light.

But now, he could no longer sense anything inside it.

He took a deep breath and began carefully peeling away the stone skin. If he sensed fluctuations again, he might stop and wait a few more days before cutting it open.

Yet he had already crushed most of the stone, and there had been no abnormality whatsoever, not the slightest movement.

Just as his heart continued sinking, he actually touched some kind of mysterious produce. Yet no unusual sign appeared, and not even a thread of the Heavenly Light that should have remained leaked out.

"This is?!" Even Qin Ming, normally as steady as a mountain, was so shocked that he nearly jumped up.