Close Friends

No matter how composed Qin Ming was, he was still a young man. He didn't hide his feelings, and his question, "Why?" revealed his resentment.

Meng Xinghai laughed and said, "Only by holding the 'rules' can you reason things out, right?"

At this moment, Qin Ming held the Mutton Fat Jade Iron Saber in his hand, not because he couldn't control himself, but because he did it intentionally. In front of an elder, he should show some youthful spirit.

"I shielded him from trouble, but in the end he was dissatisfied. Where can I reason with him?" Qin Ming said. These experiences are indeed infuriating.

"It seems that although you have lived in the Cui Household for more than ten years, you have never regarded yourself as a scion of a prominent Aristocratic Clan," Meng Xinghai said.

Qin Ming was taken aback, then understood what he meant.

"Is it simply because the heir of the Cui Household is of noble birth and unattainable?" he asked calmly.

"Yes, for you, putting yourself in his shoes and understanding his State of Mind might make you even angrier," Meng Xinghai smiled.

Qin Ming felt it was better to ignore Cui Chonghe and not try to figure out why he was angry.

Because, in Cui Chonghe's eyes, his status was so low that it could be ignored, yet he still traveled with his fiancée, which was a serious overstepping of his bounds.

Meng Xinghai said, "You feel that you've shielded him from disaster, but as the eldest son of the Millennium Aristocratic Family, he can't possibly care about your feelings."

Qin Ming said self-deprecatingly, "It seems I'm just an ordinary person. Even after living in the Cui Household for so many years, I haven't developed that kind of air of nobility, nor have I immediately adopted that mindset."

But the more he thought about it, the angrier he became. His so-called maturity beyond his years and composure were useless now, and he could hardly suppress his anger.

Clearly, in Cui Chonghe's eyes, he was just a servant who could be sacrificed, a lackey kept by the Cui Household and used at any time. How could he possibly walk alongside the eldest daughter of the Wang Family?

Qin Ming recalled his experience in the Cui Household; the hierarchy was indeed very strict. So, he had helped someone avoid trouble, and in the end, he had "offended" them?

"To be fair, Cui Chonghe does indeed possess Near-Immortal potential. That Old Senior hadn't taken on any disciples for over a century, yet he made an exception for him, taking him away when he was only three or four years old," Meng Xinghai said.

In fact, he was also trying to remind Qin Ming not to be too impulsive, given the vast difference in their circumstances.

Qin Ming nodded, then suddenly realized that Cui Chonghe and his Senior Brother Senior Sister were all over a hundred years old. If they were still alive, that would be quite frightening.

At this moment, he had a strong desire to become stronger and wanted to go Deep Mountains and Great Marshes to find Spiritual Matter.

In addition, he hopes for another Spring Thunder.

Although there is a saying that the safest time to enter the Thunderfire Alchemy Hall is when the First Thunder of Spring, and when the Spiritual Matter generated are most abundant, he still wants to try at other times of the year.

"The Li Household, the Wang Family, and the Cui Household are like three unshakeable mountains, and I am just an ordinary teenager who doesn't want to get involved," Qin Ming sighed.

He learned from Meng Xinghai that the Wang Family was furious when they realized they had been deceived, and that the Cui Household originally intended to quickly eliminate the fake Cui Chonghe to quell the storm.

"Seventh Master Cui is a sentimental man. He said he treats you like his own nephew and can't kill you, which almost caused a falling out with some members of the Cui Household."

It was precisely because Cui Hao intervened, and because the matter had escalated and leaked, that the Cui Household was hesitant to take further drastic measures, fearing they would be branded as callous and ungrateful.

"Unbeknownst to me, I had been hovering near the Gates of Hell many times." The Millennium Aristocratic Family was simply too overwhelming for Qin Ming; he even considered leaving his hometown.

Meng Xinghai seemed to see through his thoughts and said, "You can stay in Red Haze City for now. After early spring arrives, those ancient lineages and some special academies will begin selecting disciples one after another. You can study them carefully. Some organizations are quite hostile to the Aristocratic Clan."

He himself comes from the Aristocratic Clan family, so it's not appropriate for him to Say More on this topic.

Qin Ming was distracted. The Night Mist World Vast and Boundless, but also fraught with danger. Where was a suitable place for him?

Meng Xinghai said, "Don't worry, the token I gave you is still very useful. You don't need to worry about your safety in Red Haze City for the time being."

Qin Ming examined it carefully. It was a piece of Ink Jade Token, with the character "Meng" on one side and the character "Xun" on the other.

"Thank you so much Uncle Meng!" He immediately stood up to express his gratitude.

This is a token brought from the Meng family, which is extraordinary. The word "Xun" is the authority given to him by Meng Xinghai at the moment. He can patrol the city or the mountains.

With Qin Ming possessing this token, he was essentially under temporary protection.

Meng Xinghai said, "I've told you so much and given you a lot of information because Qing Yue asked me to look after you. Some people don't care who Cui Chonghe is; they only know that an old friend once used that name. At the same time, I must remind you that many more people care a lot about the identity of Cui Chonghe. Be extremely cautious when you encounter old acquaintances in the future."

Qin Ming nodded solemnly and said, "If Qing Yue encounters any trouble in the future, even if she is thousands of miles away, I will rush over to her aid as soon as I hear the news!"

If it weren't for Li Qingyue, Meng Xinghai even know who Qin Ming was? Even if he had heard of him, there would be no reason for him to take such Take Care Of.

Back when Qin Ming lived in Clear River City as Cui Chonghe, he had many friends, but now, there are probably very few who can still be called close friends.

Meng Xinghai said, "Qing Yue said that the closer a true friend gets to you, the more trouble they will bring you."

"I understand!" Qin Ming nodded. In order to quell the Wang Family's anger, the Cui Household once wanted him to disappear completely to calm the storm. If he were to re-enter that circle and associate with familiar people, trouble would definitely follow.

Qin Ming felt a surge of frustration, but circumstances forced him to act against his will. Others had drawn lines for him, forbidding him from setting foot in certain areas or contacting people from that level.

"With my talent, I should be able to rise quickly. Once I'm strong enough, if I go to the Cui Household to retrieve the Silk Scripture, and I re-enter that circle, Cui Chonghe, Li Qingxu, and even some people from the Wang Family might target me. The road ahead is full of challenges, and I need to grow up quickly."

These were the thoughts in Qin Ming's mind. The road ahead was not smooth, and could even be described as rugged, but it also made him full of fighting spirit, and his eyes were burning with fire.

If he himself doesn't have confidence, then he might as well go back to Black White Mountain immediately and take the initiative to live in seclusion in that remote place!

"Well, actually, the reason I can tell you all this isn't entirely because of Qing Yue. I also think highly of you. Last time I discovered you had entered the Thunderfire Alchemy Hall," Meng Xinghai said directly.

His candor startled Qin Ming; had he not kept this a secret at all?

Meng Xinghai smiled and said, "Don't worry, I'm the only one in the entire Red Haze City who noticed something was wrong with you. Leave there alive."

"Thank goodness!" Qin Ming breathed a sigh of relief.

"Besides you, Qian Cheng is also alive, but he mysteriously disappeared the next day."

Qin Ming knew who he was talking about—that dull-witted boy, who wasn't actually stupid.

"I'm not joking with you. Recently, you should carefully study those ancient traditions and special institutions of higher learning. In some places, even Aristocratic Clan families can't interfere too much."

When Qin Ming got up to leave, Meng Xinghai brought up these things again.

"Thank you, Uncle Meng!"

After leaving the City Lord's Manor, Qin Ming returned to the inn and played with the black jade token. He was somewhat lost in thought. If he were to go into the mountains, he would also be a member of the Mountain Patrol Group, and at a relatively high level.

He was somewhat moved because this was the first time in his life that he had killed someone, and it was against Fu Entao, Feng Yi'an, and other members of the Mountain Patrol Group.

In a private room at a restaurant not far away, several people had closed the window and watched Qin Ming enter the inn not long ago.

"He dares to meddle in the affairs of our Xin Yi Hall. It seems he does have some connections in the City Lord's Manor. Let's not touch him."

"Not only should we not act rashly, but look, someone gave us this scroll and told us to keep a close eye on him. This young man might be someone of great importance."

"If you encounter someone you can't understand, then you should get involved as little as possible. You can keep an eye on them, but if the client asks you to take action, you must politely decline."

"Currently, they don't seem to want us to take action, and they appear to be Visitors from Afar."

Over the next two days, Qin Ming and Wu Zheng reviewed the organizations and lineages that had selected disciples in Red Haze City over the years.

He suspected that Meng Xinghai was referring to those special institutions of higher learning, because these required unified examinations and were open to everyone, even those from the Aristocratic Clan could not enter directly.

Unless someone truly possesses exceptional talent and a Actual Combat Record of overwhelming power, everyone must undergo a unified test and trial.

Afterwards, Qin Ming began to carefully study the map of the mountain range Red Haze City, wanting to find Spiritual Matter. He was stimulated by the three powerful families of Cui Household, Wang Family, and Li Household, and wished he could rise to prominence immediately.

The next day, he went to a well-established weapon shop and bought a Black Gold Hammer. It still had a long handle, but it was much heavier than the one he used before.

"Brother Qin, it seems you really wasted fifteen Day Gold at my house. You haven't grasped the Spear and Arrow Dual Mastery at all. Are you going to switch to practicing with the hammer?" Wu Zheng said regretfully. He had no one to spar with. He wasn't as conservative as Old Wu and really wanted Qin Ming to guide him.

Qin Ming laughed and said, "I actually know a little about marksmanship too. You can ask me any questions you have. I'm practicing with a hammer now because I'm preparing to deal with tough-skinned behemoths. Ordinary weapons are too light and gentle; they can't hurt those huge creatures."

He was preparing to go into the mountains. With his current strength of nearly 5,000 jin, he could easily withstand even someone who had undergone six or seven New Life.

If anyone dares to steal it again this time, he will definitely let them know what it means to strike with a hammer and cause a thousand peach blossoms to bloom!

Xu Sheng, whom we hadn't seen for three days, arrived, pale-faced, and apparently injured.

"Brother Xu, what's wrong with you?"

Qin Ming and Wu Zheng both asked him with concern, "What happened?"

Xu Sheng sighed, "Sigh, Zhou Lin and I went to help a friend, and we were ambushed in the mountains. I suddenly realized that being Spiritual Hunter is even harder; it's better to be a traveling merchant."

"It's good that she came back alive and unharmed. By the way, how is Sister Fenfang?" Qin Ming asked.

"Who is Sister Fenfang?" Xu Sheng asked suspiciously.

"Um... Sister Zhou Lin."

Xu Sheng laughed and said, "Haha, she's fine; she dodged faster than me."

"You got ripped off again?" Qin Ming asked.

Xu Sheng sighed, "Not yet. We had just entered the habitat of the Spiritual Creature and hadn't even found its nest when we were ambushed."

"How about we go take another look?" Qin Ming was tempted.

Xu Sheng wanted to say something, but suddenly realized that the other party was already stronger than him! He was a master who had Fifth New Life, but he could only lift a cauldron weighing more than 3,000 jin, which was far inferior to Qin Ming's current strength.

"Okay, let's go again!"

Soon, Sister Fenfang Zhou Lin also received the news and went into the mountains again with Xu Sheng and Qin Ming.