Corruption

Feng Yi'an was tall, with whiskers bristling like steel needles. His eyes were bright and his voice forceful, giving him the appearance of a straightforward man. Yet knowing the truth now, Qin Ming felt utterly repulsed by him. "We are truly sorry about this. We will kill that blood bear as soon as possible to make amends," Feng Yi'an said, an earnest expression across his face. Old Man Liu sighed, urging them to make sure they guarded the mountains and forests well and prevented mutated creatures from wreaking havoc again. At his advanced age, he was still furious. Killing people only to come apologize afterward—who was this performance supposed to fool? This display of false sincerity at their door was no different from rubbing salt in the victims' wounds. It showed that the patrollers didn't care about them at all and weren't the least bit worried about provoking a drastic reaction. "Ah, it's mainly because some of our brothers are injured, leaving us shorthanded on mountain patrols. That's why this accident happened," Feng Yi'an explained. Bringing up the matter again, he asked Xu Yueping to plant the Black Moon as soon as possible, claiming the mountain patrollers needed it to heal their injuries so they could better guard the mountains. Rage flared within Xu Yueping, but he had no choice but to suppress it. Feng Yi'an said, "We'll set out immediately. We won't leave the mountains until we slay that blood bear. Brother Xu, please console the families of the dead and wounded on our behalf." Qin Ming found this hypocritical facade sickening to look at. Xu Yueping gave Qin Ming's arm a subtle nudge before rising to see the mountain patrollers out. Evidently, he feared Qin Ming's youthful rashness might drive him to do something extreme. Qin Ming knew that even if they could kill these few mountain patrollers right now, it would only bring about bloody retaliation. After all, there were other members, and even other teams. If anything happened to them here, all of Twin Trees Village would be dragged down. He naturally would not act rashly. He rose as well, joining Xu Yueping, Yang Yongqing, and the others to see them off. Once the men vanished into the dim wilderness, Yang Yongqing fumed, "I'm about to burst from holding this in!" "Can we report this to higher-ups?" Qin Ming asked. "What fault could you find with them? By rule, we're supposed to provide four to eight Black Moon stalks, and the mountain patrol team only asked for the minimum of four this time. You claim the seeds are mutated, but how do we prove it right now? Their appearance is identical. It was only from last year's poor fire-field harvest, combined with what we know of Feng Yi'an and his cohort's character and daily conduct, that we deduced they had fully succeeded in breeding mutated seeds." Old Man Liu added, "And more importantly, if they dared to act like this, how could they not have greased the right palms?" Xu Yueping chimed in, "The favors left behind by a respected elder patroller are enough for their children and grandchildren to squander for ten years." When it came down to it, Feng Yi'an and his men's hypocritical visit was merely to keep pressuring Xu Yueping to plant the medicine. They had not threatened anyone outright, remaining polite and mild, yet in this situation, that very behavior was even more egregious than open intimidation. Qin Ming exhaled a breath of stale air and said, "They've gone too far!" Then he asked, "Is Black Moon that important?" Xu Yueping nodded solemnly. "Once mutated, its value is astronomical. Consuming it over a long period offers a slight chance of achieving a second Newborn." Old Man Liu said, "As mountain patrollers, they spend their lives traversing the deep mountains. They've likely seen higher-order beings, so who wouldn't want to advance further? Even an old codger like me wishes to awaken again. A second Newborn can extend lifespan and restore youthful vitality—who wouldn't crave that?" He explained the causes and motives behind why some members of the patrol team had fallen into corruption, then added, "But a person must have a bottom line. How do they deserve to be mountain patrollers acting like this? They're more hazardous than mountain monsters!" "A second Newborn..." Qin Ming murmured, lost in thought. Xu Yueping patted his shoulder. "You certainly can. According to local records, for Newborns who laid a golden foundation, the fastest among them achieved a second Newborn in less than two months." *** All the villagers who had gone into the mountains that day were soaked in blood. Several were critically injured, with no telling whether they would survive, and weeping could be heard from many homes. Xu Yueping visited each household to assist with medical treatment, struggling to rein in his fury as his chest heaved violently. The middle-aged Wang Qinglin lay on his heated kang bed, remaining comatose. Though he was a Newborn, his condition was more severe than anyone else's. After resetting his bones, Old Man Liu wiped the blood from his hands and said, "A broken bone pierced his internal organs. If people like us didn't have such vibrant life force, this wound would have been fatal." Observing carefully, Qin Ming felt this had also been done by someone clad in a blood bear pelt. A pall of gloom hung over every household. Some children quietly wiped away tears, and the joy and sense of harvest from the adults' hunting over the past two days were completely obliterated. Some villagers had encountered a mutated snow ape, leaving shocking lacerations across their bodies. "The mountain patrol team seemed to have kept one two years ago," Yang Yongqing murmured under his breath. Xu Yueping's expression darkened, while Old Man Liu let out sigh after sigh. Qin Ming walked home, feeling suffocated inside and longing to do something. The only piece of good news was that Lu Ze had awakened. With his physical constitution, there likely wouldn't be any lasting damage. Qin Ming did not tell him the hidden truth, fearing the agitation would impede his recovery. "Brother Lu, how many people are in a mountain patrol team?" Qin Ming asked, seeking to learn about the members' strength. "Anywhere from eight to twelve," Lu Ze informed him. The team stationed in their area currently had nine members, and only their captain was a second Newborn, who was very strong. Fu Entao was the captain's name, though he rarely showed his face. Lu Ze sighed. "For many, exhausting all their efforts to reach the end is just to gain a single Newborn transformation. As for a second Newborn, they wouldn't even dare dream of it—it's an insurmountable divide." Qin Ming remarked, "It seems that captain can completely overpower the other members." Lu Ze nodded. "The increase in physical constitution from a first Newborn is very pronounced, and a second Newborn doubles that baseline." "In our area, hoisting a five-hundred-jin cauldron is the absolute limit for someone who underwent a first Newborn transformation. How did that Captain Fu fare back then?" Qin Ming asked, probing for details. Lu Ze thought back carefully and said, "Back then, Fu Entao was still some distance from the ceiling." He looked at Qin Ming and said, "You achieved Newborn in your golden window, and paired with a foundation that shatters limits, your second Newborn is bound to be explosive." Qin Ming now had a clear picture. In terms of raw physical constitution alone, even after achieving a second Newborn, Fu Entao still wouldn't match him as a first Newborn. He rose to take his leave, telling Lu Ze to focus on resting and not worry about anything else—he would handle it. Returning to his courtyard, he began practicing combat techniques. Eking out a living in the perilous mountains, he naturally possessed a wide repertoire. Even before becoming a Newborn, he could chop green bricks in two with his bare hands; now, he was naturally far stronger. He whipped his leg across, snapping a tree stump as thick as a thigh with a sharp crack. When he deployed the unorthodox methods he had trained in over the years, his mind focused intensely. Ripples resembling crushed gold surfaced across his flesh, and with a light slam of his body, the stump shattered to pieces. After dinner, Qin Ming arrived at Xu Yueping's home. "Uncle Xu, still fuming?" "They've gone too far." Xu Yueping felt a heavy knot in his chest. "Please talk some sense into your uncle; he hasn't even eaten dinner," Xu Yueping's wife said with a look of worry. "Auntie, leave it to me," Qin Ming replied, stepping inside and taking a seat. Having practiced his combat techniques back at his courtyard, Qin Ming had regained his composure and discussed with Xu Yueping what to do next. "You're actually asking me to agree to their demands?" Xu Yueping jerked his head up. Furious, his face cooled as he snapped, "Do you realize the consequences? Next year's fire fields will see a drastic drop in yield, leading to famine!" "Uncle, hear me out first," Qin Ming said quickly, genuinely concerned about upsetting him further. "Speak!" "Early spring is still far off. What harm is there in agreeing to their terms for now? If an accident happens in the meantime—say, during the mountain-clearing operation, they all get killed; or heaven itself can't stand them, and a den of mountain monsters wipes them out tonight; or the magnetic field in the mountains fluctuates violently and drives the patrol team mad..." Seeing him reel off these curses with utter seriousness, Xu Yueping gave him an odd look. Following Qin Ming's logic, if something happened to those men and higher-ups investigated, suspicion would fall on anyone with a grudge against the patrol team. Without preemptively clearing themselves, they might end up tainted by suspicion. Xu Yueping frowned in displeasure. "How could any of those 'what-ifs' possibly happen? You're overthinking it." Qin Ming adopted a grave tone. "Uncle Xu, what I mean is, we agree for now and wait for circumstances to change." He explained that they could toss the seeds into the Fire Spring and fish them back out once the patrol team left, or coat them with the local transparent mineral glue to insulate them from the spring. Qin Ming added, "Right now, every household is running out of food. Our priority is to ensure the villagers can hunt safely in the mountains." Xu Yueping sighed, realizing there was merit to what he said. If they couldn't even survive the present, how could they talk about next year's famine? "Even if we stall through this period, what about later?" He still felt a headache coming on. Feng Yi'an and his men were ruthless; they would surely retaliate terribly afterward. Qin Ming's gaze turned resolute. "Uncle, given some time, I might achieve a second Newborn. When that time comes, I can negotiate with them." "They likely have someone backing them," Xu Yueping muttered, rubbing his temples. Suddenly, as if remembering something, he asked, "Little Qin, with your first Newborn, can you reach the six-hundred-jin mark if you push both arms to the limit?" "I can." Xu Yueping sprang to his feet. "Such a feat would be dazzling even in distant Chixia City!" A smile gradually spread across his face. "Come with me tomorrow to Silver Vine Town." Qin Ming felt unsettled by his stare. "Uncle Xu, let's resolve our current predicament first." "Feng Yi'an told me that if I change my mind, I can find him in town. Besides, if we go to Silver Vine Town, a fine marriage match might be waiting for you." "Huh?" Qin Ming stared in astonishment. Xu Yueping explained that an enigmatic old noble had relocated from far away to live in seclusion in town, and he had an exceedingly beautiful daughter of marriageable age. Qin Ming immediately shook his head. "Uncle Xu, let's not bring humiliation upon ourselves." In the past, Xu Yueping would never have dared to approach them, but the noble had publicly announced that family background didn't matter in choosing a son-in-law—only personal merit did. Qin Ming's golden foundation was astonishingly solid, marking him as exceptionally gifted even in that distant, bright city. That gave Xu Yueping confidence. He whispered, "If this marriage works out, the threat from the mountain patrol team can be resolved." Qin Ming objected, but Xu Yueping dragged him into drinking wine all night long. The following day, before the night fog had cleared, Xu Yueping came to fetch Qin Ming to hit the road. "Uncle Xu, is it really necessary to leave this early?" "I know you might still feel some reluctance. It's fine; once we arrive, you don't have to show up at their door just yet. I'll test the waters at the old noble's house first." Xu Yueping felt that if it worked, great; if not, there was no harm done. Trying their luck was better than doing nothing at all. It was shallow night, and the sky remained deeply dark. Dense, shadowy forests flanked the road, with the occasional calls of wild beasts and eerie birds echoing from afar. Qin Ming and Xu Yueping waded through thick snow, heading toward Silver Vine Town more than a dozen li away. Halfway there, they suddenly halted. Brilliant red light erupted from the distant mountain forest, piercing the night fog and illuminating the surrounding area. Swaths of "crimson butterflies" emerged, fluttering into dance. They stained the night sky red, filling the heavens as they took flight in every direction.