In the living room, Meng Xinghai lightly struck a suspended set of bronze chime stones, producing a crisp, melodic chime. He spoke, "The Cui clan cares deeply about saving face. That makes things much easier."
"Is something going on behind the scenes?" Qin Ming asked.
Meng Xinghai said, "You've won over a dozen matches in a row. By rights, the front page of the night papers should certainly have covered it, but the Cui clan put in a word and suppressed it."
The Cui clan wanted him to keep a "low profile" and preferred that he not re-enter the public eye, lest people be reminded of what happened in the past.
Meng Xinghai remarked, "The Cui clan values their dignity. They gave up on you earlier; if you go on to advance triumphantly across the board, wouldn't that leave them thoroughly embarrassed?"
Qin Ming felt somewhat helpless as well. Surely he wasn't expected to lie low just to spare the Cui clan's pride, held back from rising for the rest of his life. On what grounds?
Meng Xinghai smiled. "I spoke with an acquaintance at the night papers, so when you won your fifteenth match, I had them drop a brief mention to test the reaction from Cui He and his circle. Judging by the feedback, it worked quite well."
Qin Ming immediately understood. Old Meng was a true master of setting the tempo—no wonder he liked striking bronze chime stones and bells.
At the same time, he couldn't help marveling at the night papers. They really were something, far too "commercialized." Without Meng Xinghai putting in a word, no matter how many consecutive victories he notched, none of it would have made the papers.
Furthermore, this time the night papers had only mentioned cities like Chixia and Jinxi, replacing his name with "a certain individual."
Still, he felt this wasn't bad either. Being overly high-profile was hardly an advantage, so in a way, he ought to thank the Cui clan for helping keep a lid on things.
Meng Xinghai said, "Lately, I did some digging. Long ago, certain major sects and advanced academies established a rule: when the 'number ones' of different cities duel, anyone who achieves a twenty-match winning streak can report to them. Pass a few trials, and you can become a core disciple."
This was from ages ago, and most people had long forgotten it.
Because those trials were extraordinarily difficult, qualifying for them held little practical meaning.
Meng Xinghai felt that none of this posed any problem for Qin Ming; securing twenty consecutive wins in the near future was all he needed. That way, once Cui He and the others were subtly "nudged," they would likely scramble to arrange experts to stop Qin Ming's winning streak. At that point, if the other side wanted to spar, fine, but rare scriptures would have to serve as the wager.
"If we could obtain the World-Abiding Scripture, that would be even better. At its peak, it can extend one's lifespan by 'half a lifetime,' truly a priceless tome." Though the chances were slim, Meng Xinghai still wanted to try.
The reason that ancient ancestor of the Cui clan had lived so long was precisely because he cultivated the Yimu Ever-Verdant World-Abiding Scripture.
Afterward, Qin Ming swiftly won four more duels, bringing his record to nineteen consecutive victories.
With that, he had some free time, waiting for Old Meng's arrangements.
"The Destiny-Altering Scripture is truly extraordinary; it has its own unique merits." Once Qin Ming settled his mind, he studied that ancient book from deep within the night mist world.
On the day Li Qingyue brought him the secret manual, Qin Ming had already studied it carefully, but it contained many things that required continuous contemplation.
The Destiny-Altering Scripture could be considered a wondrous and eccentric text, full of perilous experiments. To extend lifespan and deepen one's foundation, it proposed all manner of hypotheses that seemed feasible on paper but could easily prove fatal. He suspected that even the creator of the scripture hadn't personally attempted all those outrageous methods, yet he read them with relish and fell into deep contemplation.
The book mentioned that one could seek out a "fiend cavern." Entering it would inevitably shave fifty years off one's life. However, if one could endure it and grant the body a certain baptism, undergoing a metamorphosis, it might extend one's life by sixty years.
When Qin Ming read this passage, he didn't even know how to react. How on earth had those sixty years been calculated? Could such a claim withstand scrutiny?
Leaving aside the prospect of outright failure, even if one actually succeeded, what if it only ended up extending life by thirty years? Qin Ming did not dare put full faith in some of the specific techniques in this book, terrified of walking into a death trap.
There were several other absurd methods of this sort. The book mentioned that one could subject oneself to strikes from thunderbolts laced with purple glow; as long as one survived, their constitution would inevitably improve.
After finishing that passage, he was utterly speechless.
Next, he examined the following section, which claimed that if one witnessed a "dragon draws water"—a slender tornado reaching straight down from the clouds into a lake or sea—one could retrieve "dragon blood" to achieve internal strengthening.
In this phenomenon, what was contained was not the blood of a true dragon, but a priceless, rare substance found within lakes and seas.
"One slip and you'd get swept into the sky, dying a gruesome death. Besides, the text also mentions that not every waterspout produces 'dragon blood.'"
Although Qin Ming suspected that the author had never tested all these methods either, he remained very interested because he glimpsed useful lines of thought.
He had already undergone six Newborn transformations, leaving only three final opportunities to enhance his physical constitution. The Newborn stage was the period of most rapid advancement along this path.
Once one entered the Outer Sage realm, breaking through further became exceedingly difficult. After embarking on this path, as time wore on and they reached a bottleneck, many people took years or even a decade just to advance a single minor step, which ultimately drove them to despair.
Qin Ming read the Destiny-Altering Scripture closely, examining the dangerous experiments within. He felt they might just be useful for breaking through bottlenecks!
Perhaps, by borrowing these radical stimuli, the subsequent major realms such as Outer Sage and spirit field wouldn't be quite so tortuously difficult. Yet the prerequisite remained just as the eccentric author had written: as long as one didn't die...
Such bizarre phrasing had deterred countless seekers. After all, if you died, the author wasn't going to leap out of his coffin to revive you.
Of course, the book also contained many valuable chapters. Though obscure, difficult to comprehend, and hard to practice, Qin Ming had pushed through and thoroughly grasped most of them.
After all, he had even comprehended the general overview spanning the first three pages. Qin Ming believed that the arts cultivated by the ancients differed somewhat from those of people today, which was why most contemporaries could not adapt to the energy circulation routes depicted in the book. However, his unified heavenly light force could navigate those pathways with ease. Combined with his divine wisdom and conscious spiritual light, the three forces braided together, allowing him to take to it like a fish to water.
"The ancients placed great emphasis on the transformations of yin and yang, and how yin and yang can invert. This scripture begins from that very premise. Those specific techniques, those seemingly absurd ways of courting death, all carry this core truth: seeking life within death, extending a withered lifespan."
Qin Ming gained insight. Breathing in spiritual essence, he integrated his consciousness and divine wisdom into his heavenly light force, planting them like seeds into the soil of his flesh and blood. Mutually acting as yin and yang, they harmonized deeply with the natural laws of heaven and earth.
"Alas, for enhancing my body during the Newborn stage, only three chances remain," Qin Ming mused, feeling a touch of wistfulness.
He hoped that upon reaching the Outer Sage realm, his path would not be choked with obstacles; he needed to find other methods to maintain the momentum of rapid breakthroughs.
Afterward, Qin Ming repeatedly tested the ability he had acquired after his sixth Newborn transformation, feeling quite satisfied. Three days later, Meng Xinghai called him over and said, "Let's take a stroll over to a metropolis."
"That doesn't sound like your style, Uncle Meng," Qin Ming said with a smile.
Meng Xinghai had never taken him to duel anyone in the metropolises—first, because the people there looked down on young prodigies from remote regions as unqualified; second, because Old Meng had deliberately avoided it, not wanting Qin Ming to draw too much attention.
With the Cui clan's "cooperation" in pressuring the night papers not to report on him, Qin Ming had yet to enter the broader public consciousness.
Meng Xinghai chuckled. "Isn't this to give Cui He a little prod? We need to urge him to make arrangements quickly, but it has to be on our tempo." The place he intended to take Qin Ming was none other than Jinrui City, where a juvenile extraordinary named Cao Wuji had emerged.
"Uncle Meng, you aren't thinking of having me duel this mutant, are you?" Qin Ming asked.
"No need," Meng Xinghai shook his head.
He continued, "The ancestral grounds of major sects or the interiors of advanced academies certainly have mutants. With Cao Wuji exposing himself so early, he will be heavily targeted in the future."
At this stage, Cao Wuji would undoubtedly attract the attention of numerous lineages extending olive branches. Once he made his choice, everything would change.
Jinrui City possessed a profound sense of historical weight; it was one of the earliest metropolises ever built.
It was said that during the Great Reclamation, auspicious signs had manifested here, brocade colors washing over mountains and rivers.
"Cao Wuji actually possessed a thousand jin of strength during his very first Newborn transformation. That truly is extraordinary. No wonder so many sects are eager to recruit him." Even Meng Xinghai was somewhat surprised upon hearing the news.
Having two-arm strength nearing a thousand jin was enough to qualify as a mutant; only then could one achieve nine Newborn transformations, whereas everyone else stalled at seven or eight.
Soon, Qin Ming and Meng Xinghai learned that besides the Five Elements Palace, Shenzhao Academy, and Wenxin Academy, several other prominent lineages had arrived seeking to recruit Cao Wuji—such as Pure Yang Palace and Origin Academy, all illustrious names renowned throughout the night mist world.
However, lineages like Six Imperials, Yuqing, and Qingtian remained relatively aloof; so far, none of their representatives had shown up.
Meng Xinghai said, "Tomorrow, there's a gathering for you young people in the Purple Bamboo Forest along the Jinrui River. You can go take a look."
The Jinrui River ran straight through the city, with many scenic spots along its banks.
"Legend has it that during the Great Reclamation, a divine object was unearthed in this purple bamboo forest, which became the guardian treasure of an esoteric sect."
The following day, when Qin Ming arrived, he immediately heard someone recounting the history of this bamboo grove; it truly had quite a background. He was not the only outsider here—prodigies from many cities had rushed over upon hearing that Pure Yang Palace, Origin Academy, and Five Elements Palace were selecting disciples in the area.
As the spring breeze blew, the purple bamboo forest rustled, shimmering with gentle purple light. The Fire Spring wound its way through the grove, making the scenery picturesque.
Qin Ming observed the prodigies from various metropolises; indeed, all of them carried an exceptional air.
Before long, he caught sight of Cao Wuji. The young man had bright, piercing eyes and sword-shaped brows reaching toward his temples. He was quite handsome, carrying an extraordinary demeanor. Standing within the purple bamboo grove, Cao Wuji was conversing merrily with people from Pure Yang Palace and Shenzhao Academy.
Without question, he was the man of the hour. Major sects were eager to recruit him, so a crowd surrounded him wherever he went. Yet none had arrived from the lineages he most desired to join, such as Qingtian or Six Imperials.
Several youths stepped forward to greet him. In any case, as long as a mutant like him did not suffer an untimely death, he was destined to shake a whole region in the future.
"Brother, how should I address you, and where are you from?" someone greeted Qin Ming with a smile, aiming to expand their network. After all, most of those who dared come here were prodigies from metropolises hoping to secure early admission to Pure Yang Palace, Origin Academy, or the like.
"Chixia City, Qin—" Qin Ming replied.
"A pleasure!" The youth clasped his fists, though his reaction was thoroughly perfunctory. The moment he heard the name "Chixia," he determined it wasn't a metropolis. Without even waiting for Qin Ming to finish his name, he took his polite leave.
"Senior Brother, where are you from, and how may I address you?" A girl in purple approached with a sweet smile to greet him, clearly also looking to build connections, as there were no mediocre talents present.
"Chixia City, Qin Ming."
This time, the purple-clad girl did not cut him off. Instead, she was exceedingly warm, striking up a lively conversation.
Qin Ming was rather surprised. Hadn't she come to connect with promising prodigies destined to soar like great rocs in the future?
A girl in white walked over, exceptionally pretty. Acquainted with the girl in purple, she asked with a look of puzzlement, "This Senior Brother is...?"
"He comes from the metropolis of Chixia and is the number one there..." the purple-clad girl enthusiastically introduced.
"Uh, you're mistaken. Qixia City is the metropolis; Chixia City is out in a remote region," the white-clad girl whispered to her.
"Ah, I'm so sorry!"
After offering their apologies, the two girls quickly found an excuse to slip away.
Qin Ming sighed inwardly. At such an innocent age, during the best years of one's life, why was everyone so calculating? Meanwhile, the crowd around the juvenile extraordinary Cao Wuji was the thickest of all, packed so tightly that no one could squeeze through, surrounding him like stars clustering around the moon.
Suddenly, someone shouted, "Someone from the Yuqing lineage has arrived!"
A commotion rippled through the crowd. Representatives from this ancient lineage had actually appeared—presumably for Cao Wuji as well.
In the past, they had kept their mountain sealed, refraining from large-scale recruitment, yet their selection of top-tier prodigies had never ceased.
Thus, any representative of the Yuqing lineage appearing here was bound to possess an extraordinary status.
Leading the party from the Yuqing lineage was a young woman. Dazzling and graceful, she glided forward like a figure stepped straight from a painting.
"Senior Sister, I have long yearned to join the Yuqing lineage!" All around, countless youths burned with fervent desire to learn the legendary Yuqing force, their gazes intensely eager.
"Of course. Give me your name and I'll register you; as long as you pass the assessment when the time comes, that will do," the leading young woman said with a smile.
"Senior Sister, could you be that renowned young extraordinary from two years ago? Back then, you defeated experts across various cities, crushed disciples from the outer realms, and suppressed the promising seeds of esoteric sects! I've seen your portrait... wait, it really is you!" someone exclaimed.
The young woman smiled faintly without answering, walking toward Cao Wuji.
As she passed not far from Qin Ming, she glanced at him, then couldn't help sizing him up several times with a peculiar look in her eyes—instantly drawing the attention of everyone nearby.
Chapter 133