In the dead of night, when all was still, Qin Ming was drawn involuntarily into the pitch-black mist. Unease stirred in his heart, along with profound bewilderment—why was this happening? As he moved through the dense fog, anything slightly further away became impossible to see clearly.
Qin Ming noticed that he possessed a human form that was not dim. At the very last moment before he was pulled away, he had grabbed hold of the rag and carried it in with him.
The piece of cloth was about the size of two palms placed side by side, roughly square in shape, and approximately one palm-length long.
At this moment, Qin Ming was a body of consciousness, where physical size did not truly matter. He was able to drape the dim piece of cloth over himself, which meant that upon manifesting, he was only slightly taller than a palm.
It was a wondrous experience, his senses extraordinarily keen. Yet Qin Ming wore a grave expression, unable to summon even the slightest smile. Anyone else would surely have panicked long ago at such an inexplicable turn of events in the middle of the night.
The mist was thick. This place was immensely profound and silent, even dead and desolate, with no hint of where he was headed.
Soon, Qin Ming's feet touched the ground. Surprisingly, it was black earth, resembling the legendary underworld soil. Clink-clank!
He actually heard the crisp sound of colliding iron chains. Then, he saw shackles flying silently toward him.
Qin Ming was slightly startled. Finally, there was some movement—what kind of situation was this, trying to lock him up right away? He swiftly dodged aside, while deep within the mist, he caught sight of two colossal figures.
Both were as tall as small hills. At this moment, they opened their terrifying eyes and strode heavily in his direction.
Immediately after, Qin Ming saw a gigantic ox demon with rough, gnarly horns and a body covered in black fur. Its four hooves made the ground tremble as it stepped forward, its eyes golden, cloaked in thick underworld mist.
Beside it stood a horse demon whose hooves were as large as millstones. Its body was pure white and its pupils silver; as it lashed its tail, it swept away large swathes of the night fog.
"You dare resist an imperial officer?" The ox demon's voice was like a thunderclap, echoing through the night mist as its hill-like body drew near.
Iron chains wrapped around its thick horns, connected to the shackles. When it opened its mouth, black mist billowed like a bursting mountain torrent; it was the one that had tried to lock Qin Ming up just now.
"Where did you monsters come from!" Qin Ming was not afraid at all. In the borderlands, had he slain few old demons? But then he suddenly remembered that he had no physical flesh—he was merely consciousness. How was he supposed to fight?
"Hmm?!" Abruptly, he discovered that he was not purely a body of consciousness; his heavenly light force had followed him! In an instant, he realized what was happening.
He practiced the secret technique Li Qingyue had taught him every single day. Most of the conscious spiritual light born from it was absorbed by his flesh and blood, leaving only a tiny amount to accumulate.
Meng Xinghai's Martial Granduncle had also given him a very thin booklet, which he likewise practiced diligently. The divine wisdom born from it was similarly absorbed by his flesh and blood, with only a small portion left behind.
Heavenly light force was born from within flesh and blood. Seen this way, it had become intertwined with the conscious spiritual light and divine wisdom, following them directly into this black fog.
Qin Ming clenched his fist slightly. Golden light burst forth, driving away large quantities of the black mist!
Next, while in this form, he circulated the silk book method. Instantly, golden rays of light wove around his entire body, looking somewhat like those figures standing in the black fog behind Lu Zizai and the Six Imperials Patriarch.
However, this body of his was exceedingly small, far from comparable to those towering giants who bridged heaven and earth.
"What is with you?" The giant ox demon seemed taken aback.
The chains upon its head rattled once more, and the shackles attached to them radiated five-colored rays of light, dropping straight down toward Qin Ming. Under these circumstances, how could Qin Ming simply wait for death?
Qin Ming swung his arm, feigning a punch, primarily to stir the rag draped over his body.
When in his physical body, he had already tested this cloth; it was extraordinarily miraculous. He was not sure if it would work in this environment. As he channeled a sliver of energy into it, the piece of cloth gave off a faint gleam, shattering the five-colored shackles to pieces in an instant.
The horse demon stomped down with its millstone-sized hoof, only to brush against the rag. It let out a miserable shriek as white smoke rose from one of its silver hooves, as though it were on fire. Horrified, it retreated backward.
"Illuminated by the heart-lamp, the pure yang light, this..." The ox demon was shocked.
"The shackles did not touch your body, which proves you bear no sins," the horse demon spoke.
Qin Ming stared at them coldly and said, "Don't tell me you two are Ox-Head and Horse-Face, and that this is the netherworld."
The ox demon said, "Though there are some differences, it is roughly the same. There was a misunderstanding between us."
"With the pure yang light, one can travel freely between the living and the nether worlds. We chained the wrong person this time; we offer our apologies. You are an exalted figure and ought to journey toward the celestial gate. You should head that way," the horse demon said, pointing out a direction.
Qin Ming threw a punch. He had felt all along that they were not that powerful. This time, he did not use the mysterious cloth woven from exotic metal. Instead, he directly unleashed his heavenly light force—and actually set both of them ablaze!
"Ah! This isn't the fire of pure yang, so why is it so similar?!"
The two hill-like demons rapidly disintegrated, turning into ashes.
"What is this place?" Qin Ming surveyed his surroundings closely. After burning away the nearby black fog, he saw an elevated platform in the distance and walked toward it.
Though forged from five-colored extraordinary stone, it was not dazzling. On the contrary, it was austere and unadorned, as if it had endured the baptism of endless ages to settle into a sense of returning to simplicity.
There were only three characters upon the high platform. Qin Ming did not recognize them; they belonged to an extremely ancient script engraved with the lingering remnants of an old era. Yet after his mind resonated with them, he understood their meaning: Ascension Platform.
Qin Ming felt that he had truly seen a ghost. This world of black fog truly contained all sorts of things; could even a name like this be used so casually? He had originally intended to turn back, as the force that had drawn him here had now vanished.
However, when he looked behind him, there were no familiar surroundings. He could not find his way back—it was an endless expanse of desolate underworld soil.
"Is it like this deep within the boundless black fog behind Lu Zizai and the Six Imperials Patriarch as well?" Qin Ming frowned. He was completely in the dark, understanding nothing about this place.
He walked toward the Ascension Platform, refusing to believe in absurdities. He was merely a Newborn; could he truly ascend on glowing clouds and become an immortal-like being?
The moment he stepped onto the five-colored high platform, auspicious clouds surged forth, and hundreds of colored beams wrapped around him.
Then, Qin Ming found that he was carrying a massive shower of light, ascending into the high sky as though about to enter another world.
He was stunned. Had he truly ascended on glowing clouds? Where was he going?
Accompanied by melodious music, the heavy darkness gradually receded. Standing atop white clouds, he saw a grand expanse of palatial architecture in the distance.
He looked back, but there was no way of retreat once more.
"Since I'm already here, I'll face it calmly!" Draped in the cloth woven from exotic metal, Qin Ming walked toward that cluster of buildings.
Along the way, colored clouds wound about and immortal mist churned. He then stepped onto an enormous arched bridge built from pure white jade, which seemed to span a heavenly chasm.
Beneath the bridge, within waters vast as lakes and seas, hill-sized golden lotus flowers bloomed. Under the colossal lotus leaves, flood dragons actually swam.
Crossing the jade bridge, Qin Ming arrived at a place that resembled a heavenly palace. Fine pavilions and jade halls stood with golden bricks and jade tiles, sacred and majestic buildings stretching beyond the horizon. Moreover, he saw many women here, their colored dresses fluttering, seemingly the legendary immortals flying through the void.
In the sky, a cry rang out as golden light illuminated everything. A golden crow shone upon all creation, its sun-like brilliance extraordinarily sacred. Having lived for years in a world cloaked in perpetual night, Qin Ming was dazed, gazing at it again and again.
"Senior, have you come to attend the banquet?" A purple-robed woman glided through the air, remarkably beautiful, offering a slight bow with a smile.
"Do I look very old?" Qin Ming asked.
The purple-robed maiden smiled. "For anyone able to reach this place, their conscious spiritual light must have attained the level of pure yang, fearing neither lightning nor fire to ascend the nine heavens. Only senior masters can accomplish such a feat."
"Where is this?" Qin Ming asked again.
The purple-robed woman answered solemnly, "This is a divine kingdom. My master is the Demon-Subduing True Martial Divine Lord."
Qin Ming nodded and said, "Have your master come see me."
The purple-robed maiden grew indignant and said, "Senior, you go too far. Even if your status is noble, you cannot make such an unreasonable request. If you wish to attend the banquet, please respect the master of this realm."
Qin Ming laughed aloud and said, "It must be exhausting putting on such a performance, isn't it? What right or merit does a petty little Newborn like me have to warrant such a massive display from you? It only proves that you are far too weak. That puts my mind at ease, haha..."
The purple-robed maiden glared coldly. Amidst the fine pavilions and jade halls, in front of the central grand palace at the deepest point, an enormous figure slowly materialized, growing taller and taller like a towering mountain, looking down upon Qin Ming.
The other colorfully dressed immortals also rose into the air, watching him from a distance.
There were also banquet guests sitting in rainbow carriages, leaning out to gaze in this direction.
Qin Ming spoke, "I already said, I am merely a petty little Newborn, yet you conjured such a massive scene. That gave you away."
In front of the central heavenly palace, that colossal figure was a middle-aged man wearing an imperial crown with swaying beads, looking incomparably aloof and imposing.
Qin Ming said, "Sigh, I should thank you for going through so much trouble to let me see such a grand spectacle. Living in a world of night, all of this was mere wishful thinking for me, something I could only imagine. Yet today, you constructed a false spectacle for me. Although I saw through to the truth very quickly, those beautiful sights are still enough for me to savor for a long time."
"You could see through all of this?" The purple-robed maiden was astonished. It really had been a futile effort, serving only as entertainment for him.
"Indeed," Qin Ming nodded. When his emotions resonated, he had sensed a dense resentment and clearly perceived the false scenes constructed from conscious spiritual light.
"Let's end this!" he shouted, not wishing to waste time. He was genuinely worried about slipping up in an unexpected ditch.
"In the past, in my eyes, let alone a Newborn like you, even an Outer Sage would be no different from an ant upon the ground. How lamentable, how sorrowful!" the mountain-like middle-aged man spoke, blue light flashing within his eyes.
At the same time, those immortals and banquet guests all shattered.
Qin Ming did not dare get careless. Even knowing the opponent was exceptionally weak and likely unable to harm him, he still struck with all his might.
He channeled the rag on his body, mainly stimulating the diagram of the incomplete sun. With a boom, a dazzling golden sun manifested outside his body, shining brightly ahead.
In an instant, the fine pavilions and jade halls caught fire, and the palaces collapsed. The middle-aged man let out a miserable shriek, saying in disbelief, "What is that?! How could you possess such a thing?!"
He retreated at top speed, but he was far too weak to dodge at all. Compared to his peak state, his current power was negligible and utterly insignificant.
Otherwise, with his standing, how could he ever have put on an act for such an 'ant'? Rumble!
Heaven and earth cracked as all the architecture collapsed, consumed by flames. Wild fire spread across the nine heavens, and even the entire realm began to shatter.
There was no splendid scene of a divine kingdom here at all; the true scene was merely rubble scattered everywhere, broken walls, dilapidated ruins, and scorched earth. A faint, giant blue centipede hovered ahead, yet could do nothing.
This was the 'great being' that had sought to subjugate Chixia City and the surrounding mountains and rivers. Tonight, a wisp of its remnant spirit had stirred up trouble, seeking vengeance against Qin Ming to reclaim its divinity.
Within the ruins stood an altar emanating blue mist. By means of a certain ritual, the giant centipede's remnant spirit had guided Qin Ming's consciousness here.
Yet now, as the great sun manifested from the rag, the illuminated altar collapsed.
"Hateful! I was meant to become a god, yet was intercepted. Even my final wisp of remnant spirit cannot deal with a petty little Newborn and must fade into oblivion. Heavens, how unfair you are!" the giant blue centipede roared in fury.
In truth, it had already been considered slain by the four great experts; this was merely its final wisp of resentment stirring up waves in this special world of black fog.
These dilapidated walls and utter shambles had once been its kingdom of God, smashed and destroyed by the four great experts.
"You didn't die unjustly. To forge your divine path, you wanted to devour the entire surrounding region and cause an entire city of people to die in vain. If you were to become a god, that would be true injustice under heaven." Although Qin Ming had taken quite a bit of its divinity, he did not feel the slightest guilt.
The final faint trace of blue light burst apart, dissipating entirely.
Qin Ming searched the area and found that the entire ruins had been cleared out. When the four suns traversed the sky and breached this place, how could any valuable items have remained?
Finally, by the collapsed altar, he discovered a golden scale.
The giant centipede had activated the ruined altar with this very object to draw Qin Ming's consciousness into this domain.
Qin Ming was certain that this item had not been here earlier; otherwise, it would have been taken by the four great experts long ago. It had likely been brought back from elsewhere by the remnant spirit.
He reckoned that the giant centipede had intended to send him onto the altar to sacrifice him alive!
"There's actually text!" Qin Ming discovered dense, tiny characters on the scale. Overjoyed by this unexpected harvest, he felt that such an inscription could never be simple!
At that moment, he felt a pulling force appear, drawing him involuntarily into the distance. Qin Ming did not panic, dimly sensing that he was about to return to his physical body.
A moment later, he passed through the thick black mist, appeared in his room, and plunged into his body with a whoosh. In the dead of night, he woke up.
Qin Ming sat up abruptly, slightly skeptical—had everything he had just experienced been real? It felt like a dream. But when he looked down, he knew it was no dream!
For right there on the bed rested a palm-sized golden scale, glittering brilliantly, covered in dense, tiny characters.
Chapter 168