Yujing had fallen, stones bloomed with flowers, moons appeared in the water, and jian spawned within the clouds. All manner of mystical phenomena and horrifying anomalies were springing up like bamboo shoots after rain, endless and pervasive. And now something even more terrifying had arrived, involving a Heavenly Immortal?
Qin Ming ignored the sedan-bearers and fixed his gaze upon the red sedan chair.
Accompanying an auspicious glow, the owner of the dainty red shoe embroidered with gold thread emerged. A crimson gown drifted in the chill wind, and a slender figure appeared in the night sky.
The atmosphere was grotesque and uncanny. Four sedan-bearers wore burlap mourning garments, draped entirely in pure white, their faces lost in shadow like ferocious demons and vengeful specters—yet from within that red sedan chair stepped a crimson-clad Heavenly Immortal. It was bizarre in the extreme.
"Hmm?" Qin Ming froze. Amidst the ice and snow, the crimson dress fluttered in midair with a haunting, ethereal grace—yet why was there no head above the collar? It was completely hollow.
To his surprise, this was an empty gown with nothing inside. The red shoes were merely floating in the air, without the celestial feet that ought to have filled them.
Even so, once the six old itinerant merchants saw the red sedan chair arrive, each backed away to yield the path, clearly sensing she was not one to be provoked.
"Where did you get that scarf?" A voice drifted from the crimson gown suspended in the air. This was the so-called Heavenly Immortal.
Qin Ming realized what had caught her attention. He didn't have any scarf; it was the replica of the rag, once seized from Tang Yushang in the Great Thunder Sound Temple, which she had used as a hairband.
Woven from various exotic metals, it naturally warded off evil. Under such bizarre circumstances, he had naturally taken it out and wrapped it around the back of his neck to prevent jian and other unseen entities from creeping up behind him again.
"A gift from a friend. It came from the Tai Ruins," Qin Ming said.
Tang Yushang, who had always wanted to make a move on him, hailed from the pristine Heaven-chosen land. If this crimson-clad Heavenly Immortal truly wanted to trace its origin, she was welcome to go test her mettle there.
The red dress fluttered in the night wind, and the delicate gold-threaded red shoes stepped forward in midair. Drawing slightly closer, it was as though someone truly bowed her head at that empty collar, gazing down at the rag replica.
"A pity. In the end, it is not you," she sighed softly.
Qin Ming was shaken. He knew very well that she was referring to the genuine rag; she must have encountered or seen it before.
Yet the old rag was right on his person. Had the red-robed woman failed to notice it?
He recalled his experience on the Earth Moon, where he was designated its "temporary possessor." Could that mean the old rag concealed its own brilliance, rendering outsiders incapable of detecting it?
Her red shoes drifted forward, and her wide sleeves lifted. Faint crimson mist seeped from the cuff, shaping into a slender hand that reached out to grasp Qin Ming.
Clang!
Sword light soared into the sky, incomparably dazzling. An exotic metal small sword hovered before Qin Ming, ready to fight her to the bitter end.
Qin Ming did not believe the red-robed woman in her current state was a true Heavenly Immortal. If she were an existence of that caliber, why would she need to make a physical move? A single sweep of her conscious spirit light would incinerate him to ashes.
"Six Ding Divine Fire, and refined into runes... Are you a core disciple of Doushuai Palace?" The woman abruptly withdrew her hand, sounding distinctly startled. Within the domain radiated by Yujing, how could there be a core disciple from that lineage?
To repel evil, Qin Ming had not only deployed his exotic metal weapon but also channeled various sacred arts, allowing her to identify the origin of the Six Ding Divine Fire at a glance.
"Never mind. You spoke the truth; the Tai Ruins likely does possess a replica." Withdrawing her hand, she turned and stepped back into the sedan chair.
Then, the four sedan-bearers dressed in mourning clothes bore her into the night fog, gradually fading until they were about to vanish.
Qin Ming's thoughts churned. Was Doushuai Palace really so renowned? Out of respect for him being a core disciple of that dao field, the red-robed woman had simply departed.
Opening his Eye of the Newborn to observe closely, he immediately glimpsed part of the hazy truth.
The red sedan chair crossed a layer of misty territory and then penetrated another layer deeper, as though traversing two successive realms, vanishing completely from the mundane world.
Having witnessed that scene, the six old itinerant merchants harbored misgivings and lingered no longer. Their figures dimmed as each walked through the first layer of misty territory and disappeared.
"They're finally gone! My little face was scared almost pale!" the giant crow spoke up. Then, it carried Qin Ming along in a mad dash toward the large city ahead.
Chenxi City boasted a population of over a million. Substantial in scale and bustling with activity, people usually moved in and out in large numbers, maintaining frequent communication with all regions.
Qin Ming decided to rest and regroup here, wanting to gain a deeper understanding of the changes occurring across various lands; otherwise, traveling entirely in the dark would be far too dangerous.
Sure enough, large cities had their advantages: information flowed freely, and he soon learned a great deal.
"Listen everyone, if you're traveling far, don't cross the pitch-black uninhabited zones just to take shortcuts. It's too easy for things to go wrong. For safety's sake, travel wherever human presence is thickest." People had already summarized rules of thumb so quickly.
Between towns and between villages, any place with significant human activity currently remained mostly safe. But once you strayed far from them, you could encounter any sort of demon, ghost, or monstrosity.
That same day, Qin Ming learned several pieces of critical intelligence, all issued by the City Lord's Manor.
"In the past, certain mysterious phenomena have manifested further, seeming to emerge distinctly from a layer of the world behind the night fog, capable of entering reality."
Qin Ming immediately thought of what he had witnessed along the way: the old itinerant merchants, the jian, the crimson-clad Heavenly Immortal, and the like.
The entire world was undergoing drastic upheaval. Some matters were still unfolding, and experts from all quarters had yet to fully grasp them, requiring more time.
Qin Ming paused his journey for the time being, intending to learn more.
Two days later, a message arrived from the earthen city: an elder Earth Immortal at the Great Perfection level from above revealed that behind the night-fog world lay even deeper domains, vast and boundless.
Such domains were known as the Night Ruins.
For example, why were the indelible "scenes" and incomprehensible "phenomena" within Perils so difficult to eradicate and wipe out? Because they were rooted within the Night Ruins.
That was the ultimate destination of the old itinerant merchants.
Moreover, the Night Ruins had more than one layer.
The old itinerant merchants belonged to the first layer of the Night Ruins, while jian dwelled in an even deeper realm.
"A human dies and becomes a ghost; a ghost dies and becomes a jian—is this saying still true?" Such had originally been the common conception of many people.
Yet this entrenched understanding now seemed to be overturned.
Were the old itinerant merchants ghosts? No. They possessed physical bodies and were not spirits. Having walked the dark, uninhabited wilderness year in and year out, they had already come into contact with the first layer of the Night Ruins.
Now that Yujing no longer hung aloft above, the mist separating the Night Ruins and the mundane world had thinned. Thus, certain bizarre visions had materialized, capable of crossing into reality.
Qin Ming pondered that the woman in the red sedan chair was likely a jian. Though hailed as a Heavenly Immortal by the sedan-bearers, and perhaps once an existence of that caliber in the mortal world, she had fallen into the second layer of the Night Ruins. This indicated that some catastrophic misfortune had befallen her in ages past, and she most likely no longer possessed such supreme cultivation.
In fact, she might not have even preserved her physical flesh—otherwise, why would only a crimson gown appear?
"Beings from beyond the domain have arrived, seeking to vie for the legacy left behind by Yujing!"
This news came from the founders of the esoteric sects, the Newborn path, and the outer realms, warning people everywhere to proceed with caution, as unexpected bloody conflicts might erupt.
At this stage, Night Province could be described with a single word: chaos!
Chiefly, besides the Night Ruins, all manner of other bizarre phenomena had sprung forth—such as flowers in stone, moons in water, bronze lions coming to life, and more.
"To say nothing of the rest, even the cloud layers are filled with perils: human skins drifting, immortals dancing... absurd, unimaginable spectacles emerging one after another."
Qin Ming set off once more. This time, their speed was not as swift; carrying him, the giant crow no longer dared take shortcuts, treating the pitch-black uninhabited zones as forbidden territories to skirt around.
When they arrived at Luofu City to rest, it stammered, looking thoroughly sheepish. "Lord Qin... could we end our journey here?"
It truly didn't dare go any farther. Black-White Mountain lay in a remote area where human habitation was sparse, with great distances between towns. Now that demons danced in frenzy, a hundred jian marched by night, and sinister things of every kind had emerged, it feared this stretch of the road would prove too treacherous, a journey with no return.
Qin Ming did not force it. "All right. Take care on your way back."
Luofu City was a colossal metropolis, and Qin Ming was no stranger to it. The ruins of the Luofu Sect lay outside the city, where he had once helped Li Qingyue contend for the Eight Trigrams Furnace, leaving behind many memories.
"It's still four thousand li to Chixia. Traveling on foot will suffice." Qin Ming set out.
The snow was deep, exceeding the height of a man in many areas. After this extraordinary blizzard, rare even in a century, Qin Ming's travel speed was noticeably reduced.
In particular, he had to take detours, sticking only to roads between towns and villages, which consumed a great deal of time.
Even so, walking, pausing, and resting along the way, he was not far from Chixia two days later.
Under the night sky, Qin Ming's expression was grave. He had indeed run into plenty of trouble along the road: an old woman who trembled in the dead of night yet resolutely blocked the way; a blood-dripping coffin suspended in the night sky; a "grandfather" carrying a white paper lantern who chatted with him the entire way...
What he saw along this journey truly opened Qin Ming's eyes. Time and again he had encountered peril, yet managed to turn danger into safety each time.
With mixed emotions, he looked back. A gaunt, shadowy figure carrying a white paper lantern was drifting away; that person looked identical to the grandfather in his childhood memories.
"What in the world is this realm turning into?" Qin Ming exhaled a breath of turbid air.
He realized a massive catastrophe was looming.
Communication between various regions would likely be severed. Even someone like him, a figurehead of the Newborn path, had nearly met with disaster traveling four thousand li alone—let alone anyone else.
If things continued developing like this as the fallout of Yujing's fall deepened and conditions deteriorated, even sixth-realm powerhouses might find it difficult to travel far.
And as time went on, cities and towns might turn into isolated islands.
"Should I flee Night Province?" Qin Ming showed concern.
What happened next would depend on whether the Earth Immortals and the founders of various paths could keep the roads across Night Province open; otherwise, grave disaster would truly strike.
While the people of Night Province were gripped by panic, wave after wave of outsiders from beyond the domain surged in.
"Fragments of Yujing, corpses of the Colossus—even obtaining a tiny sliver is an incredible fortune!"
The heroes contended for Yujing's legacy!
In truth, the experts in the earthen city and the founders of various paths were also making their moves. Those at the top understood that behind great crisis lay rare treasures scattered everywhere and potentially immense fortunes.
"Ancestor, we might not be able to return. We did discover something extraordinary in Night Province, but now... we may be about to die..."
Amidst ice and snow, a grove of ginkgo trees was sprouting branches and leaves in the dead of winter. The leaves were as blood-red as crimson, quickly blossoming and bearing fruit as translucent as red agate.
Led by a grandmaster from beyond the domain, the party had ventured here, but they could no longer find their way out of this ancient grove.
After consuming the crimson ginkgo fruits, their cultivation had surged drastically, but their memories were blurring, their consciousness dissipating, and their physical forms warping.
"Perhaps our physical bodies will survive, but without our consciousness, that will certainly no longer be us. Ancestor, Night Province is perilous!"
In the ginkgo grove, these were the grandmaster's final words. Then low growls echoed through the trees, followed by the prolonged howling of a pack of horrific monsters.
Similar occurrences, fraught with differing perils, played out across Night Province.
Yet amid the crisis, some reaped tremendous benefits. The former palace lord of the Pure Yang Palace, a major sect of the Newborn path, spotted from afar a newly emerged, strange fire spring deep in the mountains. Pure golden fiery haze surged from it, cradling a single flower as dazzling as the sun.
"The former palace lord of the Pure Yang Palace unexpectedly harvested a precious herb and successfully broke through to the sixth realm, becoming a powerhouse at the founder level!"
Many knew that this grandmaster had grown old and frail, with no hope of ever breaking through again in this lifetime. Yet he had miraculously advanced to the sixth realm, shocking the world.
He named this rare medicine the Pure Yang Flower.
Everyone knew how difficult cultivation along the Newborn path was, and becoming a founder was the hardest of all. For him to break through in such a condition was truly a miracle.
In an instant, this news stirred up the entire realm. Major factions and aging experts went wild over it.
The Newborn path, the esoteric sects, the immortal path—every major orthodoxy mobilized. Fearless old-timers felt their blood boil with vigor as if they had returned to age eighteen, charging forth full of boundless energy.
The millennial clans were even more zealous. Believing crisis and opportunity went hand in hand, they saw this extraordinary era as a chance to alter their clans' destiny and forge extraordinary powerhouses.
"The opportunity to overtake on the bend has arrived!" some even believed.
Against such a backdrop, perhaps emerging forces could rise and surpass the ancestral courts of the esoteric sects and the immortal path.
"Uncle Meng, in our area around Black-White Mountain, have any special treasures or resources emerged?" Qin Ming had smoothly returned to Chixia.
At this moment, he sat in that familiar parlor. Watching the calming incense drift in curling wisps from a bronze censer, he took a sip of fragrant mountain tea.
"Now that you mention it, there actually are. Several glowing, unusual zones have appeared in this region, looking quite out of the ordinary. Did you rush all the way back just for those things?" Meng Xinghai smiled.
Qin Ming nodded. "Yeah. Outside is far too perilous. Grandmasters jump out at every turn, and immortal seeds and divine seeds of my generation might have protectors backing them. I figured returning to my hometown would be safer. Surely no one would travel this far to compete with us, right?"
Mainly, the territory surrounding Black-White Mountain was indeed extraordinary. Since ancient times, mysterious dao fields had existed there, and god-like beings had roamed; even in the present era, a giant centipede had sought to attain godhood there.
Furthermore, with the blood kite lingering over this region, Qin Ming felt far more at ease. Even if outsiders barged in, he would be competing on home ground.
In truth, even remote places were coveted by others.
At this moment, major factions everywhere were carving out claims and scouring the world for wondrous opportunities.
Not only the ancestral courts of the various teachings and the millennial clans, but even the people of the earthen city grew restless; many beings from above had already hurried off to various regions.
From beyond the domain, wave after wave of forces were dispatched into Night Province. As various rumors spread, hot debates broke out both within and outside Night Province, and none of the factions could sit still.
"Black-White Mountain had a divine dao field in ancient times, was just as extraordinary in recent antiquity, and even holds a Peril. Around it, the probability of extraordinary things appearing is extremely high!"
Several major factions marked Black-White Mountain on their maps; remote as it was, it was worth dispatching a portion of their forces there.
Among them, the Cui clan also set its sights on Black-White Mountain, deeming it one of their targets.
Cui Qi, father of Cui Chonghe, spoke: "Remote is all the better—fewer people mean less competition. Besides, that rebellious son might return to Black-White Mountain. If there really is a great fortune, we shall reap it clean at once and not let him lay a finger on it!"
In the City Lord's Manor of Chixia, Qin Ming asked Meng Xinghai about Twin Trees Village and was told that all was well there.
"There's only one thing: Old Immortal Liu has grown increasingly lethargic. Everything else is completely normal."
Qin Ming nodded, guessing that Liu Mo might fall into a long dormancy. Under these circumstances, he didn't know whether that was a good thing or bad.
"Uncle Meng, let's find some suitable opponents to scout the way first, and then we must consider heading into the mountains," Qin Ming said.
That very day, another sensational piece of news came from the outside world.
Someone had discovered an Earth Immortal Flower rooted deep within a desolate Peril, where seven suns hung in the sky, illuminating the ice and snow in a wondrous spectacle.
When the Pure Yang Flower appeared, it had already shaken Night Province.
Now, even the legendary Earth Immortal Flower had emerged into the world, directly setting the realm ablaze. Countless eyes turned toward it, and legions of experts set out.
"This old man can sit still no longer!" Even Earth Immortals outside Night Province could no longer contain themselves.
And within the earthen city, powerhouses at the Earth Immortal Great Perfection level stepped forth directly. The supreme experts from above had become so down-to-earth, no longer putting on lofty airs.
"Be cautious. The core region of a Peril connects to the Night Ruins!"
"No matter. We shall act when the opportunity arises!"
In an instant, the tense, terrified atmosphere across Night Province was diluted.
Many realized that this might be the most perilous era, yet also the most splendid age. A hundred schools contended, all paths vied with one another, and everyone held hope of rising up.
"Dragons and serpents rise from the earth, and even commoners can soar into the sky. This is a grand era wholly unlike the past, poised to unfurl a dazzling scroll where stars shine and suns and moons traverse the heavens. In the end, either an apocalypse arrives, burning this splendid scroll to magnificent ash, or an age of flourishing splendor unfolds in all its glory!"
Chapter 417