A Pig in the Palm

"Chonghe, why don't you come back with me? There might still be a turnaround in this matter," Cui Hong said. Hearing this, Qin Ming directly took several steps backward. The pitch-black desert seemed about to swallow him whole, obscuring even his silhouette. How could he possibly go to the Cui clan? The two years after his memories had faded were equivalent to stripping away all his former trains of thought and re-examining the past. Now, his perspective and judgment were entirely different from before. It was as if he had leaped out of his original life trajectory, breaking free from a turbulent, perilous river that had swept him along. Now that he had a brand-new start, he would never step back into it. Retreating again and again into the desert was Qin Ming's instinctive reaction. He could never sink into the Cui clan's quagmire again; otherwise, he truly would be in mortal danger. "Chonghe, why this reaction, this expression?" Seeing him treat him like a formidable foe and constantly retreat, Cui Hong could not help sighing. Evidently, the Cui Chonghe before him viewed the Cui clan as a plague, wanting nothing to do with them, unwilling to have any contact, having already cried out that he would live only for himself. "Are you going to force me?" Qin Ming asked, drawing his mutton-fat jade iron saber. "Even if I am no match for you, I won't just wait around to die." "Hm?" Cui Hong was astonished. The saber stance Qin Ming assumed exuded the air of a saber grandmaster, extraordinarily refined. He even had the illusion that regardless of the youth's true strength, he faintly possessed the demeanor of a saber master! "Eh?" On the rugged mountain path, shrouded in mist, Meng Xinghai showed a look of surprise as he watched ahead. That was merely a sixteen- or seventeen-year-old youth—how could he possess such an aura in the realm of the saber? Cui Hong did not channel heavenly light; he merely reached out a long arm, casually striking forward. He wanted to see whether Qin Ming truly had attained some mastery with the saber. Coated with mineral pigment, the mutton-fat jade iron saber was slightly shorter than an arm including the hilt. In Qin Ming's hand, it traced an arc of saber light accompanied by the rumble of wind and thunder—like a piercing bolt of lightning suddenly tearing through the shroud of a pitch-black, rainy night. With a rip, a corner of Cui Hong's hem was severed and fluttered down onto the yellow sand, leaving him slightly dazed. Though he had restrained his heavenly light and reached out casually, holding himself back for fear of injuring the young master, the boy should never have been able to cut him regardless. What level of cultivator was he? Yet a youth who had only recently stepped into the Newborn realm had sliced off a corner of his sleeve. If word got out, no one would believe it. Cui Hong looked with a complex expression at the slender, tall figure completely hidden in the darkness ahead. In the distance, Meng Xinghai also showed an astonished look, murmuring, "The people of the Cui clan truly are extraordinary. I thought my eyes were deceiving me, but I never expected that in pure saber technique alone, this youth genuinely qualifies as an accomplished master. His attainment in the dao of the saber is remarkably deep!" Li Qingyue was surprised. She knew very well that Meng Xinghai himself wielded a saber as his weapon; to earn such praise from him meant Qin Ming was truly outstanding. She recalled that night when Qin Ming had single-handedly flattened Golden Rooster Ridge, slaying two bandit chiefs who had undergone four Newborn rebirths. Afterward, veteran mountain patrollers had analyzed the scene, concluding that at least three people had attacked, each skilled with the saber, the spear, and the bow. Li Qingyue realized that the word "skilled" hardly did justice to the true caliber of Qin Ming's saber mastery. "Chonghe, you have surprised me greatly. Come back with me and give it a try," Cui Hong said. "Give it a try?" Qin Ming would never entrust his fate to someone else's "goodwill" now. The people of the Cui clan could cut off his Newborn path on a single whim; why take such a risk? He spoke up: "Earlier, you tacitly admitted that even if I mastered the technique recorded in the silk book, it would be useless, let alone this meager attainment with the saber. I will not go with you." Cui Hong spoke no further. He wanted to apprehend Qin Ming first. Lingering in this pitch-black desert felt uneasy to him; he did not want to violate taboos and incur some sort of "legend." "Stop!" Meng Xinghai called out, his figure flashing into the desert to intervene. Li Qingyue also appeared nearby, treading across the yellow sand like an immortal maiden skimming over ripples. Cui Hong had sensed them long ago. Not wanting unexpected complications, he swiftly reached out to grab Qin Ming. Just as Meng Xinghai moved to intercept, he suddenly pulled his hand back, revealing a strange expression and stepping backward several paces. "Didn't you say you wanted to repay my kindness? I'm about to be crippled by someone, and you're still not helping me?" Qin Ming whispered rapidly in the pitch-black desert. Bang! A sharp pain tore through Cui Hong's right hand, as though a savage dragon had kicked it. Losing his footing, he plowed backward through the yellow sand for more than a dozen meters. "Hss!" He sucked in a breath of cold air tainted with gritty dust. His right hand throbbed numb with pain, a sensation uncannily similar to when a donkey had kicked him in his childhood. He looked down at his right hand. Relying on his formidable perception, he could see at close range even within the desert. His right hand looked as if it had been stamped—crimson and on the verge of bleeding. Looking closer, Cui Hong discovered it was actually a hoofprint. "That hand is really hard," grunting and snorting came from the darkness, and then the creature spoke again. "How do you humans describe this sort of thing? As a stone in a latrine, wasn't it?" Qin Ming remained silent, offering no comment. No matter what, Cui Hong had once saved his life back then, whether it was part of his duties or not. Staring into the darkness, Cui Hong saw a miniature wild boar resting on Qin Ming's right palm. Barely longer than a hand, it had clearly delivered the kick! Gazing at the little mountain boar through a special ocular technique, Li Qingyue felt an intense sense of danger, as if a colossal behemoth loomed within the night mist. "The mountain lord of Black-White Mountain?" Meng Xinghai inquired. Cui Hong's expression changed abruptly. It was actually that mountain lord! He had come specifically seeking its help, yet now it had shrunk into a pig in the palm, appearing right here. The wild boar spoke: "Sigh, an embarrassment to pigs. I'm already the former mountain lord. You've probably met the new mountain lord too—profound and unfathomable, isn't he? He usurped my place long ago, just quietly keeping it under wraps without making a fuss." Qin Ming's willingness to stand here and talk with Cui Hong naturally came with some backing. Though the wild boar had snored deafeningly last night, it had also spoken a sentence to him: "Since we met by chance, I might as well repay a debt of gratitude along the way and settle a karmic link from the mountains." Qin Ming still did not know what debt of gratitude it was repaying, but since it could shift its size and speak human tongue, it was bound to be extraordinarily powerful. Without this wild boar, he would have had no choice but to fight desperately, resorting to drastic measures to "offend" this terrifying desert. "Mountain Lord, do you intend to meddle in the affairs of my Cui clan?" Cui Hong asked. The old wild boar replied, "How could I dare? A millennium clan whose renown shakes the boundless, pitch-black world and awes all living creatures—why would I overestimate myself? It's just that for this stretch of the road, I promised to see him safely through." Cui Hong's expression darkened and flickered. He knew he was definitely no match for it. Moreover, an old mountain lord that had lost its territory was the most troublesome kind to provoke. If one gave it no face and enraged it, it was capable of doing anything. After all, it had no territory left to lose; plunging straight into the far reaches of the pitch-black earth afterward would make tracking it down nearly impossible. He nodded. "Very well. Since the Mountain Lord has spoken, we shall speak again once this stretch of the road is behind us." Meng Xinghai said, "Brother of the Cui clan, how should I address you? To think you would willingly ruin such a rare prodigy of the saber. Since you don't want him, name your terms and let me take him with me, how about that?" Soon, Cui Hong learned the other man's identity. No wonder he possessed the confidence to speak like this—he hailed from a millennium clan as well. Moreover, Cui Hong recognized the young lady opposite him, Li Qingyue. His impression of her was deep: back then, scions of several top prominent clans had gathered in the same grand city, waiting for people beyond the mundane world to come select disciples. This Li Qingyue had ultimately been taken away by an illustrious figure. Meng Xinghai showed a peculiar look. By now, he knew who Qin Ming was. He had heard whispers of the turmoil from two years ago, yet never expected to meet this Cui Chonghe in person. "I've caught bits and pieces of the story. If your Cui clan crushes him here in this remote land, word getting out would earn you a reputation for being harsh and ungrateful, which wouldn't look good at all," Meng Xinghai noted. At the same time, he pointed to Li Qingyue and added, "Your Cui clan can't possibly silence both her and me, can you? After all, we've seen everything." Cui Hong's expression shifted. A bloody clash or even outright war between millennium clans? What nonsense—that would invite catastrophic consequences. In Qin Ming's fractured memories, scattered, broken threads were now knitting together. He spoke rapidly: "From this day forth, even in death, I will never mention being a scion of the Cui clan, nor will I ever step into your circle again. From now on, I am only Qin Ming." Two years ago, he could not comprehend or see through certain matters, but now he was different. Even from catching merely fragmented clues, he had begun to realize the truth. Right now, what Qin Ming wanted most was to undergo his fourth Newborn rebirth as soon as possible, pierce through all the mist, and learn everything about his past experiences without having to ask anyone else. Cui Hong said, "When has the Cui clan ever been harsh and ungrateful? I have a premonition that within a few years, the young master will be invited back." Hearing such words, Qin Ming had nothing to say. Meng Xinghai remarked, "Since that's the case, send a message bird back to consult your Cui clan. It wouldn't reflect well on you if others found out you acted this way; it would tarnish the reputation of a millennium clan." Then, looking at Qin Ming, he said, "I once heard that more than two hundred years ago, a remarkable saber prodigy emerged in this region. Sadly, because he lacked a suitable Newborn method in his early years, he wasted half his life. Even with master-grade saber skills, that senior could not remain in this world for long. Observing the aura of your saber technique, it seems to embody that senior's Sky-Severing Saber Intent." Qin Ming bowed to him in gratitude for speaking up on his behalf, then revealed, "That was my master." In an instant, silence fell over the scene. Meng Xinghai felt this youth was spouting wild tall tales—utterly unreliable! According to what he knew, after that saber master's vitality withered, he went into seclusion and vanished, but he couldn't possibly have lived many more years. Li Qingyue also showed a strange look as she looked at this former friend. How had he changed so much after not seeing each other for two years? "Chonghe, don't speak nonsense," Cui Hong said. "Though my master lost an arm back then, once he created the Sky-Severing Saber Intent, he personally cut down all his rivals, leaving no lingering obsessions in his heart. In his twilight years, he departed into the mountains and unexpectedly discovered a rare spiritual substance, extending his lifespan and treading the Newborn path anew. He truly has lived until now, though he has indeed reached old age once more." Qin Ming spoke calmly, recounting some of the genuine scenes he had seen in the saber manual. He reproduced many of the one-armed elder's words and even described his appearance. The old wild boar was the first to be dumbfounded. "It really was that guy?!" Meng Xinghai was also somewhat dazed. He thought of certain sages of the past who, having reached a dead end or seeing no hope in their old age, chose to venture into deep mountains and great marshes in search of opportunities. Could this saber master have encountered a miraculous stroke of fortune? Cui Hong was also startled. If true, a grandmaster of the saber over two hundred years old was no trivial matter! Qin Ming did not care in the slightest whether they believed him or not. His current circumstances were so dire that bragging first and bluffing a bit cost him nothing. "How about we leave things like this for today?" the old wild boar spoke up. It leaped from Qin Ming's palm to the ground and told him to hit the road together. Cui Hong watched quietly, intending to take the young master away after they cleared this stretch of the road. Yet in the next moment, he lost his composure as he caught a familiar foul, pungent stench. Meng Xinghai and Li Qingyue also frowned instantly, holding their breath before stepping backward. Deep in the darkness, Qin Ming witnessed with his own eyes as the boar from his palm hit the ground and unleashed a massive flood of urine, turning a patch of yellow sand into a huge puddle. Rumble! The entire desert erupted into turmoil once again, black mist churning with immense violence. "Let's go! What are you standing there gaping for? I'm seeing you out," the old wild boar turned back and jutted its snout toward Qin Ming, gesturing for him to keep up.