Night Without End
Chapter 88 - 56 The Three Excellences

Chapter 88: Chapter 56 The Three Excellences

"Why should we have to turn in night silver? What reason do they have to demand this from us?"

"Just a short while ago, we were almost starving to death, and now, just as things start to get better, we absolutely can’t afford such extortion from Jinji Ridge!"

Everyone was outraged.

Although food from the outside had been brought in by giant beasts, it still had to be purchased with money. With the year’s harvest being so poor, where would the money come from to pay tribute to Jinji Ridge?

The most crucial point was that they were being made to support a gang of bandits.

In such a remote area, a thrifty family of three could get by for a month with just one piece of night silver.

Now, the two representatives sent by Jinji Ridge sat boastfully on the backs of chickens; with just a casual word from their mouths, they intended to take away each family’s living expenses for a month. This was truly bullying to the extreme.

Moreover, it was unclear whether this was a one-time demand or if it would become a regular occurrence that required payment every so often.

"This gang of thieves really have no humanity!"

Emotions were running high, and people wanted to resist.

The two Golden Chicken Knights were merely there to notify the villages and had left the village entrance far behind; yet, they could still hear the angry voices of the villagers behind them.

"These country bumpkins are overreacting. We need to let the higher-ups know, lest we really provoke these people’s emotions and they recklessly revolt."

"Right, the strength in the stronghold has been severely reduced. In such a troubled autumn, we must pay attention to the impact."

...

"Don’t the people of Chixia City care?"

These villages outside the mountains could not rest easy; everyone was discussing this matter.

Some suggested to seek out the Patrol Team, to let them handle this and that a message should be sent to Chixia City as soon as possible, to not let the people from Jinji Ridge run wild especially during this special winter.

An old man sighed, "The higher-ups of Chixia City probably don’t have the energy to deal with these matters recently."

"Why?"

"A traveling merchant brought the latest news from there, suspecting that the City Lord Ling Xu of Chixia City is in collusion with the High level Abnormality from Black and White Mountain; they were duped by them in the mountains last time."

According to the traveling merchant, the atmosphere in Chixia City is now quite delicate.

There’s no direct evidence about this matter, but the two large organizations suspect Ling Xu’s intentions are very dark, that this time he used one force to fight another, manipulating them.

In the end, this matter will probably come to nothing, but for now, the higher-ups of Chixia City can’t afford to be distracted.

Qin Ming looked at the pitch-dark night sky, listened to the people’s discussions, and a glaring Heavenly Light emanated from his body; his emotions were also surging violently.

Every human being has emotions and desires, and it is impossible to always remain calm.

After a moment, the Heavenly Light on Qin Ming’s body receded.

He went into the cellar and selected two six to seven feet long Blood Snakes that had undergone a mutation.

Then, he picked up the long-handled Wujin Hammer, smashed the two spiritual creatures into pulp on the iron plate, and personally cooked them into a pot of meat soup.

Before leaving, he had some things to arrange.

Soon after, Qin Ming went to the courtyard next door.

"Brother Lu, are you feeling any better? I hunted a spiritual creature in the mountains, it might help you with your rebirth."

Qin Ming did not want to hide everything, he told Lu Ze that after eating the meat soup, not only could his injuries rapidly heal, but he might also undergo a rebirth in the near future.

"Xiao Qin!" Lu Ze was an honest person and did not know what to say, just nodding his head vigorously.

Liang Wanqing’s eyes reddened; she knew what physical rebirth meant in such an environment, and she wouldn’t have to worry every time Lu Ze went into the mountains.

Qin Ming said, "Sister-in-law, you can eat some too. There’s enough meat soup that even if your body can’t rebirth, it can still enhance your constitution."

"It smells so good, Uncle, I want to eat too." Wen Rui had not slept yet; attracted by the unique aroma of the Blood Snake, he was like a little gluttonous kitten, almost drooling.

"You’re still young, you can’t eat this, or else it might prematurely trigger development. Here, Uncle has brought you the freshest wild fruits, these are from species cultivated by Old Huang."

Wen Rui’s eyes shone brightly, but he was also puzzled, "Uncle, last time you said these fruits were hard-earned by Uncle Niu."

"Well, it’s about the same." Qin Ming smiled. These were naturally from the fruits of Wild Bull Ridge.

"Uncle, I want some too..." Two-year-old Wenhui woke up in a daze.

Then, Qin Ming heard the squirrel in the cage chattering, bowing to him, now eyeing the meat soup made from the Blood Snakes.

...

The next day, Qin Ming wiped down the Mutton Fat Jade Iron Blade, which was too eye-catching; if he drew it, he would have to slay any opponent who saw it.

He disguised the blade and covered it well, then returned it to its sheath.

Qin Ming took a long stick to use as the Big Gun, and also found some bows and arrows he used to practice with; he could now declare himself as Gun and Arrow Double Excellence!

Soon, he exhibited amazing gun skill in the courtyard; the wooden stick in his hand was like a soaring dragon, spiraling through the air as if to ascend into the skies.

With a flick of his wrist, the long stick splintered into dozens of afterimages, targeting multiple areas, and dozens of falling snowflakes were pierced in an instant.

However, as Qin Ming increased his strength and shook the stick harder, the sturdy long stick couldn’t withstand his tremendous force and broke into several pieces.

He picked up a bow and arrow but stopped after just one try; if he exerted any force, either the bowstring would snap, or the bow itself would break.

"In this case, my title of Gun and Arrow Double Excellence would be undeserved without even suitable weapons," Qin Ming decided to go into the mountains to find some appropriate weapons.

Dalie Valley, utterly silent, the people from Jinji Ridge stationed here had already left.

Qin Ming entered the deathly-still Underground Cave, wandered around the web-like passages for a long time, and saw some broken armor, shattered Weapons, and plenty of bloodstains. There were also parts of broken horns and bones of Alien Species.