Night Without End
Chapter 98 - 63 Accidental Encounter

Chapter 98: Chapter 63 Accidental Encounter

Under the cover of night, a gigantic red Exotic Bird descended in spirals, stirring up fierce gusts of wind that lifted vast amounts of accumulated snow from the ground.

"Thank you, Crimson Roc elder, for the ride!" After alighting on the ground, Cui Hong graciously bowed to the enormous, glowing-red bird, treating it with the reverence due to an elder.

The young man in brocade, named Cui Chongyi, also performed a courteous bow, watching as the Crimson Roc flew into the distance.

"Uncle Hong, is this where Chong He is staying? It’s really barren here. The small town ahead, Fire Spring, is of very low rank and hardly produces any Spiritual Objects. Why didn’t you arrange a better place for him?"

"Master, please don’t call me Uncle Hong. I can’t bear that title." Cui Hong hastily protested. He appeared to be in his thirties, with unusually long arms due to practicing the Heaven Reaching Skill.

His face sharp as a knife and eyes exceptionally piercing, he first cautiously surveyed the surroundings before sighing, "I’m only following orders."

Hearing this, Cui Chongyi nodded, finding it inappropriate to comment further on the matter.

He was not yet twenty, with a tear mole at the corner of his left eye, but he did not seem to be sentimental. Quite talkative, he said, "Uncle Hong, when we’re out and about, we can’t be too picky. I am here to gain experience, and moving forward I will still need your care. Let’s not be strangers to each other."

Cui Hong, not insisting further, led him towards Yinteng Town.

"How come this house is unoccupied?" Cui Hong, standing at the entrance of the town, immediately changed his expression; a rather large residence was empty.

He asked around and finally breathed a sigh of relief – the family hadn’t moved out of Yinteng Town, but had simply switched to a bigger house in the center of town.

Together, they made inquiries all the way and finally arrived at the location.

"Target spotted." In Yinteng Town, a talking sparrow flapped its wings and flew away.

Soon after at the large residence in the town center, a loud shout from Cui Hong could be heard: "I gave you a lot of Day Gold back in the day, is this how you handle things? If so, then don’t think you can live either!"

Cui Chongyi also abruptly stood up, smashing the tea table with a palm strike, his face looking extremely grim.

"It’s not my fault, ah. When he woke up, he suddenly clutched his head, howling madly, and ran out by himself. I didn’t dare... approach him. When I looked again, he was gone," a man in his early forties with a pale face responded.

Cui Hong’s eyes were frightening, like two bright golden lamps were lit, emitting a nearly tangible beam of light. A strong long arm stretched out quickly and hoisted the man up.

The middle-aged man’s face instantly drained of color as he hastily explained, "He should be fine. I... saw him in the street a few days ago. He looked very lively."

"Hmm?" This surprised Cui Hong and Cui Chongyi. They had already braced themselves for the worst, only to see a turnaround suddenly.

The middle-aged man quickly continued, "I saw him with Old Man Liu visiting the Wu Family. He looked bright and vibrant, and his illness must have fully healed."

"The Wu Family, what’s their background?" asked Cui Chongyi.

"Their ancestors were very powerful, known for their Gun and Arrow Double Excellence, having been unbeaten throughout our region. But they have fallen now. I suspect that young man might be going to learn the Xinsheng Skill from the Wu Family."

Cui Hong released him, his expression changing repeatedly, and muttered to himself: "Has he been reborn in this remote land? I... sigh."

He furrowed his brows. The authoritative middle-aged man from the Cui Family had instructed that Cui Chonghe should lead an ordinary life here.

"Let’s find Chong He first," Cui Chongyi said.

Cui Hong visited the Wu Family to gather information.

Cui Chongyi didn’t enter; instead, he stood on the streets of Yinteng Town, trying to get a feel for the local customs and culture of this remote place.

He didn’t wander far, asking about local specialties’ prices in a shop less than a hundred meters from the Wu Family’s gate.

"Do birds in remote places have such nerve? It almost hit me," Cui Chongyi quickly dodged as a small black bird flew closely over his head.

Not far away, on a tall locust tree, a white owl squinting its eyes looked down, muttering to itself: "Not just the accent of the noble family’s giant city area, but judging by his reaction, his strength might also be a perfect match. Sorry, young man, if I caught the wrong one, it’s not my fault. Let’s use you to help quench the fire first, proving that I’m doing my utmost."

...

Outside Shuangshu Village, Old Man Liu felt no regret; having experienced much in his long life, he was only there to see off Qin Ming.

"If you can’t make it outside, come back early and retire with me."

"Really, sir, you could say something nicer. I haven’t even set off yet," Qin Ming remarked, glancing back at Shuangshu Village under the night sky, where the black and white trees stood out exceptionally with Fire Spring’s illumination.

"Don’t underestimate Black and White Mountain. It was once a place of absolute peril, suppressing all sides to the point they could hardly breathe. One day, this place will rise again!"

Qin Ming looked at the mountain, genuinely reluctant to leave, having lived here for two years.

"I’m leaving now. Any words of wisdom?"

Old Man Liu said, "Ultimately, there are more good people in this world, but you must always be cautious. I think you’re mature enough, so I needn’t remind you about this. Just watch out for those folks in the city, and I’ll tell you about two types of people often seen outside the city that you need to be wary of."

Qin Ming, having casually mentioned it, didn’t expect him to actually say something.

"One is the old traveling merchants. No matter their strength, never underestimate them. Daring to roam the land covered by Eternal Night, without some special skills, one wouldn’t have the guts to travel far for decades. Some of these merchants, you never know their real identities, whether they are really doing business or looking for something else."

Qin Ming nodded seriously, showing he had learned, as today he was departing with a group of traveling merchants.

"There are Mountain Patrols everywhere, but anyone who has lived safely beyond a hundred years and still frequently enters the dark mountains should not be easily provoked, because you never know what they really are."

Qin Ming nodded solemnly, bidding farewell to Old Man Liu.

"Do you want me, on my way passing through Emei Town, to go up the mountains and obliterate that troupe of monkeys for you, to avenge the grievances you suffered in your youth?" he inadvertently brought up.

"Just go on your way!"

"Ha ha..." Qin Ming left laughing loudly, disappearing into the vast snowy landscape.

...

Qin Ming joined a group led by a traveling merchant in Emei Town and unexpectedly found an acquaintance. This young man had once brought tea for him and Old Man Liu when he was at the Wu Family reading the Secret Book.

"You are... Qin Ming?" Wu Zheng was surprised, then showed a delighted expression, thinking it was fortunate to travel with an acquaintance.

"Are you also going to Chixia City?" Qin Ming asked him.

The seventeen-year-old youth, Wu Zheng, nodded and said, "Yes, I want to see the world. Anyone from the Wu Family who has achieved something has once visited Chixia City to broaden their horizons."

Qin Ming wanted to say that Old Wu had also been there, and the place was blinding and confusing, daring to spend two Day Golds in one night. After staying there for a while, he had caused the Wu Family’s complete decline.

"You must stick to your true self and know what you are going to do there."

"I want to become the new generation of Gun and Arrow Double Excellence!" The seventeen-year-old youth, now a newcomer, carried dreams and looked forward to striving in distant lands.

The leader of the group, a traveling merchant over thirty, wasn’t the old merchant mentioned by Old Man Liu, which somewhat relieved Qin Ming.

Moreover, this merchant named Xu Cheng had a good reputation locally. He often traveled between Chixia City and this remote area, conducting business and also leading groups for a fee, guiding people back and forth between the two regions.

"I’m telling you, ahead lies a desert that spans across the land; it is utter darkness there, without a speck of light. Once you enter, you will surely die and never come out. Everyone must not wander off, you must follow closely behind me and stick to the path at the foot of the mountain. Remember, do not talk carelessly at the edge of the desert, or it might cause trouble!"

On the second day of departure, Xu Cheng was very serious, giving numerous warnings as they neared the desert.

The desert had no Fire Spring; it was gloomy and death-like. Even so-called great masters who fell into it would narrowly escape death, unable to see anything and quickly becoming completely lost.

At this time, they were traversing a plain, with only the night sky and white snow left visible all around. Because they were approaching the desert, vegetation was scarce.

And now, during Shallow Night, this area of the plain was nearing deep night, as if there was a massive abyss ahead swallowing everything.

"What’s in the desert that makes even speaking casually forbidden?"

Xu Cheng responded, "Even high level Exotic Birds dare not cross the desert, for they would die. Do you still not understand its danger? Moreover, any newcomer who shows disrespect to the desert will inevitably face a disaster. This is no joke; many deserts are like this."

"What exactly is the situation?" someone asked, not giving up.

"Do you still want to delve into this? There are dozens of explanations, and just one could deter you. According to some teachings of Esoteric Buddhism, the desert is related to significant rituals of some divine beings. If you act recklessly nearby, you will naturally be subject to light punishment."

Suddenly, the group fell silent. A light punishment could mean losing your life; what would a severe punishment entail?

"Isn’t it said that divine beings are just some powerful creatures?"

"For you, that’s a deity. Shut your mouth now, or leave the group!"

...

At this moment, Cui Hong was sitting in the woods, confronting a white Old Elephant, listening to its rambling.

Yesterday, Cui Chongyi was carried away by a large bird, which completely panicked Cui Hong. After a frantic pursuit deep into the mountains, he finally got a clue that it was a Purple Lightning Beast that had taken him as a suspect target, and the person was currently not in mortal danger.

Cui Hong tracked him to this place, only to encounter the profound and unfathomable Old Elephant, sitting cross-legged in the woods, appearing like a sage. Crucially, it had four snow-white tusks.

Cui Hong was overwhelmed and stunned.

It wasn’t until the Old Elephant, sitting in the woods, accidentally knocked off a huge tusk that Cui Hong realized two of them were fake, temporarily attached.

He was furious, enraged by such a pointless delay; he truly thought he had encountered a descendant of the Six Tusked White Elephant.

Boom!

A fierce battle erupted in the woods.

...

On the third day of the journey, Qin Ming witnessed the darkness of the desert. Ordinary newcomers would indeed get lost immediately upon entering, as it was pitch black inside.

Even with his keen hearing and perception, the darkness unnerved him.

Fortunately, they were walking along the edge of the desert with the mountains as a reference. As long as they didn’t stray, they could pass smoothly.

Traversing through the mountains, however, was extremely difficult, filled with territories of Alien Species and the mountains themselves being exceptionally tall and hard to navigate.

Boom!

Suddenly, a loud sound erupted ahead, from the side of the road, massive noises coming from the mountains as large rocks rolled down, nearly hitting the few people at the front of the group.

"Retreat quickly!" Xu Cheng, the traveling merchant, shouted.

Then, people saw a snow-white Old Elephant, standing upright, battling a human, swinging its trunk and continuously striking out with blinding slashes.

Moreover, besides the two tusks in its mouth, its upper limbs were as flexible as human arms, sticking to two white tusks as jade, resembling dual swords constantly slashing at the opponent.

Qin Ming’s pupils contracted, even in such darkness, he distinctly saw the appearance of the man fighting the Old Elephant.

The elephant glowing brightly illuminated the man very clearly.

"A man with unusually long arms, in his early thirties, with sharp facial features, resembles one of the two men I have progressively begun to recall who once saved me!"

He was surprised to encounter one of the people who had saved him in such a place.

Cui Hong, being highly skilled, felt someone’s prolonged gaze and looked towards the merchant group, his heart pounding, suddenly finding the person he was looking for.