Chapter 87 A Prodigy

Crimson Cloud City is magnificent and towering, as bright as day.

Qin Ming returned safely, bathed in the warm breeze of early spring, and just then saw a group of experts leaving the city, their armor gleaming, like a steel torrent heading into the distance.

There is no mountain lord in this area, and the city lord’s mansion is the most powerful. The appearance of a high-level alien in the distance has alarmed the people and forces in the city.

Although the deepest part of the mountain range is home to top-tier alien species such as the Spirit Jade Rhinoceros and the Black Dragon, they never dare to challenge the status of Crimson Cloud City. They usually live in peace with each other, and neither side will easily allow high-end combat forces to cross the line.

Soon, the small group of new students who had been stopped by the aliens on the road all returned safely.

Wu Zheng happened to see Qin Ming returning to the inn and greeted him, “Brother Qin, you just got back from going into the mountains alone? I was just about to go out, let me bring you back some dinner.”

“How did you get hurt?” Qin Ming noticed that his neck and hands were wrapped in gauze, with a little blood seeping out.

Wu Zheng sighed dejectedly, “I’ve been going into the mountains these past few days, and four of my companions have died. My archery and marksmanship are pretty good, so I escaped unharmed. Alas, it’s so difficult to obtain spiritual substances in the mountains.”

This is the reality: many newcomers who want to improve themselves have to risk their lives.

After returning to his room, Qin Ming, out of caution, threw away the “White Jade Powder,” a powder specifically for men to mask excessive body odor.

He didn’t smell bad; he had simply changed his identity to enter the mountains on purpose. Afterward, he took a hot shower and changed into clean clothes.

“Brother Qin, I brought back some beef patties and a few home-style dishes. I don’t know if they’ll suit your taste.” Wu Zheng knocked on the door and came in.

The seventeen-year-old boy was full of vigor and looked forward to his future when he came out of Black and White Mountain, but now he appears dejected due to repeated setbacks and injuries.

Wu Zheng’s eyes were slightly red, clearly indicating that he had been crying.

“Would you like to eat some more?” Qin Ming asked.

“No, I’ve already eaten out.” Wu Zheng shook his head.

“Then go to your room and take this.” Qin Ming took out the jar of spiritual substance that he had bought from Wu Yiyi of the snake clan at a very low cost.

Wu Zheng was puzzled. He took the bottle and opened it, and was immediately shocked to see the liquid flowing with spiritual light. He realized what it was.

“Brother Qin, this… is too precious, I can’t accept it.” He quickly put the lid on the jar, worried that the spiritual essence would be lost.

“Take it if I give it to you. Improve your physique first, and other problems will be easier to solve,” Qin Ming said, stuffing it into his hand.

Wu Zheng was a year older than him and always called him Brother Qin, showing genuine enthusiasm. Moreover, Qin Ming had mastered the Wu family’s dual skills in spear and arrow, and could easily solve the boy’s predicaments, so he was willing to lend a hand.

“Brother Qin!” Seventeen-year-old Wu Zheng nodded heavily with tears in his eyes and left with the spiritual substance in his eyes.

After dinner, Qin Ming began to take stock of his spoils. Looking at the three ancient books stained with blood, he could imagine the life-and-death scenes inside.

Once you enter the mountains, you are not only the hunter but also the prey. Even if you have a “story,” dying in the mountains will put an end to it all.

Today’s experience was somewhat bizarre. He hadn’t expected that the Purple Lightning Beast would be so powerful, and that the strange creatures in the mountains would offer him such a grand gift in order to curry favor with it.

Qin Ming couldn’t help but laugh when he encountered it twice in a row. He guessed that the Purple Lightning Beast was so angry that it was about to explode on the spot.

“Don’t run into me again next time.” He didn’t want to meet the Purple Lightning Beast again; if he were recognized, it would definitely be a fierce “storm.”

Qin Ming felt no remorse. When he first saw the Purple Lightning Beast, it leaped into the air and stomped on his head. If it were a newborn, it would probably be dead by now.

Regardless of their noble race or their origins, they are still dangerous creatures in the mountains, mostly prey for each other, often facing life and death. Qin Ming found it difficult to empathize with the feelings of these alien beings.

“Flying over the grass.” Qin Ming first picked up the secret manual about leg techniques, looking at the three words on the cover with great anticipation.

He studied it carefully, and after a while, he resonated with the author’s lingering emotions. Combining this with his own understanding, he completely grasped the secret method.

The entire book focuses on escape techniques. By circulating a special “wind force,” one can run like the wind and move with extraordinary agility. In short, this is a method for survival.

This book on leg techniques also includes offensive techniques, but they are limited in length and are not its main focus.

Qin Ming found this book, “Flying on Grass,” very interesting; he was looking for a similar escape technique.

He picked up the second manual, “Body Forging,” a technique to enhance physical strength. It involved practicing a kind of “forging power,” aiming to temper the body to the hardness of refined gold.

With his mind highly focused, Qin Ming resonated with the lingering emotions, and coupled with his extraordinary comprehension, he quickly grasped the true essence of this cultivation technique.

The third book, bound in gold animal hide, is titled “Golden Light Shield.” As the name suggests, it is a protective technique that uses the light of heaven to form a layer of golden light on the body’s surface to protect oneself.

When one reaches a high level of mastery, golden light shines everywhere, expanding outwards far beyond simply covering the body’s surface.

Qin Ming was shocked to see the strength of the founder. After that woman cultivated the golden light shield to the highest level, the dense golden light was thicker than a city wall!

“Amazing!” he exclaimed. No wonder Bai Xi of the Spirit Jade Rhinoceros Clan hid it away at first; she must have been planning to sell it for a sky-high price later.

The golden light shield not only protects the user, but also emits terrifying beams of light from its rich golden glow, capable of annihilating surrounding enemies.

Qin Ming believed that this martial arts manual was extremely valuable, and the “Golden Light Force” within it was definitely an extremely powerful composite force technique.

“I wonder if this book, ‘Golden Light Shield,’ and that book, ‘Diamond Armor,’ can be combined. If they are eventually merged into one, their power will definitely increase dramatically.” He was very much looking forward to it.

Qin Ming brought back not only these three books, but also several animal skin scrolls that he could not resonate with spiritually. He was comprehension-enhancing enough and wanted to practice on a few more of them himself.

However, he soon frowned. He knew he couldn’t just practice the manuals he bought from outside. There were pitfalls. The first ten pages were fine, but practicing the later ones made his blood and qi churn, causing him great discomfort.

He quickly used the methods described in the silk book to regulate his body, slowly exhaling a breath of turbid air, and then tossed the books aside.

One trip into the mountains is enough to acquire three techniques: Grass-Flying, Body Tempering, and Golden Light Shield. In addition, there’s Ge Qianxun’s “Diamond Armor” and Ning Siqi’s invaluable “Fire Scripture,” which is enough for him to study and practice in the short term.

If he can digest all these secret manuals, his strength will definitely increase significantly!

Then, Qin Ming held the yellowish-brown stone in his hand and examined it carefully. It was only the size of a palm and had some mysterious patterns on it.

Upon first contact, his Heavenly Light became restless. When he unleashed the Yellow Mud Palm, the nature of the Heavenly Light changed. It was no longer a soft force, nor a soft yet extremely strong force, but a heavy and majestic earthy yellow Heavenly Light force.

This is the power of silk calligraphy: it can integrate various kinds of Heavenly Light Force, transform into a single force method, and also transform into the most suitable Heavenly Light Force by following the path of a certain extraordinary skill.

“The essence of the underground soil veins has condensed into stone!” Qin Ming knew what this was. It wasn’t recorded in the secret book about the Yellow Mud Palm, but the old man had mentioned this kind of strange stone during the emotional resonance.

He was immediately excited. It is very difficult to master the Yellow Mud Palm technique to a very high level. At the very least, one can only improve it when the light of day shines, at which time one can capture spiritual substances from the outside world, such as the earth’s energy.

Now that Qin Ming has obtained a rare stone formed from the essence of the earth veins, he can accelerate this process.

He knew all too well how terrifying the Yellow Mud Palm technique was when it was practiced to its highest level. It could strike a giant beast the size of a small mountain as easily as hitting a clay dog. Soft force could be transformed into hard force, and it could even draw on the essence of the earth to destroy everything in its path.

Although this strange stone is far from enough to allow him to reach that level, it can definitely improve him significantly and give him another palm technique with tremendous destructive power.

In the following days, Qin Ming practiced diligently. Except for the most difficult and extraordinary skill, “Li Huo Jing,” which he had not yet studied, he was making progress in everything else and had initially mastered the Heavenly Light Force.

Especially the Yellow Mud Palm; after fully absorbing the essence of that strange stone, when he used this palm technique, there was a faint yellow mist between his fingers.

When he went to try his hand at it, a huge, unusual rock in the courtyard instantly turned to dust, and the artificial mountain also collapsed.

The innkeeper was furious and demanded compensation. Qin Ming, not wanting things to escalate, quickly paid the ransom and told him that it was the black-clad man from the city lord’s mansion who frequently visited who did it, and not to spread rumors.

“Then I don’t want compensation.”

“No, please keep it. You have to compensate me; it’s the right thing to do.”

…

Two days later, Meng Xinghai sent someone to find Qin Ming.

In the living room of the city lord’s mansion, the calming incense smoke rose gently from the incense burner.

Meng Xinghai handed him four pages of paper, his expression serious, and asked him to ponder them on the spot.

Qin Ming was puzzled, but he still took the paper. After a short while, he put it down and went to the courtyard to practice.

“How are you feeling?” Meng Xinghai asked after a short while.

“I think I’m almost ready to develop the first ray of Heavenly Light Force,” Qin Ming told him.

“So fast?!” Meng Xinghai was surprised once again. This kid seemed to always bring him surprises. His high level of comprehension made it impossible for him to maintain a calm expression.

“I’ve always learned things very quickly; many people knew that when I was in the Cui family,” Qin Ming said.

Meng Xinghai composed himself, regaining the composure befitting an elder and city lord, and nodded, saying, “Yes, this is an introductory text to some kind of inheritance that has been lost outside. Only by quickly mastering the basics can one learn the main text of that rare and precious martial art. Since you are well-suited to its approach, I will swallow my pride and ask two friends to help me obtain this technique for you.”

Qin Ming said, “You are only in your early thirties, in the prime of your life, and at the golden age of ambition and progress. How can you say you’re old? I am still a young man who is not mature enough and needs Uncle Meng to take care of me.”

Meng Xinghai laughed and said, “You little rascal, you’ve got me all bewitched. How about… I adopt you as my godson?”

“Uncle, you’re not that much older than me, are you?” Qin Ming noticed that Meng Xinghai seemed very busy; in just a short time, many people came to see him.

He quickly found out what had happened.

After careful investigation, and with the information he obtained from Ge Qianxun, Meng Xinghai discovered that the Gold Thieves actually had many secret businesses in Chixia City.

Clearly, the gold thieves had anticipated this and wanted to quickly withdraw from those industries, thus absconding with all the wealth.

Meng Xinghai knew he couldn’t wait any longer; he had to take action and not let them run off with the money.

He understood that doing so would inevitably invite retaliation and counterattack from the Gold Bandits. They wouldn’t dare to do anything to Meng Xinghai or Chixia City, and would likely cause trouble in the surrounding area.

“Uncle Meng, I need to go back to Black and White Mountain for the time being!” Qin Ming stood up abruptly. He knew very well that if the Golden Bandits wanted to retaliate against Meng Xinghai, they would definitely involve the Black and White Mountain area.

In particular, he had personally destroyed Golden Rooster Ridge, and the hatred there might be something the Golden Bandits would remember.

Since embarking on the path of rebirth, Qin Ming has made breakthroughs all the way, which has been relatively smooth. He felt that this time it was time to test himself with a major battle and wanted to fight a bloody battle to stop the Golden Bandits from attacking the remote place where he used to live!