Chapter 41 Defeated but Becoming a God

Last time at the old nobleman’s mansion, the second sickly son first went to see the five-meter-tall Xie Lingxi. When he came back and mentioned it to Qin Ming, his words were vague and misleading. Then he turned around and ran away. Now he’s putting on another show.

Qin Ming made a mental note of it; when they met again, he would beat him so badly he’d really get sick.

Nie Rui was like a beam of light piercing through the night fog in Chixia City, one of the two most dazzling figures in the past twenty years, and his physical fitness broke the city’s record after his rebirth.

Now that he has asked, the teams of the Cao, Mu, and Wei families all show surprise, and many people turn their eyes to Qin Ming.

Immediately, the others realized that this must be the person Nie Rui was looking for.

For a moment, Qin Ming also experienced the feeling of being the center of attention. All the young nobles in Chixia City looked at him and sized him up.

Of course, this was entirely thanks to Nie Rui. Without the mention of this gifted individual from Chixia City, no one would have paid attention to a boy from a remote place.

Many people looked on with surprise, scrutinizing her. Could such a remote and isolated place really produce a child prodigy? It seemed unlikely.

Some of the noble girls were quite lively and started gossiping about it in private.

“He has a delicate appearance. If he pays a little attention to his image, he can enhance his temperament. He shouldn’t wear his black hair loose, and he should replace his black armor with bright armor. I think he will be very handsome!”

…

Nie Rui smiled gently and indicated that he wanted to have a friendly spar with Qin Ming.

“Don’t feel pressured. Let’s just have a casual match. I trust Master Xu’s only disciple’s judgment.”

Qin Ming now wanted to beat the second sick son even more, and at the same time he realized that Xu Kong was quite extraordinary and was highly respected by the people of Chixia City.

“I can’t compare to you. Although we live in a remote village, I’ve heard many people say that a remarkable young couple has emerged from Crimson Cloud City, stunning the entire region.”

The young nobles present all nodded, agreeing that he was telling the truth. In the region ruled by Crimson Cloud City, the most outstanding youth in the city was naturally the most talented genius in the area.

Nie Rui jumped off the white rhinoceros, his silver armor gleaming, exuding heroic spirit, as if he were radiating light. His smile was very approachable as he said, “You’re too modest. I’ve met You Liangyun before. It’s alright, we’ll just have a casual spar.”

The others didn’t understand what it meant, and Nie Rui couldn’t directly say that You Liangyun had been defeated by this young man.

Now that things have come to this, Qin Ming has no way to refuse.

Nie Rui said, “I have been reborn twice. I will suppress my power. Don’t worry, I definitely won’t exceed the limits.”

Qin Ming wanted to use this as an excuse to refuse the competition, but after thinking about it, he realized that it wouldn’t be good to keep making excuses, so he finally nodded.

“Nie Rui, be careful when you make a move,” Cao Long said, worried that he might hurt Qin Ming.

“Qin Ming, do you want to change your weapon?” Mu Qing asked.

Everyone present knew that Nie Rui’s arms had a terrifying strength of 790 jin (approximately 345 kg) during his first rebirth, which was why it caused such a sensation and was hailed as the strongest in the past twenty years.

You Liangyun was the same age as him and was originally very outstanding, able to lift a 650-jin cauldron, but in the end he could only come in third place.

In people’s eyes, it would be unwise for Qin Ming to use his heavy, long-handled black gold hammer to fight his opponent and try to clash with him in terms of strength.

Qin Ming readily agreed, putting down the sledgehammer in his hand and saying, “Besides the long-handled hammer, I’m more skilled with a gun. Could someone lend me one?”

Mu Qing glanced at the boys behind her and noticed that most of them used long swords, while the few long spears they wielded were of poor quality because they were too light.

The other nobles remained silent. After a brief silence, one of them laughed and said, “Use my Purple Gold Spear, a weapon forged a thousand times. This will fulfill one of my wishes and allow me to indirectly spar with Brother Nie. It would be an honor.”

Qin Ming realized that everyone valued Nie Rui, even to the point of saying such things when borrowing a gun.

“Nie Rui, perhaps you will lose.” The girl sitting on the back of the black tiger said. She had bright eyes and white teeth, and her black hair was blown by the wind and flowed backward. Her temperament was otherworldly and fairy-like.

Her name is Shen Jiayun, and she is of similar strength to Nie Rui. Most importantly, she has been chosen by a person from beyond the secular world and is to walk a different, incomparably brilliant path.

In the eyes of many young nobles, she had already won at the starting line.

Nie Rui stepped forward, his silver armor gleaming, a bright smile on his face, holding a long sword, and said, “Please!”

Qin Ming had already taken the purple-gold spear into his hand, weighed it in his hand, and then flicked it to create a series of spear flowers, instantly causing purple light to surge.

“Xiao Qin, be careful, don’t get hurt,” Xu Yueping shouted.

“If all else fails, just admit defeat immediately,” Old Liu said more decisively.

The group of young nobles smiled faintly. With Nie Rui’s strength, he could naturally control the situation precisely. Such a sparring match was a foregone conclusion and would not harm the young man.

Some people were privately gesturing and betting that Nie Rui would take down the boy in four moves or even just one exchange.

They couldn’t openly bet or discuss it, as it wouldn’t be good to belittle the young hunter, and it would also be disrespectful to Nie Rui, who had personally taken part in the betting.

“I guess Nie Rui will be able to take him down after using three sword techniques.”

“I’ll play it safe and wait until after the Seventh Form of the Sword Technique. Since Nie Rui is going to personally assess him, it means this young man must have some skill.”

Clang!

In an instant, everyone’s attention was drawn back to the battle by the intense sounds of the collision. They all glanced at the scene and were astonished to find that the two had already exchanged more than a dozen blows.

With a whoosh, they quickly separated, now more than twenty meters apart. All the snow that had accumulated on the spot surged into the air, as if a heavy snowfall had started again. And only then did the trees there crack, with large branches falling to the ground.

Everyone was shaken and focused their attention, realizing they had misjudged the situation. This lightning-fast attack was almost at the limit for a newcomer.

“This boy from this remote place is no ordinary person!”

“What’s his name? Qin Ming, right? I’ll remember it.”

A group of people whispered, as if they were getting to know the boy in the arena all over again.

Even Cao Long, Wei Zhirou, and the others showed surprise. After spending a few days together, they knew that Qin Ming was extraordinary, but they did not expect him to be so powerful.

Mu Qing, shrouded in a black robe, spoke up: “Qin Ming, go all out in this fight. Nie Rui isn’t that petty.”

“It’s more satisfying to not hide anything,” Nie Rui nodded.

Old Liu muttered to himself, “Little Qin is even more capable than I imagined. Before he even arrived in Chixia City, his name might have already spread there.”

Qin Ming did not use his strongest domain—strength. He relied entirely on pure “gun technique” in the duel. He improvised and reacted quickly, incorporating sword techniques into his gun style in a way that was undetectable to outsiders.

Nie Rui moved again, his speed so great that he crushed the snow on the ground, creating a gust of wind that swept up snowflakes. The silver longsword in his hand flashed with a blinding light, and the wind and snow made him seem as if he were riding the wind and thunder.

Qin Ming did not take the blow head-on. Instead, he shifted his body to the side to avoid the long blade that was slashing down. Then, in a flash, he quickly pressed down on the back of the blade with his purple-gold spear, creating a string of sparks, and instantly stabbed Nie Rui.

This scene caused many people’s pupils to shrink. The young man’s grasp of the battle situation was astonishing. Under such sharp sword techniques, he could seize opportunities in the blink of an eye. The spear pressed against the back of the blade, and the angle between the two weapons was very small. The spearhead was like a dragon swimming along the mountain ridge, tearing through the night and rushing directly towards the target.

Nie Rui exerted force with his right hand, forcefully raising his longsword upwards, attempting to break the spear, while his left hand glowed faintly, preparing to deflect the spear shaft.

Qin Ming gripped the spear with both hands, pressing it firmly against the back of the blade, and shook it violently. The spear tip trembled violently, creating a large area of ​​spear flowers.

At this moment, Nie Rui couldn’t possibly deflect the spear with one hand. The spear tips in front of him formed a series of afterimages, like countless stars shining simultaneously, rushing towards him.

He had no choice but to draw his sword and quickly dodge to the side.

In this exchange of attacks, he was actually suppressed and fell into a disadvantageous position, retreating a long distance before he could finally regain his footing.

For a moment, the place fell silent. Everyone felt incredulous. The young man’s performance on the spot was superb. The purple-gold spear seemed to come alive in his hands, like a dragon baring its fangs and claws, searching for enemies in the night.

“I feel that this gun has a soul in your hands. It’s not conventional or rule-bound. Every move you make is a masterpiece.” Nie Rui’s expression was solemn. He then stopped talking, suppressed his power to a certain level, and focused his mind to kill.

In an instant, he and Qin Ming were locked in combat, their blades flashing as if they were about to cleave through the thick darkness of the night.

Wherever he and Qin Ming passed, branches fell in droves, the snow on the ground burst open, and some large trees fell down one after another with a rumbling sound the moment they rushed past, kicking up large snowflakes.

“This boy from a remote place, although not as strong as Nie Rui, is already close to 700 jin, how formidable!”

“His marksmanship was like various ordinary scattered shots, none of which were beyond our comprehension, but it had a kind of power to turn the rotten into the miraculous.”

“Because he doesn’t have a fixed formula, he mostly improvises and adapts to the situation, turning all sorts of ordinary random moves into ingenious ones!”

Finally, even Cao Long and Feng Xing personally gave their comments.

What kind of marksmanship? Qin Ming thought to himself, this is swordsmanship, the concealed “gun-sword” has a different feel compared to the hammer-sword.

He became more and more adept, no longer bound by the killing techniques in the sword manual, but freely combining and unleashing them. For example, now he swept his spear across, the tip of the spear like a blade, slicing into the flesh and blood of his opponent, and he was shaking the spear.

In swordsmanship, this is the scene between the sea and the sky, where the blade trembles and the swirling light of the blade resembles towering waves following behind.

Now, replacing the blade with the spearhead, it also stirs up a multitude of phantoms. Amidst the tremors, the spearhead shakes even more frequently, which amplifies the blade’s intent between the sea and the sky. At this moment, it’s as if thunder rumbles across the sea and sky, and swathes of lightning fall into the vast ocean.

Nie Rui retreated in a disheveled state, sweat beading on his forehead, his black hair plastered messily to his face. He was somewhat flustered; he was about to be defeated.

The next moment, Qin Ming took the “spear and knife” technique to a whole new level, actually using the “kick knife style” to push the purple-gold spear out and then kick it repeatedly with lightning speed, startling Nie Rui into dodging repeatedly, and making him sweat even more.

Most importantly, the spear wasn’t kicked away by him; instead, it coiled around his body like a living dragon before finally landing in his hand.

Clang!

As Nie Rui’s longsword was suppressed by the purple-gold spear, his arm jerked, sparks flew, and several plates of his silver armor were pierced and shattered by the spearhead.

Qin Ming stopped and planted the spear in the ground. He regretted that he had been too engrossed in using the “spear and sword” technique for the first time and hadn’t stopped when he was trying to understand it.

He originally didn’t want to compromise and hoped for a draw. But before he knew it, he had defeated his opponent.

The scene was completely silent. Everyone found it hard to believe that Nie Rui, the most dazzling genius in Chixia City in the past twenty years, had actually been defeated by a young hunter in a remote place.

Everyone stared in disbelief, taking a serious look at Qin Ming for the first time, feeling their understanding of him was severely shaken.

Is the Black and White Mountain, a desolate place from five hundred years ago, about to be revived, giving this remote land a renewed sense of spirit? Many people are speculating.

Shen Jiayun, the girl riding on the black tiger, broke the silence and asked, “Nie Rui, are you alright?”

Nie Rui shook his head and said, “It’s alright, I admit defeat wholeheartedly.”

“Are you really okay? Are you feeling down because of this?” Shen Jiayun asked with a smile, genuinely not caring about his feelings at all.

“What could possibly happen to me? Brother Qin woke me up and made me realize that I might really not be suited for this path.” Nie Rui sheathed his longsword, shook his head, and sighed, “Since that’s the case, then I’ll choose the path of becoming a god.”

Qin Ming was trying to figure out how to start the conversation when he heard such “outrageous” words.

Before, You Liangyun lost and went back to inherit a noble title, where he lived a life of luxury and debauchery. But this one is even more outrageous; if he loses, he will become a god.

Qin Ming’s breathing became somewhat heavy.

Seeing his expression, Nie Rui finally smiled and said, “It’s not what you think.”

It’s clear that Nie Rui isn’t a petty person; he didn’t hold a grudge because of his defeat. Now, he seems to have completely let go and decided to take a different path.

“The so-called gods are just beings we can’t comprehend right now because we’re still young, lack strength, and have limited understanding. But they’re probably just stronger beings. An elder from a secret sect took a liking to me, saying I possess rare ‘divine wisdom’ and could follow their path. Alas, I originally wanted to walk in this dark and boundless world with my own flesh and blood, forging my own way, but now I have no choice. I’ve come to realize my limitations.” Nie Rui sighed.

“Stop sighing. What about the others if you keep sighing?” Qin Ming couldn’t help but say.

“Qin Ming, I’d like to have a match with you too.” Shen Jiayun, who was riding on the black tiger, spoke up and lightly jumped to the ground. Her black hair was flying. She was already close by, holding a long sword.

Suddenly, the woodland became lively. The people from Crimson Cloud City could no longer contain themselves and began to whisper and discuss among themselves. The changes that had occurred today were truly beyond their expectations.

“Okay!” Qin Ming nodded in agreement. Now that he had already defeated one, he didn’t mind having a second match.

In an instant, sword light flashed like a rainbow across the snowy field, accompanied by the sound of wind and thunder, as if many electric dragons were descending. Shen Jiayun was very strong; in the eyes of ordinary people, this was the dance of a sword immortal.

However, she was defeated when Qin Ming used the tip of his spear to pick off a string of blue beads from her hair, and then pressed the spear down on her right shoulder.

The scene fell silent again, everyone staring in disbelief. The two most powerful geniuses in Crimson Cloud City in the past twenty years had both been defeated by the same person.

Shen Jiayun stroked her hair, smiled, and said, “Young man, it won’t take ten years. If we meet again in a year, you will be no match for me.”

She showed no sign of disappointment or frustration; her smile was exceptionally radiant, possessing a captivating charm that could topple cities.

“We’ll see,” Qin Ming said, lifting his spear from her fragrant shoulder and giving it a gentle shake. The string of blue pearl flowers fell off, and he quickly tapped it with the tip of his spear, inserting the pearl flowers back into her cloud-like hair.