Night without Borders

Chapter 14: No More Passion
Xu Yueping said nothing until he left Yinteng Town. He rushed into the dark forest and slammed his fist on a big tree, causing the snow on the branches to fall off.

"If I didn't have a wife and children, or if I were twenty years younger, I would take Feng Yian with me even if I died today!" He was panting heavily, feeling very depressed, and his arms were shaking slightly.

He was humiliated in the private room and now there are fingerprints on his face. As a man, he cannot swallow this.

But he has a family and is no longer young. The burdens and obligations on him force him to endure. He clenched his fists and whispered, "My passion has been worn away by life."

Qin Ming didn't know how to comfort her, even his emotions were fluctuating.

"Uncle Xu, don't get angry at yourself. They will be punished sooner or later for doing such evil."

After a long time, Xu Yueping exhaled a breath and said, "Let's go back."

There were still small snowflakes floating in the night sky. The two of them didn't talk much on the way. Qin Ming tried his best to find some topics to ease the dull atmosphere.

"Why don't you clean the mountain yet?"

Xu Yueping said: "They should still be negotiating with the mysterious creatures in the mountains."

Afterwards, he looked very unhappy and mentioned one thing. The patrol team had a catalytic liquid that was being prepared and would be sent to Shuangshu Village in three days to be poured into the fire spring.

It goes without saying that this catalytic liquid that helps the Black Moon sprout is harmful to the Fire Spring.

"Have the other villages agreed?" Qin Ming asked.

Xu Yueping sighed, "Three of the villages had setbacks. Based on the continuous decline in production in the fire fields in recent years, they also guessed that there was something wrong with the seeds, but in the end they couldn't resist the pressure and agreed. Only the neighboring Qingsang Village was left. The patrol team was afraid of the man who passed on the advanced skills to Erbingzi, so they didn't dare to force it too much."

"It's almost the middle of the moon." Qin Ming looked at the dark sky.

He already knew that the patrol team would only appear in the mountains together in the middle and end of the month.

At this time, a huge bull with red fur appeared from the opposite fork in the road, and it was impossible not to attract attention.

Its back is much taller than that of an adult man, and its thick, long fur is very shiny and glows red. In addition to the two normal curved horns, there is also a straight and sharp horn like a sword in the center of its forehead.

Obviously, this is a mutant creature.

But the most attractive thing was the man riding on it. He was incredibly tall. If he was standing on the ground, he should be more than three meters tall. He had long black hair that went past his shoulders and his eyes were like blades as he glanced at the two of them.

The fiery red mutant giant bull trampled on the snow at a very fast speed and ran towards Yinteng Town.

"There is actually such a tall person." Qin Ming was surprised.

"He is taking a different path." Xu Yueping said as he looked at the receding figure.

"Is it because of the premature rebirth that the body develops prematurely?" Qin Ming asked.

According to the experience summarized by our predecessors, the best time for physical renewal is when one is fifteen or sixteen years old, which can lay a golden foundation.

If it is too early, it is very easy to get out of balance, because the body is already in a stage of rapid growth, and the "rebirth" promotion may lead to growth hormone disorders and eventually turn into a giant.

The most important thing is that most of these giants will die young.

This is because most of them will lose control after their bodies undergo drastic changes.

Xu Yueping said: "Only larger families with the experience of predecessors can grow up by piling a lot of resources on such people."

A few giants can survive and become extremely powerful after their rise, able to defeat ten opponents with their brute force.

"This kind of person follows the path of the giant spirit." Xu Yueping said, and emphasized that ordinary families simply cannot afford to cultivate such a person.

He guessed that the man and the horse just now were most likely from Chixia City.

Talking about the issue of physical renewal, Qin Ming mentioned Fu Entao, the leader of the mountain patrol team.

Xu Yueping turned to look at him and said, "Xiao Qin, you are not going to find them, are you? Don't do this."

Qin Ming shook his head and said, "Uncle Xu, you are overthinking it. I am just a newcomer. What qualifications and strength do I have to face a second-time freshman?"

Xu Yueping breathed a sigh of relief. He was really afraid that Qin Ming would get himself into trouble because of a momentary impulse.

“Although the first-time freshmen are all-rounders, they actually focus more on strength, while the second-time freshmen are slightly more flexible and quick in terms of physical fitness.”

They chatted along the way, and Qin Ming gradually outlined Fu Entao's areas of excellence and level of strength in his mind.

On their way back, the two entered the dense forest many times. They did not want to go back empty-handed and hoped to bring back some prey to give to families who were short of food.

"It was a close call. Even a freshman like me almost got hurt. The creatures in the wild are restless from time to time. We really need to clear the mountain." Xu Yueping felt a little scared.

Just now, a mutated "thorn leopard" attacked him from behind, like a black lightning, which was impossible to defend against. If Qin Ming had not taken action, he would have been knocked down.

"Alien plants have just appeared in this area. It is quite dangerous. We should not stay here for long."

The two men did not delay and dragged the mutant thorn leopard on the road. It weighed 450 kilograms and was covered with five-inch long black spikes from the abdomen to the head.

After returning to the village, Qin Ming immediately felt a sense of depression and dullness. Even the number of children who usually liked to chase each other in the snow decreased.

Xu Yueping distributed the leopard meat to each household before heading home. He was very tired, mainly psychologically.

Qin Ming stood by the bright fire spring and looked out into the wilderness. The dim shadows of the mountains in the distance were looming.

"The catalytic liquid will be delivered in three days and poured into the fire spring. You are forcing us like this and not giving us any time." He whispered.

He walked into the wild, preparing to go into the mountains.

"Let's explore the way first." It was still early evening, and he didn't intend to take any drastic actions. Most importantly, there were still two days until the middle of the month.

"Do you really want to push people into a desperate situation? You don't care about next year's famine, and you don't care about other people's lives." Qin Ming strode into the forest.

This time he did not carry a hunting fork, as it was no longer necessary after his body had fully recovered. He only brought a bow and arrow and an axe.

He knew the base of the mountain patrol team and walked in one direction with firm steps.

The wind was very strong and snow was still falling. This mountain environment was favorable to him and could erase all traces he left behind.

Each patrol team is responsible for an area covering six to eight villages. Fu Entao and Feng Yian's resting place is just ahead, so they don't need to go deep into the mountains.

After discovering mutated beasts on the road, Qin Ming tried his best to avoid them so as not to cause any trouble.

After crossing a large area of ​​forest and climbing over several mountains, he approached his destination.

There was a little red light coming out from a mountain peak. There was a miniature fire spring there, barely close to level one. Not as bright as the one in Shuangshu Village, but good enough to serve as a base for the patrol team.

Earlier, this place was occupied by a powerful mutant creature, which was surrounded and killed by Fu Entao and his men several years ago.

There are high-level fire springs deep in the mountains, with an excellent environment. The mysterious creatures living there look down on the dim fire springs in the outside areas.

Qin Ming was observing from a neighboring mountain peak. There was a stream of fiery clouds on the opposite side, and there were several wooden houses built on the flat land, and human figures were swaying.

On weekdays, there are only two or three rangers nearby.

When they act together, they are only looking for alienated plants and spiritual creatures, hoping to be reborn again.

"A mutant creature with a keen sense of smell is raised." Qin Ming frowned. There was a huge golden mastiff, as big as a tiger.

Then he looked annoyed because he found a snow ape with shining fur, obviously a captive creature, soaking in the fire spring.

Some villagers were attacked by snow monkeys; some had broken ribs and some had their arms almost torn off.

Qin Ming stared at the mountain quietly for a long time, and finally disappeared silently into the night.

He walked out of the forest and looked at Shuangshu Village in the distance.

Under the cover of night, there was a glow of fire at the entrance of the village, and the nearby houses seemed to be inlaid with gold edges, showing hazy outlines, and smoke was rising from some of the houses.

This was originally a gentle and beautiful scene, but after entering the village, Qin Ming heard crying.

"Qian Bo didn't make it. He died just now. Alas!"

Many villagers stood in front of the Qian family's door, and some couldn't help but sigh.

"Old Qian is old now. His neck was nearly torn off by that snow ape, and he has barely managed to survive until now."

Qin Ming listened quietly without saying anything. This was the third person to die in this incident.

Xu Yueping and Old Man Liu also came, both with heavy expressions. They knew the truth and hated Feng Yian and the others immensely.

The next day, when Qian Bo's funeral was held, the mountain patrol team appeared at the entrance of the village. Feng Yian stepped forward with a sigh and handed a musk deer to the Qian family.

Seeing him pretending to comfort the Qian family, even the oldest man, Old Liu, felt uncomfortable and turned his face away.

The Qian family didn't know the truth and were grateful to him.

Qin Ming clenched his fists silently. A musk deer for a human life?
The hidden truth is so bloody that Qian Bo's life is too worthless.

A tall man in armor said, "We have killed both the blood bear and the vicious snow ape. You can go into the mountains to hunt without worry."

Qin Ming knew him, his name was Shao Chengfeng.

Once when they went into the mountains, Qin Ming and Yang Yongqing met this man on the road.

At that time, he also felt that Shao Chengfeng was very responsible and hard-working to patrol the mountains late at night.

Now this person is telling lies with open eyes and taking credit for his evil deeds. It is really despicable.

Afterwards, several people from the mountain patrol team found Xu Yueping. They did not come to comfort the villagers, but to see with their own eyes the situation of Black Moon's seeds being buried.

"Brother Xu, thank you for your hard work." This time Feng Yian was very satisfied and patted Xu Yueping on the shoulder.

Qin Ming was also standing by the fire spring and felt that although he was smiling, he did not have any good intentions.

Xu Yueping had a blank expression. Thinking of the humiliation he had suffered in Yinteng Town, he felt a stinging pain on his face and in his heart.

Shao Chengfeng smiled and said, "I was wrong last time. I didn't expect that Brother Qin is a newcomer who has laid a golden foundation. After the mountain sweeping operation begins, we will most likely fight side by side. Why don't you just join our mountain patrol team and become one of our own in advance."

Qin Ming immediately declined, and even though the other person's smile gradually faded, he pretended not to see it.

Not long after, the patrol team left.

"There's no need to test him. We know that guy is hostile to us. We'll find a chance to get rid of him after we start clearing the mountain!"

"Don't waste it. The fire spring in the Blood Bamboo Forest is about to go out. We can use it to explore the way."

A few people chatted casually and disappeared into the wilderness.

On that day, Qin Ming was sharpening his axe carefully in the yard.

Thanks to: Snake Skin Second Generation Machine, Manmanmanzi, Xunfang, Why is it so hard to find a good book, and Will you marry me when your hair reaches your waist? Thank you very much for your support!
(End of this chapter)