Night without Borders

Chapter 479 The Secret of the Sun
The night sky was as dark as ink, the mountains stretched out in scorched black, and the world was swallowed up by a somber, dark hue.

Qin Ming blended in with the world, moving silently through the night fog.

This area is very large, and it seems to catch fire frequently; even the air smells faintly of burning.

Occasionally, creatures may appear in the mountains, but they disappear in a flash. Everyone maintains a safe distance to avoid misjudgment and bloodshed.

Qin Ming was very cautious because he had sensed the aura of a grandmaster here.

In this era, any fifth-realm master who is not afflicted by a serious illness and dares to travel far is an extraordinary person.

In a sense, the existence of a Grandmaster is very likely to be the "sky" of a certain region.

After traveling fifty miles, we had reached a deeper part of this scorched earth, where the number of people inevitably increased, making it impossible to completely avoid each other.

"It is extremely difficult for us independent cultivators to seek opportunities," someone sighed.

After reaching this point, many people dared not go any further and could only linger nearby, searching for spiritual objects hidden beneath the ashes in the mountains, as going any further might endanger their lives.

"The outsiders are too strong, and they all have large organizations behind them. We locals don't have any home-field advantage and have become the weaker party. We don't even dare to go deep into the territory. Sigh!"

Compared to top-tier cultivation civilizations, the Shenyuan region is indeed at a disadvantage.

Qin Ming mingled among these rogue cultivators, temporarily stopping to observe more and speak less, to learn the details of the situation.

Soon, he heard a lot of valuable information from the conversations of some people.

Deep within this land lies the "Sun's Secret Aperture," which outsiders cannot explain in detail, only knowing that many large organizations are pursuing it.

It is understood that its location is not fixed and can "move" underground, and it is mostly hidden and difficult to be discovered.

"However, its activity patterns are gradually being figured out, and it may be forced to emerge."

Besides these, there are some ruins in this ash-covered land, such as temples and underground palaces, which a few people have found.

The land, though seemingly scorched, is not entirely devoid of life. Hidden within the soil are spiritual treasures such as golden potatoes and fire lotuses, their value varying drastically depending on their age.

Someone lowered their voice: "Everyone, stop complaining. I feel there's something wrong with this remnant of Feixian Mountain. Perhaps we should retreat after a while."

"What do you mean?"

"In the past six months, many people have died in the mountains, and blood mist has been rising in many places. I feel that there is something underground in the remnant vein that may be revived."

"Yes, according to the elders, this mountain range was once covered by a thick blood-red mist, which caused a great disturbance."

Clearly, this is what the locals are talking about.

Qin Ming took it very seriously. He came out to explore the land alone, and safety was his top priority. If there was any disturbance, he had to leave the place immediately.

He believes it is essential to keep an eye on the movements of the locals.

At this moment, the spirit of the Eight Trigrams Furnace could clearly sense the location of Li Qingyue and Jiang Ran, which was only a few dozen miles ahead, and they were already quite close to each other.

The Eight Trigrams Furnace was on Li Qingyue's body, and its sensations were even clearer, and it was sending a message to the furnace lid.

"The situation over there is complicated. There are god-like organizations, the Black Tower civilization, the Strange Insect Alliance, and even demon-immortal organizations and demon-cultivating civilizations."

Qin Ming already knew that the two women had joined a mysterious team.

If he were to suddenly go there now, he would definitely attract attention. Therefore, there is no rush to meet up. The distance is not far, and as long as they can help each other at any time, that's fine.

Suddenly, a wave came from afar, like dense steel needles piercing, or like flying swords striking, making many people's hearts tremble and they immediately staggered backward.

A withered old man, with disheveled hair, stood on the back of a large brown dog with wings on its ribs. His eyes were cold, and he exuded a chilling aura.

Many people lowered their heads, not daring to look at him.

"Grandmaster - The Demon of the Blades!"

Only after he had gone far away did someone speak in a low voice.

The gaunt old man carried a long, blood-red sword on his back. Even as he walked away, he still exuded a terrifying killing intent that inspired fear.

Currently, such a person is considered "heavenly" in the mountains!
"This grandmaster... is truly formidable," someone remarked.

Actually, what he wanted to say was, does being a grandmaster give him the right to be so high-profile on Feixian Mountain?
Someone understood his meaning and told him: "When the Blade Demon was exploring the remnant vein, he was cursed and is said to have only one month left to live. Therefore, he has completely let go and will draw his sword as soon as things don't go his way. Even if other grandmasters come, he dares to fight to the death."

Therefore, no one wanted to provoke him. A dying grandmaster was too lethal in the remnants of Feixian Mountain. He could drag anyone he didn't like down with him.

Suddenly, everyone's expression changed drastically; the large brown dog had returned on its own.

"I forgot to mention earlier, everyone, have you found anything here? Show it to me. Although the old master is nearing the end, perhaps there is always a way out."

The large brown dog, over two meters long, with its gaping maw, exuded a menacing aura. It claimed it was collecting spirit objects to prolong its old master's life.

Many people looked grim; they had worked so hard on their exploration, and now they had to "hand over" their earnings to a dog—it was truly disheartening.

However, when they saw its bloodshot eyes staring at them, many people felt a chill and lowered their heads one after another.

"I don't want all of it, just a part," said the large brown dog, exuding a menacing aura and a domineering presence as it surveyed everyone.

A blood-soaked, staggering boy pleaded, "I risked half my life to pick this ancient fire lotus. My grandfather is seriously injured and is waiting for it to save his life."

The large brown dog was ruthless; it swatted the boy away with one paw and took the Fire Lotus.

“And you, old man, don’t be dishonest. I’ve seen you hiding something under the ashes.” The large brown dog lifted an old man up with its big paws and slammed him to the ground. The scorched earth crumbled open, stained with blood.

A group of people were furious but dared not speak out. They were all helpless, having risked their lives to obtain this precious item, only to have it stolen by a dog.

"If you calculate the time, now the Blade Demon only has half a month left to live. He is becoming increasingly ruthless and inhumane, and everyone is afraid of being devoured by him on his deathbed."

Someone whispered in the distance that after the Knife Demon's accident a dozen days ago, this big brown dog started following him like a madman, threatening people everywhere and demanding spiritual items.

At this moment, the large brown dog approached Qin Ming and said, "Kid, didn't you hear what I just told you? Show me the spiritual items you collected; I want to choose two."

Qin Ming was furious. He had originally wanted to keep a low profile and had even hidden among the rogue cultivators, but trouble still came knocking on his door.

He thought of Liu Mo's big yellow dog. What a good dog! It would go hunting in the mountains on its own to supplement the family income without ever bullying anyone.

He sighed. Not all dogs are good dogs; most are vicious dogs, the kind that deserve to be killed.

The large brown dog said in a deep voice, "Young man, do you know the rules? Do you have any compassion? You should know that saving a life is more meritorious than building a seven-story pagoda!"

Qin Ming's expression was icy. This vicious dog actually turned around and questioned him. Reality was just that absurd.

Is the Blade Demon really going to die? Qin Ming had some doubts. Could this person be colluding with the vicious dog to deliberately amass wealth?
At that moment, the large brown dog stretched out its big paw towards Qin Ming.

People thought the boy who responded so coldly was likely to suffer a great loss here, believing he was somewhat impetuous due to his youth.

With a bang, the large brown dog flew through the air, taking a solid slap from Qin Ming, and losing seven or eight of its teeth.

It let out a howl, rolled on the ground in agony, and went a long way away, scattering the stolen spirits all over the ground, its mouth full of blood and foam.

The group of rogue cultivators were instantly petrified. Was this some kind of "reversal of the Heavenly Gang"? The grandmaster's spirit dog was even struck by a palm.

In the distance, the sounds of fierce fighting could be heard; it seemed that the Grandmaster Blade Demon was fighting with a powerful opponent.

"You just wait!" the big brown dog cursed, then turned and walked away.

Qin Ming frowned, and the Heavenly Light materialized in his right hand, condensing into a long sword. With a whoosh, he slashed forward in an instant, the blade light cutting through the dark night.

"You..." Although the vicious dog, which was in the middle stage of the fourth realm, was glowing all over with mysterious runes intertwined, it couldn't even block a single slash. With a "poof," its pair of large paws blocking its way were severed, and then its head fell to the ground.

Everyone gasped. Who was this person? Was he really so fearless that he wasn't even afraid of the Blade Demon, who was ready to perish with the Grandmaster at any moment?

The brown dog's corpse gushed blood, its massive head fell to the ground, and as it tried to struggle, a black gale swept through, shattering its spiritual field and extinguishing its consciousness.

"Young man, run! If that grandmaster, who's barely clinging to life, goes mad, you're doomed," someone kindly warned.

Qin Ming remained calm and did not leave. Instead, he inquired about the situation of the other grandmasters in the mountains and who was in the most danger.

"There aren't many Grandmasters, and they're all pretty respectable. If you look closely, aside from the crazed Blade Demon and the old yellow-haired monster who likes to rob people who are inferior to him, the others are all alright."

Qin Ming nodded, searched the dog's corpse, and then disappeared in a flash.

Upon seeing this, everyone quickly picked up their stolen spirit items from the ground and then scattered, all running away.

Qin Ming advanced in a roundabout way, not heading towards the direction where the Blade Demon and the man were fighting. If he had a choice, he would naturally not fight a Grandmaster.

After all, the higher one climbs in cultivation, the more difficult the cross-border battles become. No one who can become a grandmaster is an ordinary person, and if he is an old saint-level figure, then the trouble will be great.

However, he was wearing the Bagua Treasure Robe and had recently acquired a mythical item—the Rotten Fan—so he remained calm throughout the journey.

A dilapidated temple, its interior covered in cobwebs, seemed to have escaped fire damage, the building still standing.

On the main altar, there was a statue of a thousand-armed monster. Qin Ming entered and resonated with the deity there, hoping to gain something.

In an instant, he felt as if he had been pulled into a wild mountain range. The primeval forest stretched as far as the eye could see. Under the night mist, a creature sat cross-legged on a distant mountain, like a sun in the sky, with thousands of hands forming mudras, sacred and majestic.

This god-like creature seemed to be able to traverse time and space. It suddenly opened its eyes and looked at Qin Ming. Its golden pupils were terrifying, making people want to fall into its trap.

"Meeting is fate. Pay homage to the Thousand-Handed True God, and I will bestow upon you the supreme scripture. Why don't you kowtow?" The grand voice seemed to travel across billions of miles, coming from that wild land, which deeply shocked Qin Ming.

That powerful, godlike creature exuded a terrifying aura, as if it were gazing at him from afar.

Moreover, the god's thousands of arms all exude extraordinary power, evolving a wondrous technique that inspires awe and draws one's mind in.

Qin Ming's mental field roared, and then he suddenly took the yellow parasol into his hand and used it as a spear, piercing it into the statue with a bang.

"You have bewitched my mind and disturbed my will. Even if you have a spirit, you are an evil god. Begone!"

The statue was torn to pieces and collapsed completely.

Only Qin Ming stood in the temple, his eyes clear, stepping on the broken pieces of the statue.

"That's not how I use it!" The yellow parasol emitted a wave of sound, expressing its dissatisfaction.

"Hmm?" Qin Ming asked in surprise. He picked up a bead from the fragments of the statue and immediately felt the divine power again, and saw the desolate landscape.

"I really thought you were incredibly powerful, sensing something deep within the Night Fog World," Qin Ming murmured.

He resonated again, carefully sensing, and quickly figured out the truth. It was related to the organization called the God-like One, which was set up by several young people, including the Moon God, the Blood God, and the Light God, in order to subdue some people invisibly and use them for their own purposes.

"Centipede Pearl," the spirit of the Eight Trigrams Furnace spoke.

A giant centipede that had grown to its full potential not only had a thousand arms, but also contained thousands of centipede beads inside its body. However, this particular bead was depleted, leaving only a faint divine aura that could bewitch and cause hallucinations. It was a rather good material for refining weapons.

Qin Ming crudely refined it, which allowed him to exude unfathomable divine power, but this was purely "fake" and could only temporarily deceive people.

Since the god-like organization could use the depleted centipede divine pearl to intimidate worshippers, he naturally planned to make use of it as well, as it might have a miraculous effect at a crucial moment.

Several days later, Qin Ming had penetrated deep into the core area of ​​this land. He once saw the "Sun Secret Aperture" break through the surface and emerge from the ground, emitting a large amount of golden light and surrounded by celestial mist, which was very sacred.

"Qingyue, Randi..." Qin Ming secretly communicated with them through the Bagua Furnace.

Both sides are located in this area, not far apart, and are already able to communicate and exchange information using special weapons.

"The Black Tower civilization is very powerful, with saints present and grandmasters overseeing it, all carrying special weapons. In addition, there is a terrifying group of demon cultivators, and a god-like organization..."

Li Qingyue and Jiang Ran were overjoyed to be able to meet Qin Ming again in this foreign land, and they told him about the various situations they had encountered.

Qin Ming himself was also on guard and observing, and soon learned that the Blade Demon and the Grandmaster-level Yellow-haired Old Monster were at odds and had been in conflict, and had fought several battles in recent days.

This is good news for Qin Ming, since he has offended the Blade Demon and it would be best if he had a powerful opponent to restrain him.

Over the next two days, Qin Ming witnessed firsthand the power of the Black Tower civilization. The female saint, Elena, dressed in white, was virtually unmatched in the Fourth Realm.

Meanwhile, Oleg, the blond youth who once called himself the Lord of Jade Capital, has not yet made a move. He wields a special divine staff, which looks extremely dangerous.

Among the demon cultivators was a handsome young man who appeared to be quite young, but he was ruthless. In a single move, he pierced through a master at the late fourth realm and used his right hand to absorb all of the man's life essence. The opponent fell to the ground, light and limp, as if only a human skin remained.

Furthermore, a master-level expert, Silver Rat, appeared, accompanied by Black Tiger Woman, and other master-level monsters such as Flying Elephant and Silver Silkworm also made appearances.

Qin Ming frowned; there were simply too many experts from different regions in this place.

Not long after, he saw the decaying god he had encountered on the road. Although it had degenerated to the level of a grandmaster, it was still very dangerous.

There are far more than just one or two such old monsters.

Suddenly, a surge of celestial mist appeared ahead, and golden rays soared into the sky, illuminating the once pitch-black night.

Everyone knows that the Sun's Secret Point has reappeared and been located, forcing it to be born again.

In the pitch-black mountains, a fierce wind howled, and ashes rose in the air—all stirred up by experts—as many people rushed forward.

Qin Ming also approached, hiding behind a boulder, not far from the Sun's Secret Aperture.

Suddenly, a figure silently appeared in front of him and hid behind another blue stone.

Qin Ming's hair stood on end. It was actually the Blade Demon. This person was withered and emaciated, with deep eyes, and carried a blood-red longsword on his back. Obviously, the other party had also seen him, and immediately emitted a bone-chilling cold aura that made people feel as if they were being pricked by needles.

They actually encountered this situation.

In recent days, the Blade Demon has spread rumors that he intends to kill a rogue cultivator with his blade.

Qin Ming knew that if he were recognized by the other party, a bloody battle would be inevitable.

"Get lost!" Clearly, the Blade Demon did not recognize his identity, but remained domineering and unapproachable, driving him away in this manner.

Qin Ming stood up and immediately launched an attack. The nine-colored holy energy condensed into the blade light, exploding like a dazzling sun.

He knew that if he fought in the Sun's Secret Aperture, he would inevitably be recognized by the Blade Demon. Rather than that, it would be better to take the initiative now, as it was the perfect time to launch an attack.

After all, the other party mistook him for an insignificant young pawn.

At this moment, Qin Ming had no confidence in dealing with a Grandmaster. In addition to unleashing a full-force slash, he also prepared his rotten fan, ready to sweep it out at any time.

However, the outcome was far beyond Qin Ming's expectations.

With a soft thud, he cleaved the Blade Demon in two, and the Nine-Colored Sacred Fiend instantly obliterated the opponent's pure Yang consciousness and spiritual light. Blood splattered high, and a fearsome grandmaster was killed instantly!
Qin Ming immediately sensed something was wrong because, at the last moment, he saw the astonishment in the eyes of the Blade Demon. The other party was not so indifferent, self-confident, or ruthless at all; on the contrary, he was clearly panicked and fearful.

Nearby, many people gasped in shock.

Many people were stunned. To kill a grandmaster with a single strike—what a terrifyingly powerful expert! In this region, he was practically invincible.

"A fake grandmaster!" Qin Ming made this judgment immediately; the level the other party displayed was definitely not that of a true fifth-realm expert.

At the same time, he glanced quickly and noticed a person. The blond old monster was not far away, and his eyes were filled with endless anger and resentment.

In an instant, Qin Ming understood.

The reason why no one dares to mess with the Knife Demon is mainly because he has shown too much "strength". He has fought against the powerful Yellow-Haired Old Monster many times and has not been at a disadvantage.

Now it seems there's definitely something fishy going on here.

The Blade Demon and the brown dog worked together to frantically collect spiritual objects, and the Blade Demon, this fake grandmaster, must have also reached a "tacit understanding" with the yellow-haired old monster.

Without hesitation, Qin Ming instantly looted all the treasures from the Blade Demon's body. He was certain that the other party possessed special items that could exude the aura of a Grandmaster.

"There are so many scammers in this place!" Qin Ming thought to himself.

Many eyes turned towards him, clearly stunned by that single strike.

Qin Ming sensed the yellow-haired monster's malice; it seemed the monster was about to take action.

In an instant, Qin Ming secretly activated the centipede pearl, and a halo surrounded his body, emanating a faint divine power.

In an instant, the surrounding area fell silent, and everyone was filled with trepidation. Even the vicious old monster with yellow hair calmed down and dared not make any rash moves.

"A single sword pierces through the thirty-sixth heaven?" In the distance, Elena of the Black Tower civilization exclaimed in surprise, staring at the nine-colored longsword with a strange light in her eyes.

“Nine-Colored Sword Demon!” Oleg also showed surprise, feeling that it was the “one sword” that had been used to unleash the Eight-Colored Sword Demon that day.

In the blink of an eye, Qin Ming turned around and smiled faintly, transforming his longsword into a celestial sword. Nine-colored sword energy flowed, illuminating the night sky. He also activated the centipede bead, making his divine power even more awe-inspiring.

"It really is you, the core saint of Jade Capital!" Oleg gasped in the night mist, feeling a heaviness in his heart. The other party was able to kill a grandmaster with a single strike, his strength was outrageous.

After the battle that day, the Black Tower civilization carefully studied the situation and concluded that Yi Jian, Tai Yi, and others were likely young people.

Could it be that the true level of piercing through thirty-six heavens with a single sword strike is at the Grandmaster level?
Oleg was stunned. In the current environment, this kind of "old saint" is extremely dangerous. Who can compete with him?
"Hehe..." Qin Ming smiled faintly.

Holding a celestial sword formed from nine-colored sword energy, surrounded by a dazzling divine halo, he walked unhurriedly toward the Sun Aperture.

At this moment, Li Qingyue, Jiang Ran and their team were not far from the secret passage. When they saw him coming, the mysterious leader tensed up and his hair stood on end.

After all, who doesn't know how powerful Oleg is in the Black Tower civilization? He's a top-tier saint with special weapons, and even he's so wary of him, so who would dare not take him seriously?

Within the dazzling mist, flames flickered, seemingly capable of burning mountains and boiling seas.

"Hmm, the True Fire of the Sun is useless to me. You may take it. I wish to enter the depths of the secret passage," Qin Ming said to the team at the front.

Upon hearing this, Li Qingyue and Jiang Ran immediately took action without hesitation, demonstrating remarkable teamwork.

Qin Ming displayed such magnanimity, and his divine aura grew even more dazzling, with the nine-colored sword aura soaring into the sky, showcasing the demeanor of an unparalleled master.

(End of this chapter)