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Night Without End-Chapter 37 - 25 Second Rebirth
Chapter 37: Chapter 25 Second Rebirth
Late at night, the sky and earth are as dark as ink, all things lose their color and the entire village is left with only very vague outlines.
Qin Ming is dealing with a Blood Snake; the skin of this spiritual creature is incredibly difficult to peel, its scale armor even harder than fine iron, making a clanging sound when struck with a firewood knife.
If one is not careful, the bright red scales can cut through human fingers as if they are made of blocks of Refined Gold, suggesting that if made into armor, the defensive power would certainly be astonishing.
Qin Ming discards the firewood knife to one side, ready to switch to a sharper blade. Two days ago, Mu Qing, in addition to giving him a Wujin Hammer with a long handle, also gifted him a Short Sword.
He tried it and, although not as sharp as the long sword of the man with the dark green complexion, by gripping the short sword firmly and exerting more force, he could barely use it to peel the snake skin.
Qin Ming is exceptionally focused. After using the short sword to peel back one end of the Big Snake's skin, he pulls it downward with force, which immediately seemed easier than direct cutting.
Several Sun Stones emit a soft light, casting a reddish glow over the Blood Snake, bright and resplendent, as if it were a piece of jade polished into shape.
Once the blood-red snake skin is gradually peeled away, the flesh underneath is revealed to be snow-white and delicate, and the Snake Gallbladder doesn't have the dull color of ordinary snakes; it is translucent and blue, resembling a gemstone.
Qin Ming has already noticed that both the snake meat and Snake Gallbladder contain a rich and vibrant spiritual essence, faintly glowing, apparently a High grade nourishing food.
"No wonder those from Chixia City, upon seeing it, immediately tear off their hypocritical faces, sparing no effort to kill and rob."
He cuts the snake meat into sections with the short sword, carefully cleanses it, and immediately sets a pot to boil—determined to achieve Second Rebirth as soon as possible, he does not postpone it overnight.
In such an environment, he feels a sense of crisis. All sorts of demons and goblins have come, and the large clans and organizations from Chixia City have appeared one after another. Who knows what will happen next in the mountains?
These people are all looking for "nodes" within the mountains, special areas accompanied by unusual phenomena, especially those bathed in the Five Colored Smoke and Mist, which they desire immensely, willing to offer high-level Scriptures as rewards for clues.
Ever since the magnetic fields in the mountains became disordered, Fire Spring has extinguished and reborn, and all sorts of strange events have occurred.
"And another group of high-level spiritual creatures has migrated from afar, bringing whole families to occupy the mountain's resources." Qin Ming ponders if this so-called migration is just a front—is this new wave of top-tier Alien Species also here in search of something?
The snake meat is in the pot. As time passes by, a rich fragrance wafts through the air, quickly drawing Qin Ming back from his thoughts, making him voraciously hungry.
In the dead of night, with a fierce snowstorm raging outside, the flavorful aroma of the boiling snake meat fills the room. Qin Ming indeed finds his appetite sharpening, patiently waiting for the meat to be thoroughly cooked.
"It's really delicious and very fresh," he remarks after the first taste, his eyes lighting up. This spiritual creature is far more delectable than the ordinary snake being, almost like they are from two different species.
Initially, he was somewhat put off by snakes, but now he couldn't care less. In his eyes, this is simply "Dragon Meat" from the earth.
Qin Ming eats only a few bites before feeling warmth rising within his body—the effect is immediate, as the Spiritual Material takes effect so swiftly.
"The Snake Gallbladder can be steamed or soaked in spicy old wine for consumption. Alas, there's no wine at home, leaving no choice but one."
He continues eating the snake meat while placing the translucent blue Snake Gallbladder in the steamer. This gallbladder is said to contain mysterious spiritual essences; he needs to carefully monitor it.
Shortly after, the gallbladder, akin to a large chunk of blue diamond, is thoroughly cooked. Qin Ming sets aside the snake meat, beginning to enjoy the true "main dish."
"Oh my... Mountain God, heavens, my heart aches!" Qin Ming takes only one bite before feeling his tongue numb with bitterness, and upon looking in the mirror, finds his lips have turned a luminous blue along with his mouth.
He was aware that Snake Gallbladders are bitter and was mentally prepared, but the concentrated essence of the Blood Snake's gall is far bitterer than he expected.
At this instant, even the fragrance of snake meat becomes unappealing; the bitterness numbs him.
He hurriedly takes a sip of the flavorful Snake Soup, trying to wash down the bitterness, but the strong aftertaste persists in his mouth.
By taste alone, this would be deemed inedible even by dogs, unbearable even for Newcomers who have surpassed the Golden Foundation.
Qin Ming does not swallow the gallbladder whole, mainly because it's quite large, and he feels that chewing it will aid in absorbing the spiritual essence more effectively, thus helping him achieve Second Rebirth more quickly.
His evening mood of indulging in delicacies is almost spoiled by the bitterness. Looking at the remaining half, he grits his teeth; it's already come to this, so he might as well continue to chew and savor slowly.
After Qin Ming finishes the entire Snake Gallbladder, he looks at himself in the mirror and sees his lips painted in a garish blue, exuding an indescribably peculiar quality.
"Luckily I'm eating this late at night. If it were earlier in the Shallow Night, it would be impossible to meet anyone!"
However, the effects of the Snake Gallbladder are truly fierce, extremely potent; shortly after ingestion, his entire body heats up as if he had a high fever.
Qin Ming remains calm and continues eating the snake meat, not only to mask the bitter taste but also to add another layer of spiritual fire to his body.
In the end, his body began to heat up, like a vibrant furnace, warding off the bitter cold of the winter season, his whole being glowing.
"Eating nourishments and medicinal dishes, the effects are beginning to show!" Qin Ming rose, grabbed the Wujin Hammer with a long handle, and began to practice the moves from the Blade Manual in the courtyard.
For a time, all the snow on the ground surged towards the night sky, his body enveloped in white mist, a faint light flowing over his skin, vitality bursting from his flesh. When swinging the Big Hammer, it brought forth bursts of wind and thunder.
Qin Ming's spirit continuously soared. He knew that the Second Rebirth had begun; it was a process, not something achieved in one step.
But he could distinctly feel this change; his strength was increasing, his tendons seemed to be stretching, his perception becoming sharper, his vision stronger.
"Every rebirth process is so intoxicating, feeling one's own strength grow, even the dense, intractable darkness of the night seems to fade a bit."
A vast amount of active energy surged within Qin Ming, his entire body seemed to be undergoing purification and baptism, his bones and muscles seemed to resonate and roar.
Under the night sky, he glowed like a furnace, vividly shining.
It was as if there was a secret flame burning within his flesh and blood, cutting away the old impurities, promoting rebirth, tempering the spirit, and accelerating the thriving changes within him.
Qin Ming swung the long-handled Wujin Hammer in the courtyard, continually exhausting himself, until his hair was dripping and he was drenched in sweat, then he entered his room.
He sat quietly inside and silently felt the changes within his body.
Afterward, he pondered whether his body would grow again after the Second Rebirth? According to Old Man Liu, based on the chosen Will Power and Meditation Technique, the changes in the body could be quite different.
Next, he would test the quality of the "Wild Technique" he practiced to see what kind of changes it would bring about in his body.
Originally, Qin Ming was half a head taller than the average person and had grown nearly two inches after the first rebirth.
In the evening, while chatting with Old Man Liu and Xu Yueping about rebirth, both of them felt that his height hadn't changed much, because some people could grow an entire head taller.
Old Man Liu, with his rich life experience, had been very close to the old Mountain Patrol in his youth and heard many anecdotes about rebirth.
"Some Will Power, after being cultivated, every rebirth will inflate the body like a bubble, making it taller and larger, but only some is a firm Golden Body, much more is a clay fetus, so many Xinsheng Skills at a certain stage need to suppress the body from growing further." This was one of the situations mentioned by Old Man Liu.
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He specifically noted that some secret Will Power was incredibly precious; after being cultivated, some extremely mysterious changes would occur, such as the birth of a third eye, which is the origin of certain sacred legends.
Such secret books were too rare, even many great families could not access them.
Old Man Liu fell into memories while drinking, recounting the anecdotes told by the old Mountain Patrol, and then talked about some special Xinsheng Skills and their various strange changes and effects.
In the end, he also mentioned that one Xinsheng Skill required maintaining the Golden ratio of the body's height in the early stages and not allowing the body to grow too fast.
While drinking, Old Man Liu looked at Qin Ming, saying drunkenly: "I think the change in your height isn't very noticeable."
Qin Ming was very calm, knowing that in two days, he would find out which type his practiced Xinsheng Skill leaned towards.
For the first time, he felt that staying here did indeed keep him out of the loop, guessing that the Newcomers in Chixia City were clear about these things, while he had cobble together what he knew from bits and pieces.
Moreover, some people didn't rely on rebirth at all to progress; there were other methods to travel, but these were far too remote for him to understand.
After sitting quietly for a long time, Qin Ming felt hungry, the changes from the Second Rebirth were very apparent, and he immediately started eating Snake Soup, replenishing his body with food rich in spiritual essence.
Finally, after washing himself with cold water, he fell into a deep sleep in the silent night.
Before sleep overtook him, he saw a "Golden Silk Jade Robe" reappearing on his body, Silver Light covering his body with golden threads interwoven, looking rather divine.
Qin Ming drifted from light sleep to deep sleep, and then to a state of half-awake, half-asleep.
He felt himself sink into a deep slumber, his body and mind completely relaxed, receiving good rest, but part of his consciousness was active.
In that state of half-awake, half-asleep, he seemed to see a dusty black cloth covering his subconscious, blocking his vision, unable to see what was behind.
But during the Second Rebirth process, the dust gradually blew away, and a corner of the black cloth was lifted; then he saw his younger self.
Even though he was in a semi-dream state, Qin Ming realized that the Second Rebirth led to a comprehensive enhancement of his body, even his spiritual consciousness was strengthening, resulting in earlier blurred memories reemerging.
As if in a daze, someone whispered in his ear: "This Method... although it has a significant origin, it cannot be cultivated successfully anymore."
Then, Qin Ming saw through the lifted corner of the black cloth a rough hand holding a very thin ancient book, flipping open to the first page in front of his younger self...