Subscribe to the MTL WORLD (@mtlworld1) YouTube Channel.
***********************************
Novel: [Night Without Borders]
Chapter 15: [Blade Flashes in the Wind and Snow]
Author: [Chen Dong]
Translator: [Shadow Knight AK]
Editor: [Shadow Knight AK]
***********************************
The Mountain Wind howled like ghosts wailing, snapping branches and whipping up snow from the forest floor. The swirling flakes mixed with the falling goose-feather snow, creating a blinding white expanse between heaven and earth.
Qin Ming trudged alone through the storm, reaching the foot of the mountain where the Mountain Patrol Group had set up camp.
He decided to use the bow and arrows he had seized. Though he still considered it a "soft bow," it was a significant upgrade from the iron-tired bow he had been using.
The fierce snowstorm battered his face, forcing him to squint. He shed his thickest thermal layers, donned his armor, and then pulled on a thin outer garment.
He buried his own bow and arrows, along with his pack, in a snow cave, weighing it down with heavy stones.
Then, armed with the Mountain Patrolmen's four iron spears, he began his ascent.
Qin Ming moved silently, gradually climbing the peak, drawing within a few dozen meters of the flat clearing.
If not for the howling wind and heavy snow, the Golden Mastiff, as massive as a tiger, would surely have caught the scent of the stranger.
Even so, it seemed to sense something amiss, its ears pricked up, revealing intricate golden patterns.
In one of the larger wooden cabins, the glow of firelight flickered.
Shadows of several figures danced in the window, where they were drinking and feasting on steaming yak meat cooked in a copper pot over a charcoal fire.
The rich aroma of the meat filled the frigid air.
"The Fire Spring in the Blood Bamboo Forest is about to extinguish. This is the perfect opportunity to deal with that spiritual creature. We need to make arrangements in advance..."
The words drifted on the wind.
Qin Ming desperately wanted to hear more.
Some members of the Mountain Patrol Group, seeking Second Awakening, had set their sights on a certain spiritual creature in the mountains.
Unfortunately, he couldn't eavesdrop any further.
The Golden Mastiff had already appeared outside the shack and was glaring at him, its mouth opening to roar.
Qin Ming aimed at the window and drew his bow, targeting the most burly figure.
Iron arrows, like flashes of lightning, pierced the night, whistling as they all struck the wooden cabin.
A muffled grunt echoed from within, followed by all the figures dropping to the ground.
Then, the cabin's window and door were smashed open as several figures burst out, using tables and door panels as shields.
They took cover behind trees and rocks, their eyes scanning the shadows for their attacker.
The Golden Mastiff barked incessantly, its imposing roar scattering the snowflakes in front of it. Its massive body unleashed astonishing power as it charged ferociously toward Qin Ming's position.
Qin Ming ignored the mutated Golden Mastiff for the moment, focusing his iron arrows like a dense rainstorm on a single target: Fu Entao.
He paid no attention to the other Mountain Patrolmen.
The Second Awakener was the most dangerous.
Wounding him would be more significant than taking down the others first.
Unfortunately, Fu Entao was only hit by a single arrow, and his injury was minor. The specially crafted armor he wore provided excellent protection, with the iron arrow penetrating only half an inch deep.
Afterward, Fu Entao swung his long blade, slicing through most of the remaining iron arrows. Using trees as cover, he rapidly closed in on his opponent.
Based on the force of the arrows fired at him, he deduced that his opponent had not yet undergone Second Awakening, making them less formidable.
It wasn't that Qin Ming lacked strength, but the Mountain Patrolman's hard bow couldn't withstand his thousand-jin force.
It snapped under the strain.
A Mutant Mastiff, its body covered in gold and black markings, leaped forward, lunging at Qin Ming.
White mist billowed from its blood-red maw, revealing razor-sharp, bone-white fangs. Its roar shook the forest.
But mid-leap, its massive body stiffened abruptly. Its roar cut short as an iron spear hurtled through the air at terrifying speed, piercing its skull and splattering blood. Its ferocious gaze dimmed instantly.
Undeniably, this was a formidable mutant creature, capable of causing trouble for Awakeners. Yet Qin Ming had dispatched it with a single, decisive spear throw — instantly killed!
With a thud, it landed five meters in front of Qin Ming.
From afar, Feng Yi'an saw the Golden Mastiff's corpse hit the ground and cried out in anguish, "Goldie!"
Qin Ming felt a surge of anger.
In this man's eyes, the lives of the villagers in the mountains were less important than a vicious dog.
He had lost his composure and cried out over it.
With a powerful swing of his right arm, another iron spear shot forth, cutting through the wind and snow with a terrifying whoosh as it hurtled towards Feng Yi'an.
Feng Yi'an, a Mountain Patrolman with a full beard and on the verge of Second Awakening, reacted swiftly. His muscular frame shifted sideways with lightning speed, and he swung his long blade in a defiant arc, aiming to intercept the approaching spear.
Amidst a deafening clang of metal on metal and a shower of sparks, Feng Yi'an felt his entire arm go numb.
His right hand, still gripping the blade, trembled, nearly losing its grip.
He was horrified.
How much force had been behind that throw?
The spear grazed his body and plunged into a wooden hut, shattering the thick door panel instantly.
At that moment, Fu Entao, nearly two meters tall, stomped through the snow, sending up a wave of white spray.
His speed was astonishing, and he was now less than ten meters from Qin Ming.
Waiting for him was a special iron spear crafted by the Mountain Patrol Group, which shot towards him like a venomous dragon slithering through the night.
As a Second Awakener, Fu Entao's senses were incredibly sharp.
He clearly tracked the iron spear's trajectory.
He didn't want to waste any energy.
With a slight shift of his towering frame, he effortlessly dodged the spear without breaking stride, charging toward his opponent like a whirlwind.
He evaded the glinting iron spear, but another Mountain Patrolman was charging in behind him, trailing by about ten meters, making him the perfect second target.
This was Qin Ming's deliberate tactic.
If Fu Entao had blocked the spear, it would have been deflected harmlessly. But by dodging, the thrown spear would instead strike the man following close behind.
The Mountain Patrolman behind Fu Entao couldn't avoid the spear.
The distance was simply too short, and Fu Entao had blocked his view.
"Aaaah!" he screamed in agony as the iron spear pierced his chest.
Even his armor couldn't withstand the impact, shattering instantly as fragments flew through the air.
However, this obstruction altered the spear's trajectory.
Slightly off course, the spear slammed into a tree trunk as thick as a water bucket, pinning the Mountain Patrolman to the massive tree with a resounding thud.
Blood flowed down the spear shaft, staining the snow crimson.
He writhed in excruciating pain, his life ebbing away before his eyes.
Behind them, Feng Yi'an and Shao Chengfeng felt a chill run down their spines, as if they themselves had been nailed to the giant tree.
They instinctively took several steps back.
Fu Entao, aware of what had happened behind him, wore a grim expression.
The ten-meter distance between him and Qin Ming was easily covered in a single leap.
His thick, curly black hair whipped back in the biting wind, and his animal hide cloak billowed around him.
Standing at two meters tall, the longsword in his hand was custom-made, wider and sharper than usual.
When he swung it down, the force was like splitting a mountain, utterly ferocious!
Qin Ming, as still as a boulder in repose, moved with the speed and ferocity of thunder when he struck.
He sidestepped the terrifying blade with a slight shift, then used the last iron spear clutched in his left hand to smash against the side of the sword, deflecting its trajectory.
Fu Entao's heart skipped a beat.
He realized this was no ordinary opponent he could casually toy with — this was a Second Awakener.
He pressed down hard on his sword, trying to push the iron spear aside and continue his relentless attack.
But he met with formidable resistance.
Qin Ming pressed the iron spear against the sword blade, sparks flying as the metal scraped against metal, holding the longsword away from his body.
Then, he surged forward, his right hand wielding a wood-chopping knife aimed straight at his opponent's wide-open chest.
Fu Entao's pupils constricted.
The heavy longsword in his right hand had failed to push back the iron spear, leaving him feeling challenged for the first time — he'd encountered a formidable opponent.
He swiftly raised his left arm, which bore a Black Gold bracer etched with the Mountain Monster emblem, to block the cleaver, its blade as clear as a mountain spring.
A piercing clang of metal on metal echoed through the air.
Using the impact, Fu Entao retreated with the speed of wind and thunder, stirring up all the snowflakes on the ground and escaping his initial disadvantage.
He shook his slightly numb left arm and looked down.
Cracks had appeared on the bracer, nearly splitting it in two. It wasn't the opponent's blade that was too sharp, but the excessive force that had shattered it.
Having misjudged the force of the iron arrow, he had intended to instantly kill the archer.
But his plan had been thwarted from the start, forcing him to take a closer look at the figure before him.
Qin Ming examined the cleaver. Its blade was chipped and noticeably damaged, though forged from refined iron, it couldn't compare to the Mountain Patrol Group's armor.
He knew his strength surpassed his opponent's, but his speed was slightly lacking.
His Second Awakening had focused on flexibility and speed. He intended to exploit his opponent's misperception of him as a fellow awakener, forcing a close-quarters battle to neutralize the advantage of a single-strike retreat.
"Who are you, and why are you targeting us?" Fu Entao asked, his initial impression of the young man's tender features had led him to believe he was an impulsive hot-blooded youth.
He'd planned to cripple him first, then force him to reveal his origins.
But faced with the opponent's overwhelming strength, Fu Entao had calmed down, treating him as an equal, even with a hint of wariness.
After all, the young man was incredibly young.
Could he be a noble scion from Chi Xia City?
Yet his attire didn't match.
Qin Ming didn't answer.
His left hand held the iron spear pointed forward, while his right hand raised the wood-chopping knife slightly.
He advanced step by step, calm and composed, despite his youthful appearance radiating an aura of authority.
Fu Entao frowned, his suspicions about Qin Ming's identity deepening.
As Qin Ming emerged from the shadowy forest and approached the Fire Spring area, Feng Yi'an and Shao Chengfeng recognized him.
They had already found his figure familiar earlier. Now, illuminated by the fiery glow, his face became clear, leaving them utterly stunned.
"You're Qin Ming... from Twin Tree Village?!" Feng Yi'an exclaimed in disbelief.
He had seen the young man several times.
Hadn't he just undergone his awakening not long ago?
Qin Ming didn't answer, his steps firm as he closed in on his opponent.
Then, he suddenly accelerated, his long spear thrusting out like an ice serpent transforming into a dragon on a snowy plain.
The spear's passage through the wind and snow produced a terrifying sonic boom, scattering the falling snowflakes and causing the snow on the ground to explode.
"Surround him! Don't let him escape! I want him captured alive!" Fu Entao shouted as he drew his blade.
His gaze flashed like cold lightning, radiating confidence.
He was primarily concerned that Feng Yi'an and Shao Chengfeng might hesitate to fight, so he was bolstering their morale.
"Let's attack together and finish this quickly," shouted a burly Mountain Patrolman, slowly advancing with his blade drawn.
He wasn't charging in recklessly; instead, he aimed to create psychological pressure on Qin Ming from a nearby position.
Feng Yi'an and Shao Chengfeng followed suit, closing in to surround Qin Ming and taking up key positions, ready to launch a surprise attack at any moment.
Their presence subtly influenced the battle's dynamics.
The clash between the two men in the arena was terrifying.
The iron spear, leaving afterimages as it danced through the air like a dragon or serpent, met the flashing blade, which resembled lightning striking in a rainstorm, rapidly expanding the battlefield.
Feng Yi'an and Shao Chengfeng's expressions darkened.
Could this young man named Qin Ming truly be so formidable?
Could their group leader truly suppress him?
Qin Ming and Fu Entao charged back into the dense forest near the Fire Spring, forcing the three onlookers to follow cautiously, maintaining their encirclement.
Two figures charged through the forest, leaving a trail of destruction in their wake.
Trees that had stood perfectly intact suddenly cracked and snapped, sending branches crashing to the snowy ground.
Even massive trunks toppled with thunderous roars.
Suddenly, from the shadows of the dense woods, a silver-white figure leaped down from a towering tree, aiming to ambush Qin Ming.
Qin Ming was locked in combat with Fu Entao, his back turned to the direction of the attack.
The Snow Ape, a mutant creature raised by the Mountain Patrol Group, had launched its surprise attack from above, catching him off guard.
As a mutant creature, its razor-sharp claws could tear through even the fiercest beasts.
Now, fueled by savage fury, it clawed at Qin Ming's neck with lightning-fast precision.
Qin Ming had known about the Snow Ape's presence since ascending the mountain.
He had secretly located its position and remained vigilant against all potential threats.
His feet moved like the wind, his agility unmatched.
He dodged the Snow Ape's deadly pounce and countered with a backhanded slash into the air.
With a sickening thwack, the cleaver sliced the ferocious Snow Ape in half!
Blood sprayed everywhere as the creature let out a pained howl.
Its two severed halves crashed to the snowy ground, quickly growing still and lifeless.
______________________________
END OF CHAPTER
Subscribe to MTL WORLD (@mtlworld1) YouTube Channel
*********************************