Outside the village, everything was pitch black and hard to make out. Almost no one would be outside at this hour.
"Uncle Yang?" Qin Ming had just left the village when he spotted a stout, stocky man up ahead.
Yang Yongqing looked surprised. "Qin? Shallow Night hasn't even fully arrived, and you're already heading out?"
"I want to try my luck in the wild. Maybe I'll come across a mountain beast that froze to death," Qin Ming replied.
Yang Yongqing chuckled. "Looks like we're thinking the same. I just took a lap outside the mountains. Not a single thing, though. No luck."
Qin Ming was stunned. This middle-aged man with a full beard had already returned from a trip out there? That was early.
"Uncle Yang couldn't possibly be like me... are you tracking some rare, sentient creature?" Qin Ming asked. He knew Yang Yongqing was formidable. He was one of the few people in Shuangshu Village who had undergone rebirth.
They had barely exchanged a few words when a dark shape moved in the distance.
"A mountain patrol," Yang Yongqing said in a low voice.
In an era without the sun, the wilderness was especially dangerous. It needed highly skilled individuals to patrol the mountains and act as sentries.
A tall man clad in leather armor appeared, carrying a bow on his back and gripping an iron spear. His long hair flowed freely, and his entire presence radiated primal power.
"Brother Shao," Yang Yongqing greeted him proactively.
Shao Chengfeng nodded slightly. He looked to be around forty, with sharp eyes. Stopping nearby, he said, "That young one with you... Don't tell me he's that sickly kid from the next village?"
"Er Bingzi is from the neighboring village." Yang Yongqing explained.
"You folks in Shuangshu Village aren't doing great. Haven't had a golden-age rebirth in decades," Shao Chengfeng said bluntly.
Yang Yongqing didn't take offense. He thought it was fair. Across this entire region, few ever achieved rebirth at the optimal age of fifteen or sixteen. Talent couldn't be forced. "Honestly, no one saw it coming. That sickly boy turned out to be quite something. I heard his physique improved even further after his body was nourished to health."
Shao Chengfeng nodded. "Indeed, quite impressive. Whether he can compare to the top youths in that bright city far off… that remains to be seen."
"That'd be hard. The environment shapes the people," Yang Yongqing sighed. He had seen the city's splendor and understood the brilliance that came with advanced cultivation manuals.
"True," Shao agreed. "Rumor has it two extraordinary youths have emerged there—one boy, one girl—far surpassing all previous golden-age rebirths and stunning the entire region."
"A truly blessed place," Yang Yongqing said with admiration, not jealousy. They were so far removed that there was no comparison.
Qin Ming listened attentively the entire time, never interrupting. After a brief pause, Shao Chengfeng disappeared into the night.
No one knew what kinds of creatures lurked deep in the pitch-black mountains, what level of danger existed. That was why patrols were needed in the outer zones, for early warning.
"Are mountain patrols always this strong? Do they go into the mountains every day?" Qin Ming asked.
"Some take their duty seriously," Yang Yongqing replied.
Qin Ming blinked. Did that mean others didn't? He hadn't expected this thick-bearded, burly man to give such a tactful answer.
"The mountain's atmosphere has been strange lately. It's too dangerous. I'm guessing the authorities will soon launch a 'sweep operation.' Highborn disciples will likely come along. You need to keep working hard, Qin. Try to achieve rebirth while still in your golden years." Yang Yongqing patted him on the shoulder. "Who knows? If some noble lady takes a liking to you, it could change your fate."
They parted ways, and Yang Yongqing returned to the village.
Qin Ming took in everything he had just heard as he headed deeper into the wild. His pace quickened. He moved through snow chest-deep like he was cutting through waves. Snow was flying off to either side of his trail.
At this point, the night wasn't quite so dark. Shallow Night has arrived. The silhouette of the mountain forest was faintly visible.
Standing just outside the mountains, Qin Ming remained highly alert. No one could say what danger lurked in the barely visible terrain.
His stomach growled audibly. His body was crying out again for food. Earlier, he'd suppressed hunger while passing others on the road, but now it was impossible to ignore. His stomach turned sour with hunger. Staring into the gloomy forest, he clenched his hunting fork and slipped into the trees.
He passed the area where the mutated squirrel had lived, climbed over the low mountain, and ventured even farther than last time.
After advancing a bit deeper into the forest, he noticed traces—splintered bones, massive hoofprints. Fortunately, the snow wasn't too thick in these parts; many creatures had already trampled out narrow paths.
Suddenly, a low, mournful wail echoed. It sounded like a woman crying, eerily out of place in the wilderness.
Qin Ming immediately sped up, searching the mountain for the source. He closed in fast.
Within the shadowy woods, dozens of pairs of green eyes stared out at him. In the darkness, he could just make out the vague outlines of more than ten creatures. To someone unfamiliar with the wild, that eerie crying might have been terrifying. But to seasoned wanderers, it could mean opportunity.
Qin Ming charged in with his hunting fork, and a flurry of wings exploded into the air. More than ten creatures rushed upward into the night sky, startled into fleeing.
They were carnivorous night birds, about two feet long, and they lived in flocks. Their cries resembled ghostly sobs, and they hunted small animals, sometimes even attacking humans.
Qin Ming reached the site in a flash, only to sigh in disappointment. All that remained on the ground was a pile of bloodstained bones and shredded animal hide. A deer had been picked clean.
Failing to snatch a meal from the birds, he quickly turned and left, wary of being attacked.
He came upon a clearing with sparse trees and heavy bloodstains. Massive claw prints—wider than a rice bowl—marked the ground. A large predator had recently fed there.