Qin Ming noticed that his younger self didn't dress well, but he quickly became captivated by an old booklet.
It was a very thin ancient book, and when he opened it, he found it was made of silk.
The cover was likely added later, made from animal hide, dark and rough, meant to withstand the wear of time and protect the true scriptures inside.
The first page contained the "Wild Path Techniques," which he was very familiar with. He could almost hear whispers as he read the dense text.
Then, that calloused hand turned to the second page, where the small text continued. Some of the characters and patterns were new, which immediately caught Qin Ming's attention, and he quickly noted them down.
Perhaps he didn’t even need to remember; this was a faded memory from his childhood. He was experiencing a rebirth, his physical condition improving greatly, and his mental awareness strengthening, brushing away the dust of time, allowing him to see the past again and recall what he had already read in the silk book.
In a half-dream state, Qin Ming wanted to turn to the third page, but he couldn’t. That large hand didn’t help him open it.
At that moment, he carefully examined the silk book protected by the tough animal hide.
After years of wear, it had lost its original luster, slightly yellowed, exuding a sense of ancient beauty and the weight of history.
It was indeed very thin, probably only about twenty pages.
Qin Ming tried several times to turn the page, but he still couldn’t open the third page.
He stopped trying and instead gazed through the mottled time at his younger self, that small figure dressed in tattered clothes.
Even in this half-awake state, Qin Ming felt a pang of emotion. His younger self had lived a very poor life, with his already faded clothes patched in places, the cuffs worn down, and looking down, his little shoes had holes in them.
He sighed lightly, thinking of his older self, who also hadn’t lived well as a teenager. He had suffered from frostbite, gone hungry, and had wounds all over his body. Two years ago, he had fallen ill outside Yinteng Town and was brought back to Shuangshu Village.
"When I was fourteen..." Qin Ming touched his head, where there had once been a wound at the back, which had bled a lot.
He realized he was awake now, not dreaming as he touched his head. His fingers ran through his black hair, touching the place that had once been bloody.
There was no scar there anymore; it must have disappeared during his first rebirth.
"My younger self, my fourteen-year-old self, two special points in time, such fragmented memories. Those faded faces often appear in my dreams."
It was indeed at fourteen that he had faced hardships and struggles. Now, he was a bit more mature than his peers.
Qin Ming looked outside as the heavy night gradually faded.
He walked into the courtyard and took a deep breath of the cold air, recalling his childhood memories. He had clearly remembered the contents of the first two pages of the silk book.
Then, he began to practice the movements he hadn’t done before, along with methods to adjust his breathing and mental state, focusing intently on them.
After a long time, he finally stopped. His body was still hot but no longer glowing, looking more normal.
"That rough large hand..." Qin Ming recalled. The sleeve of that hand was heavily worn, and it was full of calluses, indicating a life of poverty similar to his younger self, far worse than his current situation.
The so-called "large hand" was something he had viewed as big and powerful, giving him a sense of safety when he was young.
He truly wished to see that small hand and the large hand holding each other, making up for the years he hadn’t seen his family.
"The second rebirth isn’t over yet. Tonight, I will continue to eat the blood snake, which contains spiritual essence. As my physical condition improves, my mental power will also strengthen. Perhaps I can see more faded childhood memories in my subconscious dreams."
After thinking of this, Qin Ming instantly felt invigorated and full of energy. He picked up a stone grinding plate and weighed it in his hand, feeling it was quite light!
He estimated that he could now lift about fifteen hundred pounds.
As night fell, Qin Ming washed his hot body. Today, he didn’t plan to go hunting in the mountains; he wanted to study the newly acquired silk book scriptures at home.
"Why can’t I practice?" He hoped that when deep night came, he could find the answer in his dreams.
Clearly, the silk book had an impressive origin; it had been carefully preserved, fearing damage.
The wind and snow had stopped, and the night had become a bit lighter, resembling a "clear day" in a sunless era.
Qin Ming studied the silk book. Although he had only seen two pages, the text and patterns were densely packed and small. More than half of the second page contained completely new information for him, and the memories resurfacing needed careful pondering and practice.
"It’s very clever, but unfortunately, I can’t compare it with mid-level meditation techniques or advanced breathing techniques. I don’t know its exact level."
In this remote area, Qin Ming lacked new rebirth methods. Besides the silk book, he had only read the widely circulated beginner's guide to Night Meditation.
The silk book mentioned "Heavenly Light," but it was only briefly mentioned, and it didn’t explain how to cultivate "Heavenly Light Power," let alone the highly praised "Rulai Power."
Qin Ming frowned. The silk book was undoubtedly extraordinary, but why didn’t it elaborate on the very important Heavenly Light?
He read carefully, practicing repeatedly in the courtyard, and eventually formed some guesses. The silk book seemed to strive to convey more with the simplest words. If he persisted in practicing, Heavenly Light would naturally be born within his body, strengthening his spirit and energy.
But it didn’t explain how to cultivate that Heavenly Light Power.
"It seems the silk book is discussing the elevation of life levels without specific protective methods?" This guess left Qin Ming somewhat confused.
In the afternoon, at the brightest time of night, Qin Ming rubbed his temples. After half a day of studying, he felt a bit mentally fatigued, but he should have thoroughly grasped the new content in the silk book.
When he practiced again, his movements were fluid and unimpeded, blending with the surrounding environment. His gaze was focused and clear, his hair flowing, and he appeared completely natural and artistic.
Most importantly, the warm current within him surged, and the silver ripples appearing on his skin solidified somewhat, as if transforming into "silver mud."
The silk book didn’t specify what level would be reached or what state would occur, so Qin Ming couldn’t judge how well he was practicing.
He stopped to rest. Even standing there, he exuded a natural aura, adding to his charm.
"Xiao Qin, come out quickly! We’re going into the mountains to see the ruins," Xu Yueping called out to him.
Qin Ming had originally planned to study the silk book at home, but since he had already understood it well, he could go out now.
"What ruins?" he asked.
Xu Yueping replied with a smile, "The base of the mountain patrol team. Let’s see what traces that wise mountain god, or rather, the mountain monster, left behind."
Then he lowered his voice, "Let’s see if there’s anything good left behind."
This wasn’t just a whim; the leaders of several villages had secretly gathered together to decide to check out that base after agreeing not to plant black moon anymore.
"Let’s go!" Qin Ming nodded.
Recently, even the new people from various villages had to walk together in groups to venture a little deeper, as the dense forest was extremely dangerous.
Not everyone dared to roam the mountains alone like Qin Ming.
Ultimately, it all came down to strength.
"There’s a pile of fine wine here," Qin Ming shouted to Xu Yueping. He was very familiar with that base, and the knife lights from the snowy night still lingered in his memory.
Xu Yueping and Yang Yongqing immediately rushed over, overjoyed. The so-called visit to the ruins was really just to see if there were any useful things left behind.
The men from the village were also very simple and unpretentious.
Old Liu laughed so hard his face nearly split, his legs didn’t weaken as he jumped nearly a yard high and rushed over.
Qin Ming smiled, "Old Liu, how’s it going? Yesterday I said I would treat you to ten jars of good wine, and today I found this pile. Let’s quickly divide it up and take it home."
"Good, good, good!" Old Liu kept saying good, eager to open the sealed jars and taste the wine.
"Coming to dig up graves at the mountain patrol team, I feel so refreshed," Xu Yueping laughed nonstop.
The other new people from the villages were naturally stirred up, and in the end, Shuangshu Village took away more than thirty jars, leaving a small portion for the other villages.
Although it was Qin Ming who discovered it, he couldn’t keep it all to himself to avoid trouble later.
In fact, the mountain patrol team had already come by before and found the fine wine, but they had important matters to attend to and didn’t care for it.
After the news spread that day, more people arrived, and the mountain patrol team’s base was visited by many who came to "dig graves."
"It’s very likely that this person killed everyone in the mountain patrol team?" Qin Ming was surprised when he returned from the mountains and saw a portrait.
It was indeed the man with a dark blue face. To be honest, the image of him wielding a sword to slay the blood snake was quite impressive.
Someone from Yinteng Town had sent out a stack of portraits, warning all villages to be cautious and report any findings immediately.
The mountain patrol team was not weak; the highest-ranking person was a big shot from Chixia City.
"His name is Wang Nian Zhu. He looks quite impressive. I didn’t expect him to be like this," Qin Ming hadn’t anticipated that he would see the portrait of the man after he was killed and learn his name.
"You can’t say you died unnoticed. At least all the towns are posting your portrait. For a time, you’re famous in this area, even though it’s quite remote." Qin Ming glanced at it a few times and left. A man he had already killed wasn’t worth dwelling on.
"However, I do hope the mountain patrol team can find out which family he came from and what organization he belonged to." Then he thought of Jinji Ridge and the Three-Eyed Sect, which were also worth paying attention to.
Deep into the night, after eating the blood snake meat, the effects of the medicinal meal quickly kicked in. He was once again burning hot and began to glow, just like last time.
Finally, he wore the "Golden Thread Jade Robe" and fell into a deep sleep.
Qin Ming saw his younger self again. Although he was poor, with his clothes and shoes in tatters, he seemed very determined, practicing the rebirth methods from the silk book over and over again.
"If it has such an impressive origin, then why can’t I practice it?" His younger self was stubborn and resolute, unwilling to give up.
"Once, an extraordinary person practiced the methods in the silk book and ended up killing himself, and he was one of the pioneers." That large hand explored the animal hide cover of the silk book.
"Huh?" Young Qin Ming looked very innocent and confused.
"Some paths are too brilliant. Others are unclear. A few old guys, unwilling to give up, researched together, wanting to match those splendid paths. The theory was good, but in the end, they abandoned their original achievements. After practicing this method, they either died, got injured, or when their lifespan was short, they fled to the dark ends of the earth. They couldn’t succeed, so how could those who came after them?" The whisper echoed.
"If it can’t be practiced, why leave it behind?" the young child asked.
"The parts that couldn’t be practiced were torn away, leaving behind a small portion, but only those who have practiced this method can help you get started. So, this silk book is just for looking at."
"What about the large part that was torn away?" Young Qin Ming still didn’t want to give up because this was the only decent method he could get.
"Burned."
Young Qin Ming fell silent, seemingly a bit sad, looking down at his little shoes that revealed his toes.
As the night deepened, Qin Ming woke up.
He sighed lightly, thinking he had obtained a heavenly book, but it seemed he had overthought it. He would have to pay more attention to other advanced breathing techniques in the future.
However, he was also somewhat lost in thought. No one helped him, yet he still managed to practice the first two pages of the silk book.
"Even if I succeeded, what does it matter? The rest of the silk book was burned. Moreover, the person who created the method couldn’t do it either. After personally verifying it, he died from practicing it. After so many years, the others should also be long gone."
Qin Ming got up and went to the courtyard, feeling the changes in himself. This second rebirth was quick and intense because of the assistance from the spiritual essence. He had already succeeded.
He felt that even with one arm, he had the strength of a thousand pounds.
...
Two days later, news came from Cao Long, Wei Zhirou, and Mu Qing that the higher-ups were going to have a final negotiation with the top extraordinary beings in the mountains, and the location was at the entrance outside the mountain range.
At this moment, many people were already waiting.
In the snowy field, a donkey trotted leisurely through the snow.
"This should be the mount of some big shot from Chixia City, right?"
As the donkey approached, people noticed that it wasn’t empty on its back. There was a creature sitting there, but it wasn’t human; it was a completely white weasel, very quiet, like an old monk in meditation.
The first creature to appear was so strange that many people were left speechless.