Qin Ming's body moved swiftly like lightning, his speed fierce and overwhelming. His feet stomped through the forest, accompanied by a howling wind, as he swung the heavy black gold hammer in his hand, producing a terrifying sonic boom.
The forest seemed to explode; all the branches within his reach shattered in an instant.
Ge Qianxun's pupils contracted. He had nowhere to evade, wielding a pair of very heavy iron whips, bracing himself to clash head-on with the youth before him.
In that moment, sparks flew in the mountains and forests, and many large trees fell.
The initial collision between the two left the ground littered with broken branches; it was a contest of strength.
Ge Qianxun was forced back, his hands gripping the iron whips trembling slightly. The impact of the opponent's hammer made his blood surge, creating a suffocating sensation.
Although he had seized the hammer techniques of the Sun family and studied them, he did not use hammer-type weapons.
He displayed a look of astonishment. How old could this youth be? It was truly outrageous.
He was a seasoned expert who had undergone seven rebirths, hiding his identity as a golden thief.
Ge Qianxun noticed that his opponent remained calm, swinging that terrifying hammer with such speed and ease, as if it were effortless, and he launched another attack.
Qin Ming was indeed very calm. With nearly five thousand pounds of strength, the black gold hammer appeared extremely heavy to others, but to him, it felt quite light.
With a thunderous boom, it was as if thunder had struck the forest. Qin Ming swung the black gold hammer, creating white shockwaves as the trees shattered.
This time, although Ge Qianxun tried to counter with his whips, he was still sent flying, crashing through many trees, the sound of splintering wood echoing.
His face flushed slightly, a result of the blood surging within him. Although he had not been struck by the black gold hammer, the shock left him feeling quite uncomfortable.
His arms felt numb, and he had to shake them slightly to get the blood flowing.
Dai Shifeng and his trusted subordinates felt a chill. Just how strong was this youth? With just two strikes, he had sent the former hall master flying.
"I knew this job would be quite tricky. I didn't expect it to stem not from your mysterious identity, but from your strength," Ge Qianxun said darkly. "The most infuriating part is that the employer only provided a small sum of daylight gold in advance!"
"Seven rebirths are nothing special. Ge Qianxun, you should repay the blood debt to the Sun family!" Qin Ming stepped forward.
Behind him, the six-time reborn Dai Shifeng sighed, while his subordinates felt a mix of emotions.
Ge Qianxun's ferocity was ignited. "I have cultivated myself for many years. It seems that unless I unleash all my strength, you all think old Ge is weak and easy to bully."
His body began to swell, rapidly increasing in size, muscles bulging, clearly having practiced some form of hard skill, making him suddenly strong and powerful.
Even the wrinkles on his face were stretched out, as if he had become ten years younger.
"Back in the day, when I first underwent rebirth, I was also a genius capable of lifting over six hundred pounds. If it weren't for someone breaking my protective hard skill and damaging my foundation, I would have long since reached another great realm."
He harbored a strong resentment. After his foundation was damaged, he had consumed spiritual substances over twenty times and taken forbidden drugs to achieve his current level, but he was completely cut off from the next great realm.
Ge Qianxun's tone turned cold. "Don't act arrogant in front of me, you so-called genius. You might just get killed!"
He lunged forward, his whips like beams of light, slicing through the dark forest with a thunderous sound.
However, the more strength he used, the more severe the backlash he suffered when his iron whips were blocked by the hammer, feeling as if his fingers might break.
One of his iron whips flew out of his hand, while the other was bent from the impact.
"Is that all the strength you have? After seven rebirths, barely over four thousand pounds? I thought with all your talk, you'd at least have over four thousand five hundred pounds."
Qin Ming said casually, then swung the hammer again. "Let me show you what the true essence of the Sun family's hammer techniques is!"
The so-called hammer techniques also contained whip strength. Qin Ming's arms swung like whips, maximizing his power, the hammering force even more so, as if he were shaking the mountains!
Qin Ming moved like a ghost, the long-handled black gold hammer producing true thunderous sounds, and any nearby branches were blown apart.
With a resounding crash, Ge Qianxun was sent flying, his bent iron whip slipping from his grasp, and a radiant light flowed from his right hand.
He was certain that without the protective light, if he were to rely solely on his physical body, his entire arm would have been ruined. Just how many times had this youth undergone rebirth? In terms of strength alone, he could crush him.
"At my level, weapons are no longer important; they only get in the way. Let me show you the light power of a golden thief, and I'll shatter you!" Ge Qianxun shouted.
Then, with a whoosh, he vanished into the forest, seemingly trying to escape.
"Using the same trick again is useless!" Qin Ming said coldly, blocking his path with a swift motion.
Though he had only undergone four rebirths, in terms of physical quality, whether it was strength or speed, he had improved significantly compared to his opponent.
This time, Ge Qianxun was not trying to flee; he was searching for advantageous terrain.
His expression was cold as he activated the light power he had cultivated for decades, the force incredibly strong, striking forward.
Wherever his hands passed, the messy branches blocking his way turned to dust in an instant.
Qin Ming blocked with his hammer, looking down to find two faint handprints on it.
"Not bad, let me show you the power of the light technique in the Sun family's hammer techniques!" Qin Ming no longer swung the hammer but instead pressed forward with his left hand, moving as fast as lightning.
He unleashed the whip strength, hammering strength, and the mysterious composite "explosive strength" he had acquired in the Thunderfire Refining Hall. It was the precursor to the lightning strength, a fusion of three powers, striking out.
Ge Qianxun sneered. After five rebirths, his body was incredibly tough. After six rebirths, he had gained a special ability that allowed him to temporarily elevate his light power significantly.
Unfortunately, his seventh rebirth was pushed by forbidden drugs, making it seem somewhat hollow.
In an instant, the light emitted from Ge Qianxun's hands became blinding.
Qin Ming's single hand collided with both of his hands, and the forest erupted with two thunderous sounds, accompanied by dazzling light.
The area was ravaged by fierce winds, many dry branches being swept up from the ground and exploding in mid-air.
Ge Qianxun could hardly believe it; his hands were bloodied and mangled, bleeding profusely, unable to withstand the opponent's light power.
He fell silent, becoming even more dangerous.
Ge Qianxun prepared to fight desperately, knowing that if he couldn't hold on any longer, he would truly perish here.
His bones crackled incessantly. This time, his body not only did not swell but shrank instead, with only his right hand seeming to enlarge, and after the blood stopped flowing, it began to emit a brilliant light.
He was channeling all his energy, merging various light powers, concentrating them all in his right hand, delivering his strongest blow toward Qin Ming.
Qin Ming had not yet tested the effect of merging all the light powers on a living person.
Now he wanted to try. His right hand casually held the hammer, while his left hand raised, emitting dazzling light, lightly pressing forward.
With a pop, not only did Ge Qianxun's palm explode, but his entire right arm followed suit, and then his shoulder was torn apart.
If it weren't for the critical moment when he was ruthless enough to strike at his shoulder with his other hand, half of his body might have been ripped apart.
Ge Qianxun was horrified. What kind of light power had his opponent merged? Was it a combination of techniques from those mysterious sects? It was truly terrifying!
Qin Ming calmly stepped forward and quickly struck him with a hammer, shattering his left arm. "Now it’s symmetrical."
"You..." Ge Qianxun staggered, his face pale as paper, bloodied all over, severely injured.
Qin Ming left behind an afterimage, lightly brushing his palm against Ge Qianxun's chest, causing him to spit out blood and fly backward, crashing into a large tree before falling to the ground.
The so-called soft strength could also be hard. Qin Ming did not take his life because this man was a golden thief, and he wanted to leave him for Meng Xinghai.
Qin Ming crouched down, rummaging through Ge Qianxun's belongings and taking his package.
He weighed it in his hands; the daylight gold inside should not be a small amount.
Most importantly, there was a secret manual in the package!
"It seems to carry a strong emotional fluctuation!" Qin Ming was delighted; this was more valuable to him than daylight gold.
He left the forest and walked toward the riverbank.
Dai Shifeng and his subordinates stood frozen in place for a long time before finally exhaling. They felt that the youth was too frightening; Old Ge had been so easily crushed by him?
"Qin Ming!" The muddy-clothed youth emerged from the mud, filled with indignation, no longer able to maintain his calm and pride.
Qin Ming looked at him flatly. "You said there was no connection left. I only spared you because of your cousin Wang Caiwei. If I had shot you down in the sky, you would have had no future."
The muddy-clothed youth's entire face was smeared with mud, and upon hearing such words, his body seemed to tremble as he clenched his fists.
Qin Ming sighed, not expecting Ning Siqi to appear. Once one of his closest friends, he had come to this point today.
If he felt no emotion in his heart, that would be impossible.
Back then, the two had been very close, but not long ago, the other had spoken such ruthless and face-ripping words.
If it had been someone else, Qin Ming could have accepted it quickly, but it was Ning Siqi who appeared, mocking and ridiculing him.
"Do you like your cousin? So when you called me brother long ago, you already looked down on me?" Qin Ming asked.
This question broke Ning Siqi's defenses. He was filled with grief and anger. "Today, I was shot down into the mud by you and humiliated like this. I will surely become a joke in the circle. Come, let’s fight to the death!"
"You’re too dirty; go wash yourself in the river," Qin Ming said flatly.
Only old friends understand each other best. This sentence broke Ning Siqi's defenses, who prided himself on his elegance and refinement, causing him to tremble and shout. He actually jumped into the river.
Ning Siqi loved to wear white, but now he was covered in filth, even he found it distasteful.
He came up, hair disheveled, gritting his teeth. "Qin Ming, you really are something, that was quite ruthless!"
Qin Ming looked at him. "I find it puzzling. As the employer, why would you directly show up and personally monitor the scene? It doesn’t fit your style."
Ning Siqi gritted his teeth. "Yes, I was foolish. I regret coming here. Being humiliated by you like this will surely make me a laughingstock!"
"Let’s see what you’ve got. Show me how your path of rebirth is going," Ning Siqi said, then asked, "Has Meng Xinghai not appeared yet?"
Qin Ming looked at him but did not speak.
"Ge Qianxun must have been dealt with by Meng Xinghai's people, right?" Ning Siqi had heard the tremendous sonic boom in the forest earlier.
"Are you scared? So you know my relationship with Old Meng is quite close," Qin Ming said.
"I witnessed Zhao Jingshu being captured by you. How could I not know?" Ning Siqi took the initiative to strike.
As he approached, he said, "I bought a book; I’m molding mud..."
He was slapped away by Qin Ming, falling back into the mud pit.
"You’ve become this strong?" Ning Siqi was shocked. The news he received was that Qin Ming had disappeared for two years, and upon reappearing, he had only recently embarked on the path of rebirth.
"I smashed Ge Qianxun with three strikes and two palms," Qin Ming said.
"It seems I have to use my true strength!" Ning Siqi's bones crackled as he went to wash himself in the river again.
As he approached again, he spoke while attacking, "I prepared a secret manual for you, far superior to the rebirth techniques you practiced in remote areas."
Qin Ming felt something was off earlier, and upon hearing these words, his expression shifted slightly, but he still made his move.
"The mockery and humiliation I spoke earlier were the exact words of some of your old friends. If I hadn’t come today, those who once hated you deeply would have personally come to settle the score," Ning Siqi said quickly.
Qin Ming remained silent, knocking him into the mud pit twice more, causing Ning Siqi to become furious.
"I thought you liked your cousin and were specifically targeting me."
"Get lost!" Ning Siqi replied with a single word.
"I came here personally, not caring about my reputation, to ignite this matter in advance, yet I receive such humiliation from you!" Ning Siqi was filled with rage.
"What does it matter if you ignite it? Is it meaningful?" Qin Ming said while attacking, looking at him.
Ning Siqi replied, "As long as the matter blows up, I have found reliable people to go to the outside world and sent an anonymous letter to Cui Qi, hoping he can receive it smoothly.
If he reads the letter and knows that someone from a noble family has come to humiliate or even wants to kill you, given his relationship with your uncle, he will surely be furious. Ignoring the obstruction from those old fellows in the Cui family, he will come out to warn everyone and might even kill some noble family disciples!
If you see him, clarify to him immediately that I did this for you, so don’t let him kill me."
"Siqi!" Qin Ming only uttered these two words.
"You can’t practice randomly in remote areas. The combination of light power is very particular. If you casually practice low-level techniques for fusion, you will run into trouble in the future," Ning Siqi warned him, preparing a very powerful technique, a complete system that would allow him to reach a very profound realm.
"Is it a high-level technique?" Qin Ming asked.
"Much more precious than that, it belongs to a relatively rare secret manual. It contains combinations of light power that don’t require you to practice them individually; they are a fusion of extraordinary techniques." He quickly informed him of the location of the book.
Ning Siqi added, "I didn’t prepare any spiritual substances for you. You should hunt for them yourself; it’s also a good way to hone yourself. Alright, I admit I’m a bit tight on funds and can’t buy higher-end spiritual substances. I had someone secretly help you acquire that rare secret manual, but I don’t have much daylight gold left."
"Siqi, I don’t know how to thank you," Qin Ming said, warmth filling his heart. After the ups and downs, he had few friends left, and having such an old friend made him feel a mix of emotions, even causing his eyes to feel a bit moist.
Ning Siqi said, "Don’t let other old friends deceive you. There are only two or three old friends like me left; many people are deep-minded and despicable."
When he learned that Qin Ming had such strength after four rebirths, he was utterly shocked. "Although you don’t have the near-immortal talent of the催中和, your current aptitude is still very promising!"
He felt a sense of emotion. "Initially, I thought you would be struggling here, without even a suitable rebirth technique."