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Novel: [Night Without Borders]
Chapter 64: [A Ritual Full of Significance]
Author: [Chen Dong]
Translator: [Shadow Knight AK]
Editor: [Shadow Knight AK]
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After two years, Qin Ming was astonished to unexpectedly encounter the long-armed man in this place. His mind swirled with unanswered questions about the events of that distant time.
Cui Hong merely glanced at him before throwing himself back into the fierce battle, desperate to conceal his momentary lapse from the Old Elephant and prevent disaster.
This mysterious and formidable group of mutant creatures had already abducted Cui Chongyi. If they were to capture Cui Chonghe as well, Cui Hong would truly lose his mind.
In that fleeting moment, Qin Ming witnessed a rapid succession of emotions flicker across Cui Hong's face: surprise, joy, guilt—each vanishing as quickly as they appeared.
"Why did he have such a complex expression?" he wondered.
In this critical moment, the long-armed man's expression was deeply conflicted, as if torn by inner turmoil.
This was hardly the reaction one would expect upon reuniting after so long.
Qin Ming watched intently, the initial fervor of seeing his savior gradually cooling into calm observation.
The road ahead was blocked, halting the Traveling Merchant's caravan. Panic began to spread among the group, the sheer intensity of the battle before them truly terrifying.
When the Old Elephant roared, the mountains themselves seemed to tremble.
The deafening trumpeting reverberated through the air, leaving everyone clutching their ears in agony.
To the right of the narrow, rugged path lay an endless desert, its darkness as deep as an abyss.
To the left rose a steep, unbroken mountain range.
The Old Elephant's entire body glowed with a jade-like radiance, radiating Heavenly Light. Whether it was the blade-like light cleaved by its trunk or the ivory daggers wielded by its forelimbs, each strike possessed terrifying destructive power.
When these attacks struck the mountain wall to the left of the narrow path, massive boulders crumbled and crashed down relentlessly.
Some even suspected the towering mountain itself might be pierced through by the elephant's relentless attack.
Cui Hong, a master of the renowned Heaven-Piercing Technique, wielded arms that seemed to possess the strength of ten thousand pounds.
With each burst of Heavenly Light, he appeared poised to tear apart the night sky.
He clashed fiercely with the Old Elephant, holding his ground without yielding an inch.
As the human powerhouse and the high-level Aberrant clashed, their Heavenly Light surged violently.
Boulders weighing thousands of pounds tumbled ceaselessly from the mountain, burying the narrow path ahead.
Traveling Merchant Xu Sheng sighed inwardly at his misfortune.
"Why did this have to happen to me?"
He led his group to retreat again and again, desperate to avoid being caught in the crossfire between these titans, lest his entire caravan be annihilated.
"Terrifying!" someone whispered in awe, while most others wore expressions of sheer terror.
The clash between these two masters had shattered a mountain cliff. Amidst the thunderous roar, a deluge of massive boulders cascaded down like a flood, engulfing the path in a choking cloud of dust and debris.
The sight was utterly horrifying.
The onlookers trembled in fear, their faces ashen.
Xu Sheng's head throbbed with anxiety.
"Why won't these powerhouses just leave?"
They had already reached the rugged middle section of the narrow path.
By this time of night, they should have been clear of this desert's edge.
Now, with their path blocked and time running out, they might not escape before nightfall.
Turning back along the original path was clearly out of the question; there simply wasn't enough time.
To their dismay, the group realized that while the Heavenly Light radiating from the two masters clearly illuminated the steep mountain cliffs, the desert to their right remained shrouded in impenetrable darkness.
Even as the Heavenly Light bathed the area, not a single ripple stirred across its surface.
"Old Elephant, I won't hold this against you," Cui Hong said. "Let's call it even."
"Agreed," Old Elephant nodded.
Despite its massive bulk, it moved with surprising agility, almost gliding as it leaped onto a nearby peak and turned to leave.
Cui Hong's expression darkened. "If we're calling it even, can you release our people?"
"The interrogation isn't finished yet," Old Elephant replied.
Cui Hong's voice deepened. "You should know where we come from."
"Indeed, Cui," Old Elephant responded calmly. "Your thousand-year-old clan is truly remarkable, commanding awe across all realms and echoing through the vast lands under the night sky. But we're not without our own advantage. We dwell on sacred mountains, living modestly in what you call one of the blessed lands."
Cui Hong's face grew grave. "Let's talk this through. There must be some misunderstanding. We've only just arrived here and couldn't possibly have offended you."
He feared for Cui Chongyi's safety and wanted to resolve the situation quickly.
He also hoped to lure Old Elephant away from the area, planning to slip back later to check on Cui Chongyi and Cui Chonghe.
...
Seeing the two masters finally disappear after their brief confrontation on the cliff, Xu Sheng immediately shouted, "Move! No, run forward with me!"
Time was running out.
He led his group into a sprint, desperate to escape the desert's edge before nightfall.
Fortunately, everyone was an Awakener.
Otherwise, the collapsed cliff blocking their path would have taken ordinary people hours to climb over.
They ran relentlessly, gasping for breath.
Suddenly, a thick fog rolled in, obscuring the rugged mountain path beneath their feet.
Moments later, even Xu Sheng stopped.
The dense fog made him hesitate to take another step. A wrong turn into the desert could have catastrophic consequences.
"Brother Xu, what do we do now?" someone asked anxiously.
Xu Sheng replied in a deep voice, "Don't panic. We've shown respect for the desert throughout this journey, speaking of it with reverence. Now, more than ever, we must stay calm. Those behind, hold onto the person in front of you—don't let go, no matter what. I'll lead the way!"
Many tried to grab Xu Sheng's clothes, feeling safer when close to him.
He immediately rebuked them: "Don't crowd! If anyone falls into the Desert, I won't come looking for you."
In truth, Xu Sheng was also uncertain.
The Old Merchant had told him that one wasn't considered a true Traveling Merchant until they had survived at least ten life-or-death night journeys.
Could this be his first trial?
Qin Ming remained silent, clutching Xu Sheng's clothes tightly.
He had reacted quickly, rushing to the front first.
In such a situation, sticking close to the experienced Traveling Merchant was the wisest course.
He feared that those in the middle might falter at a critical moment, failing to hold onto the person ahead and losing contact with the leader entirely.
Xu Sheng pulled out a torch, ready to light it and illuminate the path.
However, after several attempts, he failed.
Half the group carried lighting devices and tried to ignite them as well.
Soon, someone's voice trembled unnaturally: "Brother Xu... it seems like something is blowing cold air, extinguishing my flame every time."
"Don't speak!" Xu Sheng cut him off, feeling a chill on his neck that made his hair stand on end.
The fog was unnaturally thick, obscuring the mountains to their left and the path beneath their feet.
Only endless darkness remained, rendering their eyes useless.
Qin Ming remained silent, the oppressive and eerie atmosphere suffocating him.
The sudden, impenetrable fog had cut off all visibility and even dulled their senses.
"Brother Xu, no need for torches! There's a group ahead—they've already lit theirs. It's distant and hazy, but if we follow them, we should be able to find our way out," someone exclaimed in relief.
"Hey, there really is a group deeper in the fog! Shadowy figures, with their leader holding a torch to light the way."
The others noticed too, their faces brightening with hope.
Qin Ming could clearly feel Xu Sheng's body stiffen, then tense completely, as if covered in goosebumps.
"Don't look at that torch! Don't stare at that group!" Xu Sheng warned urgently, his voice low and urgent. "Before we reached the Desert, in that supply town, I specifically asked around. There are no other groups traveling today besides us."
"Hiss!"
"My mountain gods!"
Everyone gasped, drawing in the night mist, utterly stunned.
What kind of procession was that ahead?
"Damn it, stop shoving! You nearly squeezed my soul out of my body!"
Qin Ming's gaze deepened as he peered into the night mist, spotting the heavily shadowed procession.
There were indeed many figures, their path dimly lit by flickering torches that seemed to guide them, pointing the way.
Yet the procession moved in complete silence, without a single sound.
After a few glances, everyone, including Qin Ming, quickly lowered their heads, obeying Xu Sheng's warning and refusing to look further.
"What exactly... is that?" In such a tense situation, some couldn't resist speaking, their anxiety fueling the urge to break the silence.
"According to the Old Merchant's tales—never mind, I won't say it. It would scare you all to death," Xu Sheng began, then abruptly swallowed his words.
If the timing and location weren't so dire, the stronger Awakeners in the group would have wanted to punch him.
Xu Sheng would have been better off saying nothing at all; his half-finished sentence only heightened their terror.
"Brother Xu, you might as well tell us now. You've already brought it up, only to stop midway. Now we're even more terrified!"
"The Old Merchant's explanation would genuinely terrify some of you faint-hearted ones. Let's switch to the Esoteric Sect's interpretation: some ritual related to the gods is underway, and we must never join it. Neither you nor I are qualified to approach such sacred rites. If we stare at that torch for too long or join that procession, we'll inevitably become mere appetizers on someone else's table, devoured raw and bloody."
The crowd fell silent.
Qin Ming also remained quiet, his thoughts heavy.
Under the night-shrouded earth, even a simple journey for an Awakener like him was fraught with danger.
He hadn't even left this remote region entirely, yet he'd already encountered such a phenomenon.
What horrors awaited him deeper within the vast wilderness?
"Are there... other explanations?" Some, driven by fear and curiosity, pressed for answers, desperate to uncover the truth.
Xu Sheng replied, "There's also an ancient interpretation: an inscrutable entity of the desert has been offended. This dense fog is its wrath, and that torch is its burning rage. Do you want to be a moth drawn to the flame?"
Suddenly, he stopped moving completely, no longer testing the ground.
He realized he was about to get lost.
Apart from looking up at the torch, he could no longer distinguish which direction led to the desert and which bordered the towering mountains.
Qin Ming also realized something was wrong.
The mountains should have been on their left, with the desert stretching out to their right, yet his left foot was now sinking into sand.
Xu Sheng had stopped abruptly for the same reason.
He slowly pulled his left foot free from the sand, afraid to move forward.
"Hey, stop pushing!" someone shouted from behind, unable to stop in time.
"Don't bump into me! Oh, it's a young lady. Traveling alone must be tough. Don't worry, you don't need to panic."
Though the group was tense in the darkness, they secretly scorned this man's behavior.
"I say, young lady, no need to be scared. Why are you clinging to me? Alright, I'll carry you. Just wrap your arms around my neck."
However, the man's voice soon began to tremble.
"Young lady, why are your nails so long and cold? Stop touching my neck like that okay... Okay?"
The others, who had just been mocking him, now felt their hair stand on end.
His words made them uneasy.
"Young lady, say something! Stop touching my neck... it feels like... I'm bleeding. It hurts a little." The man's voice grew hoarse.
The youth behind him spoke, his face drained of color. "Brother, please... don't talk. I..."
The man asked, his voice trembling, "Little Brother, are you... holding onto the girl's clothes? Could you help me pull her off?"
"I feel like... I'm grabbing onto something long and hairy..." The youth's voice shook violently.
The man's voice grew weaker. "Someone, please help me. I can't breathe... My neck is bleeding, it hurts. I can't pry the young lady's hands off—her nails are too long."
No one spoke, their hands tightening around their weapons.
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END OF CHAPTER
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