Xu Yueping hammered on his gate. "Little Qin, come out. Something's happened."
Qin Ming's stomach dropped. Had the patrol's destruction been discovered already?
"We leave in an hour." Xu Yueping told him Redcloud City had sent people. They wanted to meet the New Lifers from nearby villages.
He lowered his voice. "They say it's noble family heirs. Here to help with the mountain sweep — and to sharpen themselves."
Qin Ming said, "So it's starting."
Xu Yueping was grave. "Perform well. These people matter. This could be your way into Redcloud City."
---
An hour later, Xu Yueping's compound was busy.
Old Liu arrived in full kit — thick-backed saber, worn leather armor, iron helmet. At seventy-plus, he looked ready to march into the deep ranges.
Qin Ming blinked. "Old Liu, it's just a meeting. We're not going into the mountains."
"Getting warmed up," the old man said.
Yang Yongqing carried twin blades across his back, equally serious.
"Someone has to guard the village in the Shallow Night," Xu Yueping started. "Liu, your vitality's been hurt, and at your age—"
Old Liu cut him off. "Old horse in the stable still dreams of open fields. I'm in better shape than you and Yang combined. I could take both of you." He was going. End of discussion.
Not everyone was fool enough to go. Two other village New Lifers stayed behind, and Wang Qinglin — still injured — had no choice.
The meeting point was seven li away, at a crossroads. Dim night over dense forest on all sides.
Villages had been notified across the area. New Lifers moved fast. They trickled in — smaller villages like Twin Tree sending four, larger ones over ten. Fewer than a hundred total.
The Redcloud City people had arrived first. Three squads, armored and armed, waiting in silence. Polished plate, gleaming blades. The villagers went quiet too — cowed by the steel, awed by the elite from the shining city.
Each squad bore a different family crest. A dozen fighters each. The three leaders stood at the front.
One man stood three meters tall. Black-gold armor. Black hair past his shoulders. Eyes like blade edges. The pressure he radiated was physical.
His mount drew stares too — a fire-red giant bull, its back taller than a man. Two curved horns and a third, straight as a sword, pointing forward.
The giant saw the villagers arrive and dismounted. He nodded to everyone. "I am Cao Long."
He kept it brief. Redcloud City had sent many fighters — over a dozen families joining the sweep. His group, along with two others, would cover this zone.
"I am Wei Zhirou, of the Wei family." The woman in the trio spoke from atop a boulder. She didn't stand beside Cao Long — she stood apart, on a green stone.
A white fox-fur coat. Black hair lifting in the wind. A sweet, bright smile on a pale, delicate face. To village boys who'd never left the mountains, she was a vision — a white-clad immortal stepped out of legend. Years later, they'd still remember.
Wei Zhirou was composed, gracious. She touched on the sweep, then delivered news.
"This winter, heavy snow has blocked the routes. Outside grain can't get through. But don't worry — Redcloud City is already hauling supply carts with giant beasts. They'll arrive soon."
A stir ran through the crowd. Relief, and then worry: would the grain be expensive?
"I am Mu Qing." The third leader spoke. Their entire body was wrapped in a black cloak — face hidden, voice androgynous, impossible to read as male or female.
Mu Qing got to the point. They didn't know the mountains. They needed local New Lifers as guides.
That was the real reason for this meeting. And the reward for guiding would be substantial.
Cao Long added: outstanding performance could earn precious qi-circulation manuals, meditation arts, and more.
The crowd buzzed. The New Life methods circulating in these parts were low-grade. The chance at something higher made pulses race.
"What counts as outstanding?" someone called.
"Providing intelligence that prevents casualties. Hunting a special mutant. Discovering a site where spiritual materials form..."
The rewards weren't easy. The city elite weren't just here to train — they wanted to explore the mountain's mysteries.
Wei Zhirou clarified. "If you spot anything anomalous in the mountains, report it immediately. That counts as valuable intelligence."
"I know a fissure," someone blurted. "Silver threads growing inside. Anyone who falls in barely survives — even if they crawl out. Does that count?"
Qin Ming recognized the speaker. A man from Green Mulberry Village, next door. So other villages had lost people to the same fissure.
Old Liu slapped his thigh and looked at Qin Ming. Someone had beaten them to it.
Wei Zhirou nodded. "The mountain's magnetic fields are disrupted. What you describe is likely a minor node. Find another, and I'll give you a mid-grade New Life manual."
She explained: these nodes would persist for years. The city intended to map them all, leaving the records with the locals so no one stumbled into danger again.
Cao Long spoke. "If you find a place where white mist rises and five-colored radiance shines in all directions — do not approach. Those zones are far more dangerous. Anyone who reports such a site receives a high-grade qi-circulation manual as a major reward."
Breathing grew heavy across the crowd. Manuals of that caliber were beyond imagination for village New Lifers.
Some noticed the undercurrent. The city nobles were here for more than training. The mountain's anomalies pointed to something hidden.
But the villagers were pragmatic. Whatever the nobles' real purpose, they'd help sweep the mountains and keep the threats at bay. That was enough.
Cao Long shared another piece. Redcloud City's leadership was in final negotiations with the mysterious beings of the deep ranges. The talks would be held outside the mountains. Results soon.
The villagers murmured. They'd heard legends of the high-tier creatures but knew nothing concrete. The deep ranges meant mystery, the unknown, fear — a wall of mist and awe.
"Can we watch the negotiations?" A boy from one of the city squads spoke up. Young face, no fear. He wanted to see what the deep-range beings looked like.
The three squads rustled. They were young, burning with curiosity.
Cao Long swept them with a glance. They went silent.
"Perhaps," he said. Just the one word.
The crowd erupted in excited discussion.
Qin Ming's composure cracked. He'd seen the Moon Bug once — that was it. The deep-range beings were a blank to him. He wanted to see them.
Wei Zhirou, tall on her stone, fur coat rippling, delivered one more item.
"The situation is delicate. The mountain's chaos isn't only from the magnetic disruption. Another group of high-tier beings has migrated from afar — families, young and old — looking to seize resources in this range."
Faces changed.
"These newcomers are pushing dangerous species outward. Toward the outer ranges. Toward you."
Xu Yueping asked the question. "So the outer mountains — just when they'd gone quiet — are going to become very dangerous?"
Mu Qing's voice was sharp. "So what? Who allowed them to expand? We push them back. That's what the sweep is for."
The black-cloaked figure radiated command. The villagers' confidence rose.
"They've crossed into territory they shouldn't touch," Mu Qing declared. "They've forgotten the pain of the past. We'll remind them — with force. The dominion of the two-legged beast over this land has never faded."
The speech fired the crowd. Then Mu Qing's cloak shifted, and something slipped out behind — a fluffy golden tail.
Silence. Then stares.
What species was this?
"Mu Qing." Cao Long's voice was mild warning.
Wei Zhirou said, "Mu Qing is human."
The three squads were calm. They'd known.
Qin Ming stared.
Old Liu muttered. "Perhaps they chose a different path. Whether they're still human, what state they're in — hard to say."
After Cao Long's giant-spirit path, this was the second unconventional route Qin Ming had encountered.
Cao Long announced the selection. They wanted guides for the sweep — locals who knew the mountains. Safety guaranteed. No one was forced.
The three leaders reiterated the rewards. Spiritual materials. Advanced manuals. They wouldn't be stingy.
No one left. They'd already made their choice.
Qin Ming went with the flow. No need to stand out.
Wei Zhirou smiled at Cao Long and Mu Qing — radiant, almost otherworldly. She waved a roster. She wanted first pick.
"Pick one at a time. Go ahead." Cao Long yielded. Mu Qing didn't object.
Wei Zhirou nodded. "Then I won't be polite. The Wei family is eager to recruit anyone with a Golden Foundation."
"Everyone is," Mu Qing said, then conferred with Cao Long about their order.
Wei Zhirou scanned the roster, brow creased. Then she called two names. "Who is Zhou Wubing? Who is Qin Ming?"
"One at a time," Mu Qing reminded her.
Wei Zhirou smiled. "I know. I just want to look at them."
Zhou Wubing stepped forward. Half a head taller than most, thick and powerful. Born sickly — his parents renamed him "No Illness" — until a visiting relative cured him and he'd achieved New Life in the golden window.
Qin Ming was surprised. Er Bingzi looked transformed. The yellow-haired, bony boy was gone — replaced by a dark-haired, vigorous young man.
Qin Ming stepped out. Calm. A bit taller than Zhou Wubing.
"Both Golden Foundations. I'd love to have you both." Wei Zhirou looked between them.
Zhou Wubing had changed. The radiant smile caught him — but he recovered fast.
A young man emerged from the trees and whispered in Wei Zhirou's ear. The crowd realized: the three families had brought more than their youth squads.
"Zhou Wubing's strength has been slowly increasing since New Life. And he was trained by Xu Kong?" Wei Zhirou looked up after the whisper. She smiled at Zhou Wubing and beckoned. She'd made her choice.