The dome of heaven was peaceful. The lands below were calm. After the dramatic battle, the cloud cover was in complete disarray. Starlight trickled down chaotically from the starry sky, a dappled veil that made everything even more mysterious. The lava was covered with craters and gullies, but they were already filling in. The temperature was rising again. The dramatic battle was over, and things were going back to normal.

The only sound was the lingering echo of the words the Captain had just spoken. It was rare for him to speak in such a proper and formal way. After he was done talking, he stood with his hands clasped behind his back as he stared off into the distance.

The wind drifted down, stirring the Captain’s hair and clothing. Through the gaps in his flowing hair, it was possible to see a trace of reminiscence and melancholy in his eyes. It was as if he had experienced things that most ordinary people had not. As he stood there, he seemed like a lone commander standing in the middle of a battlefield. All the humans who could see him were moved.

There were some people present who had heard of someone named Erniu. After all, though Xu Qing got a 30,000-meter light during the assessment of the heart, the Captain got only one meter. Truth be told, the Captain’s achievement was without parallel in history and would likely never be repeated. It was obvious he must have done something very meaningful to lead to that.

But now, as his words echoed out, the humans who heard them suddenly viewed this Erniu in a very different way.

Grand Prince looked at him deeply, and after achieving a certain level of understanding in his heart, clasped hands and bowed.

Though the Captain’s eyebrows moved up fractionally, his facial expression remained the same as before.

Few people would notice that, but all it took was one glance for Xu Qing to realize that the Captain was striking a pose. Xu Qing did nothing to ruin the moment. Waving his hand, he sent one of the forbidden mountains to Grand Prince. It was the mountain which had previously been set aside for Grand Prince.

“See you at God Mountain,” Xu Qing said calmly.

He hadn’t interacted with Grand Prince previously, but was obviously aware that he was participating in the Great Hunt. And according to the rules, there was no need to try to take first place by getting the most forbidden mountains. Only one was required to meet the qualifications for the round. As for whether or not Grand Prince would be able to keep that mountain long enough, there was really no way for Xu Qing to make a prediction.

After handing over the forbidden mountain, Xu Qing headed off into the distance. Continuing to sigh emotionally, the Captain went with him. The two of them were soon about to disappear over the horizon.

As the humans watched them go, Grand Prince suddenly said, “Region Lord Xu.” He clasped hands and bowed at the waist! “I wish you success in your endeavors!”

He could already tell that Xu Qing’s goal was to become a darkheaven general. If that wasn’t his goal, there was no need for him to have so many forbidden mountains. The other humans bowed their heads and bowed sincerely in Xu Qing’s direction.

Xu Qing stopped and turned. A moment passed, and then he returned their salute. Then he and the Captain disappeared over the horizon. He took the dragon chariot with him.

Afterward, Grand Prince and the human cultivators exchanged glances. Finally, all gazes came to focus on Grand Prince.

As he looked in the direction where Xu Qing had disappeared, he said, “Our new goal isn’t to try to achieve peace. We need to focus on gathering intelligence for Region Lord Xu. Let’s do whatever we can to make sure he has everything necessary to become a darkheaven general!”

With that, Grand Prince made some new arrangements. Afterward, the humans scattered in different directions to start putting together the intelligence reports Grand Prince had mentioned.

Time slipped by slowly but surely.

News of Crown Prince Brightsouth’s death wasn’t possible to keep a secret, and within three days, everyone was talking about it.

At first it was just a rumor that most people didn’t believe. Some people even scoffed at the news, thinking that it was nothing but nonsense. Based on their understanding, given Crown Prince Brightsouth’s background and battle prowess, there were few people who had the skill and courage to try to kill him. After all, he was the only son of King Brightsouth.

But as the news continued to spread, suspicions began to die down, and were eventually replaced by astonishment. That was especially true when people started to realize that Crown Prince Brightsouth hadn’t been seen in public since the news started to spread. Before long, virtually all Firemoon Darkheavens were paying attention to what was now the hottest topic in their lands.

Crown Prince Brightsouth was a very influential figure among the Firemoon Darkheaven people. Whatever he did, people paid attention. For him to suddenly disappear… was very telling in and of itself. Eventually, cultivators arrived at the spot where the crown prince had fought Xu Qing. As they scoured the area, they eventually turned up clues that proved the rumors true. With the truth confirmed, the news spread with even greater intensity.

“Crown Prince Brightsouth… could actually be dead!”

“Crown Prince Brightsouth’s killer is a human cultivator!”

“Someone already figured out who the human cultivator is. His name… is Xu Qing!”

In a very short period of time, a host of rumors raged. And before long, people unearthed details of Xu Qing’s past. The more they learned and understood… the bigger the commotion became. Even to the Firemoon Darkheaven people, Xu Qing’s past was absolutely astonishing.

“He’s in charge of the humans’ Sea-Sealing County!”

“In the Moonrite Region, he participated in the killing of a god!”

“In the Nightspirit Region, they actually think of him as a god!”

“He killed Seventh Prince in the imperial capital of humankind! He was given a sword by their Grand Emperor!”

“One word from him can determine the glory or decline of an entire region!”

“People are saying that he has a demigod magic, a shocking poison, and violet moon authority!”

“He doesn’t just have a Smoldering God as a dao protector, he also has the blessing of a real god!”

“What’s more… Xu Qing is a godherald of Starfire Temple!”

Each new rumor that spread caused a huge stir. In a very short time, Xu Qing was becoming quite famous among the Firemoon Darkheavens. When you added in the slaughter he had carried out as part of the Great Hunt, it ensured that there wasn’t a single other participant who didn’t hear about him. Before he even reached God Mountain, he was well-known by everyone.

There was one other important point that came to light, and that was regarding Xu Qing’s forbidden mountains. As he got closer and closer to God Mountain, more and more people were paying attention to his progress. He really did have a huge amount of forbidden mountains. That, combined with his reputation and the strength that had enabled him to kill Crown Prince Brightsouth, made him the complete center of attention.

There were some people who seemed indifferent, some who seemed antagonistic, some who seemed defiant, and some who were indignant. After all… from the perspective of the Firemoon Darkheavens, for a human cultivator to get so many forbidden mountains during their holy Great Hunt was the source of immense and even uncomfortable pressure. No one in their species would consider a lone valiant threat to be very noteworthy considering how weak humankind was in general. But in the hearts of the Firemoons, the pressure they were feeling became outright humiliation.

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Antagonism grew more intense. More and more people were paying very close attention to the situation. Soon, news started spreading about Xu Qing’s whereabouts and activities.

“Xu Qing is traveling straight across the third region!”

“Some Whitemarshes tried to stop him, but they all got killed! He has almost 800 forbidden mountains!”

“Xu Qing just entered the second region!”

“He killed more participants! His mountain count just went past 800.”

“He’s very close to the first region!”

“900 forbidden mountains!”

“He… is slaughtering his way across the first region. He’s only five days away from God Mountain!”

“There are people who saw him from a distance and said that he has a very alarming baleful aura!”

The more news spread, the more people started watching Xu Qing’s every move. And quite a few Firemoon cultivators, upon seeing how quickly Xu Qing was rising to prominence, started looking in the direction of King Brightsouth. When all was said and done, his son had died, and that had the potential to be a major catastrophe. But strangely… King Brightsouth didn’t do a single thing.

However, as news spread of Xu Qing’s progress toward God Mountain, there were Firemoon Darkheaven chosen who started getting very interested in him. People knew that Crown Prince Brightsouth was strong. But he wasn’t the best of the best in his generation in the Firemoon Darkheavens. After all, there were more than a dozen cultivators in their echelon besides him.

The true Firemoon chosen had a variety of personalities. Some were indifferent to fame and fortune. Some were arrogant and showy. Some kept a low profile. Some were coarse and wild. Some cared deeply about their reputation, and would maintain it at any cost. Some were quite the opposite, and cared only about getting stronger. Because of the variety of dispositions among the chosen, there were a variety of opinions about Xu Qing.

***

About half a day’s journey from God Mountain in the first region, a Firemoon cultivator strode across the lands clad in a rough hemp robe.1

He was a lot taller than the average Firemoon cultivator. He was nearly 15 meters tall, which made him look almost like a giant. He was extremely muscular, with surging energy and blood. Walking along, he seemed like a small mountain, and imparted the sensation of being impossible to resist.

Every step he took caused the ground to shake. What was more, he walked with earth-contracting manipulation, giving him shocking speed.2

What was most shocking of all was that he had over 900 forbidden mountains orbiting overhead. The combination of all those things ensured that any who saw him felt shocked to the core, and instinctively bowed their heads.

One reason for that was his identity. The other was because of his reputation.

This person was none other than one of the top five consummate chosen among the Firemoon Darkheaven people. His name was Tuo Shishan! 3

Most of the other chosen cultivators participating in the Great Hunt didn’t care very much about becoming the champion of the first round. But he was different. His main goal was to become the darkheaven general.

The reason was that he was from the Darkheaven Clan. And his clan had produced six darkheaven generals in the past!

As he strode forth in his majesty, he eventually reached a mountain range. Standing atop one of the tallest mountains, he looked off toward the horizon, where he could see a golden glow. It wasn’t possible to see any details of what was in that golden light. But that was the location of the Firemoons’ God Mountain, which was the ultimate destination in the first round of the Great Hunt.

“I’m finally here,” he murmured, smiling.

Moments later, the air around him rippled as nine figures stepped out and bowed. “We offer respectful greetings, Young Lord.”

Tuo Shishan nodded and looked away from the horizon. “How far away is Xu Qing? And how many forbidden mountains does he have now?”

One of the nine figures replied, “He’s about six hours away. As for the forbidden mountains… he has a few more than you, Your Majesty.”

Tuo Shishan licked his lips, and his eyes glittered with interest. Instead of continuing onward, he sat down on a nearby boulder to wait. Producing an earthen jar of alcohol, he took a long drink.

“Very good. The fact that he killed Crown Prince Brightsouth shows that he’s worth his salt. I never liked that prissy crown prince. I’m glad he’s dead. That said, there’s only going to be one champion in round one, and it’s going to be me.”

1. The specific kind of robe mentioned could be the “changshan” robe typical of Qing Dynasty China. It looks like this. Literally, it just means “long robe.” I’m hesitant to put a lot of stock into the specific words used by the author in describing clothing. I’ve seen him use two completely different words for “robe” when describing the same set of clothing for one character. So it could just be that he’s using the “changshan” word in a general sense to mean a “long robe.” Or perhaps he envisions the Firemoon Darkheavens having a fashion sense that conforms more to Qing Dynasty style than the more ancient style. Regardless, I think what’s most significant is that he’s wearing a robe of “rough hemp,” which gives some insight into his personality. Given the description of the variety of Firemoon chosen in the previous paragraph, it’s noteworthy that he’s not wearing the extravagant or showy garment you would expect to see on someone who values glory or riches. ☜

2. The “earth-contracting manipulation” is a “real” but legendary ability in Chinese

/Daoist magic that allows the user to travel great distances with a single step. This type of ability gets mentioned occasionally in Er Gen works, sometimes using different combinations of characters. ☜

3. Tuo Shishan: Tuo is a surname that does not appear on the list of 100 most common surnames. It’s also a common character that means “to expand, to push, to develop” as well as “to make a rubbing or inscription.” Shi means “stone, rock” and Shan means “mountain.” Madam Deathblade said he sounds like a cold-hearted murderer. However, she also included a sarcastic joke like she often does. If you look at the character for Tuo 拓 you can see how it includes the character Shi 石 squished to the right. So his name contains the character for “stone, rock” twice. And thus she said “he has so many stones in his name. I guess he’s a stoner.” Ha. Ha. Ha. ☜