Naming Technique of the Night

Qing Chen already understood that even if he left Takayama right now, he wouldn't be able to find another place suitable for challenging the ice binding technique.

He could only switch to another project.

Not many people are qualified to become knights.

Even fewer places are suitable for becoming life-and-death challenge spots.

The knights' predecessors had accumulated thousands of years of experience in the Inner World.

If Qing Chen were in the Inner World, he could follow the experience of his predecessors to find a challenge spot.

But this time, he didn't have that opportunity, which meant he had to explore anew in the Outer World.

Back then, Qing Chen had wanted to complete surfing, and it took him half a month and switching between two different sea areas to finally achieve it.

Uncle Li Dong's completion of the ice binding was also fraught with difficulties.

First, this master entered the Southwest Snow Mountain and dragged a strong man from the Fire Pit Tribe to act as his guide.

He camped at an altitude of 6,200 meters in the Southwest Snow Mountain for a month, gradually letting his body adjust to the low-oxygen environment of the plateau.

Then he moved on to camp at the 7,100-meter altitude for a night.

Finally, he made a sprint to the Southwest Snow Mountain's main peak.

He jumped from an altitude of over 8,000 meters, completing the ice binding challenge at nearly 180 kilometers per hour with unmatched elegance.

Uncle Li said the hardest part was that when reaching the position of 6,200 meters, every knight must enter a reverse breathing state to let the body, with its genetic lock closed, adapt to the plateau.

The next challenging part was how not to let the strong man from the Fire Pit Tribe discover that he had become an ordinary person at 6,200 meters.

You need to pre-adapt to the plateau because if you start using reverse breathing at the summit and then begin the challenge, altitude sickness will hit you instantly, clouding your brain and bringing on various altitude illnesses.

The more challenging part for Uncle Li Dong was climbing the main peak as an ordinary person and then having the courage to jump off after reaching the summit.

Qing Chen could also find such a snow mountain, like Mount Everest.

The snow layer there is extremely firm, and the steep northern slope is well-suited for skiing.

However, the problem was that he couldn't climb Mount Everest or any peaks of similar altitude during this season.

It's worth noting that all those who summit Everest do so after May.

Even the local Sherpas won't attempt summiting Everest in winter.

Summer is the time of year with the highest temperatures, and the chances of encountering ice storms on Everest are reduced.

Even so, all those attempting to reach the summit must watch the weather closely, set out during the best weather, and leave before the ice storm arrives.

So the ice binding challenge must wait for a few more months until the most suitable time arrives.

But Qing Chen was not discouraged; rather, he was especially excited because he had a new idea.

At this moment.

Qing Chen was lying in a pile of powder snow, looking at the staggered ridges of the distant mountains.

With just a little calculation, he figured out... if the elevation of the opposite main peak is 3,190 meters, then the valley between it and Mount Karasawa would have a nearly 1,900-meter drop.

The curves of the staggered ridges appeared particularly beautiful in Qing Chen's eyes.

The natural force-formed knife edge was as clean and crisp as if splitting the sky in two.

This was the place where he would complete the 'eruption of force.'

Qing Chen, looking like a fool, grabbed a handful of powder snow and smeared it on his face before lying still in the pit.

He enjoyed the joy of the sudden realization.

If a professional ridge downhill cyclist saw this ridge, they would also back off.

First, the ridge was too winding and too narrow.

The ridge's cross-section was at most 0.4 meters wide, which meant that any slight misdirection would send you straight into the abyss.

Second, the drop was too great, meaning the speed would be uncontrollable.

During the downhill, you couldn't casually brake; a slight pinch could cause a flip.

The huge inertia would cause the rear of the bike to lift, flipping both the rider and the bike.

But Qing Chen no longer cared.

How could a knight's life-and-death challenge be without danger?

Qing Chen got up.

With a new goal, everything had to be replanned.

There were only 27 days left until the crossover, making the life-and-death challenge very tight; he had to cherish the time.

Many people at the ski resort had seen Qing Chen leap down and fall into the powder snow.

They laughed heartily. Yesterday they were wondering why this kid was climbing the mountain, but they didn't expect him to be a newbie wanting to challenge the mountain's powder snow.

They hadn't even finished laughing when they saw the teenager get up and head toward the distant main peak.

He disappeared into the wind and snow again.

Ridge downhill is not just about finding a path and immediately starting to ride.

In the remaining 27 days, Qing Chen needed to clear all the loose rocks and sparse snow off the entire ridge.

The knight's life-and-death challenge is about experiencing life and death, not seeking death.

...

...

In front of the hot spring inn.

Jinguji Maki sat on the wooden steps, wrapped in a scarf, holding her cheeks with both hands.

She looked at the big snowman in front of her, occasionally letting out a silly laugh.

Since 7 o'clock, she had been sitting there until 7:59 when Qing Chen returned from outside.

The little girl looked up and saw Qing Chen, quickly standing up and waving, "Onii-chan~!"

Qing Chen glanced at her, "Hmm."

Then he walked straight past the little girl.

Jinguji Maki didn't mind. By now, she understood that this distant brother had a cold exterior but a warm heart and didn't really dislike her.

She took out slippers from the shoe cabinet, neatly lining them up, and said with a smile, "Grandma woke up in the afternoon, and her appetite improved a bit. I made her tamagoyaki and grilled fish, and she said they were very delicious. Grandma also said that she would get better soon."

Qing Chen looked at the little girl silently for a moment.

It was not a good sign for a late-stage lung cancer patient to suddenly have an improved appetite.

No one had told the little girl that lung cancer is actually incurable. The doctors hid it from her, and even Grandma kept it a secret, always saying that more rest would cure her illness.

Every day she took care of Grandma, naively hoping that one day Grandma would wake up completely healed.

After entering the house, Qing Chen found that the food the little girl had brought today was more abundant than usual.

Besides the usual rice, grilled fish, tamagoyaki, and miso soup, there was also a slightly burnt plate of sukiyaki beef.

Qing Chen looked at the sukiyaki beef and then at the little girl still wearing gloves after entering the house, "Take off your gloves."

Jinguji Maki hesitated for a moment but eventually took them off. Her right hand bore burn marks, likely from cooking the sukiyaki beef.

The little girl lowered her head like she had done something wrong.

Qing Chen, "You..."

The little girl looked up at her brother, thinking he was going to say something comforting.

Qing Chen, "Next time, don't burn the beef."

Little girl, "…Oh."

Qing Chen proceeded to eat all the food by himself.

Jinguji Maki sat aside, cautiously saying, "Onii-chan, I need to take a bus trip to Nakatsugawa City in Gifu Prefecture tomorrow to buy medicine for Grandma. I promise to be back before 7 PM and won't delay making your dinner. Is that okay?"

In the Island Country, a prefecture is an area equivalent to a provincial-level administrative unit domestically, and Nakatsugawa City is the closest city to Shirakawa Village.

She was the only one who could work at the hot spring inn now. If she left, Qing Chen might not find a place to eat lunch if he returned at noon.

Although Qing Chen always returned in the evening, her sudden departure still felt a bit irresponsible, so the little girl was anxious.

But Grandma's medicine had run out for several days, and she had to go to Alpsberg Clinic in Takayam City, Gifu Prefecture, now that Qing Chen had advanced the rent.

Qing Chen glanced at the little girl, "Are you going to Gifu Prefecture alone?"

"Yes," Jinguji Maki nodded seriously, "I won't delay your dinner, Onii-chan."

Qing Chen was worried about the little girl going to Gifu Prefecture alone, fearing she might get lost or encounter bad people.

Yet the little girl was worried that Qing Chen would not allow her to leave.

"Go ahead," Qing Chen said, then went back to his room to sleep.

The door closed, then opened again, and Qing Chen handed the little girl a small bottle of Black Ointment, "Apply it on your hand."

After saying that, the door closed again.

...

...

Morning.

Jinguji Maki got up early, as usual. She had to prepare food for Grandma and place it by her bedside, put away Onii-chan's bedding, and then go out.

But when the little girl opened the bedroom door, she saw Qing Chen's figure and widened her eyes, "Onii-chan?! What are you doing here?"

In the past, Qing Chen would have left before she woke up.

Qing Chen glanced at her, "I happen to have some business in Gifu Prefecture today as well. Hurry up and get ready; we'll catch the first Nouhi bus."

Jinguji Maki was in a daze for a few seconds, then her big eyes lit up, "Okay, Onii-chan, please wait for me a bit. I'll leave food for Grandma and then we'll leave."

While the little girl was busy, Qing Chen searched on his phone for shops in Gifu Prefecture selling mountain bikes.

With a new life-and-death challenge, he needed new equipment.

It didn't require much — just a sturdy mountain bike.

He could have Si Nianhua send one over, but now even Si Nianhua didn't know his whereabouts or what he was doing in the Island Country.

In order to not expose his whereabouts, Qing Chen thought it was better to buy it himself.

It wasn't a matter of distrust.

Qing Chen believed that Si Nianhua was likely not from the Outer World. Each consortium controlled time travelers, among whom some existed using neuron docking technology for reverse possession; these people were Outer World leaders.

All the consortiums did this, so Qing's Family was probably no exception.

He trusted Si Nianhua would firmly carry out the Shadow's orders, but if someone on Si Nianhua's side had been exposed and was being watched by Jindai, that would become a risk.

Before completing the life-and-death challenge, he didn't want such a small matter to expose his whereabouts.

Half an hour later, the two of them got on the first Nouhi bus. Jinguji Maki sat on the left side of the last row, and Qing Chen sat on the right side, keeping a distance as if they were strangers.

Jinguji Maki didn't understand why Qing Chen was doing this, but having someone accompany her to Gifu Prefecture was enough to make her very happy.

...

There will be another chapter later, but it needs some editing. Please wait.