Pursuit of the Truth

‘He Feng, what a sinister man! But how could he be certain that I’ll help him because of this? I’ve only met him once, and that’s only that particular midnight at the inn.

‘How did he know that I was in the rainforest? He also knew that I would be lured out due to Xuan Lun’s personality.

‘He must also have known that I would not participate in this. Either I would choose not to act, or choose to leave. The moment he realized that I was going to leave, he said those words!

‘It’s not that it’s completely impossible that it was just a coincidence, but this is just way too coincidental!

‘He’s using me to distract Xuan Lun. He knew that I would definitely fight back, and predicted that there would only be two choices for me. One, once I destroy the face of the malicious spirit from the black fog, I will join hands with him to fight against Xuan Lun to protect myself and avoid future trouble.

‘Even if I went against his wishes and helped Xuan Lun instead, He Feng must definitely have another backup plan to achieve whatever diabolical goal he has.

‘My second choice would to leave once I defeat the face of the malicious spirit. By doing so, I would prove his words correct, and it’ll create a lot of problems for me. It’ll also distract Xuan Lun once again. In fact, He Feng might even have a way to make Xuan Lun change his mind and come after my life instead.

‘Besides, when He Feng suddenly arrived in the rainforest and caught me off guard, I had to activate the might of the Wings of the Moon at the very moment Xuan Lun acted against me to deter him from the attack. Yet by doing so I pushed myself straight into He Feng’s plot. Now, even if I fake death, Xuan Lun won’t believe me.

‘This is a death trap! He Feng, there is no grudge between us, and yet you pushed me into danger to protect yourself! No wonder the elder always told me that people are evil by nature!’

This was the first time Su Ming understood the meaning of the elder’s words so clearly. He had thought that as long as he did not show any hostility, then he could avoid all trouble and protect himself. Yet now, He Feng had used his actions to tell Su Ming that even if he did not show animosity, even if they were strangers, there were other reasons that could bring about his death.

Compared to He Feng, Su Ming was still a little wet behind the ears. He might be able to devise strategies against others in some sense, but he had only experienced the devastation of his tribe and Shan Hen’s betrayal. He had never had firsthand experience of the sinister nature lying within people.

Before this happened, Su Ming had even pitied He Feng.

‘All this happened because I was too weak. If I was stronger, then He Feng would not dare to use such a sinister plan against me!’

These ideas appeared in his head the moment the face of the malicious spirit from the black fog closed in. In the face of danger, Su Ming was forced to think with everything he had. His power could do nothing to help him, only his quick thinking and reaction could save him from this trap.

‘If I fight, then if I don’t win, I’ll be used. If I run and can’t escape, I’ll be killed… If I lose, unless I die, no one would believe that I’m dead… He Feng, since you sealed all three paths from me, then I’ll create the fourth path on my own!’

Su Ming’s eyes flashed. The moment the face of the malicious spirit closed in on him with a sharp roar, he raised his right hand, and the bone blade appeared in his hand.

He did not retreat but took a step forward. The moment he did so, the moon in the sky suddenly lit up and moonlight descended on Su Ming’s body, turning into flames. It made him look like he was engulfed in flames as he moved forward, his body turning into a sea of fire.

He swung the blade at the face of the malicious spirit, and the moment the blade went down, the souls of the Wings of the Moon appeared outside Su Ming and surrounded his body, causing Su Ming to stand on air. No one could see it, but there were souls of the Wings of the Moon underneath his feet, and there were many of their souls around him as well.

Su Ming’s blade and the face of the malicious spirit clashed with a bang. Su Ming coughed out blood and staggered backwards. The bone blade in his hands immediately shattered and turned into numerous shards that scattered into the air. The formless souls of the Wings of the Moon surrounding his body trembled, but did not dissipate. Instead, they all gathered tighter around him.

When Su Ming coughed out blood and staggered backwards, the face of the malicious spirit let out a shrill cry, looking as if it was ripped apart into pieces by the wind, and turned into threads of mist that dissipated into the air.

”Brother He Feng, run! I now understand the wrongs of my actions and am regretful! I will hold back Xuan Lun for you even at the cost of my life!”

Su Ming’s voice traveled forth, and he charged forward. The Wings of the Moon surrounded him as he dashed towards where the battle was in the deep parts of the rainforest.

When He Feng, who was fighting against Xuan Lun, heard those words, he frowned, but he was in danger and did not have time to think. Right before his eyes, Xuan Lun laughed coldly and used an unknown skill, causing the black fog to split in half and charge towards Su Ming.

Shrill, mournful cries came from the other half of the fog. It turned into strands of hair that looked like they belonged to a dead person. They surrounded Su Ming and spread out before him, covering him up as if they were about to strangle him to death.

The threads of fog were as dense as rain, and due to the darkness, it was difficult to see them clearly. As the countless threads of fog covered the sky and earth, they contracted, enveloping Su Ming within. It looked somewhat similar to Bi Tu’s Verdant Berserk Chains.

Booming sounds immediately echoed through the air, and the many threads of fog contracted, wrapping up Su Ming’s body in its entirety. They continued condensing until they turned into an object that looked like a ball of hair.

That object was dozens of feet in size. There was a countless number of threads encircling its surface, sealing it up so tightly that nothing within was revealed. Only faint, shrill cries could be heard from inside.

That voice belonged to Su Ming.

Fresh blood dripped down from underneath the ball of hair. It may not have been much, but the sight alone was horrifying.

That scene shocked He Feng. He quickly withdrew, but Xuan Lun continued closing in on him with a cold sneer. He raised his right hand and pointed towards the ball of hair.

”I don’t care whether or not he’s your companion. Once he’s trapped in my Hair like Silk, he’ll…”

Before Xuan Lun had finished speaking, the floating ball of hair gradually dissipated due to the command given when he pointed with his finger.

Yet Xuan Lun was stunned. When the ball of hair opened up, Su Ming was not inside. The ball was empty and void of anyone. There were only some drops of blood inside, falling from a ball of fur.

Even He Feng was stunned.

Right before their eyes, Su Ming had disappeared without a trace, and neither of them had noticed it. It was as if he had vanished into thin air itself, a clear sign that he had used a unique method to escape from the ball.

Because it had happened too suddenly, silence fell upon the two people who were fighting previously.

He Feng’s expression immediately changed. Inwardly, he lost judgment of the situation, but he quickly put on a smile as if he knew something and moved. He was just about to escape when Xuan Lun turned around and chased after him, his anger reaching its peak.

Booming sounds echoed in the air. After a long while, a wretched cry rang out. He Feng coughed out blood. His entire body was surrounded by red mist. His face was pale, a clear sign that he was near death. He fell to the ground with a crash.

The moment his body landed, a bright flash suddenly appeared over his entire body. It was so bright that it made Xuan Lun narrow his eyes as he chased after with obvious murderous intent.

At that very instant, He Feng’s Qi seemed to burn amidst that piercing light, and he charged out, turning into a sun that kept giving out light in the darkness. His speed increased instantly by several fold, going so fast that it even made Xuan Lun amazed as he dashed into the distance.

Xuan Lun’s expression changed. He raised his right hand and jabbed at a few spots on his body before he quickly gave chase. Very soon, the two of them turned into two long arcs that went into the distance, disappearing from sight.

Time trickled by slowly. One hour later, in the midst of silence, a hand shot out from the mud in the patch of rainforest shrouded by miasma. That hand was dried up like a dead person’s hand. As it struggled, a person came out of the mud.

This person did not have any hair, and his cheeks were gaunt. He looked like a skeleton, and his eyes were dull. Once he crawled out of the mud, he panted harshly as if he had just used up all his strength.

As he continued panting, blood trickled down the corners of his lips. The blood was black, and there was a foul stench coming from it.

‘Xuan Lun, you did not know that I had a backup plan. I was already fully prepared for you coming after my life.

‘I might have wasted one of the Scapegoat Puppets that not even Han Fei Zi knew I had; I may have sacrificed a large amount of my blood and life when I used this, but I’m still alive, and that’s enough. You will definitely die in my hands. Father, mother, and all my people, I’ll take revenge for all of you!’

That dried up person was He Feng. He had not died!

‘It’s a pity that the mysterious young man used some sort of unknown method to escape, or else my plans would have been even more perfect, and I wouldn’t be as weak as I’m now.

‘I have to recover as soon as possible. With the scapegoat puppet’s speed, Xuan Lun will need several days before he can catch up to it. I won’t have much time once he discovers that something is wrong and comes back.

‘But I still got something out of this miserable situation. I managed to break through the Blood Solidification Realm. The method Han Fei Zi spoke about really worked: ‘Don’t aim to make your blood veins as whole as possible and don’t aim to manifest above 950 blood veins, then when you let all your power burst forth under danger and put yourself near death, you may have a chance to Transcend.’

‘As long as I have a chance to recover my power, then I’ll be a powerful Berserker in the Transcendence Realm and draw out my own Berserker Mark! With Han Fei Zi’s help, I will finally obtain the right to be around the 16 Dark Souls Sect.’

He Feng took a deep breath. He could not move his body much at that moment and was stuck in an incredibly weakened state. If it were not because his power was recovering too slowly in the mud, and he was afraid that Xuan Lun would notice if he dragged out the time for too long, then he would not have struggled out. The only thing he could do at this moment was to lie on the ground and heal himself slowly.

‘I’ll need three days!’

He Feng moved his right hand into his bosom with great difficulty. A light flickered from within his bosom, and he brought out a small bottle. That bottle was completely white, almost transparent. There was some liquid that could be vaguely seen inside.

Just as he was about to use his teeth and pull out the cork of the small bottle, He Feng froze suddenly. His entire body seemed to have stilled, and he froze, unmoving. The hairs on his body rose, and a great sense of danger attacked his senses. The source of that sense of danger which caused him fear was a voice that was so cold it sounded like the wind in winter.

”He Feng, I’ve come to take what you promised to give me as thanks.”

As He Feng’s heart trembled, he saw a person walking out from the rainforest not too far away from him. That person exuded a freezing presence, as if he was ice that would never melt. When he came forward, an incredible pressure spread out.

It was Su Ming!