Pursuit of the Truth

Su Ming sat on the Crimson Python Phoenix’s body without a shred of emotion on his face. A harsh and ruthless air surrounded him, fusing with that aloof gaze of his. He gave off a feeling as if there was ice and snow around him.

However, the heat spreading from the Crimson Python Phoenix’s body blended perfectly with that cold and turned into a strange illusion that distorted people’s vision, adding a layer of mystery to Su Ming.

Yue Hong Bang charged forward. It was difficult for him to conceal the excitement in his heart, and he could not help himself but have some of it show up on his face. He traveled at an incredibly quick pace and turned into a long arc as he charged towards his enemy’s dwelling place - Qi Bei Shan’s cave abode.

The Crimson Python Phoenix let out delighted cries as it charged forward behind him. Its cry contained its desire for freedom and the outburst of joy after being let out after suffering through years of oppression.

Ever since it had gained consciousness, it had been sealed in that volcano, unable to fly more than ten thousand feet away. That seal was like a cage that lasted for generations. If Su Ming had not come, it would have been eternally sealed in that place, unable to move a single step outside.

Su Ming’s arrival had changed everything, breaking the life the Crimson Flame Python had expected to continue living. But perhaps it’d be more accurate to say that the bald crane had achieved that. It had done a great meritorious deed in this matter.

As the Crimson Python Phoenix roared, ripples reverberated through the entire Crimson Flame Planet. Its roars shook the sky and earth, resounding in all directions, and immediately attracted the attention of all the ferocious beasts that were known as gods by the residents of this planet and who were sealed in their regions in Crimson Flame Planet, unable to get ou. they were momentarily stunned, then roared back in response.

Roars from all regions of Crimson Flame Planet rang through the land for a time being. They echoed in all corners of the planet, and these happenings immediately caused the cultivators in Crimson Flame Planet to spot changes in their expressions. In the midst of their shock, they found themselves unable to guess just what sort of thing might have occurred.

If it was not because there was no pressure or divine sense descending from the sky, then this sort of continuous roars coming from all directions would have made these people think that the True Guards had arrived.

Some of the people who had wanted to make offerings to the gods in their regions were filled with shock during that instant, because their gods were no longer looking at their offerings, but had flown towards the seals and roaring loudly towards the sky in the north.

There was clear envy and madness contained within those roars. The beasts were akin to a group of people who had been locked in cages suddenly but now saw one of their companions walking out of their cage one day, and they were not even doing it quietly. That person who had escaped was even letting crazed bellows of laughter.

Because of that, the madness that was stirred up shook the entire Crimson Flame Planet.

Compared to the puzzlement that was contained within the shock of all the cultivators in other regions, the cultivators who were in the northern region had their heads lifted in disbelief as their hearts trembled violently in the midst of shock while they looked at the gigantic body that was charging through the sky.

It was the Crimson Python Phoenix that possessed a phoenix head and was several tens of thousands of feet long. As it flew in the sky while roaring, the tremors that it caused looked as if they could turn the world upside down. The creature certainly did turn upside down the emotions of people who saw it..

”Is that… the Crimson Python Phoenix god from the volcano?”

”Is this an illusion? This is impossible. As far as the recorded history of Crimson Flame Planet goes, no ferocious beast from the alien races had been able to move past the area of ten thousand feet from their caves!”

”The four True Great Worlds have placed seals outside the gods’ caves, and it is impossible for them to be opened. How-how did it manage to come out?!”

”There’s a person sitting on its head! Heavens, who is that?! There’s someone sitting on the Crimson Python Phoenix’s head!”

The uproars from the cultivators on the ground in the north reached their most intense state when the people saw Su Ming’s figure sitting on the Crimson Python Phoenix. Their cries buzzed in the air, filled with disbelief, rapid breathing, as well as reverential gazes mixed with shock.

The Crimson Python Phoenix lifted its head and roared at the sky, then flew even faster. The bald crane on its back was feeling proud of itself and continued posing in different manners. It felt that most of the cries from the crowd were due to its work.

Su Ming had an apathetic expression on his face. He closed his eyes. Even though he had covered the aloof gaze in his eyes, it was still difficult to chase away even a single bit of that cold chill spreading out from his body.

Yue Hong Bang almost roared along with the phoenix as he led the way. He was so excited that his face had gained a red flush, and his heart was trembling with so much excitement that he wanted to already be by Qi Bei Shan’s cave abode.

The thing that excited him the most, though, was that as the Crimson Python Phoenix charged through the air, many cultivators in this region either flew into the sky behind them or ran on the ground after the phoenix. Clearly, they wanted to see where this ferocious beast was headed.

Originally, all the cultivators were supposed to force down this sort of curiosity, but at that moment, no one tried quelling it. Even if they had to waste some crystals, they still chose to follow without hesitation, because in their hearts, this sort of thing that overturned what they knew was incredibly rare, and it might not repeat itself even after several tens of thousands of years had passed.

Clearly, the appearance of this sort of thing would bring about a gigantic effect that would turn the world upside down. If they missed it, they would definitely regret it for the rest of their lives.

At that moment, in a stone house located at the peak of the tallest mountain in the east of Crimson Flame Mountain was the old woman, and she was sitting cross-legged while meditating. Her eyes flew open at that instant, and a powerful light shone in her eyes. Without any hesitation, she flashed into the sky and looked towards the north.

When her gaze landed there, her expression changed quickly. For a time, she looked stupefied, then shocked, then her expression turned as dark as thunderclouds. She even lifted her right hand and formed a seal swiftly. But after a moment, she sucked in a deep breath, and her body trembled.

’Someone broke the seal and let out the Crimson Python Phoenix! Who is he?! How did he break open the seal?! This has never happened before since the seals were placed in Crimson Flame Planet, only…’

The old woman’s pupils shrank, as if she had thought of something. With one swift move, she turned into a long arc and charged through the sky, straight towards the northern region.

In the only forest that existed in the west of Crimson Flame Planet was a big tree that was trembling viciously at that moment. An old face emerged from the tree trunk, and roars tumbled out of from within the trunk. As it trembled, the entire forest started shivering with it.

There was a middle-aged man standing beside the tree trunk. He was looking at the sky to the north with a dazed expression. After a long while, he sucked in a sharp breath.

’It’s said that something like this happened when Black Ink Planet changed all those years ago… Could it be that the second transformation in the Barren Lands of Divine Essence is happening in Crimson Flame Planet?!

’Could it be that… this time, Crimson Flame Planet is about to change?!’ The middle-aged man’s expression changed rapidly, and after a moment, he leaped into the sky and charged towards the north.

’There’s still nine years left till the next time the True Guards patrol this place… Who has caused this change in Crimson Flame Planet?!’

Due to the Crimson Python Phoenix’s escape from the seal and its subsequent roars as well as the other ferocious beasts responding to its cries by roaring at the same time, all the cultivators in Crimson Flame Planet did not notice in their shock and amazement that a faint ripple had spread towards the land from the Rune when the bald crane had used its strange Art and cried out for the seal to open…

Not even Su Ming had noticed it.

A chain reaction followed. Once the ripple traveled into the ground, one of the endless white threads in the inner part of the cultivation planet, which was at the depths of Crimson Flame Planet, snapped with a bang.

The breaking of one single thread might not affect the entire seal, but it still created a tiny gap in the perfect Rune.

Within the core of Crimson Flame Planet, which was the true inner part of the planet itself, was an endless and infinite amount of magma. The color of that magma was not red, but purplish black!

Immersed at the center of this purplish black magma was a skeleton. There was not a hint of flesh or blood on that skeleton. The magma quietly covered half of its body, while a black sword was pierced deep into the top of its skull. There were three other swords that had pierced other parts of its body as well.

However, at the moment the bald crane had shouted out that one word in the world outside, the ripple that came from the seal had went deep into the ground, causing the one white thread among the countless others to snap. During that instant, a wisp of dark light appeared in the skeleton’s eyes.

This was the first time… this had happened ever since he had been sealed in this place!

At the instant that dark light appeared in his eyes, the proud bald crane behind Su Ming suddenly found the smile freezing on its face as it traveled on the Crimson Python Phoenix’s back. The bald crane lowered its head swiftly and looked at the ground.

”Duke of Crimson Flame… Hmm? Who’s this bastard, Duke of Crimson Flame?”

The bald crane was momentarily stunned, then scratched its bald head. It was puzzled greatly by the words it had said just now. A moment before, it had felt as if it had remembered something.

Yet no matter how hard it thought about it, it could not obtain an answer, which was why the bald crane decided to not think about that matter. Instead, it became proud of itself again.

Su Ming opened his eyes slowly. As the Crimson Python Phoenix charged through the land, there were nearly a hundred something cultivators that had turned into long arcs and were following it. There were hundreds of others that were running on the ground as well.

Yue Hong Bang’s body froze for a moment, then he turned his head around to look at Su Ming with a zealous gaze as he pointed at the ground not too far in the distance.

”Senior, that is Qi Bei Shan’s cave abode!”

There was a small hill on the ground with quite a large number of blue stones scattered at the foot of the hill. These stones were completely useless to the cultivators in this place, for there was not a single hint of spiritual energy contained within, which was why very few people paid attention to them.

There was a platform that jutted out of the middle section of the hill. At that moment, Qi Bei Shan and the woman beside him had just returned and were standing on the platform while looking at the sky with dumbfounded gazes. Behind them was a door to a cave abode that had been thrown wide open, and blue rays of light could be seen spreading out from within.

That small hill was made entirely of blue stones!

Qi Bei Shan shuddered, his expression filled with shock and terror. He had returned not too long ago. Noticing the strange phenomenon in the world outside, he had just walked out to investigate this matter when, before long, his pupils shrank, and even his breathing stilled.