Pursuit of the Truth

“Have I been freed?” Zhu You Cai lowered his head and sat down quietly on the floor. The world where he was located was formed by lakes. At that moment, there was one beside him, and the blue sky reflected off it.

Zhu You Cai looked at his thick palm, and after a long while… a faint red medicinal core appeared on it!

He looked at the medicinal core, and his expression slowly became gentle, but there was also anguish on his face.

“No matter who did it, I am free…” Zhu You Cai mumbled and stood up before casting a glance at the lake beside him. In silence, he walked over and lowered his head to look at the surface. When he did so, he saw his reflection in the water.

A body as plump as that of a boar met his eyes. He had a hideous look formed by layers of thick fat on his face. Bloodshot eyes, messy hair… After Zhu You Cai took a good look at himself, he closed his eyes.

When he opened them again… he was still Zhu You Cai. He moved and turned into a long arc that charged into the distance.

“The Abyss Builders of the Fifth True World have an Art that can resurrect the dead. As long as they have a fragment of a soul, they can make the dead come back to life. Even though the Fifth True World has disappeared and it is said that the Abyss Builders have been wiped out… as long as there is a fragment of hope, I must go to the Fifth True World. I must find an Abyss Builder and resurrect you…”

…..

As Su Ming and Flame Fiends’ Progenitor moved through the passages of time and had their life force flow out from their bodies time and again, Su Ming began to feel exhausted, and he could not help but remember the promise of a thousand years to the cultivators in Western Ring Nebula’s foreign lands.

That promise was related to time. Originally, it was for everyone, but once Su Ming Possessed Ecang, it disappeared, but the prerequisite was that… he had to have his Ecang clone devour the other Ecangs so that he would continue growing stronger until he occupied the entire Western Ring Nebula and turned it into his personal abode.

This was Su Ming’s goal. At that moment, such a goal was still a little far away, but there was no doubt… that at that moment, his Ecang clone was already stronger than the other Ecangs. However, he was still not strong enough to devour the other souls in one go.

As Su Ming traveled forward, he moved through one dimension after another. He did not stop in any of them for long. Usually, after he came to a dimension, he would scan it with his Atman, and upon not discovering the body of the supreme treasure, he would immediately leave.

Because of it, things were hard for Flame Fiends’ Progenitor. He was a Nascent Divinity. Each time he moved through another dimension, he would become even more tired, but he did not dare say a word because he was worried that he would stir up Su Ming’s desire to kill him.

As he followed after him, he sighed continuously in his heart. When he came to the fifth kiln, he did not expect that he would end up like this, and it was not the first time he regretted his decision in his heart… Why did he show hostility towards Su Ming in the beginning?

‘This person is ruthless and cunning. I absolutely can’t provoke him again.’

Flame Fiends’ Progenitor cast a wary glance at Su Ming in front of him. He might not have forced the Progenitor to follow him, but he could already imagine that if he did anything abnormal, it would be the same as giving the other an excuse to attack.

“After moving past the Spirit Trudging Platforms on the second border, the dimensions will reduce in number, and the chances of dimensions with supreme treasures appearing will increase. How much do you know about this?” Su Ming suddenly asked while rushing forward.

“The third border in the fifth kiln isn’t really that dangerous, in comparison. After all, the chance of everyone running into each other isn’t that high…” When Flame Fiends’ Progenitor said this much, he stopped talking, and he sighed in his heart again.

“It’s the similar between the third and second borders. The chances of us running into each other are higher, but if we’re careful, huge accidents won’t happen.

“However, the dimensions in front of the Spirit Trudging Platforms of the second border, before the first border, will be incredibly intense. There aren’t many dimensions there to begin with, so when several people appear in a dimension and there is a supreme treasure in there…” Flame Fiends’ Progenitor cast a glance at Su Ming.

“They’ll be engaged in a battle to the death! I’ve come to the fifth kiln several times before. Each time, there will be powerful warriors who will die between the second and first borders.

“Once the remaining few people step onto the Spirit Trudging Platforms of the first border, the place they will want to go to would be the core of the fifth kiln. Over there, their fights will reach their most intense state, because when they are there, the nine greatest supreme treasures will appear, and that temptation… is not something a normal person can resist.

“But during the past few times, I would at most go to the area between the second and first border. I chose to leave before I stepped into the core, which is why I’m still alive,” Flame Fiends’ Progenitor said in a low tone.

Su Ming’s expression remained calm, but several thoughts had emerged in his head. As he moved forward, he walked out of a crack of a dimension and stepped into a new one. This was already the umpteenth dimension he had moved through, and based on his calculations, he should soon be arriving at the Spirit Trudging Platforms at the end of the second border.

Almost at the instant Su Ming took a step in the dimension, his expression changed. At the same time, the eyes of Flame Fiends’ Progenitor by his side lit up with delighted surprise.

Right before their eyes, an intense battle was being waged in the sky. Booming sounds reverberated in the air, stirring up many waves of impact that swept through the area. They created violent gusts of wind that threatened to collapse the sky and shatter the earth.

The two sides fighting were Zhu You Cai and the body of the supreme treasure of Xuan Shang, Xu Hui, and the others!

The bottom half of the dimension was a blue ocean. Huge waves were swept up by the wind caused by the battle in the sky. The waves roared, causing a huge whirlpool to appear on the entire surface of the ocean.

As this whirlpool rotated ceaselessly, it allowed all people to see the bottom of the ocean!

There was a statue over there. It was a strange, with three heads. Its entire body shone with a white light that illuminated the sky, and it looked like a piece that was placed as a garrison at the bottom of the ocean.

Near the whirlpool, there were nearly one hundred ferocious sea dragons. They were swimming around, occasionally lifting their heads to roar at the sky, but they did not dare to get close to the white statue.

“A supreme treasure!” Flame Fiends’ Progenitor immediately exclaimed.

This was the first time Su Ming entered a dimension with a supreme treasure. The ripples of power and the presence spreading out from the treasure were clearly stronger than from a complementary treasure. It was enough for all people to be able to tell how different and unique it was at first glance.

The statue had three heads. One of them was crying, the other smiling, and the last one raging!

Three heads and one body. The statue stood at the bottom of the ocean, tempting all those who saw it, but at the same time, they would be unable to help themselves but find that there was something bizarre about that treasure.

Flame Fiends’ Progenitor and Su Ming’s appearance immediately caught the attention of the parties fighting in the sky. The body of the supreme treasure had a calm expression on its face, but the hearts of Xuan Shang and his group trembled.

Xu Hui was very calm. She knew that Su Ming would definitely be able to catch up, hence when she saw him at that moment, she was not surprised. Progenitor Long Hai was the same. With his age, his farsightedness, and his cunning, he naturally knew that with the draw in the connection provided by the promise between him and Su Ming, this person would definitely be able to find him. He might have the body of the supreme treasure around, but this person was previously its main soul. Progenitor Long Hai would obviously not believe that Su Ming did not have any backup plans around.

In truth, besides the bald crane, Xu Hui, and Progenitor Long Hai drawing Su Ming to this place, there was also a hint of a trace that belonged to Su Ming on the body of the supreme treasure, which Su Ming had left on it previously.

The trace was not within the body, but outside. Doing something like this was not difficult for him, since he had previously been the main soul of that body.

When Zhu You Cai saw Su Ming, his pupils constricted. Su Ming’s face was incredibly unfamiliar to him, but when he saw Flame Fiends’ Progenitor by Su Ming’s side, he turned his head to cast a deep glance at the body of the supreme treasure.

“Xuan Family’s supreme treasure!!” A fierce look instantly appeared in Zhu You Cai’s eyes. If it was anyone else, perhaps they would not be able to see through it so quickly… but he could do it.

The body of the supreme treasure was the first to arrive in this dimension, and Zhu You Cai arrived after it, which was why the battle had occurred. When he saw Su Ming’s unfamiliar face and Flame Fiends’ Progenitor by his side, a glint had appeared in Zhu You Cai’s eyes. He instantly knew the reason why there was an unfamiliar feeling in him when he fought against the body of the supreme treasure just then.

Clearly, the one who previously controlled the body of the supreme treasure was the cultivator next to Flame Fiends’ Progenitor, and he could easily tell who had the priority in controlling the body when he saw that Flame Fiends’ Progenitor was following this person.

A barely noticeable glint shone in Zhu You Cai’s eyes. Almost at the instant he understood the connection between Su Ming and the body of the supreme treasure, he moved and charged at the whirlpool in the ocean. Judging by the direction he was going, he was heading straight for the three-headed statue, and he was so fast that he closed in on it within an instant.

As Zhu You Cai took action, the expression of the body of the supreme treasure changed. Just as the group was about to chase after Zhu You Cai, a brilliant light shone in Su Ming’s eyes. When he lifted his right hand, a ring instantly appeared on his thumb.

At the instant the purple-black ring shone, a purple-black long spear appeared in Su Ming’s hands. When he lifted it, he threw it without any hesitation at Zhu You Cai’s charging figure.

With a screech, it sliced through the air. The sharp sound was akin to a woman’s forlorn wail. As it reverberated in the air, the body of the supreme treasure froze in midair. Xuan Shang, Nian Yin, Yun You, and Hua Yu let out screams of pain within it. Their minds and souls had been directly attacked by this sound.

“Life Inclination Spear! It-it’s actually here?!” As Xuan Shang screamed in pain, an expression of disbelief appeared on his face.

In fact, even Xu Hui’s mind was reduced to a mess, and her consciousness instantly turned blank.

If that was all, it would have been nothing, but even Progenitor Long Hai’s Nascent Divinity began showing signs of instability at the instant the piercing sound appeared. His emotions changed drastically.

“Life Inclination Spear, the weapon that belonged to War Immortal Chang He of True Sacred Yin World!!”

Zhu You Cai was originally charging at the three-headed statue, but at the instant the piercing screech rang in the air, his body shuddered, and he came to an abrupt halt in midair. When he turned his head back, he stared at the incoming long spear with a dumbfounded gaze, then looked at Su Ming, who stood in the distance with his long hair dancing behind him.

Dressed in black, Su Ming dazed Zhu You Cai. He seemed… to be able to see a vague shadow of a middle-aged man. One who with grief, gratitude, and hatred for his Master in him, with his loss and regret for his lover, in desolation… scattered his soul in the Barren Lands of Divine Essence.

He saw… himself.

“So… it’s him…”