Pursuit of the Truth

“Perhaps someone created the Ancient Gods… This is an old memory. I need to think about it carefully…” the ancient voice mumbled. As it did, everything in the galaxy came to a halt. The Ancient God who had shattered four stars remained frozen with his mouth wide open.

Most of the cultivators in the area also remained in the position of their bodies in the process of crumbling. Not a single hint of life force could be detected in them. The Ancient God’s divine ability did not just harm the disciples from Morning Dao Sect, but had also affected the cultivators of the Immortals’ Union.

It was a divine ability that did not differentiate between friend and foe. Once it was executed, with the Ancient God acting as the center, everything around him would turn into flying ashes. They would all shatter and dissipate.

The ancient voice sighed softly, and the halted galaxy became muddled and turned into a gigantic vortex. As it spun, not only did it turn the world indistinct, it also sucked Su Ming’s soul out from the body and fused him with itself.

Su Ming’s vision blurred. When he regained consciousness, he was already back in Dao Ocean. The fog around him turned everything indistinct, but there was a vortex in front of him. It was connected to the world outside. When he looked at it, he could see the ten million cultivators from Morning Dao Sect outside.

Su Ming stood there quietly, then turned his head around to cast a glance at Dao Ocean behind him. To him, the trial had been extraordinary. He understood how to prevent his power from spreading out as well as experienced the method to execute rebound and borrow power. All of them had etched themselves deeply into Su Ming’s mind, making it difficult for him to forget them even if he wanted.

The ancient predecessor of Dao Ocean had offered him advice as if he was guiding him. It felt like he had been offered a lesson, and Su Ming wrapped his fist in his palm to bow deeply towards Dao Ocean.

A brilliant light shone in Su Ming’s eyes when he turned around and took a step forward. He instantly stepped into the vortex, and when he reappeared, he had already returned to the area used for the Anointment Ceremony in the first plane of Morning Dao Sect. Before everyone’s eyes, he walked out of the gigantic vortex formed from his name.

Ten million gazes gathered on him. Many voices echoed in the air. The four Dynasts who had chosen to go through the trials with Su Ming had incredibly complicated gazes as they stood by the side.

When Su Ming swept his gaze past the crowd, he closed his eyes to remember everything that occurred during the illusory battlefield. He started swiftly deducing how to use that rebound and power.

Once he had walked out, the gigantic vortex gradually shrank before turned back into the name Dao Kong. With a flash, it then disappeared into thin air.

Only at that moment did the area erupt into an uproar. The ten million cultivators in the area had personally seen Su Ming’s performance in the battlefield… including the predecessor of Dao Kong causing the universe to come to a stop multiple times so that Su Ming could fight against the giant with seven stars again and again.

Even though they could not hear the voice of the predecessor of Dao Ocean, the bizarre turning back of time was enough for all who saw to be left in shock.

It was especially so when they’d seen Su Ming’s final two strikes. He had turned around in a bizarre fashion and used his back to withstand the giant’s punch, causing the giant’s right arm to shatter. Then, when the giant delivered another punch with his left arm, it had also been destroyed in a manner that no one in the crowd could understand.

Even though in the end Su Ming’s body had shattered as well due to the giant’s roar, the shock brought up by the earlier scenes had become the thing everyone discussed.

The buzzing of voices lasted for a long time. While standing on the platform, Bei Bang cast Su Ming a profound gaze before slowly lifting his hand and seizing the air.

With it, the ten million cultivators immediately felt their necks ache in pain, and all of them stopped speaking. The area slowly fell silent.

“Five Dynasts took part in the trials. Dao Kong, Dao Lin, and Dao Hua have succeeded. The other two failed, and their rights as Dynasts are removed.”

As Bei Bang spoke, the expressions of two of the four Dynasts by Su Ming’s side turned dreary. They moved back quietly and turned into long arcs that left the place.

“The three of you have withstood the challenges and completed the trials. You… will be anointed as Morning Dao Sect’s real Dynasts. Now, you have obtained the right to go to the area beyond the Progenitor’s isolation grounds where the Progenitor will personally activate the Flourishing Lotus.

“When you walk out of the isolation grounds, besides us from Morning Dao Sect, the people from the other three Great True Worlds will also receive all of you.”

When he said that, Bei Bang’s gaze landed on Su Ming. Clearly, the complicated emotions he felt were related to Su Ming destroying True Sacred Yin World’s camp in the Barren Lands of Divine Essence.

Soon, True Sacred Yin World would arrive, and they might not settle things so easily. However, this was no longer within Bei Bang’s jurisdiction. He had long since reported this to the Council of Sect Masters, but it had yet to form a reply. He had no idea what it would be though.

Once Bei Bang finished his speech, the ten million cultivators in the area immediately cheered, filled the air with a joyful presence. However, not a single hint of delight could be detected within Dao Lin or Dao Hua upon becoming Dynasts. They stood silent, their expressions filled with bitterness and indignation.

Su Ming remained calm. He did not bother himself with the cheers around him and stood with his eyes still closed, recalling everything he’d experienced in regards to the power etched into his mind.

Seven lights of seven different colors shone in the air. They were dazzling, and three of them landed on the Dynasts. Su Ming’s was purple. Dao Lin’s red, and Dao Hua, who once harbored animosity towards Su Ming and had had Dao Fei Xian fight against him, was orange.

At the same time, a figure gradually appeared in the air above them.

Su Ming had seen this person before. In fact, most of the cultivators in the area had seen him. He was the young man who had read Progenitor Dao Chen’s decree and had the last name of Sang.

His expression was indifferent. When he walked out of nothingness, he swept his gaze past Su Ming and the others, and a faint smile gradually appeared on his face.

“Congratulations, Your Highnesses. Please follow behind me. I will bring you to the Progenitor’s isolation grounds to activate the Flourishing Lotus and to record what you believe is the best state of your body. Then, when you are injured badly in the future, you can turn back time to return to that moment when you were at your best.”

While speaking, the young man raised his right hand and swung it downwards. Immediately, the seven lights with different colors flowed about and became even more dazzling. In an instant, Su Ming, Dao Lin, and Dao Hua vanished within them. As the lights scattered, they were sent… into Progenitor Dao Chen’s isolation grounds.

Bei Bang sucked in a deep breath. When Su Ming and the others were Relocated, he immediately swung his arm and said loudly, “Four saint beasts, push up the sky above the land of the Anointment Ceremony!”

A shocking roar shook the sky and earth and excited the ten million cultivators. The roar had come from the endless Dao Ocean located at the lowest part of Morning Dao Sect.

At the same time, a ray of green light flashed and rose from Dao Ocean. As the roar reverberated in the air, a gigantic Azure Dragon rushed out.

It had a thick, ancient air. When it flew out, the weather changed and the world roared. It was so quick that when it flew up, it rushed past the fourth plane, left the third plane in its wake, shook the second plane, and then flew into the sky of the first plane.

At a spot that seemed to be near the start of nothingness in the area above the nine continents of the first plane, the Azure Dragon, which was hundreds of thousands of feet long, let out a roar at the sky. When it did so, a large amount of azure smoke gushed out from its mouth. It gathered together and formed a continent. The edges of it shone with an azure light which soon spread out and enlarged the continent.

Rows upon rows of tables appeared on it. If one was to count, they came to a total of ten million.

The Azure Dragon lifted the entire continent. When its huge head swept through the area, all the cultivators who came into its field of vision felt their hearts tremble.

Then, the Azure Dragon closed his eyes and stopped moving.

At that moment, roars came from Dao Ocean once more. This time, the one who flew out was a huge Vermilion Bird. Beside it was a Black Turtle with a similarly shocking size. The Vermilion Bird was entirely fire red, just like a ball of shocking fire. As for the Black Turtle, its tail was a tongue, and its head was that of a fierce turtle.

The two beasts roared and flew out together. There was another roar reverberating from another direction. A huge White Tiger flew out from Dao Ocean. It roared at the sky and charged towards the heavens.

The three huge beasts approached the Azure Dragon at an incredible speed. With the Azure Dragon at their center, they roared, and they too formed continents above themselves.

The magnificence of this scene caused the hearts of the ten million cultivators in Morning Dao Sect beneath to tremble. The sky distorted, and figures manifested there. Among them were men, women, the elderly, and the young. However, the presence of age about their bodies clearly showed that they had lived for a long, long time.

The presences of powerful cultivation bases could be felt as well. These people… were all Masters of Fate, Lives, and Death! The greatest of them were three old men. The mighty pressure spreading out from them was so great that it was unbelievable. The three of them were naturally the three Sect Masters in Death Realm who had snapped at Su Ming previously. They were also the strongest people in Morning Dao Sect besides Progenitor Dao Chen, on the surface at least. Their names were Ri, Yue, and Xing.

“Greetings, Sect Masters of the Council of Sect Masters!”

With their hearts trembling, the ten million cultivators worshiped in the direction of the sky. Their roars were like waves of sound.

There were sixty-eight figures behind the three old men. When they appeared, they immediately spread out. They floated above the continents formed by the White Tiger, the Vermilion Bird, and the Black Turtle.

Ri, Yue, and Xing, the strongest three old men in Death Realm, stood on three different continents with calm expressions on their faces. There were twenty-four people on the Vermilion Bird’s continent as well as on the Black Turtle’s continent. Only the continent belonging to the White Tiger had twenty people.

Bei Bang, the tanned old man, and the two other Sect Masters flew up simultaneously. Then, as if they were going back to their original place, they charged towards the continent of the White Tiger.

When Bei Bang and the other three returned, an imposing voice reverberated in the sky.

“Open the path to True Morning Dao World to welcome our guests from the other three Great True Worlds. We will welcome… our fellow Daoists from the three Great True Worlds together!”