Pursuit of the Truth

Su Ming lifted his head and roared towards the sky while next to the All Spirits Hall within Harmonious Morus Alba Expanse Cosmos. His roars were filled with a shocking presence that spoke of their owner suffering intense pain that was difficult to describe.

As the voice echoed, Su Ming’s cultivation base erupted again. This time, the sky instantly distorter, and the world looked like it could no longer bear the pressure and was about to crumble. However, it only looked to be so. It did not truly crumble for real.

However, this scene was enough to show off Su Ming’s cultivation base. The power of his soul and his state of being increased at a maddening pace, as if he was going through a metamorphosis when he went through his second spirit ascension.

If Su Ming did not include the wills of the three True Worlds, then with this explosive increase, his current self would be… infinitesimally close to Avacaniya Realm!

Three spirit ascensions, and he could stand on equal footing with those in Avacaniya Realm!

Even though Su Ming was going through his spirit ascension in the second to last row, it was more accurate to say that he was already going through his third spirit ascension!

Su Ming could clearly sense his own strength, which was increasing at an indescribable, maddening speed. If anyone saw this increase in power, they would definitely be shocked.

Cracks soon came from Su Ming’s body. Fresh black blood flowed out from his body, and Su Ming’s presence became stronger.

The Ancestral Spirit he fused with gradually became darker, as if all that which it wanted to pass down as an inheritance had fused into Su Ming’s body to become a part that could not be separated from his state of being.

During that moment, scenes that were not part of his memories appeared in Su Ming’s head. They were the old man’s memories, and they spoke… of a time that did not belong to the previous aeon, but was three aeons before Su Ming’s!

Back then, the old man was the ruler of a cultivation country. There were no sects in there, and all the cultivators in the country were one. In the end, the old man reached Avacaniya Realm, and he was so strong that he was one of the most powerful in his aeon.

The memories stopped when the disaster descended…

Su Ming had no idea how much time passed. When his mind cleared, he saw the position where the old Ancestral Spirit had stood now empty, and a very prominent ancient look appeared in Su Ming’s eyes, as if he had lived through another life.

The cracks on his body had already disappeared. The strength of his physical body had already reached a state where his ring could no longer injure him. His soul and his cultivation base could already affect those in Avacaniya Realm.

If he added his most powerful and fiercest weapon—his will—he could suppress those in Avanicaya Realm, and it would not be difficult.

But all of this… was still not Su Ming’s limit. He lifted his head. At the instant the position of the old Ancestral Spirit disappeared, his gaze landed on the 371st position at the third row from the last.

It was a young man with a pale face, who looked rather sickly. His eyes were closed, and among the hundreds of Ancestral Spirits at the third row from the last, he did not seem eye-catching, but when Su Ming cast his gaze on him, he felt as if his soul was being summoned.

“Third spirit ascension!”

Feeling his own great cultivation base, Su Ming lifted his foot and instantly moved to the 371st position at the third row from the last for his third spirit ascension in this place.

When he went through his first spirit ascension, he had not been worthy enough, which was why he had to stop once he went through it. He could not continue in one go, but it was different now. Su Ming possessed the right to have his spirit ascend five times. That was why he was going to ascend continuously until he reached his limit.

He moved and instantly came into contact with the 371st position at the third row. In an instant, Su Ming’s entire body, soul, cultivation base, and everything about him shuddered violently. Waves of jumbled up thoughts surged into his mind. At the same time, a sharp pain as if he was about to crumble spread through his body.

Under the attack of all the thoughts, Su Ming felt as if his soul was about to shatter to pieces. His cultivation base, too, became chaotic, as if this spirit ascension was going to be different.

Su Ming had been prepared for this beforehand. The old man from Heavenly Spirit Tribe had mentioned that three spirit ascensions was equivalent to reaching Avacaniya Realm. Since that was the case, it was obvious that the third spirit ascension would be incredibly difficult. Similarly, the effect it would have on him would be incredibly great as well.

It might be difficult, but Su Ming was confident that he could completely absorb the legacy, because he was not using the foundation of someone who had gone through two spirit ascensions to challenge the third spirit ascension, but was performing the third stage of the spirit ascension after having his spirit ascend a total of three times from both Expanse Cosmoses!

That was why when the pain in his body caused Su Ming’s expression to distort slightly, he managed to resist it. Red appeared in his eyes. As his body shuddered, it continued becoming stronger at an even faster pace than before.

As the pain spread through him, he also become more confident, because he was becoming stronger. Su Ming simply allowed time to pass, and with every ounce of his power, he absorbed all the legacies from this position, be it from his soul or his cultivation base. The tests he went through, the splitting of his soul and subsequent fusion, and everything else made Su Ming feel as if a period so long that it felt like ten thousand years had passed, but in truth, it had only been six hours.

After six hours, the Ancestral Spirit in front of Su Ming became so faded away that it looked like it was transparent. When it completely fused with Su Ming, he sucked in a deep breath and slowly lowered his head to stare at his right hand, which he gradually tightened into a fist.

He stared at it, and a hint of a smile appeared on his lips. There was a ghastly, cold chill to it, and great confidence showed up on Su Ming’s face.

“So Avacaniya is a form of splitting up and being created. I was separated into countless parts, and each part could be turned into a complete version of myself. Which means… when I throw this punch, my fist will be split into countless portions before they are remade to form one single part. It might seem like one single punch, but in truth… I wonder if an average cultivator in Avacaniya Realm will be able… to withstand this punch.”

As Su Ming mumbled, fighting spirit appeared in his eyes. It was a pity that he did not have an opponent around him, or else he would have tested just how strong his fist was!

“The strength of my physical body works in the same principle. I can instantly divide into countless parts and instantly regroup. I can even be said to be… imperishable!

“My cultivation base is also the same. As long as I have a single hint of it left, I can instantly become whole. In this Realm, I can create the sky, the earth, mountains, and rivers. I can make multiple galaxies manifest. As expected… of Avacaniya Realm.”

As Su Ming mumbled to himself, he lifted his head and looked at the fourth row from the last. Once he swept his gaze across it, his eyes locked on the 248th position.

There stood a middle-aged man dressed in a long black robe. Waves of chilling aura spread out from him. Almost every single Ancestral Spirit in this row exuded a powerful, mighty pressure, and if anyone took a closer look, they would find that the mighty pressure from each of them surpassed those in Avacaniya Realm!

“Fourth spirit ascension!”

Brilliant light shone in Su Ming’s eyes. He moved without hesitation, instantly going to the endless golden light to appear right next to the fourth row, and with another move, he approached the 248th position.

The remnants of Great Berserker Tribe had left behind six numbers. During their repeated tests, they had proved the numbers’ accuracy. There might only be six of them, but even if there was only six, it was enough for Su Ming to avoid plenty of dangers and walk the correct path.

It was incredibly rare for the tribes in the second generation to be able to determine the first six numbers like Great Berserker Tribe had done, and even pass it down without error.

Su Ming stared at the Ancestral Spirit in front of him. As he observed the black robed middle-aged man, he lifted his right hand, and without any hesitation, he pushed his palm against the center of the Ancestral Spirit’s brow. At the moment his palm came into contact with the middle-aged man, Su Ming felt his entire body instantly become cold. The next instant… a large amount of cold air appeared on his skin, and Su Ming turned into a block of ice, and even the Ancestral Spirit was frozen in it.

Time passed. Two hours later, Su Ming was still in the ice block, not moving, but more chilling aura seemed to be seeping out of his body, causing another layer of ice to appear around him.

However, the difference was that the first layer of ice belonged to the Ancestral Spirit, and the second layer to Su Ming.

Slowly, the Ancestral Spirit became faint, semi-transparent as the legacy contained in it was being rapidly absorbed by Su Ming.

He also absorbed the Ancestral Spirit’s remaining memories. They were from an aeon that was even further away from Su Ming’s time and revealed the middle-aged man’s brilliant life.

The memories of his life contained everything about him—his love, hate, regret, wildness, and arrogance. Su Ming obtained all his memories until the disaster of that aeon arrived. The man had then lifted his head and looked at the universe, and as he laughed with madness, he chose to obey the ancient legacy, to turn everything about himself into a figure of an Ancestral Spirit standing in a position in All Spirits Hall. He would not let himself die for nothing. He would use his death so a descendant in an unknown aeon could have a chance to succeed!

“If anyone will succeed, destroy Arid Triad so that our sacrifices won’t be in vain!”

Su Ming’s heart trembled. The ice block around him instantly shattered. Once it was replaced by the ice made by the freezing air coming from Su Ming’s body, it gradually melted, and the middle-aged man’s position beside Su Ming had already become empty.

Su Ming was silent. He now had quite a number of memories in his mind. After a long while, a fierce look appeared in his eyes. He slowly nodded, as if he was making a promise to a senior. After a long while, he looked up, straight towards the fifth row of Ancestral Spirits.

“I should be able to perform my fifth spirit ascension!”

…..

When the Sovereign of Dawn Yan Pei of Dark Dawn descended in Arid Triad Expanse Cosmos, the sea of white bones filled the galaxy. Countless cultivators from Dark Dawn worshiped him. The cultivators of Saint Defier lowered their heads in silence.

At that moment, the black-robed Sovereign of Dawn spoke with a ghastly and aloof voice from the sea of white bones.

“I have descended. Based on our promise, the cultivators of Saint Defier have to listen to my commands. During the first five hundred years, you will obey all of my orders!

“My first order… is to completely occupy True Morning Dao World. Destroy that weak Ninth Sect! I will permit the Spirit Paragon to attack and crush the Ninth Summit!”