Pursuit of the Truth

While the third Heavenly Incense in the Heavenly Incense Rune five hundred feet away from Su Ming copied his level of cultivation, far away from the galaxy where the Rune was whirlwinds were roaring as they spun. As they tumbled about, the clone that practiced the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole breathed in the whirlwind with the power of his own physical body. There were numerous wounds on his body at that moment, but they were all healing quickly.

Gray light shone in the clone’s eyes, with a strange form of intelligence. As he charged forward, countless pictures flashed swiftly in his pupils. They contained Su Ming’s future path of cultivation that the third Heavenly Incense had copied.

It was the exactly as Su Ming had deduced. The clone was indeed using some unique method to Brand Su Ming’s future path of cultivation into his heart.

This Brand would turn into the path that he would take, allowing his level of cultivation to not stop simply because his connection with Su Ming had been severed. He could see Su Ming’s future, so he was confident that he could surpass him.

As the clone charged forward, Su Ming continued walking deeper into the Heavenly Incense Rune without any hesitation and with an arrogant look on his face. He swung his arm, relaxed his mind, and simply allowed the third Heavenly Incense to copy him as it pleased.

When he was about two hundred feet away from the Heavenly Incense Rune, a rumble only Su Ming himself could hear rang out in his body. Right away, he felt as if his status as a life form had increased once more. His level of cultivation broke through Death Realm and reached a strange Realm that made him feel as if he could turn into a galaxy. It was… the Realm of the Sublime Paragon!

A True World could only have one Sublime Paragon. It could not have a second Sublime Paragon under any circumstances. This was a law, an Arid Triad’s law!

At that moment, Su Ming sensed the power of the Sublime Paragon. It was a sensation that made him feel like he would have the universe under his control when he raised his head. That sensation came from the fake power of a Sublime Paragon he had at that moment.

“Sublime Paragon…”

A willful look appeared in Su Ming’s eyes as he charged towards the Heavenly Incense Rune. When he was less than fifty feet away from it, his cultivation base stirred up again, causing his level of cultivation to reach the peak of Sublime Paragon realm, but Su Ming still did not stop.

When he stood right under the third Heavenly Incense, his cultivation base let out a bang, and he surpassed the Realm of Sublime Paragon and reached a state he could not understand, but he knew that it was definitely not Avacaniya Realm.

This Realm was so strong that it possessed a power that could disintegrate the whirlwinds in the galaxy with one thought, and with another, extinguish the flames of life in all living beings.

“Is this the strongest level of my cultivation that you can copy?” Su Ming asked languidly while he stood under the third Heavenly Incense with a willful look in his eyes.

“If that is the case, your copy… isn’t worthy to make that clone of mine independent.” Su Ming lifted his right hand and struck the third Heavenly Incense.

It shuddered with a bang. Then, a vague will spread out from the third Heavenly Incense with a hint of derision. It charged towards Su Ming and pushed down on him.

It was the will of the life form in Heavenly Incense Rune that Hu Zi had mentioned. He had said that it was similar to him.

Clearly, the willfulness of Su Ming’s words had angered the will. When it pushed down on Su Ming, a buzzing sound echoed in his mind.

“This Realm is Bhaashate [1]. It is thine strongest state oft which I predicted based on the life form that thou possess. Thou art willful, but ye shalt know that I dost speaketh not empty words. If thou hast the courage to open thine heart and allow me to understand thine true thoughts, then ye shalt know that there is no path of cultivation in the world that I cannot copy!”

“Laying my heart bare before you is impossible, but it is not difficult for me to let you know my thoughts on my cultivation, but if you cannot copy it, what will you do?” Su Ming said faintly while swinging his arm.

“If’t be true that I am unable, then I shalt naturally make thine clone lose his consciousness and make him belong to thee once more.” The voice of the will in the Rune buzzed with an air of confidence.

“Is that all? If you can copy it, then I will give up on my clone and let him have his independence under your will, but if you can’t copy it, then I will… have one of the nine Heavenly Incense Sticks destroyed!

“This will serve as your punishment. I will make you know that all those who touch my belongings must pay a price.”

Su Ming’s voice was calm, but the grim, murderous air about him made the will in the Rune fall silent for a while before it let out a cold harrumph.

Su Ming leaped up and charged towards the top of the third Heavenly Incense. In an instant, he sat down on the extinguished head of the incense stick. A glint shone in his eyes. Once he closed them, a ripple came from the ring on his right index finger.

It did not spread outwards, but fused into his body and surrounded his soul. Then, as he let his mind scatter, the will of the Rune immediately surged into Su Ming’s body from the third Heavenly Incense, charging at his soul.

But Su Ming’s soul was protected by the ring. He was completely unbothered by the actions of the Heavenly Incense’s will. His soul did not dissipate as he revealed a corner of it, showing the determination he had towards the path of his cultivation.

At the instant rumbles echoed in Su Ming’s body, the will from the Rune sensed Su Ming’s thoughts from the portion of the soul he had showed to it. Immediately, Su Ming’s level of cultivation rose once more in the mid of the illusion.

He had still yet to reach Avacaniya, but as his power rose, his cultivation base became stronger. As the rumbles continued echoing in his body, the will of the Rune roared in disbelief.

“This… This is… Thou desireth to Possess Arid Triad Expanse Cosmos?! Tis impossible!”

“Why would it be impossible? I have the power of Possession that belongs to the Abyss Builders with me! You can continue predicting whether this is possible!”

Su Ming opened his eyes, and a ghastly look appeared in them. When he spoke, the will of the Rune used its unique method to predict his path once more.

In just a few breaths, Su Ming’s level of cultivation increased by leaps and bounds. At the same time, he sensed the four Great True Worlds of Arid Triad in his consciousness. They seemed to become part of his body. During that instant, Su Ming also sensed the three Ancient Kingdoms in the galaxy, the ones beside the four Great True Worlds!

The Ancient Kingdoms of Arid Triad!

The instant the four Great True Worlds and the three Ancient Kingdoms appeared in Su Ming’s mind, his level of cultivation reached a breakthrough and attained an inconceivable Realm. Before he could experience it, two pictures appeared in his head.

Su Ming had not created them. The will of the Rune had been shocked by the power Su Ming had envisioned for the future, and it accidentally lost control of its unique method to verify and predict a person’s level of cultivation. Because of it, a few pictures only it as the will of the Rune could see were leaked.

The first picture was of a blood-red galaxy. It had that color because of countless broken bodies strew all about it.

There was no end to the corpses. They formed a picture which would shock all those who saw it. Only in a while would they be able to sense that this galaxy… belonged to Arid Triad Expanse Cosmos.

Amid the countless corpses was a man with a head full of white hair. He was dressed in a black robe and stood with his head thrown back. His extremely sorrowful cry echoed through the galaxy. That man… was Su Ming!

It was Su Ming after an unknown number of years had passed. He had an ancient air about him, and his hair was snow white. There were countless wounds on his body. He had lost his left arm, and only bones remained of his legs. There was a crimson arrow stuck in his chest.

Next to him… was Hu Zi. His eyes were wide open, but he was no longer breathing. Second senior brother’s body had already been destroyed. Only his head remained, which had a hole at the center of his brows. It was a telling sign that both his body and soul had been destroyed.

Eldest senior brother floated among a pile of corpses not too far in the distance. He had died in battle!

The white ring had shattered, and its fragments were all around Su Ming. Most of the corpses belonged to strangers, but there were also some whom Su Ming recognized. Among them was Yu Xuan. Her eyes were closed as if she was sleeping, but the spot where her heart was located was full of dried blood. No one could say how long it had been since she had died.

On the side was Su Xuan Yi, kneeling with his head lowered. He held a woman’s corpse in his arms, still and unmoving. He had already breathed his last.

Lying among the corpses further away was Su Ming’s elder. His legs had been shattered into powder, and even in death, his unfocused gaze remained on the galaxy. There was a hint of madness in his eyes.

Su Ming even saw the figure of a baby further away. It was Lei Chen, who he had never been able to find. He… had been torn limb from limb, and his head was pierced through by a long spear which pinned him to a piece of torn flesh. He was staring at Su Ming with regret as well as anguish in his eyes, but there was also the joy of finally gained freedom in them.

Chang He, Flame Fiends’ Progenitor, everything, all the people Su Ming was familiar with had died in battle. Su Hui was even right next to him. She lay with a smile on her lifeless face.

“Su Ming, you have to persevere. You have to live, you must… continue living…” A weak voice with endless grief reached Su Ming’s ears from a huge gap in the galaxy…

A black feather floated down, landing in front of Su Ming.

The voice belonged to the bald crane.

The picture ended, and Su Ming shuddered. Then, the second picture appeared. In that picture, he was dressed in a blood-red robe. With a callous and merciless gaze, he walked with a boundless sea of blood trailing behind him. The 180 Expanse Cosmoses were within it. He was in… Dark Dawn!

The entire Dark Dawn had turned bloody red…

“Devil! He is Arid Triad’s Devil Paragon!”

Terrified and forlorn screams of pain rang in the area in front of Su Ming. Before him was Saint Defier Expanse Cosmos, which was also created of 180 Expanse Cosmoses.

The picture ended almost instantly, and Su Ming’s eyes flew open. They were bloodshot as he glared at the Heavenly Incense Rune. His tone was an ancient gust of freezing wind, but there was a slight quiver in his voice.

“What did I see?!”

Silence. During that instant, the Heavenly Incense Rune fell into total silence.

“What did I see?!” Su Ming growled.

When he lifted his right hand, the white ring flew out with a rumble from his finger. It grew to thousands of feet big and surrounded the area, ready to shatter it. A boundless mighty pressure descended on the galaxy, and a destructive intent came down on the area from Su Ming’s body. He wasn’t holding anything back.

“I’ll ask you one last time. What did I see?!”

“Mine Rune is not used for Relocation, neither is it for summoning, but for premonitions… I predicteth the future and open the path of time… what thou hast seen… is a secret of the universe… which cannot be changeth!”

Translator’s Note:

1. Bhaashate: If Avacaniya means ‘to not speak of it’, then Bhaashate is Sanskrit for ‘to speak’, but Bhaashate is below Avacaniya.