Pursuit of the Truth

Su Ming held onto the long spear and walked before the crowd. Behind him were his people, who had lost the protection of the statue of the God of Berserkers. There were… no elderly folk in the crowd.

They were only halfway through, but Su Ming’s footsteps only became steadier. There was simply too much blood spilled by the people of Dark Mountain Tribe, and too many spirits of their deceased Berserkers in the forest.

Right now, the only Berserkers who could fight were Su Ming, Lei Chen, and Shan Hen. The tribe leader and Nan Song required the support from their people as they moved forward while continuing to receive treatment. They were anxious and wanted to recover as soon as possible.

Bei Ling had lost any possibility to continue fighting. He had lost an arm, and a large amount of blood flowed out from his wounds. If it were not for Chen Xin, he would have already failed to keep up with the crowd.

Shan Hen was also covered in blood. He walked silently behind the tribe. At times, he would look absent-minded, at other times, there would be a conflicted look on his face. Sometimes, an indescribable feeling would appear, and every single time it did, he would press his hand against his chest.

As if there was a force that supported him to continue moving.

Mo Sang and Bi Tu’s battle continued in the sky, and thunderous sounds echoed continuously. Midnight came, then the sky turned bright, but the fight still continued. These two people would not stop until one of them was killed.

The ravine on the ground, the screen of light that had reached the skies, and the Berserker Art that required Nan Song to sacrifice his life, all of them managed to buy a large amount of time for the tribe’s migration.

When daylight arrived, exhaustion overcame the people of Dark Mountain Tribe. They had traveled continuously for two days and nights in this cold weather. All of them looked as if they could no longer go on, but still, they gritted their teeth and moved at the fastest speed they could muster.

The sky was bright. Sun shone on the ground and the bodies of all the people of the tribe in the forest. They felt a slight hint of warmth within them, but the cold brought by the snow on the ground still chilled their bones.

”With our current speed, by tomorrow, we’ll reach Wind Stream Tribe!” Lei Chen said softly, traveling beside Su Ming.

”There’s just one more day!” he clenched his fists.

Su Ming remained quiet for a moment before he spoke with a hoarse voice as he continued walking forward. ”It’s not a whole day, but only half!”

Lei Chen let out a sigh of relief when Su Ming finally broke his silence. He had been extremely worried about his silence.

”We should be able to reach Wind Stream Tribe’s territory by tonight. Once we leave the forest, it’ll be much safer,” Su Ming stated calmly.

”Let’s hope today is a safe day…”

Lei Chen turned around and looked at his people. He sighed when he saw their exhausted looks before he brought his eye back to Su Ming walking in the front. His frail back gave off the feeling of a mountain.

Two hours passed by. A faint and weak voice came from within the crowd. That voice traveled forward with determination.

”Su Ming, leave me behind.”

The person who spoke was Liu Di, the Warrior who had played the xun and who had previously sustained grave injuries. He was taken away by his people, and now, when he could no longer continue onward, he did not want to become a burden to his tribe.

Liu Di struggled up and smiled at Su Ming, who had stopped moving to look at him. He walked towards a tree and sat against it. His actions tore the wounds on his body, and blood spilled out once again.

”All of you… go on…”

Liu Di took out the bone xun and placed it by his mouth, as if he was about to play a song, but he no longer had any strength to do so. He did not even have the strength to look at the sky to wait for his death.

Su Ming fell silent. He too, closed his eyes, but reopened them quickly. He did not speak, but cast a deep look at Liu Di before turning away and continuing to lead his people onward.

As they carried on, a few more people from the tribe stayed back with smiles on their faces. They did not want to drag their tribe down. Bei Ling wanted to do the same, but when Chen Xin cried and struggled to carry him on her back, he found that he could not say those words.

The Head of the Guards woke up on the way. He may have lost his legs, but he still had some strength left to fight. As a tribe member offered to carry him, he chose not to be left behind, instead he prepared himself to trigger the explosion of a Warrior at the eighth level of the Blood Solidification Realm for their enemies who could catch up at any time.

Su Ming remained silent. He did not stop any of his people from staying back, but his fists clenched tighter every time they volunteered to stay. He knew that the elder handed Dark Mountain Tribe to him so that he could lead them to safety. He had a duty to complete this task.

Once evening arrived, Su Ming slightly relaxed from his wound up state. They had finally left that seemingly endless forest and moved into the wide plains that belonged to Wind Stream Tribe. This place was much safer than the forest. After all, the plains were part of Wind Stream’s territory. It would never allow Berserkers from Black Mountain Tribe to barge in without permission.

Once all the people from Dark Mountain Tribe entered the plains, the tribe leader and Nan Song recovered some of their strength. It was as if all the disasters looming over their heads had come to pass.

Yet, at that very moment, a tremor shook the earth. The center of the tremor came from a great distance away, and it was so powerful that they could all feel it even though it came from so far away.

”The Elder’s seal is broken…” Nan Song closed his eyes, then opened them after a moment before he spoke languidly.

As the words were spoken, the people of Dark Mountain Tribe tensed up once again.

”With Black Mountain Tribe’s current speed, they will need some time before they can catch up… but they will still definitely catch up to us before we reach Wind Stream Tribe.

”If we take the risk that Black Mountain Tribe will not dare to step into Wind Stream Plains, then we can ignore the danger hanging over our lives…” Nan Song whispered.

”We can’t take the risk.”

Su Ming stopped and looked at the forest cast in darkness behind him. He turned around and looked at the tribe leader, who had recovered some vestiges of his power. He stared at him whose body was now dried up and wrinkled and whose face looked gaunt and almost bloodless.

”Tribe leader, there were a lot of people who stayed back as we came here, and I stopped no one. That was their choice… Now, it is time for me to stay.”

While speaking, Su Ming walked to the back of the crowd.

The tribe leader, a man in his forties, finally looked at Su Ming properly. This La Su, whom he had never paid much attention to, had given him a great shock. He let out a faint sigh and nodded his head.

”I’m staying too.”

Lei Chen did not hesitate and stepped out to stand beside Su Ming.

Su Ming looked at him, just as the other did the same. He grinned boyishly.

”You said it before. I can’t die before you. If I wanted to die, then we’d be dying together.”

”I’ll stay too.”

Nan Song took a deep breath. The wrinkles on his old and wizened face had increased greatly during this journey. There was also a feverish dash of color on that pale countenance of his.

”Me too!” The Head of the Guards, who had since lost both his legs, spoke in a low tone.

”I’m staying too!” Bei Ling turned his head away so that he could not see Chen Xin’s tears and spoke in a firm manner.

”Head of the Guards, you can’t stay. You still need to help the tribe leader protect our tribe’s safety… Besides, once you all arrive safely in Wind Stream Tribe, you will need to teach the La Sus how to use the bow…”

The one who spoke was Shan Hen.

This man, who had remained silent all this while, walked out from the crowd. He was never someone who talked a lot to begin with, but as he spoke, there was a determined air in his voice that would not be swayed.

”As for you, Bei Ling…” Shan Hen walked to Bei Ling’s side and a complicated look appeared on his face once again.

”Uncle Shan Hen, I…” Bei Ling was just about to speak when Shan Hen lifted his right hand suddenly and slammed it on the back of Bei Ling’s neck, cutting off all his words as the young man fell unconscious.

”You’re the future hope of the tribe. You cannot go… I’ll stay,” Shan Hen said calmly and walked towards Nan Song. He stood beside him and looked at all the familiar faces in the tribe. After a long while, he lowered his head.

The tribe leader from Dark Mountain Tribe walked towards them in silence. He took out a bone of some creature the size of a baby’s fist. That bone was white, just like any other normal bone. He handed it to Su Ming.

”Take it. These bones come in pairs, and they have a strange function. Once this bone turns red, it means we’ve arrived safely in Wind Stream.”

Su Ming took it silently and placed it carefully in his bosom.

The tribe leader looked at the few people who were staying back and let out a faint sigh before turning around and leading their tribe members in the direction Wind Stream Tribe.

Not many normal members from Dark Mountain Tribe were lost, but everything that they went through during the journey made all of them turn back and look at the four people standing there as they walked away. They could not stop their tears from falling.

No one could say who was the first person who waved, but very soon, all the tribe members waved their hands towards Su Ming and the other three Berserkers as they cried, bidding their farewells. They knew that these four people might not survive. They were about to do the same thing as their other tribe members who had sacrificed themselves. They would use their lives to build the final wall of defense to protect their tribe.

”Big brother Su Ming,” a young voice came forth from the crowd. It belonged to the little girl called Tong Tong. She ran forward a few steps to Su Ming, and he knelt down, patting the little girl’s hair, which was now slightly damp.

”Big brother Su Ming, once this all ends and the elder comes back, can you look for Pipi for me?”

A smile appeared on Su Ming’s face. He kissed the girl’s forehead and nodded his head.

The little girl lit up with a beautiful and sweet smile. She looked at Su Ming before she suddenly leaned in and whispered in his ear, ”Big brother Su Ming, I have a secret. Not even my mama and papa knows about it, Pipi doesn’t know about it as well. You have to come back. Once you’re back, I’ll tell you the secret.” As the little girl spoke, she bit her lip and blinked back tears before running back into the crowd.

Su Ming watched as she waved at him from within the crowd and gradually disappeared into the distance with them. Only then did his smile disappear.

It was quiet all around them. The moon in the sky was gradually getting clearer. That night, the moon was full… The full moon hung high in the sky. Once it blended together with the silence of the earth, it seemed to let out a murderous air.

The moon was brighter than the previous nights. As the light scattered on the ground, it brought out the shadows of the four people on the plains. Their shadows stood alone, but there was resolution within them.

Su Ming sat cross-legged with Lei Chen by his side. Before them was Nan Song, who had his eyes closed. As for Shan Hen, he was sitting alone nearby as he looked at the sky thinking about something.

”Lei Chen, sit behind me. You aren’t powerful enough, and you won’t be able to contribute much during battle. Let me borrow your Qi. That way, I can also protect you,” Nan Song slowly said.

Lei Chen did not hesitate. He immediately stood up and sat behind Nan Song, cross-legged. They had no idea what method Nan Song used, but a red light appeared on both of them, surrounding them.

After that, no one spoke anymore. They all waited for the arrival of their pursuers from Black Mountain Tribe.

Su Ming sat quietly as he grabbed the snow on the ground with his left hand and cleaned his uninjured left hand of all dirt. Once his left hand was clean, he took out a small bottle and brought out a red pill. Then he held it in his left hand and closed his eyes.

Time passed by, and after four hours, when the light from the moon in the sky was at its brightest, Su Ming, who still had his eyes closed, felt as if the Qi in his body was about to boil.

”They’re here!” Nan Song spoke.

Su Ming opened his eyes.