Pursuit of the Truth

”The World of Nine Yin was discovered by the Nine Li Tribe when the Shaman Tribe just appeared in the land. It is one of the bigger ruins left behind from ancient times. It seems to be located in a different dimension compared to the World of the Berserkers…

”Nine is contained in its name because the Nine Li Tribe was the one who explored the place and occupied a small region within the area. From then on, it became the territory of the God of Shamans Temple and they built the one and only city belonging to us Shamans in this place.

”The name of the city is Shaman City.” The boy’s somewhat young voice rang in Su Ming’s ears lightly.

In this place, there was a gray sky, covered by tumbling clouds. Occasionally, bolts of lightning would flash past. Thunder boomed in the sky, and due to the clouds sinking because of their heavy weight, it gave people an oppressive feeling.

”The word Yin is due to the dense aura of death contained in this place when it was first discovered. That aura of death could instantly kill a living person, and there are a lot of dangers and threats in this place as well. That’s why it was named Yin.” As the boy whispered, Su Ming swept his gaze past the area.

They were in a mountain forest filled with fog. There were no leaves on the trees in the forest, but those trees were not dried up. Instead, they had quite the hideous appearance, looking like fingers on a person’s hands, and they were scattered all over the mountain range.

”The World of Nine Yin is go big that us Shamans have only occupied a tiny part of it. However, the discoveries we made in several spots in this place allowed three types of cultivation to appear among us.

”One of them are the Soul Catchers. This cultivation method was discovered when our ancestors found a Candle Dragon’s complete carcass. Even if there are some records about ancient ferocious beasts like this that only exist in legends, most of those records are incomplete. Most people believe they were just rumors as well.

”It is impossible for there to be a being that can bring daylight by opening its eyes, then plunge the world into darkness by closing its eyes. We thought this was just a myth created by the Ancients because they did not understand how day and night works.

”However, the discovery of this corpse changed everything…” The boy’s breathing quickened and anxiety appeared in his eyes as he spoke quickly. Su Ming sat cross-legged on a mountain rock while looking at the hideous mountain forest before him. The boy stood by his side.

As for the girl, she was currently tied up by the branches of a big tree several hundreds of feet away. Her face was pale and she was struggling nonstop. There was a knife in her hands, and that knife was stuck in that tree. Green liquid seeped out of it.

”Continue,” Su Ming said languidly.

”The Candle Dragon might be dead, but there is a powerful will left in its complete carcass. The ancestors of Shamans discovered that only certain people with certain constitutions can absorb a hint of that will into their bodies and use it for their cultivation. With the body as the foundation, the person will practice the divine abilities contained within the Candle Dragon’s will!

”This is the origins of Soul Catchers… But for some unknown reason, the Candle Dragon’s corpse cannot be brought out of this place, that’s why we hold the legacy of the Month of Spirits once every decade… On the beginning of the Month of Spirits, each tribe will bring out the Soul Stones they’ve prepared and let the tribe members who can let these Soul Stones shine enter the World of Nine Yin through the power of the Soul Stones activated by the God of Shamans Temple’s Spell.”

The boy’s voice was trembling. He saw that the girl’s face had turned stark white, and she seemed like she was already losing her grip on the knife. There was even a hint of the aura of death on her face.

However, she was still struggling.

”Senior, please save Lan Lan. She…she’s going to die. She should know that she made a mistake now. Please…”

Su Ming’s expression still remained as calm as ever. He cast a cold glance at the boy and stated, ”Continue.”

The boy shuddered, then after remaining silent for a while, he spoke softly once again.

”Besides the Candle Dragon’s corpse, they also discovered an altar here. That altar is made of a creature’s skull. Rumors say that it’s incredibly big. There’s a power contained in that altar that won’t lose to the Candle Dragon’s. That power is not a will, but is instead a strange power that cannot be described.

”Most of the Shamans who fall under the influence of this power will start hallucinating until they die… Only some people will not die after they see those hallucinations. Once they break out of those hallucinations, they will possess a similar power to that altar. Those are Thought Soothsayers…”

As the boy spoke, the girl’s struggles gradually grew weaker. She had trouble breathing, and her face was breathless. The knife in her hand fell to the ground. At the same time, the strange tree lifted another branch slowly. The tip of that branch was beyond sharp, and that tip was sent hurling to the girl’s forehead.

Yet the moment the branch closed in, green light shone on Su Ming’s body. The small virescent sword shot out and swept past that branch with one slash, cutting it down. Then, the small virescent sword flashed one more time and moved on to cut down all the branches on the tree. It also circled the girl once to immediately shatter the branch around her body. She fell to the ground.

She gritted her teeth, and once she struggled to her feet, she grabbed the knife. She did not immediately run back to Su Ming, but instead turned around and stabbed the knife deep into tree, causing it to tremble violently. During that time, the girl pulled out the knife and quickly ran back to Su Ming.

When she was ten feet away from him, she fell to her knees with a crash and her head lowered. She was still pale.

”Senior, I… I made a mistake…”

”What is your mistake?” Su Ming cast the girl a glance. There were many bruises on her skin, and she was also covered in her own blood.

”I should not have gone for the knife on the tree due to my own greed after we were Relocated here and before you said anything about it, then went a hundred feet away from you to try and get it… Please give me one more chance, I won’t be so reckless anymore.”

The girl had her head bowed down. Fear was still lingering on her face. The thing that had happened just now made her truly feel death and despair.

”You didn’t do anything wrong.” With a profound gaze, Su Ming looked at the girl through the mask.

She was taken aback. She lifted her head to look at Su Ming, and confusion appeared on her face.

”If you want to obtain something, then you must pay for it. If the reward is great, then the price for it will be greater… Riches will only be gained if you take risks. If you like this knife, then you must be prepared to pay the price when you take it.

”Your experience about that encounter is that price. Think about it carefully. I might have made a promise with your patriarch, but I will only save you three times,” Su Ming stated calmly.

”You are bold, but sensitive. You knew that even if you ran into danger, I would save you. You are better than him in this regard. However, even though you are still weak, you have already become very reliant on others and are not cautious enough, nor do you have much awareness of the threats around you. In this regard, you cannot compare to him.” Su Ming averted his gaze from the girl and looked at the gray sky in the distance.

”Ahu, continue speaking.”

The boy cast a concerned look at the girl kneeling on the ground, then lowered his head and voiced his obedience before he continued speaking beside Su Ming.

”The third place is a mass grave that is the burial ground for an unknown number of corpses. The thickness of the aura of death over there is said to be so thick that it has already gained physical form. That spot is the birthplace of Spirit Mediums.

”Those with a Spirit Medium’s constitution are said to be able to sense the grief of the deceased over there, and from there, begin to pity the dead while becoming cold towards the living, and they will gain the power of death from that feeling.

”The area of a million lis about the Shaman City is Shaman territory, it is also where the Shamans have set their roots in this land. The area past that one million lis is forbidden grounds. All the tribe members who come to this place are not allowed to step into the forbidden grounds…

”Few of those who step outside manage to survive…” As the boy continued speaking, the girl sat down beside Su Ming, and the words he had told her previously echoed in her head. She dipped her head down to look at the knife in her hands, as if she was absorbed in her own thoughts.

”As the Month of Spirits arrives, there will be different people with Soul Catchers’ constitutions who will be sent to different locations within the Shaman’s territory here, and none of them will be able to control where they are sent to.

”However, once they arrive, they must remember three things. One, do not try and explore the area. Check the mark on the Soul Stone quickly and head to Shaman City with the fastest speed possible.

”Over there, register your identity and your tribe to obtain the map and items provided by the God of Shamans Temple. Only then will you be able to start your journey to obtain the cultivation method of Soul Catchers…

”Two, it is forbidden for any Shamans to fight amongst themselves. All Shamans who have not completed their journey and obtained the cultivation method of Soul Catchers are not allowed to form alliances with those from other tribes who have also come for the journey. Forming alliances and joining teams can only be done after we have completed our journey and obtained the cultivation method for Soul Catchers.

”Three, do not be greedy. Once you completed your journey and obtained the cultivation method for Soul Catchers, immediately head back to Shaman City.” Once he said those words, the boy cast Su Ming a glance. When he saw that Su Ming still looked as calm as ever, he continued speaking.

”There are several types of dangers in the World of Nine Yin. The first type is invaders from other worlds. It would be difficult for us to avoid killing each other if we ran into them.

”The second type is from the tribes of the Shaman Tribe itself. Since there are less than a hundred who complete the journey and obtain the cultivation method for Soul Catchers during each Month of Spirits, we can deduce somewhat that there might be a set amount of people who can obtain the cultivation method for Soul Catchers.

”Perhaps if there are too many people, it will be difficult for us to absorb a sufficient amount of the Candle Dragon’s will, but there might be other reasons as well, so we have to be careful of the other Shamans…

”The third is the numerous seals in this place, along with the threats caused by the countless amounts of ferocious beasts here…” The boy stopped speaking for a moment.

”Senior, I’ve finished speaking… My patriarch told me to tell you these after I came here. I didn’t miss a single world. I already memorized this countless times in the tribe.” As the boy spoke, he looked at Su Ming nervously.

Su Ming looked as calm as ever, but he was feeling rather displeased. The Patriarch from White Bull Tribe didn’t mention that there would be fights between other Shamans here. If that’s the case, he won’t be able to complete this task so easily.

However, due to his respect for the old man from White Bull Tribe and the fact that he was shocked by the item the old man brought out, since Su Ming agreed to help, he would not say much about it.

He stood up and said flatly, ”Check where Shaman City is and how far it is from here. We’ll go and register your tribe there first. We won’t stay for long after that. We’ll be leaving the city immediately.”

The girl immediately brought out the Soul Stone from her bosom, bit her finger, forced out a drop of blood, and pressed her finger on the Soul Stone. The stone immediately shone with a weak light that showed them the way.

”We need to travel approximately three hundred thousand lis from here…” The girl let out a sigh of relief and pointed in the direction of the strange forest. They were already considered lucky to be able to be sent to a spot three hundred thousand lis away from Shaman City, under the circumstances that they could be randomly Relocated within an area of a million lis.

”Let’s go.” Su Ming walked forward calmly. Green light shone on him, and the small sword circled around them to protect the boy and girl as they followed him into the strange forest.