Pursuit of the Truth

Nan Gong Hen was standing on the fourth mountain in the sky, right before a gigantic, dark silver statue of three hundred something feet, and he had hesitation etched on his face.

The presence exuded by the statue far exceeded all of its kind in the first mountain. His body was not just much stronger than his contemporaries, but he was filled with an air that struck fear in people’s hearts. There were many scars on his body, and there was a feeling of age coming from them.

He held a gigantic battle axe in his hand, and it was about one hundred feet big. The murderous aura around it made Nan Gong Hen not dare to get closer to it.

‘This is the Dark Bronze Spirit of Nine Yin, and he is the strongest existence in the fourth mountain. Very few people have been able to rent it. From what I know, he has only ventured out eight times!

‘Once I go to the fifth layer, there will only be Platinum Spirits of Nine Yin there. But while the Platinum Spirits of Nine Yin are stronger the Dark Bronzes, they are only at the base level of the fifth layer. Compared to the strongest Dark Bronze here, the difference between them isn’t really that great… but the price this statue gave… it’s just too ridiculous! It’s even more expensive than the fifth layer!’

Nan Gong Hen remained incredibly indecisive. Before he came to this place, his original plan was to reach the fifth layer, but once he saw the Dark Bronze statue, he wavered in his decision once again.

Just as he was hesitating, Nan Gong Hen cast a look at the land beneath the mountain. From this place, he could see the third, second, and first mountains vaguely.

‘Oh well, I might as well go to the fifth mountain and take a look before I make a decision!’ Nan Gong Hen gritted his teeth and left the statue reluctantly, then moved to the top of the mountain.

”Hah… the amount of money we have in our hands is different, while I’m hesitating about whether I should be choosing the fourth or fifth mountain, Mo Su should only be at most be able to make offerings to the Spirits of Nine Yin in the second mountain. After all, without ample preparation, it would be difficult for anyone to start making offerings in the third mountain and above,” Nan Gong Hen mumbled under his breath, and he felt a little pleased in his heart, and that feeling dissipated some of the dejectedness he felt just now.

‘Once I rent my Spirit of Nine Yin, then at the very least, I would be able to turn tables on him!’ Nan Gong Hen smiled faintly, and his spirits lifted.

At that moment, Su Ming was walking calmly up the stairs of the second mountain. There were fewer statues in the second mountain compared to the first. There were only about to one hundred or so, and their armor was more complete. They also had more varied weapons.

The pressure of the powerful from their bodies was also stronger than those in the first mountain. By the looks of it, while they might not be in the middle stage of the Berserker Soul Realm, they should be at least at the peak of the initial stage of that Realm.

There were less than ten Shamans in the second mountain, and all of them had dark expressions on their faces as they wandered about the statues, as if they were uncertain about which one they should choose.

Su Ming casually chose a statue and pressed his right hand against it. After a moment, when he lifted his right hand and a glint appeared in his eyes.

‘Five thousand superior Shaman Crystals per day… then if I stay here for a month, I would need one hundred fifty thousand Shaman Crystals, and if I stay here for several months, I would need several hundreds of thousands of Shaman Crystals. This sort of price is unthinkable for a person in a small tribe. Even a person from a middle-sized tribe would need to tighten his belt to rent this.

‘They also added more Scattering Dusts. They want three pills once every three days.’

Su Ming remembered that the Shaman Crystal vein White Bull Tribe and Black Crane Tribe were fighting for had less than twenty thousand Shaman Crystals, and those that could be considered superior quality should be rare and in between. Even if he extracted all of these and brought them here, he might not even be able to get this Spirit of Nine Yin to follow him for four days.

‘No wonder the person who found the Nine Abyss Flower didn’t come and rent a Spirit of Nine Yin. The price… is too high! But in other words, Scattering Dusts are hard to get even if someone offers to buy one for several tens of thousands of Shaman Crystals. If I just bring out one, while the price for it may be great, but if I can bring three out in one go, then the price will blow up exponentially.’ Su Ming’s heart pounded against his chest, and he walked to the top of the second mountain.

He did not stop any longer. Once he reached the top of the mountain, he stepped into the Relocation Rune in this place, and with a flash, he disappeared from this place. When he reappeared, he was already at the much higher third mountain.

There were already less than one hundred statues in the third mountain, only about a few dozen. The armor these statues wore practically covered them from head to toe, and most of them were decked in complete sets. They were also about two hundred feet tall, looking like tiny hills. The pressure they exuded made Su Ming’s breathing quicken.

The strength of that pressure was much greater than what he felt from Tie Mu. In fact, it was much stronger than the Berserker now turned Poison Corpse he had met, who was in the initial stage of the Berserker Soul Realm.

‘Could it be… that these statues are already an existence equivalent to those in the middle stage of the Berserker Soul Realm? If that’s truly the case, then those in the fourth mountain would be at the peak of the middle stage of the Berserker Soul Realm, and those in the fifth mountain… would be in the latter stage of the Berserker Soul Realm?

‘If that’s the case, then what sort of power do those in the sixth, seventh… and up to the ninth have?!’

Su Ming walked around in the third mountain. Not counting him, there were six Shamans standing beside different statues, as if they were communicating with them. When Su Ming had only travelled one hundred feet into the third mountain, suddenly, the mountain trembled. He immediately saw a gigantic statue reviving, and once the warrior opened his eyes, he lifted his head and roared towards the sky.

His roars shook the sky and earth, causing the space around the area to distort. Soon after, the statue flew up and swung the gigantic, long halberd in midair. The presence he exuded instantly made Su Ming feel an immense pressure.

As the statue flew up, a tall and lean, long-haired man dressed in a blue robe laughed and jumped up to stand on the statue’s shoulder. The statue did not seem to mind, turning into a long arc and charging to the exit with the man.

Su Ming’s expectations grew stronger. He took a few brisk steps, and once he arrived at the top of the third mountain, he stepped into the Relocation Rune, disappearing into it. All those in the third mountain could see the Rune flashing. Three of the few remaining people lifted their heads to look over, but their expressions were calm, and there were not many changes on their faces.

After all, there were some people who could not offer more money, but would still try to go to a higher level to have a look before they left. They had seen many of such people before.

When Su Ming appeared at the fourth mountain, Nan Gong Hen was in the fifth mountain looking at a statue that was four hundred feet tall and was no longer black but so white it was like silver. There were some fine runic symbols on his armor, and he looked incredibly gorgeous and extraordinary.

His appearance alone was already far better than the statues’ in the fourth layer.

‘Twenty five thousand Shaman Crystals per day, and I must pay for ninety days in a go… or I can offer some items that are rare even in the World of Nine Yin… this price is still a little reasonable. It’s far less than the guy from the fourth layer. That one from the fourth layer actually asked for thirty thousand Shaman Crystals, the nerve! And I even have to pay for at least one hundred eight days in a go.’

Nan Gong Hen automatically ignored the other rental alternatives the statue offered besides the Shaman Crystals. To him, Shaman Crystals were the main focus.

When he was observing these statues, he had also noticed the Relocation Light from the third mountain. He turned his head around and cast a glance at the area underneath before ignoring it. Instead, he walked to the next statue. He wanted to choose a statue that was the cheapest in the area but whose strength was not that much different from the others.

‘It’s a pity that these Spirits of Nine Yin are all so prideful, and each of them increasingly so. There is absolutely no room for negotiation. If I tried to haggle, I wouldn’t hear any sort of answer. It’d be as if they were ignoring me.’ Nan Gong Hen shook his head.

Including Su Ming, there were only three people in the fourth mountain choosing their Spirits of Nine Yin. There was one who was standing by the mountainside, and there was one who stood at the three hundred something feet tall dark bronze statue covered in scars where Nan Gong Hen had lingered around earlier while struggling in uncertainty. That person also looked undecided.

It was an old man. By the looks of it, he had arrived at the peak of a Medial Shaman and was only a step away from becoming a Latter Shaman. He stared at the statue and sighed.

As Su Ming walked on the fourth mountain and looked at these statues that were much higher than those in the third mountain, he found that there were less than fifty of them in this place.

As he continued walking forward, Su Ming’s gaze was immediately attracted by a scar-ridden statue at the mountainside. The statue was the one Nan Gong Hen had been observing earlier, and he was also the cause of the old man’s sighing.

Su Ming walked towards the statue slowly and he looked over calmly. There was nothing around the statue, neither was there any other of his kind in his vicinity. He stood there alone, and his armor was filled with scratches. It was plain that he had gone through much battle throughout his life. The murderous aura spreading out from that gigantic battle axe made Su Ming’s pupils shrink.

The old man cast Su Ming a glance, then ignored him. Instead, he continued wavering in his decision, and the struggle in his eyes became stronger.

Once Su Ming walked closer, he lifted his right hand and pressed it on the statue. The instant he did so, a hoarse voice immediately echoed in his mind.

‘Thirty thousand Shaman Crystals per day. If you want my protection, then you need to pay for one hundred eighty days in one go. If you agree to it, then I will protect you from all danger within my power, but not anything beyond.’ The voice only said those words, and once he finished, his words lingered in the air before dispersing.

Su Ming was stunned. This was the first Spirit of Nine Yin he had met that only stated the amount of Shaman Crystals he wanted but did not mention the equivalent amount of medicinal pills as an alternative.

As Su Ming was caught in a daze, the old man by his side seemed to have made his decision. He had thought about it for a long time. After all, this was a hefty sum. If it was thirty thousand per day, then it would be about five million superior Shaman Crystals for one hundred eighty days. Even to big tribes, this was an incredible fortune. No one would offer this amount of money easily.

Once the old man made his decision, he no longer bothered with Su Ming. He pressed his right hand on the statue as if he was communicating with the Spirit of Nine Yin. After a moment, light immediately started shining in the statue’s eyes. A powerful presence instantly spread out from his body, and his presence swept through the area like a vortex, causing his body to rapidly reawaken.

‘I am the best warrior of this layer. Choosing me is better for you than choosing those tribe members of mine in the fifth layer.’ Humming sounds traveled out of the statue’s mouth. This was the first time Su Ming had seen one of these statues speaking, and a sharp glint instantly shone in his eyes.

As the old man’s face was lit with excitement, Su Ming suddenly sent a trail of his divine sense into the reviving statue.

‘If it’s Scattering Dusts, what is your price?’