Pursuit of the Truth

In the end, Hu Zi could not find it in himself to give a show of the contents in the beast skin book to Su Ming with the bald crane. As he was struck by a cloud of gloom, he looked at Su Ming helplessly, then patted his own forehead, thinking that he was indeed the most intelligent person in the ninth summit, or at the very least smarter than his youngest junior brother. Otherwise, why would he understand things that his youngest junior brother did not and even played them out in his dreams multiple times...?

That was why he decided to bring out some of the beast skin books that he had hidden away so that second senior brother would not be able to take them and handed them to Su Ming.

Once he did so, the bald crane quickly went to Su Ming’s side. Yu Xuan, too, widened her eyes and looked closely at the beast skin book. She refused to admit defeat, thinking that no matter how profound a divine ability was, she would not necessarily be unable to see some clues about it.

Su Ming also turned his attention to the beast skin book. Once he took it, he opened it, but at just the first glance, he was stunned. After a moment, he frowned. Once he mulled over it, a strange look gradually appeared on his face.

The bald crane was dumbfounded at first, but then it let out a long breath, and its eyes begun to shine. It stared at the pictures on the beast skin book, its breathing quickening.

Yu Xuan stared at the pictures in the beast skin book for a long while before her brows slowly furrowed, but there was still mostly bewilderment on her face. This is why she snatched the beast skin book from Su Ming’s hand and started examining it carefully.

Su Ming let out a fake cough, then his gaze landed on Hu Zi, who immediately put on an aggrieved expression. When Su Ming looked towards his second senior brother, the man quickly picked up a pot of wine and pretended to drink from it.

”Little dummy Su, this divine ability is really easy, why don’t you understand it? I just don’t know why they don’t wear clothes when they train, though…” Yu Xuan plopped her chin on her left hand and flipped through the beast skin book with puzzlement on her face.

Judging by her expression, she was not joking. Yu Xuan did indeed not understand what was drawn in the book.

”I don’t know why either.”

Su Ming quickly picked up his wine cup and drank from it, wanting to avoid the topic. He had understood it somewhat, but the more he understood it, the more it showed just how naive Yu Xuan was.

It was also at this moment that Su Ming noticed a trace of adorableness about Yu Xuan for the first time…

Yu Xuan flipped through a few more pages before she looked at Su Ming and said, ”No, your expression is off. You must know why! Tell me! Why don’t we try practicing it? But we have to wear clothes, though.”

Su Ming nearly spat out his drink, then immediately snatched the beast skin book from Yu Xuan’s hands and threw it back to his second senior brother. As he let out a few dry coughs, he found that he could not remember just how long it had been since he had been caught in such an awkward situation.

Bai Su covered her mouth and laughed by the side. When she saw that Yu Xuan was still trying to figure out the secrets in the beast skin book, she laughed out loud till her body started trembling, and when she saw the rare, awkward look on Su Ming’s face, she became even happier.

”Alright now, we’ll talk about this later. Yu Xuan, Bai Su, please go rest. Us fellow brothers have something to discuss with each other.” Second senior brother put away the beast skin book into his bosom while also letting out a few fake coughs and languidly told others to disperse.

Bai Su stood up obediently. Yu Xuan continued wondering about the things in the book, but when she saw the mutt grinning with a smug look, she went and kicked it before grabbing the fur at the mutt’s neck and leaving with Bai Su.

She would not have originally left so easily, but at that moment, Yu Xuan had something important to do, and that was to think about the pictures on that beast skin book and what exactly were the secrets contained within them. She lifted the mutt, which was now swathed in misery after that bout of delight, and left after turning into a long arc.

As for the bald crane and Qian Chen, once an unknown thought rose in the bald crane’s heart, it cast a profound look at Qian Chen, and continued to stare at him until goosebumps appeared on his face. Then, the crane sat down on Qian Chen’s body and continued treating him as its stead as they left as well.

At that moment, only Su Ming and his senior brothers were left at the top of the ninth summit. Su Ming drank his wine in huge gulps, and when he downed his eighth cup, he lifted his head and glared at Hu Zi and his second senior brother.

Second senior brother looked as calm as ever. As he smiled, he even nodded at Su Ming before he took a sip from his wine cup.

Hu Zi, however, had a miserable look on his face. When he saw Su Ming looking over, he immediately spoke.

”Youngest junior brother, those beast skin books belong to second senior brother…”

”Nonsense, they belong to Master!”

”But your presence is in them…”

”Damn it all! That was Master imitating my presence! Those really belong to Master!” Second senior brother could no longer keep the calm smile on his face and glared at Hu Zi as he spoke.

Su Ming watched Hu Zi and his second senior brother bicker about who was the owner of that beast skin book. He smiled wryly and shook his head, then picked up the pot of wine and took a big swig from it.

”It might not belong to Master. It might actually belong to… eldest senior brother?” Hu Zi blinked.

”Huh, that’s also a possibility. It might actually belong to eldest senior brother!” Second senior brother immediately smiled.

”Honestly, I think there’s also a possibility that it belongs to youngest junior brother…” Hu Zi cast a sideways glance at Su Ming.

Before second senior brother could agree to his words, Su Ming quickly put down his pot of wine with a very solemn expression.

”That beast skin book belongs to Master!” Su Ming said seriously.

Second senior brother instantly put on a serious look. Once he nodded, he said to Hu Zi, ”That’s right. Even youngest junior brother agrees to it, so it looks like it really belongs to Master. Or perhaps it belongs to eldest senior brother. Eldest senior brother, if you don’t speak up, I’ll take it that you shook your head. Eldest senior brother won’t lie, so it must really belong to Master.”

Hu Zi’s mouth twitched. Eldest senior brother no longer had a head, so there was no way he could actually shake his head.

Su Ming and second senior brother had already told Hu Zi about what happened to eldest senior brother. Only since he knew about the reason behind why eldest senior brother was missing and that he was still alive did Hu Zi have the heart to talk about the question of the owner of those beast skin books.

”Alright, they belong to Master. Well, Master has no respectable qualities despite his age anyway, and he often uses my Runes to peek at others… It’s very logical that he hides such things.” Hu Zi immediately moved to stand with his second senior brother and Su Ming.

But as he spoke, he fell silent. The joyful atmosphere that surrounded them previously gradually disappeared as if it was blown away by the sea breeze.

As the moon shone on them and Hu Zi fell silent, second senior brother did not speak up, either. Instead he looked at the sea and the sky. There was a slightly melancholic look on his face.

Su Ming drank his wine quietly.

”I miss Master…” Hu Zi mumbled softly.

”When I reached Eastern Wastelands, I searched everywhere, but I only managed to find some clues. It seems like Master has already left the land of Berserkers and went out of Yin Death Region… At that time, I was ambushed and chased down by the Immortals. In the end, Di Tian attacked and suppressed me under Great Leaf Immortal Sect…

”Many years later, I sensed eldest senior brother’s presence approaching the place where I was…” Second senior brother picked up his pot of wine and took huge gulps from it. Sadness filled his face.

”I slayed all of Di Tian’s clones in the place where Immortals descend and eventually killed his magical body as well. As one of the Immortals’ Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors, it will be difficult for Di Tian to descend to the land of Berserkers again in a short period of time.

”Eldest senior brother was captured alive by Di Tian all those years ago because he wanted to turn him into his clone, but in the end, eldest senior brother used Di Tian and returned to his roots by cutting his own head. He took up his battle axe and named himself Xing Gan…” Su Ming mumbled as he looked at his eldest senior brother’s statue.

”I only knew that second senior brother is in Great Leaf Immortal Sect because eldest senior brother told me about it. Eldest senior brother once said that Master’s presence was no longer in the land of Berserkers, but that Master was not dead. There can only be one explanation for this… It’s just as you said, second senior brother, Master has left the land of Berserkers.” Su Ming remained silent for a moment, then drank his wine.

”Then we can be certain that Master has left the land of Berserkers.” A dark light shone in second senior brother’s eyes as he mumbled under his breath.

”What could have caused Master to leave the land of Berserkers in such a hurry that he would not even have time to tell us?”

”Unless… Master did not go willingly, but instead had run into an accident, or had even run into a powerful enemy!”

”Morning Dao Sect” Hu Zi suddenly lifted his head and looked at second senior brother.

He remained silent for a moment, then nodded.

Su Ming looked at them. He had a feeling that Hu Zi and second senior brother knew a secret that he did not.

Hu Zi fell silent. A smile appeared on second senior brother’s lips, but that smile showed a biting cold killing intent. Su Ming remained calm, but the murderous aura within his calm composure was the thickest among the three of them.

”Yu Xuan’s mutt is a World Traversing Abyss Dragon. That lass must have been able to come to the land of Berserkers because of it. With that dragon, we might be able to leave the land of Berserkers and Yin Death Region to head to the land of Immortals.” A glint appeared in second senior brother’s eyes.

”Qian Chen is also not a Berserker. He’s a person who descended to our land, but he’s not an Immortal. The way he descended is different from the others, and we had an agreement before that he would take me to the place he descended,” Su Ming said calmly.

”Hmph, that bald crane has its own secrets as well. I brought it to my Dream before, and it did not notice that I saw some of its memories here and there. That bald crane is not a spirit from the land of Berserkers, but neither did it come from the land of Immortals. It came from True Morning Dao World. It seems like it has quite a complicated relationship with that Morning Dao Sect that Master mentioned before.” A lively sparkle appeared in Hu Zi’s eyes. At that moment, the simple and honest demeanor could no longer be found on him. Instead, there was a rather crafty look on his face.

”Youngest junior brother, you entered Master’s tutelage late and joined the battle between the Shamans and Berserkers soon after. Then, you were alone outside… There are many things you don’t know about. Master did not have time to tell you those things before he went missing either.” Second senior brother looked at Su Ming when he spoke. He had already managed to tell the questions in Su Ming’s mind.

”Master is a Berserker… but the sect he entered and the skills he inherited were not from the land of Berserkers but an incredibly huge galactical sect within True Morning Dao World. There are an endless number of disciples in that sect, and it’s the most powerful sect in True Morning Dao World!

”More accurately speaking, that sect is the reason why True Morning Dao World exists!

”The entire True Morning Dao World and even the Immortals’ Three Sovereigns and five Emperors are just a part of that world. That sect is too big, and its name is Morning Dao Sect. True Morning Dao World is in truth… this sect!”

A glint appeared in Su Ming’s eyes. He had never heard of this before.

”Master told us all of these when he thought the time was right. He had intended to tell it to you once the battle between the Shamans and Berserkers ended… but before he could manage to do so, he went missing.” Second senior brother looked at the sea and the sky, and an expression that said he missed Master appeared on his face.