Pursuit of the Truth

The moment all the ferocious beasts in Crimson Flame Planet rushed out from the regions they had been sealed in, the screens of light of all sorts of colors in these sealed regions started flashing together. Once they flashed nine times, they let out a loud boom that could cause the sky and earth to crumble.

As that boom echoed in the air, all the seals on the surface of Crimson Flame Planet shattered. A tremor that could overturn the sky and earth wrecked the planet. As the loud bang reverberated in the air, Tian Lin used some sort of unknown method, and a large crack tore through the land at the center of Crimson Flame Planet, which was located at the middle of all the regions. That crack formed a gigantic ravine. It was several hundreds of thousands of feet long and ran so deep that the end could not be seen.

An incredibly thick Earthen Aura erupted from the depths of the ravine. It was so thick that it possessed color. The yellowish brown fog instantly filled half of the sky, to the point that if a person stretched out their hand before, they would be unable to see their own fingers.

Tian Lin’s voice was full of urgency as it passed through the hazy yellowish brown fog.

”The seal has been broken. We must now leave immediately into the depths of the earth and gather together below.”

Piercing sounds rang within the fog right after. Those were the sounds of people charging into the crack at full speed.

The yellowish brown fog had dyed the sky with its color, causing the murky sky in Crimson Flame Planet to look like an old man’s face that possessed a sallow hue.

Su Ming sensed his surroundings with his Atman while his sight was blocked by the fog. Everything within his vision might be a blur, but he could sense that the others were already in the ravine. He was the only one still outside.

The Crimson Python Phoenix was staring into the distance with a slight irritation. There was also a hint of unease within it. But its body was too big, and it was difficult for it to follow Su Ming into the depths of the earth.

Su Ming patted the Crimson Python Phoenix’s gigantic head, then in a flash, he turned into a long arc that charged into the crack. The bald crane followed closely behind him. As for the Crimson Python Phoenix, it hesitated for a while before deciding to wait outside.

The Earthen Aura in this place was thick, and it had a sticky sensation as it blew against Su Ming’s body. He could not help but slow down slightly. It was as if he was moving in water. When the entered the ravine and charged downwards, the big dog that was the bald crane wrinkled its nose. As it sniffed the Earthen Aura, confusion appeared in its eyes.

’Well, damn me. Why does this feel so familiar? It feels as if I’ve taken a bath before in a place that has an even thicker Earthen Aura. And I seem to remember that there were even a few women by my side when I was bathing…’

The bald crane shook its head. For some reason, ever since it came to the Barren Lands of Divine Essence, occasional bouts of absent-mindedness as well as waves of familiarity would rise in its mind.

Su Ming was surrounded by darkness as he charged forward. The ravine was incredibly deep, and it had a force that limited the reach of divine senses and Atmans, preventing him from scouting the area of less than a thousand feet. The farther down he went, the thicker the Earthen Aura became. It made it difficult for him to speed up, and the area of his Atman’s perception also grew smaller.

Su Ming’s expression was aloof, but there was caution in his eyes. He might not be traveling quickly, but he was moving forward at a steady pace. In fact, he could vaguely sense Ye Shen Tong and Sun Kun’s presences before him. Clearly, it was difficult for them to continue accelerating in this Earthen Aura as well.

Tian Lin and the old Long Li might not be within Su Ming’s area of perception, but they shouldn’t be too far off.

Yet at that moment, Su Ming’s expression suddenly changed, and his footsteps instinctively came to a halt. He swiftly looked into his storage bag. Right then, he had sensed something trembling and showing signs of awakening within his storage bag.

Su Ming was momentarily stunned, then surprised delight immediately appeared in his eyes, but his gaze instantly returned to normal.

”Did something happen at the back, fellow Daoist Su?”

Almost at the instant Su Ming’s expression returned to normal, Sun Kun stopped moving due to Su Ming’s sudden halt. While remaining cautious, he sent his words to him in the fog.

”It’s nothing. A thought just suddenly came to me. It would be difficult for us to move even half an inch forward when we reach the area underneath when the fog is already so thick in this place,” Su Ming answered while starting to charge downwards again.

”That should not be the case. The Earthen Aura in this place is gushing forward very quickly, but once it escapes, this area will become more suitable for us to move about.” As Sun Kun spoke, he slowed down slightly and waited for Su Ming so they could travel side by side. His body might be indistinct, but his voice was very clear.

”Let’s hope that’s the case.” As Su Ming answered, he charged downwards with Sun Kun.

As they moved downwards, Sun Kun’s voice suddenly dropped to a much lower volume, and in a voice that only the two of them could hear, he whispered to Su Ming, ”Fellow Daoist Su, be careful of Ye Shen Tong. That person regarded you with hostility when we met each other because he doesn’t really need a lot of power of World Planes. He came here because he was attracted by the physical strength possessed by the alien race’s mighty cultivator. He should be the same as you, having found a way to absorb the alien race’s physical power.”

Sun Kun, whose face was like that of a shopkeeper, spoke with a whisper, and once his words reached Su Ming’s ears like a feather, he did not say anything else. His face hidden in the fog was as friendly as ever, and the smile was still on his lips.

”Oh? Thank you for your kind warning, fellow Daoist Sun,” Su Ming said calmly, his face remaining as impassive as it usually was.

As the two of them spoke, a bang came from the area before them. It sounded like something had shattered. Su Ming’s pupils constricted, but right then, Tian Lin’s voice came from underneath.

”This is the end of the ravine. My fellow Daoists, please slow down slightly.”

After a moment, Su Ming and Sun Kun reached the place, and everything before their eyes immediately cleared up. The Earthen Aura might still be gushing forth fiercely from the depths of the crack, but their vision had become much clearer.

This was the depths of a long crack that seemed like it was a canyon which was a horizontal line. There were seven spots on that line, and the seemingly endless Earthen Aura was gushing out of these seven spots.

This was why once they reached the bottom of the crack, their field of vision had become much clearer. They could see everything around them, besides the areas of the seven spots from which the earthen aura was gushing out.

Tian Lin’s entire body had withered away, but there was a gentle layer of light covering his body. It made it seem as if he was an illusion, but at the same time, his aura had become much stronger than it had been a month ago.

Clearly, he had already cast the forbidden art of having his Nascent Soul changing places with his physical body.

The old Long Li was crouching down by the side, by some stones on the ground. There were a large number of cracks there, so, clearly, the booming and cracking had come from there.

Ye Shen Tong was looking around. His gaze was mostly on the Earthen Aura, though no one knew what he was thinking about.

Su Ming and Sun Kun’s arrival caught Ye Shen Tong and Tian Lin’s attention. Ye Shen Tong let out a cold chuckle before he ignored them, while Tian Lin nodded at Su Ming and Sun Kun.

”It’s much better than what I thought it would be. This place is the depths of the seal on the ground. You can also consider it as a doorway. Fellow Daoist Long has already tried breaking it just now. The stone walls in this place are brittle, they seem like they will shatter with just one strike. This means that we are in the right spot. This is… the edge of where the alien race’s mighty cultivator is sealed.

”It’s like an egg shell. The Earthen Aura coming out of the seven holes is the aura that had gathered within the seal over an endless amount of years.

”We can rest a while here. We’ll maintain our cultivation bases at peak condition and wait for the Earthen Aura to disperse a little more. Then we’ll have an even higher chance of success once we enter the mighty cultivator’s sealed region.” Once Tian Lin finished speaking, he sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes to begin meditating.

The slightly hunched Long Li seemed to have finished his observations as well. He, who was usually quiet and reserved, also sat down in the distance with an aloof demeanor. Sun Kun gave Su Ming a friendly smile. Once he swept his gaze around the place, he sat down in another corner. These three people were a certain distance away from each other. Clearly, the closer they were to the seal, the more estranged they would become with each other.

Su Ming took a few steps forward and also chose to sit down at a corner near the stone wall with a calm expression on his face. Once he sat down, his expression did not change, but he sent a small thread of his Atman outwards and had it fuse with his storage bag to observe the item that had caused his heart to tremble and ecstasy appear within him.

At that moment… there was a shattered jade box in his storage bag. That jade box had already been reduced to pieces… but there was a crimson-red poisonous wasp lying on one of the shattered pieces!

The wasp’s wings were fluttering lightly. At the instant Su Ming’s Atman landed on its body, the wasp lifted its head swiftly. Then, in the blink of an eye, it disappeared into Su Ming’s storage bag.

Yet after a moment, the poisonous wasp appeared again. It was still lying on the shattered piece, and it was as if its previous disappearance had just been an illusion. It let Su Ming’s Atman land on its body as it buzzed lightly. There was a gentle tone to that sound, accepting Su Ming’s Atman.

’It’s finally awake!’ Su Ming quelled the excitement in his heart. This sort of emotion had rarely rising within him since he’d come to the Barren Lands of Divine Essence.

The poison wasp was naturally the wasp that possessed the God Ascension Nectar within its body. Su Ming had obtained it all those years ago in the World of Nine Yin!

Su Ming had chosen to leave his Brand on the wasp after some hesitation in the past to wait for it to wake up slowly on its own. The Brand had been left on the wasp as a method for him to take in the wasp as his pet. By doing so, he would be able to gain the God Ascension Nectar in its perfect form once the wasp woke up.

After so many years, it had finally woken up on this day, and at the instant Su Ming touched it with his Atman, his heart began to race with anxiety. The wasp was powerful. It was definitely no ordinary creature to have been able to obtain the God Ascension Nectar!

The poisonous wasps of this kind were extinct in this world, so none of its kin could be found anymore. If this wasp had not gotten itself sealed inside the Crimson Stone, it would probably have not survived this long as well.

’With this poisonous wasp around, my chances of obtaining a serendipity in this place will increase slightly.’

Su Ming’s expression did not change, but when he retrieved his Atman, a focused glint suddenly appeared in his eyes. He saw Ye Shen Tong taking large strides in the distance towards the closest hole from which the Earthen Aura was gushing out. The Earthen Aura in that place was moving more swiftly and intensely compared to all other areas. It swept past his body, forcing Ye Shen Tong to stop when he was thirty feet away from it. Once he sat down cross-legged, sweat beaded on his forehead. He was actually using the Earthen Aura in this place as pressure to train.

Tian Lin’s eyes lit up, and he remarked lightly, ”Good idea, fellow Daoist Ye. If we use the Earthen Aura here as pressure against our bodies to train, then we’ll be able to adapt to the environment in the seal even faster.”