Pursuit of the Truth

Several days later, True Sacred Yin World spread the news of the wanted criminal Mo Su stepping into the foreign land. Once the numerous cultivators who were chasing after his life learned about it, their pursuits came to an end.

It did not matter whether it were the cultivators from Western Ring Nebula or those who had come from other galaxies. Once they learned of this news, slightly mixed feelings rose in their hearts. Quite a large number of them went to the peripheral edges of Western Ring Nebula’s foreign land, and as they looked at the region, they chose to leave in silence.

It was precisely because they knew of the dangers of the foreign land that even if they had come after Su Ming’s life for the rewards, a hint of respect grew in their hearts for that cultivator called Mo Su.

He had caused True Sacred Yin World of the four Great True Worlds to raise arms against him and add an additional bounty over his head. He had also released numerous ferocious beasts in many cultivation planets, breaking open one seal after another, and even forced the four Great True Worlds to shut down the Divinity Incarceration Rune. All of the True Guards of True Sacred Yin World were mobilized, and a Radix Planet had even left its region where the four Great True Worlds stationed themselves to keep a lookout over Sinful Barren Lands.

All of these might sound simple, but in truth, over the endless amount of years, besides the change in Black Ink Planet, only Mo Su alone was able to do this.

In the endless pursuit, not only had this person managed to survive, he had also killed countless pursuers. The difference between a cultivator in the initial stage of World Plane Realm might not be that great from a cultivator in Heaven Cultivation Planet, but no matter what, they were in World Plane Realm. Yet even so, even those in the initial stage of World Plane died when they ran into this Mo Su!

Only those in the middle stage of World Plane Realm could make this person avoid them. However, in the chase after his life, even Heavenly Treasure Planet had been shattered. Zhao Family’s Progenitor could not detain him, and his achievements time and again had caused him to become famous. He became a subject that almost no one did not know about in Western Ring Nebula, and the things he did were known to almost all.

This sort of person deserved respect. This was something all the pursuers that had come after him for the rewards and mostly chosen to remain silent beyond the foreign land though.

Several days later, in the area beyond the foreign land, which had become quiet once again, a sigh could be heard. An old man in rags walked out of space with unstable footsteps. There was a pot of wine in his hand. Once he walked out, he drank a mouthful of wine. As he looked at the calm foreign land, a hint of admiration appeared on his face.

’No wonder he became a wanted criminal by the four Great True Worlds and could cause such a stir in Western Ring Nebula. What courage! He actually dared to enter the foreign land to fight for his survival. If this child doesn’t die, then in the future, he will surely become a Chosen.’ The old man drank quietly. After some time, he shook his head, turned around, and left.

’Mo Su, I’ll remember your name. If you manage to come out someday, then I will invite you for a drink.’

Soon after the old man left, an innumerable amount of shattered stones appeared in space from another direction. Right when these shattered stones appeared, they gathered together to form a gigantic human made of stone. That stone human’s eyes were cold as he stared at the foreign land. He did not say a word. After some time, he let out a cold harrumph and disappeared into the galaxy.

Seven days later, a young man in white arrived near the quiet foreign land. That young man’s expression was icy cold, and there was a hint of loneliness in his gaze. He looked at the foreign land and remained silent for a very long time.

”Su Ming, you can’t die here, because the only person who has the right to kill you is me. Only me, Ye Wang! If you die here, then I will no longer have any opponents…” The young man was naturally, Ye Wang. He stood there for several hours before he turned around and left, bringing with him a hint of loneliness.

Time passed. Soon, a month went by.

If the four Great True Worlds had not sent out a new notice, then the matter regarding Mo Su would have come to an end, and this matter would just remain in the hearts of all those who’d heard of it. Perhaps it would have remained there forever, or perhaps it would have disappeared several years later.

However, the new notice caused an uproar that had never been seen before in Western Ring Nebula and the other three galaxies. Even the shock that had been stirred up when the reward of the Kalpa Treasure was offered could not compare to what was happening at this moment. The difference between them was like heaven and earth.

People began to hesitate. In fact, the people who had chosen to leave started shuddering because of this notice as well. Madness appeared in their eyes, along with an intense conflict.

The old monsters who had taken action due to the Kalpa Treasure previously were shocked as well by the four Great True Worlds’ notice. They were in disbelief. In fact, they could not imagine the reason why the four Great True Worlds would pay so much attention at this person called Mo Su. The level of attention they paid him even surpassed the amount of attention gained by Black Ink Planet.

The old monsters were not the only ones in disbelief. Even the True Guards from the four Great True Worlds were shocked by the contents of the notice, and they were… even dumbfounded.

This was the nineteenth-tier notice that was sent straight from the main camp. This notice’s tier level meant that this was a decision made together by the nineteen powerful True Generals in the main camp. In fact, the orders of the two True Divinities within the main camp were contained in the notice as well, else even the nineteen True Generals would not have been able to offer such a reward.

It could be said that the notice represented the main camp’s orders, the forces of power from the four Great True Worlds keeping a lookout over Sinful Barren Lands… and could even be said to represent the will of the four Great True Progenitors from the four Great True Worlds, who were said to no longer care about the matters of the world.

”Those who enter Western Ring Nebula’s foreign land and capture Mo Su alive… will be pardoned of all their crimes and will be free return to the four Great True Worlds… They will obtain their freedom!”

This was the content of the notice. There was no mention of World Stones, cultivation planets, or Kalpa Treasure. However, the word ’freedom’ was the greatest desire among all the cultivators within the Barren Lands of Divine Essence, and it did not matter what their level of cultivation was. For freedom, they were willing to give up on everything.

Compared to freedom, all treasures were nothing. This was the first time the four Great True Worlds had offered freedom as a bounty for a person within the Barren Lands of Divine Essence.

The shock caused by this notice was difficult to describe with words. Even the old monsters who usually isolated themselves to train and did not come out all year long within the four Great Galaxies were taken aback. In fact, some of the mighty cultivators who possessed the power of Lunar Kalpa Realm were also shaken by this notice. Their desire for freedom was so great that they would even dream of it in their sleep.

With such a reward, someone finally stepped into Western Ring Nebula’s foreign land, becoming the second person to enter after Mo Su. Gradually, more and more people entered with hearts that were ready to risk everything so that they could fight for their freedom with everything on the line.

…..

The moon in the sky shone with a gentle, luminous light. The light landed on the snow on the ground and reflected a silvery glow. The boundless snow floating down from the sky was like a beautiful song under the moonlight that echoed in the air.

The ground was filled with thick layers of snow, and although the wind was not strong, it was very cold. There were some trees there as well. The cold season caused their branches to be empty of leaves, so the only things that remained were dead trees with lots of branches.

There was a village in the distance. Under the moonlight were balls of light from the lamps, hidden behind the paper covering windows. Those lights shone with an indistinct glimmering yellow.

This was a village with only a few hundreds of people. In this dark night, the village gave people a feeling of peace and quiet. It might be due to the cold in midwinter, but even some of the mutts that were kept in the houses were hunched in corners. Even if a stranger came, they would not be willing to bark.

Occasionally, the sounds of babies crying could be heard. Soon after, a mother’s soft, comforting whispers offering protection would cause the whimpers to slowly fade away.

This was the sight Su Ming saw when he entered the foreign land with a cautious heart and with his cultivation base circulating in his base so that he could bring forth his strongest attack at any time. This was the sight he saw after he was relocated and saw his surroundings.

This serenity, this gentleness, this normalcy, these whimpers of the babies, the mothers’ whispers, and this village stunned Su Ming momentarily.

He stood on the snow, and there was plenty of it on his body, too as he looked at the village in the distance. The tranquility in this place made it impossible for him to believe that this was the foreign land.

This was not a place that was filled with dangers, where practically all those who entered died, while the few who survived refused to talk about the things they encountered even after they got out… This was clearly a peaceful place that was like paradise. In fact, when Su Ming spread his Atman outwards, he couldn’t sense even a single hint of danger in the area, nor was there any hint of power. All of these things forced Su Ming to believe that this place… was just a normal village. There were no cultivators here, and neither was there any danger.

”How could this be?” Su Ming mumbled. There was a huge disparity between this and the foreign land he imagined. In truth, even if he had ran into a place that was filled with endless dangers and countless ferocious beasts charging at him, he would not have been as bewildered as he was at that moment.

This sort of ordinary peace sent shivers down his spine.

Not only did his guard not lax, it instead became stronger. He looked at the area, and eventually, his gaze fell once again on the village. At that moment, he slowly sat down cross-legged. He did not move forward, but instead looked at the village quietly with a huge, dried-up tree by his side.

’Foreign land…’

In silence, Su Ming grabbed a handful of snow from the ground. He looked at the snow, absorbing the warmth from his hand before it slowly melted away. As he looked at the melted puddle flowing down from his palm and dripping onto the ground to leave small potholes, he frowned.

’Could it be an illusion?’ Su Ming’s eyes shone. Gradually, the bright moon appeared in his left eye and the sun in his left. During that instant, his heart became a star.

Illusion of Star, Sun, and Moon. This was the illusion type divine ability that Su Ming had understood on his own. Even those with higher levels of cultivation than his would have their hearts seen through under this illusion. At that moment, Su Ming activated this ability at full force and looked towards the village in the distance.

Yet no matter how he cast the illusion, he could not detect a single hint of change. The village was still the village. Snow was still floating down. Everything was so real that it made Su Ming’s breathing become a little rapid.

’Something’s not right. The foreign land should not be like this.’

Su Ming swiftly closed his eyes. After he covered the sun and moon in his eyes, he circulated his cultivation base through his body. After a moment, he opened his eyes. A strange light appeared in them, and he looked towards the village once again.

It was still the same.

Su Ming was silent. He felt that the area was filled with a bizarre air, but he did not choose to leave. Instead, with his guard up, he chose to remain still while seated, remaining that way until the sky was no longer dark. Once sunlight shone on the ground and the new day arrived, he still continued to look at the village.

Time passed. One day went by, and another. Su Ming sat there for half a month, but he did not manage to see a single thing that was off. He examined practically every villager of the hundreds present—every man, woman, elderly, and young—but they were all mortals.

It was the night half a month later that Su Ming’s expression suddenly changed as he remained seated. He turned his head around to look into the distance, then averted his gaze.

When midnight arrived, the sounds of galloping horses came from the distance. The snow that was sent flying into the air spread out. When bellowing laughter reached Su Ming’s ears, he saw… a team of horsemen numbering a hundred, which he had noticed several hours ago.

These people all had ferocious looks on their faces that showed their ruthless and brutal nature. As they laughed, they charged towards the village, and even brought out scimitars and battle axes. By the looks of it, they were clearly going to plunder and slaughter the village.