Pursuit of the Truth

The Phala of Dao Verification came from the Tree of Dao Verification. That tree was not in Ancient Zang, but in a shattered dimension. Legends had it that the Dao Verification Art did not belong to Ancient Zang in the distant past.

However, the Emperor of Ancient Zang had used his power of Boundless Dao Realm to tear apart space and step into the world that practically all the cultivators in Ancient Zang found incredibly mysterious even up to this date. In fact, there were quite a lot of people who still did not know that it even existed.

That world proclaimed itself to be the beginning of the universe and was the homeland of the Tree of Dao Verification. It was a huge tree that reached the heavens and provided nourishment to all the lives in that world, giving rise to countless powerful warriors!

There were nine continents in that world, and on each continent was a butterfly. They were the spirits of the continents and existences that were the same state of being as the Tree of Dao Verification. They served as the pillars of support allowing the lives on the continents to multiply.

The Emperor of Ancient Zang’s entry had immediately caught the attention of the beings in that world. A huge war broke out, and the Emperor of Ancient Zang fought against the strongest of that world—a powerful warrior named Gou Hong. They had engaged in an astonishing battle of Arts.

The details of the battle were recorded in ancient scrolls that no one could read except for the members of the royal family, and even then, those of the royal family harboring secrets and who were not emperors could not read them. They only knew that the Emperor of Ancient Zang returned with grave injuries while dragging with him the Tree of Dao Verification. He left the tree in the tunnel connecting Ancient Zang and that world, which then became a shattered dimension.

After that, the Phala of Dao Verification from the tree became a supreme treasure that all the cultivators of Ancient Zang sought for at least once in their lives!

As for the Emperor of Ancient Zang, once he returned to the royal capital, he chose to enter isolated training… After several tens of thousands of years, the princes of that time incidentally discovered that cracks had appeared on the Emperor of Ancient Zang’s life plate, and in their shock, they immediately gathered the entire royal family together to activate the chamber where the Emperor of Ancient Zang isolated himself… only to discover that the Emperor of Ancient Zang had disappeared from his tightly sealed isolation grounds.

That was a legend recorded on a jade slip, and Su Ming held it in his hand.

He sat at the sixth layer of Sky Beyond the Sky and stared at the jade slip that recorded the origin of the Tree of Dao Verification. It was an item Gu Tai had delivered to him. Su Ming’s expression was calm as he held the jade slip, but a huge storm raged in his heart due to the words on it.

His breathing became slightly faster while he held the jade slip and sat in the sixth layer. Gradually, he became unable to keep his gaze calm, so he chose to close his eyes.

But even though he could close his eyes, he could not quell the storm in his heart. It had turned into a loud sound that continuously roared in his mind.

‘That world has nine continents, and there are nine butterflies who serve as the spirits of those continents… If these nine butterflies are Harmonious Morus Alba…’ Su Ming opened his eyes swiftly.

‘Then that explains Harmonious Morus Alba’s origin. When an accident happened to that world or it crumbled, the nine spirits fled. They flew through the endless Vast Expanse in search for a place suitable enough to serve as their home… In the end, one of the Harmonious Morus Alba became tired, and when it rested in the Vast Expanse, a world was born in its wings.’ Su Ming’s eyes shone with a contemplative light.

‘Emperor of Ancient Zang… Is there a possibility that Xuan Zang is in truth not the third prince… but the Emperor of Ancient Zang?’ Su Ming’s eyes shrank swiftly.

‘The Emperor of Ancient Zan fought against Gou Hong, the strongest of that world. The emperor might have won, destroyed that world, and killed Gou Hong, but he also paid the price of being so gravely injured that he almost died!

‘Once he returned to the Ancient Zang of that time, he wanted to recover from his injuries, but in the end, he could not do so, and so his life plate shattered… but he was not willing to die just like that, which was why he cast some unknown divine ability before sitting down on the Feng Shui compass with the nine Reversed Spirit Pearls in his hand and went to absorb Harmonious Morus Alba in the Vast Expanse. He searched for the Reversed Spirits… because he’s aiming to resurrect himself!’

When Su Ming thought of that, his eyes shone brilliantly. A huge storm raged in his heart. He had realized that if his guess was real, then in truth…

He might seem to be Possessing Xuan Zang at that moment, but in truth, he was on the verge of losing, because he was not fighting against Xuan Zang, but the third prince. In fact, he did not even know his real identity, so how could he even dream of the day when he would successfully Possess him?

This discovery immediately caused cold sweat to break out on Su Ming’s forehead. His grip around the jade slip tightened, and he gradually narrowed his eyes.

In silence, he chose to bury the matter deep in his heart so that it would become one of his many assumptions. Then, he put away the jade slip and slowly closed his eyes.

There was no need for Su Ming to rush it. He knew that he could not make a mistake in this step. If he did… he would no longer be himself. He was attempting the most difficult Possession in his life, and he could not afford to make any mistakes.

He had to think about each of his decisions and resolutions carefully before he could take a step forward… because he could no longer turn back from this path.

If he succeeded, he knew he would become Xuan Zang. When he opened his eyes, he would see the Vast Expanse and the hope to resurrect all the people in his memories.

If he failed… Su Ming knew that he would no longer be himself.. Instead… Xuan Zang would be the one who would open his eyes.

Time trickled by, and decades passed while Su Ming meditated in the sixth layer of Seven Moons Sect’s Sky Beyond the Sky. As time flowed into the distance like a stream of water, the day when the Tree of Dao Verification would bear fruit drew closer.

On the autumn of one year, Su Ming opened his eyes in the sixth layer of Sky Beyond the Sky and watched the rain fall from the sky, bringing a cooling breeze with it. He watched the rain pour on the ground, and in his third eye, the fourth overlapping shadow of his Dao Spirit was no longer completely blurry. Instead, its outline could be seen. If no external force arrived to help with its manifestation, then while it would take time, Su Ming could still use his own power to completely form his fourth Dao Spirit.

When the autumn rain poured on the world outside, bell tolls echoed from the distance in Seven Moons Sect. There was an ancient tone to that sound, and it stirred up ripples in the sky and earth, making the autumn rain tremble. All the cultivators in Seven Moons Sect lifted their heads.

Nearly six-tenths of Seven Moons Sect’s elite cultivators—numbering to more than two hundred thousand—turned into countless long arcs that rose into the sky of Seven Moons Sect.

Gu Tai, Xu Zhong Fan, Dao Han… all thirteen great sect elders took action. Most of the sect elders also followed them. With the two hundred thousand cultivators, they rose into the sky while it was the season of autumn rain in the world.

At the same time, a dark cloud appeared under their feet. It was huge and covered the ground as well as Seven Moons Sect, which meant that all of the two hundred thousand cultivators could sit on it.

Lightning flashed in the cloud, which had a powerful and mighty pressure. The item, which seemed like a dark cloud, was in truth an extremely powerful Enchanted Treasure of Seven Moons Sect. Besides the power it had, it could also move through the heavens and earth. It could bring the cultivators of Seven Moons Sect to the battle of Dao Verification!

“Su Ming!” Gu Tai’s ancient voice echoed in the sixth layer of Sky Beyond the Sky, and Su Ming slowly stood up.

“It is time. We… will accompany you to the battle of Dao Verification!” At the instant Gu Tai’s voice rang out, the two hundred thousand something cultivators all voiced their obedience!

They spoke in unison, and when their voices rang out, they were like the roars of the world that shook the skies. The next moment, a Feng Shui compass appeared under Su Ming’s feet, and he turned into a long arc that charged into the sky. The five white dogs followed after him. All of them instantly broke out of the sixth layer of Sky Beyond the Sky to appear in front of the dark cloud. With a single step, they stepped on it.

The moment Su Ming arrived, the dark cloud let out a loud rumble and instantly rushed forward, leaving behind an afterimage of its figure in the sky above Seven Moons Sect. By then, its true form had already left far into the distant sky.

The afterimage only disappeared after a long while, and during that time, countless rays of light from Runes appeared inside and outside Seven Moons Sect. All of them had been activated at that moment. When the Runes were put to use, Seven Moons Sect hid itself from the land. If anyone looked over, they would only see mountains…

The dark cloud charged forth in the sky, and it was so quick that it instantly covered an incredible distance. The two hundred thousand cultivators sitting on the dark cloud were all silent, but the murderous intent in their eyes grew stronger with each passing moment.

They knew that they were going to the battle of Dao Verification among the seven sects and twelve clans that happened once in a blue moon. However, right then… due to the competition between the successors, the level of devastation and the subsequent tragedy they would have to suffer would be much greater than in the past.

But… if they won and were not killed, then once they emerged as the victors of the competition between the successors, all those who participated in the battle would have a kismet bestowed upon them, and their levels of cultivation would increase by leaps and bounds!

That kismet would be the kismet of the competition between successors, the kismet of Ancient Zang!

All seven sects and twelve clans in Ancient Zang conducted similar acts as Seven Moons Sect. As the light from their Enchanted Treasures shone, the cultivators from each sect and clan… charged towards the royal capital at the center of Ancient Zang from all directions in the country!

The shattered dimension with the Tree of Dao Verification was divided into three layers. Only when one stepped into the third layer would they be able to enter the dimension where the Tree of Dao Verification was located. The first to enter would gain the upper hand over others.

The first and the second layer were where the seven sects and twelve clans waged the battle of Dao Verification for the right to enter the third layer!

A devastating slaughter would happen each time the battle of Dao Verification was held because everyone was aiming for the larger Phala. The smaller Phala was only of secondary importance to them.

The larger Phala was a Reversed Spirit Pearl, a treasure that could protect a sect or clan. It was a legendary item, and legends had it… that its greatest use was to allow a person to gain enlightenment to break through the limits of Great Dao Paragon and become a ninth level Dao God!

And the more Reversed Spirit Cores a person had, the more chances they would get to gain that enlightenment. This was something the emperor in the royal capital had acknowledged and announced to the world. The item did indeed have that effect, but it would vary depending on the person and the number of pearls they had.