Pursuit of the Truth

Su Ming cast a glance at Progenitor Long Hai with a cold and merciless gaze. Progenitor Long Hai also turned his eyes to Su Ming. The two of them stared into each other’s eyes for a moment, until Progenitor chose to look away.

Zi Long might have seemed as composed as ever, but he was also staring at Su Ming. Clearly, he also wanted to know just what reason might cause Su Ming to want them to become his guards.

The curiosity within Flame Fiends’ Progenitor was much less compared to the others. This was different from his previous personality, but ever since he met Su Ming, his experiences with him had caused his wariness towards Su Ming to be etched deep in his bones. When he was before Su Ming, Flame Fiends’ Progenitor had only one simple thought in his mind—Do not fight back, do not refuse him, do not be greedy… as long as there was nothing wrong with the physical body that he should obtain.

Compared to the other three, Zhu You Cai was calm. Even if Su Ming had a supreme treasure in his hands, unless it was an item that could resurrect his wife, he would not be interested in it. He had even given away his Life Inequity Spear, so there was no way there would be another supreme treasure in the world that would tempt him.

He also understood that Su Ming knew about his origins. Asking him to be a guard was just secondary. His real reason… might be to have Zhu You Cai to keep the others in check.

Su Ming avoided Progenitor Long Hai’s gaze. He instead opened his mouth in a cold manner, and a flash of gold instantly flew out. When it surrounded him, it turned into the fifth stone.

When that stone appeared, the universe around them instantly tumbled about. The space around them distorted, and ripples spread out in all directions. A presence that did not blend with the world erupted from the fifth stone.

Once it appeared, Progenitor Long Hai’s pupils shrank swiftly.

“This is… the fifth stone!” he said immediately.

“The fifth stone…” Reverend Zi Long’s expression also changed. He stared at the fifth stone, and a hint of hesitation appeared on his face, but he soon calmed down. He knew that… this was an item that he could not keep!

Even if he managed to snatch it, he could not take it away from Divine Essence Star Ocean, and most importantly, he did not have the confidence to snatch it.

Flame Fiends’ Progenitor licked his lips and forced down the instinctive greed that rose in his heart. If this item had been on anyone else, he might have some thoughts in his head, but when it came to Su Ming, the fire of greed in him was immediately extinguished.

Zhu You Cai was the most composed. He first cast a glance at the fifth stone, then at Su Ming, and a barely noticeable smile appeared on his lips.

He knew that if Su Ming dared bring out the fifth stone, had the courage to let him see it, and even promised to give him hope in resurrecting his wife, then it could only mean one thing!

‘He is an Abyss Builder!’ Once he connected that to the fifth kiln acknowledging its master, everything immediately became clear in his mind.

“What you will need to block is all the people who come here to snatch the fifth stone,” Su Ming said flatly.

“Progenitor Huo Kui, this new physical body of yours is stronger than your previous body. Is it enough for you?

“Progenitor Long Hai, it doesn’t matter whether your previous oath is one thousand years or ten thousand years, you can complete it in just one year. Is this enough for you?”

Su Ming looked towards Reverend Zi Long.

“But to me, it doesn’t seem to be enough,” Zi Long said faintly.

“It is God Ascension Nectar.” Su Ming’s expression was calm, but the instant he said his sentence, his words did not echo in space, because his divine thought was reverberating in Reverend Zi Long’s mind.

At the instant he heard God Ascension Nectar’s name, Zi Long’s body trembled viciously. When he lifted his head to stare at Su Ming, a hint of surprise appeared in his eyes. After a long while, he nodded in a solemn manner.

Su Ming looked towards Zhu You Cai and did not speak. After they stared into each other’s eyes for a moment, he averted his gaze. There were times when there was no need for words and two parties could understand one another without a word.

When Su Ming turned around, he became a long arc that charged forward. The crowd followed him and left into the galaxy in the distance.

Time passed. Ten days later, at the depths of Divine Essence Star Ocean’s core, Su Ming found… the fifth ocean based on the jade slip Dust Burners’ Progenitor had given him in the past.

It was… an ocean that existed in the galaxy.

The waves surged up in space, and everyone could clearly hear them crashing in the galaxy before they even got close to the area.

That strange ocean was boundless. It was something that was incredibly difficult to find in any other place besides Divine Essence Star Ocean.

If there was an ocean, then there was definitely a beach. At the edge of the ocean were countless shattered planets. They were reduced to flying stones that formed a dazzling beach.

If anyone took a closer look, they would be able to see… that the ocean was in truth not made of water. Instead, it was made of deep blue powder that gathered together. It floated around the area like aura, giving people the idea that they were looking at an ocean when they saw it from the distance.

Booming sounds echoed in space and would continue doing so for all eternity.

When the group approached a shattered stone on the beach of the fifth ocean, Su Ming stopped and stared at the ocean. At the same time, a dazzling light erupted from the fifth stone that surrounded him.

That light swiftly turned into a long arc and rushed into the fifth ocean. That long arc shot forth, causing the waves in the area to tumble about and roll backwards to form into a tunnel within a vortex. Even Su Ming could not see the end it.

Booming sounds reverberated in space, causing the entire galaxy to tremble.

Su Ming fell silent. Based on the descriptions on the jade slip, when the fifth stone appeared in the fifth ocean, it would open up a tunnel on its own, and it would be… the path that would lead them to the Fifth True World.

A tunnel was needed for this path to be fully opened, but soon after, it would close up. Yet for an instant, it would allow people to pass through it.

‘One year…’

Su Ming raised his right hand and the Life Inequity Spear appeared. Once he held it in his hand, he pierced the shattered stone beneath him, then sat down cross-legged and closed his eyes.

The instant he closed his eyes, Zhu You Cai also sat down cross-legged beside him. He knew his duty. He was not protecting the fifth stone… but Su Ming.

Flame Fiends’ Progenitor also found a shattered stone not too far away and sat down to meditate while waiting for the fierce battles that would definitely arrive soon.

Progenitor Long Hai remained still for a moment, then chose a shattered stone farther away. Once he sat down, he raised his head and stared at the galaxy. No one knew what he thought about.

Reverend Zi Long stood with his eyes closed and did not move, but in his heart, the sentence Su Ming said ten days ago still echoed.

‘God Ascension Nectar… There’s no doubt about it. That was definitely God Ascension Nectar, only this item that had already become extinct and is only spoken about in legends could possess such a thick fragrance. Only that item could make my cultivation base tremble when I took a mere whiff of its fragrance.’

Time trickled by, and in the blink of an eye, half a month was gone. During it, besides the loud booms, no other sounds could be heard around the fifth ocean. No one came to the place either, but it was precisely because of this that the group’s hearts became even more on guard.

During that half a month, Su Ming sat without moving. He did not open his eyes, making it seem as if he was deep in sleep. He waited quietly for time to pass, for the inevitable arrival of thieves.

Another twenty-five days passed as quickly as lightning. The final day of the first month of a year passed like normal, when suddenly, the meditating Zhu You Cai opened his eyes. He was the first among them to do so.

A moment later, Zi Long exuded the ripples of power that belonged to his cultivation base. When he opened his eyes, he looked into the distance.

Right after him was Progenitor Long Hai. The last to notice what was going on was Flame Fiends’ Progenitor.

The moment he opened his eyes, an intense rumble passed through the galaxy in the distance, and a long arc charged forward. Within it was a gigantic meteor, about ten thousand feet high, and it was chafing against space while charging to the area.

Standing on the meteor was a big and burly man. He was thirty feet tall and looked half-baked. As his hair fluttered, a brilliant light shone in his eyes.

Behind him was a brownish yellow tail, and it was wrapped around him, causing the man to look incredibly strange and enchanting. Due to the bright light, all those in the vicinity could see that his eyes were not of a normal person’s color, but yellow.

His pupils were vertical.

When he approached, he saw Zi Long with the others at first glance. His pupils constricted, and the meteor came to an abrupt halt ten thousand feet away.

He glared at Su Ming, who was surrounded by Zi Long and the others. The fifth stone was shining with a dazzling light in front of the youth, and a hint of greed appeared briefly in the man on the meteor’s eyes.

However, he did not act rashly. Instead, he chose to sit down and stare at them coldly.

Zi Long frowned. There might be a hint of wildness in him, but he also valued oaths highly. Since he already promised to guard Su Ming for a year and Su Ming’s offer for his help was tempting enough, no other thoughts rose in his heart. Of course, Su Ming’s own power was also great enough to deserve his attention. Besides, Zi Long had also managed to tell what was different about Zhu You Cai as well as the strange connection the two shared.

Because of that, lashing back at Su Ming would do him no good. It would be better for him to take the normal route and fulfill his end of the promise.

“Fellow Daoist Long Hai, one year is not really long. It’s short enough to last for the duration of a session of meditation. However, this one year will not be easy… This person’s level of cultivation is similar to yours. Do you want to go and warm up?” Zi Long asked flatly.

“Why would I be unwilling to?” Progenitor Long Hai stood up and laughed. Once he stretched his limbs for a moment, petals appeared above his Nascent Divinity. They filled the area around him, and when they covered his body, it seemed like he possessed a physical body.

With a single move, he turned into a flying flower that rushed at the man on the meteor ten thousand feet away.

The man’s pupils shrank and he stood up. A ferocious smile appeared on his lips. What he wanted was not to fight, but to wait. Even if the people guarding the owner of the fifth stone had outstanding power, he believed that as time passed and more people came to this place… their power would become insignificant!

With a bang, the duo engaged in battle. As loud booming sounds reverberated in the air, waves of impact filled the area. In less than the time taken for half an incense stick to burn, long arcs charged over from the distant galaxy. This time, there was not just one, but nearly one hundred of them.

Within each long arc was a living spirit from Divine Essence Star Ocean. Some of them had the shape of humans, and some of them had the shapes of beasts. All of them were coming to the area extremely quickly, but none of them were Almighties.

Flame Fiends’ Progenitor let out a cold harrumph. Without the need for anyone to give him a command, he rushed forward instantly, immediately stirring up a purple sea of fire that swept through the area.