Pursuit of the Truth

1

One step at a time, Su Ming moved up the stairs leading to the altar until he eventually reached the top. He lowered his head and cast a glance at the Rune formed by circles of countless runic symbols formed on the platform beneath his feet.

Silence.

The figure connected to Dao Chen’s isolation grounds was silent.

Time slowly trickled by. When the time taken for an incense stick to burn had passed, Dao Lin and Dao Hua’s faces filled with puzzlement. Compared to them being able to immediately sense Progenitor Dao Chen’s will right after they stood on the altar, Dao Kong did not react in any way. Everything about him was normal.

Deep emotion appeared on Sang’s face as he sat by the side and meditated. He sighed softly before he stood up, then without a single word, he swung his arm and swept up Dao Lin and Dao Hua as well as himself out of the area so that they could… leave the place to Su Ming.

When Sang took Dao Lin and Dao Hua out, another dozen something breaths passed before the air around Su Ming suddenly distorted. His body became indistinct, and a vast power came from nothingness, charging towards his Flourishing Lotus, clearly intending to activate the strange powers of the robe.

Yet right when that power was about to touch Su Ming’s robe, he lifted his head and took a step back with a cold expression. As his power spread out from his body, it crashed against the incoming vast wave of power.

A loud bang shot up. Su Ming was forced three steps backwards, but he stopped the vast wave of power from activating the robe.

“I don’t need you activating it.” Su Ming’s voice was cold. As he spoke, his eyes shone, and the power to reverse time swiftly spread out from his body. It was Abyss Builders’ inborn ability, and the robe could only be activated by it.

It might be known as the Flourishing Lotus, but in truth, the moment Su Ming wore it, he already noticed that the robe was clearly created using Abyss Builders’ inborn ability.

If he wanted to activate, he could do so himself.

When the Flourishing Lotus was activated, booming sounds echoed in the air. A dazzling light spread out and turned into eighteen lotuses that surrounded Su Ming, filling the place with flowing streams of light and creating a sight of peerless beauty.

A sigh came from an unseen spot in the air. At the same time, a vast amount of life force descended. It was life force aimed to grant him a serendipity so that his level of cultivation could increase.

In silence, Su Ming took another step backwards.

“Though there might have been quite a lot of times when I was not the one who increased my level of cultivation through training alone, it wasn’t like this. Even if it was through external force, I would always have to pay a price, fighting for it with death hanging right over my neck. I obtained my current level of cultivation through various serendipities. Your life force is very precious… I can’t have it.

“Goodbye.”

Su Ming turned around and walked down the altar. At that moment, there was no longer any anxiety in him, and neither was there any complicated emotions. These emotions had long since turned into resentment.

Deep resentment.

“Ming Er…”

The instant Su Ming turned around and took his third step, a voice spoke into his ear. The voice was very gentle, and it held an apologetic note. The instant it echoed in the air, Su Ming came to a halt.

He closed his eyes, and at the same time, the Rune on the altar suddenly shone. When its light reached a dazzling degree, a power of Relocation swiftly appeared and covered Su Ming in it.

When Su Ming opened his eyes, he was in a secret chamber shrouded in a faint layer of fog. The chamber was very huge, and through the fog, he could see a figure with its back turned towards him sitting cross-legged. A decaying and ancient air came from that body, along with a dense aura of death.

While standing there, Su Ming could not see the wooden sword and rattling drum placed in front of the man, and neither did he see the figure hidden under the hood staring blankly at the rattling drum with a gaze filled with deep guilt.

If Su Ming could see that, perhaps he would have remembered how he had asked his elder to make one for him when he was still a child and saw his other companions having that toy. On the second day, when his elder handed the rattling drum to him, Su Ming’s joy had lasted for several days.

Several years later, when Su Ming grew up and came to love climbing mountains with a new friend in Xiao Hong, he forgot about the rattling drum and threw it aside.

However, he should still remember that the rattling drum was the first toy for which he asked from the elder, and it was also the only one.

When that rattling drum turned about and let out rattling noises, he’d felt like he was the same as his other companions…

The man was silent, and Su Ming was also silent, but in the end, Su Ming was still the one who broke the silence. He sucked in a deep breath and wrapped his fist in his palm to bow at the man.

“I, Dao Kong, greet the Progenitor.” His voice resounded in the chamber. There were echoes, and they lingered around for a long period of time, refusing to scatter.

“I am the Progenitor of Morning Dao Sect… but not your Progenitor.” After a long time, a hoarse voice came from the figure. Su Ming did not see that the man’s hand placed on the rattling drum was trembling slightly at that moment.

“You should be able to tell that with our ability as Abyss Builders and your wisdom as my son. Your return to Morning Dao Sect means that you have already understood this…

“I am Progenitor Dao Chen, and I am also Su Xuan Yi. I… am your father.” In the end, even with an indescribable level of cultivation, the figure’s voice still started quivering.

“You jest, Progenitor.”

Su Ming remained silent after that. He then shook his head and turned around to walk back. He sent a divine thought to the bald crane, asking it to help him leave this place. He did not want to stay in this place. He absolutely did not want to.

Before he came, Su Ming had imagined what would happen when he met Su Xuan Yi. He had been anxious, filled with complicated feelings, but when he truly met the figure, he noticed that no matter how he thought about it and tried to remain calm, he could not force down the resentment in his heart.

He resented this man. This resentment was so great that he simply could not overlook it.

“You…” The figure shuddered for a moment. Su Ming could not see that the tremors of the hand placed on the rattling drum had become much stronger. Sadness could be seen from them.

“I can make it up to you, Ming Er, you know this. You should know my hardships, I…”

“Progenitor, are you done?” Su Ming stopped and turned around to stare at the figure with a sullen face. A ruthless expression appeared on his face.

“You are you, and I am me. It doesn’t matter to me whether you are Dao Chen or Su Xuan Yi. You are you, and I am me! You can continue with your plan, but stop using me as your chess piece! Today, I am not your opponent, but once I’ve been your chess piece for long enough, I will surpass you.

“You are you, I am me. You have your plans, and I have my own pace!”

Su Ming swung his arm. He turned his head around and took a step forward. Rarely enough, the bald crane did not kick up a fuss or bother Su Ming. Instead, when it noticed that the atmosphere had turned incredibly bizarre, it obediently spread out its power, making ripples appear under his feet when he moved forward. With the bald crane’s power, Su Ming wanted to force his way out of the place which caused him to be unhappy and raised that strange anger in his heart.

He was afraid that if he remained for a moment longer, he would be unable to suppress his anger and cause his other personality to appear.

“Your family name is Su; your name was given to you by your grandfather. In your body flows the blood of the Abyss Builders. This is a reality you cannot change. I can understand your resentment. I will use what I can to make up for the past. I…”

The figure spoke in anguish, but before it could finish, Su Ming stopped once more. Even the ripples beneath his feet dissipated. His hair instantly turned red, and a wave of madness appeared in his eyes. This was the Su Ming with the destructive personality.

However, this time, the red-haired Su Ming did not want to bring forth slaughter and destruction. Instead, he wanted to vent out the endless resentment buried in the depths of his heart. At the instant his hair turned red, Su Ming laughed loudly.

He turned around and stared at the figure. Red filled his eyes, and the crazed air about him became even more apparent.

“Make up to me? Make up to me, what a phrase! When I was a child and asked the elder where my parents were, his silence made me hesitant and fearful, and from then on, I no longer dared to ask this question. At that time, where were you? How are you going to make up for that?

“When I watched my companions returning to their houses with their parents whenever the sun set, I was the only one who went back to my house alone. When I was staring at the moon quietly, where were you? How are you going to make up for that?

“When I was a teenager, I watched the sky time and again on Dark Mountain, imagining that one day, my parents would come and pick me up. Where were you then?! How are you going to make up for that?!

“When I was bullied by my companions, mocked for having no parents, when Lei Chen fought against them every single time, where were you?! How are you going to make up for that??!!

“Make it up to me? What a phrase! You want my resentment to disappear with such simple words?

“This is hilarious,so hilarious, it’s so utterly absurd. I’d like to ask you, Su Xuan Yi, when I found out that everything around me was just an illusion created by someone else, how do you think I felt? Can you make it up for my sadness and confusion?!

“When I discovered that I had gone through thirty something cycles of my life in the same Dark Mountain, can you imagine how I felt? Are you going to make it up for that feeling of being deceived by everyone too??!!

“When I discovered that I was just a soul in Dark Mountain and my body was used as the core of a Rune and a tool for cultivation practices, do you know the cold chill that ran through me in the darkness? Are you going to make up for that as well?!

“When Di Tian manipulated me time and time again, controlling my destiny repeatedly, where were you?! You have no right to tell me you’re going to make it up to me!!

“When I was forced to leave Dark Mountain and got thrown into the Barren Lands of Divine Essence, when I was lying in Crimson Flame Planet like a corpse, where were you?

“And this is even more laughable. When I had already told myself that my parents were no longer around, I found with an aching heart that my mother was lying in the fifth kiln. I can understand her predicament, and I won’t resent her, because even after she died, she still held me so that I could feel a mother’s warmth.

“But you, where were you? You let a child who thought he did not have parents learn that he’s actually not an orphan, but this isn’t something that would bring excitement or surprised delight to him! You never felt it before, so you don’t understand, but I do. It brings only… extreme pain and confusion!!”

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