Pursuit of the Truth

1

Di Tian’s eyes were filled with red. It looked like tears of blood were about to fall from his eyes. His robes fluttered even though there was no wind. Even the hair under his crown floated up. There was a grimness about him that had never appeared before, and he used practically all of his strength to maintain the life matrix floating above him so that… it would not shatter!

The life matrix shone with a brilliant light while the darkness held a black hue that even night could not dye darker. It looked like the world was about to turn black, submerged beneath a black ocean.

Di Tian was an existence akin to an archenemy in the first half of Su Ming’s life, while at that moment, he did his utmost best to maintain Su Ming’s life matrix. This was rather ironic, but the attentive expression on Di Tian’s face and his efforts made the irony of the situation not seem ludicrous, but quite tragic.

He was helpless in the face of the destruction, but when his friends and family willingly died to help him, he could not fail, did not want to fail, and simply could never accept failure.

There was nothing that was absolutely right or wrong in the world. Be it Su Ming, Di Tian, Su Xuan Yi and even Old Man Extermination, all of them were the same. Perhaps some of their methods had compromised another’s interests or harmed another person, but from their point of view, they believed that they were right, and all of them had their own determination!

For example, Arid Triad could be taken. No one could say that he was cruel or wrong, besides Harmonious Morus Alba, but if Arid Triad wanted to live and continue to be, he had to become stronger. He could not accept only being one of the lives born in the Expanse Cosmoses in the wings. He wanted to be the master of the universe. This was his Dao, and he was not wrong!

For another example, Harmonious Morus Alba could be looked at. It kept itself apart from the workings of the world, but in the end, ended up in such a way. It believed that everything in the universe was wrong and only it was right… but while it existed as the creator of all the lives on it, it was also their destroyer. It wanted to be in possession of its complete self, to not die, and to go home, but to the others, its home would mean their deaths as well as the deaths of all their loved ones. There was… no way they would be able to accept this.

Di Tian was also the same!

Once someone reached a certain level of cultivation and obtained a certain amount of wisdom, others would be able to see through them, and similarly, they would be able to see through others and understand everything. They would be able to tell that all serendipities and all paths taken surrounded only Dao!

All different Daos, but they were all Daos!

Instead of saying that the disaster of Harmonious Morus Alba descended to destroy everything, it would be more apt to say that the chosen of Harmonious Morus Alba were each trying to verify their Dao at that moment in Harmonious Morus Alba’s universe. They wanted to know… who would be the one who would truly succeed, and whose path was the Great Dao!

Su Ming had understood this a long time ago, which was why he had never gone to find Di Tian, because he had already seen through Di Tian, just like how Di Tian had seen through Su Ming.

Su Ming knew that all the things Di Tian had done in the first half of his life were definitely not out of a whim, but part of some plan. Su Ming did not know the details of it, but from the countless clues, he could somewhat guess what it was…

Di Tian was going to copy him!

And if he wanted to copy Su Ming, he would need to observe him. In fact, a normal observation would not suffice. He would need to be completely in his shoes, for only then could he perform a perfect copy. It would allow him to overlap with the real Su Ming until they could never be separated from each other!

Because of that, Su Ming had long since known that when he fought against Arid Triad, Di Tian would not be the enemy he had to deal with the most urgently at that moment. After all, that person would not want him to fail.

If he failed, it would mean that Di Tian’s copy was ineffective.

And Su Xuan Yi… He might be a conniving, incredibly sinister, and calculative person, but when Su Ming had cut all ties with him, he knew that no matter how sinister this person was, at the end of the day, he was not scheming against him.

To Su Xuan Yi, Su Ming was just a tool to be used in the initial stages of his plan, not a pawn to be used for eternity, and Su Ming’s rise to power was an accident, but an accident who would not cause any changes to his plan.

Su Xuan Yi’s target… was Old Man Extermination!

That why when Su Ming left the fourth Expanse Cosmos in the past, he had mumbled that when he met Old Man Extermination in the future, would he still be Old Man Extermination… Su Ming had not stepped into the fourth True World when he killed the powerful warriors from the previous aeons because he knew that Su Xuan Yi was there.

Su Xuan Yi’s enemy was Old Man Extermination. With that being the case, Su Ming would not interfere with his plans. The situation might seem chaotic and complicated, but in truth, Su Ming had long since smoothed it out in his mind.

His enemy was Arid Triad, Old Man Extermination… as well as someone he just realized was his enemy too—Harmonious Morus Alba!

It was just as Arid Triad had once said. He was a cultivator, and Su Ming was also a cultivator, but Harmonious Morus Alba… was just a life form. Arid Triad had once demanded to know why Su Ming refused to help him and instead chose to help Harmonious Morus Alba.

At that time, Su Ming had indeed wanted to help Harmonious Morus Alba, but once he experienced everything and saw the black-robed young man as well as Old Man Extermination, he no longer planned to help anyone… because he belonged to his own camp!

That was the situation in the disaster. It was a picture that seemed incredibly chaotic, but was in truth very clear!

When Su Ming and Arid Triad’s winds mixed together, Harmonious Morus Alba joined the fray. Di Tian maintained Su Ming’s life matrix so that it would not shatter, while Old Man Extermination opened his eyes on the ancient ship beside the gap in the fourth Expanse Cosmos.

The next instant, an aura that spoke of his awakening spread out from his body.

“The time… has finally arrived!”

When Old Man Extermination spoke, a brilliant light shone in his eyes. He lifted his right hand and cast his gaze on it as if he was staring at his palm lines.

During that instant, in the floating palace in the fourth True World within Arid Triad Expanse Cosmos, Su Xuan Yi shuddered and lifted his head. A mysterious smile appeared on his lips, and a look of expectation like never before appeared in his eyes. It seemed like he had waited countless years for just that moment.

“My son… Lei Chen, I have killed many in my life, and my hands are stained with blood. Perhaps I have wronged many people in my time… but all that I have ever done was for the Abyss Builders to rise to power. And… for you!

“You will be the Abyss Builders’ hope, and you will make the Abyss Builders rise again in the future. You are our future leader!”

Su Xuan Yi stood up slowly, and when he raised his head, a rattling drum appeared in his hand.

Su Ming had once had this sort of drum as well, but at that time, while Su Ming was in Dark Mountain, he did not know that Lei Chen had one as well… However, the one Su Ming had was made by his elder, and the one Lei Chen had… was made by Su Xuan Yi.

‘Lei Chen, my son, I will create a chance that has never existed before. A chance… to Possess Old Man Extermination!

‘This is the plan I, Su Xuan Yi, have worked on my entire life!’

Su Xuan Yi swung his arm, and madness appeared on his face. He had been waiting for that day for far too long. He had witnessed his father, the Abyss Builders’ Progenitor die due to his foolish loyalty and had even seen that the one responsible for the fifth True World’s destruction… was actually his father!

He saw everything, and he also saw Old Man Extermination control his father, the Abyss Builders’ Progenitor. He also knew many others secrets that his people did not know, such as the Abyss Builders being a race that only appeared because of Old Man Extermination’s actions.

Such as… that the only reason they existed was for Old Man Extermination to examine them. It seemed like he was searching for something among the Abyss Builders, and Su Xuan Yi could only helplessly watch his race die and his family be reduced to ash while screaming shrilly, his home—the fifth True World that now only existed in his memories—be reduced to ruins…

He grew to hate the Abyss Builders’ Progenitor and his own bloodline. He hated all the lives in the universe, and from then on, his personality completely changed. An idea so crazy it drove him to obsession appeared in the depths of his heart.

‘With the Abyss Builders’ inborn talent, we will Possess… Old Man Extermination! If I can’t do it, then I will have my son do it!’

Su Xuan Yi threw his head back and laughed. It was his plan, and only by accomplishing it could he be considered to have taken revenge for his kin, the Abyss Builders, and the fifth True World!

For revenge, he could sacrifice his wife. For revenge, he could sacrifice his best friend’s son. For revenge, he could give up on being human until finally… all of it would come to an end.

Su Xuan Yi’s gaze fell on Lei Chen, who sat meditating before him.

A father’s pride for his son and a loving look gradually appeared in his eyes. After a long while… when a vortex slowly appeared behind Su Xuan Yi, he turned around and stepped into it without any hesitation.

At the instant he stepped into the vortex, Old Man Extermination’s ancient voice echoed in his heart.

“Son of the Abyss Builders… based on the promise your people made to me, turn into my palm, turn into the funeral bell that will bring chaos to the flow of time. Stir up… the resentment that will seal wills!

“Only the resentment born from a universe can seal the strongest born in that very universe. Only the resentment born from the same origin as the strongest can seal the strongest!”

As Old Man Extermination’s words echoed in space, Su Xuan Yi’s figure swiftly distorted in the vortex. In the blink of an eye, he turned into a palm. It was white and looked pure, as if it could not be tainted. With a swing, it shot out from the vortex, but it was no longer in the fourth True World. Instead… it was in Dark Dawn and Saint Defiers’ Expanse Cosmos!

“You are my palm. Turn into the palm lines that I wish!”

Old Man Extermination’s eyes shone in the fourth Expanse Cosmos, and the palm print Su Ming had once left behind on the wooden plate in front of him disappeared. However, the palm Su Xuan Yi had turned into gradually showed… the exact same palm lines as the palm print Su Ming had left behind!

For the first time in years, Old Man Extermination stood up. His long hair moved without wind, and with a swing of his arm, he spoke in a deep voice.

“The offering… begins!”

When his voice echoed in space… the huge Feng Shui compass appeared abruptly in the Vast Expanse near Harmonious Morus Alba!

The black-robed young man sitting and meditating on the Feng Shui compass still had his fingers clenched around the seventh pearl. His eyes were aloof as he stared at the Harmonious Morus Alba shrouded in the aura of death.

He… had come!