Pursuit of the Truth

Chapter 7: Gift

2

Su Ming never stopped moving in the forest. His body was like an arrow as he shot through the forest using his familiarity with the forest and his agility. Very soon, Dark Dragon Mountain appeared before his eyes. Once he got out of the forest, he would be able to get into Dark Dragon Mountain.

For Su Ming, who came to this mountain since he was young to collect herbs, every single living thing here gave off an aura that put him at ease.

"It’s written in the scroll that the Berserkers can increase their strength by calling forth their blood and make their bodies stronger while they are training in the Blood Solidification Realm due to honing the Berserker Blood within their bodies. I thought I would never obtain such an opportunity but to think that I would be able to experience it today!"

"To reach the first level in the Blood Solidification Realm, the manifestation of three blood veins is needed. But even if I have yet to manifest all three, my speed has increased by leaps and bounds. Even my strength has…" Su Ming jumped forward and whilst in midair, he swung his right fist at the giant tree beside him.

With a huge crash, the faint outline of his fist could be seen on the tree. But at the same time, Su Ming’s right hand also felt numb, though his face was filled with excitement.

But as he was drowning in excitement, a flash of red ran past him and let out a string of proud screeches. Obviously, it was made by the little monkey who felt pleased with itself for catching up to Su Ming and surpassing him.

Su Ming smiled and chased after the red blur. His speed did not decrease but he could not catch up to the little monkey. In the past, every single time he reached Dark Dragon Mountain, that monkey would be waiting for him impatiently with a face filled with scorn as if it had been waiting for him for a long time.

But now, after two hours, as Su Ming climbed Dark Dragon Mountain and reached the same big rock with a hollow located in one of the mountains, he saw the monkey. While it still looked at him with scorn and disdain, its forehead was covered in sweat, showing that while it had arrived before him, it did not wait for long this time.

Su Ming smiled and went up to touch the monkey’s head. He took off the basket and stood on top of the rock. As he looked at the mist around the area, he took a deep breath.

He liked standing there looking at the sights before him, even if there was a deep canyon right underneath. If he took a few steps forward and if wind blew at him right then and there, it would cause him to stumble and fall. It was a dangerous place, but Su Ming had been climbing this mountain ever since he was young. To him, this place was like a second home.

"Xiao Hong, how does it look like on the other side of the mountain… have you gone there before?" Su Ming’s hide shirt swayed along the wind and let out light flapping sounds. Instinctively, he reached out with his right hand and touched the black stone on his chest.

The monkey by his side rolled its eyes and looked at the land located far away. It did not bother to reply Su Ming, but lowered its head to tug at its own fur as if it was looking for something.

Su Ming scratched his nose when he saw the little monkey grooming itself and ignoring him. He shook his head and smiled, then decided to sit down cross-legged on the spot where he stood.

"Xiao Hong, I’m not going to return to the tribe for a while this time. I might be staying here for a while, so if you go out and play, get some fruits back for me."

The monkey beside him immediately lifted its head and looked at him with surprised eyes. It looked at Su Ming scrutinizingly, then smiled happily and nodded. It usually only got to spend three to five days with Su Ming. When Su Ming returned to the tribe, it would be left alone in the forest. Once it understood what Su Ming said, it was extremely happy.

Su Ming took a few deep breaths and closed his eyes slowly as he felt the wind on his face. He was about to begin training there until he reached the first level in the Blood Solidification Realm. Only then would he leave.

After all, Su Ming did not know how to explain what happened to him. Somewhere in his mind, he wanted to keep this a secret and let no one know about it.

A red vein appeared from Su Ming’s body soon after he closed his eyes. This red vein was giving off a dim red glow. It was no longer glinting, but showing signs of manifestation.

It was the same red vein that had only appeared vaguely half a month ago. The same red vein that was now manifesting itself completely.

Su Ming may not have any talent in practicing the Ways of the Berserker, but he was not the type to give up easily. Now, as he sat down with his legs crossed to train, time passed by slowly.

The sun rose and set, the mist in the sky gathered and dispersed. The sounds of the birds and beasts echoed in the mountains, forming a sort of tranquility. Surrounded by that peace, Su Ming opened his eyes on the second day in the morning.

He moved his body. When he looked back, he saw that the little monkey had gone off, but there were some fruits on the ground and some cores left from fruits that had been completely devoured.

Su Ming picked up some of the fruits and ate a dozen of them. With his appetite, the fruits could only make him partially full. He may like to eat fruits but he was not fond of eating too many in one go.

Once he finished eating, Su Ming sat down immediately and focused on refining the Berserker Blood within his body. But this time, Su Ming opened his eyes after a few moments with a puzzled look on his face.

"The first blood vein has already manifested, but it seems like there’s not enough blood in me for the second vein to appear…" Su Ming did not know how to describe it. It was as if the first vein itself absorbed more than half of the fresh blood in his body and there was not enough blood for the second vein to manifest itself.

It was difficult to explain, but that was what Su Ming felt.

"I don’t have enough blood…" Su Ming scratched his head and sighed. He did not know that practitioners of the ways of the Berserker, especially during the initial stages, while requiring a strong body to train, would also need to take in a huge amount of medicine that would greatly boost the formation of blood within the body to increase the speed of their training and subsequently allow each vein to manifest one after another.

The strength of a Berserker in the Blood Solidification Realm was directly linked to the amount of blood veins and blood he had. The more blood a Berserker had, he would also be able to manifest more blood veins, and he would be stronger! Once the power was released, even with just their physical strength alone, they could tear apart a huge beast. This was Berserker Power!

All these were the secrets of the tribe. Only those who possessed Berserker Bodies had the right to know about it.

"When the members of the tribe were injured, they would lose a large amount of blood. Their faces would grow pale and they would be weak. At that time, they would need to consume herbs that would help with the formation of blood…" Su Ming’s eyes lit up. After some careful thinking, he immediately slung the basket over his back and jumped towards the side of the mountain. This time, his speed was extremely fast and he returned about an hour later.

When he returned, there were some herbs with dirt still attached to them in his basket. Once he cleaned those herbs, Su Ming took out a stone bowl from the basket. He crushed the herbs and mixed it with dew, which turned into a dark green concoction that emitted a strange smell.

But he was already used to this smell. He breathed in a few whiffs of the smell, then added more herbs. Once it was done, he took a deep breath and drank the whole thing down.

It was disgusting. Su Ming frowned in discomfort but forced himself to drink the whole thing before sitting down with his legs crossed again.

It was not until midnight before Su Ming opened his eyes again. When he did, he stared into the darkness and let his mind wander.

"There’s a little effect… but only a little. The method is correct, but something is still wrong…" Su Ming frowned. He could not tell his elder about this. He could only rely on himself to solve the problem.

"That’s what’s wrong!" Su Ming’s eyes lit up. As the common healer in the tribe, it was his job to collect herbs. He remembered every time he went to collect herbs, his elder would usually select some herbs from the pile and take it away. The rest would be given to the tribe leader and distributed to the tribe according to need. The herbs would be taken out of the herb storage when there was a need to use them to create medicine to cure the wounded and the sick.

Dark Dragon’s Saliva was among those taken away by the elder. But Dark Dragon’s Saliva was no longer of any use to him, and thus, all of them were given to Su Ming to nourish his body.

"There’s still some Dark Dragon’s Saliva left after I gave some to Lei Chen." Su Ming immediately ruffled through the contents in the side pocket of the basket and took out the small bottle. When he opened it, there was the familiar fragrance wafting in the air. He shook it lightly. There was only a little less than half left.

Without any hesitation, Su Ming placed the bottle by his lips and drank all the contents in one mouthful.

Then he immediately sat down with his legs crossed, immersing himself in refining and solidifying the Berserker Blood in his veins. Su Ming had been drinking Dark Dragon’s Saliva since he was young. Every time he drank it, he would feel a bit faint with a sensation as if he was about to fall asleep drunk.

But this was the first time he drank Dark Dragon’s Saliva to assist in his Berserker training. As the blood in his veins circulated in his body, he could feel a cold sensation growing within his body, spreading to all parts of his body very quickly.

The cold gradually fused with the blood in his veins and increased the rate of circulation in his body. There were even signs of his blood rate increasing.

"I knew it!" Su Ming felt excited. As he continued channeling his blood, his body suddenly shivered. He opened his eyes, his face filled with disbelief and doubt.

"How could this… Is it the elder?"

Within his body, Su Ming could clearly feel the coldness emerging from all parts of his body as he absorbed the chill brought about by Dark Dragon’s Saliva. That cold feeling seemed to have existed in his body for many years and had been laying dormant, waiting for the time to rush forth the moment he started refining the blood in his veins.

And the key to activate it was the same Dark Dragon’s Saliva that Su Ming drank!

Now, that cold seemed to gather from every part of his body, crashing through his veins like a gigantic wave to form a sea.

This was a gift which the elder prepared for him when he was young. His body that had been nourished by Dark Dragon’s Saliva was the gift. If Su Ming walked on the Ways of the Berserker, then this power would aid him immensely in the earlier stages of his training. If he did not have the gift to practice in the Ways of the Berserker, then it would help keep his body healthy.

Su Ming was dumbfounded. He could almost see his elder’s kind eyes and his expectations towards him as he grew older over the years. Most of all, he remembered the disappointment in his eyes half a month ago.

"Elder…" Su Ming mumbled. There was a low rumbling sound within his body. The vast amount of Dark Dragon’s Saliva that had gathered in his body over time rushed forth to drive his blood forward, causing the second blood vein in his body to appear immediately and manifest quickly.

As the second blood vein appeared, the third blood vein immediately followed suit!

There were even signs of the fourth blood vein appearing vaguely!

Su Ming’s body began rapidly growing bigger. The speed and the strength of his blood circulation brought about his physical growth. If this continued, then he would no longer be frail and weak, and he would be just like the other members of his tribe. He would obtain a strong body.

Yet at that very moment, the stone hanging off Su Ming’s chest suddenly gave off the very same piercing light as it did in the statue of the God of Berserkers!

The moment the light came, things changed!

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