Pursuit of the Truth

The Abyss Dragon almost sucked in a sharp breath. It staggered a few steps back before it looked at Xu Hui again, and when it did so, it looked as if it had seen a ghost. The shock on its face was a representation of the astonishment it felt.

It might not have a very intelligent mind, but it still knew that people who could deduce so many things in an instant by just casting a glance were definitely not someone ordinary.

Its young mistress also had this ability, but compared to the woman before it, its young mistress was still a little wet behind the ears.

“Looks like my guess is correct. Yu Xuan was the person who was supposed to marry the prince of the Emperor of Abyss’ True World and was also your young mistress.” Xu Hui turned her head and looked to Su Ming with a smile on her face.

“So is Yu Xuan your lover?” When she said these words, there was not a single hint of change in her expression. That relaxed demeanor made Su Ming remember how this woman had not acted embarrassed or annoyed like a typical girl when they talked about him changing her clothes, even though she clearly knew that he had seen her whole body naked. Her relaxed and easygoing demeanor was definitely not something a naive girl would possess.

Su Ming cast a glance at Xu Hui, but did not say a single word. Instead, he sat down cross-legged and started meditating. Only half a month had passed since his battle against Heaven Traversers’ Progenitor. He still had injuries within his body and had to recover as quickly as possible.

Besides, he had already dissolved the fusion of his three clones. His Ecang clone had returned to the foreign lands. If he nursed himself there, he would be able to recover much faster.

When Xu Hui saw that Su Ming did not choose to speak, she smiled and decided not to continue questioning him. Instead, she sat down beside him and protected him.

In the blink of an eye, several days passed. In truth, the reason why Su Ming had chosen this place to train was because he was waiting for Heaven Traversers’ Progenitor to arrive. If the Progenitor had chosen to bow to his threat and compromise, then Su Ming could execute his subsequent plan without fear.

Three days was not long, but it was enough time to tell what course of action Heaven Traversers’ Progenitor took.

If the Progenitor came here, then Su Ming would have the Sand Spirit trap him again without hesitation, and then, he would personally lure a sea of ferocious beasts to destroy all Heaven Traversers.

And since Su Ming had already thought of this plan, then even if the Progenitor had the idea of first hiding his Heaven Traversers before he chased down Su Ming, there was no way that he would not be prepared for this in case it happened.

Three days later, Su Ming opened his eyes. He lifted his right hand, formed a seal, and a sparkle appeared in his eyes. After a moment, his expression returned to normal, but a freezing glare flashed briefly in his eyes.

“Xu Hui, I will continue heading deeper into the inner parts of Divine Essence Star Ocean. Do you want to come with me or to go back and meet up with the nine old Frail Darknesses?” Su Ming turned his head around to look at Xu Hui.

“Since I’m already here, of course I won’t go back alone.” Xu Hui smiled elegantly.

Su Ming nodded. As he got back up, he took a step forward and landed on the Void Beast’s head. The Void Beast shuddered, and a submissive expression appeared on its face. After all, over the course of the past few years, Su Ming was the one feeding it most of the time. It was rather fond of Su Ming, and had long since ignored the fact that he was one of the two responsible for the torment it went through when they tamed it in the past.

With one step, Xu Hui landed beside Su Ming. As for the bald crane and the Abyss Dragon, the both of them occasionally discussed the issue of dividing their spoils between them. At that moment, they were both incredibly satisfied with themselves and also ran up to the Void Beast’s body, but the Abyss Dragon kept a wide berth from Xu Hui. Clearly, the trauma it suffered previously still remained in its mind, and it did not dare to provoke her.

But the bald crane had always held onto the idea that it was the Abyss Dragon’s leader, and when it saw its lackey being so afraid of Xu Hui, the thought of standing up for it rose in its head. However, most of what it showed as an act of standing up for the Abyss Dragon was just provocation and deviance. It was as if only by doing so would it be able to show its statue, but it had indeed managed to make the Abyss Dragon look at it with a fanatic gaze.

“I saw four interesting cultivators just now,” Su Ming said while standing on the Void Beast. As he spoke faintly, the Void Beast rushed forward swiftly, and it was so quick that it instantly left the meteor.

“Four cultivators?” Xu Hui blinked.

“Four cultivators with a secret. They invited me to travel with them, and I promised them to do so, but they went back on their word and did not fulfill their end of the promise,” Su Ming said calmly.

Xu Hui smiled until her eyes were shaped like crescent moons. She could imagine that the truth was definitely not what Su Ming had just said. The four cultivators should have been forced to make the suggestion due to fear. That so-called invitation would have also been just a temporary measure.

“Yes, as cultivators, they should be people who honor their promises. How could the four of them do such a thing?” Xu Hui said by the side with a nod.

“That’s right. They went a little overboard.” Su Ming remained as composed as ever while speaking with a cold sneer.

“We’ll have to teach them a lesson,” Xu Hui chimed in.

“I’m thinking of leaving behind some seals on them,” Su Ming said.

Xu Hui pondered for a moment before she made a suggestion. “That won’t do. Why don’t we leave some marks on them? I once saw an Art that could turn a man into a woman. This Art is incredibly useful, and I practiced it on other people many times before… Perhaps we can have their Nascent Divinities and bodies switch. It’ll be like Possession. They will definitely remember this sort of punishment for the rest of their lives.”

Her discussion with Su Ming fell into the bald crane’s ears, whose gaze still held a provocation, and it also fell into the Abyss Dragon’s ears. A shudder then wrecked the two mutts.

It was especially so for the bald crane, whose provocative intent quickly disappeared and was replaced by a look of flattery. It suddenly realized that this woman called Xu Hui was actually very sinister…

It looked at the woman and Su Ming’s backs and listened to the duo’s discussion, suddenly feeling that the two of them were incredibly suited for each other. As the bald crane mulled over that, it transformed into its original appearance so that it was no longer a mutt, all so that it would not provoke this woman and would be able to make a clean break with the Abyss Dragon.

The Abyss Dragon took several steps back again. In the depths of its heart, it had already elevated Xu Hui’s status to a level where she was absolutely not to be provoked. The meaning behind the words she spoke sent a chill down its spine.

It could already imagine that if the four cultivators were truly tormented in this fashion, they would find it to be the most terrifying nightmare in their lives.

“This is… not very good, right?” Su Ming hesitated for a moment.

“How could it not be good? It’s fine. It’ll all be fine. Just watch me later. I did this kind of thing all the time in the past… Ahem…” As Xu Hui spoke, excitement appeared on her face, as if she was feeling incredibly enthusiastic about this.

“That is…” Su Ming turned his head to look at Xu Hui. Forget the bald crane, even Su Ming himself found Xu Hui’s suggestion to be a little too cruel.

“Oh you, don’t hesitate anymore. Just watch me. I’m very good at this. You don’t have to worry about it. I’ll definitely make them remember this lesson and know that cultivators must honor their promises.” Xu Hui licked her lips. This action and the excitement on her face complimented each other, making her incredibly attractive. However, the words she said were ones that made Su Ming laugh wryly.

“… Alright, then.” Su Ming shook his head. Then with the cues he received in his Atman through the Brand he left on the four in the past, he guided the Void Beast and charged forward.

In a galaxy some distance away from Su Ming and his group were Xuan Shang and the other three. They were pressing forward on their journey at that moment. They were all incredibly fast, and they moving as four long arcs. They were so fast that wherever they passed, not a single ripple would be formed in the galaxy due to their movements.

“It has been half a month now. Are we really leaving like this and not waiting for that person?” Yun You asked softly in uncertainty.

“That is a person filled with malice. With him around, we might not be able to obtain anything this time…”

“But I think that since he let us go, he would definitely have a way to find us. Hah…”

“Don’t worry. In three more days, we will be able to step into a Relocation Vortex. At that time, we’ll be far away from this place. Even if he has a divine ability that can find us or even left a Brand on us, as long as we have a sufficient amount of distance between us and he doesn’t know about the Relocation Vortices here, he won’t be able to find us.”

“This is the only way now. Besides, if he fought against Heaven Traversers, there is no way that he wouldn’t be injured. He might be nursing his wounds right now and not have the energy to pay any attention to us.”

“That’s right. Don’t worry. Even if he manages to catch up to us, it’ll still be fine. He didn’t mention where we were supposed to wait for him but said he would look for us. If that’s the case, it’s not our fault.”

The four sent words to each other with their minds as they charged forward. After discussing among themselves for a moment, they traveled even faster. Even though their hearts were still a little uneasy, they rushed towards the Relocation Vortex that was three days away from where they were.

Time trickled by, and when the third day arrived, light shone in the four cultivators’ eyes. Based on the map they obtained, once they went through the Relocation Vortex, they would enter the core of the inner part of Divine Essence Star Ocean. That place would not be too far away from Dust Burners’ territory.

“We’re here. It’s right ahead of us. That fiendish person still isn’t here, so it’s not as if we weren’t waiting for him.” Hua Yu smiled, and the other three let out a sigh of relief in their hearts.

Even though they might be saying that they were relaxed and no longer worried, in truth, during most of the past month, they were in a state of extreme nervousness. After all, the pressure and terror Su Ming brought to them in the past was incredibly great.

After a moment, the four of them stopped in the galaxy. Xuan Shang looked around him, then raised his right hand and swung his arm forward. A layer of dust immediately scattered into space. Then, some of the dust he scattered was swallowed by a small area not too far away from where they stood.

That spot was only the size of a fingernail. If they did not look carefully, it would be difficult for them to spot it in the vast galaxy.

“It’s this place!” Excitement shone in Xuan Shang’s eyes. But just as he was about to take a step forward into the vortex, a voice caused the four of them to completely stiffen up.

“The four of you move so fast. Could it be that you’ve already forgotten the promise we made?”

Once this voice spoke, ripples spread through the galaxy. In an instant, a crocodile-like Void Beast that was tens of thousands of feet tall appeared from space and entered the group’s field of vision.

They saw Su Ming looking at them coldly from the Void Beast’s head, along with an incredibly beautiful woman grinning with a hint of excitement, as well as two creatures standing behind the duo… the Abyss Dragon, who had now taken the form of a mutt, and the bald crane.

At the instant the group saw the bald crane, their expressions changed drastically, as if Su Ming was no longer of any importance in their hearts. All their attention was completely absorbed by the bald crane.

With just one glance, they were able to recognize that this bald crane was the ferocious beast they previously saw in the galaxy, the one that was chased by one million beasts!

‘They are in the same group…’ thought all four cultivators at once.