Pursuit of the Truth
chapter-196

"Big brother Si Ma!"

The girl was stunned. Worry appeared on her face. She had never seen that expression on the man’s face. In her impression of him, that drastic change and rapid behavior should never appear on Si Ma Xin.

He was always gentle and elegant, and would always have a faint smile on his lips, as if even in the face of mountain shattering and the earth breaking, he would still remain unperturbed.

This was what attracted her to him. In her mind, this sort of man was what was considered to be truly powerful.

Yet at that moment, she saw Si Ma Xin’s expression change. She saw the sudden appearance of lightning sparks outside his body. She saw the wine cup shattering. Once she linked all these together with Si Ma Xin’s words, a theory appeared in the girl’s heart.

At the moment Si Ma Xin’s wine cup shattered and lightning sparks traveled through his entire body, a shocking change appeared in Han Mountain City.

The lightning that filled the sky in an area of thousands of lis all charged towards Su Ming, sitting on Han Mountain Bell. As bell chimes echoed in the air, amidst the sky that was filled with lightning, suddenly, the third abnormality appeared after the manifestation of the true form of the deity statue of Transcendence and the blue cloud!

It was an indistinct fierce beast. While only its contour was visible, there was a mighty presence coming from it like a tidal wave. That fierce beast had nine heads. Six of them had their eyes closed as if they were sleeping.

Two of the three heads that had their eyes open were surrounded by a large amount of lightning. It let out huge rumbling sounds, and as lightning surrounded the heads, the reflection of a person in white appeared in the eyes of two of the heads. However, that person’s figure was distorted.

Su Ming’s body was reflected in the eyes of the one head left. At that moment, it was looking at the horizon in the distance coldly. Black mist surrounded it, making it glaringly obvious.

"Nine…"

A muffled low roar came out from the mouths of the three heads of the beast that had their eyes opened.

"Nine… headed Dragon…"

The voice seemed to have traveled through the passages of time. It shook the heavens and earth, and it even made most of the lightning around it dissipate.

This strange sight made all those watching from the ground to fall into shock.

Su Ming sat on Han Mountain Bell and used it to resist the power of lightning. This was the only method he could think of. The bell itself was a priceless treasure, and the one head from the nine that had his will was the best thing that could resist lightning in this place.

The moment he sat down, and the moment most of the power of lightning in his body spilled out and surged into the bell, Su Ming knew he had made the correct decision!

His face may have been pale, but his expression was calm. As of now, he had ample time to refine the lightning created when the Earthen Lightning and Void Lightning in his body crashed against each other. As for the might of the lightning that was attracted to him from the area around, most of it went to the bell underneath him, and the bell was resisting the might in his place.

In fact, at that moment, ambition grew within Su Ming’s heart!

Han Mountain Bell was a priceless treasure, but he could not take it away. Even the person in white who had obtained two heads could not take the bell away. If Su Ming wanted to claim the bell, then he definitely needed to awaken more heads and leave his will within them.

Before he Transcended, Su Ming could at most only awaken one head. Yet now, he had Transcended. The moment he realized that the bell could resist lightning in his place and earn him more time, his ambition appeared.

He spread out the Branding Art around the bell. As the bell tolled, as the three awakened heads of the beast rose and yelled out ‘nine-headed Dragon’…

The bell let out a loud chime that was layered with multiple layers of sound. As the chime rang out, a layer of ripples spread out. Han Mountain City trembled, the mountains around the area shook, and another head from the six heads of the beast in the sky opened its eyes swiftly.

The moment it opened its eyes, the beast let out a howl that reverberated in the sky once again.

"Nine… headed Dragon… South…"

That voice was filled with astonishing power. As it echoed in the air, the eyes of the awakened fourth head shone with a brilliant light. Su Ming’s body appeared in its pupils!

The instant Su Ming’s will occupied two of the nine heads of the wild beast, he clearly felt a mysterious connection between him and the bell. While that connection did not allow him to use the bell, it made him feel as if he was in perfect harmony with the bell.

It was as if this sacred treasure belonged to him in the first place, and now, it was showing signs of returning to him.

It was also during this moment that the other two heads of the wild beast in the sky let out sullen voices. Those voices sounded like a low roar as it reverberated in the area.

"Han Mountain Bell belongs to me, Si Ma Xin! I’d like to see just who you are!"

The moment the voice appeared, all the people in Han Mountain City fell silent. Nan Tian and the others immediately turned pale. The mountains belonging to the three tribes were so quiet a pin could be heard if it fell on the ground.

Han Cang Zi trembled. To her, that voice was akin to a nightmare

Yet very soon, Han Cang Zi’s expression changed and she quickly spoke. "Brother! Fang Mu!"

Fang Shen trembled, and he appeared to be struggling. Did he truly not understand the nature of his son’s injuries..? That was his secret, and no one else knew about it.

However, he only struggled for a moment before he gritted his teeth and looked as if he had decided to put everything on the line before he ran towards Han Cang Zi standing on the mountain stairs with a pale face. He immediately followed behind her.

Fang Mu was originally watching anxiously and excitedly on Tranquil East Mountain when he suddenly trembled and fainted. A lot of black mist rose from his body. That black mist spread out, and in the blink of an eye, it enveloped his entire body, moving in as if it was about to occupy the center of his brows.

At the same time, the Tranquil East Tribe’s Chief of War also trembled furiously. Black mist spread out from his body. The same thing also happened to several people on Lake of Colors Mountain and Puqiang Mountain. In their unconscious states, their bodies convulsed as the black mist covered their faces.

As the two heads of the fierce beast in the sky was assaulted by a large amount of lightning, they roared.

As it roared, the two people who fainted on Puqiang Mountain and were enveloped by black mist opened their eyes. Their eyes were empty, but there was a hint of maliciousness within them. The moment they opened their eyes, they stood up. As the people beside them let out cries of surprise, they turned into two long arcs that whistled as they charged through the air towards Su Ming, who was sitting on Han Mountain Bell.

Soon after, Tranquil East Tribe’s Chief of War lifted his head and howled on Tranquil East Mountain. Black mist spread out on his face and once it covered him completely, madness appeared in his eyes. A powerful presence burst forth from his body, and he leapt into the air towards Han Mountain City.

Two people surrounded by black mist also charged out from Lake of Colors Mountain towards Han Mountain City.

As they charged forth, these five people turned into black long arcs that rushed towards Su Ming. They were so quick that they closed in on him in a moment. These five people had already fallen into madness. Their eyes were filled with a savage ferociousness. As the people in Han Mountain City cried out in surprise, the three tribes remained in silence.

The five people closed in on Su Ming on Han Mountain Bell from three different directions.

Tranquil East Tribe’s Chief of War was the first to arrive. His face was filled with malice. With a low growl, he lifted his right hand and swung it towards Su Ming. A giant log appeared behind his body. The giant log rumbled and rushed towards Su Ming.

At the same time, the Chief of War pounded his chest with his left hand. Immediately, his shirt exploded, revealing the Berserker Mark of a battle axe on his chest.

The Berserker Mark let out a dim light and gained substance. It materialized in the sky and the axe swung down towards Su Ming!

The other four people arrived in succession and activated a variety of Berserker Arts, forming a wave of loud booms as they closed in on Su Ming!

Su Ming closed his eyes and did not move. At that moment, he had already reached the final stage of refining lightning. He could not be disturbed. In the face of the barrage from the five people, a green light shot out from the center of his brows and turned in to the small virescent sword.

This was not a moment to hide the sword. The instant the sword came out, it immediately spun rapidly around Su Ming’s body and turned into a layer of green light that acted like a shield.

Rumbling sounds echoed in the air. The giant wood crashed into the green light. The giant axe slashed towards him horizontally. The moment it touched the green light, the attacks from the other four people also arrived.

The battle was not restricted to the ground. In the sky, the two heads that contained Su Ming’s will charged towards the two heads occupied by Si Ma Xin’s will. The four heads of the fierce beast started attacking and biting each other as if they were trying to destroy one another.

However, the heads occupied by Si Ma Xin’s will had to resist the lightning strikes that came crashing towards them besides having to deal with Su Ming. Due to this, they were caught in a disadvantageous position.

This was a strange battle, and it was the first time Su Ming and Si Ma Xin crossed hands with each other!

As the rumbles echoed in the air, Su Ming remained seated and still on Han Mountain Bell. He simply allowed the five people around him attack the light formed by the virescent sword, because he did not have the luxury to divide his attention to control the sword and kill these people. He could only remain in defense.

What he needed now was time. He had refined most of the lightning in his body. Before long, once he finished refining all of the lightning within him, his Origin Transcendence Vessel would appear!

This Origin Vessel would be the lightning of the heavens and earth!

Fang Shen was anxious as he took huge steps towards where his son was on Tranquil East Tribe. Han Cang Zi followed behind him. They traveled at incredible speeds. When the five people were attacking the green light surrounding Su Ming, Fang Shen or Han Cang Zi had already arrived at the mountain side. Many tribe members were gathered there as they looked anxiously at Fang Mu trembling relentlessly on the ground.

Fang Mu’s face was purple, only the center of his brows remaining blank. Fang Shen closed in with one step, but the moment he got closer, he stopped and felt his heart taking a loud thump against his chest. A freezing presence spread out abruptly from Fang Mu’s body.

Han Cang Zi’s expression instantly changed. Once she came to a halt, she instinctively took a few steps backwards.

Fang Mu, who still had his eyes closed, suddenly stopped trembling. Slowly, he opened his eyes. There was no madness within his eyes, only tranquility.

That calm gaze made all those who saw it feel a chill blossoming in their hearts and running down their spine.

"It’s been a long while, junior sister Fang."

An unfamiliar voice came from Fang Mu’s mouth. He stood up and looked at Han Cang Zi with a gentle smile. The purple shade of his skin slowly disappeared and turned into a purple long robe that covered his body.

Han Cang Zi shuddered, and all color disappeared from her face.