Pursuit of the Truth

The old Fire Spirit who had sighed shook his head and mumbled under his breath, “Why is it like this?”

“That’s right, why is it this way?” The Fire Spirit sitting by the left side of the chessboard revealed anguish.

“You are Su Xuan Yi’s son and an Abyss Builder, so could you tell me why this game turned out like this?” The Fire Spirit on the right of the chessboard lifted his head and for the first time cast his gaze on Su Ming.

At the instant he looked over, Su Ming’s heart shuddered. This old Fire Spirit’s eyes might seem clouded, but there was an indescribably fierce look in his eyes. In fact, there was even a type of mighty pressure in that gaze. That mighty pressure was even more powerful than that of Dust Burners’ Progenitor. Su Ming could sense that faint, indistinct cracks had immediately started appearing in the space around the area when the Fire Spirit looked over.

This was… an Art governing the laws of fate!

“What is this game?” Su Ming asked.

He was not surprised by the fact that he was recognized. He could tell that these two old Fire Spirits were the ones that Dust Burners’ Progenitor had said possessed intelligence and incredibly great power, but who did not wish to leave the fifth kiln to become part of Dust Burners. They obeyed the ancient promise and acted as guardians in the fifth kiln.

Since the one thousand feet tall tree could recognize him and the Fire Spirits completely ignored him when they saw him, it was not surprising that the two powerful Fire Spirits who possessed intelligence could recognize him.

“It is a game Abyss Builders’ Progenitor played with Su Xuan Yi in the fifth kiln when the fifth True World was surrounded and attacked by the four Great True Worlds. He then left the fifth kiln and fought against the enemies in the world outside.

“Before he left, he let out a long string of laughter… and shook his head…”

Su Ming’s expression was calm. He had experienced far too many things. At that moment, he stared in silence at the chessboard, especially that black piece. Time trickled by slowly, and it continued flowing away until a long, long had time passed.

“Even you don’t understand it…” The old Fire Spirit to the right of the chessboard shook his head and sighed.

Su Ming did not speak. He only stared at the chessboard. Gradually, the Fire Spirits returned to the underground cave from the world outside. They were roaring when they returned, but once they entered the spacious underground cave, they fell silent and crouched down in the area around.

More of them came back as time passed. When all the Fire Spirits returned, they were once more densely packed in the place, illuminating the area by the faint light coming from the fire around their bodies.

Two of them were very tall, and they possessed power that was nearly that of Almighties in Mastery Realm. The Nascent Divinity of Flame Fiends’ Progenitor was captured in their hands. He was shuddering with fear on his face, but when he saw Su Ming in the distance, he was stunned.

Su Ming lifted his head and said softly, “This game is very easy to understand,”

His words immediately attracted the gazes of the two Fire Spirits.

“Have the both of you never left the fifth kiln? And did you gain your power not because of any form of training in the path of cultivation but because you naturally gained it as time passed after you gained intelligence?” Su Ming swept his gaze past the two old Fire Spirits.

“What do you mean?” The Fire Spirit to the left of the chessboard spoke hoarsely after remaining silent for a moment.

“There are nine worlds in this universe, so it’s clear that nine is the peak of all numbers, but there are not just nine worlds on the chessboard. Instead, a black piece was added to it, causing this game to no longer be in harmony. The signs of chaos had appeared within it.

“The additional black piece should be the Abyss Builders. More accurately speaking, it was once the Abyss Builders’ Progenitor,” Su Ming said calmly. There was a sentimental tone in his voice that no one could detect. He lifted his right hand and lifted the black piece from the chessboard.

Once it was taken away, a harmonious air immediately radiated off the layout of the chessboard. Five gray and four white pieces. Albeit filled with a fragmented and incomplete air, it still gave off a feeling of a complete universe.

“These should be the nine worlds in the universe. These four white pieces are the four Great True Worlds, and the five gray pieces are the five Great True Worlds that were once destroyed and are now in the void.” Su Ming shook his head, then put down the black piece in his hand back to its original spot.

“The Fifth True World… is not one of the nine worlds in this universe,” Su Ming said softly after lowering his head. In truth, he had come to understand this earlier, but only then was he certain of his guess. The Fifth True World… was the fifth, and also the tenth.

“This game is the epiphany of Abyss Builders’ Progenitor. He laughed because he was proud of himself, and he shook his head because he was filled with regret. He was proud that he disturbed the game, and regretful because he did not manage to complete it.

“He left this game… for Su Xuan Yi, because he wanted Su Xuan Yi to continue and finish the game,” Su Ming’s stated calmly, his expression not changing.

“Then what did you see?” the old Fire Spirit to the right of the chessboard suddenly asked.

Su Ming stayed silent. After a long while, he sighed. “He wants me to complete the game.”

The secrets of the Fifth True World were revealed before his eyes when he least expected it.

When he thought about it carefully, if he connected all the clues he discovered in the past, then the outline of the string would form a secret that no longer was something complicated.

There was nothing worth hiding about this secret either. The four Great True Worlds surrounding and attacking the Fifth True World in the past had always been a fact.

Perhaps these two old Fire Spirits truly did not understand it, but there was also a possibility that they understood it…

If they really did not understand it, then it would be because they had never walked out of the fifth kiln. Perhaps they did not know that there were worlds and disasters existing in the Cultivation Worlds outside.

Worlds possessed Essences of Worlds. It could make a limited number of cultivators become Lords of World Planes. It could be described as a place with only a certain amount of fixed spots. Once they were occupied, other people could either leave to search for other worlds to obtain their acknowledgement, or kill the current holders and snatch their spots.

Beside these, there were no other options. Unless they could endure having their cultivation base eternally remain at one level, they had to choose one of the two options.

As they trained and obtained the acknowledgement of ten thousand Essences of Worlds, they could reach Plane Kalpa Realm. Once they surpassed this Realm, they would reach Lunar Kalpa Realm, and as they continued gathering their power, they would reach Solar Kalpa Realm.

This was the law of the universe. All lives could only practice cultivation if they obeyed this law… Su Ming had been uncertain about the Fifth True World previously, after he gained his understanding about his inborn ability of an Abyss Builder.

This inborn ability was blatant robbery. It was a domineering, malicious ability, a madness that ignored laws and stood above them. He did not need Essences of Worlds, and neither did he need to fuse with ten thousand worlds to reach Plane Kalpa Realm, because his ability to Possess others could surpass everything.

It was due to the uncertainty towards this inborn ability that Su Ming… had formed guesses towards the Fifth True World in the bottom of his heart.

He could already imagine that Abyss Builders’ Progenitor was the prodigy of his generation. With his inborn divine ability, he could Possess all living beings, overturn the universe, ignore rules, and reach an incredibly terrifying state.

Because of that, he would naturally attract the other powerful warriors’ attention and bring about the disaster of death on himself. It seemed to make sense if that was the case.

However, there was always a question in Su Ming’s heart. If he could solve it, he would be able to understand what had happened.

The stronger Abyss Builders’ Progenitor became, the more of a threat he posed to others. However, this was not enough for the four Great True Worlds to work together to surround and destroy all living beings in the Fifth True World. They also nearly killed all the Abyss Builders, with even Su Ming not escaping from being cursed when he was just a baby in his mother’s womb.

This… was slightly illogical.

Unless Abyss Builders’ Progenitor did something that angered the heavens and all lives in the universe, forcing the other four Great True Worlds to attack… But with the power and wisdom Abyss Builders’ Progenitor possessed, how could it have been possible for him not to see the end result of his actions. How could it be possible that he would do something that would incite such wrath in the four Great True Worlds that it could not be resolved?

‘There’s another possibility…’

Su Ming lifted his head. He looked at the walls of the cave above him. There was a hint of deep emotion in his eyes. He remembered the Duke of Crimson Flame once mentioning that Abyss Builders’ Progenitor was only half a step away from becoming the supreme, unparalleled existence in the world. He might have been half a step away, but his offensive power back then had already been sufficient for him to fight against two supreme existences!

The Duke of Crimson Flame might only have been in Lunar Kalpa Realm, but during that generation, cultivators in Lunar Kalpa Realm could see far ahead down the path of cultivation. The supreme existence he mentioned was a Master of Fate, Lives, and Death, but once Su Ming came to understand the Masters of Fate, Lives, and Death, he understood that those in Mastery Realm were Masters of Fate, Lives, and Death, and those in Death Realm were also the same. In fact, even Sublime Paragons could be said to have been born from Masters of Fate, Lives, and Death, but different Realms meant a difference between heaven and earth.

If that was the case, then it would mean that there was a high possibility that that supreme existence… was a Sublime Paragon, which would also mean that Abyss Builders’ Progenitor had only been half a step away from becoming a Sublime Paragon!

However, his offensive power had already been great enough for him to fight against two Sublime Paragons!!

‘This possibility is… No matter what path of cultivation we practice, there will always be a checkpoint. Breaking through this checkpoint is the same as the Essences of Worlds all lives in the world practice. It is in a fixed position.

‘Every single world out of the nine worlds in the universe can only have one Sublime Paragon. This is the law.

‘Which is why there are only four Sublime Paragons in the four Great True Worlds. They stand above Kalpa Lords like Dao Chen. If the Fifth True World is one of the nine worlds in the universe, then the matter of it being destroyed would not have happened.

‘But the Fifth True World was not one of the nine worlds in the universe. Because of it, once Abyss Builders’ Progenitor became a Sublime Paragon, one of the four Sublime Paragons in the four Great True Worlds would definitely die!

‘There were only four spots, and they had already been occupied, but then came a person who became a great threat to the four… Abyss Builders’ Progenitor!’

Su Ming stayed silent. This was his guess, but he was quite certain that it… was the real reason behind why the Fifth True World was destroyed.

He sighed softly, then lowered his head. He looked at the black piece on the chessboard, then after he remained silent for a moment, a bright spark appeared in his eyes. He lifted his right hand and picked up the black piece once again.

Su Ming did not want to take this path at first, but he knew that it did not matter whether it was Su Xuan Yi or he himself, as long as they took that one step, they would definitely fall to the same fate as Abyss Builders’ Progenitor.

If that was the case…

“Then let’s fight!”

A freezing glare shone in Su Ming’s eyes. He clenched his right fist, and the black piece disappeared from his palm.