Chapter 374: Cutting apart the Mountain and Building His Abode!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
If he wanted to change something useless into a treasure, then he needed the power to defend it.
'By the looks of it, no one among the Shamans has figured out anything about this place yet. After all, if I hadn't understood the basis behind the Execution of Three Evils, I wouldn't have been able to figure out the secret in this place either.
'I wonder if the Immortals who descend to this land can see it. However, the pattern of the place was formed largely due to the bloody wind blowing from the east. If I consider it this way, then this wind only started blowing about a year ago due to the Eastern Wastelands. It's only been a short time since it happened. Even if there are people who could understand the patterns in this place, they wouldn't have had time to notice this area.
'If I gave up, it would be a pity.'
Resolution appeared in Su Ming's eyes.
He knew for sure that he would not give up on this place, and since he was certain of it, then what he needed to do next was to think of countermeasures for the possible things that might happen in the future and set up his defenses for his first cave in the land of the Shamans.
'I won't change the main body of the pattern for the Three Evils, but there are some minor details that need to be modified.'
Su Ming's eyes sparkled, then he charged towards the eastern section of the mountain range. His body would occasionally appear within the mountain range, and green light could also be seen shining there. Clearly, Su Ming was using the sharp blade of his Virescent Light Sword to transform the mountain.
A day later, he went to the northern section of the mountain range and did to it what he had previously done to the eastern section. Once he cut off some of the sections of the mountain that did not fit into his requirements, he added some disguises for it, only then did he return to the corner connecting the east and north mountain ranges.
Su Ming stood there and fell into a moment of pensive silence before he took a step forward, charging down towards the canyon containing the thick fog and bloody stench as if he had just fallen down a cliff.
He was so quick that in the blink of an eye, he had already reached the bottom of the cliff. Most of the plants there were purplish black and gave off a very aggressive air. Some of the vines even started swaying and shot towards Su Ming as he fell down.
Su Ming did not bother with them. Once he avoided those vines and arrived at the bottom of the cliff, green light shone at the center of his brows. The small sword instantly flew out and slashed down towards the mountain range. Su Ming stood by the side and spread out his divine sense, covering the entire area within it. He examined it once again, and was satisfied.
Over the past few days, he had searched through the place many times and was certain that he did not miss any spot. Besides him, there was no other person in this place.
When Su Ming spread his divine sense to explore the place, the Virescent Light Sword had already opened up a cave on the wall before him. The crushed stones in the cave were also reduced to ashes. By Su Ming's will, the small virescent sword opened up eight stone chambers in the cave, turning the place into a gigantic cave abode that laid within a mountain.
Once the cave abode was formed, the wind blowing from the east brought in the bloody stench from the canyon outside and charged into the cave abode. In an instant, the cave abode was filled with that wind, causing the place to look rather foggy, just like how it was outside.
Su Ming had expected this phenomenon to happen way beforehand. With a calm expression, he walked into the cave abode and his body disappeared in that fog. When he reappeared, he was at the end of the cave abode. There was a gigantic wall that was about 1,000 feet in height. It was the shell of the mountain that was left behind after he had emptied out the place.
The shell was several dozens of feet in breadth. Wind would crash on it and its path forward would be blocked off.
Su Ming stood beside the stone wall and lifted his right hand to press on it. With a light burst of power from his Berserker Bones, a crack instantly spread from his hands. Cracking sounds echoed in the air, and instantly, several cracks that were spreading out went through that stone wall and connected with the outermost layer of the wall.
Su Ming took a few steps away from that spot and went to another side, repeating the same action eight times. Once he did so, there were already several cracks like the first crack on that 1,000 feet stone wall. However, Su Ming had demonstrated skill when he did this. There may be a lot of cracks, but the wall did not show any signs of crumbling.
Almost the instant these cracks were formed and opened up a tunnel connecting the cave with the outside world, a gust of wind blew in from the entrance of the cave. The wind did not remain in the cave but seeped into the cracks and charged into the world outside.
At that moment, the mountain range that previously blocked off the wind could no longer hold back its movements completely. There were gaps in the mountain now, causing the wind to continuously blow out, and the entire pattern in the mountain range instantly became alive.
As wind continuously blew past Su Ming's side and out through the cracks on the stone wall, Su Ming could clearly sense the power of the world from all around the place slowly gathering towards the mountain range. It was as if the dragon's head had awakened and was starting to breathe lightly.
If a person exercised this, then the power of the world would drift towards them, and their power would start circulating in their bodies. Similarly, the breathing formed through this pattern was akin to that of a dragon breathing, like that of a mountain breathing. The entire mountain range trembled lightly, and the power of the world started circulating while traveling in an inconspicuous manner.
The plants that lived in the mountain started shivering, as if they were opening all parts of their bodies to absorb the power of the world that was coming towards them from all directions.
At the same time, Su Ming also sensed clearly that as the mountain started breathing and the dragon's head started exercising its breathing, the Berserker Bones in his body also started acting on their own. As blue light shone, the power of the world continuously seeped into his body and fused together with the four Berserker Bones.
Besides the few who could initially borrow the power of the deity statue to condense their aura of Awakening to turn their bones, all the others in the Bone Sacrifice Realm would need to use the power of the world to increase their Berserker Bones during the rest of their cultivation.
The power of the world was invisible. Those in the Bone Sacrifice Realm could not utilize it directly, just absorb it when they exercised their breathing. Once they fused the power of the world into their blood vessels, it would turn into a power that circulated through the entire body. That was the power of Berserker Bones.
Once a certain amount of that power was accumulated, it would gain physical mass and change one of the vertebrae in the spine, gradually transforming it into a Berserker Bone!
Joy appeared in Su Ming's eyes. Once he sucked in a large breath of the power of the world around him that came once the mountain started exercising its breathing, he walked briskly out of his cave abode. With one leap, he rose in midair and looked down.
Right then, all the plants in the mountain range were swaying. The power of the world from all around surged forward, causing the place to turn into a whirlpool. The whirlpool might have started off small, but as the power of the world surged forth, it grew increasingly bigger.
'Thank goodness I didn't open up the entire thing, or else once that dragon's head starts breathing smoothly, the presence in this place would be much stronger, at least by ten fold.
'And when that time came, perhaps…' Su Ming hesitated for a moment and shook his head, dismissing the thought that suddenly appeared in his head.
He thought that idea was a little surreal.
That idea formed while he was looking down from midair. The mountain range's shape and its breathing made it seem like a dragon's head breathing. If the mountain was completely opened up, then as the wind continued blowing all year long and charging towards this place, as the mountain continued absorbing the power of the world as it exercised its breathing, then the mountain range might move…
"The mountain is connected to the earth, how could it move? That idea is just too surreal." Su Ming might be dissing that idea to himself, but he still could not help but start mulling over it.
'This mountain range is like a dragon's head. Once I open it up completely, it'll seem like it's breathing. Then, if it truly starts moving because of the wind blowing against it, then wouldn't it be as if the Three Evils pattern had just come to life..? If there is a dragon like this moving on the ground, if I can do that, then perhaps, many years in the future, this mountain range will possess a spirit…'
Su Ming scratched his head and cast a few more glances at the mountain range. He saw that the whirlpool in the mountain range had become much bigger, but he was not surprised, as if he had long since expected this. With one move, he appeared beyond the mountain range and found the spot on the outer layer of the mountain connecting to the cracks he had made from within. He stared at it for a long while, then started hiding it away. Once he was certain that no one would be able to find wrong unless they were looking closely, he returned to midair.
'I just opened up a small part of the mountain, and the whirlpool appeared because the mountain had started breathing. It'll disappear completely in a few days. At that time, while the mountain's appearance will look the same, but what is within would have gone through a tremendous change.
'Then I can start carving Runes on it. If only Hu Zi was here. He'd definitely be able to create a Rune specially for this place. Right now, I can only arrange the place with the Runes he gave me.
'Once I disguise them a little, this place will turn into my very first cave abode in the land of the Shamans!'
Satisfaction appeared in Su Ming's eyes. He descended and sat down cross-legged on the mountain. Spirit Plunder was brought out and floated above his head. He wore a mask and was dressed entirely in black. As he meditated, his entire being started giving off a presence that belonged to the Soul Catchers.
After a brief moment of thought, Su Ming touched his storage bag with his right hand. Immediately, red light flashed and the Fire Ape flew out. With the rod in hand, it looked around, and once it did so, surprised delight instantly appeared on its face. It started gesturing and baring its teeth at Su Ming.
Su Ming smiled, and his gaze fell on the mountain range. Gradually, a chilling light appeared in his eyes.
'This place might not be fully opened up, but if someone dares provoke me, then I'll draw them here and cast Execution of Three Evils using the pattern of this place. I can also control the might of that Art. In fact, if I run into powerful enemies, I can just fully open the dragon's head here to activate the full force of the power of the world.
'When that time comes, this place will be an execution ground!'
In the blink of an eye, three days went by. During those three days, there were several Shamans who were attracted by the whirlpool on the land when they flew past. When they wanted to get closer to investigate it, Su Ming would let out a cold harrumph, and they would discover his presence.
"I am practicing a secret Spell here. All trespassers will be killed without question!"
Even if Su Ming was wearing a mask, his entire body radiated with the presence of a Soul Catcher. His profound eyes also made made goosebumps instantly appear on these people's skins.
They were just Fledgeling Shamans, and with just one glance, they could tell that Su Ming was a Medial Shaman, and a Medial Soul Catcher to boot, who happened to be the group of people that were incredibly difficult to deal with once they were Medial Shamans. The Shamans could not help but respectfully wrap their fists in their palms in the distance.
The Shamans might all be members of the same race, but the methods they used when they attacked each other were similarly sinister, especially for Soul Catchers. Their reputation as killers in the land of the Shamans rang far and wide. This sort of people who were skilled in turning the living to the dead and vice versa, and also turning the living into living dead puppets, were an existence that instilled fear among all their enemies.
Besides, rumors had it that Soul Catchers were skilled in a Spell called Curse. They would only need a strand of their enemy's hair or their fingernail, and they would be able to cast that Spell to kill their enemy without being seen.
Because of that, Soul Catchers naturally became a mysterious existence that most people would not dare provoke easily.
"We are members of White Bull Tribe, which is located nearby. We didn't know that you were training here, senior. That is why we came here so carelessly. Please don't be angry, we'll leave immediately."
The leader of the team of people was a middle-aged man. He seemed to only be a Fledgeling Shaman, and the moment he discovered the presence of a Soul Catcher around Su Ming's body, he instantly became nervous and quickly bowed to him respectfully.
His tribe was just a small tribe. If it was just a normal Medial Shaman, things might be still decent but if they ran into Medial Spirit Mediums or Medial Soul Catchers, then they definitely had to be respectful.
Once the man finished speaking, he quickly rounded up his fellow tribe members and left the place hastily. Only when they had flown far away and saw that the Soul Catcher was not going to take action against them, they let out a huge sigh of relief.
Chapter 375: Right Before His Doorstep
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
To the north of Su Ming's cave abode in the mountain range was the group of people led by the middle-aged man. They were hastily leaving the place via the sky, afraid of making that Medial Soul Catcher unhappy if they were slow.
When they were about 100,000 feet away, they started slowing down, and they would occasionally turn their heads back to look. The mountain had already become indistinct when they were that far away from it. If they did not possess a certain level of power, they would only see that the mountain was in the distance.
"Sir Wu Zhu, what should we do now?" the tribe members beside the middle-aged man asked somewhat anxiously.
"That's right, sir Wu Zhu, half a month ago, that place was still normal, but why did a Medial Soul Catcher suddenly appear..?"
"Could it that he's a powerful Shaman Black Crane Tribe invited over and wants to forcefully occupy that place?!"
"Enough already! All of you, quiet!" The middle-aged man frowned, his face filling with resignation. He cast a glance at the people beside him, then at the mountain range where Su Ming was in the distance, then sighed.
"Perhaps that person is just temporarily training over there and will leave before long. After all, it is a barren land and there is nothing there that will attract a Medial Soul Catcher to stay there for long. Let's go, I'll report to the Patriarch when we return to the tribe and have the Patriarch make the decision." As the middle-aged man spoke and shook his head, they quickly left the place.
"He must be someone Black Crane Tribe invited over. That mountain range is very important to both of our tribes. Hah…" a tribe member behind the middle-aged man mumbled, then stopped speaking.
As the crowd left, the area gradually returned to its previous state of silence.
Su Ming, who had been sitting at the top of the mountain and had been observing the whirlpool continuously disappear, suddenly opened his eyes. His gaze was profound and there was a dark light in his eyes when he looked in the direction the members of White Bull Tribe had left.
'The nearby White Bull Tribe…'
Su Ming averted his gaze and looked at the mountain range. If he did not spread out his divine sense in a circular shape but instead gathered it together into one line, he could elongate it to 100,000 feet with his current power, and he had heard every single word exchanged between the members of White Bull Tribe.
'Looks like there are actually people who value this mountain range, but before I changed it, this place was indeed barren and there was really nothing special about it. Then why would that White Bull Tribe and that… Black Crane Tribe have a dispute over it?'
Su Ming was rather surprised by it. He was certain that he had carefully searched through the entire place several times before he had decided to open up his cave abode here, and only when he discovered that there were no signs pointing to anyone's presence that he made his decision.
Yet by the looks of it now, it seemed like there were still some secrets in this place that he did not manage to find.
Su Ming thought about it for a moment before he stood up and looked at the whirlpool formed by the power of the world. It was half the size it was previously, and judging by the looks of it, it would take around two days before it disappeared completely.
At that time, this place would return to normal. Unless anyone entered the mountain range, then it would be difficult for them to find that the place had been modified to become an excellent spot for training.
As for that whirlpool? Those members from White Bull Tribe would have been unable to see it due to the limits of their power. However, due to the accumulation of the power of the world in this place, the feeling it gave to those people had become different, though they were unable to discern the cause for it.
Su Ming investigated the mountain range once again. As he walked through the range, he spread out his divine sense, but he still could not find anything.
'Strange.'
He frowned. After a moment of thought, a glint appeared in his eyes, and the memory of the direction those members of White Bull Tribe came from and left appeared in his head. This time, he did not check inside the mountain range, but charged outwards.
He increased his search zone and placed his focus on the area 10,000 feet away from the mountain range. Even if it was flat ground, Su Ming still searched through it carefully. After several hours, he stood on an uneven plain located some 7,000 feet north to the mountain range. He stared at the ground with sparkling eyes.
Not too far away from him was a dug out hole. That hole was covered by grass and could not be easily discovered, and it was also located beyond the mountain range. Su Ming had focused his searches mostly within the mountain range previously and had not noticed this place.
Even stranger still was that even when Su Ming was standing there and had spread out his divine sense to examine the place, he still did not discover anything off. However, once he sent his divine sense into the hole, he let out a faint gasp of surprise.
About 100 feet into the hole, Su Ming's divine sense was bounced back by a domineering force. It was as if there was a seal placed within that stopped his divine sense from stretching down further.
'Could it be that White Bull Tribe and Black Crane Tribe are fighting over this?!'
Su Ming cast a look at the hole on the ground, then walked towards it. He bent his back and walked into the hole. The hole was not big, but it could still fit in one person. Once Su Ming entered the hole, he did not feel any sort of discomfort on his person. However, once he had moved about 100 feet into the hole, his footsteps came to an abrupt halt.
It was the spot where his divine sense was sent coiling back. His eyes sparkled, because he had just seen that there were two items placed on the ground before him.
One of them was a black stone bowl, filled with fresh water. It was the first item.
The second item was placed beside the bowl. It was a black feather stuck in the ground.
It was these two items that had created that force that blocked off Su Ming's divine sense from spreading in. Su Ming stood by the side and looked at them for a long moment with his head dipped down, but he could not find what was so special about these two items.
That feather was just a normal bird's feather, and it was not naturally black either. Some areas on the feather showed that it was originally white. By the looks of it, it was just a white feather that was smeared with burnt charcoal so that its color turned black.
The stone bowl was also just an ordinary bowl. The water within was the same.
Su Ming narrowed his eyes and spread out his divine sense swiftly towards the feather. The instant his divine sense touched it, he immediately had a feeling as if the feather no longer existed. In fact, when that feeling appeared, it was as if the cave also disappeared and Su Ming was buried underground.
'No wonder I couldn't detect anything when I was in my cave abode. This feather has concealing powers. It's just an ordinary object, but it possesses such power…' Su Ming covered the feather with his divine sense, and after numerous investigations, his expression suddenly changed.
Because he sensed a faint and weak divine sense contained within the feather. This was not perception but divine sense!
It was the exact same thing as the divine sense he had within his body! This was the second time Su Ming found an item that contained the same divine sense he possessed in the land of the Shamans - no, it should be said that this was the second time he found such a thing in the entire Land of South Morning!
The first time was when he was in the auction held in the land of Freezing Sky.
The divine sense gathered on that feather was very faint and weak. However, it was this divine sense that allowed this ordinary feather to contain the power of disguise. That divine sense had also noticed Su Ming's presence, and was struggling as if it wanted to fight back against the intrusion of his divine sense.
However, compared to Su Ming, who was using the complete power of his divine sense, the divine sense on that feather was rather weak. The instant both divine senses clashed, that faint hint of divine sense instantly vanished, and even the feather turned into ashes that scattered on the ground.
Su Ming was momentarily stunned. This was the first time he came into contact with another item that possessed divine sense with his own divine sense. After a moment of pensive silence, he spread out his divine sense once again.
However, this time, under his control, only a small part of his divine sense spread out. The instant it touched the stone bowl, he instantly felt a domineering force coming from it, clashing against him.
All of this happened without a single sound, but Su Ming felt as if his head was buzzing. His divine sense was bounced back, but that feeling quickly disappeared. He let out a cold snort, then increased the strength of his divine sense before he pressed down on that stone bowl.
As if it could not endure that force, the stone bowl cracked. What little power of divine sense was contained within the bowl also disappeared. The bowl cracked and split into two halves. The fresh water contained within spilled out and seeped into the earth.
Su Ming frowned. He had no idea just what those two items were, but was certain that they belonged to White Bull Tribe or Black Crane Tribe. They might even be owned separately by both tribes.
Without the stone bowl and the black feather around, Su Ming closed his eyes and stood there. He did not move, but with no further obstructions in its way, his divine sense charged into the inner parts of the hole. After a moment, his eyes flew open, and a glint of surprise flashed past his eyes.
"So that's how it is."
At the end at the hole, which was about several thousands of feet underneath where he stood, his divine sense saw a karst cave. That karst cave was not big, but on its walls were not a small amount of glittering objects. There were also a lot of signs pointing that there had been mining activities around the area. With just one glance, Su Ming could tell that those glittering objects were Shaman Crystals!
This was a ley-line that was rich with Shaman Crystals.
When Su Ming filled the entire area with his divine sense, he saw that the entire Shaman Crystal vein was actually not big, and a small part of the crystals had already been mined, though there were still nearly 100,000 remaining in the vein. Perhaps that amount was nothing to slightly bigger tribes, but for smaller Shaman Tribes, this was a great fortune.
However, it was clear that the ownership of the place had caused disputes. White Bull Tribe and Black Crane Tribe were in conflict precisely because they were trying to fight for this place. However, based on Su Ming's observations, it was clear that mining activities had been going on for several years in this place, and the two tribes were still fighting over this even now. It was not difficult to guess that they had already come up with a solution to this trouble. Although it was not the best possible solution, they could still avoid going to war.
However, all of this changed with Su Ming's sudden appearance.
An odd expression appeared on Su Ming's face. He did not expect that there would be a small treasure trove right before the doorstep of the place he wanted to treat as his cave abode. Once he thought about the great range of troubles that would come in the future when it was clear that White Bull Tribe and Black Crane Tribe would not give up on this place, he felt a headache growing.
'Oh well, since this Shaman Crystal vein is right before my doorstep, then it means that it's fated with me. If that's the case, I can't just give it away.' Su Ming placed his hands behind his back and walked out of the hole. Before he left, he placed a wisp of divine sense in the place.
Chapter 376: What's That Voice
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Three days passed by quickly. Once those three days were gone, the whirlpool in the mountain range that created the pattern of Three Evils disappeared. It looked normal, and was still an evil mountain and a barren land.
Su Ming had returned to the cave abode he made, then used a mountain rock to serve as his door, while also using the power of Runes to increase the safety. Once he did so, he began making preparations to stay here for long periods of time.
Su Ming waved his right hand within one of the stone chambers, and instantly, the old Berserker's body appeared in the center of it.
The old man was still immobile. He laid there with his eyes closed, but his mind was awake. His hate towards Su Ming had already reached a monstrous level, and if the slightest chance arose for him, he would cut Su Ming into a thousand pieces!
However, Su Ming would not give him that chance. Once he brought out the old man's body and placed it in the stone chamber, he took a few steps forward and swept his gaze across the body. Then, he suddenly lifted his right hand and tapped his finger on the old man's knees in succession.
Loud cracking sounds reverberated in the air and the old man's kneecaps instantly shattered. Su Ming did not stop. He tapped on all the joints on the old man's arms, and only when all the joints in the old man's body were turned into dust did he stop.
The old man might not be able to move, but he still felt an intense pain traveling through his entire body. It made him open his eyes and glare at Su Ming. If his power was not frozen up, then at the very least, he would use his gaze and deliver a shocking blow that was fatal to Su Ming.
"This is the price of you coming after my life." Su Ming's expression was cold. As he lifted his right hand, green light shone at the center of his brows. The small sword appeared in his hand, and he cut open a gash on the old man's arm.
Blood poured out immediately, but Su Ming did not stop there. He continued making similar gashes on all the old man's limbs.
"If this is truly just your clone, then I will wait for your real self to come here." A cold sneer appeared on his lips. Once he let go of the small sword, he brought out some herbs from his storage bag and placed them into the old man's limbs.
After some time, he brought out few more shrubs and planted them in the man's shattered joints. Those herbs were all needed to create Spirit Plunder and they would not serve to heal any form of injury. Once they came into contact with blood, their roots would immediately stretch out and crawl into the old man's flesh to absorb his life force and blood to grow.
Su Ming had done this plenty of times and no one had been able to withstand this sort of pain before. However, while the old man was trembling, his gaze did not change. He continued glaring at Su Ming, as if he wanted to engrave the image in his mind.
That venomous glare and expression that said that he was completely unbothered by the pain was a first to Su Ming.
"As expected of a Berserker in the Berserker Soul Realm who went through the life threatening crisis of Bone Sacrifice. This mental state of yours is indeed admirable. If your reason wasn't controlled by your greed and you had the confidence to kill me with one blow, you wouldn't have chased after me." Su Ming spoke calmly as he continued planting the herbs.
"It's a pity…" Su Ming shook his head and patted his storage bag with his right hand. Two Spirit Plunders immediately flew out and floated above the old man's forehead, causing the old man's eyes to move towards them, as if they were being absorbed by them.
Su Ming fell silent for a moment, and still felt somewhat uneasy about it. He brought out another Spirit Plunder, causing all three of them to float above the old man's body. Only then were his worries soothed.
"You're powerful. If I didn't have the power of the God of Berserkers, I would've died much earlier in your hands."
Su Ming grabbed at the air with his right hand, and the small virescent sword flew out once again. Once he held it in his hand, he stabbed the sword into the bloody mess in the old man's right arm. With a light tug, the old man's body jerked forward viciously, and his entire right arm fell limp.
The tendon in his right arm had just been torn off, and Su Ming did the same to the tendons in the old man's left arm and his legs. Once he did that, he opened up a few more gashes right on a few spots where his arteries and veins were, causing a large amount of blood to instantly flow out and spill on the stone chamber's floor.
"But your tendons in your arms and legs have already been torn off, all your blood is flowing out of your body, as well as being absorbed by those herbs, and your soul is also being absorbed by my Spirit Plunders.
"Even if your power recovers, let's see just how much of it you can use!" Su Ming stood there and spoke coldly. The old man heard his words, but his gaze was still venomous and did not change even the slightest bit.
Su Ming walked out of the stone chamber and instructed the Fire Ape, who had been watching the entire procedure by his side. "Xiao Hong, tear off his tendons and let his blood flow out of his body once a day."
With an excited look on its face, the Fire Ape bared its teeth and nodded. Its eyes shone and it stared at the old man with animosity.
'Turning that person into a Spirit Plunder is a bit of a waste… Soul Catchers are skilled in using the Undying Spell. That Spell is somewhat similar to the creation of a Spirit Plunder, perhaps I can experiment to see whether I can turn that person into a puppet like that.'
Su Ming remembered how that young Soul Catcher still remained alive even after losing his head.
Immersed in his thoughts, Su Ming arrived at another stone chamber. He placed his right hand on his storage bag. Immediately, yellow light shone brilliantly, and a gigantic cauldron appeared in the stone chamber.
The cauldron was so big that it occupied half of the room. Su Ming had specially made this place to be bigger than the other stone chambers just to store the cauldron in it.
Once the medicinal cauldron was placed inside, an ancient feeling instantly filled the entire place.
As Su Ming looked at the cauldron, his breathing quickened slightly. He knew that there was a medicinal pill being refined inside it, and he had his guesses and desires towards exactly what type was held within, along with what sort of value it possessed.
"This might be a very rare medicinal pill that contains the essence of time within it. A refinement that lasts thousands of years… I wonder just what that medicinal pill would look like."
As Su Ming mumbled, he placed both of his hands on the cauldron and spread his divine sense outward. Immediately, that cauldron lurched forward and distortions appeared around it, as if it was burning with invisible flames.
Su Ming's eyes sparkled. He brought out his small sword and let it circle around the cauldron once, while occasionally stabbing into the stone walls, causing the power of the world outside to enter through. Immediately, a large portion of the dense power of the world in the cave abode was lured in and surrounded the medicinal cauldron. It was then absorbed to nourish the medicinal pill within.
Su Ming had obtained this medicinal cauldron for quite some time now, but he simply did not have a quiet time where he could continue refining the pill inside it. Now that he had decided to stay in this cave abode for a long period of time, he brought this cauldron out to begin refining what's inside.
He had great hopes for the medicinal pill, and it was precisely because it was an unknown pill that this hope became stronger as he continued refining it.
Su Ming stared at the medicinal cauldron for a long while, then exited the stone chamber to sit down at the central hall of his cave abode. It was quiet all around him. He lifted his head and looked at the numerous small holes on the ceiling. Moonlight was shining through through them.
This was not the first time Su Ming had created this layout. Now, as he lifted his head to look at the moon in the sky through the holes, he fell into an absentminded state.
Because when he was in the cave in Dark Mountain, he had also lifted his head like this to look at the moon.
He had Xiao Hong keeping him company back then, just like what the Fire Ape was doing now by leaning against the wall not too far away while scratching its fur.
Su Ming stared at the moon and mumbled to himself after a long while, "Dark Mountain, I'll definitely come back!"
The him now was different from when he initially arrived in the Land of South Morning, the bewilderment of being in an unfamiliar land could no longer be found in him. He seemed to have gotten used to being alone and the loneliness when he sat down in his cave abode to meditate and train on this sort of nights.
Su Ming lowered his head and closed his eyes. When he opened them a moment later, serenity could be found in them
When his emotions had also calmed down, bell chimes suddenly echoed within his body. A layer of light surrounded him and spread out swiftly. From the distance, it looked as if there was a bell shaped cover manifesting in the form of an illusion on Su Ming.
It was originally just an illusion, but it slowly gained physical form. After the time taken for the burning of half an incense stick, Su Ming lifted his right hand and made a seal. When he pushed his hand forward, the bell-shaped cover surrounding his body floated forward slowly and went through him. Once it stopped in front of him, that cover turned into Han Mountain Bell.
Dark light flickered within it, and immediately, that strange rod snake flew out of the bell. It circled round the cave abode, and almost the instant it appeared, the Fire Ape lifted its head and bared its teeth, growling at it with a wary look on its face, as if it was showing its might.
The rod snake that had turned into a black line took a turn and charged towards the Fire Ape, causing the Fire Ape to grab its rod and wave it around quickly while jumping about, all the while roaring incessantly.
Su Ming's Brand was on the rod snake's body, that was why he knew that it was just playing around and would not hurt the Fire Ape. Besides, the Fire Ape's body was slowly recovering, and its speed and power were now equivalent to the Berserkers in the middle stage of the Bone Sacrifice Realm. When Su Ming saw that neither of the two creatures would get injured, he left them alone and stared at Han Mountain Bell.
This bell was a priceless treasure, but it was a pity that Su Ming could not utilize its full strength and had only taken over four of the nine heads. Besides defense, he could only really use the bell chimes to shock and trap his enemies.
Now, Su Ming's level of cultivation had increased by leaps and bounds. He was prepared to refine Han Mountain Bell once again, to see whether he could bring out even more of this priceless treasure's might.
With a glint in his eyes, Su Ming lifted his right hand to form a few seals, then pointed at Han Mountain Bell.
"Nine-Headed Dragon, Southern Emperor, Absolute!"
The instant Su Ming spoke and made those hand seals, buzzing sounds immediately appeared from Han Mountain Bell. Bell chimes reverberated within the stone chamber and shot out to echo in all directions of the mountain range.
At that moment, there were seven long arcs charging forward from the north outside Su Ming's cave abode in the mountain range. Right in front of those long arcs was an old man. He had the face of a monkey and wore a big red robe. His expression was dark and his speed quick. There was also a murderous air surrounding him.
By the looks of it, he was also a Medial Shaman, and a Medial Shaman who had reached the peak of that realm to boot.
As for the six people behind him, two of them were Medial Shamans, and the other were all Fledgeling Shamans who had reached the peak of their realms.
As the seven of them charged forth, the old man leading the team saw the place where Su Ming was residing. With a cold snort, he closed in on it. Just as he was about to descend from midair, he suddenly heard bell chimes coming from within the mountain range.
Those bell chimes were drawn out and appeared slow, but when they fell in the old man's ears, it made his heart and soul tremble, forcing him to stagger a few steps back. He widened his eyes and looked at the mountain range beneath him before he sucked in a deep breath.
"Damn it, the heck's that voice?! " Before the old man could even speak, one of the men behind him cried out.
Translator's Notes:
Nine-Headed Dragon, Southern Emperor, Absolute is actually Nine-Headed Dragon, Southern Emperor, Absolute Genocide. The latter is the full version of the whole entire chant.
Original is 九嬰南皇通形殺, and here we have the broken down version.
九 (Jiu) = Nine
嬰 (Ying) = Infant, 九嬰 added together is Nine Headed Dragon, supposed to have a cry like infants
南 (Nan) = South
皇 (huang) = Emperor
通 (tong) = a preposition, can mean thorough
形 (xing) = form
殺 (sha) = kill, massacre, slaughter
Added together it is Nine Infant South Emperor Thorough Form Slaughter, but Nine Infant would be way out of the way considering it really meant the Nine Headed Dragon.
There are seven words to the original version, and with the intention of keeping to the seven word form in the translated version, 通形 was added together to mean Absolute, since 九嬰 contained three words, which is Nine, Headed, and Dragon, despite the hypen.
The original version when this Art first appeared was actually 九, 嬰, 南, 皇, 通, 形, 殺, with the commas, and there is a reason for this.
These seven words were meant to be used as a chant for Su Ming to form seals. So, the gist of it is this.
Nine = 1 seal
Headed = 1 seal
Dragon = 1 seal
And so on.
So when Su Ming forms each seal, he says one word, and when he says it quickly, they become Nine-Headed Dragon Southern Emperor Absolute Genocide, but please do pay in mind that they are seals and chants, not the name of an Art.
Chapter 377: This Mountain
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
"The heck's that voice?"
The monkey-faced old man glared at the man and lifted his hand to slap the man's head.
"What do you think that voice is? 'The heck's that voice'?! Shut your trap!" The old man slapped him again, causing the man to quickly retract his head, but he did not dare move away.
The old man let out a cold snort and no longer bothered himself with the man. With a dark face, he charged towards the mountain range where Su Ming's cave abode was. The six people behind him followed suit. The seven of them turned into seven long arcs and charged towards the ground.
Yet, just when they flew out and before they even got closer to the mountain range, suddenly, bell chimes reverberated in the sky. The bell chimes hummed in the air, causing a visible layer of ripples to appear and start spreading in all directions.
The bell chime and the ripples immediately caused the old man's mind to start trembling once again, and his expression to change. As for the six people behind him, their bodies started swaying and shock appeared on their faces.
"This is the Soul Catcher's Voice. Patriarch, I think… I think we should leave. That's a Medial Soul Catcher."
One of the people behind the old man quickly spoke up to try to persuade the old man, as the bell chimes tolled in the air. That person's face was pale. He was only a Fledgeling Shaman, and the bell chimes seemed to have stirred up a large amount of humming sounds within his body, causing him to almost be unable to stand properly.
"Bullsh*t!" The monkey-faced old man glared at him and lifted his hand to slap the head of the person who spoke.
"Your old man's gonna tell you what that voice is. That's the Soul Catcher's Voice, all right, but use your head a bit. Why the heck did we come here for? He only has that voice, and he used it 'cause he's scared! Get it? He's scared, that's why he used that voice!
"Do you know how it came to be? That's the sound of someone striking mountain rock. That's all there is to it! And that sound already scared y'all off your pants?" the monkey-faced old man said with a cold harrumph.
"Patriarch, you're really smart and knowledgeable. So that's the sound of someone striking mountain rock, huh?" The six people quickly nodded their heads, and their gazes were filled with respect as they looked at the old man.
"It would have been better if he stayed quiet. But now that he used his Voice, I know that this boy Soul Catcher, who came out of nowhere, is scared." No one knew exactly how that monkey-faced old man came to that conclusion. He lifted his right hand and slapped each of the six people's heads.
"Ow! Patriarch!" The man who had been the earliest to speak among the six retracted his head once again and whined.
"You lot wait here. Watch as I chase the boy Soul Catcher away. How dare he take over what belongs to our tribe." The monkey-faced old man narrowed his eyes and no longer bothered himself with his six fellow tribesmen. Instead, he turned around and charged towards the mountain range where Su Ming was.
Yet the instant he came to be at a distance 1,000 feet away from the mountain range, suddenly, the bell chimes shot into the air with an even more powerful sound. Booming sounds reverberated and spread through the area, stirring up an even higher amount of ripples, even causing a huge gust of wind that lifted up the old man's hair.
The monkey-faced old man sucked in a sharp breath. He might have told his tribesmen about the voice as if he knew what it was, but in truth, he too, had absolutely no idea what it was. Just by listening to it, it already made fear stir in his heart. But he was the Patriarch of White Bull Tribe, he could not show fear before his tribesmen.
He gritted his teeth, then as he grumbled in his heart, he rushed out once again.
The six tribesmen behind him could not help but retreat. As they watched their patriarch moving forward and listened to the increasingly stronger humming sounds, they looked at each other.
"The patriarch is serious smart. How the heck did he know that the guy's scared?"
"How else could he be the patriarch and you ain't the patriarch? The patriarch's right. Look, the closer he got, the stronger the voice is. He's clear scared."
"Why do I think it ain't like that..?"
"That's right, he's clear scared."
As the six people continued talking, mumbling, and discussing among themselves, the monkey-faced old man had already arrived at a distance 500 feet away from the mountain range. When he saw that he was about to step on the mountain, he sucked in a huge breath and let out a huge roar.
"This mountain's…"
Yet before he could finish speaking, he widened his eyes and his voice died off. A presence that made his skin crawl shot out abruptly from the mountain range.
As that presence spread out, a gigantic illusion of 1,000 feet abruptly appeared before the old man. That illusion was in the shape of a bell, and once it appeared, a mighty pressure that shook the sky and earth rose up, and it was so great that it even changed the weather.
The pressure crashed into the monkey-faced old man, who was also shaken by the gigantic bell that suddenly appeared, and because of that, without a single word, he quickly fell back.
As he was retreating, a clear bell chime came from within that gigantic illusionary bell. That sound was a lot clearer than before, and when that chime fell into the tribesmen's ears, it made their ears ring.
The monkey-faced old man quickly retreated and returned to his tribe members' side.
"Damn it, the heck's that…" the man behind him cried out in surprise again.
"That sound ain't from striking mountain rocks. The heck's that thing?" The people standing behind the old man sucked in a sharp breath.
"Heck heckity heck. Is that the only word y'all know?!" The old man seemed to have flown into rage due to his embarrassment. He turned his head around and glared at those people, then lifted his hand and slapped their faces again.
"Your old man will tell you the heck that thing is. It's a big bowl!"
Right when the old man finished speaking, another bell chime shot through the air once again, and right before their eyes, the illusonary bell in the sky above the mountain range instantly materialized, revealing its complete form.
Its entire body was colored greenish black and it exuded an ancient presence. As it floated in midair, that presence turned into a mighty pressure that caused the old man and the people behind him to descend to the ground, unable to bear the pressure.
"Patriarch, that… that ain't a bowl…"
"Patriarch, that really ain't a bowl, the heck's that thing?"
The tribe members' faces were all stark pale and they were all shivering. Under the pressure, even their powers had frozen up, and as they shivered, vacant looks appeared on their faces.
"Hmph, let your old man tell y'all. That's a bowl. The boy Soul Catcher is scared, that���s why he got that bowl out to scare us. You, and you, get over there. Lure that boy Soul Catcher out for me."
The monkey-faced old man was nervous, but he gritted his teeth and ordered his men as he pointed at two standing by his side. When he saw the both of them not having the courage to go, he glared at them.
Amidst their fear, the two tribe members gritted their teeth and charged out, wanting to get closer to the mountain range. Yet when they had just moved about 100 feet forward, a shocking roar suddenly came from that Han Mountain Bell in the sky.
That roar brought an even greater shock to the hearts and souls compared to the bell chimes, causing the two men to cough out a mouthful of blood, and they instantly fell to the side. When they turned their heads back to look, they saw their four tribesmen standing behind their patriarch also coughing out blood and falling to the ground.
Only the monkey-faced old man remained standing, but his body was shaking.
"Don't think I don��t know y'all are playing dead. Just you wait, when I teach that boy Soul Catcher a lesson, I'll spank y'all when we get back."
The old man stomped, then as he spread his arms wide-open, he bit his tongue. Once he coughed out a mouthful of blood, he instantly gained a mighty presence. A huge layer of illusionary white fog also appeared behind him. As that fog tumbled about, the contour of a bull was formed.
The old man lifted his right hand, and with one flip, a gigantic bowl appeared mysteriously in his hand. That bowl was filled with fresh water, and with the bowl in hand, the old man took a step forward while groaning in his heart. He was the Patriarch of White Bull Tribe, a small tribe. Ever since he heard his tribesmen sending news that a Soul Catcher had appeared around the place a few days ago, he had been indecisive.
He waited for a few days. When the people he sent to investigate the place came back telling him that the place had returned to normal and that the Medial Soul Catcher was no longer around, he decided to bring his tribe members to the place and put up a show. He did not expect, however, that he would run into a voice that would shake his mind and soul when he just arrived.
He could still withstand the first few bell chimes and babble nonsense about the sound's origins, but when the gigantic bell materialized, his heart had already been conquered by fear. However, leaving just like that was not something he as a Patriarch could do. With gritted teeth, he made up his mind to launch a desperate attack. No matter what, he had to rush over and fight against that Medial Soul Catcher.
Besides, in his mind, he believed that even if he was not a Soul Catcher, he had still reached the pinnacle of being a Medial Shaman. There was no guarantee who would win in the fight.
As he rushed out, a serious look appeared on his face. Ripples and waves appeared on the fresh water in the stone bowl and turned into vapor around his body, causing him to be able to resist the bell chimes echoing in the air.
Just as he was moving forward, the two men who fell to the ground immediately opened their eyes and quickly crawled on the ground to return to their tribesmen, who had also fallen to the ground after coughing up blood.
Almost the moment these two people returned, their other four tribesmen also opened their eyes and looked at each other. Then, as if they could read each other's minds, all of them moved back quickly without a word.
Only the old man continued charging forward. Once he got closer to the mountain range, he already had no time to deal with his six tribesmen behind him. He stomped on the ground with his right foot and shot up swiftly from the ground to fly into the sky. At the same time he bellowed loudly once again.
"This mountain's…"
Almost the moment he started speaking the second time, suddenly, wind stirred and clouds surged forth beyond that gigantic Han Mountain Bell in the sky. A large layer of fog appeared, and the shadow of a great ferocious beast that could not be described with words formed inside that fog.
That ferocious beast looked as if it was made by nine Aquatic Beasts fused together, and it towered above everything. As those nine heads spread out, they looked as if they had occupied the sky.
It was also because of this creature's appearance that the old man's words died away abruptly the second time. His eyes went wide, and shock along with terror could be seen within them. He quickly retreated, and goosebumps rose all over his body.
A murderous aura descended upon him with a loud bang.
Five of the nine heads had their eyes closed as if they were sleeping. However, the four remaining heads had their eyes opened, and there was a freezing glare within them. Su Ming's body could be seen inside the four pairs of pupils.
"What is this mountain?" Su Ming's voice came out with a mighty boom from the mouths of the four heads he had occupied.
"This mountain's yers…"
The monkey-faced old man suddenly gained some sense in his head and no longer dared to continue retreating. He quickly smiled obsequiously.
Chapter 378: Nine-Headed Dragon, Southern Emperor, Absolute Genocide!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The old man's speech was a little weird. When Su Ming heard it, he frowned.
"Speak properly!"
"Huh? What? This mountain is yours!" The old man was momentarily stunned, then quickly slowed down his speech and repeated his words.
"Who are you?" The four heads of the gigantic creature in the sky cast the old man beneath a glance at the same time as they asked with a booming voice.
"Sir Soul Catcher, this old man's the Patriarch of White Bull Tribe, name's Bai Ge. This all's a misunderstanding, just a misunderstanding. I didn't come here for the mountain. I just heard from my tribesmen that you came here so I was a little excited and fired up. That's why I brought my tribesmen here to greet you.
"Um, I even prepared a gift for you. Please accept it. We still have something to do in our tribe, please excuse us." The monkey-faced old man quickly fumbled about in his bosom and brought out a Shaman Crystal that was even smaller than his fingernail. His heart clenched in pain at the thought of parting with it, but he had to give it up. He placed the crystal on the ground respectfully.
Any of the Shaman Crystals Su Ming could bring out were easily bigger than that small Shaman Crystal, but that old man's respectful but also pained expression as he looked at the crystal made it seem as if it was as big as a fist.
"Since you're here, you don't have to leave in a hurry. I'm currently training here and it is inconvenient for me to receive you. Just wait here for a while."
Su Ming frowned. Once he finished speaking, he no longer paid any attention to that man. The old Shaman had extraordinary power. Even if he had yet to attain great completion as a Medial Shaman, but he had already arrived at the peak.
However, Su Ming was not bothered by it. With the Fire Ape and the strange snake protecting him, the old man would not be able to do anything against him. Besides, Su Ming also wanted to use the chance while he refined Han Mountain Bell once again to shock this person.
This was something he thought of when he saw the old man's fear just now.
The monkey-faced old man groaned in his heart when he heard it. He might not be able to tell Su Ming's level of cultivation, but the gigantic ferocious beast in the sky was already enough to shock him and make the old man feel respect towards him.
He was certain that this gigantic ferocious beast was a sacred beast. He might not have ever heard about it, but it was clear that the person in the mountain was practicing an incredibly powerful Spell, which was why he could call out something like the projection of that sacred beast to descend in this place.
'Just where did this person come from? Only four of this sacred beast's heads have awakened, and it's already enough to make me scared. If all the heads wake up…' Bai Ge licked his lips and regretted his decision to come forward. He began to hate that tribesman who told him the enemy in this place had left.
At that moment, Su Ming was sitting in his cave abode with his legs crossed and his eyes shut. His hands were rapidly forming various hand seals before him. All of them were filled with a strange power he had vaguely sensed when he was refining Han Mountain Bell in the past.
As he changed those hand seals, the power of the world in the cave started surging towards him in large amounts to gather on his hands. It was as if those hand seals could allow him to move around the power of the world as he pleased.
Su Ming felt his spirits lift, and his speed grew even faster. Eventually, his hands turned into a blur, and there were numerous afterimages left behind.
The four heads of the nine-headed beast above his cave abode let out a roar towards the sky, causing the weather to change and an endless amount of ripples to spread out.
At that moment, suddenly, one of the slumbering heads shuddered, as if it was about to wake up from the roars of the four heads.
In the cave abode, Su Ming's speed as he made those seals became faster. Sweat beaded on his forehead. His divine sense had completely surged out, as he continued making those hand seals to fuse with the power of the world, then all of them were pumped into Han Mountain Bell. However, no matter how much of that strange power he sent into Han Mountain Bell, it still felt like throwing a stone in an ocean. There was absolutely no reaction.
Suddenly, he felt a faint hint of a reaction. It was as if there was a barrier in Han Mountain Bell. And if he did not break it, then it would be difficult for him to perform a more in depth refinement. The moment Su Ming sensed the barrier's presence, he fired up all his divine sense, then fused it all with the power of the world to continuously crash into it.
"Open up! Come on, open up!" Su Ming mumbled with his eyes closed, and more sweat poured down his forehead.
As Su Ming's spoke, the roars of the four awakened Aquatic Dragon heads grew stronger. They moved about and continued roaring. The waves of sound that were formed shook the world, causing the old man's ears to ring.
His face was pale. He looked at the four Aquatic Dragons in the sky and had the feeling that he was a mere ant.
As the roars reverberated through the sky, the head that was lying at the side started trembling even more furiously. Signs of struggle could be seen on its tightly shut eyes, as if it was about to wake up!
With Su Ming's divine sense continuing to crash against the barrier, the fifth head that had been asleep for an unknown amount of years looked as if it was about to wake up at any moment. The feeling Su Ming had became stronger. He could tell that once that invisible barrier was broken down, then the fifth head would open its eyes.
Taking over the first head meant that he obtained the basic level of control over Han Mountain Bell.
Taking over the second head allowed him to obtain the power to stun souls with Han Mountain Bell's chimes.
Taking over the third head made him feel the strength of the bell's defenses. He obtained the power to fuse that bell into his body so that he could defend himself.
When he took over the fourth head, he had sensed some hand seals in his head, allowing him to control the bell easily to seal things.
While Su Ming might not know what sort of ability he would gain once the fifth head woke up and he took it over, he looked forward to it.
That sort of anticipation became stronger as time passed by. However, the barrier Su Ming could sense within Han Mountain Bell still remained unbroken, even under the continuous barrage.
It was as if there was always a little bit of something lacking!
The roars in the sky were going for almost an hour. The ground, too, trembled under those incessant roars, and there were even stones breaking off from the mountain range and falling to the ground.
Su Ming gradually started trembling, and his divine sense was also starting to wither a little. The Fire Ape was looking rather anxious by his side. With its intelligence, it had grown to feel respect towards the ferocious beast in the sky.
However, to that rod snake, this sort of respect did not exist. There was only a strong sense of brutality within it that made it stare at the gigantic beast in the sky with uncertainty and a murderous aura through the small holes above it.
It was as if it had run into its mortal enemy. Buzzing sounds rose from the rod snake's body and its scales started standing up. If that creature did not have Su Ming's scent, which he was familiar with, then it would have rushed out right the moment it appeared and fought against it until one of them died.
The medicinal cauldron was still as usual in the cave abode. There was not a hint of change in it. However, the old Berserker in the other stone chamber started trembling violently. His face was pale and most of his blood had already flowed out of his body. What remained of it was absorbed madly by the herbs on him. His soul was also being absorbed by the three Spirit Plunders, as if it was being sealed off.
He, who was originally weakened to be begin, started to hear booming sounds going off in his head as he continued listening to the continuous barrage of roars, and he started struggling to fight back against it.
He was not the only one acting that way. The six members of White Bull Tribe who were standing beyond the mountain range had all fallen to the ground, trembling. Their faces were pale and bloodless. Four among them had become unconscious, and while there were still two who were awake, they had dazed looks on their faces, and they did not last that much longer either. Soon, they, too, fell to the ground unconscious.
As for the monkey-faced old man, he was sitting cross-legged on the ground while circulating his power. He wanted to fight back, but once he coughed out a few mouthfuls of blood, he found, to his shock, that the voice was growing stronger, and had already reached a level that was difficult for him to resist.
He was very close to the mountain range, unlike his six tribesmen who had run far away since a long time ago. A life threatening sense of danger blossomed in his heart, and in his terror, he immediately drank a mouthful of fresh water from the stone bowl in his hand. A large amount of white fog spread from his body, allowing him to resist it.
'It still won't open!'
Su Ming's hair was a mess, and as he continued forming those hand seals, he lifted his right hand and slammed it on his chest. Immediately, a large amount of spirit stones flew out and scattered around him in the cave abode, over the dust of many of their predecessors.
As these spirit stones appeared, Su Ming's divine sense was replenished. It circulated in his body like liquid in that opened path in his body, making him let out a low roar.
"Open your eyes, fifth head!"
As Su Ming roared, he pushed both of his hands forward. With that one push, all the spirit stones around him exploded once again. His divine sense guided a large amount of power from the world to charge into Han Mountain Bell and straight onto that wall, crashing into it madly.
At the same time, the roars from the four Aquatic Dragons in the sky became stronger. They were not sending their roars all over the place either. All of them went to the struggling and trembling fifth head and started roaring at it fiercely.
Su Ming only felt a shocking boom go off in his head, and his divine sense crashed through that barrier in Han Mountain Bell like a flood. Once it did so, his divine sense surged in, and it was also at that moment that the fifth head opened its eyes. There was a merciless look within them, but Su Ming's shadow was rapidly gathering in the pupils.
Right when Su Ming's shadow was completely formed in the eyes of the fifth head, it lifted its head and let out a roar, mixing its voice with the roars from the other four heads, creating a shocking boom that reverberated in the sky.
"Nine, Headed, Dragon, Southern, Emperor, Absolute, Genocide!" When the five heads roared, a voice speaking could be faintly heard.
The monkey-faced old Shaman could no longer withstand the pressure. He coughed out a mouthful of blood and fell to the side unconscious.
The moment these five heads roared, a large amount of information pertaining to the legacy of Han Mountain Bell appeared in Su Ming's head. Within that chaotic mess, he learned of the ability Han Mountain Bell gained after the fifth head opened its eyes.
It was the power to temporarily allow the Vessel Spirit residing in the bell to gain form!
Su Ming's breathing quickened and excitement brightened his eyes. He brought out a large amount of spirit stones once again and lifted his head to stare at the gigantic ferocious beast in the sky. Resolution appeared on his face.
"I might as well do it in one go! I'll let the sixth head awaken as well!"
Chapter 379: The Sixth Head!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The five heads out of the Nine-Headed Dragon roared, and their voices rumbled like thunder. The monkey-faced old Shaman could no longer withstand the pressure and had fallen unconscious.
The rod snake let out a piercing cry in the cave abode. Judging by its looks, it was facing a great enemy, and looked about to rush out at any moment. However, due to the Brand Su Ming had left in its body and the fact that he owned the five heads of the Nine Headed Dragon, which it regarded hostilely, it forced down its urge to kill.
The old Berserker in the stone chamber still had his eyes shut tightly. His body had also started trembling even more viciously. When the roars from the sky reached him, he looked as if he had reached his limit in his current condition.
Su Ming sat in the hall in his cave abode and continued making the hand seals. The power of the world surged forward and fused with his divine sense to charge into Han Mountain Bell.
There was a ring of spirit stone dust around Su Ming. It was fortunate that he had quite a lot of this currency, which was why he could afford to spend them like this. He continuously brought out large amounts of spirit stones, and once he absorbed the spiritual power in them, he would bring out another similar amount.
With this method, gradually, the power he pushed into Han Mountain Bell became greater. As the five heads continued howling, slowly, the sixth head of the nine-headed beast started trembling.
As it trembled, Su Ming felt the barrier within Han Mountain Bell once again. He knew clearly that once he broke through it, then he could make the sixth head open its eyes and wake up.
However, with the experience of waking up the fifth head, he knew that breaking through was too difficult, but he did not give up. Instead, he used his spirit stones to support himself and guided the power of the world around to start his repeated assault against the barrier.
He rammed into the barrier with his divine sense five times, and with each crash, that invisible barrier would look as if it was trembling. As it trembled, what would happen outside was that the sixth head would shiver. Its tightly shut eyes would show signs of opening.
However, as long as the invisible barrier did not break, that sixth head would not wake up. Su Ming's eyes sparkled. He formed the hand seals with both of his hands and pushed them forward once again.
"Open!"
A booming sound went off in his head. The barrier within Han Mountain Bell was attacked once again. The sixth head trembled viciously, but it still did not wake up.
Once he tried it eight times, Su Ming understood that if he used the standard procedure, waking the fifth head was the current limit of his power. Clearly, trying to wake up each of the heads after the first four heads in Han Mountain Bell required a vast amount of power as support. It would not be as easy as it was for the previous four heads.
With his current level of power, he only needed a tiny thread of power more to make that sixth head wake up, but that tiny thread was like the distance between two sides of a ravine. He could not cross over it.
'By the looks of it, I'll have to borrow external power!'
A glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes. He no longer made any seals with his hands but got up and took a few steps backward to arrive at the deepest part of the cave that contained the numerous cracks on its walls, which allowed the mountain range to start breathing.
The instant Su Ming reached that room, he lifted his hands and pressed his palms flat on the wall. The stone wall immediately started trembling and new cracks appeared. Under the power of Su Ming's palm strike, once they connected with the previous cracks, they went through the stone and connected with the outside world.
Due to the increase of those cracks, the originally weak human like breathing in the mountain suddenly became much stronger. At that moment, the entire mountain range's breathing instantly became greater, and due to it, the power of the world also charged forth in a much greater quantity, causing a large whirlpool to once again appear.
That whirlpool was formed due to the power of the world gathering together. Once it appeared, it followed Su Ming's divine sense and started a barrage on Han Mountain Bell.
The barrier within let out a series of cracking noises in Su Ming's head, as if it was about to shatter. The sixth head also slowly lifted up its body, trembling viciously, and it opened its eyes a small slit.
'The method is correct. With the help of the pattern in this place, I can break through the limit of that one thread. I just need to persevere through another few breaths and I'll succeed.'
Yet at that very moment, Su Ming's face turned pale. That power of the world was too great and his divine sense was like a boat trapped in a raging sea. It was difficult for him to guide it. After all, his level of cultivation was not high enough.
That vast power of the world was about to break through his hold like a wild horse and scatter all around him. Red appeared in Su Ming's eyes. Once the power of the world spread out, even if he could gather it together once again, if he could not use it to wake the sixth head in one shot like he did with the fifth, then if he wanted to try it again, unless he raised his level of cultivation, it would be impossible for him to try again and succeed within a short period of time.
If that was the result he had to face, then Su Ming had to persevere!
He bit his tongue and coughed out a mouthful of blood. As that blood spilled out, the four Berserker Bones in Su Ming's body started trembling, sending out the entirety of his power of the Bone Sacrifice Realm with an explosive force.
At the same time, the power of the Refined Aura that had already turned into liquid in the opened path within Su Ming's body started circulating rapidly and became thinner until it eventually seemed as if it had disappeared. The disappeared Refined Aura had already completely surged into Su Ming's divine sense, forcing it to be able to control the power of the world when it was just about to crumble.
One breath, two breaths… After two breaths, the vast power of the world started showing signs of scattering away again. Su Ming lifted his right hand, and with lightning speed, jabbed his finger on several spots on his body. All those spots where the parts connecting the opened path into one single whole.
Once he pressed on those spots, he seemed to have forced out the remaining power of the Refined Aura in his body. Along with the help of the power of his Berserker Bones, he finally managed to buy the time for two more breaths before the power of the world started crumbling once again.
It was during the span of these four breaths that the invisible barrier in Han Mountain Bell was completely broken through. As it crumbled, the sixth head opened its eyes, and gray light shone from within. The sixth head had awakened!
It lifted its head to let out a low roar, howling together with the other five heads. Their voices shook the sky and earth, and as they spread in all directions, the old Berserker who was gravely wounded in Su Ming's cave abode could no longer fight back and a large amount of blood mist burst out from his body. He immediately sank into unconsciousness, and it was one where his mind had fallen into a comatose state!
In the sky, Su Ming's shadow appeared in the pupils of the awakened sixth head. As the heads roared together, the might coming from it was shocking. It was a pity that not many people saw it. This place was considered a rather remote spot in the land of the Shamans, or else those who were observant would have noticed.
The Nine-Headed Dragon looked like a sacred beast of the Shaman Tribe. Anyone who saw it would find it hard not to feel fear.
Su Ming sat in the cave abode with a pale face, but his eyes were shining with excitement. He wanted to try opening the eyes of the seventh head, but his body was already very weakened, and he had also wasted a large amount of spirit stones. Besides, he knew that with his current level of cultivation, it was utterly impossible for him to wake the seventh head.
In his silence, he chose to give up on continue trying. Instead, he made some hand seals and pointed above him with his right hand.
"Nine-Headed Dragon, Southern Emperor, Absolute Genocide, gather!" Su Ming said in a low voice. As he pointed with his finger, the gigantic body of the Nine Headed Body in the sky quickly turned indistinct, and in the blink of an eye, it became invisible and disappeared.
The huge Han Mountain Bell also shrank in an instant and turned into a ray of dark light that charged towards the mountain range, crawling through a small hole in the ceiling to come and float before Su Ming.
Han Mountain Bell now looked like simple and old looking small bell. It gave off an ancient feeling. When Su Ming looked towards it, he had a feeling as if this thing had become a part of him. Even if he closed his eyes, he could still feel the presence of the bell. With a single thought, he could control this treasure and make it transform.
'The divine ability I gained after waking up sixth head… is this..?'
With his eyes closed, Su Ming went on to sense the change in Han Mountain Bell once the sixth head had awakened. After a long while, he slowly opened his eyes, and there was a stunned look on his face.
He frowned and brought out some medicinal pills. Once he swallowed them, he did not circulate his Qi. Instead, he stood up and paced up and down his cave abode, as if he was hesitating over a difficult decision.
'By the looks of it, even if my level of cultivation has reached a certain state, it's still quite impossible for me to wake the seventh head… but once I wake the seventh head, the change that will occur will reach a terrifying state…
'If my guess is correct, that is if what I deduced from the Art I gained from the sixth head is right, once the seventh head wakes up, there's a high chance that it will allow a wisp of the Nine-Headed Dragon's True Spirit to descend…'
Su Ming's footsteps came to a halt and determination appeared in his eyes.
'There's no need for me to hesitate over this anymore. The land of the Shamans is filled with dangers, and it'll be difficult for me to avoid being killed. If that's the case…' Su Ming looked at the floating Han Mountain Bell by his side and a complicated look appeared on his face.
'I'll fulfill the requirements needed to wake up the seventh head!' With a swing of his arm, Han Mountain Bell immediately flew towards him and disappeared once it fused into his body.
'This bell is indeed a priceless treasure, but why did no one try taking it away after it was placed in Han Mountain City so long ago? Why is it that only Si Ma Xin and I could fight over it..?
'There are plenty of powerful warriors in the Berserker Tribe, and there's also the fact about the Immortals coming to our place. Why did they ignore Han Mountain Bell..? Unless… they don't have a method to take it away, or maybe it's because they can't take it away, or perhaps… they don't dare to?' Su Ming had thought about this question before, but he had never obtained a real answer.
He shook his head and decided to not think about it anymore. Instead, he sat down cross-legged and started exercising his breathing. Three days passed by in the blink of an eye.
At that time, the unconscious old Shaman outside the mountain range opened his eyes. He cast his eyes around, before he got up quietly, and checked his surroundings, then slowly retreated.
"Are you going to leave just like that?"
The instant he started retreating, Su Ming's cold voice spoke languidly from the mountain range. When those words fell in the old man's ears, he immediately froze and forced out a smile.
"If there's nothing else, then I won't stay here anymore. It's been a few days since I went back, and there're plenty of things waiting for me back at my tribe. This mountain's yours," said the old man quickly. Right up till the end, he did not manage to see Su Ming's body, and a great sense of wariness towards this Medial Soul Catcher rose within his heart.
The sight he saw before he fainted also terrified him. He no longer had any desire to fight against him.
"Thirty thousand feet around this area…" Su Ming said slowly, but before he could finish his sentence, that old Shaman was already nodding his head furiously.
"Gotcha. No one comes within thirty thousand feet of the place. I'll go tell my people in the tribe to absolutely not come around. Um… if there's nothing else, I'll be off first."
Chapter 380: Madam Ji!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
As the old Shaman spoke, he retreated without stop until he reached his six tribesmen who had come with him for this. Then he kicked them, and once those unconscious tribe members of his were kicked awake, he quickly wrapped his fist in his palm as a salute to the mountain and hastily brought them away.
His six tribesmen were all pale, and they were all filled with respect towards the mountain range where Su Ming was, while feeling that it was a mysterious place as well. As they charged back with the old man, their hearts were full of lingering fear.
Only when they were almost back to their tribe did one of the men speak after hesitating for a moment.
"Patriarch, what do we do? Should we ask the statue of our great grand Patriarch to attack?"
"Hur hur, what do we do? Why don'cha tell me what do we do, you bunch of rascals who only know how to pretend to be dead?! We have one attack left in the statue of our great grand patriarch, and that's going to be used to frighten that Black Crane Tribe!" The monkey-faced old man glared at the man, then turned around to slap the man's head.
"Let me tell y'all. We can't look down on that Medial Soul Catcher. He already brought about such a presence by just activating his divine ability, even if I launch a desperate attack, there's no use. He's a Soul Catcher and an outsider. He can come and go as he pleases, I don't have the confidence to kill him.
"Since that's the case, if your old man dies, then what are you bunch of rascals going to do? What are our tribesmen supposed to do? Even if I win by some stroke of luck and he runs away, he'll find a chance and come back to take revenge. Our tribe can't just up and leave either. This is not a good deal." The old man stroked his beard. He no longer had that silly thought he had previously, there was instead a hint of cunning in his eyes.
"That's why I was so busy flattering him and showed that I was respectful and afraid of him, which is why we managed to get out of a situation where we should have all died. That's what you call adapting to the situation!" The old man's eyes sparkled and looked towards the east.
"By the looks of it, that guy ain't someone that old bird from Black Crane invited over. Let's watch first. Black Crane's old bird is a hot tempered person. He's not as adaptable and sly as your old man. This might even be a good thing to us!" The old man smiled, then gained a serious look on his face and slapped the heads of all his tribesmen beside him.
"Let's go home! Keep this in your heads. If I don't say anything, don'cha dare set foot within thirty thousand feet of that mountain… Ah, make that 50,000. Make sure y'all don't step foot within fifty thousand feet of that mountain!"
Once the old Shaman from White Bull Tribe left, Su Ming gained a few days of peace and quiet with no one coming to bother him. He immersed himself in his training, and during his free time, he would look at the moon at night and practice the Art of burning his blood.
At the day, besides observing the medicinal cauldron and observing the old Berserker's physical condition, he also took care of his herbs. He used several of his stone chambers to plant some herbs, once he gathered some soil from nearby, and brought in some dense power of the world.
Other than that, Su Ming used the remainder of his time to study the Wind and Lightning Crystals of Inheritance, as well as trying to understand the Provenance of Wind and Origin of Lightning. He searched for a way to cast the Wind Berserker's divine ability along with the Lightning Berserker's Art.
Su Ming was completely immersed in his own world in that rather remote spot in the land of the Shamans, forgetting the ongoing battle between the Shamans and Berserkers, along with the Catastrophe of the Eastern Wastelands. The only thing that existed in his mind then was that in three years, he had to make his power increase by a large margin.
Only then could he get in touch with the Immortals and search for the secret behind the word 'Destiny'.
However, the days of peace and quiet were short lived. Seven days later, Su Ming opened his eyes where he was sitting in the cave. Holding the Wind Crystal of Inheritance in his hands, he lifted his head to look at the Fire Ape not too far away from him.
"Chase them away."
An excited look immediately appeared on the Fire Ape's face. It patted its chest, then lifted the rod before turning into a red shadow and disappearing. Before long, that Fire Ape came back with a satisfied look on its face, then spent a long time gesturing to Su Ming.
"Alright, if there are intruders again, you can do things at your own discretion. You're not allowed to hurt a person the first three times he comes, but if he or she comes a fourth time, go ahead and kill them." Su Ming pondered over it for a moment before he nodded his head, then continued immersing himself in trying to gain an epiphany over wind and lightning.
The Fire Ape instantly became even more excited, and with one leap, it ran out.
During the past few days, there would be a few Shamans who would come to the place and observe the periphery. Most of these people's hair was decorated with some black feathers, a clear distinction from White Bull Tribe.
Once some of these observers came within thirty thousand feet of the mountain range, they would be beaten up by a Fire Ape who would suddenly appear while screeching and swinging the rod in its hand. Most of these Shamans were Fledgling Shamans, and even if they had some divine abilities at their disposal, the Fire Ape was too quick for them. Usually, it would close in on them in a flash, and all those who got close to it would be forced back with a crash, because they were all sent flying with a swing of the rod.
Several times after this happened, the Shamans who had feathers in their heads started to only seldom come to this place, and eventually, none of them came at all. It was as if they knew that this place was off limits and had given up on it.
On the day Su Ming had stayed in his cave abode for half a month, three long arcs charged forth from the east. The person in the lead was a middle-aged man. He looked incredibly tall and strong, and his eyes shone brilliantly. Behind him were two old men. The three of them descended about one hundred thousand feet away from where Su Ming was and stood there while staring at the towering mountain range in the distance.
"Tribe leader, we'll reach the border once we're seventy thousand feet away from the mountain. Our tribesmen have entered that area several times before, and that ape would suddenly appear there. It might not have killed anyone, but it was becoming more and more ruthless. The last tribesman who was struck even had his ribs broken.
"By the looks of it, if we enter its territory anymore, it will come at us with the urge to kill," one of the old men behind the middle-aged man said in a low voice.
"If White Bull Tribe can tolerate this, then it means that the person who took over this place is not any common person. Our tribe also saw the change half a month ago in this place. This person… I think we should wait for the Patriarch to return before we make a decision." The other old man hesitated for a moment before he spoke in a low voice.
"That's right. The Patriarch has been away for almost a month. He said before he left that he'd be back in about that time. The Patriarch went out this time to bring back Madam Ji to help us destroy White Bull Tribe, we can wait a few more days."
The two old men tried to persuade him, but the middle-aged man in the middle remained silent for a long moment, then shook his head.
"The Patriarch took a large amount of the tribe's wealth and he still doesn't have a lot of confidence in bringing back Madam Ji of Leaping Stallion Peak. It's a fortunate thing that most of the Shamans now are in fear, and because of the war, our resources are lacking. That's why the Patriarch decided to go and ask Madam Ji to help us.
"But we can only ask her to attack once, and we have to use that attack to kill White Bull Tribe's Bai Ge. We don't have the money to pay for Madam Ji to attack twice, even if we count all the spoils of war from White Bull Tribe. Since that is the case, even if we won't have White Bull Tribe in our way anymore, it's still not worth it.
"We still don't know what this person's level of cultivation is. Besides, while the presence here has been great half a month ago, if we don't test waters and see just what are his limits, then we won't be able to explain ourselves to the Patriarch once he returns.
"Besides, with my power as a Medial Battle Shaman, even if I can't win against him, he won't be able to kill me in a short amount of time unless he is a Latter Shaman or a powerful Soul Catcher with an Undying puppet, either. Otherwise, I can still test waters.
"Don't go into the forbidden land. Just observe from outside. I've already made my decision in this!" The middle-aged man spoke slowly, and fighting spirit burned in his eyes. Cracking sounds came from his body, and his entire person swelled up by a fold, making him look like a small hill. Taking huge steps, he walked towards the mountain.
With each step, the ground would tremble slightly and a murderous aura would spread from his body. It formed a force of impact that swept through the land under his feet, causing the dust to fly into the air.
His speed increased until he was eventually so fast that his movements caused loud crashing noises to echo in the air. Those sounds fused together with the earth's trembles and gathered together to form a force that charged towards the mountain range where Su Ming was.
60,000 feet, 50,000 feet, 40,000 feet… 30,000 feet!
The man traveled forth like a violent gust of wind. When he arrived at the border of 30,000 feet away from the mountain, he did not stop but took a step inside. Yet the instant his feet landed, a roar shot through the air and a red blur moved towards him. At the same time, a piercing bang that sounded as if it was causing the air to convulse charged straight towards the man.
It was a rod that was lifted high in the sky!
A glint appeared in the man's eyes. He did not dodge but simply let out a cold snort and clenched his right hand into a fist before hurling it straight at the incoming rod. The instant his fist crashed into it, booming sounds reverberated through the air. The rod was bounced back, and even the Fire Ape was also forced back by the punch.
The man was not feeling entirely good either. His body froze for a moment, but he soon walked into the area 30,000 feet from the mountain range.
The Fire Ape roared and charged towards him again. A murderous look shone in the tribe leader's eyes and he lifted his hands to slam them both on the ground.
The land trembled suddenly, and as it did so, it seemed to have affected the sky as well, causing ripples to appear there, which made the Fire Ape freeze for a moment.
The instant it did, the man stepped on air and swung his right leg, with a buzz, a huge force was sent charging straight at the Fire Ape.
The Fire Ape's strength allowed it to be completely unbothered by that kick. The instant it lifted that rod and was about to fight against the man once again, the air before it suddenly distorted and Su Ming appeared so quickly that his appearance stirred up a huge gust of wind. He was dressed in black robes and wore the black mask over his face. As his hair danced in the sky, he hurled his fist towards the man's leg.
That punch contained a little of what he had come to understand of the Provenance of Wind and Origin of Lightning during these past few days. As he hurled his fist forward, wind and lightning rumbled in the air with such great intensity that they shook the sky.
Wind caused Su Ming's punch to be so quick that it could not be defended against! Lightning made it seem as if it contained the might of heaven! The power of his Berserker Bones exploded forth, and the instant Su Ming's fist connected with the Shaman's leg, the illusionary form of Han Mountain Bell appeared, as if his punch had become Han Mountain Bell itself!
A loud bang sounded in the air. The man's right leg was instantly broken and his face immediately turned pale. He coughed out a mouthful of blood and his body was swept away by that gust of wind, sending him several hundreds of feet away. He fell outside the barrier, and the two old men who'd come with him immediately went forward to support him.
"Don't bother me. This is a warning. Don't force me to kill. Don't make your family die with you. Don't make your tribe disappear from the land of the Shamans!" Su Ming stood before the Fire Ape and pulled back his right hand as he spoke slowly.