Chapter 588: Difficult!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The God of Berserkers' spike was entirely black. A chilling air spread out from its body, and a chilling drop of water was also forced out from within it. It exuded a wave of bitterness and madness that surged into the skies. That bitterness came from the second God of Berserkers, his unwillingness to die, and the madness came from the pain when he was torn apart.
That bone spike contained the second God of Berserkers' bitterness and madness, and its might was astonishing. At that moment, Su Ming drove that spike into Di Tian's chest while throwing all caution to the wind.
The spike pierced through the Emperor's robe on Di Tian's body, and plunging three inches into him, entered his flesh and blood!
During that instant, the God of Berserkers' bitterness and madness surged into Di Tian's body with a bang, causing him to shudder. At the same time a muffled groan escaped his lips, and his face turned pale.
This could not be seen with the naked eye, but with the divine sense, Su Ming could sense a shadow appearing next to Di Tian's body. The appearance of it was indistinct, but at that moment, it surrounded the clone's entire body. It had its arms wrapped around Di Tian, as if it had seized his soul and wanted to yank it straight out of his body.
That shadow was formed from the second God of Berserkers' bitterness. It did not have any will, but clearly had a hate towards Di Tian that was engraved straight into the core of its being. As it surrounded him, it let out roars that could only be heard by divine senses.
The God of Berserkers' spike melted swiftly, seeping rapidly into the wound on Di Tian's chest, but right when it was about to fully do so, a strong ray of golden light swiftly flashed from Di Tian's body.
Due to it, Su Ming saw a jade pendant hanging right above Di Tian's chest. That jade was entirely gold, and it was naturally the thing that was letting out that strong ray of golden light. It spread out, and a wave of power that caused Su Ming to tremble exploded abruptly.
Under the golden light, the melted God of Berserkers' spike tumbled backwards, forced out. The second's bitterness filled spirit that was wrapped around Di Tian was also forced back as that golden light spread out.
As it shone on Su Ming, a bang went off in his head. He involuntarily took a few steps back, then bit down hard on the tip of his tongue and made himself immediately regain his senses. At the same time, he seized the air, and the spiked club manifested itself. He grabbed it, lifted, and then sent down crashing right down on Di Tian.
At that moment, his eyes were filled with red, and he looked incredibly pathetic, but there was a presence that screamed of an unwillingness to submit about him. When he lifted the spiked club, he sent it straight down on Di Tian with a sharp whistling sound that pierced the ears.
With a loud bang, the spiked club struck Di Tian… but it had been seized by the clone when he lifted his left hand!
Su Ming did not hesitate. Almost the moment Di Tian grabbed the spiked club, a low growl tumbled out of Su Ming's lips.
"Explode!"
Su Ming endured the pain in his heart for having to do so and activated the divine sense he had left in the spiked club, causing it to explode with a loud bang, and the impact that was formed swept towards Di Tian.
Su Ming could not move forward as that impact swept towards his opponent. He was forced to take a few steps back. When he did so, Di Tian also sank into a disheveled state. He had endured the full impact of that spiked club's explosion, but even though the golden light was spreading through the area, none of it shone directly on him. At that moment, he was still standing in midair, but there was a deep gash on his chest, and it could be seen that his face was pale.
"You're asking for it!" Di Tian roared. With golden light shining all over him, he took a step towards Su Ming. At the instant his foot landed, Su Ming's heart let out a thump and almost collapsed. If he had not offered his entire body up as a sacrifice during the Bone Sacrifice Realm, that one step would have caused his heart to explode.
Yet even so, Su Ming still staggered. While he took a few steps backwards once again, Di Tian had already closed in on him. The clone did not cast any divine abilities, but instead lifted his right hand and went on to seize Su Ming's throat.
He was so quick that his hand closed in on him in an instant. But right when he was about to take hold of the neck, Su Ming's right hand swiftly shot up to fight against him. Due to that one block, Su Ming's right hand was grabbed by Di Tian and all his bones in that hand crushed. Then, Di Tian swung him into the air and tossed him towards the island underneath.
Su Ming's body was sent charging down like a shooting star, and he crashed onto the ground with a bang. The island started trembling violently, and its edges completely shattered, then were swallowed by the sea.
"Did you honestly think that I wouldn't kill you?!"
Di Tian cast a glance at his own chest. The sharp stab of pain was still there, and during that instant just now, Su Ming had actually managed to make the shadow of death loom over his head. If his real self had not given him a treasure to protect his body before he descended, even if he had not died from that God of Berserkers' spike, he would have definitely been gravely wounded.
Su Ming's level of cultivation might not pose much of a threat to him, but the attacks he executed and the items he had brought had caused Di Tian to be shocked.
The instant Su Ming's body touched the ground, he lifted his right hand and pushed it towards the ground. As a rumbling sound echoed in the air, blood trickled out of his mouth, and he resisted against the force of Di Tian's throw with much difficulty. His entire right hand was twisted out of shape, and a sharp pain shot through his entire being, making cold sweat break out on his forehead. As he dispersed the power of Di Tian's throw, he coughed up a huge mouthful of blood once again, and his face gained an even paler shade, making him look just like a dead person.
The great difference between their power caused it to be absolutely impossible for Su Ming to win against Di Tian's clone. As he retreated, Di Tian closed in on him once again with a dark expression. His eyes were cold, merciless.
However, there was no despair on Su Ming's face. Instead, an even greater fighting spirit surged up within him, and his eyes looked as if a ball of fire had kindled within them. Almost at the same moment Di Tian closed in, Su Ming lifted his right hand and swung it forward. With this move, the time around his right hand reversed, and it started reverting to its original state from the distorted mess it was at the moment.
He was not healing himself, merely forcing the dislocated and fractured parts of his bones back to where they belonged with the power of Bone Sacrifice. That sort of pain was even stronger than the pain he suffered when he was injured.
"If you want my life, then you will have to pay a price you cannot endure!" While enduring the intense pain, Su Ming swung his lifted right hand at the sky.
"Sun Genesis!"
With that one swing, wind immediately started blowing among the clouds in the sky. As it howled, it filled the entire area before forming a gigantic whirlwind that charged straight towards Di Tian.
"Lunar Burial!"
Su Ming pushed his left hand down on the ground, and once it looked as if he had seized the ground, he yanked his hand upwards. With it, the second whirlwind stirred up out of nowhere and swept up everything around it, causing the seawater around the island to be pushed back and a violent gust of wind to come charging forward.
Right at the center between the whirlwind from the land and the whirlwind from the sky was Di Tian. As the two whirlwinds howled in the air, they swiftly crashed into each other.
At the instant they did so, Di Tian let out a cold harrumph.
"With my orders, I will make the sky not possess a second sun and the earth to not move in another direction, this is what it means to have no second sovereign! All dust and earth, all wind and clouds, all space and air, listen to my orders! Scatter!"
As Di Tian spoke, he formed a seal with his right hand and pointed forward. Immediately, a loud sound came from the sky.
That sound was deafening to the ears, and it sounded as if the sky was roaring, as if all lives in the world were howling, and there was only one word within this sound - "Scatter"!
That word sounded like the entire heaven's will, like an emperor's orders that would not allow anyone to question his will. It sounded like all the lives in the world roaring at the same time, and at the moment that sound appeared, the whirlwinds from the sky and earth crashed into each other, but before any form of sound could come from their crash, the two gusts of wind turned into nothingness and vanished right before Su Ming's eyes.
The island where Su Ming was standing also vanished, turning into emptiness. The entire sky also disappeared at that instant, as if it had ceased to exist.
Su Ming did not even have a chance to cast the third style of Wind Separation. When the first two styles turned into broken pieces and died away, Di Tian closed in on him from this emptiness, and a hand pressed down on the top of Su Ming's skull. A hoarse, stern voice reverberated in this completely empty world.
"All that has been changed will now be wiped away…"
Su Ming simply did not have a chance to resist. His body seemed to be frozen in midair, and even if he did possess more divine abilities, he could not resist. The hand had already pressed down on the top of his skull.
"All the mistakes in your path will now be rectified…"
With a loud bang, a massive amount of power surged into Su Ming's head, to seal up and sweep away everything, to go about bringing order to this so called chaos!
"All of your memories in this life will… scatter…"
The memories gradually became mixed up, as if this power was throwing everything into chaos. It left Su Ming's will in chaos, causing his mind to go blank once again, after layers of seals were placed on him.
"I will now grant you… hmm?!"
Before Di Tian could finish speaking, a cry of surprise suddenly came from him. The thing that caused this was nothing else but the scenes from the Candle Dragon's Undying and Imperishable World, which he saw while wiping away Su Ming's memories!
The Undying and Imperishable World, the resistance brought forth by his will, the desire to continue living, the roars that continued reminding him to never forget who he was, and the repeated 'I am Su Ming' carved millions of times onto the Candle Dragon's gigantic stone statue. This caused a great resistance to burst forth from Su Ming's body, as Di Tian continued trying to wipe his memories away.
This resistance was Su Ming's will, the unwillingness to submit and forget his own mind during those reincarnations and struggles, and was also… his roar of rage towards fate!
'I am Su Ming, no one can wipe away my memories! No one can make me sink into that blankness once again! No one can… snatch away everything that belongs to me!'
A loud bang went off in Su Ming's head, and during that instant, he regained consciousness. The world before his eyes shattered, and the empty sky turned into clouds, the disappeared island appeared under his feet once more, the sounds of the waves reverberated in his ears again, and everything except the whirlwinds returned to normal!
Chapter 589: Powerful!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
If it was not for the Candle Dragon's Undying and Imperishable World, Su Ming would have, at this point, sunk down, and he would be able to do nothing about it. Perhaps… when he woke up, he would be facing an unfamiliar Dark Mountain, and it might not even be known as Dark Mountain anymore, but there would still be some place waiting for him to rouse from his sleep.
Then, he would continue growing. Perhaps he would also experience destruction, and go through many other things. Perhaps he would also discover a pair of eyes watching him in the dark.
Perhaps he would be able to arrive to the point where he was now again, but perhaps… he would have to walk on the path others dictated for him and become Destiny again.
However… Hong Luo's appearance was like a perfectly laid out plan. A sudden accident happened, and it caught everyone by surprise. No one had been able to predict it beforehand. That was why Di Tian's first clone had spared no pains in appearing, and all of it was for the sake of returning things to their original course.
He succeeded, because Hong Luo died, but he also failed, because… Su Ming rose from his slumber!
The awakened Su Ming completely broke off from Di Tian's control. From then on, all the things he experienced were due to his own luck, and not because of anyone else's plans.
It was especially so for the Undying and Imperishable World. The actions which Di Tian's servant had thought were clever, in fact… made the will of this person, who fought and struggled and crawled his way out of those cycles of reincarnations, to be incredibly rare!
When Su Ming regained his consciousness, the shock in Di Tian's heart caused him to look at Su Ming with an incredibly grave expression on his face. This young man had given him far too many surprises during their meeting this time.
First, he had been able to injure him, and then had managed to regain his consciousness after he had sunk into oblivion. All of these things caused that grave expression on Di Tian's face, and at the same time, one thought in his mind grew stronger.
'No matter what, I will have to make him change today, or else, if he has more time, then unless my real self comes… Only a few years have went by, and he's already changed so much.
'Destiny… as expected of Destiny, a member of the Abyss Builders!' A freezing glare shone in Di Tian's eyes, and he lifted his right hand swiftly to point at Su Ming, who had begun swiftly retreating once he regained his senses.
"The wanderer who has returned to his path, the fog shall be your eye, and the heavens shall be your guide. This shall be… Heaven Maze!"
Di Tian's voice was filled with a strange rhythm. Right when he swept his finger through the air, a ball of green manifested around him.
Green threads swiftly shot out and covered the entire area in the blink of an eye. It looked like a giant ball of threads, and they enveloped the entire area, filling up the world.
It seemed as if they were traveling incredibly slowly, but were in truth spreading outwards at an extremely fast pace towards Su Ming, looking as if they wanted to wrap him up in multiple layers.
Su Ming could no longer see Di Tian before him. The entire area around him was filled with the incoming green threads, and he could not run from them, could not hide from them!
Su Ming's face was pale, and his right hand was still throbbing with intense pain. His breathing was ragged, but there was not a hint of despair in his eyes.
The sparkling light within them was like starlight, and they were burning brilliantly, showing off his fighting spirit. It was a demeanor that cried out that he even if he died, he would die standing, would laugh and have absolutely no regrets!
"I can die, but even if I die, I will make you pay! If I die, I will make you Immortals bleed seas of blood that will reach the sky! If I die, I will make this heaven be deprived of all thoughts forever!"
Su Ming laughed loudly. The green threads quickly spread out, and right at the instant they were less than a hundred feet away from him, he lifted his right hand, opened his mouth and spat something out. A fan immediately appeared in his hand.
It looked as if it was formed from an endless amount of feathers, and light was spilling out from it. With a swing, the fan immediately grew larger, and holding it, Su Ming swung his hand in the direction in front of him!
That fan was indeed the one he had snatched from Si Ma Xin, and it was a treasure that was created personally by the second God of Berserkers. It was… also an item that belonged to Su Ming!
"The three Barren Arts of Heaven, Earth, and Man, Heaven Barrenness!"
With that one swing of the fan, a deafening roar came from the sky covered by the rolling clouds. The sky shattered, inch by inch, and it turned pitch black. That swing of the fan looked as if it had caused the sky to tumble backwards, layer by layer. The shattered spots looked as if they had been swept up, causing the entire sky to look as if it had been completely lifted. The broken pieces fused with the power of the sky, and as they were swept up by the fan, they all charged towards the green threads.
Loud rumbling echoed in the air. The power of Heaven Barrenness had lifted the sky as if it was just a curtain, dragging up the green threads as it did. In the midst of the rumbling, the green threads that had spread out all around Su Ming trembled simultaneously.
"The three great Barren Arts of Heaven, Earth, and Man, Earth Barrenness!"
Su Ming swung the fan in his hand once again, and vibrations shook through the fan. As it trembled, the island under his body let out a loud bang, then… as the seawater roared and churned, it was swept up from the sea as Su Ming swung that fan upwards!
The island had shrank, but it was still an island and a small mass of land. Rumbling sounds surged into the sky, and with a buzzing sound, the island flew up right from the surface of the sea, bringing with it an endless amount of seawater that poured down just like a curtain of rain!
Moments after, the ground on the island shattered, turning into an uncountable amount of crushed stone pieces that crashed into the green threads once again. The strongest bang came from under the sky and above the earth.
It brought forth a presence that could destroy everything, and with Su Ming at its center, it swept through all directions!
Su Ming's face turned a lot of paler, but he did not stop moving his hands. Instead… he swung the fan again, and this time, he brought out the final style in the divine ability contained within this weapon, the style that even Si Ma Xin had not been able to cast.
"The three great Barren Arts of Heaven, Earth, and Man, Man Barrenness!"
At the moment this Art was cast, the shattered world roared. The endless amount of crushed stone shot through the green threads and charged towards Su Ming. In the blink of an eye, it covered his entire body and gathered into a gigantic head with Su Ming at its center!
The face it showed was the exact same as his. The shattered sky also fused into the gigantic earthen head's eyes, causing them to shine with a brilliant light.
At the instant the head was formed, Su Ming opened his mouth and breathed out a puff of air towards the sullen Di Tian standing not too far away from him. That puff of air turned into black wind that swept towards the clone, and it could break the sky, destroy the earth, and extinguish the flames of life.
"The second God of Berserkers' divine ability…"
Di Tian looked darkly at Su Ming. As he watched the black gust of wind Su Ming had breathed out turning into a layer of black fog as it closed in on him, Di Tian let out a cold harrumph.
"A pity. If the second had been the one to cast this, then this body of mine that is merely a clone would have been unable to fight against it… but if you are the one to cast it, then it will simply be too weak!" As Di Tian spoke, he lifted his left hand and cut down towards the black fog coming towards him.
With that single slash, the black fog started trembling swiftly. Its middle portion instantly caved in, opening up a crack due to the invisible slash. At the same time this happened, Di Tian took a step towards that fog, and he was so fast that he moved through in an instant, appearing right before the gigantic earthen head that Su Ming had brought out. He lifted his right hand and pushed his palm against the center of its brows.
"Cloud Sweep," Di Tian said flatly. At the instant his hand touched the gigantic head, his entire body sank into it. Without a single pause, once he went through, he moved towards the deeper parts of the head.
A loud bang traveled out from the head at that moment, and countless cracks marred its surface. Eventually, it was torn to pieces and exploded.
Yet the moment it exploded, the fingers of Di Tian's right hand touched the five-layered golden screen of light. It flashed viciously, but even as it continuously shattered and broke, it managed to force Di Tian back.
Numerous crushed stones fell from the sky. Golden light filled the air, with Su Ming standing within it, and the presence that belonged to the second God of Berserkers could be clearly felt from him!
During that most critical period, Su Ming did not hesitate to fuse with the Welcoming of Deities once again, causing his presence and body to change. He… looked just like the second God of Berserkers!
"This again!"
As Di Tian retreated, his facial expression turned incredibly dark. Su Ming's Five Direction Seal was an incredible headache to him. It was precisely because of this that Su Ming had managed to drive the God of Berserkers' spike into his body. In fact, even up to now, that wound had yet to heal, and was even continuously worsening, up to the point where it was already affecting his ability to bring out his power.
"Do you really think I can't break this Art? If it was the seal that was placed all those years ago by Sir Dao Chen [1], I wouldn't be able to break it, but now… the soul in this item has long since dissipated, it won't be difficult for me to open it!
"Heaven protects and establishes thee, that in everything thou dost prosper. May thy blessings come to thee tall alike the high hills and alike the mountain masses, eternal alike the topmost ridges, alike the greatest bulks, and alike the stream ever coming on, that there may none of thee that shalt not increase… Thou art alike the moon in the sky eternal, never waning, alike the sun rising in the east, never falling, alike the southern hills enjoying longevity, never ruined or destroyed. Thou art alike the luxuriant fir and cypress; may good fortune and longevity be with thee. [2]!
"The nine alikes as spoken in heaven's protections will be what I shall bestow upon you!"
Di Tian formed seals with both his hands, and as he said those words, each time he said the word 'alike', he would swiftly change a seal, and only once he finished saying the nine alikes did he finish forming all the seals. As he pushed the Art forward, nine gigantic 'alikes' appeared in the air before him!
Alike!
These nine words exuded an ancient air, along with a primitive presence. At the same time they appeared, Di Tian's clone aged by quite a few years. Clearly, this Art of the nine alikes as spoken in heaven's protections was something extraordinary!
Or else he would not have used Su Ming's Divine Will's Lightning to try and break the seal earlier instead of casting this Art himself.
As Di Tian pointed forward, the nine words charged towards Su Ming in a flash. Su Mint did not dodge. Instead, with a glint in his eyes, he allowed the nine words to crash onto the screen of light of the Five Direction Seal.
At the instant these nine words pressed down, the screen of light stopped shining. Instead, it swiftly disappeared from around Su Ming's body.
He did not understand the principle behind its disappearance, but he sensed the presence of Life from those nine words!
The instant the screen of light of the Five Direction Seal disappeared, Di Tian walked over. As for Su Ming, he lifted his head swiftly. The blood at the corners of his lips had yet to dry, but he had been waiting for the moment this screen of light would disappear!
This seal might be used for defense, but Su Ming did not want to defend… he wanted to attack!
That was why he allowed Di Tian to stifle the screen of light. When it disappeared and Di Tian came over, Su Ming lifted his head, opened his mouth, and with his body that had now turned into the second God of Berserkers, he let out a roar!
The God of Berserkers' Roar!
Translator's Notes:
1. Dao Chen: Is written as 道晨 (Dao4 Chen2), and literally means Dao + Morning/Dawn/birth of a new life (but that's metaphorical), which means Morning Dao. I'm sure you're all familiar with this?
His is the same case as Mo Luo and Scour Sieve Island.
Person's name → Dao Chen, everything else is Morning Dao. It also makes my eyes bleed to see just because that person decided to name things after his own name, and then I'll be calling Mo Luo Island this, Great Dao Chen World that. Then the novel will be littered with pinyin all over the place, and it's a pain to read, even for me.
So we have here the combination of the two, I hope you'll accept it.
2. This whole entire thing is an excerpt from THE THIEN PAO in the Book of Odes/Shi Jing, it has been translated by Jean Elizabeth, who is a Poet Laureate Ward. This is THE ONE AND ONLY translated version of the Book of Odes. It's very, very beautiful, much better than the shitty version up there (the reason behind why she's a Poet Laureate Ward), and while I COULD copy+paste the poem here, the structures in Jean Elizabeth's poem don't quite suit Di Tian's structure of attack. I have to admit though, I kind of... referred to hers, so a lot of her wording and structure influenced my own translation. *Sigh
Here's a link to the original.
http://www.100jia.net/texte/shijing/shijinglegge/shih02.htm
Oh wait, there should be a reference, no in-text citation though.
Elizabeth, J. (2008). Lulu Press. Morrisville, NC, pp. 89 - 90.
Chapter 590: Abyss Sword!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
It was not as if Su Ming had never thought about running before, but while the world might be big, where would he be able to run to? For how long would he be able to run? Putting aside the fact that it was already incredibly difficult for him to run away from Di Tian, just this great disaster itself was already something impossible for him to escape.
This was a disaster. He could not run from it, and neither did he want to run from it. It was not as if he was doomed, beyond redemption because of this disaster, and neither was it a form of suppression where he did not have an ounce of strength to fight back, because he could fight back!
In fact, he had even managed to injure Di Tian!
He was even just a hair breadth away from dealing a heavy blow on his opponent. This chance might not happen again, but Su Ming would not retreat!
'Why should I be afraid of death?! Even if I die, my will shall wake up again when I am reincarnated! Even if I die, I will still stand here and fight against fate!'
At the instant the screen of light dissipated, Su Ming's roar turned into a sound wave resisting against fate. It contained his will, his life, and all the unwillingness to submit to fate born throughout his life!
ROAR!
Even someone as powerful as Di Tian was also forced to come to a halt under that sound wave. His robes fluttered, and his hair danced in the air. What shocked him was not the power of that roar, but the presence of unwillingness to submit contained within it!
"Unwilling, hmm…? Once you sink, once you become obedient, I will make you willing…" Di Tian narrowed his eyes and walked towards Su Ming. He ha grown impatient by now, and decided to end this battle with brute force!
With his fastest speed, he would restore the chaos in Su Ming, thus allowing himself to feel at ease and fight with the other clone against his clan's archenemy - The Evil Sect in Eastern Wastelands!
When he moved forward, a black sea of fire appeared under his feet. It burned furiously and covered the entire area. Wherever it went, everything would be burned to ashes. The Dead Sea also started boiling, and a large amount of steam filled the air like fog.
With an incredibly domineering presence, Di Tian stormed towards Su Ming, as the black sea of fire spread out. With each step, his presence would surge like waves, as if there was no power in the world that could make him stop at that moment!
Su Ming lifted his left hand and pushed at the sky. With it, an ancient glow appeared in his eyes. He remembered the second God of Berserkers' warm left hand.
"God of Berserkers… palm lines," Su Ming said softly.
As his words traveled forth and Di Tian closed in on him, as the black sea of fire surged into the sky between the two of them, black trails swiftly appeared. They intersected with each other, looking like black fine threads. As they filled the air, they turned into gigantic palm lines!
They formed the outline of a palm, and that was the God of Berserkers' palm!
As Di Tian approached and as the black sea of fire spread out, the huge hand formed by the palm lines in the sky pressed down on him. It was so quick that it closed in on him in an instant.
From the distance, this was a shocking picture to see. The hand was pressing downwards, and right from within the flames surging into the sky Di Tian was walking out!
He did not even bother looking at the palm lines in the sky. When he walked towards Su Ming, he simply allowed them to close in. However, the sea of fire by his side rose up all around him, charging straight towards the sky to crash into those palm lines.
The clash between the God of Berserkers' palm lines and the sea of fire caused the booming sounds in the world to reach their extreme. This was a fight between two forces of power. At the instant they came into contact with each other, booming sounds shook the entire area, stirring up a wave of impact that swept towards the Dead Sea underneath, sweeping sideways across its surface, and causing a huge whirlpool right under Su Ming and Di Tian.
The whirlpool spun with loud, rumbling sounds, and the submerged ground could even be seen deep underneath!
"Your growth might have exceeded my expectations, but… you are still too weak!"
With each step Di Tian took, the palm lines in the sky collapsed under the sea of fire's impact. Blood trickled out of Su Ming's mouth, and as he retreated, Di Tian vanished. When he reappeared, he was already standing right behind Su Ming. He lifted his right hand and waved his arm. Immediately, Su Ming's body started going towards Di Tian against his will.
"Let's end this battle."
But right at that moment, Di Tian's pupils shrank, and he moved four steps backwards without any hesitation. At the instant he retreated, flames covered every single inch of Su Ming's body. He was burning!
He had just set his blood ablaze, lit fire on his own cultivation base. Just as Si Ma Xin had done before, Su Ming had set his blood ablaze to stimulate the strongest power within the inheritance from the second God of Berserkers. It could be said to be the God of Berserkers' Transformation!
Fusing with the Welcoming of Deities had just allowed him to obtain the inheritance so that he could use the God of Berserkers' divine abilities. If he wanted to bring out their full potential, Su Ming would need time to grow, just like Si Ma Xin. If he wanted to execute those divine abilities forcefully, then he would need… to go through the God of Berserkers Transformation!
To set his blood ablaze and turn into the God of Berserkers!
As Su Ming was engulfed by flames, the color of his hair started interchanging between black and white. His body was wrecked by shivers when, and when he lifted his head, cold callousness, along with madness, could be seen in his eyes. With a single step, he appeared right before Di Tian and hurled his fist towards him.
At the instant he did so, Di Tian frowned, lifted his foot, and kicked Su Ming's leg. With a bang, Su Ming retreated several steps back, but his fist had already landed on Di Tian's body.
However, right at that instant, golden light shone on the clone's body, and he was completely uninjured!
Di Tian narrowed his eyes and walked towards Su Ming. He suddenly had a huge fondness towards Su Ming's current behavior. The more unwilling he was to submit, the more interested he was in making him submit.
This made him feel incredibly good. He did not move quickly at that moment, but with each step he took, a layer of ripples would appear in the air, as if the sky itself had turned into water.
When Su Ming fell backwards, he lifted his right hand and pressed his palm against his chest. The blood he coughed up was sent into the sky with a swing of his arm.
"God of Berserkers' alteration towards the stars, sun, and moon, Disaster of the Stars!"
As Su Ming spoke, an entire group of stars immediately appeared in the torn clouds and the darkened sky. These stars glowed, and once they covered the entire sky, starlight descended swiftly, as if the stars itself had fallen, causing a wave of murderous aura to swiftly fill up the entire area.
Along with that murderous aura was the seemingly corporeal starlight. As it shone on the ground, a strange picture took shape. Within it were all the rays of starlight twisting and distorting before they all charged towards Di Tian like sharp arrows.
Anyone looking over would find the sight the arrows that were formed from the starlight that filled the entire sky dazzling. The murderous aura would also surge into their bodies and cause their cultivation bases to freeze.
Di Tian's pupils shrank. Almost at the instant the murderous aura and the sharp arrows closed in on him, he opened his mouth and spoke.
"Stars have their own courses, and starlight has places where even it cannot shine. With my orders, I, Di Tian, announce this place where no starlight will shine. This is… what it means to have each word I say turned into law!"
Once he finished, every single word he uttered turned into a runic symbol that flew out of his mouth and disappeared into nothingness. Right then, the murderous aura from the Disaster of the Stars which Su Ming had executed vanished without a trace. The starlight also turned into darkness in an instant, and even the starry sky became indistinct.
It was as if a law had been changed, causing Su Ming's divine ability to be forcefully halted!
"You should be proud that you actually managed to make me use the power of Law. What other divine abilities do you have? Bring them out, let me see… just what you have learned during the days I did not see you." Di Tian walked towards Su Ming slowly and spoke with a calm expression.
Bitterness filled Su Ming's heart. As he watched Di Tian walk over, he gritted his teeth, lifted his right hand, and struck his forehead. With it, the Berserker Bones within his body started letting out cracking sounds, and as his power spread outwards, he lifted his hands to form the picture of the moon!
"God of Berserkers' alteration towards the stars, sun, and moon, Moon Slaughter!" When Su Ming spoke those words, the muddled sky filled with stars was no longer just an illusion. Once all them faded away, a crescent moon appeared in the night.
Almost at the instant it appeared, the exact same shadow of the moon formed by moonlight appeared around Di Tian!
It completely enveloped him within, causing his footsteps to come to a halt. He lifted his head and cast a glance at the moon in the sky.
"Not bad. This Art is at least something worthwhile." As he spoke, cracks appeared on his skin, and they appeared right at the moment the moon in the sky started showing signs of crumbling apart.
Di Tian's eyes flashed. He lifted his right hand and seized the air. A violet ray of light appeared in his palm, and as it shone, a long violet sword manifested itself!
It was nine feet and nine inches long. There was a biting cold presence coming from within its long, narrow body, and there was also the majestic might of an emperor spreading out from within it, as if all swords in its presence would have to bow down and worship it… because it was the emperor of swords!
At the instant that sword appeared, Su Ming felt sharp stab of pain in his heart. He widened his eyes and looked at the sword. He had a sudden strong hunch that this sword was not Di Tian's… but his!
That feeling came out of nowhere, but was extremely powerful, as if the sword was a part of his life!
Yet at that moment, the sword was in the clone's hands. Di Tian looked at Su Ming and smiled. He lifted his right hand, and with the sword in his grasp, sliced at the moon in the sky casually!
With that one slice, the heavens howled, and time itself suffocated. The moon in the sky exploded with a bang, and even the stars in the sky shattered. The sword had cut down the sky, and a wave of sword aura even came charging down towards Su Ming's head with a sharp whistle!
"Abyss Sword!"
Not even Di Tian's clone had noticed this, but at that moment, within one of the torn clouds in the sky was an incredibly beautiful woman. She was originally snacking on roasted seeds while watching the battle underneath, but at that instant, she widened her eyes and looked at the sword in Di Tian's hand.
Right beside her was a shrunken yellow dragon. It had a look of distress on its face, but was still swallowing every single one of the seed coats the woman threw with extremely agile movements, not missing a single one.
Chapter 591: The Special Person in His Life!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Abyss Sword was just like its name. It was a sword from the Abyss. It cut through the sky and sliced through the air, slashing through the endless fog behind and revealing a brilliant galaxy after it!
That galaxy was where the Immortals were. It was Bright Yang Emptiness. There were an endless amount of planets engaged in cultivation there, and a lot of floating continents. Su Ming… had come to this place before, and that was when he was on the ancient bronze sword!
He had also come to this place once with his will before, when he killed Si Ma Xin.
There was a gigantic vortex in this galaxy that stretched endlessly. At that moment, an astonishing whistle traveled out from the vortex, and soon, as the fog churned viciously, a sword aura shot out. That sword aura… was naturally from the sword with which Di Tian had cut through the sky earlier. It penetrated the sky, shot through the fog, went through every single obstacle in its way, and flew out into the galaxy from the vortex!
At the instant it appeared, it disappeared without a trace…
At the edge of Eastern Wastelands, right above the Dead Sea, in the land of the Berserkers, was Su Ming. At that moment, a sword aura just like the one that went into the galaxy charged towards him with a howl. The speed of it was so quick that it closed in within the blink of an eye!
The moment it did so, Su Ming closed his eyes and had his right palm turn upwards while his left palm turn downwards. He closed his eyes, and a whirlwind appeared around him. As it rotated with loud booming sounds, it hid Su Ming's body. No one outside could see within it, and there Su Ming's body turned into that of a teenager. His hair turned purple and white, and at that moment… Destiny's presence radiated off him!
A loud bang shot up in the sky at that moment. The sword rammed into the whirlwind, and without a single hint of resistance from the wind, it tore through then fell back, simply letting its aura rip through it to charge towards Su Ming, who was inside.
But the scene that happened right after caused Di Tian to experience a huge shock for the first time since the battle started. That shock was even stronger than when he faced the God of Berserkers' spike!
He widened his eyes in disbelief. Right before his eyes, he saw the sword aura penetrating the whirlwind, causing it to crumble as it charged straight towards Su Ming, but for some unknown reason, the crumbled whirlwind gathered up together once again, and the sword aura that penetrated through the wind… turned back!
It was as if time had reversed on everything that had happened just now!
If that just had been the case, Di Tian would not have been too shocked. What truly shocked him was… a presence that came forth from the recovered whirlwind; it was one that made his heart tremble!
There was no way he would mistake or forget that presence. It almost made him lose control over his mind at that instant!
"Destiny!"
At the same time that one word he would occasionally mention in conversation tumbled out of his lips, a fragile person walked out of the whirlwind where Su Ming was. He swung his right hand behind him, and the whirlwind dissipated.
What appeared before Di Tian was a teenage boy - Destiny, whose half of the head was white, and the other purple!
"This is impossible! You haven't woken up in Berserkers' Realm Mountain. You're still in the seal. You… You can't possibly bring forth the transformation to become Destiny! This isn't you. This isn't Su Ming. This isn't the Destiny I want!"
Di Tian's face twisted into a ferocious expression, as if he had gone mad, as if a fatal miscalculation had just appeared in the plan he had prepared for a long, long time. It caused him to be unable to accept this sudden matter!
"This isn't your path!"
Di Tian took a step forward, and with lightning speed, he charged towards Su Ming. For the first time, a killing intent that surged into the sky came from within him. He might have attacked before, but he had never possessed the thought to kill. He simply wanted to restore order.
Yet now, his killing intent was incredibly clear!
"This isn't the path you should take. This also isn't the Destiny that I've worked towards for such a long time, and still had hope of obtaining even if I've failed time and again!
"This isn't you!" Di Tian roared. His body closed in on Su Ming in an instant, and as he lifted his right hand, he went on to point at the kid's throat. He… wanted to kill!
Su Ming, who had turned into Destiny, looked at Di Tian coldly with a calm expression on his face. At the instant that finger closed in, he did not dodge, but before Di Tian's finger managed to touch him, the clone started swiftly moving back, as if time had started flowing back on him, causing his actions to go in reverse.
This change caused Di Tian's pupils to shrink, and for the first time, panic appeared in his eyes!
He was not panicking over the possibility of him not being able to escape from the chains of time, what caused him to go into panic was the disaster that was even more alarming among the Immortals. It was something from many years ago, before the time of the first God of Berserkers!
That disaster was a terrifying nightmare to the entire True Morning Dao World… and it was precisely because of it that the True Morning Dao World and the Immortals who had yet to recover from it were trampled by the first God of Berserkers.
At the instant Di Tian's actions started flowing backwards, Su Ming took a step forward. He lifted his right hand and pointed at the center of Di Tian's brows. A bang reverberated in the air, and golden light shone around the clone's body.
At the instant the power in the finger was neutralized, a glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes, and the golden light that spread outwards immediately disappeared, causing Di Tian to no longer have the protection from the screen of light. At that moment, Su Ming lifted his foot and kicked the clone.
With a bang, Di Tian was pushed backwards. Su Ming went straight towards him, and in the span of a breath, he caught up to him. With a swing of his left arm, the same moment time started changing again, he tapped the center of Di Tian's brows. Once it happened a few times, the clone coughed up a mouthful of blood, and he swiftly snapped back to his senses.
"I would rather not have this plan, because I cannot let you continue living! I will destroy your consciousness here completely!" Di Tian lifted his right hand and had his fingers face in front of him. At the instant Su Ming closed in, he pushed forward.
"Soar to the White Sky!"
Di Tian spoke slowly. His other clone had cast this other divine ability all those years ago, and right then, he was casting it again. A strong white light shone from his right hand, and the white light stained the entire sky.
Then, he clenched his right hand into a fist and pointed upwards… and a white sun appeared in the sky!
It looked as if a star was plunging downwards, causing the sea underneath to cave in with a bang. The seawater started spreading outwards, and the entire world turned white!
The light from the sun turned into the strongest light in the word!
A white sky apocalypse!
Di Tian slowly lifted his left hand, and as it got closer to his right hand, which represented the white sun, the process itself represented soaring!
Su Ming, who was Destiny, was standing not too far away at that moment. His face was calm, and within his eyes was absolute indifference, as well as a hint of reluctance to part with his life. It was also… a deep regret towards the home buried deep in his memories, as well as the ninth summit.
'Dark Mountain's secret… If I can remember it in my next life, I will search for it…
'Master, I'll be leaving now. Being unable to find you is a regret I harbor within myself.
'Eldest senior brother, second senior brother… If we are reincarnated, let's be fellow disciples again. I… will have to take my leave first!
'Hu Zi… third senior brother…'
A smile appeared on Su Ming's face. At that moment, a destructive presence spread out from his body. It came from him burning his own life. It was him using everything in his life to activate what little remained of the God of Berserkers' hair on his right index finger, which he lifted!
That strand of hair had managed to kill Di Tian's clone in the past. As of then, there was not much left, and Su Ming knew whatever was remaining would not be sufficient to kill Di Tian. That was why he had used everything he had to fight against him previously, and all of it was for the sake of injuring the clone, to make him weaker.
But a pity… the difference in their power was simply too great. He could only marginally hurt him, could not even weaken him too greatly.
"Oh well…"
Su Ming lifted his right hand, and it was swiftly lit in flames. At that moment, every single drop of his life was gathered on what little remained of the God of Berserkers' hair wrapped on his right index finger. The hair was immediately set ablaze and the power that belonged to the first God of Berserkers erupted forth from Su Ming's body.
Even though there was only little remaining of the hair, but the power that erupted forth was much stronger that what Su Ming had managed to bring out in the past, because, this time, his life as well as Destiny's power was contained within it!
Destiny's power was the overlapping between the past and the future, the burning of his life produced flames that continuously rose and gathering together on the hair wrapped around the little finger, and there was also the increasingly stronger fluctuation of power from all over his body.
The sky was white. The white sun illuminated everything and hid it all away. As Di Tian roared and his hands approached each other, the strongest power of his divine ability erupted forth from the endless white light!
At that moment, Su Ming decided to stop gathering power on his right index finger. Instead, he pointed towards the white light that had filled up the entire world, right in the direction of Di Tian. Then, the power gathered in his finger swiftly shot out like a shooting star!
It was also at that moment that the woman's petite face turned solemn, as she hid in the clouds. She looked as if she was hesitating about something, but then gritted her teeth.
"Oh, fine, I'll help him just this once!" As she spoke, she lifted her hand. Her face instantly turned pale, and green light appeared on her hand. She pushed downwards.
Di Tian did not notice this, and neither did the woman, but right after Su Ming pointed forward with all his life gathered in the finger, a song from a xun echoed in the air beside him within the white world. He was the only one who could hear it, and at the same time the song started playing in the air, a bone xun flew out of his body.
That xun was given to him by the old xun maker…
"What is Life? My child, this is the path you chose. Do you… understand now?"
This was the last thing Su Ming heard before he lost consciousness.
A bang that shook the sky and earth stirred up a loud roar in the Dead Sea beyond Eastern Wastelands, and that roar rang through the air for a long time...
Chapter 592: Destiny's Heavenly Punishment!
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
A disaster. A calamity. An… elegant brightness.
Destruction was a world's most beautiful moment during the course of its existence. At the instant the world was destroyed, everything within it would seemingly turn into an everlasting picture. All those who were qualified and could see this instant of beauty would see this one sight of life that would become an eternal memory in their heads, for as long as they lived.
The sea in a circular area of several hundreds of lis sank several hundreds of feet at that moment. It was pure and plain destruction caused by an impact of an ability in this place, turning it into a sad emptiness.
At that moment, the entire world was white. The fog, the sunlight, and also the crash of the power in the world were all in that shade. As the seawater sank and that force crashed into the sea, the sea at the edge of the hole could not surge in to fill it up, causing this area to become a pit.
The woman's face was pale in the sky. She leaned against the yellow dragon, and as it charged forth, it brought the woman along and left this endless white space.
'This is as much as I can do… This is Yin Death Region, my power is greatly suppressed here… My Abyss Builder friend, it depends on your fate now whether you can make it out alive.'
The girl closed her eyes and disappeared into the distant sky, leaving this white region. She had practically helped him withstand a large amount of the power from the strike just now, and she was in an incredibly weakened state at the moment. She needed to recover as quickly as possible.
The whiteness still filled the region even after she left. Within that white shade and the continuous rumbling sounds, Di Tian took a few steps backwards and coughed up a mouthful of blood.
His face was pale, and the crown on his head had already shattered. There were also a lot of tears on his robe, and there was even blood trickling down the corners of his mouth. He was a miserable sight.
During that instant just now, he had clearly felt the force resisting against him suddenly increasing explosively, and there was also another wave of power that fought with Su Ming against his divine ability.
But that was not all. During that instant, Di Tian also felt another wave of power coming down from the sky. It was equivalent to him fighting against three forces of power by himself!
Fortunately for him, the might behind his divine ability was incredibly shocking, which was why he had managed to retreat once it exploded upon crashed into the three forces of power, albeit with much difficulty. He had also paid a large price for it. The golden light on his body was no longer with him, because the jade had shattered into powder.
"Su Ming!"
Killing intent appeared in Di Tian's eyes. Once he took the couple steps back, he swung his arm, and immediately, the white around him swiftly darkened. Then, he charged forward.
He could sense that the person who had sent that power from the sky just now had left. He might not know who it was, but to Di Tian, killing Su Ming right then was the most important thing. That was why he chose not to bother about that person. Instead, he charged towards where he had managed to locate Destiny with his divine sense.
As the white world continued darkening and the area grew clearer, Di Tian found Su Ming, who was in the air thousands of feet away, with a single glance. He was still in the form of a teenager and had his eyes closed, unconscious, but he did not fall to the ground. Instead, there was a gigantic bone xun under his body. That xun was thirty something feet big, and melodious notes were traveling out from that instrument at that moment. The light of Relocation was also surrounding it. It was shining brighter and brighter with each passing moment. Clearly, it was about to Relocate very soon!
Once Relocation was activated, then Su Ming would once again disappear from Di Tian's sight, which meant that he would have made it through this disaster. In fact, Di Tian could already imagine that if Su Ming managed to leave like this, as if everything had been planned, then there was a high possibility that it would be incredibly difficult for the clone to find him, just like what happened a few days ago.
If Di Tian had not fought against Su Ming, he would not have been too bothered by this. He would still be able to find Su Ming sooner or later in the Berserkers' world.
Yet their fight just moments ago had let Di Tian see just how much Su Ming had improved. This sort of improvement gave him a feeling that if he had more time, it would be even more difficult than now if he wanted to suppress him again!
More importantly, he saw Destiny. This was a scene that caused Di Tian's heart to be in so much shock that he was nearly trembling. No matter what, he had not expected that Destiny would rise from his slumber early. This was not his plan. This had completely gone out of his expectations. When he remembered the great disaster that had fallen on the True Morning Dao World all those years ago, remembered that terrifying legend, and understood that all of those things that happened in the past… might perhaps repeat themselves not too far into the future and would do so because of him, how could he not be afraid of it?! How could he not be terrified?!
When he saw that Su Ming had sunken into a state of unconsciousness and lost all his abilities to fight but was just about to be sent away by some bone xun, a freezing glare immediately appeared in Di Tian's eyes. He swiftly took a step forward, thinking of preventing all of this from happening.
Before he came to find Su Ming this time, he had not expected that he would be so difficult to deal with and would manage to force him into such a pathetic state, as well as make him give up so many things.
'I can't let him have any more chances!'
Di Tian lifted his right hand and swung it towards the sky. With it, the empty sky, the sea beneath, and the entire space around them seemed to have frozen up. Under the rumbling sounds, the entire dimension was locked up, sealing away all power that could Relocate away from this place.
'I'd like to see how you can…'
A cold sneer appeared on Di Tian's lips. When his right foot landed on the air, his body disappeared, and in an instant, he appeared before the bone xun, on which lay Su Ming. Yet right at the moment his body appeared, the clone's pupils shrank, and a look of disbelief appeared on his face.
This expression was incredibly rare on him, and it appeared because despite the area being completely shut down, he saw that not only did the Relocation light did not diminish, the instant he arrived, a piercing light erupted forth from that xun. As it shone, Di Tian could only helplessly watch Su Ming's body turn semi-transparent, as he lay on top of that instrument!
"The power of Law!"
Shock was evident on Di Tian's face. He knew clearly that only the power of Law could execute any form of Relocation and leave this place despite him locking down this area. Only those whose level of cultivation had reached beyond Life Palace and who had understood the waves of movement contained with the laws of the world would be able to do such a thing!
Because… his real self could do it!
However, his real self could not come to this place. And the power contained within the clone's body could not do this. At the instant he found that he could just watch Su Ming's body disappear, Di Tian let out a furious roar!
He knew that he could not prevent this Relocation that surpassed his power. He even managed to tell from the fluctuations of the power that was taking Su Ming away that it did not belong to the land of the Berserkers. Instead, it felt as it had descended from another world, thus destroying his plans, causing this disaster towards Su Ming… to disappear, just like this.
But Di Tian could not accept it. As he roared, red appeared in his eyes, and almost at the instant Su Ming was about to leave with the bone xun, Di Tian's voice reverberated in the world.
His voice was like thunder, and even contained his will. As it spread out, it caused the sky in the Berserkers' world to tremble!
"With mine will, I shalt activate the Immortals' Vessel and have it descend upon Yin Death Void to execute Destiny's Heavenly Punishment!"
A gigantic vortex appeared in the empty sky. Its appearance caused the clouds further away to fall back at the same time, and anyone who lifted their heads to look at that moment would find that the sky looked as if it was going through a disastrous change!
Far above the sky was a layer of nebulous fog. It spanned endlessly, and Su Ming had moved through it before, in the past, when he was on the ancient bronze sword.
That layer of fog was right behind the vortex in the sky. In fact, the appearance of this vortex was due to the fog as well, and it was as if the sky in this entire region had turned invisible. Perhaps more accurately, the sky had moved away to reveal a huge hole.
Right behind the endless fog was a dazzling galaxy Su Ming had seen before as well! If anyone stood there and look towards Yin Death Region, they would be able to see the boundless vortex made of fog, and beyond it the nine cultivation planets.
Those nine cultivation planets surrounded the vortex as if they were defending it. At that moment, as Di Tian's voice reverberated in the air above the Dead Sea, it seemed to have triggered some sort of divine ability. Suddenly, a strong ray of light erupted forth from one of the cultivation planets. Its color was purple, and at that moment, it illuminated the entire galaxy for a brief instant.
An indescribably terrifying presence came from within the purple light, and that cultivation planet looked as if it had turned into a gigantic Enchanted Treasure to gather it up, causing the purple light to let out a loud bang that reverberated through the entire galaxy. It charged straight towards the vortex and crashed into it in an instant, making the rotation of the fog to freeze. The purple pillar of light actually managed to shoot right into the fog before it charged past it, with loud banging sounds!
This sort of might and terrifying presence caused many of the people on the cultivation planets and continents in this galaxy to be instantly shocked awake from their meditations. All of them turned to look at the spot where that presence came from.
The cultivation planets beyond Yin Death Region were clearly not just mere decorations. They were… the Immortals' priceless treasures, used to keep a lookout on Yin Death Region! They only had one duty, and that was to kill all those who left Yin Death Region!
However, if Su Ming had been awake and seen this scene, he would definitely be skeptical, because when he left on the ancient bronze sword… he had not seen these cultivation planets.
The purple pillar of light with the destructive presence shot through the vortex of fog at an incredible speed and descended from the sky above Di Tian and Su Ming's battlefield. That powerful light spread out endlessly. When viewed from the galaxy, it had not seemed too big, but as Di Tian looked at it at a close distance as it descended, he saw that its size was several thousands of lis big!
He clearly knew that only short-distance Relocation would allow a person to completely disappear. If it was a long-distance Relocation, then while the person might have seemed to disappear, in truth, the signs of his or her existence would still be around. Di Tian himself might be unable to notice Su Ming and destroy him… but once he placed everything on the line and activated the Immortals' Enchanted Vessel, all of this would change.
"Destiny, die!"
Di Tian let out a low roar, but his voice was drowned by the howls from the powerful light descending from the sky. With a bang, that purple light shot down and fell on the Dead Sea. All the water within thousands of lis was instantly turned to vapor.
All the living creatures in the sea also died at that instant!
The seawater dissipated, and the world that was a continent under the sea all turned into powder once the pillar of light descended. It was pierced through…
This was the power to destroy worlds!
Chapter 593: Ugly Little Thing [1]
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Thousands of lis of seawater vanished, and thousands of lis of land at the bottom of the sea turned into powder. A gigantic pit appeared within the Dead Sea. As if it possessed intelligence, the seawater around the pit did not dare to get closer to the purple light crashing down, causing this pit to stay as is for a long time.
Di Tian's hair was a mess as he stood in midair, in silence. The bone xun before him had already disappeared, and so had Su Ming.
A moment later, Di Tian lifted his head, his face was twisted by a ferocious expression. An anger so great that it could practically burn the skies appeared on his face, and he let out a roar towards the sky, one so powerful it could shake the sky and earth!
That roar echoed in the air and spread to all directions. It lingered for a long time in the area, refusing to disappear.
Destiny's Heavenly Punishment had destroyed everything in a circular area of thousands of lis, but it had not managed to find any trace of Su Ming. Di Tian had been able to sense that the power from Heavenly Punishment had affected Su Ming… but he did not die.
With killing intent and madness raging in him, Di Tian cast his divine sense outward and swept through the sky and earth, covering the furthest possible area within the limits of his divine sense… but he could not find Su Ming!
He had disappeared just like that from Di Tian's sight once again, causing him to be unable to find him…
He had sent his clone to this place, but the results in the end were the same. Destiny's awakening had especially caused Di Tian's heart to tremble. He remained standing in midair until the purple light disappeared and the pit was once again filled with seawater. The entire Dead Sea sank a little.
'I refuse to believe that you can hide eternally. One of these days, I will definitely find you again, and next time I find you, I swear… I will do whatever it takes to make your mind sink into oblivion!' Di Tian closed his eyes, but the dark expression on his face did not go away until he turned around and took a step towards the distant sky!
…..
The sky was blue, the sun was bright, especially now that it was near noon. The sun's rays felt warm when they fell on one's skin, forcing people to sweat. Not much of the heat was brought away by the wind.
A lovely fragrance of osmanthus could not be sent away by what little wind there was in the area, either. It could only linger around the place where it was born and continue filling it.
Laughter, weaving through the trees, came from a short distance away, and some scattered houses could be found in that direction.
There were about a hundred families there. Chimney smoke could be seen rising in the air at that moment, and amidst the fragrance of osmanthus, the place looked like a paradise.
There were a lot mountains in the area, causing this place to look incredibly secluded from the world. Not many people could be seen moving about, and only some faint trails from carriages could be found on the one and only path leading to the houses.
Perhaps it was because it had rained just recently. Despite the bright sun, the ground was still filled with mud. Those who walked on the road would find their feet letting out slapping sounds as they stepped on mud, creating a unique charm to walking about.
There was a teenager dressed in clothes that were filled with patches in the osmanthus forest at that moment. He was sitting on some leaves as he leaned against a tree, looking at the sky that could not be hidden away by the forest canopy, immersed in his own thoughts.
He looked rather pale, but this pale face made him look incredibly elegant and handsome. He was young, only about twelve to thirteen years of age, and the patched clothes could not cover his temperament that could make others grow fond of him the moment they saw him.
However, his body looked incredibly frail. His eyes, though, were extremely lively as he looked at the sky while leaning against an osmanthus tree.
He stared at the sky quietly. There were some blades of grass in his hands, and as he manipulated them, they were gradually woven into a figure of a small person. All of this was done instinctively. He was still looking at the sky, though no one knew what he saw. Perhaps it was the blue sky, and perhaps it was the white clouds. No one would know besides him.
After a long while, the sound of footsteps traveled through the forest, and along with them came a clear voice that belonged to a child. It fell into the boy's ears.
"Dog Leftovers, big brother, Dog Leftovers… ma wants you back home…"
This was a little girl's voice. There was a hint of innocence within her clear voice, as if she had yet to be tainted by the materialistic world, had yet to begin harboring complicated thoughts. She still retained her childlike, innocent dreams.
She was a little girl of eight to nine years old, and was dressed in clothes filled with patches. There were two braids by the side of her head, but she was not pretty. There was a birthmark on her face, yet her eyes were bright. If anyone looked past that birthmark, they would find that she was actually a very adorable girl.
When the boy heard the girl's voice, he averted his gaze from the sky, and a smile stemming from the bottom of his heart appeared on his face. He sat up straight and looked towards the girl running towards him.
"Slow down, the ground's filled with mud." The boy walked over, speaking gently. There was a doting look in his eyes as he looked at the little girl.
"Dog Leftovers, ma made good food today! She made my favorite medicinal herbs! Hurry up! Hurry up!" the girl said with a smile, as she ran to the boy's side. She even lifted her tiny hands and brushed away the mud and leaves on the boy's clothes.
The boy patted the girl's head and took her hand with a smile before walking out of the forest with her.
"Big brother, why do you always come here? There's nothing here besides osmanthus trees." The girl called Ugly Little Thing blinked her eyes and held the boy's hand as she asked curiously.
The boy smiled and did not speak. He merely lifted his head to cast a glance at the side, and a wizened look that no one else could see flashed past his eyes.
When they walked out of the forest, that wizened look buried itself in the boy's eyes, and it could no longer be found. Perhaps only the air around him could sense the sigh he let out in his heart, for it caused the originally clear sky to swiftly turn much darker, dark clouds appearing above.
The forest was not too far from the houses. It would only take them some time to reach the place. With the girl, who was clearly in a hurry to eat that medicinal herb, dragging his hand, the boy ran with her to the houses.
They ran into some children, who were about their age, playing with each other on their way back. Once they saw the siblings, some of the children started poking fun at them.
"Ugly Little Thing, what good food did your ma make today?"
"That's right, Ugly Little Thing, didn't you say your parents were going to make you clothes without patches?"
The girl holding the boy's hand lowered her head, and her body tensed up slightly, but she quickly recovered. She still had her head dipped down, however. She wanted to leave this place as quickly as possible, back to an ordinary house not too far away. That was her home.
This could not be considered a tribe, because the people here were not related to each other. Perhaps this place could only be called a village.
As the boy listened to the jabs and taunts thrown at the little girl, he frowned, but the girl held her hand on his wrist in a dead grip, and there was a pleading look on her face. It made the boy sigh once again in his heart. He could only follow her quietly back home.
"We're back! Pa, ma, I brought big brother back. We can eat now!" The little girl smiled happily and ran in once she pushed open the door to her house.
Dog Leftovers entered the house right behind her. This was a house made of mud. It was not big, and there were only two rooms in it. When he walked in, coughs could be heard coming from one of the rooms.
"Dog Leftovers, did you go look at the osmanthus again? They'll be gone in a few months' time, so you should look at them as much as you can now…" A middle-aged man walked out from the other room, speaking to the boy.
The man's face was filled with an ancient air. His clothes were simple, and his face honest. When he walked out, he looked towards the boy, and a kind smile appeared on his face. He was not tall, and neither was he strong. Only his hands would give others a unique impression. Those hands were full of scars, which covered many areas, especially on his fingers.
At that moment, with just one glance, the boy could tell that were clearly new wounds on the man's hands.
Right behind the man was a woman. Her skin was rough, but despite that her original beauty could still be seen. Time, however, had left too many marks on her, causing her to look older than she really was. She was holding two bowls in her hands as she smiled at the boy.
"You little rascal, if Ugly Little Thing hadn't called you back home for lunch, you wouldn't have come back. You'll only ever return when it's dark outside. You're still weak, be careful to not catch a cold outside."
A tender smile appeared on the boy's face. He walked up and received the bowl from the woman's hand and spoke softly.
"Pa, ma, I'm fine."
"Alright now, eat more of this mountain herb later. Your grandpa Zhang just got himself a grandson this morning, so he gave us some mountain medicine in exchange for some of your pa's straw dolls. He said to use these to provide nourishment for you and our little Ugly Doll." The woman looked at the boy and the girl, who was cheerfully setting up the table, with a loving look. She walked over to the table with her husband.
This was not a sumptuous meal. They only had the soft looking, well cooked mountain herbs and some sweet fruit juice. Ugly Little Thing's cheerful laughter echoed in this normal family, and the woman's love, as well the middle-aged man's gentle demeanor gave the house a warm atmosphere.
The boy looked at them, and a smile appeared on his face as well. That smile came from the depths of his heart. He was thankful to this family, and especially grateful to this little girl called Ugly Little Thing.
A year ago, he had woken up in this place, and this girl had discovered him in the mountains when she was out alone picking different types of grass for her father to use for his straw dolls. She had carried him back home on her back, and from then on… he lived here.
He now had a younger sister, and her name was Ugly Little Thing, because she was ugly. But her kindness, her adorable laughter, and her lively eyes made him constantly remember a frail little body carrying him all the way back when he was still unconscious.
He now had a father, and he was an honest, good-natured man. He was a mortal, and he lived in poverty while being constantly plagued by sickness, but the straw dolls he made were incredibly lifelike, and they were the toys for the children in the village.
He now had a mother as well. She was an incredibly kind and gentle woman who loved her husband, her daughter, her family, and had also showered an outsider like him with ample motherly love.
He… was Su Ming.
A year ago, when he woke up in this house filled with warmth, his cultivation base had scattered, but did not disappear. It was hidden within his body, a remnant that stayed within him after he had made his power explode. Back then, he'd been heavily injured during his fight against Di Tian, and so that remnant needed time to fully recover.
Translator's Notes:
1. Ugly Little Thing and later on, Dog Leftovers: This is a break from the "Ooh all names are in pinyin", because they are pet names. It's a superstition that died down in my generation that you should give children lousy and degrading pet names so that they will have good lives, healthy bodies, and not die, because their lives will be tough enough that they won't get sick, and the reaper won't come for them. I think the wealthy and upper class (the ones who are literate and officials) don't do this thing. It's also only in China and not where I'm from.
Chapter 594: Dolls
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Fortunately for Su Ming he had retrieved all the things he had brought out, including the small snake, during the fight a year ago. However, the small snake was in deep sleep, and Han Mountain Bell had also been put away into his storage bag. All of them needed time to slowly recover.
For some unknown reason, his own appearance had also not returned to that of an adult. He remained in Destiny's teenage form, and because his father was worried that others would not welcome him due to his hair, he had used grass juice to make a dye for Su Ming's hair. It was black now.
This warmth he experienced during the past year was something Su Ming could not forget. It had become a warm memory in his life. He loved this place, loved this younger sister of his called Ugly Little Thing, loved his father who weaved straw dolls, and loved his gentle mother.
But he had more important things to do. He had to search for his Master and his senior brothers. He had to make himself stronger, for only then could he turn this disaster that was so roughly shoved onto his person to become Di Tian's disaster when he eventually ran into him in the future!
He could not stay here for too long, because if he stayed here, then he could bring death upon this family, because Di Tian… could come at any moment.
The year might have gone by peacefully, but Su Ming could not… bask in this warmth forever.
As he ate that mountain herb, he looked at his younger sister and at his parents, and a thought bloomed in his head, one that had appeared multiple times in the past - If, one day, he managed to find his Master and his senior brothers, if they were still safe, if all of the problems disappeared, then he could stop searching for the future. As long as this place still existed, as long as he could still come back, he would return to this warmth and keep his mortal parents company through their entire lives. He would stay with his little sister through her life as well, and watch her grow into an adult, get married, have children, and grandchildren, and that… would be wonderful…
This was a beautiful life, and it made a smile appear on Su Ming's face.
"Big brother… big brother! Dog Leftovers! Why are you smiling?" Ugly Little Thing swallowed a large mouthful of mountain herbs and looked at Su Ming before she asked in her clear voice. Her eyes glowed, and it was a beautiful sight.
Dog Leftovers was the name this family had given to Su Ming. At that time, he had been gravely injured and had laid on the bed every single day, as if he would die at any moment.
If any child in his mother's hometown was sickly, the parents would usually give him or her a pet name. The name may be unpleasant to the ears, but it contained the family's gentle and familial love. They intentionally made the name sound demeaning so that the child could be healthy from then on.
Dog leftovers… food that even dogs were not willing to eat. By that notion, perhaps even the reapers would not take the child's soul away.
Su Ming patted Ugly Little Thing's hair and spoke softly. "I was thinking what sort of dowry I should prepare for you when you grow up and marry someone else in the future."
"Hmph, you're just older than me by a few years, why are you always talking like an old man? I'm also thinking what sort of present I should prepare for my future sister-in-law when you marry her in the future." Ugly Little Thing scrunched up her nose and imitated Su Ming's tone as she spoke.
Her parents looked at their children, then at each other, and they both saw the smile in each other's eyes, along with the warmth in their hearts.
This was a warmth that belonged to a family, it was a love that would not freeze over no matter how cold the weather turned, a love that repelled the chill from the rain that had chased away the heat in the world as it poured from the dark clouds that filled the sky, causing it to be unable to enter the house.
At some unknown point of time it had started pouring. It was now afternoon. The sky was dark, and the rushing sound of rain seemed to contain some sort of mysterious power that made all those who heard it for prolonged periods to time to be unable to help themselves but become drowsy.
Ugly Little Thing was affected precisely this way. She ate till she was full and patted her little belly, then flashed a brilliant grin at the parents and her elder brother. As she spoke, she gradually started nodding off. Eventually, her body fell into Su Ming's embrace, and she was asleep with a sweet smile on her lips.
Su Ming looked at his little sister in his arms with a gentle gaze. He lightly picked her up and brought her to the small bed in the room. Once he covered her with a blanket, he looked at the sleeping Ugly Little Thing and the distinct birthmark on her face. It wasn't hard to tell just how many times she had been mocked and ostracized as she grew up.
But she was a very sensible child. Even if no one played with her, she would play by herself. Even if she was bullied outside, she would wipe away her tears on the way back home and put on a smile so that her parents would not worry.
She was kind and did not hate any of her companions who mocked and teased her. She liked them and would help them, and would even choose to run away, dejected, when they repeatedly hurt her.
"Big brother…" Ugly Little Thing mumbled softly in her sleep, and the smile on her face became even more adorable, as if she was playing with Su Ming in her dreams. This was the happiest event in her heart besides being with her parents.
As Su Ming looked at Ugly Little Thing, he gently patted her back, and once he was sure she was fully asleep, he walked out of the room and looked at the increasingly heavier rain outside. When lightning crackled in the sky, thunder would travel forth in muffled rumbles. Ugly Little Thing's father was crouching down under the eaves, with grass of different colors and sizes placed beside him; he was weaving the grasses together as rain fell on him.
Ugly Little Thing's mother was putting away the dishes. Once Su Ming walked back into the room, she smiled with kindness and love at him.
"Is your little sister asleep?"
Su Ming nodded and helped put away the dishes.
"Oh, you… There's no need for that. Go and sleep as well. The rain might continue for an entire night, judging by the weather."
"It's fine, ma, I'm not tired." Su Ming smiled and shook his head.
The woman looked at him and sighed softly in her heart. When her daughter had carried the boy back a year ago, she had wondered which parent could bear to abandon such a beautiful child.
During the past year, his diligence and the attachment in his eyes when he looked at them had made her treat him as if he was her own son.
When the rain outside started pouring even heavier and the water had practically connected the sky and the earth, Ugly Little Thing was shocked awake by a clap of thunder. Her mother quickly went up to her and comforted her. With the patting, Ugly Little Thing slowly fell asleep again.
Su Ming walked over to the middle-aged man quietly and sat down beside him. He looked at the rain outside and felt the chill on his face. After a long time, he turned his head around and looked at this man who had been his father for the past year. He was completely absorbed in his task, and looked as if he did not know that Su Ming was by his side. The grass in his hands seemed to have gained life, and as he continued weaving it in his hands, it started gaining the form of a doll.
The different colored grasses were placed into the doll, causing it to look alive. However, many of the grasses had sharp edges. It was nothing usually, but the middle-aged man's concentration and actions made him ignore the pain brought by the grasses cutting into his hands.
The scar-ridden hands was a mark of his life of creating dolls.
Su Ming watched. At that moment, Ugly Little Thing's father was giving off a presence that he did not understand. He was still a mortal, but the dolls he created seemed to have been given life.
This wasn't the first time Su Ming watched his father, he'd been doing so over the past year. Ever since he woke up and became part of the family, he fell in love with his father's creations.
Every single completed doll seemed to possess signs of life, fascinating him, and he seemed to have gained an epiphany just by watching the process of their creation. As time passed, his understanding grew more, but there was always a veil covering his sight, causing everything to seem as if it was still shrouded in fog.
"What is Life…?" The words contained within the black wooden block emerged in Su Ming's head.
"How are your skills now?"
As Su Ming continued watching, he did not notice that the sky had turned slightly darker. Usually, at this point of time, it should only be dusk, but the dark clouds and the rain had brought the night earlier.
The middle-aged man finally lifted his head and looked at Su Ming sitting beside him. There was a smile on his face when he placed the straw doll in his hand on the ground and asked Su Ming that question.
Su Ming hesitate for a moment before he brought out the small doll he had created that afternoon in the osmanthus forest and passed it to Ugly Little Thing's father.
"I… always feel that it's lacking something." Su Ming frowned.
"It lacks life." Ugly Little Thing's father took the doll in his hand and smiled kindly.
"As long as it exists, everything in the world possesses life, especially plants. They have even more of it than us. The dolls that are created using grass also need life. I don't know how to expression this life, it's just a feeling. I've been making dolls my whole life, after all.
"This one you created doesn't have any life," Ugly Little Thing's father told Su Ming.
"How do I give it life?" he asked softly.
"Use your heart to create it. Think of how you want to create it, and think about the form on which you're basing its creation… I only know how to make two dolls, and they are both in the form of children. The girl is Ugly Little Thing, and the boy… ha… it's Ugly Little Thing's elder brother."
Ugly Little Thing had an elder brother. Su Ming had heard about him from her before. He was older than her by ten years, and eight years ago… he was taken away as a disciple by Evil Spirit Sect, which was located not too far away from this place.
In the blink of an eye, three years had passed by, and there was no news from him…
Su Ming fell silent. After a long time, he lifted the grass by his side, but just as he was about to begin weaving, suddenly, a barely noticeable glint appeared in his eyes, and he lifted his head. There was a chill in his eyes, but it was hidden.
Ugly Little Thing's father clearly did not notice anything. Swathed in his sentiment, he continued weaving dolls, but after a moment, the rain outside the house exuded an even colder chill, and two indistinct figures walked slowly towards the village from the distance.
As the two people came, the rain that fell on their bodies immediately turned into ice that toppled to the ground. The ice was black, and if anyone saw it during the day, they would surely be frightened.
'Immortals…' Su Ming calmly watched the two people walking in the rain, noticing how they were heading straight towards Ugly Little Thing's house!
Chapter 595: Seven Days
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The rain that fell on the ground fused into the ripples that had formed there. They could not be seen clearly, because all the living souls on earth existed in the ripples of life to begin with…
Su Ming stared at the two cold figures walking towards him from the distance. They got closer to the house in the now dark world that would usually only be dusk at this point of time. As they closed in, a chilling air spread outwards, making the cold rain become even colder.
The lightning in the sky disappeared at that moment, as if it had retreated from this cold and had hidden itself in the darkness, refusing to come out.
Only the sounds of rain falling and squelching of feet walking on mud could be heard, the latter gradually growing clearer. It slowly reached the father's ears, causing the middle-aged man to instinctively lift his head.
He saw the two lean figures walking over to the house in the rain, arriving right before Su Ming and himself.
"You are…" Ugly Little Thing's father shuddered. When he wanted to stand up, his body shivered, and Su Ming quickly stood up to support him, all while looking at the two people coldly.
He could tell that they did not harbor any killing intent, or else destroying this village would be as easy as breathing to them.
"Kneel and receive the announcement!" the person on the left said with a shrill voice.
As he spoke, the temperature around them turned even colder, and because Ugly Little Thing's father was simply a mortal, he was stunned by the voice and his face immediately turned pale. He suddenly remembered that his eldest had been brought away by people dressed in these clothes eight years ago on a rainy night just like this.
Perhaps it was because the person's shrill voice was rather sharp as well, it also traveled into the house, causing the sleeping Ugly Little Thing and her mother to be shocked awake from their dreams.
A barely noticeable glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes. These two Immortals could be killed with just one finger if he was at the pinnacle of his strength, but his cultivation base was still in its recovering stage at the moment, and he had no idea when he would reach his peak. Yet even so, even with the one tenth of power he had recovered at that moment, he could still kill these people with ease.
"Junior brother Zuo!" The person standing to the right spoke with a low voice. He cast a glance at his companion, as if he was slightly displeased with what he had just said.
"Old man, is Chen Da Xi your son?" The black-robed person standing to the right turned his head around and cast a glance towards Ugly Little Thing's father, who was currently being supported by Su Ming. He had also caught sight of Su Ming at the corner of his eyes, but he paid no attention to him.
As he spoke, he pulled down the black hood covering his head, revealing a pale face that showed that he was about forty-something of age. He looked normal, and only the blue light in his eyes stood out, shining faintly and indistinctly.
Ugly Little Thing's father shuddered. If Su Ming had not been supporting him, he might have fallen to the ground due to the cold, biting chill, but the moment he heard that name, he seemed to have gained strength.
"Yes… Xi Er is my eldest, he… he…" Ugly Little Thing's father stammered. He did not know what had happened, but from the tone of this person's voice, he felt a stab of pain in his heart that he could not describe.
"Chen Da Xi has died!"
The person who answered Ugly Little Thing's father was the person standing to the left, the one speaking in a shrill voice. At the instant these words left his mouth and fell into the ears of Ugly Little Thing's father, the middle-aged man was stunned to his feet, and he felt as if his life had just left his body, causing him to look much older. Two trails of tears fell down from his eyes and into the ripples on the ground. They could no longer be differentiated clearly down there.
At that moment, the sound of something crashing to the floor came from the house, and that was Ugly Little Thing's mother, who had heard those words while walking out of her room. She fainted.
Ugly Little Thing was by the side and was looking at the two lean figures standing outside her house. The stranger's voice was still echoing in her ears at that moment, but soon her frail body seemed to have lost its soul, for her face turned pale, and she looked as if everything in her world had turned white as well.
"Old man, junior brother Chen had great potential and was well-liked by our Sect Elder Zhao, who took him in as his disciple, but a few days ago, junior brother Chen died of an accident, and the both of us have come on orders by Sect Elder Zhao to tell you, since we were close to junior brother Chen." The person to the right spoke in a low voice, and once he finished speaking, he brought out a bag and placed it under the eaves.
"This is the money junior Chen gathered over the past few years. We cultivators have no use for it, but to you mortals, it should be able to improve your standard of living."
The person to the right might have been speaking in a cool voice, but there was an expression of regret on his face. When he looked at Ugly Little Thing's family, pity flashed quickly past his eyes. On the other hand, the person to the left remained as cold and aloof as ever.
"Thank you… Thank you, Immortals. This is Xi Er's fate…" Ugly Little Thing's father cried, and he was just about to kneel towards the two cultivators, but was lifted up by the person to the right.
Su Ming looked at everything happening before his eyes. There might be no expression on his face giving away his thoughts, but he knew clearly in his heart that it was incredibly rare for a sect to send someone specifically to tell his or her family of the death.
This sort of thing was nigh impossible, unless… the person died of unusual causes.
Su Ming supported Ugly Little Thing's father and turned his head around to cast a glance at the little girl, who was standing in the house with a dumbfounded expression. He also looked at his mother, who had fallen unconscious. The warmth that had existed previously in this family had shattered because of this nightmare.
"This must be your other son, and this girl…" The person to the right trained his eyes on Su Ming once again, his gaze like lightning. After looking at him for a single instant, he looked at Ugly Little Thing.
'They don't know the details of Ugly Little Thing's family. Looks like they didn't ask around, and Ugly Little Thing's brother didn't go about telling others,' Su Ming thought.
"By Sect Elder Zhao's orders, we permit you to give us another child from your family. The Sect Elder will personally receive him or her as his disciple and they will inherit the regrets left behind by junior brother Chen. Congratulations, old man, we will give you seven days to choose the person who will enter Evil Spirit Sect. Seven days later, when we are on the way back to the sect, we will bring the child away." The person to the right spoke slowly, and once he finished his speech, he no longer bothered himself with Ugly Little Thing's family and turned around to leave.
The other sect member gave Su Ming and Ugly Little Thing a deep and profound smile before he, too, left.
The rain poured even harder. The two people in black walked in the rain, and their bodies turned indistinct, then gradually disappeared. Only Su Ming could see them farther away turning into long arcs and moving to the sky.
Su Ming had seen the Evil Spirit Sect they spoke of during the year he stayed in the village. It was a sect built on a mountain surrounded by clouds, and only when the entire sky was clear could he vaguely see its buildings.
However, the two disciples from Evil Spirit Sect were flying towards the east. Clearly, they were not returning to their sect. From what they had said and Su Ming's own analysis, he could deduce that the two people had left the sect on some other important business. They had come here while they were at it to complete this Sect Elder Zhao's request.
That was why they gave them seven days instead of immediately asking to take that person away. Clearly, taking a child along would affect their other mission, so it would be better for them to take him or her when they came back. It was just as they said, when returning, they might as well take the child while they were at it.
To these two people, this was a simple message, but to Ugly Little Thing's family, this was a bolt out of the blue and a nightmare that they could not refuse.
It was especially so when the parents had just gone through the pain of losing their son, yet had to face the fate of having another child taken away from their hands. This sort of thing was a disaster to this honest and kind family.
Ugly Little Thing's father stopped weaving dolls. He looked old now, and with grief in every fiber of his being, he moved to his wife and began crying silently.
The mother was slowly waking up at that moment, and she looked at her husband standing before her blankly before she started weeping as well.
Su Ming stood quietly by the side with a complicated look on his face. He could sense the family's pain and their helplessness in the face of fate.
Ugly Little Thing did not cry. She bit her bottom lip and lowered her head.
"We can't let Ugly Little Thing leave with them… She's still a child, she's…" Ugly Little Thing's mother looked at her daughter, who was silent and did not seem to be capable of crying anymore. Her heart was in pain, as if there was a knife cutting into it, but… she could not fight back.
"Seven days… We'll leave this place and flee without stopping!" Ugly Little Thing's father gritted his teeth and looked at his wife, as well as daughter, before he spoke resolutely.
"It's useless, pa, I heard from others that Immortals are deities. No matter how far we run, it'll still be easy for them to find us… At that time, all of us will be punished because we angered them. I'll go. I'll enter the Immortals' sect," Ugly Little Thing whispered softly, and at that moment, she seemed to have grown up.
"If I live, then one day, I can be like the Immortals, and I'll be able to find the cause of big brother's death!" She clenched her fists and closed her eyes.
"I'll go." In the midst of the family's grief, Su Ming cast a glance at the rain outside. It looked as if the sky was crying.
When his voice reached the family's ears, Ugly Little Thing opened her eyes.
Her mother was momentarily stunned. When she looked at Su Ming, conflict and hesitation appeared on her face.
"This has nothing to do with you, my son. Leave as well, get out of this place…" Ugly Little Thing's father immediately said.
Su Ming looked at Ugly Little Thing, then at her father and mother. A smile appeared on his face. He took a few steps back and shifted his robes before he knelt down towards the two elderly folk.
"I, Su Ming, cannot repay your kindness for saving me and keeping me in your home. The care and warmth of a home I've felt this past year is something I've rarely encountered in my life… Pa, ma, my little sister is still young. I'll go.
"I never had any parents since I was young, only my grandpa [1] took care of me, but now… he is no longer around. You are the only ones who gave me this warmth… My Ugly Little Doll, when I leave, you have to be a sensible girl. You have to take good care of pa and ma. Don't worry, I'll come back and visit you."
"Big brother, I…" Ugly Little Thing opened her mouth, but she did not know what to say. She looked at Su Ming, and eventually, tears fell from her eyes.
"Pa, ma, this is settled. I'll go!" Su Ming cast a glance at the couple and engraved their image deep into his heart. One year was not long, but to Su Ming, it was an experience of warmth he had never felt before. It was wholly different from what he felt in the ninth summit or Dark Mountain.
Translator's Notes:
1. About elder becoming grandpa here. It was mentioned a long time ago that Su Ming looked at the elder like his grandpa.