Chapter 834: Ecang as His Clone (Final)
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
This was Ecang when it was just born!
Su Ming looked at Ecang, who was born by absorbing nutrients from Sui Chen Zi's cosmos once he died and his body shattered. He looked at the tree that possessed all ten colors, at how its light shone without end, and at the mighty pressure as well as its appearance that was so incredibly powerful that no words could describe them. At that instant, Su Ming felt as if his mind had stopped functioning.
From the start, he had expected that Ecang had an incredibly great background, but he still did not think that it could be this unbelievable.
"What I'm Possessing… is such a powerful life form…" Su Ming mumbled. If he had known that Ecang was such an inconceivable being, he did not know whether he would still have had the willpower to choose to Possess it.
Fortunately… what he was Possessing was not the complete Ecang, just one tenth of it. What was more, judging by the looks of it, it was also heavily wounded, or else, Su Ming knew that even if it was just one of the ten of the complete Ecang, he would have definitely not been able to succeed in Possessing it.
In the mid of his shock, a question immediately rose in Su Ming's heart. 'But it's already so inconceivably strong, just who could possibly injure it badly enough to shatter the complete Ecang into pieces..?'
At the instant this question rose, Su Ming… saw his answer.
He saw Ecang's body growing several times larger right after the instant it let out a sound that was akin to a newborn's cry. At first glance, he could not see where its end was. It was as if half of the entire space had been occupied.
Yet suddenly, an ancient voice Su Ming was familiar with came from within Ecang's body.
"With one thought, I can affect the universe. With one thought, I can affect the heavens. With one thought, I can affect all manner of lives. With one thought, I can affect all things in the universe…"
This voice naturally belonged to Sui Chen Zi, whose body had already been destroyed and who only had a heart left. His voice shot out of Ecang's tree trunk and echoed in the void, bringing with it a carefree air and a wave of resolve that lingered in space for a long time, refusing to disappear.
Ecang's gigantic body started trembling viciously. As the ten-colored light shone brilliantly, the tree found that it could no longer grow any taller. Pained whimpers that sounded like a baby's cries came from Ecang.
Before long, it probably would have been able to turn into an incredibly terrifying existence after it devoured Sui Chen Zi's Divine Essence, but… it had only just been born. It might be complete, but it was like an infant and had not fully grown. Its shrill whimpers spread in all directions, and when they fell into Su Ming's ears, his breathing quickened.
"I was unable to kill you and could only allow you to live in my soul, then destroy me�� I knew that you would be born the moment I died, and while I might be unable to kill you… but at the instant you are born, you will become me, and I will be you. I will not walk on the path my eight good friends did. Instead, I will use what I have prepared for one hundred thousand years to injure you mortally!
"With one thought… I will have one million lives be born!"
Sui Chen Zi's voice abruptly became stronger. As it echoed in the air, numerous cracks appeared on the tree, and it crumbled from within in a bang.
It turned… into one million parts! The golden heart, which was the accumulation of Sui Chen Zi's Divine Essence throughout his entire life, turned into one million hearts at that instant.
At the same time, Ecang, which had been shredded into one million parts, found that each of its colors possessed one hundred thousand fragments, and as it shattered, its fragmented pieces were individually suppressed and sealed under the one million golden hearts. As a boom that shook the entire void echoed through the area, Ecang's one million fragments tumbled backwards and were swept into the foreign land, which still remained as it was, while those fragments disappeared without a trace.
"I failed, that's why I died… but I also succeeded. I left behind… a chance to break Divine Essence's disaster for the future generation. If any of you, the descendants of the future generation, obtain my Divine Essence, remember…"
As Sui Chen Zi's voice gradually faded away, Su Ming was shocked by the things he saw. However, the truth that he saw did not fade away. Instead, something new occurred.
Su Ming saw time pass. He had no idea how many years had went by when a faint and weak growl came from the foreign land. That growl contained an unwillingness to admit defeat, madness, and a burning hate that could scorch the heavens.
"Sui Chen Zi, you old coot! You can't kill me, and neither can you suppress me for eternity! I've already been born, and my life is already in this universe! It's already written in destiny that I will walk out of your seal!
"Even if you divided my body into ten parts and because of that, ten different wills were born within me, someday… all those ten wills will fuse together once more, and at that time… I, Ecang, will appear!
"Even if you injured me badly, your Divine Essence is still around. Since you left a law for the future generations to obtain your Divine Essence after your death, then I can borrow it and make this place into the source that will heal me!
"The more people come to this place to obtain your Divine Essence, the more they will help me heal! All their epiphanies, their cultivation bases, and their lives will belong to me!"
As that voice echoed in the air, everything before Su Ming's eyes disappeared. He woke up from the illusion in his soul. His soul had already covered all the golden venous pathways, and at that moment, it had already fused with the golden hearts within the one hundred thousand galaxies.
His Possession had reached ninety-seven-hundredths from the previous ninety-five.
'So this… is the truth.'
Su Ming remembered Zhou Kang mentioning before that this place was a huge scam. By the looks of it, that scam was not laid out by Sui Chen Zi, but had turned into such after it was used by Ecang.
'It doesn't matter what is the truth. It's not important whether this place is a scam or not. The important thing is… I've already Possessed ninety-seven-hundredths of this place. My Ecang clone is about to be complete.'
Su Ming's soul continuously spread out and fused with the golden heart. With the one hundred thousand shadows formed by Sui Chen Zi's law still blocking Ecang's will, Su Ming progressed incredibly smoothly.
At the instant his Possession reached ninety-eight-hundredths from the previous ninety-seven, Ecang descended into complete madness. Its will roared hysterically, with despair and lunacy contained within it.
"You are the one who forced me! All of this is because you forced me! I absolutely won't let you succeed! Even if I will lose the chance to devour the other nine, even if I will lose all my consciousness because of this and will only have a portion of my soul left that will be devoured by the other nine as they please, I will still… absolutely not allow you to Possess me, this noble Ecang's body!" Ecang laughed madly. There was a resolve within its laughter and a will that said it would die with Su Ming.
"Great Ecang Art!"
At the instant it said these words, a shrill scream of pain immediately came from the near one hundred thousand people within the world with one hundred thousand stone monuments.
As the screams of pain echoed in the air, the people around the area looked at the spot from which the screams came from, and to their shock, they saw a middle-aged man rapidly rotting away. Bits of purplish light were coming from his body while it was rapidly being absorbed by the stone monument. In the blink of an eye, the middle-aged cultivator's body disappeared, without a single trace of it left.
Soon after, screams of pain rang in the air once again. As they rose and fell, nearly ten thousand people cried out at the same time. Their bodies were all rapidly disappearing, being absorbed by their stone monuments.
During that instant, when the near ten thousand stone monuments absorbed the corresponding number of people's flesh, blood, lives, and everything else about them, numerous cracks rang down the monuments. The air filled with the sound of cracking, and near ten thousand stone monuments shattered into pieces with a bang. As they fell apart, purplish smoke spread out from within, and as the shattered debris shot through the air, it disappeared from the land. Due to this, from then on, this place would only have ninety thousand stone monuments!
Ecang's will swelled up exponentially at that instant, and wisps of purplish smoke appeared out of thin air. There were nearly ten thousand wisps of that purplish smoke, their number naturally identical to the number of the cultivators who had died.
As those wisps rapidly gathered together, they turned into a gigantic purple tree. That tree… was naturally Ecang's soul.
"E… cang…"
At the instant its soul appeared, the gigantic purple tree let out a low roar. When it uttered the first syllable, the one hundred thousand shadows that were formed by Sui Chen Zi's law shuddered and were instantly frozen, unable to move.
When the second syllable was spoken, without the one hundred thousand shadows' protection, Su Ming's soul immediately felt a strong impact crashing into him as he was Possessing the golden hearts within those one hundred thousand venous pathways.
"I paid an incredible price in exchange for the law to freeze. This means that from now on, there will no longer be any chance for me to recover. I can only watch as the other nine continuously recover and wait for the one who will awaken among them to devour me…
"I've sacrificed so much, so I won't accept not being able to kill you!"
Ecang's will rushed over in a mad dash. At the instant it crashed into Su Ming's soul, the final part of the Possession which he had planned and prepared for hundreds of years was executed without any hesitation.
"Black fragment!" Su Ming's soul let out a low shout.
The black fragment. The unknown treasure that had accompanied Su Ming while he was in Yin Death Region and had fused with his soul to follow him to the Barren Lands of Divine Essence was formed within his soul at the moment Su Ming called out to it.
This item was a mysterious entity. Even if Su Ming had completely burned his soul previously, it still existed within him. At that moment, when it manifested, it returned to its original form and turned into a negligible black stone fragment!
"Deceive it!"
The instant the black stone fragment appeared was also the moment Ecang's will crashed into Su Ming. As booming sounds echoed in the air, the golden hearts that originally numbered one hundred thousand within the equally numbered golden venous pathways in those trees in the galaxies suddenly increased drastically by several thousand folds. They appeared within each set of the golden venous pathways, and when added together, they reached one hundred million hearts with the aura of death within those one hundred thousand galaxies.
Among those one hundred million hearts. Only one hundred thousand were real. The others were all fake, but the presence each of them gave off were the exact same. There was not the slightest difference among them. This was the mysterious ability that the black fragmented excelled in - the ability to deceive all manner of life.
Su Mig did not know how long this treasure could deceive Ecang, which was why he had not dared to use it previously. Instead, only when he was closest to success, when the value of a breath was even more precious than before, did he bring it out.
"This… This is… the Seed of Life Extermination! Did it… did it also fail? This is impossible! How could it fail..? How could there only be a fragment left?" There was disbelief in Ecang's voice, along with deep despair. It needed ten breaths before it could find the real Su Ming among the one hundred million hearts.
If it had needed these ten breaths to search for Su Ming beforehand, it would have been nothing to it, but now, time was critical. Ten breaths would determine the winner and the loser.
"I lost! The nine wills that have been separated from me, I have been Possessed! Destroy him, and help me take revenge!"
As Ecang's voice of despair echoed in the air, Su Ming's Possession of the true one hundred thousand golden hearts reached ninety-nine-hundredths, and then… one hundred!
The golden venous pathways and the golden hearts were all black!
Chapter 835: The Deep Slumber Before He Was Reborn
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Complete Possession!
At the instant Su Ming's Possession was fully completed, Ecang's will withered away. In the blink of an eye, it disappeared without a trace, causing the purple Ecang tree to become Su Ming's clone from then on!
It was also during the instant Su Ming completed his Possession that vast waves of ancient memories surged into his soul like a flood that had broken through a dam.
Those memories were incredibly jumbled up, and a great swelling sensation rose within Su Ming. It was painful, as if those memories were imprinting themselves deeply into his soul. That pain could not be described with words… However, at the same time, Su Ming had a strong sensation that his soul was swiftly growing stronger. As those memories gathered together and his soul continued becoming stronger, he sensed that his cultivation base changed drastically.
It was as if he had suddenly come to understand the changes in the world within an instant, and the trains of thought that had been previously blocked opened up.
One hundred thousand galaxies. One hundred thousand golden seas. One thousand Ecang trees within one hundred thousand planets. All of these things shook, and Su Ming sensed that at the instant he turned into Ecang, he could feel numerous others galaxies that existed beyond these one hundred thousand.
There were nine wills that were on equal ground to his in this galaxy. Each of them contained the power of one hundred thousand galaxies. At that moment, they were gathering and surrounding the galaxies that belonged to Su Ming, as if they wanted to rush in, but were also hesitant to do so.
He did not need to think much to be able to tell that these nine wills that were lingering about beyond the area he controlled was the other wills of the great Ecang tree that had been torn apart.
Ecang had been split into ten parts all those years ago, and these parts used Western Ring Nebula's foreign land to heal themselves. If Su Ming had not appeared, then perhaps after a long period of time had passed, they would have devoured each other and conglomerated into the real Ecang. However, since Su Ming appeared and successfully Possessed the purple Ecang, and the purple Ecang sent out those ripples before its death, the other nine wills came over in an attempt to devour him beforehand.
If Su Ming was interrupted in the critical moment before he managed to form his clone and was devoured by the nine wills, then even if he Possessed the purple Ecang, the results would still be of no good to him. He would only become part of the true Ecang's soul.
Originally, these nine wills would planned to rush into the one hundred thousand galaxies that belonged to the purple Ecang and execute a brutal process of devouring Su Ming and fusing with him, until the purple Ecang Su Ming Possessed would be completely devoured. Then, these nine would will become much stronger.
Before the purple Ecang died, it had sent a divine thought to the nine wills with exactly this intention, because it had made a promise with the other nine Ecang souls before. Before the ten of them fully recovered, they would not devour each other. They would wait until they were all complete before they did so. Only then would the true Ecang be eventually born without any injuries, and would even be much stronger than before!
That was why if the purple Ecang had not sent that divine thought to them, the other Ecang souls would not have come forward. However, the purple Ecang did not expect that Su Ming's Possession towards it was not the traditional Possession that would wipe away its soul because the possessor only wanted its body. Thus, it had miscalculated.
The traditional Possession would cause a great aversion within the nine other wills, and they would immediately rush in to devour Su Ming. However, Su Ming's Possession was the Abyss Builders' inborn ability. This sort of Possession not only wanted to take over the target's body, but also their soul, and even the brand of their lives. It was a Possession that aimed to gather together a body from the purple Ecang's form, and that body would be identical to Ecang, in terms of both its presence or signs of life.
It was just like how Su Ming had Possessed one of the three Crimson Python Phoenixes all those years ago and the remaining two had not noticed him. Instead, they had always thought that he was their companion. Since even his presence had not changed.
This was the Abyss Builders' Possession!
It was also the reason why the purple Ecang failed even after it died!
To be precise, the Abyss Builders' Possession was divided into three steps. The first step was to create confusion by blending the false with what was real. It could be seen as the invasion of the soul, just like what had happened to the purple Ecang just now and what had happened to the Crimson Python Phoenix that had devoured Su Ming's soul all those years ago.
The falsehood here was referring to Su Ming's soul, and the reality was referring to his target's body and soul.
The second step was to substitute what was real with a fake. He would completely Possess his target's body, soul, mark of life, and even Life Matrix, in a manner akin of exchanging the sun and moon in the sky. The Su Ming right now was at the final stages of this step. Once he completed the Possession, he would have changed the sun and moon in the sky with a fake.
The main point of this Possession was to change, not to wipe off. That was why it had the third step.
To turn what was decaying into something amazing.
The decaying part symbolized the past, and the amazing part symbolized the future. The change between what was decaying and what was amazing was akin to a process of rebirth. It would use the decaying parts of the past to be reborn into something amazing.
This step was precisely what Su Ming was prepared to do at that moment.
In a sense, there were too many intrinsic differences between Su Ming and Ecang. But from another point of view… they were the same!
Ecang used Sui Chen Zi's death to be born and devoured his Divine Essence. Su Ming was reborn within Ecang's body. He absorbed what Ecang had absorbed and also devoured all that was Ecang. If one looked at it that way, the Abyss Builders were even more domineering than Ecang.
Because…
"You were born by devouring the universe's Divine Essence, and I will devour your life to live," Su Ming mumbled. As the windstorm of jumbled up memories in his soul continued imprinting themselves in his heart and body, Su Ming's understanding towards the Abyss Builders' inborn ability to Possess others became even greater.
After all, since ancient times, Su Ming was the only one among the Abyss Builders who could devour something like Ecang, which was an only existence in the universe!
"Abyss Builders… Just like how small fish eat shrimps to live, while big fish eat small fish. This is the law of the jungle… I didn't expect that this idiom would be portrayed so vividly in the Abyss Builders' inborn ability."
The black venous pathways and the black hearts within the one hundred thousand purple Ecang trees in the equally numbered galaxies turned into one hundred thousand faces of Su Ming at that moment. As he mumbled to himself, he found the reason as to why the other nine Ecang wills were lingering around the area of his perception.
"To their senses, my presence is not that much different compared to that of the purple Ecang, but since the third step still isn't complete, there are still some differences. That should be why they're lingering about and won't leave.
"This phenomenon will last until I complete the third step in this Possession. Once I turn what is decaying into something astonishing, it will end…" The eyes of Su Ming's faces shone at the same time and revealed a piercingly cold glare.
"I need time. This might not take long, or it could take an eternity. My soul will also descend into a deep sleep because of this. After all… the purple Ecang is not like the Crimson Python Phoenix, where I could instantly form my clone. The purple Ecang is too big…
"In this period of time, which might last for a long time, but also might just be a short while, the nine wills will become a lurking threat. If they continue lingering around the area… I don't want to use my life as a gambling chip and bet that they won't come and devour me.
"Fortunately, I have the black stone fragment. This Seed of Life Extermination, which is what the purple Ecang called it, seems to be from the same generation as the bald crane based on what it said. That's why Ecang had mentioned an 'also' when it said those words previously.
"'Did it also fail..?'"
"The mysteries of the ancient time of Sui Chen Zi's era will slowly reveal themselves before me as I Possess the purple Ecang. At this moment, I no longer have the wills from Yin Death Region manipulating me, and I don't have Di Tian trying to control me and using me in his plan. From now on… I am me!
"The only thing I need to worry about… is that Di Tian will definitely not accept that his plan to lie in wait and steal an Abyss Builder's body had just failed like this. And since he can no longer control my soul, he will definitely choose to use his full strength to plant his back-up plan in my physical body, which is within the land of Immortals right now!
"He knows that my physical body is my foundation. In the end, I will have to return for it. If he keeps watch over it, he will be watching over my core.
"But… if my physical body is the core of my being, then it is also… Di Tian's life."
The current Su Ming was different from who he was in the past. He was now like a fish who had returned to the sea, a tiger who had returned to the forest, a dragon who had returned to the clouds. It was confidence and temperament that would naturally appear within a person after his fate was no longer controlled by someone else and he gained full control over his own self.
Only at that moment could Su Ming truly be considered as Su Ming.
As he mumbled softly to himself, a burst of light erupted forth from the black stone fragment with a bang in accordance to his will. It immediately manifested the purple Ecang's soul and presence to make up for what Su Ming had yet to complete in the third step of his Possession. When there were no longer any differences between his soul and the presence Ecang, Su Ming sent his divine thought outwards.
"There was a cultivator that wanted to Possess me and almost succeeded… but he still failed in the end. I… am still me. The promise we made with our souls is still in effect. Now… leave these one hundred thousand galaxies of mine! The time for when we finally devour and fuse with each other has yet to arrive!"
As Su Ming's divine thought and the presence of Ecang's soul which was formed by the black stone fragment spread out furiously, the nine wills formed from the portions of Ecang's soul that were lingering beyond Su Ming's one hundred thousand galaxies gradually faded away. After a moment, they disappeared from his perception.
As the nine wills of Ecang's soul faded away, the edges of the one hundred thousand galaxies where Su Ming were starting to show signs of merging together. They were gradually turning into one.
At the same time, the Ecang tree that had been separated into one hundred thousand parts also started showing signs of gathering together as the galaxies slowly merged together. Su Ming gradually fell into deep sleep.
"When I awaken once more, I can tell that this clone of mine will be even stronger. My level of cultivation base will surpass what I have now, and this Ecang clone of mine… will become the foundation for me to become the strongest in the future.
"I look forward… to how I will be different… when I wake up," Su Ming mumbled. All one hundred thousand of his faces slowly shut their eyes, and a fusion, a rebirth, a serendipity, and the final step of the formation for Ecang's clone began.
Chapter 836: I Am the Master of This World
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Ten years later.
Ten years is not such a long time. In fact, for cultivators, who live for a long time, ten years are just a short period of meditation. They can squander away time wantonly, and it does not matter whether it is ten years, a hundred years, or even more.
This was something that was the source of envy for mortals. It was also something they longed for. Perhaps longevity was the desire that spurred an average person to dream of becoming a cultivator, but it was definitely not the reason for all to become cultivators.
Besides longevity, one of the reasons why a person would dream of becoming a cultivator was because they wanted to not idle away even as they squandered off time.
To an average person, ten years might not be their entire lifetime, but it would become a source of nostalgia. Ten years ago, perhaps there was still a person who kept them company. Ten years ago, that person was perhaps still an undecided young boy full of dreams. Ten years ago, that person perhaps still did not know how to treasure what was beside him. Ten years ago, that person perhaps was still laughing happily and foolishly without worry.
But ten years later...
That person would only look at the blue sky, the white clouds, the sun setting and rising, and he would sigh… In the end, he was still just a normal person.
Ten years could change a mortal, but it could not change too many cultivators. However, it could make a certain set of memories be gradually buried in a cultivator's heart, and like a zither string, if no hands went to pluck it and cause it to shiver, it would remain still and silent.
The shock within the land with the one hundred thousand stone monuments ten years ago was one such thing. It had turned into a thought buried deep within the hearts of the people there, and one that no one wanted to talk about. However, the thoughts that would gather in their eyes would occasionally make them warily cast their gazes at the stone monument standing erect among the many others in the place… a stone monument that was one million feet tall, and on which Mo Su's name was carved!
Ten years ago, ten thousand stone monuments out of one hundred thousand had shattered. Ten thousand out of one hundred thousand cultivators died. It shocked the entire foreign land, causing all the people to gasp in astonishment. While those emotions were buried in the depths of their hearts ten years later, Mo Su's stone monument was the only one that attracted gazes again and again.
Among those gazes were Zhou Kang's, those who came after Su Ming's life, and those who were in the land since before Su Ming came.
Perhaps they were not persistently waiting for him to appear. Perhaps they were not really that curious. However, even without any discussions, everyone was certain that the horror of the disaster ten years ago had a connection to Mo Su's stone monument.
They were instinctively waiting. Waiting for the moment Mo Su would appear after not showing up for ten years. Perhaps at that moment, they would be able to find the reason behind the disaster those years ago.
During the ten years, there were no longer any boundaries between the one hundred thousand galaxies in which the purple Ecang's bodies resided. They had fused together, but Su Ming's deep slumber continued, and he showed no signs of waking up.
Another ten years passed. The one hundred thousand galaxies had already fused together completely. The next step was to fuse the one hundred thousand hearts that had been dyed black.
While Su Ming slept for sixty years, the people within the land that now had just ninety thousand stone monuments gradually grew used to his stone monument standing erect by its lonesome. They got used to the master of the stone monument not walking out, used to the lack of the ten thousand monuments that had been destroyed.
In fact, during the sixty years, there were thousands of newcomers who had come to this place, and they did not know about the disaster sixty years ago. The first thing they saw then were the ninety thousand stone monuments, and they thus believed… that there had always been only ninety thousand stone monuments here.
During those years, the one hundred thousand galaxies had completely fused together in Su Ming's world and created an incredibly great galaxy. The one hundred thousand black hearts were also slowly merging together. They turned… into one single entity that floated within the gigantic galaxy.
However, Su Ming still remained in deep sleep, because what came next was the fusion between the one hundred thousand Ecang trees. The one hundred thousand purple Ecangs would gather together into one gigantic body.
Another sixty years went by. It was already one hundred and twenty years since then.
If ten years could turn something into a mere memory, then a hundred years could turn something into a legend. That was how it would be for a mortal. To cultivators, in this unique and dull land of ninety thousand stone monuments, the event one hundred years ago gradually faded away as they moved into the worlds in their stone monuments repeatedly, growing their stone monuments toward the one million feet.
There was nothing different about the place. Even though the one hundred thousand stone monuments had reduced to only ninety thousand, they still had the one million feet test, along with the trips into memories.
When another sixty years passed, there were only a handful of people that remembered Su Ming.
Zhou Kang was one of the few who did. He could not forget Su Ming, could not forget the person who loved to remain silent and had helped him to take his revenge in exchange for his experience.
When the end of the fourth cycle of sixty years arrived, two hundred and forty years had flowed by. In Su Ming's world… an incredibly huge tree that towered into the heavens had gathered in the vast galaxy.
The tree occupied most of the galaxy, and there was an ancient, age-old presence exuding from it. That tree was entirely purple, and it had an indescribable mighty pressure coming from it. It was the only true existence in the galaxy at that moment!
If anyone looked closely, a person would be vaguely able to see that there was a golden light within that purple tree. At first glance, it might seem purple, but in truth, it was a fusion between purple and gold.
The purple shade was its foundation, and the gold its essence!
At the instant the purple tree's body was completely formed, its purple light surged into the heavens. Once it illuminated the entire galaxy, its body… shrank!
This was not a simple shrinking in size, but a form of retraction. It was a rebirth, where the tree withered away, but not entirely. It was as if there was a life that was about to be born within the trunk. This was the birth of this life which needed the tree's nutrients. It would continuously gather them, and the tree would shrink.
This process lasted for sixty years!
From the time Su Ming fell asleep to this moment, five cycles of sixty years had passed. That was three hundred years. It was enough for all the people in the land with ninety thousand stone monuments to forget the disaster all those years ago, and also enough for the gazes that often landed on Su Ming's stone monument… to reduce to only one!
That gaze that constantly watched the stone monument belonged to Zhou Kang. During the three hundred years, he had managed to make his stone monument reach nine hundred thousand something feet multiple times. He took the test multiple times, but failed every single time. However, this was no longer the most important thing in his life. At that moment, he was still watching Su Ming's stone monument… because he wanted to verify whether his deceased wife's guess all those years ago had been true.
Because once he arrived at the later stage of World Plane Realm, he had long since understood that all the memories within the world of the stone monuments… were fake. It was something that belonged to the passage of time. His wife's guess… had to be real.
Su Ming was neither his friend nor his relative, but the path Su Ming took was given by Zhou Kang. The path he took was his wife's guess and her conclusion. Since his wife had died, this was the thing that supported Zhou Kang, the only thing that got him moving forward.
Another ten years went by.
When the three hundred and tenth year was almost completely gone, no one within the world of the ninety thousand stone monuments noticed a change in their worlds.
This change came from Su Ming's world. He had opened his eyes.
In that vast galaxy within Su Ming's world, the tree was no longer around. What existed at that moment was a young man with long black hair and black eyes!
His hair reached his feet, and his face was so pale that he looked sick. However, a vast amount of life force that could suffocate others rose up with a bang within the young man's body.
During the three hundred years, Su Ming had completed the third step of the Abyss Builders' Possession. He turned something decaying into something astonishing, and from the Ecang tree, he formed a clone that belonged to him!
This would be the first clone in the endless passage of time that was formed after Possessing an entity like Ecang within the entire universe. This clone was not within the laws of the universe. It surpassed them. This was… Su Ming's strongest clone.
This was Ecang's clone!
He opened his eyes.
At the instant Su Ming opened his eyes, the entire galaxy trembled, and as if it was submitting to him, an endless amount of cracks spread out. It was as if with just one thought, Su Ming could make this galaxy crumble and shatter.
There was an endless amount of golden light within his eyes, along with overlapping shadows of runic symbols in his right eye. These shadows replaced his pupils and exuded an indescribably mighty pressure. If anyone met his gaze at that moment, then right at that instant, a loud bang would rang out in their hearts, and their minds would be torn to shreds.
At the instant Su Ming's clone which had mastered a portion of Sui Chen Zi's Divine Essence and gathered together a portion of the complete Ecang's body was formed, he possessed a power that surpassed his imagination.
Perhaps more accurately speaking, this was no longer a power, but an instinct that allowed him to control Divine Essence.
"I don't know how strong this clone is, but I can feel… that I am the master of these one hundred thousand galaxies.
"Now, even those at the peak of the middle stage of World Plane Realm like Zhao Family's Progenitor appeared, no matter how many of them there were, I would be able to instantly wipe all of them away with this clone of mine.
"Perhaps I could even fight against the ancient wills within Yin Death Region! However, this is only my current self. I can sense it strongly, this body is still like that of a newborn. It is still growing up, and with each breath, it is getting stronger." As Su Ming whispered to himself, the golden light in his eyes became as bright as the sun.
"From now on, all the ninety thousand stone monuments in the world can never reach ten million feet. Their limit will be nine million feet… because the final one million feet of those ten million feet… shall eternally belong only to me!" A faint smile appeared on Su Ming's face. He lifted his right hand and swung it before him.
Immediately, a wave of distorted ripples appeared in the galaxy before him. Those ripples spread out swiftly, and after a moment, a body appeared within them that gradually floated towards Su Ming.
This was his Crimson Python Phoenix clone. It was also his first clone that acted as his physical body, which he used to train the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole.
"Ecang's clone refines Divine Essence.
"The clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole refines my physical body.
"My real self in the land of Immortals refines my soul.
"I need one more clone to refine my epiphany.
"Now, this clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole should get stronger…" Golden light shone in Su Ming's eyes, and he pointed towards that clone with his right index finger.
"I am the master of this galaxy formed by the fusion of one hundred thousand galaxies. With a single thought, I'll have… this body become stronger," Su Ming whispered softly.
At the instant he finished speaking, a set of laws and rules immediately appeared in the vast galaxy, and all of them gathered on Su Ming's clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole.
When Su Ming's clone opened his eyes, a burst of powerful presence erupted forth like a tidal wave.
Chapter 837: Limit
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
The clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole which Su Ming had formed by Possessing the Crimson Python Phoenix had passed through the first disaster of the nine disasters that came with the Duke of Crimson Flame race's unparalleled Art for physical bodies. From then on, it had reached the level of a Paragon, and Su Ming had entered World Plane Realm with it.
However, that clone was just in the initial stage of World Plane Realm. He needed to devour more power of World Planes and survive through several more disasters before getting sufficiently stronger.
However, the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole became increasingly more difficult to train the more one advanced through it, and before Su Ming stepped into Western Ring Nebula's foreign land, he had stopped devouring the power of World Planes, because once he reached the second state of completion, his soul would fuse completely with this physical body, removing the inborn talent of the Abyss Builders to make their clones from him.
His soul would not even be able to fuse with his real physical body in the land of Immortals.
Su Ming thought about it before. If he could not find a suitable being for Possession, then he would randomly choose one to Possess. After all, he could not let his cultivation stop because of this. Even if there were plenty of problems that would come if he chose randomly, he still had to do it.
Yet now, the matter that had him hesitating had been resolved perfectly. Even if his Ecang clone wasn't what he had originally intended to for a clone to gain an epiphany for his cultivation, the Divine Essence Ecang's body refined surpassed Su Ming's expectations and turned into a serendipity that could change his entire life.
It was especially since with this serendipity, he escaped from the control of the wills in Yin Death Region and the seal Di Tian had hidden deep within him. To Su Ming, this outcome was as great as him obtaining his Ecang clone.
Besides, once he obtained it, Su Ming could divide his soul. Because of it, he could be at complete ease when leaving a portion of his soul in the clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole, allowing it to continue going through the nine disasters.
As these thoughts fleeted through Su Ming's mind, he looked at that clone, and the clone also looked back at him. As their gazes met each other, a feeling of perfect harmony rose within him.
This was a very mysterious feeling. It was as if a single being had two bodies. Perhaps this comparison was not really that accurate. At that moment, what Su Ming felt was that these two clones had turned into his left and right hands. His soul was his mind, and he could control them with ease. There was no lack of fluency in his movements.
"This clone should be stronger." When Su Ming mumbled this, the clone which trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows opened his mouth and said the same things as Su Ming did.
Laws surrounded him, and rules filled the air. Upon the voicing of those words, a loud bang rang out in the galaxy. It echoed in all directions, and faint shadows of a planet appeared as the galaxy trembled.
That planet was golden in color.
Soon after, the second, third, fourth… and up to the one hundred thousandth planet appeared!
Once the one hundred thousand galaxies fused together, they had not just formed the purple Ecang. The one hundred thousand planets in the place had also gathered together, but they had not turned into one single planet. Instead, they turned into a golden cosmos formed by one hundred thousand planets.
The light from the cosmos shone endlessly, and there were hints of purple within that golden light. At the instant it illuminated the entire galaxy, Su Ming's Ecang clone casually swung his right hand before himself.
"Cosmos formed by one hundred thousand planets, the one hundred thousand planets that are the start of my cosmos… I will now awaken your Essence of the World." Right when Su Ming finished saying his final word, waves of presence that belonged to the Essence of Worlds erupted with a bang from the one hundred thousand planets.
Their presences fused together and spread all over the galaxy. At the instant they shook it, Su Ming spoke again.
"The power of World Planes shall be born within the Essence of Worlds!"
Boom!
A tremendous amount of power of World Planes erupted from the cosmos, and it was so dense that it could not be described with words. In an instant, it surged into Su Ming's clone which trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole.
As the power of World Planes gathered on him, the hair on that clone started moving without wind, and the powerful presence increased exponentially within that body.
Su Ming lifted his head and looked at the cosmos before looking down and mumbling under his breath, "Absorb at will. Now that I have become the master of one hundred thousand galaxies, from now on… I will not let anyone manipulate me."
His face was pale. The runic symbols overlapped in his right eye, which... had an air of ancientness to it.
Before him, as the presence of the clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole continued rising without end and the power of World Planes born from the Essence of Worlds from the one hundred thousand planets continued fusing into him, the clone reached the second state of completion in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole.
'From now on, this clone will become my strongest body in terms of the power of Qi. If each of my clones can become the strongest, when I eventually fuse with all of them…' A glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes.
Boom!
Once the clone reached his second state of completion, he took a step forward. The second disaster descended on him, causing a faint wisp of a presence that did not belong to the one hundred thousand galaxies to immediately appear.
That presence which did not belong to Su Ming appeared from the clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole. It was just like when he experienced the first disaster. Besides the final three disasters, the nine disasters from the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole from the Duke of Crimson Flame's race were all born within the physical bodies, as if they were experiencing a backlash.
"Begone!" Su Ming's expression was indifferent as he spoke calmly. With that one word, the galaxy instantly distorted, and a tremendous will erupted from Su Ming's Ecang clone, sweeping towards the clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole like a windstorm.
It only lasted for the span of one breath. At the instant this invisible windstorm that contained Su Ming's will touched the clone, the second disaster which had been born within the clone immediately fell apart, and the presence which did not belong in this galaxy disappeared like the wind.
When the second disaster vanished, the clone which trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole lifted his head and let out a low roar. As it echoed in space, he instantly rose from the initial stage of World Plane Realm to the peak of the initial stage, then straight towards attaining completion in the initial stage.
The increase of strength by multiple fold made the clone let out a long cry. It was a shout that shook the sky and earth. His hair fluttered in space, and during that instant, his body became much stronger than before.
When he clenched his fist, the feeling that he had full control was absolutely wonderful, and it was a feeling that could get people addicted.
This feeling of becoming stronger instantly, especially the exponential increase of levels within World Plane Realm would immediately fill any other person with surprised delight and excitement, but Su Ming's two clones only frowned at the same time.
'This was an incredibly dense power of World Planes, and based on what the Duke of Crimson Flame said when he taught me this Art, once I got through the second disaster, I should have reached the middle stage of World Plane Realm.
'And since the middle stage of World Plane Realm is much stronger than the initial stage of World Plane, that is why… I would need the third and fourth disasters before I could reach completion the middle stage of World Plane Realm.
'During the fifth disaster, I could reach the later stage of World Plane Realm, and when I reached the ninth disaster, I would attain completion in World Plane Realm. Once I fused the nine disasters in my body, I could form Lunar Kalpa and become a powerful warrior in Lunar Kalpa Realm.
'But now that I've completed the second disaster, I've only reached the peak of the initial stage in World Plane Realm. Something… is wrong here.'
A contemplative look appeared in the eyes of both Su Ming's clones. Once they exchanged glances, the Ecang clone sent his will outwards, and it immediately gathered on the clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole. As he observed him carefully, he controlled the power of World Planes around him to surge into him once again.
As the clone absorbed the power, reaching the third state of completion, and Su Ming wiped off the third disaster, his clone became stronger once again. Booming sounds echoed in space nonstop, akin to a drum being struck within the clone, and he immediately moved from the peak of the initial stage in World Plane Realm to the middle stage of World Plane Realm!
The middle stage of World Plane Realm was completely different from the initial one. It was just like how Su Ming had been able to kill those in the initial stage of World Plane Realm in the past but was forced to flee when he came face to face against those in the middle stage. These were two completely different stages. In fact, it could even be said that only those in the middle stage of World Plane Realm could truly be considered Lords of World Planes, and only when they reached this stage could they treat those in Heaven Cultivation Realm like ants.
Su Ming might have become stronger, but his brows were still furrowed. After a moment of pensive silence, he gathered the power of World Planes from the one hundred thousand planets to come forth once more.
Time trickled by slowly. After an hour, the clone reached the fourth state of completion. Su Ming neutralized the fourth disaster, and his body became stronger once again. His presence became monstrous and shook the entire area. Several hours passed, and the fifth state of completion also arrived.
If the Duke of Crimson Flame was awake at that moment, then this training speed and increase in levels would have definitely shocked him so much that he would have been tongue-tied and staring at Su Ming, wide-eyed.
This was the right only possessed by those who controlled an entire galaxy.
As the fifth disaster disappeared, the strength of the physical body of the clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole reached the stage that was near the peak of the middle stage of World Plane Realm. At this stage, if he returned to one thousand years ago, then with his Qi alone, he could fight against Zhao Family's Progenitor on equal grounds.
After all, Zhao Family's Progenitor was just at the peak of the middle stage in the World Plane Realm. However, this sort of power had allowed his family to become the third in Western Ring Nebula, and this was a show of how powerful he was.
'I knew it. Something is wrong. I would have let it slide if it was just the second disaster that was not as powerful as I thought, but this fifth disaster is supposed to have physical bodies reach the later stage of World Plane Realm, but it only managed to make this clone reach the state that is similar to the peak of the middle stage of World Plane Realm.
'Is this because this clone of mine is naturally powerful on its own, that's why the Art can't reach its ideal condition, or is it… because there is a flaw in this clone?'
Su Ming's eyes shone, and when he manipulated the power of World Planes to gather on the clone that trained in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole once again, he suddenly understood the answer.
Because his clone… could no longer absorb the power of World Planes. The fifth disaster was his limit.
'It's a flaw. It's the Crimson Python Phoenix's flaw.' Su Ming shook his head.
'All manner of lives in the universe have flaws, and we practice cultivation to mend those flaws… I don't know what are the flaws within the Crimson Python Phoenixes… but there will come a time when I will be able to mend it.'
Upon falling silent, Su Ming closed his eyes. The clone training in the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole also closed his eyes.
"The third change of heart [1]… should end now," Su Ming mumbled. Thousands of years had flowed by. Age and nostalgia changed places with each other and turned into a thread in the depths of Su Ming's heart. This thread was like the first point he would make when he drew. And now… it had turned into a circle.
At the instant Su Ming's two clones closed their eyes, a world changing event occurred in the one hundred thousand planets in the cosmos.
Translator's Notes:
1. Third change of heart: The one Su Ming has to create grass knot dolls for.
Chapter 838: One Hundred Thousand Stone Monuments
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
A mountain appeared in each of the one hundred thousand planets within the cosmos during that instant.
That mountain was the ninth summit from Su Ming's memories.
When the one hundred thousand ninth summits were born within the one hundred thousand planets, the two Su Ming clones who had their eyes shut lifted their hands at the same time. Golden threads appeared out of thin air and surrounded the two clones. As Su Ming's two clones started weaving them at will, he… started tying knots on them to weave the people in his memories.
Without the will of Yin Death Region interfering, Su Ming regained his emotions and his ability to feel pain. He immersed himself in the process of weaving grass knots using Divine Essence as time passed, turning all the people in his memories that he could not forget into Divine Essence Dolls in his hands.
This was the third change of heart Su Ming had not been able to complete when he first arrived in Crimson Flame Planet. In truth, when he returned to the disaster of the ninth summit in the world within the stone monument and killed his mortal foes with his own hands, he could have completed the third change of heart at any time he wanted.
However, he had a burden in his heart, and it was the mask that was formed by Yin Death Region's wills. As long as that burden was not gotten rid of, it would be difficult for him to complete the third change of heart.
When the control of Yin Death Region's wills disappeared, the burden in Su Ming's heart disappeared as well. That was why when he closed his eyes, he began moving towards completing his change of heart.
The galaxy was silent. There was a smile on Su Ming's two clones. Those smiles were born of the joy found as he returned to his memories. He was immersed in this joy, or perhaps he was immersed in the feeling loss, the return of which brought him joy. With the method of tying grass knots, he was allowing himself to remember the past.
The change of heart this time did not shake the sky or earth, neither did it cause loud booms to ring in the air. There was only Su Ming, who with his one soul and two bodies, weaved dolls in silence with a smile that looked happy, but upon closer inspection was full of sadness.
The grief in his soul dyed his hands and fused with the golden grass knots, turning into dolls.
Divine Essence Dolls appeared one after another as years passed by.
Ten years later, at the moment Su Ming's two clones opened their eyes at the same time, tears fell from down his face, and the third change of heart… ended.
This change of heart was to Su Ming a way to get closure for all that had happened in the past, and it was also… a form of rebirth.
He weaved dolls for all the people in his memories. Every single person in his memories had one, but not him.
At the instant he opened his eyes, the grief in them gradually turned into dullness, having become something that he would cherish in the depths of his soul and an everlasting memory in the deepest recesses of his heart.
During that moment, his level of cultivation broke through the peak of Earth Cultivation Realm and he reached Heaven Cultivation Realm before he… attained completion, but that was no longer important. Su Ming looked at all the dolls in front of him, looked at the people with the presence based on his memories, and his expression became one of smiling and crying at the same time.
Each recollection of his memories as he went to the world in the stone monument time and again during those one thousand years was part of his third change of heart. Those recollections might have seemed scattered, but there was a single thread that connected them all together.
This thread was like a blade of grass, and the recollections were akin to him tying grass knots on that blade of grass. The start of the change of heart in Crimson Flame Planet was the first knot. The recollection of his memories during those thousand years were what formed the knots later on. Now, as Su Ming opened his eyes, he tied the final knot on the blade of grass that symbolized his change of heart.
At the instant he completed this seemingly disconnected third change of heart, the invisible blade of grass was woven into a doll that represented his change of heart. This doll was the doll that had been missing among all the dolls he'd woven during the ten years.
It was of himself.
After a long while, Su Ming closed his eyes once again. When he reopened them, there was only an ancient air to them, nothing more.
"It's time that I leave," Su Ming said softly. His Ecang clone took a step forward, but he did not leave this cosmos. Instead, he stepped into the one hundred thousand galaxies and sat down. At the instant he closed his eyes, his clone that practiced the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole lifted his head and looked at the cosmos that was formed by one hundred thousand planets. A resolute look appeared in his eyes.
He gave up on the idea to have his Ecang clone leave this place.
In truth, Su Ming had been constantly pondering on whether he wanted to let his Ecang clone leave this place. Only at that moment did he make his decision.
The purple Ecang was only one of the ten parts of the real Ecang. It was incomplete. Even if it possessed the power to fight against Yin Death Region's wills, Su Ming had long since noticed that even though this clone of his would become stronger if he left Western Ring Nebula's foreign land, his cultivation speed would still be unable to compare to when he was in this place.
Compared to the world outside, this place was the safest and the most suitable place for him to grow. If Su Ming wanted to have his Ecang clone devour the other nine parts so that he would become complete, then having the clone stay in this place was the best choice.
If he left, there would still be some people who could suppress him. However, if Su Ming had enough time, then his Ecang clone would grow to a point where the universe would tremble before him.
Besides, if he left the clone in this place, then while it would be difficult for this Ecang clone to help Su Ming fight against those in Solar Kalpa Realm, he could use the power of Divine Essence in his soul to draw upon Divine Essence, which would increase Su Ming's power, and his clone that practiced the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole would become much stronger.
As the Ecang clone became stronger, Su Ming would also become stronger in the world outside. Until he retrieved his real physical body, his Ecang clone would be his foundation.
That was why Su Ming used the power of the cosmos in this place and made his clone that practiced the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole become stronger. Even if this clone had not reached the later stage of World Plane Realm, it had fused with Su Ming's power, and more importantly, once he activated the power of Divine Essence, Su Ming was confident that he could fight against those in the later stage of World Plane Realm.
Besides, if Su Ming ran into a life and death crisis that he could not escape from in the Barren Lands of Divine Essence, then his Ecang clone would be able to rush over in a short period of time due to his might.
Furthermore, as long as his Ecang clone stayed here, Western Ring Nebula's foreign land would be the safest place for Su Ming. He could even regard this place as a cave abode of his. Over here, Su Ming did not need to worry about any form of threats due to Sui Chen Zi's law.
However, if he chose to have his Ecang clone leave this place for a prolonged period of time, he would lose all the advantages of this place and the chance to make his Ecang clone become complete.
Su Ming made his choice to have his Ecang clone stay.
But besides this decision, there was another question that lay at the bottom of Su Ming's heart. It was also one of the reasons why he had decided to have his Ecang clone stay in this place. This question had stayed in Su Ming's heart for a long time.
'Western Ring Nebula's foreign land is rumored to be an incredibly dangerous place in the world outside. It is rare for anyone to be able to walk out once they enter it. This is… something almost every single person in the Barren Lands of Divine Essence knows.
'But… if they know about this, why did so many of them still come here during the past one thousand years. If it had been a few dozen or a few hundreds, I would have let it slide; I would even regard it as a personal choice.
'However, several tens of thousands of people have entered, so there must have been a reason for it. I don't even need to guess about it, though. The forces of power from the four Great True Worlds keeping a lookout on the barren lands must have offered a reward that tempted practically all the people. That was why there were so many people who were brave enough to enter this place. All of them were tempted by the possible gains.
'The forces of power from the four Great True Worlds must know more about Western Ring Nebula's foreign land than anyone else. Their action of offering a reward for people to come to this place for my life might seem reasonable, but in truth…' A cold glare appeared in Su Ming's eyes.
'Unless there is no one from the forces of power from the four Great True Worlds who knows about the secrets of the foreign land, but no, this is impossible. If I were them, then if I couldn't say the secrets of this place and really wanted to have me die, I would straight away enslave one hundred thousand cultivators and force them into the foreign land to force a complete exchange.
'In fact, if one hundred thousand people weren't enough, then they could send in two hundred thousand people, or three hundred thousand, or even more to ensure this exchange several times, and I would have certainly died!
'But they didn't. And I refuse to believe that they didn't think about this, and since that's the case…' Su Ming's eyes sparkled, and a cold sneer appeared on the corners of his lips.
'They don't want me dead. Instead, they want to create some false impressions. The goal of it is to…' Su Ming lifted his head and cast a glance at the spot where his Ecang clone was, then narrowed his eyes.
'It can be for this Ecang clone, but there are too many loopholes in this possibility. I can't be sure that they did it because of this. Besides, I only managed to succeed by the skin of my teeth. There's a high possibility they hadn't thought about this, but I have to be on guard against this as well.
'There's one more possibility… They wish for me to obtain the Divine Essence using the normal method to make the stone monument reach one million feet and obtain a small amount of Divine Essence as well as the chance to go out for one thousand years.
'Could it be that… there are benefits for a person if they kill someone with Divine Essence?'
After a moment of pensive silence, he pushed this question to the bottom of his heart, then averted his gaze from his Ecang clone. He took a step towards space, and his body gradually disappeared. As it did so, there was a flash of red that flew out and charged towards the one hundred thousand galaxies.
That was the small Candle Dragon which was made to stay in this place by Su Ming. This place possessed dense power of World Planes, and it could serve as nourishment for the small snake.
At the instant Su Ming's clone that practiced the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole left the place, Su Ming's Ecang clone within the one hundred thousand galaxies opened his eyes.
"Since I chose to stay here, then there are certain things that I must do."
When the Ecang clone spoke flatly, the space behind him immediately distorted, and a colossal shadow of a purple tree manifested in space. It swayed a little, and ten thousand rays of purple light instantly spread out. Within an instant, those ten thousand rays of purple light spread in all directions before vanishing into the cosmos.
Once the Ecang clone did this, he shut his eyes again and began a long period of meditation.
During that moment, the world which had remained in the state of ninety thousand stone monuments for three hundred odd years suddenly saw ten thousand rays of light, and buzzing sounds instantly rang in the air.
All the people within the worlds of the ninety thousand stone monuments were forced out at that moment. For some, this was the first time they experienced this, but there were also quite a large number who experienced this for the second time. In the midst of their shock and astonishment, they could not help but remember the scene three hundred years ago, which had almost faded away from their memories.
As all the people were forced out, the ten thousand rays of purple light fused into the ground. The ground rumbled and shook, and ten thousand stone monuments rose up. The spots where those ten thousand stone monuments took place were precisely the ones from which they had disappeared three hundred years ago.
When those ten thousand stone monuments appeared, the number of stone monuments in the place returned to one hundred thousand!
The addition of those ten thousand stone monuments did not belong to Ecang or Sui Chen Zi, but… Su Ming!
These were Su Ming's stone monuments. All the people whose names would be carved onto those ten thousand stone monuments would have their lives controlled by Su Ming, and they would offer up all their time and power for Su Ming's Ecang clone to become stronger.
From then onwards, this scam within Western Ring Nebula's foreign land would have another person getting a piece from it.
At that moment, nearly ninety thousand people fell into dead silence. The various thoughts in the minds turned into shock, astonishment, and confusion. In fact, the breathing of some almost stilled as they looked at the new ten thousand stone monuments with a blank expression.
Only one person's expression was full of excitement. He did not look at the ten thousand stone monuments but towards the stone monument that belonged to Su Ming, which almost every single person had forgotten during these three hundred years. He looked at the stone monument, waiting for a certain person to appear.
Gradually, he saw a vortex took shape where Mo Su's name was carved, and a person walked out from that stone monument.
He had long gray hair, a straight back, a pale face, and almost bewitching runic symbols overlapping with each other in his right eye. This was… Su Ming's clone which practiced the Art of Swallowing Hollow Shadows Whole and which also possessed Ecang's Divine Essence!
Chapter 839: Secret of the Stone Monument
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
More accurately speaking, the rays of purple light that spread out from Su Ming's Ecang clone did not number ten thousand but 9,999. The one remaining ray of light was from Su Ming's stone monument.
As the number of stone monuments became the complete number of one hundred thousand once more and as the near ninety thousand people were in the midst of shock and deathly silence, more people noticed a vortex before Su Ming's stone monument and the powerful light that was gradually spreading out from within there. That light illuminated the entire world, causing all the people there to be unable to look away from it.
During that moment several tens of thousands of people had their gazes trained on the stone monument with Mo Su's name carved on it, Su Ming walked out, catching everyone's eyes.
His expression was indifferent as he walked out from the vortex in the stone monument. When he completely moved out, the vortex behind him disappeared, and Su Ming looked at the familiar land of the stone monuments. Hundreds of years had gone by in the blink of an eye to him, and he could only let out a sentimental sigh. Three hundred something years ago, he had brought with him an indomitable resolve in search for a serendipity, and several hundreds of years later, he returned, bringing with him a great serendipity and a miracle that changed his entire life.
Tens of thousands of gazes were trained on him, but they did not cause any fluctuation or any sort of emotion within Su Ming's heart. He swept his gaze across the area, the last spot being his own stone monument.
It was now one million feet tall as it stood erect among others of its kind. It looked normal, but in Su Ming's eyes, he could see Sui Chen Zi's law in the place. He could see the shadow formed by Sui Chen Zi's law in the air above the stone monument, and that shadow… was bowing to Su Ming at that moment.
He seemed to be congratulating him and waiting to be given orders. That action was one of obedience. He was obeying Sui Chen Zi's last order - to submit to the person who was chosen by the Art created by his one thought.
"What is the law set by Sui Chen Zi?" Su Ming sent his thoughts to the shadow.
"The first rule remains supreme. When not contradicting the first law, the law will protect and wipe out the people here. It will protect the people from being killed by Ecang's soul, and wipe out all those who go against the law." Sui Chen Zi's ancient voice traveled into Su Ming's mind.
"The first rule?" Su Ming seemed to have come to understand something.
"The first rule is that Ecang can use its Divine Essence as a price, and I will help it kill the people here. However, if the person it wants to kill is someone who had failed to Possess it, then no matter what price it wants to pay, it will not be allowed. The rule will allow this person to leave in his own way."
Su Ming nodded. He could discover some clues about this from how the purple Ecang had been unable to kill him previously. If there had been no rule, the purple Ecang could have had its will descend in this place and kill him off. It would not have needed to wait so passively.
He no longer inquired about Sui Chen Zi's laws, but instead looked at his stone monument. In his eyes, the monument was made of purple crystals, but since the surface was rough, no one could see it.
In fact, even if they used their divine essence to check it, they would be unable to find any hints about it. Only he, who had control over Divine Essence and had obtained an Ecang clone, becoming one of the people who could gain a share of the benefits here, could see the secrets of the stone monument at that moment.
"Is… that person… Mo Su?"
"He's the person we came here to capture alive. This is… He…" A buzzing gradually rose from the ninety thousand something people talking in the area.
"What happened just now? Why were we suddenly forced out of the world in the stone monument? Damn it, I was just about to reach a breakthrough! I was just one step away from it!"
"Three hundred years ago, a similar thing had happened. At that time, he was the only one who did not come out. Three hundred years later, the same thing repeats, but this time he emerges right after. I absolutely refuse to believe that he has no connection to this."
"Just what did this Mo Su do in the world of the stone monuments… He could make ten thousand stone monuments disappear, and could also make those ten thousand stone monuments appear again." The volume of discussions gradually increased, but Su Ming looked as if he could not hear any of it. He looked at his own stone monument and saw a purple leaf within the depths of it.
At the instant he the leaf, he understood. He shifted his gaze away and looked at the near ten thousand stone monuments that had just appeared in the area, and he saw that each of them were made of purple crystals, and there was a purple leaf within each one.
When he looked at the purple leaf, a feeling that he could blend perfectly with it rose within his heart, as if he only needed one thought, and those near ten thousand stone monuments would disappear. With one thought, he could also make those near ten thousand stone monuments reach one million feet.
In fact, when he closed his eyes, the near ten thousand stone monuments would become his eyes.
"I see, so it's like this," Su Ming whispered softly to himself. When he swept his gaze across the other ninety thousand stone monuments in the area, he nodded.
When he looked at the other ninety thousand stone monuments, he saw nine different colors. The number of stone monuments that belonged to each color was ten thousand. These stone monuments were all formed by crystals made by their respective colors, and within them was a leaf of the same color. [1]
When Su Ming saw all the stone monuments and swept his gaze past those tree leaves, wills that repelled his presence immediately spread out, blocking his gaze from looking at them. There were nine wills in total, and they all belonged to the nine different colored groups of stone monuments and their leaves.
A smile appeared on Su Ming's face. When he had Possessed the purple Ecang, he had always had a question in his heart as to why he was Possessing the purple Ecang.
Based on his understanding, the purple Ecang had the one hundred thousand stone monuments in this place. It was a test when they wanted to make their stone monuments reach one million feet. With this kind of understanding, he pondered over it for a long time, but could not find his answer.
As he came to the end of his train of thought, Su Ming realized that if this was the truly the case, then the purple Ecang was definitely the strongest among the ten souls, because it controlled the growth of all the stone monuments. Among the one hundred thousand people, there were about ninety thousand who were in its control.
When he was Possessing the purple Ecang, he saw it summon nearly ten thousand rays of purple light. Once he Possessed it, those scrambled memories surged into his mind. As he saw what really happened, he understood something.
His assumption before had been wrong.
The purple Ecang did not control the initial growth of those one hundred thousand stone monuments. In truth, it only controlled ten thousand. Ecang had ten souls, and each soul possessed ten thousand stone monuments. Only then could balance be maintained.
When Sui Chen Zi's law chose his stone monument for him, it was already purple. That was why… on the first day he arrived in the land of the stone monuments, he naturally became one of the ten thousand stone monuments the purple Ecang had.
Su Ming also realized that besides his, there was not a single stone monument that had surpassed one million feet in the area that was purple. Perhaps it was due to all ten thousand of the former purple stone monuments shattering three hundred something years ago, but Su Ming could remember clearly all the locations and names of the stone monuments which had surpassed one million feet when he first arrived in this place.
When he looked at them at the moment, he found that all of them were there, with not a single one added to the pile, and not a single one missing.
This gave rise to a question: Why had there not been a single person who had managed to make the purple stone monuments surpass one million feet since the time he had come to this place? Su Ming found his answer within the memories of his Ecang clone as well.
The person whose name was carved on the last purple stone monument that had surpassed one million feet had suddenly died in the world outside two thousand years ago, causing the stone monument to return to several tens of thousands of feet.
'By the looks of it… the purple Ecang had intentionally caused around a hundred stone monuments to reach nine hundred thousand something feet in one go that year to receive the test. It… must have panicked because no stone monument of one million feet had appeared, that was why it had intentionally made things easier.' Su Ming remembered the people whose stone monuments had grown to nine hundred thousand something feet during that time. Most of them should have been purple.
However, clearly, Zhou Kang's stone monument was not.
'These one hundred thousand stone monuments are divided into ten. The stone monuments of each color can reach up to ten million feet. Before I Possessed Ecang, I thought that there would no longer be any stone monuments that would reach ten million feet, because I alone have earned the right to ten million feet, but by the looks of it, my understanding was wrong.'
Su Ming shook his head. The memories within his Ecang clone were incredibly jumbled up, and he would need time until they fully fused into his mind. That was why he did not immediately seek to find his answers within.
'But this is even better. My Ecang clone will become even stronger with the help of the power of the ten thousand people, and I will kill all those whose stone monuments have surpassed one million feet in the world outside.
'If that is the case, I can prevent the growth of the stone monuments of the other colors, so only the ones that are purple will continuously become stronger, making it much easier for my Ecang clone to devour the other nine souls when the time comes.'
"Mo-Mo Su?"
While Su Ming was deep in thought, a voice tinged with uncertainty reached his ears.
At the sound of it, Su Ming looked over and saw Zhou Kang not too far in the distance. They had not seen each other for three hundred years. Zhou Kang did not look too different from before… but the ancient air around him was even stronger. When he saw Su Ming, excitement appeared on his face. This excitement was not due to him having a deep friendship with Su Ming, but because he obtained an answer - an answer that verified what his wife had said was right.
"Big brother Zhou." A smile appeared on Su Ming's face as he spoke amiably towards Zhou Kang.
"What happened? You… Why didn't you appear from the world in your stone monument for hundreds of years? Were the two abnormalities before and after because of you?
"Was-was my wife's guess correct?" Zhou Kang asked in excitement, his voice quivering. He longed to learn the answer. Even if that answer could not bring him freedom, it was the thing that had puzzled his wife all those years ago. Even if his wife had died, he still wanted to know.
Su Ming looked at Zhou Kang. If he had not told him of his experience in the past and his wife's guess, then there was a high possibility that Su Ming would not have taken the path of the Five Illusory Echelons.
If that had happened, then while Su Ming might still have chosen to Possess Ecang, the difficulty of the Possession would have been so high that it was very likely that he would have failed with the slightest mistake. In fact, if Su Ming was to Possess Ecang again, he was not entirely certain he would succeed.
Just as Su Ming was about to answer Zhou Kang's question, he suddenly frowned and lifted his head to look at the air above him.
At that moment, after a series of guesses and considerations, plenty of people from the ninety thousand something of those in the area became aware of who he was.
"You're Mo Su! The one who is wanted by the four Great True Worlds!"
"Damn it, it's you! If you didn't provoke the forces of power from the four Great True Worlds keeping a lookout on this place and had them place a bounty on your head, why would we come to this accursed place and lose our freedom?"
"Bastard, I might be unable to kill you here, but you also lost your freedom and can't go out. You will also have to face the possibility of being selected to die. I'd like to see just who among us will die first."
Sinister words instantly rose into the air. The cultivators who said these words were the ones who came to this place during the past three hundred years, and they knew that there was a rule here that forbade them from attacking. However, the grievances they had suffered during the past three hundred years made them immediately throw out scathing words once they recognized Su Ming.
Almost the moment those sinister words were spoken, booming sounds came from the air above. Hundreds of figures appeared at the same time, and as they descended to the place, their faces filled with different expressions of confusion, uncertainty, surprised delight, shock, and many other types of emotions.
These were newcomers, but Su Ming was not looking at them. He was still looking at the air.
Translator's Notes:
1. The matter of numbers: I wonder if any of you were confused as I was by the numbers when you first saw it and went back to compare with the final 'Ecang as His Clone' chapter. In any case, this is how I understand it. Ecang was split up into one million parts. It has 10 colors. Each color has 100,000 parts.
There are 10 foreign lands. 4 are in Sinful Barren Lands. The remaining 6 should be in Divine Essence Star Ocean. In each foreign land, there are 100,000 stone monuments. 10,000 belong to one color, so 10 colors x 10,000 stone monuments = 100,000. 100,000 stone monuments x 10 foreign lands = 1,000,000 stone monuments. By extension, it also means that 10,000 stone monuments of 1 color x 10 foreign lands = 100,000 stone monuments of 1 color.
I made this because I originally had the misconception that 1 foreign land belongs to just one Ecang of a single color, hence all 100,000 stone monuments belong to it, which is wrong.
And so, the 100,000 galaxies, planets, Ecang trees, venous pathways, and golden hearts from before were not from one foreign land, but was 10,000 worlds each from all 10 foreign lands.
Do keep in mind that this is my interpretation at the point I translated this chapter, and I might be wrong. I'm welcome to hear different views to the numbers.
Chapter 840: Wiping Off
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
"Bastard, if it wasn't because we can't attack in this place, then I would definitely kill you. You're the one who caused us to fall to such a state. You deserve to die!"
The ones who had thrown out biting and sinister words at Su Ming just now were looking at the hundreds of new people descending to the place with pleasure within them in regards to their misery. They continued venting out their frustrations with curses.
In this place where they were not allowed to fight back, besides using cruel words to curse others, there was no other way for them to vent their anger. Even if flinging verbal abuse brought no physical harm to others, if they did not do this, what else could they do?
"I curse you that your entire family dies! I curse you that your race will die a horrific death! I curse you that your lover will be abused by others! I curse you that your bloodline will end!!"
"That's right, everything is because of you, you damned bastard! If I get the chance to make my stone monument reach one million feet, I'll go and search for the people who are acquainted with you in the world outside during those one thousand years and kill all of them so that I can vent my hatred."
The voices rose and fell without stop. These people sounded as if they had descended into madness, and their verbal abuses grew stronger. The hundreds of years worth of oppression made it difficult for them to remain relaxed and calm. Once they witnessed the deaths of those in the area again and again, they placed the fault for all of this on Su Ming.
Su Ming looked as if he did not hear any of it. His indifferent expression caused the insults and curses to become even stronger. In fact, an even larger amount of people started throwing rebukes and slurs at Su Ming.
They wished that Su Ming would retaliate, because only then would they be able to find a hint of pleasure and be able to bury some of the despair they felt in this land.
They were pitiful people. Because if a cultivator was reduced to a state in which they could only shout and scream, it was certainly… a miserable thing.
In the mid of their slandering, Su Ming looked at the air calmly. At the instant the hundreds of newcomers descended in the place and their bodies landed on the ground, the hundreds of purple stone monuments in Su Ming's eyes started shining with a brilliant light.
Under that light, names started appearing on hundreds of stone monuments.
The light continued shining brightly, and those hundreds of stone monuments immediately rose. This was the initial increase of height based on the person's level of cultivation. As booming sounds reverberated in the air, one of the stone monuments among the hundreds of new ones reached thirty thousand something feet!
Most of the remaining ones were only twenty thousand something feet tall.
It was rare for a stone monument to start off at thirty thousand something feet in this place. Immediately, some of the people's gazes fixed on an old man.
The old man's face was gloomy as blood trickled out of the corners of his mouth. He wiped away the blood and quietly sat down to meditate. He completely ignored the gazes looking at him from the area. Instead, he lifted his head and looked at the air. A wave of killing intent as well as hatred showed up in the depths of his eyes.
'It's him.' Su Ming cast the old man a glance and smiled faintly.
"Peak of the middle stage of World Plane Realm!"
"This person is an old monster at the peak of the middle stage of World Plane Realm. By the looks, he's injured. Could it be that he came to this place to hide from his enemies?"
"Zhao Family's Progenitor! He's Zhao Family's Progenitor!"
"What happened outside during these hundreds of years? How could Zhao Family's Progenitor be forced to this place?"
In the mid of the people's shock, most of the hundreds of people besides the old man looked around them with complicated expressions. Once they saw the ninety thousand people in the place, they were first taken aback, but as they swept their gaze across the crowd, their eyes landed on Su Ming, and some of them immediately revealed surprised delight.
"Mo Su! He's Mo Su! I remember him! He hasn't changed at all during these thousand years! He's the Mo Su that can give us our freedom!"
A man with an incredibly hot temper lifted his head and laughed at the sky. Within an instant, he charged towards Su Ming. His movements were seen by the ninety thousand people in the place, and their gazes turned into ones of mockery and derision. Those were the expressions of people watching something for entertainment. They could already imagine the moment of the person's death.
"Mo Su!"
The man traveled incredibly quickly. He closed in on Su Ming in the blink of an eye, and as he laughed ferociously, he lifted his right hand. But just as his hand was about to strike, Su Ming averted his gaze from the air and cast him a flat look.
Just that one gaze alone instantly caused booming sounds that were akin to thunder exploding to rise in the man's heart. He had a strong feeling that while Su Ming's gaze seemed calm, it possessed a mighty pressure that he could not fight against.
This mighty pressure surpassed all manner of power and stood above all things. In fact, the man had the feeling that he had become a servant, and his life was in Su Ming's hands. With just one thought, he might be reduced to dust and vanish into thin air, no matter what cultivation he possessed.
The mighty pressure pressing down on his soul turned into a sharp pain that morphed into fear, and he shuddered in midair while letting out a shrill scream. His body plunged down, and as it swiftly withered away, his screams of pain echoed in the air, but he did not immediately die. Clearly, it Su Ming did not want to kill him.
This man was a person from a purple stone monument, and Su Ming… was the master of the purple stone monuments.
This scene immediately attracted the attention of the hundreds of newcomers. Their expressions changed, a telling sign that they were shocked and frightened by this scene. Even the gloomy looking Zhao Family's Progenitor instinctively cast a glance in that direction, noticing Su Ming.
At the instant he looked over, he recognized Su Ming. With a slightly complicated expression, he shook his head. Zhao Family's Progenitor looked away once again with a gloomy look, as if he was waiting for something.
Ignoring the screaming man, Su Ming looked at Zhou Kang and said softly, "Big brother Zhou, your wife's and your guess… was correct." Once Su Ming finished saying these words, he swept his gaze over the people who had been flinging verbal insults at him just now.
"You are pitiful," he said calmly. "If you want freedom, then I will give you freedom." He spoke in a relaxed manner, and as he did so, he lifted his right hand and pointed forward.
That finger was directed towards the old man who had cursed Su Ming's entire race.
The old man's lips curled up into a cold sneer. They could not attack each other in this place. If Mo Su dared attack him, then he would definitely die, so the old man was not frightened. Instead, as he laughed coldly, he continued speaking.
"Not only will I curse your entire race, I will also curse your…"
Before he could finish his sentence, his expression suddenly changed drastically. The instant Su Ming pointed at his body, he started disappearing, starting from his feet.
"This is impossible. You-you…" The old man's expression was filled with shock. Fear took root in his heart and body, but he could only speak up to that point. At that moment, his body swiftly turned into dust, as if his existence was forcefully wiped off.
"You too." Su Ming pointed again, and another cultivator that had thrown slanderous remarks just now was instantly reduced to ashes as he screamed shrilly.
This scene completely stunned all the people in the land. To them, this was a terrifying event, something past the boundaries of their imagination, since… Su Ming had killed, but he was not at all punished. This caused the people's fears to immediately become much greater.
"And you too." Su Ming lifted his finger and pointed once more. Immediately, another person disappeared with a shrill scream.
Because of that, a commotion instantly broke out in the land. As everyone moved back, the people who had cursed Su Ming just now immediately fell into madness. Some of them retreated, while others charged towards Su Ming with a glint in their eyes.
At that moment, a thought had risen in the hearts of all those rushing towards Su Ming. Could it be… that they could attack in this place now?
Yet at the instant they activated their divine abilities, a great will swept through the place. All those whose divine abilities landed on Su Ming were wiped off once that will swept past them.
Fear, shock, disbelief, and various other emotions rose within the hearts of the tens of thousands of people during that moment. They could not believe what they were seeing.
All those who had insulted Su Ming just now and had not died immediately entered the worlds in their stone monuments to hide. The fear in their hearts turned into despair, as well as surging hatred and terror. They could not understand why Su Ming could kill.
And… by the looks of it, he was not attacking with his power. Instead… the law in the land seemed to be obeying his words. As long as he wanted to kill, the law of the land would wipe off those he wanted dead.
At the moment Su Ming saw the people scattering and some of them reaching for their stone monuments, making it seem that it would be difficult for him to instantly kill all of them, Su Ming opened his mouth and said flatly, "Wipe them all off."
The shadow in the air which was formed by the law of the land and which could only be seen by Su Ming bent his back and bowed, then the will of the law immediately spread out. Shrill screams of pain traveled out of the mouths of all those who had insulted Su Ming. As their bodies were about to shatter, their expressions filled with fear and despair.
Suddenly, all the cultivators in the land felt their hearts shake. As their expressions changed drastically, nine wills with an ancient air and a boundless presence descended swiftly from the air.
Each of those nine wills were on equal grounds in terms of power with the purple Ecang, and that power was one that could instantly kill a person. With anger, the wills descended and rushed towards Su Ming.
These nine wills, these nine other souls from Ecang's body, sent out an intense wave of displeasure to Su Ming's soul in regards to him killing their tributes.
They had a promise between each other that they would not kill each other's tributes, or else there would no longer be any cultivators who would come to the place, and they would no longer obtain what was necessary for them to heal. That was why once Su Ming attacked and killed their tributes, they descended in indignation and started interrogating him.
"Why did you break our promise?!"
"Why did you kill our tributes?!"
"Purple, you have to give us an explanation!"
"Purple, they were my tributes, if you can't give me a satisfactory explanation, then even if I have to pay a price, I will make the law here kill several times the number of your tributes in retaliation of the number of my tributes you killed."
Su Ming did not back down a single inch in the face of the wrath from the nine wills in his soul. He instead sent his own will and had it crash against the nine wills.
"Your tributes offended me!" Su Ming's will did not compromise even the slightest. Instead, the voice from his will echoed unyieldingly in his soul.
The nine wills instantly stopped their interrogation, as if they were thinking about what Su Ming said.
"Should not those who offended us Ecang be killed?" Su Ming's will became even more fierce and unyielding. Several breaths later, the nine wills roared once again.
"They should be killed! Those who offend us Ecang should be killed!"
"I see, so that's how it is. Then they should die. They're only tributes, how dare they offend us Ecang?! They should die!"
As the nine wills roared, it did not matter whether the people who had thrown verbal abuses at Su Ming just now had scattered or entered the world in their stone monuments, they vanished without a trace while screaming shrilly.