Chapter 373: The Strange Mountain Range
Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
One crane, and it saw the sky and earth. One crane, and it saw the barren lands of the Berserkers.
That paper crane might not have a beautiful legend like that belonging to the Harmonious Morus Alba flapping her wings, but it contained a power that seemed to allow it to cross through dimensions. It could be said that it was a newborn when it flew out of the Great Tribe of Freezing Sky, and it lived until it died in Eastern Wastelands.
Its life was short, but during its short span of life, the entire world seemed to have shrunk in its eyes and it could see everything within the lands and sea it traveled through clearly.
It was a pity that this clear sight did not belong to Su Ming, did not belong to many people. Only the old man who had allowed the crane to fly into the nine heavens, or perhaps more accurately, the man with the Emperor’s robe and the crown could see it, for it belonged to him!
Su Ming left Autumn Sea Tribe.
He walked beneath the sky of the Shamans. There were no pursuers behind him, no obstacles before him. All he could see up ahead was the vast sky and the desolate land. Ever since he joined the battle of Sky Mist City, only now could he be truly considered to have shaken off all the restraints placed on him.
As he looked at the sky and earth before him, Su Ming suddenly had the feeling that he had returned to the past when he had first opened his eyes in a mountain range beyond Han Mountain City.
Back then, he had looked at the unfamiliar sky at a loss. His weak power had caused him to be in a state of confusion for a long period of time.
Right now, he was still looking at the unfamiliar sky while walking in the world. The wind moved his hair and revealed the profound eyes underneath.
But right now, while he still might be a little confused, he had a direction. Even though his level of cultivation did not allow him to stand at the peak, he was still like two different sides of a ravine compared to the him in the past.
‘Before the Immortals of the other worlds come once again, I have to make myself stronger…’ Su Ming brought out the mask from his bosom and placed it on his face. He had no intention of taking it down anymore.
This was his way of hiding his identity in the land of the Shamans. Unless he could find a better method, then he would continue wearing the mask.
With the existence of Spirit Plunder and his divine sense, as long as he did not run into any powerful End Shamans, then even if he met Latter Shamans, the possibility of them finding out that he was not a Shaman was not great.
Besides, even if he did run into powerful Shamans who could tell that he was not a Shaman, Su Ming still had a way to explain his identity.
‘If my face… is very alike to the Immortals from the other worlds..? If that is the case…’ Su Ming closed his eyes, and when he opened them once again, there was an inquisitive look in his eyes.
‘But I’m curious, why were the two people who called me Destiny so certain that I… am Destiny?!’
As Su Ming charged through the land, he ran into some Shamans. Most of the time, when they saw him, their outspread perception would touch his divine sense, and then, they would pull it back.
Unless they already knew beforehand, most of them would not be suspicious of Su Ming.
‘Han Mountain’s ancestor was waiting for Destiny to take him away, that’s why I can still reason that he thought I was Destiny when he saw me, seeing that I was the first person he met after waiting for so many years.
‘However, that long-haired woman in the battlefield said that I was Destiny after only seeing me once. That’s where it gets strange.
‘The only reason as to why she called me Destiny in such a time can only be that… she’s seen me before!’ Su Ming was lost in his thoughts. However, these were just his guesses. He did not have real and conclusive information.
He flew for seven days straight, occasionally observing the map on the wooden slip given to him by Ya Mu. He knew that he was getting closer to the center of the land of the Shamans. However, he was just close to it. If he looked at the entire territory of the land of the Shamans, he would find that he was still in a rather remote area. There was an abundance of greenery in this place, but the wind here was also much stronger compared to the area outside.
He could also smell blood in the air, because most of the wind came from the Dead Sea, sweeping through the land of the Shamans.
Su Ming swept his gaze across the land, as he stood in a range of mountains that was formed through a network of mountains. It was something he’d been doing occasionally while traveling. He would observe the area around him carefully to see whether there were any dangers around him.
However, this time, the instant he swept his gaze past the mountain range on the land, his body came to an abrupt halt. With a light gasp of surprise, he immediately focused his attention over there, while also spreading out his divine sense so that it covered the entirety of the mountain range.
After a moment, Su Ming’s eyes sparkled. With his current level of power, while he might not be able to use the power of the world, he still had four Berserker Bones. He, who had arrived at the middle stage of the Berserker Soul Realm, could see just how much power of the world was contained in one place.
At first glance, that mountain range looked incredibly normal. Even if anyone took a closer look, they would find that it was still very ordinary looking and there was nothing special about it. Even if they spread their divine sense, even if a Shaman filled the entire area with their perception, it would still appear the same to them.
It was like a perilous mountain. The power of the world there was also very thin, the stench of blood thick in the air, though it wasn’t as strong as years back. That was why most of the Shamans who passed through this place, even if they were Latter Shamans, would not pay too much attention to it.
However, in Su Ming’s eyes, this place gradually changed. A thick veil seemed to have been lifted from the mountain range before his eyes, and its true form was revealed!
The mountain range began in the east and winded to the north before disappearing in the land in the distance. It looked like a small part of a dragon’s back that was revealed as it swam through the land. The mountains towered in the air, and there were plenty of strange looking rocks scattered everywhere. There were also plants growing on them.
However, most of the plants looked incredibly strange. They swayed in the wind and gave off a sense of danger. It was as if these plants were aggressive by nature.
Su Ming stared at the mountain range and lifted his right hand to slashed to his left lightly. He did not activate the power of Bone Sacrifice within him. It looked as if it was a casual slash, but layers of ripples instantly spread through the air. He narrowed his eyes slightly and reached with his right hand into the ripples, as if he was trying to feel something.
‘The mountain range comes from the east… and goes to the north. The direction where the mountain range moves is the reason it is in the shape of a corner in a square. It looks like a dragon, but in truth, this is a pattern of the Three Evils, naturally formed, but a little incomplete!’ After a long while, a curious glint appeared in Su Ming’s eyes. He descended and circled the entire mountain range once.
It was a crooked mountain range.
‘Separation, Beginning, Nurture, and also, theft, disaster, and time… The area northeast is the pulse of this place. The area southwest is empty. The empty area to the west is Beginning, and the empty area to the south is Nurture. Now, it lacks the spot for Separation. This should originally be an incomplete pattern.’
Su Ming observed the mountain range for a long while, and with what he understood about the Execution of Three Evils Art, he slowly started analyzing the strangeness of this mountain range.
‘However, while the wind coming from the east might not be strong initially, but now, it’s clearly stronger due to the Catastrophe of the Eastern Wastelands. There’s also a bloody stench in the wind… If I look at this mountain range as a dragon, then it was originally something dead, but if the wind coming from the east can flow out once it blows past the dragon’s head, then it will seem like the dragon head is alive and it is breathing!
"This is Separation and evil of theft is something I’ve never seen before… the Execution of Three Evils. I gained an epiphany previously in Sky Mist City’s battlefield that this Art can not only be used to cut things down, but can also be used to set things up.
‘By the looks of it, that idea of mine is still a little incomplete. Besides cutting down and setting up patterns, I can also change it. I can change the patterns of the land and turn them into killing intent!
‘What an amazing natural pattern. Not only does it cause the power of the world to gather here, it also created a power of the Three Evils, causing this place to not need too much change to turn into a place to rest the mind and to kill!’ As Su Ming continued observing the place, his expression gradually changed.
The Separation pattern was originally absent from the place, which meant that the evil of theft from the Three Evils was not there. Based from what Su Ming understood, most of the places in the world contained all Three Evils. However, the Three Evils were mostly an invisible existence. Nonetheless, in this place, as times changed, it had naturally turned into this pattern, a pattern that could be seen with the naked eye.
That was a huge difference.
That difference was like comparing something illusionary to something with physical form.
Su Ming fell into pensive silence for a moment. He originally didn’t have a clear direction he wanted to go to, but now that he saw the attractive points of the mountain range, a glint appeared in his eyes and he made his decision.
‘This isn’t a bad place. I can open up a cave abode here and turn it into a place to stay. However, even though this place is rather secluded, there should still be a lot of Shamans around me. If that is the case, I should still be careful.’
With one move, Su Ming flew towards the mountain range. Before long, he was standing at the corner connecting the eastern mountain range to the northern mountain range. That was the spot which looked like that of dragon head’s to Su Ming when he was in the sky.
The mountain range in that place was very tall. Hence, most of the wind blowing from the east was blocked off. It gathered there and did not scatter away, causing Su Ming to see a thick layer of fog when he looked down from the peak of the mountain. The stench of blood was also very thick there.
The mountain rocks around were also wet, and there was even dew oozing out of certain places.
‘Should I touch it, or should I not..?’
Su Ming hesitated for a moment. He just needed to open up the spot underneath his feet, which was the corner of the mountain range and form a gigantic gap there. Once he did so, then the wind from the east would blow through, and by doing so, it would form the sight of the dragon breathing.
Once he did that, then the power of the world gathering in this place would increase by several fold. Meditating and training in this place would bring about great benefits to Su Ming when he wanted to refine his power. In fact, it would also be incredibly beneficial for him when he created his medicinal pills.
Similarly, if the gap was there and caused the dragon head in this pattern to seem to have been revived, then if he casted the Execution of Three Evils here, the power of that Art would be much greater than when he casted it in the battlefield.
In fact, Su Ming even had a feeling that if he went along with that idea of his, then if he casted the Execution of Three Evils in this place, then it would be as if he was one with this place. The power of the Art that would appear at that time would be enough to send his heart pounding in excitement.
That was only part of the reason. Su Ming had been to quite a lot places, but this was the first time he had seen this sort of pattern in a mountain range. If he could examine this Three Evils that seemed to have gained physical form over a prolonged period of time, explore its secrets, and feel through its structure, then he would gain a much deeper understanding of his Execution of Three Evils.
‘The other Arts left behind by Dark Mountain aren’t suitable for me to use anymore. Only the Execution of Three Evils can be used… and besides it, there’s only the burning of blood left.’
Su Ming lifted his head to look at the sky. This mountain range was very tall, and if it was night time, the place would look incredibly clear when moonlight spilled down.
However, while there were many benefits if he opened up the gap, there were also a lot of drawbacks. First of all, this place would then turn incredibly conspicuous. Not only would it bring about attention, it might also cause disputes.