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Chapter 33: Lei Su

Translator: Mogumoguchan/Zenobys Editor: - -

"Look at your hair, it's white." Bai Ling covered her mouth and laughed. The light in her eyes was so bright it made the strange feeling in Su Ming's chest become stronger.

"I'm not the only one. Your hair has also become white. You're an old woman now." Su Ming pointed at Bai Ling and laughed.

The two of them laughed and talked, feeling more familiar with each other. During that snowy night, Su Ming was happy but he also felt that time was passing by too quickly. Before he knew it, the sky started to brighten up.

It was not due to the snow but because the sun had risen.

Night was over. When the sun shone and brightened up the sky, snow was still falling. Su Ming and Bai Ling came down from the tree. Once they cleaned themselves up, they smiled at each other.

Su Ming did not say anything but squatted down instead. Bai Ling's eyes lit up briefly and she climbed once more onto his frail back. A warm feeling blossomed in her chest.

This time, the strange feeling became clearer the closer he got to Dark Dragon Tribe. He was unwilling to part with Bai Ling. Slowly, he became silent, his footsteps became slower and he started circling around the forest again.

Bai Ling hung onto Su Ming's back. Just like the day before, she saw a lot of the sights repeatedly and knew that Su Ming was walking around in circles. However this time, she did not speak. She placed her head against Su Ming's back, listening to his heart beat.

Nevertheless, everything had to come to an end eventually. The sun had risen to the highest point in the sky and begun setting once again. The outline of Dark Dragon Tribe appeared in Su Ming's line of sight despite the snow falling from the sky.

When he saw the tribe, Su Ming placed Bai Ling on the ground with a smile on his face.

"You're home."

Bai Ling took a look at her tribe, then back at Su Ming. The expression was on her beautiful face was unreadable. She nodded her head silently and walked towards Su Ming. She then swept the snow on Su Ming's body away with her clean hands.

"Thank you… I hope you'll return to your tribe soon…" Bai Ling opened her mouth again like she was about to say something but in the end, she just remained silent. She smiled beautifully and walked back to her tribe.

Su Ming stood there watching Bai Ling gradually disappear from his sight. As he looked at the petite figure occasionally turning towards him to wave, his mind went blank.

As the distance between them grew bigger, the falling snow became an invisible barrier. It obstructed his sight and covered the figure of the person walking away. It was akin to walking past an icy plain. If he did not return, he would not see the ice melting. It was like a memory. If he did not remember it, he would not be able to recall the voice of the person who sighed in that memory.

After a long time, Su Ming shook his head. He took one more look at Dark Dragon Tribe and turned away. The snow had been his companion when he came and the snow was still his companion when he left.

The snow fell on his body and on his hair but Su Ming thought he was missing something.

'Do I like her..?'

Su Ming ran in the forest towards Dark Mountain Tribe. There was a frown between his brows as he ran. In his head, he only saw Bai Ling.

'It's different from how I feel towards Chen Xin…'

Su Ming took a deep breath and shook his head vigorously. He wanted to be rid of the strange and unfamiliar feeling in his chest. Once he calmed down, he ran even quicker.

When the sky became dark, the stars shone around the moon and the snow still fell endlessly from the sky. Su Ming finally returned to his home, Dark Mountain Tribe.

He stole a look at the tribe from afar yesterday and could roughly tell that the tribe was unharmed. Now that he was back, he saw his tribe members standing guard on night watch outside the giant wooden gate.

The tribe settlement was very quiet. The bonfire in the square was still burning as usual and making crackling sounds. Su Ming walked in and looked around. He then arrived outside the elder's house.

There was still light from the elder's house, a clear sign that he had not gone to rest.

"Su Ming, right? Come in." The elder's voice traveled from within the house with a hint of fatigue.

Su Ming lifted the leather flap gently and walked in. He saw the elder sitting cross-legged in the middle. His white hair was slightly messy too.

"Elder," Su Ming called out to him in a low voice. Then he sat in a corner.

"The tribe is fine, don't worry." The elder looked at Su Ming with a smile on his face. He gestured for Su Ming to sit by his side and patted Su Ming's head, his smile becoming wider.

"You've reached the third level? You did well!"

Su Ming looked at the elder and slowly told him everything he saw within the cave. He went into the details especially regarding the corpse. As he talked about it, he saw the elder's face becoming serious.

"Wherefore doth thou wail, o blue sky…? Elder, what does this mean?" Su Ming frowned.

"The legends are true…" The elder looked at the leather flaps as if his eyes could see through them and they allowed him to look at Dark Mountain.

"That should be a rhetorical question. Perhaps it meant 'Why should I be sad when compared to the lonely, endless sky?' Or perhaps, there is another meaning to it…" The elder sighed. Then he spoke slowly. It was a voice burdened by his experiences in life when a thought struck his head.

"I don't really understand the words about worshiping the fire. Perhaps you saw it because it's your destiny." The elder averted his gaze from the flaps and looked at Su Ming kindly.

"I'll be going to Wind Stream Tribe in a month's time. If you're wandering outside by then, remember to come back."

"One more thing, elder. I saved a Dark Dragon Tribe member in the nest of the Wings of the Moon. Her name is Bai Ling. She's the granddaughter of the elder of Dark Dragon Tribe." The elder nodded his head. Then as he remembered something, he spoke once again.

"Bai Ling?" He was momentarily surprised. He fell into silence for a while. Then told Su Ming to go back and rest. Once Su Ming left, a hint of nostalgia appeared in the elder's eyes.

'Lei Su… Your granddaughter was saved by my little La Su accidentally… Perhaps this will allow you to reduce your hatred towards me a little…'

The elder sighed and the hint of nostalgia in his eyes grew thicker.

"The blood red moon appeared earlier… Then there's also the strong Qi that suddenly appeared from Black Mountain Tribe during that night… I can feel disaster brewing…" The elder closed his eyes as he mumbled. His voice was filled with worry.

Su Ming left the elder's house and walked around the tribe. He did not return to his own house but went to Lei Chen's. When he saw that Lei Chen was injured but still up and about, he applied salve on his wounds. Once he did so, his worries went away.

Lei Chen was also happy to see Su Ming. He hit his chest and bragged about his fight against the Wings of the Moon. Su Ming left smiling after they talked for a long time.

It was already midnight but Su Ming's gaze fell on a brightly lit house not far away. As he did so, hesitation appeared on his face.

It was the Head of the Guards' house. It was also Bei Ling's house.

Chapter 34: Fire Berserker Art!

Translator: Mogumoguchan/Zenobys Editor: - -

After a moment of hesitation, Su Ming looked at the light coming from the house but he did not walk forward. He walked back to his own house underneath the moonlight, surrounded by falling snow.

His house was cold. Perhaps, it was because he had been away for a few days. He could even see his own breath coming out in white puffs. A bystander would have felt cold just by watching it.

The house lacked warmth. It was completely different compared to Lei Chen's house when he visited.

Su Ming quietly searched for some firewood and coal. He then quietly kindled a fire alone in the house. He could have resisted the cold easily with the Qi of a third level practitioner of the Blood Solidification Realm. Yet for some unknown reason, he felt that the house was lacking something.

He sighed and lit up the firewood. The fire slowly spread to all the wood in the pile and brought about a sense of warmth to the house. It chased away the cold and spread the heat around all corners of the house.

Su Ming sat beside the fire and stared into it, letting his mind wander as he did so. He had always been envious of Lei Chen, Bei Ling and Chen Xin since he was young because they had a home. They had parents.

No matter how well the elder took care of Su Ming, he was still the Elder of the tribe. Most of his time was spent protecting and helping the members of the tribe. Since he was young, Su Ming already learned how to be independent. He learned how to live by himself and most of all, he learned how to be alone.

It was snowing heavily outside. The winds also moaned as they blew past the tribe. They caused the leather flaps on the door to flutter, making crunching noises. Sometimes, wind would escape through the door and flaps into the house, causing the fire to move about violently.

Su Ming sat by the fire hugging his knees as the light from the fire shone on him. He looked into the fire and after a long while, he sighed.

'The elder said I was adopted… Then are my mom and dad still around..?'

Su Ming's eyes were filled with loneliness. He had kept this thought buried deep within over the years because he did not want anyone to see that he was lonely. He always hid it behind a smile.

On that snowy night however, after feeling the warmth in Lei Chen's house and returning to his own cold wooden house¹, he could not hide it any longer.

"Bai Ling's dad and mom are also not by her side. I wonder if she's already resting or is she like me, sitting by the fire thinking about…" Su Ming mumbled as he recalled Bai Ling's figure and her bell-like laughter.

He froze all of a sudden. Somewhere in his mind he began formulating an answer to why he felt so strangely towards Bai Ling. Part of it was perhaps related to her beauty but that was not the main reason.

It was mostly because Su Ming felt the same sort of loneliness beneath her smiles and cunning.

As time passed by, the warmth within the house increased and chased away the cold. Condensed droplets of water began forming on the walls of the house.

The heat seemed to warm Su Ming's heart, causing the loneliness he felt to dissipate slightly. Right then, as though the heavens were against it, a huge gust of wind blew past. It brought a large amount of snow from the lands outside into the tribe. The wind was so strong, it was like an invisible hand sweeping across the tribe.

The creaking noise from Su Ming's house immediately became louder and even the door connected to the leather flaps was thrown open. The howling sound of the wind immediately filled the house. Some of the snow also found its way into his house and fell on the fire. It sizzled furiously, before dying away quickly.

Su Ming lifted his head and looked at the door shaking in the wind. Then he looked at his house that was invaded by the cold so easily just as it finally started to warm up. He stood up silently and left his house. He then stood in the blizzard and stared at the sky.

A vague outline of the moon was in the sky, which was being ravaged by the blizzard.

As he looked at the moon, Su Ming thought of the Wings of the Moon and of the corpse he saw in the ruins of the Fire Berserker Tribe. Most of all, he thought of the words left behind by the corpse.

"The desire to obtain Berserk spreads to all corners of the earth. Let fire burn in mine blood, let mine thoughts burn the skies, let fire burn heaven into ashes… If 't be true the moon of fire appears from the clouds on the endless earth… I wilt sink into deep bethought as the fire in mine blood burns, the nine is the utmost of all, and the one is the law. Light up the Berserker Fires and worship the nine, did let us all becometh the authorities of Fire!"

Su Ming mumbled. These words had appeared in his mind numerous times. He was still trying make sense of them but felt that he was missing something.

'The desire to obtain Berserk spreads to all corners of the earth…" I understand what he meant by the desire to obtain Berserk. It basically means the lust for Berserk but it's not something good… But who… exactly was the persona…? Was the corpse talking about himself…? Doesn't seem likely.'

Su Ming sat outside his house in the blizzard. To him, there was no difference being outside or inside the house. There was no warmth in both places.

At the very least when he was outside, he had the wind as his companion and he could also look at the moon.

'Who was the persona…? I don't know. Then there's the second half of the lines, "...spreads to all corners of the earth. Let fire burn in mine blood, let mine thoughts burn the skies, let fire burn heaven into ashes." These lines are illustrating a picture. It's as if they're talking about fusing fire into blood and just by thinking about it, they can burn the skies…'

Su Ming's eyes shone brightly. He sat in the snow and looked at the moon in the sky as he sank into his thoughts.

'If 't be true the moon of fire appears from the clouds on the endless earth..." The elder once said that the sun was Yang and the moon was Yin. What he said made sense. During daytime, you will usually feel warmth but when it's nighttime, it would usually be cold.

'But what is the moon of fire though? The color of fire is red. Could it be referring to the red moon, the blood moon?'

Su Ming frowned, unable to understand it.

'I wilt sink into deep bethought as the fire in mine blood burns, the nine is the utmost of all, and the one is the law. Light up the Berserker Fires and worship the nine, did let us all becometh the authorities of Fire…" This seems to be referring to an action… the authorities of Fire…'

Su Ming looked at the moon in the sky as a thought flashed through his mind, causing his eyes to brighten up.

'Could it be…? This is actually a Berserker Art!'

Su Ming's breathing quickened. He took a deep breath. After he analyzed the words in his head, his belief that they actually conveyed a Berserker Art was even stronger!

'"The desire to obtain Berserk spreads to all corners of the earth. Let fire burn in mine blood, let mine thoughts burn the skies, let fire burn heaven into ashes…" These lines are actually talking about how strong the Berserker Art is!

'"I wilt sink into deep bethought as the fire in mine blood burns, the nine is the utmost of all, and the one is the law. Light up the Berserker Fires and worship the nine, did let us all becometh the authorities of Fire…" These words could only be talking about how one could learn this Berserker Art!

'That's right, that's what it should be. As for "If 't be true the moon of fire appears from the clouds on the endless earth"… this should be talking about the prerequisites for learning this Berserker Art!'

Su Ming brightened up. These words had been bothering him for the past few days. Now that he had analyzed them, he immediately cheered up. Nonetheless, after a while he frowned again.

'There's still something wrong. The prerequisite to learn this Berserker Art is the moon of fire but now it is not… Must I wait for a few more years until the blood red moon appears again before I can learn this?'

Su Ming fell silent until the moon in the sky was replaced with the light from the sun. Even when morning had arrived, Su Ming still had no idea how to learn the Berserker Art.

With a sigh, Su Ming stood up and moved his body. As the members of the tribe came out of their houses and began to busy themselves with a new day of work, Su Ming went out of the settlement.

'The requirement to reach the fourth level of the Blood Solidification Realm is 25 blood veins. I only have 11 blood veins now so, I need to hurry up with my training. I still need to create that Mountain Spirit as well. I wonder what its effects will be. I hope it'll be useful for my training.'

Su Ming ran towards the forest. His speed had increased once again ever since he reached the third level of the Blood Solidification Realm.

He arrived at Black Flame Mountain by noon and climbed towards the cave. Halfway up the mountain, a smile appeared on his face. He heard Xiao Hong's voice. He lifted his head and saw a red silhouette lying beside the entrance of the cave. In its paws was a wild fruit, which it was eating away at lightning speed. As it ate, its eyes kept wandering around.

When Su Ming saw the monkey, it also saw Su Ming. Its eyes lit up and it ran towards Su Ming as it threw away the half-devoured fruit. It even climbed onto Su Ming's back and let out a few cries of excitement.

A joyful smile appeared on Su Ming's face and he continued climbing. Not long after, he arrived outside the cave. He took in a deep breath of the mountain air before climbing into the cave with the little monkey.

Time passed by peacefully. Su Ming once again returned to his daily life of quenching herbs and training. During the night, he would also look at the moon in the sky and think about the true meaning of the moon of fire.

He even spent some effort to create some small holes on the walls of the cave he used for quenching herbs. This was so that he could observe the moon outside through the little holes even if he was sitting in the cave.

Muffled sounds came out from the cave and as time passed by, the sounds gradually became much less. On the seventh day, Su Ming finally managed to create Mountain Spirit.

It was a dark blue pill. The medicinal scent from the pill was not strong but when he placed it under his nose to sniff it, it was like sniffing mountain air. There was also an indescribable feeling roaming about his entire body.

'Mountain Spirit.'

Su Ming squatted down outside the cave and looked at the pill in his hands as he welcomed the sunset. The creation of this pill was much harder for him than Scattering Dust. The chances of failure were very high.

He had already used half of the Cloud Graze Grass he bought back but only managed to create two of them. Due to the difficulty in creating the,, Su Ming was reluctant to even use one of them for an experiment.

'It should not be poisonous…'

Su Ming sniffed the medicinal scent coming from the pill. He took a long time observing it, trying to decide what their effects could be based on his experiences. Gradually, the sky darkened. When it became completely dark, Su Ming's eyes became resolute. He placed the pill into his mouth.

The pill was different from Scattering Dust. It did not melt when he placed it on his tongue. Su Ming frowned. He chewed it a few times before the pill was crushed. Then he swallowed it.

Nonetheless, he felt nothing after waiting for a while. Su Ming touched his stomach and waited a little longer. He even went back into the cave to activate and circulate the blood in his veins. Even so, it was just like before. There was no difference.

'That's strange…'

Su Ming sank into deep thought. After a moment, his eyes brightened up and he took a small bottle containing Scattering Dust from his bosom and swallowed one of the pills.

The Scattering Dust immediately melted in his mouth and a shred of heat spread through his entire body. Yet at that moment, a sudden astonishing burst of heat erupted from his body!

Translator's Note :

¹ Now then, for all readers who compared this to the RAWs, in chapters 1 to 25, the houses were wooden houses, and so for consistency's sake these houses will remain as wooden houses, not leather tents.

Chapter 35: The Moon of Blood Appears

Translator: Mogumoguchan/Zenobys Editor: - -

The wave of heat came so suddenly. It was as if the heat had always been inside Su Ming's body and was only activated due to the Scattering Dust. Su Ming shuddered. He felt as though his entire body was about to burn. It even made him think of the man from Black Mountain Tribe who died due to his Scattering Blood.

Su Ming did not panic. Instead, he remained calm. While he did feel like he was burning, in his state of calm he discovered the difference slowly. The burning sensation did not come from his blood. In fact, the blood in his body was flowing and circulating around his body at a frightening speed.

The fact that Su Ming felt as if he was burning was because his blood was circulating too quickly. He could even feel his own heartbeat increasing at a maddening speed. It felt like exploding.

"What a strong medicine!" Su Ming's face was red,but, still he never lost his calm in the slightest. As he mumbled to himself, he closed his eyes. He immediately sank into the feeling of his blood and Qi circulating in his body.

Sweat covered his body. The 11 blood veins also appeared simultaneously and gave off a piercing light. The red light lit up the entire cave. It looked like hell dyed in the color of blood.

As his Qi circulated throughout his body, the red light on his body became even stronger. A large amount of blue veins also appeared on his body and looked as if they were pulsing. They made Su Ming look positively ferocious.

Two hours passed by. Within those two hours, the beast skin shirt Su Ming wore appeared to be soaked in water. It was dripping with a large amount of sweat. Su Ming's body was also burning red. The 11 blood veins shone so brilliantly on his skin that they looked like wounds.

At that moment, Su Ming opened his eyes. They were bloodshot. He roared and as he did so, the 12th blood vein manifested on his skin!

The speed in which it manifested was so quick. It seemed to have moved from its illusionary state to the physical state almost instantly. Su Ming's Qi became stronger once more.

However, it was not the end. After the 12th blood vein appeared, the burning sensation in Su Ming's body only disappeared slightly. Very soon, Su Ming let out another roar and the 13th blood vein manifested itself on his skin!

When the 13th blood vein manifested, there was movement in his hair despite the lack of wind. A strong presence then flared up from within his frail body.

The speed of the blood flow in his body no longer made him feel as though he had insufficient blood. Instead, he felt as if he had too much. If he did not concentrate on manifesting the blood veins, his body would have exploded. Despite the appearance of two blood veins, some of the burning sensation was still prevalent in his body.

Su Ming's face was twisted. The burning sensation over his entire body was hard to bear. He lifted his right hand and tore away his shirt, leaving himself bare-chested and showing all 13 blood veins on his body. They did not appear in order and were instead scattered across Su Ming's chest, back, and arms.

The color of the blood veins were a bloody red,. They looked like would have bled at any moment. There was a large amount of sweat on Su Ming's body and under the illumination of the red light, it made him appear strangely beautiful.

Su Ming's eyes became increasingly bloodshot but there was no hint of madness in them. They were still calm. It was all within his control. As he felt the Qi within his body, Su Ming did not hesitate and activated the blood in his veins repeatedly in accordance to his inheritance from the statue of the God of Berserkers. It refined and thickened the viscosity of the blood in his veins!

Another hour passed by. When Su Ming lifted his head and shouted at the sky, the 14th blood vein appeared vaguely on his body!

Hi shout echoed endlessly within the cave. It sounded like a lot of people roaring at the same time.

"Come out, 14th blood vein!" Su Ming's body trembled as the strong presence within his body became even more intense. Judging by the speed of the 14th blood vein's manifestation, it was supposed to appear in its complete form on his body soon.

Yet even after 15 minutes passed by, the 14th blood vein continued to struggle as though there was something missing.

Su Ming could feel his Qi slowing down within his body. The heat in his body had almost dissipated completely. If it ended, he would have failed to manifest the 14th blood vein and he would have had to wait for the next time to do so.

Without any hesitation, Su Ming grabbed the other Mountain Spirit lying by his side!

Su Ming immediately placed the pill in his mouth and bit down furiously, swallowing it once he crushed it. Then he immediately took out another Scattering Dust and swallowed it. His body began shaking furiously. The burning red color that had almost disappeared from his skin appeared once again, turning his skin into a shocking red.

The heat he felt in his body burned intensely once again. Its intensity was even stronger than before, reaching a height where even Su Ming found difficult to bear.

"Come out, 14th blood vein!" There was a vicious side to Su Ming that even he himself did not realize. It had been accumulating for a long time, little by little from the little things that happened in his life.

As he growled once again, the 14th blood vein immediately manifested and gave out an enchanting red glow. Once the 14th blood vein appeared, Su Ming did not stop. He immediately swallowed another two Scattering Dusts all for the purpose of increasing his power in one go.

He had been continuously thinking during the seven days of quenching and creating medication. Su Ming knew about the early appearance of the Wings of the Moon and the worry behind the elder's smile in the tribe. He may not have spoken about it but in the corners of his mind, he knew that disaster was about to fall on the tribe.

Once he thought about the Elder of Dark Mountain Tribe arriving at a breakthrough in his training, the elder mentioning there was a traitor within the tribe and all the talk about danger, Su Ming became extremely worried. He wanted to help the elder and the tribe but with his current strength, it was clear that it was not enough.

He wanted to become stronger. He wanted to become powerful!

After the 14th blood vein appeared, Su Ming once again activated and circulated the Qi in his body. The 15th blood vein almost seemed like it was forced out of his body by the insane flow of blood in his body.

After a long while, Su Ming quivered in pain but he did not stop. As the blood circulated in his body, he bellowed and the 15th blood vein manifested!

The 15 blood veins resembled 15 scars on the naked top half of his body. As they glowed in a red light, Su Ming looked even more powerful.

However, Su Ming was not satisfied with only 15 blood veins. He continued to circulate the blood in his veins as time passed by.

The 16th blood vein appeared abruptly!

By then, most of the heat in his body had disappeared. It seemed like it was about to end. A cold glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes. Without a sound, he lifted his right hand and slammed it against his chest. With that hit, a strong force traveled into his body and stimulated his rapidly beating heart.

"Appear, 17th blood vein!"

Due to the shock, his heart pumped out more blood which rushed around his body rapidly once again. Then on his chest, the 17th vein appeared!

Once the 17th blood vein appeared, the burning sensation in Su Ming's body dissipated. There was no longer any heat and intensity in his body. His entire body felt drained. Su Ming knew it was the aftereffect once the effects of the medication went away.

At the same time, there was a light stinging pain in his body. It meant that his body was injured during the forceful training earlier.

"I'm a practitioner of the Ways of the Berserker. This sort of pain and injury is nothing!" Su Ming mumbled. He could feel that the power in his body had increased by at least one fold. A look of resolution appeared in his eyes.

He did not get up. Instead, he brought out an herb from his torn beast skin shirt. It was the Sky Stone!

This was the strongest herb he had besides the pills! Besides the portion he gave to Lei Chen, he would not have used it easily. Nonetheless, he brought them out with unwavering determination. He wanted to increase his strength as much as possible in one go.

As Su Ming took the herb in his hand, he left out one leaf for later use and swallowed the rest. He also consumed a Scattering Dust to increase the effects of the herb.

A cool sensation immediately erupted within his body. The residue of the heat immediately fused with the cold. A cold feeling began to form in Su Ming's body, causing the red color on the 17 blood veins to become even more distinctive.

Su Ming's body began to turn blue in the cold but his blood once again circulated in his body rapidly. Two hours passed by and four hours passed by. When the sky started to turn bright white, Xiao Hong came back from playing outside. Su Ming still sat there cross-legged without moving.

Xiao Hong knew Su Ming was training. It laid down by his side and looked at him for a moment. Then it yawned and fell asleep.

Morning became noon, then noon became dusk. Soon, the sky was dark once more. Only the light from the moon which fell on the snow scattered all over the land.

There were no longer just 17 blood veins on Su Ming's body, but 19!

The two extra blood veins appeared on his arms and glowed red…

Midnight came. The red light Su Ming's body emitted, lit up the entire cave. He slowly opened his eyes and let out a shaky breath. His eyes were filled with a threatening glint. When he saw Xiao Hong snoring lightly by his side and occasionally grabbing his own fur, he smiled.

He averted his gaze from Xiao Hong's body and looked at the small holes decorating the walls of the cave. From his position, he could see the weather and the moon outside. Su Ming slowly closed his eyes and was about to activate the Qi within his body and cure the injuries he sustained during training.

Just as he was about to close his eyes though, Su Ming suddenly opened them. He could feel something was different about the moon when he saw it from the multiple little holes right before.

When he looked at it again, he widened his eyes!

There was a hint of red on the moon in the sky…

Chapter 36: The Mockery from Ancient Times

Translator: Mogumoguchan/Zenobys Editor: - -

Su Ming was stunned. When he looked at the moon once again, the red hint had disappeared as though it was just an illusion. Su Ming's eyes turned grave. He did not believe that it was just an illusion. He became silent as he stared at the moon once again from the small holes on the wall.

Time passed by slowly. While Su Ming looked at the moon, he did not circulate the Qi around his body. As such, the red light disappeared quickly from the cave and everything returned to normal. After a while, Su Ming frowned.

'Could it really be a mistake..?'

Su Ming sighed. He was just about to close his eyes and forget about the moon when a thought crossed his head. He frowned.

'That's not right!'

Somewhere in his mind, he caught onto a train of thought but the thoughts flitted around in his head as if they were about to disappear at any second. It was very difficult for him to gather them.

"Red moon… red moon… red…" Su Ming mumbled and lowered his head to look at this body. He remembered the moment he saw the red moon was when the medicine had just worn off. His blood was circulating around his body according to his will, and there was red light lighting up the cave.

His eyes gradually brightened up as he thought about it. The muddled thoughts in his head gradually became clear. After a moment, Su Ming instantaneously opened his eyes as he activated and circulated the blood in his body. The 19 blood veins appeared on his body at once and released a piercing red glow. Not only was his body enveloped in the red glow, the cave was also dyed in a red light.

Su Ming focused his eyes on the moon from the multiple little holes. Under the glare of the red light, he took a deep breath as a look of comprehension appeared in his eyes. They became increasingly serious at the same time.

At that very moment, the moon appeared red!

The moon itself was not red but because the cave was enveloped in red, Su Ming was looking at the moon underneath the red light. It was only logical for him to think that the moon had turned scarlet.

"The desire to obtain Berserk spreads to all corners of the earth. Let fire burn in mine blood, let mine thoughts burn the skies, let fire burn heaven into ashes… If 't be true the moon of fire appears from the clouds on the endless earth… I wilt sink into deep bethought as the fire in mine blood burns, the nine is the utmost of all, and the one is the law. Light up the Berserker Fires and worship the nine, did let us all becometh the authorities of Fire!" Su Ming looked at the red moon and mumbled.

'"I wilt sink into deep bethought… I wilt sink into deep bethought…" The meaning of this line should be, the moon of fire will only appear if you think about it calmly and imagine it… But what am I imagining…? "As the fire in mine blood burns, the nine is the utmost of all, and the one is the law. Light up the Berserker Fires and worship the nine, did let us all becometh the authorities of Fire…" No. These lines don't have much relation to imagination. It should be related to an action instead.'

Su Ming frowned. As of then, he was still controlling the circulation of blood in his body. It caused the red glow to become thicker. The red tint on the moon became clearer in his eyes.

'Imagination…'

Su Ming's eyes lit up abruptly as a thought struck him like thunder roaring in the sky.

'Could it be that I have to chant these lines? "If 't be true the moon of fire appears from the clouds on the endless earth… I wilt sink into deep bethought!" If that's the case, then the meaning is different. It doesn't mean that I should only start imagining when the moon of fire appears but I have to imagine the moon of fire appearing!'

Su Ming trembled. He felt that he had just caught onto something important!

He took breathed in sharply and began thinking about the moon turning red in the sky quietly in his heart. The image kept repeating itself as time passed by. He even forgot about controlling the circulation of blood in his body once all his attention was focused on imagining the moon turning red. He also did not notice the blood red light in the cave had already faded away and the cave had returned to its normal shade of color.

He lifted his head and looked at the moon from the numerous holes on the wall. The image in his head was projected onto the moon.

"Red moon… burning moon…" Su Ming mumbled. In his mind, the moon was red and the shade of red was becoming thicker, gradually turning the entire moon blood red.

At that moment, Su Ming's entire body seemed to relax. He could feel a thin thread of red light falling down from the moon before his eyes. It floated through the little holes and fused into his eyes. Bit by bit, it flowed into his body and mixed with his blood.

There was a cold sensation in his entire body and it assimilated into his blood, causing his Qi to slowly circulate on its own in his body. Su Ming did not realize it. He felt as if the entire world had disappeared. The only thing that existed was the red moon and it was becoming bigger and clearer in his sight.

That red in the moon seemed to have some sort of mysterious force. As it shone, the light seeped into his body.

Time passed by slowly. Xiao Hong had already woken up a long time ago and it was watching Su Ming with a dumb expression not far away. There was a puzzled look in its eyes. It also looked at the moon outside from the little holes but the moon looked just the same as it always did. It scratched its head and could not understand why Su Ming was daydreaming.

No one noticed that at that very moment, amid the five summits on Dark Mountain, a mysterious change was also happening where all the Wings of the Moon were sleeping!

It was especially so in the deeper parts of Black Flame Mountain. On the giant red tree within the magma covered basin, numerous line-like creatures were floating about. Sometimes, the faces of the Wings of the Moon would be visible. There were no looks of viciousness or sadness on their faces. Instead, there were expressions of obsession and excitement on their faces.

No one knew what they were excited about but judging by the speed of their movements, they were extremely excited.

It was as if they were struggling to fly out of the tree but were prevented from doing so by some unknown force.

It also seemed like they felt something as though they were being summoned or... they were worshiping something… or perhaps… they felt the Berserker Powers they had lost since ancient times…

Within the Fire Berserker Tribe that existed during ancient times, the corpse lying at its borders seemed to remain unchanged even though it was soaked in the fiery magma. However the wall where its finger pointed at was empty., The words that Su Ming read the last time were gone.

There was nothing there but the words were not erased by anyone. It was as though they never existed.

Even though the corpse was just a pile of bones, the look of mockery and aloofness on its face was even more distinct.

Perhaps he was not mocking what happened during his death but what happened after…

It was nighttime. As the moon was showed signs of leaving and the first rays of sunlight appeared, a person covered entirely in black walked into the deeper parts of Dark Mountain.

It was the same person who appeared in Black Mountain Tribe the night of the blood red moon. He was walking very slowly. With each step he took, his body seemed to into something like an apparition. He would walk straight through the numerous dried trees in the forest.

"It's not here either… Just where is it?!" The person sighed and spoke in a hoarse voice as he walked into the distance. As the sun appeared in the sky, he disappeared.

Chapter 37: Xiao Hong's Exhilaration

Translator: Mogumoguchan/Zenobys Editor: - -

The night was over. The last shreds of darkness were being chased away by the rays of morning sun. The moon in the sky turned into a crescent moon and was about to disappear. Su Ming, who was still in the cave on Black Flame Mountain shivered and finally lowered his head.

There was confusion, bafflement and most importantly, a shred of emptiness in his eyes. When Xiao Hong saw the expression on Su Ming's face, it immediately puffed its fur up and retreated quickly until its back was pressed against the wall of the cave. Fear and shock appeared across its face.

He saw the faint shadow of the blood red moon slowly disappearing from Su Ming's eyes.

The vague shadow of the blood red moon finally disappeared completely from Su Ming's eyes after a long time and he snapped out from his trance. Xiao Hong watched Su Ming by his side for a while with a dumbfounded expression. Bewilderment slowly edged itself onto its face.

Su Ming took a deep breath. To him, the entire night had passed by in the blink of an eye. Now that his mind was clear, the memories of the night only served to make him even more confused. Once he checked his body however, all his confusion turned into shock.

"My injuries… are all cured…" Su Ming mumbled. His body had been injured when he forcefully trained himself. The injuries were not serious. With his experience, he knew he only needed to meditate for a few days to recover. Yet he recovered in one night.

After a long while, Su Ming took a breath and lifted his head. He only saw the clear sky and sun from the numerous holes in the wall.

'That was indeed a Berserker Art, an Art belonging to the Fire Berserker Tribe! This Art has an incredible power. I only needed to sink into my thoughts for one night and all my injuries have healed…'

Su Ming's eyes lit up and he immediately activated the Qi in his body. Soon, all 19 blood veins appeared on his body.

However when the 19 blood veins emerged, an odd expression appeared on Su Ming's face. He could faintly feel some leftover strength within himself. His expression became serious and once again, he began circulating the Qi around his entire body. When the Qi went through a few cycles around his entire body, the 20th blood vein appeared suddenly on his chest!

Su Ming widened his eyes in shock. Once the Qi in his body dispersed, he became even more surprised with what happened the previous night.

His heart pounded against his chest. The incredible effects from Mountain Spirit had caught him by surprise. In addition to the discovery of the mysterious effects of the Fire Berserker Art, a new path seemed to have opened itself right before Su Ming's eyes!

'Transcendence! Perhaps I can reach the Transcendence Realm and become a powerful Berserker in the Transcendence Realm!'

Su Ming took a deep breath and quelled the excitement in his chest. Xiao Hong ran towards him from where it was not far away and climbed onto Su Ming's shoulders. It stared into Su Ming's eyes with a confused expression. It even brought its paws up to pinch Su Ming's cheeks.

Su Ming laughed and pushed the little monkey away. They played around for a while. Then Xiao Hong hissed at Su Ming as if it remembered something. It raised its right paw and sniffed it. An elated expression appeared on its face. It even licked its paw a few times and placed it right before Su Ming like it wanted Su Ming to sniff it.

Su Ming was momentarily surprised. He noticed Xiao Hong doing the same thing for the past few months and had a few theories about it. However, he always thought there was something off about his theories. Now that he saw it again, he looked at Xiao Hong's right paw in his face with hesitation. He then sniffed it as Xiao Hong looked at him expectantly.

A foul smell wafted its way into his nose. It made him push the paw away. He found Xiao Hong's actions funny and annoying at the same time.

Xiao Hong immediately glared at him. It seemed displeased with how Su Ming pushed his hand away and hissed at Su Ming. Then it ran to a corner of the cave and sniffed its paw again. It had the same elated expression on its face,as if it once caught something in its right paw…

'It never had that habit before…'

Su Ming looked at Xiao Hong's expression and became even more surprised. As a thought flickered in his mind, he decided on something.

A few days passed by since then and Su Ming was once again lost in the process of quenching herbs. The powerful effects of Mountain Spirit made his heart pound in excitement and his desire to create more of them increased.

It was a pity that the failure rate for creating Mountain Spirit was incredibly high. Su Ming had only managed to create two pills after he used half of the Cloud Gauze Grass he had in stock.

Besides quenching herbs, Su Ming would also sit down and control the circulation of the blood around his body during the day. It allowed his body to stabilize even more in the third level of the Blood Solidification Realm. A strong presence spread through his body. Based on Su Ming's analysis, he would have been able to fight against the Berserker from Black Mountain Tribe whom he killed using Scattering Blood, face-to-face at this point!

During the night, Su Ming would give up on the quenching of herbs and sit in the cave to stare at the moon. He pictured the image of the blood red moon in his head quietly. However, the effects were no longer as powerful and strange as the first day.

Even so, the training Su Ming did for the past few days allowed him to manifest another blood vein, turning him into a 22 blood veined Berserker.

That night, Su Ming sat down with his legs crossed and stared at the moon. As he was imagining the red moon, Xiao Hong who had not gone out of the cave for a few days, got up silently. There was excitement and anticipation in its eyes. It sniffed its right paw with an exhilarated look on its face and watched Su Ming. Once it realized Su Ming was not looking, it ran out of the exit.

The moment Xiao Hong disappeared from the cave, Su Ming opened his eyes. A smile appeared at the corners of his lips as he got up quietly and left the cave as well.

'I want to see just what it is that is captivating Xiao Hong.'

Su Ming was after all, still a teenager. He was still inquisitive. After he noticed Xiao Hong's actions, it sparked his curiosity.

With Su Ming's new strength as a 22 blood veined Berserker, his speed and agility had arrived at an astonishing level. If he wanted it, there would not even be footsteps left on the snow.

He could make it so that Xiao Hong did not notice him even as he followed. Xiao Hong's speed was extremely quick in the night. It reached the foot of the mountain very soon.

Su Ming followed it with a grin on his face.

However, that grin left his face an hour later and was replaced by an odd expression.

He saw Xiao Hong jumping around the forest with a destination in mind. It ran forward with absolutely no hesitation, obviously familiar with the route,. It finally stopped in front of a burrow somewhere in the forest. Much of the plants around the burrow were already destroyed, making it look extremely messy.

Xiao Hong paced outside the burrow quietly. There was vigilance mixed with anticipation in its demeanor. After it observed the burrow for a while, it rushed in quickly.

Su Ming frowned when he saw this not far away. With all his years of experience being in the forest, he could tell with just one glance that the burrow was used by a big wild beast for hibernation.

That moment, a low roar filled with anger traveled out from the burrow and a red shadow immediately ran out from the burrow. As it ran, it would also let out piercing shrieks. There was also a hint of pride on its face. Su Ming saw a clear bundle of black fur in its right paw.

'This is…'

Su Ming was uncertain of what it was but soon after, the land trembled and a creature that looked like a giant bear roared within the cave.

The beast was entirely black and had long fur. Its eyes were bloodshot with anger. When Su Ming saw the creature, a weird expression settled on his face.

He saw that there was only a handful of fur left on a huge portion of the angry beast's groin. It looked positively stark and clearly it was not the first time the fur over that part was plucked. It must have happened multiple times…

When he remembered what Xiao Hong held in its hands, he could not help but also recall the time Xiao Hong asked him to sniff its paw just a few days ago. Su Ming widened his eyes abruptly.

The wild beast roared and chased after Xiao Hong furiously but it did not have Xiao Hong's speed. Before long, it whimpered as if it had given up. Then it returned to the burrow looking very downcast. After a while, huge clamoring sounds came from within the cave as though the beast was venting its anger.

Su Ming's mind was blank. With a peculiar expression on his face, he chased after Xiao Hong. His speed was much faster than Xiao Hong's and not long into the chase, he saw Xiao Hong's shadow from afar.

Xiao Hong stopped at a part of the forest filled with dried trees. It looked around its surroundings. It then quickly rubbed the black fur on its groin. Su Ming could see the pride on its face clearly. That look of pride seemed to announce that it was as "strong" as the bear. In all honesty, it just looked more like a pervert at that moment.

Su Ming's face was emotionless. He watched as Xiao Hong walked back into the forest proudly after it was finished with its business. It screeched and then…

Su Ming saw a bunch of petite female monkeys whose fur were not red emerging from the forest quickly and surrounding Xiao Hong.

He watched as the petite monkeys sniffed Xiao Hong's right paw. They were shocked and fearful. After that, they looked at its groin… Then Xiao Hong went into the deeper parts of the forest with the petite female monkeys feeling proud of himself.

Su Ming laughed wryly and sighed. He finally understood. Xiao Hong was using the might of a bear to attract the opposite sex.

Su Ming did not know whether to laugh or cry. He did not even know what to think of it. He quickly left the place and went into a trance again to forget about how he was persuaded to sniff Xiao Hong's right paw that day.

He returned to the cave feeling embarrassed. Su Ming let out a long sigh. He pitied the bear that lost its fur.

'No wonder every time Xiao Hong went out, it'd come back after a few days exhausted… After resting for a while, it'd recover its strength and go back outside…'

Su Ming touched his nose and forced himself to ignore the matter. Once again, he immersed himself in projecting the image of the red moon and sank into the mysterious feeling of having the red tint from the moon seeping into his blood.

A few days passed by. One night, Su Ming was looking at the moon as he sat down cross-legged as usual. As he looked at the bright surface of the moon, the faint outline of the blood red moon gradually appeared in Su Ming's vision. It shone brilliantly. Suddenly, the blood red moon in his left vision seemed to burn. Su Ming trembled.

A string of words crossed his mind.

'"As the fire in mine blood burns, the nine is the utmost of all, and the one is the law. Light up the Berserker Fires and worship the nine, did let us all becometh the authorities of Fire!"'

Chapter 38: Burning of Blood!

Translator: Mogumoguchan/Zenobys Editor: - -

"As the fire in mine blood burns, the nine is the utmost of all, and the one is the law. Light up the Berserker Fires and worship the nine, did let us all becometh the authorities of Fire!" Su Ming mumbled instinctively. The string of words kept repeating themselves in his head and it became louder each time they were repeated. It was like the roar of thunder by the end as they rumbled repeatedly in his head. The faint shadow of the blood red moon became even clearer in Su Ming's eyes. It gave off a strange and enchanting glow as if it was burning. Su Ming felt a stab of pain in his eyes.

The pain was not too obvious in the beginning. However as time passed and the moon shone in the sky, the pain intensified until Su Ming started trembling. It seemed as though he could no longer bear it.

He wanted to close his eyes and stop looking at the moon. The source of his pain was not the fire but the moonlight. At the same time, he had a strong feeling that somehow it all happened because it was the right time for him to learn this strange Art.

If he closed his eyes, he would be giving up on learning the Art. He also had a feeling that if he gave up then, he would lose the right to learn it ever again.

'"As the fire in mine blood burns…" But how do I make it burn?!'

Su Ming's eyes were bloodshot. The veins in his eyes surrounded the shadow of the blood red moon which had substituted his pupils. It made Su Ming look especially ghastly at that moment.

The burning image of the blood red moon also burned away all the moisture in his eyes. His eyes looked dried up and bloodshot at the same time. It was like his eyes were about to wither away at any moment.

Su Ming lifted his eyes and roared. His face was twisted as he controlled the circulation of blood in his veins. Yet, no matter how hard he pushed the blood towards his eyes, there were no signs of alleviation from the dryness in his eyes. If anything, it only made the withering sensation in his eyes even worse.

Gradually, the moon began to fade from Su Ming's sight.

If there was anyone beside Su Ming then, they would have clearly seen that Su Ming's eyes were still burning with red fire. The fire looked like blood and it was burning rapidly.

'How am I supposed to make my blood burn?! Just how am I supposed to make my blood burn?!'

Su Ming struggled. He could not understand the underlying meaning of the strange Berserker Art. As most of his field of vision faded away, he slowly closed his eyes. He knew that if he did not close his eyes by then, it was highly possible that he would no longer see light.

Yet, at the very moment before his eyes closed completely, a strange picture appeared in Su Ming's head like a flash of lightning. It was something he saw before he saved Bai Ling. It was the pain and sadness on the Wings of the Moon's faces residing on the red branch in the fire cave.

The Wings of the Moon repeatedly bit through their claws and wiped their eyes with them…

Su Ming was startled. He understood something. That very moment before he completely closed his eyes, he opened them once again and brought his right hand to his mouth. He bit down resolutely.

Immediately, blood flowed down from his fingertips. The moment his blood stained his entire finger, he raised his hand and smeared his eyes with the blood on his finger!

The moment Su Ming smeared his eyes with blood, something like a bellow came out from between his eyebrows. His eyes immediately felt refreshed. Black Flame Mountain also seemed to quake lightly but strangely, not a single fleck of snow moved. It was as if the physical body of the mountain did not shake instead, it was the spirit of the mountain which shook.

At the same time, whiffs of air which could not be seen flowed out from within Black Flame Mountain suddenly. They gathered hastily around Su Ming.

Su Ming did not know what it was but he could feel the whiffs of air coming towards him. They were fusing into his eyes. It was as if his eyes had turned into a vortex and it was pulling in the air.

The whiffs of air which entered his eyes were like rain that could extinguish the fire. As they flowed into his eyes, the dull look in Su Ming's eyes disappeared rapidly. His eyes could see clearly once again. However, amid the clarity in his eyes, there was a hint of a blood red glint. The world Su Ming saw turned a bloody red at that moment!

The burning and dry sensation in his eyes went away abruptly and were replaced with a refreshing feeling. The pain in his body also disappeared like the wind at the same time!

As the whiffs of strange air gushed into Su Ming's eyes, they spread to his entire body before assimilating into his blood. Then along with the blood, they circulated around his entire body.

The 22 blood veins were shining brightly in a scarlet light on Su Ming's body. When the light enveloped his entire body, the 23rd blood vein manifested out of nowhere!

The moment the 23rd blood vein appeared, the blood red tint in Su Ming's eyes flashed and the 24th blood vein manifested as well!

After a long time, the sky began to brighten and the moon started to fade. Soon, it was going to be replaced by the sun. Su Ming stood up quickly and ran towards the exit. In the blink of an eye, he arrived outside. The winds in the mountain whined and led his long hair in a dance. The 24 blood veins shone fiercely on his body. Su Ming looked incredibly unearthly.

He stood there and looked at the moon which was about to fade away. Suddenly, he breathe deeply in the direction of the moon.

At that point, Su Ming saw the moon sway. A hint of red moonlight fell from the moon straight into Su Ming's eyes and it disappeared soon after!

Su Ming shivered. On his neck, the 25th blood vein appeared!

He had arrived at the fourth level of the Blood Solidification Realm!

Within most small tribes, a lot of value was attached to Berserkers in the fourth level of the Blood Solidification Realm. This meant that tribe members who had reached the fourth level could join the hunting team. It also meant that such a tribe member could become one of the main forces in the tribe should there be a battle!

At the same time, the fourth level also signaled that the Berserker had arrived at the peak of the early stages of the Blood Solidification Realm. If they reached the fifth level, they would then become Berserkers in the middle stage of the Blood Solidification Realm! More importantly, once he reached the middle stage of Blood Solidification, there was hope for Su Ming to learn and use a new Berserker Art!

Su Ming felt a powerful feeling of strength he had never felt before in his body. His whole demeanor was calm. He looked at the fading moon and the brightening sky as the blood in his veins circulated around his body. The whiffs of cold air seemed to rush towards his eyes. At the same time, huge amounts of air which held the same properties rushed towards him from the mountains.

He even had a strange feeling that he could control the light from the moon!

Under the guidance of this strange sensation, Su Ming lifted his hands slowly and waved lightly the very moment the moon was about to disappear.

Chapter 39: I Want to Become Stronger!

Translator: Mogumoguchan/Zenobys Editor: - -

The moment Su Ming waved his right hand, the fading crescent moon in the sky suddenly emitted a bright silver light. No one else could see the silver light. Only Su Ming could..

As the silver light fell from the sky following Su Ming's hand motion, he saw the sky before him twisting. Then he saw the light he coaxed out from the moon blink and a roar rang through the sky. A big portion of the stone walls in front of Su Ming cracked and split into a large amount of debris that scattered on the ground. Some of the debris even fell into the stream on the mountain and they echoed for a long time.

Su Ming widened his eyes and took a deep breath. He looked at his right hand with a dumbfounded expression. It took him a long time before he snapped out of his daze and looked at the sky. The moon had already vanished and the sun had risen. The land welcomed its first rays of sunlight for the day.

"Is… this the Fire Berserker Art…? But this Art is related to the moon. It has nothing to do with fire. Why is it so?" Su Ming mumbled under his breath. His heart was pounding rapidly against his chest. When he guided the might of the moonlight with his right hand earlier, there was a strangeness to it that he did not understand. Nonetheless, the viciousness of the Art made Su Ming's heart pound.

He clenched his right fist and swung it against a big rock lying by his side as he activated his Qi. The 25 blood veins manifested on his body, crisscrossing on his skin. As his fist touched the stone, a muffled boom rang in the air. Several cracks appeared on the stone. At the same time, a strong rebound traveled up along Su Ming's right arm into his body but, it was blocked by his Qi.

Su Ming took a step back. He looked at the multiple cracks which appeared on the big stone and his eyes shone with excitement.

'I can only make the stone crack even with my strength as a fourth level Berserker in the Blood Solidification Realm… If I cast Spirit Devourer and I find a suitable animal spirit, perhaps I can make the stone shatter… But this is already my full strength. If I compare this with that small ray of moonlight, then there's a huge difference.

'If one small ray of moonlight already had such powerful effects, if I had more…'

Su Ming took a deep breath and laughed happily. He could feel his own body change and the power stored within his body. He began to look forward… for night to arrive.

'It's a pity I can only use the power of the moonlight at night.'

Su Ming went back into the cave.

Su Ming had never looked forward for night to come so strongly before. He would lift his head and look out the holes to check the sky occasionally. He felt as if the day was passing by too slowly. Gradually, the day darkened once again and moonlight lit up the land. Su Ming quelled the excitement in his heart and looked at the moon. He took a deep breath as his eyes glinted.

From the inheritance he obtained from the God of Berserkers, Su Ming clearly knew that once he reached the fifth or even higher level of the Blood Solidification Realm, he would be able to cast two extremely powerful Berserker Arts. They had been passed down the Dark Mountain Tribe when it was still a middle sized tribe hundreds of years ago!

Dark Blood Dust and Execution of the Three Evils!

Dark Blood Dust gathers a drop of Berserker Blood within the body and allows the caster to obtain an astonishing burst of strength for a short period of time. As for Execution of the Three Evils, every time Su Ming thought about it, his heart pounded in excitement.

Dark Blood Dust could only be cast by Berserkers who had manifested more than 50 blood veins. It was even harder for Execution of the Three Evils. The caster needed to manifest 200 blood veins to be able to cast the very first stage of the Art. They could only then cast the first strike!

To arrive at the fifth level of the Blood Solidification Realm, he needed 53 blood veins. If he wanted to become a Berserker at the sixth level, he needed 109 blood veins! As for the seventh level, he needed 243 blood veins!

The peak of the middle stage of the Blood Solidification Realm was the eighth level where he would require 399 blood veins!

Every level above the ninth level until the 11th level was considered the final stage of the Blood Solidification Realm. At the 11th level, the number of blood veins required was a normal Berserker's limit. He or she needed to manifest all 781 blood veins. If more blood veins were manifested, not only would the Berserker become stronger, the chances of arriving at the Transcendence Realm would also be higher!

Su Ming's eyes shone. He looked at the moon in the sky and the anticipation within his eyes grew. As he imagined the moon turning red in his head, the red moon gradually appeared in his eyes. He also felt the burning sensation in his eyes again.

This time, Su Ming did not hesitate and bit through the skin on his finger and smeared his blood over his eyes. His whole body seemed to cry out and the strange sight which unfolded within Black Flame Mountain the day before, occurred once more.

'I want to become stronger!'

The 25 blood veins manifested on Su Ming's body and shone in a blood red glow as they absorbed the air from the mountain. Air was rushing towards him from all around. At the same time, as image of the blood red moon shone in his eyes, Su Ming lifted his right hand and smeared the blood on his fingers across his eyes once again!

'"The desire to obtain Berserk spreads to all corners of the earth. Let fire burn in mine blood, let mine thoughts burn the skies, let fire burn heaven into ashes… If 't be true the moon of fire appears from the clouds on the endless earth… I wilt sink into deep bethought as the fire in mine blood burns, the nine is the utmost of all, and the one is the law. Light up the Berserker Fires and worship the nine, did let us all becometh the authorities of Fire!"

'"The nine is the utmost of all! The nine is the utmost of all!" The meaning of this must be that I have to let my blood burn 9 times!'

Once Su Ming smeared his blood across his eyes again, his body trembled furiously. Tremors shook the entire Black Flame Mountain but still, no one noticed the tremors this time as well.

A stronger wave of the mountain's aura came rushing into Su Ming's body in the form of air. It made him feel as if he was about to explode. The light from the 25 blood veins became even brighter on his skin and started moving as if they were alive.

At that moment, the 26th blood vein manifested on Su Ming's body but it did not stop there. The 27th, 28th, 29th… right up to the 33rd blood vein manifested at the same time on his body!

Su Ming's breathing quickened as his heartbeat raced against his chest. He was drunk on power. It seemed like he refused to wake up but his mind was still clear. As the blood red moon in his eyes shone once again, he lifted his right hand slowly and pierced the skin of his third finger.

The fresh blood gathering on his finger had some sort of mysterious power. Su Ming looked at the fresh blood and slowly placed it on his eyes. He was making his blood burn for the third time!

He had a strong feeling that if he could make his blood burn the third time, his power would increase exponentially! That thought made his body shiver as he stared at his finger. Su Ming gritted his teeth and pressed his finger against his right eye and wiped it gently. The moment some of the blood smeared over his right eye, the entire Dark Mountain trembled!

Not only Black Flame Mountain trembled, but the other four summits also shook as if their souls trembled. Many birds and beasts looked at the sky in fear and did not dare to move. However, when anyone looked at the mountains, they appeared normal. There were no obvious signs of change.

Neither Dark Dragon Tribe nor Dark Mountain Tribe noticed it. Only Bi Tu, from Black Mountain Tribe who absorbed the blood of the Wings of the Moon to break through the Transcendence Realm noticed. His heart trembled. There was a shred of horror in his eyes as he went out of his house and looked into the sky.

However, the sensation was fleeting and it disappeared like the wind. No matter how hard he tried to find it, he could not pinpoint the source of his fear.

Aside from Bi Tu, all the Wings of the Moon residing within the deeper parts of the five mountains had excited looks on their faces when Su Ming attempted to burn his blood the third time. They were in a frenzy, trying to break through the strange tree which held them. It was as though they were searching for their king!

Nonetheless, they were held back by an unknown force and could not go out.

At the same time, the strange red tree within Dark Mountain trembled. It was unknown whether it was trembling in agitation or fear.

Meanwhile in the cave, Su Ming's eyes did not stop trembling as his right eye was smeared with fresh blood. The strong aura from the entirety of Dark Mountain charged into his body madly. It caused the blood veins on his body to manifest at a speed that terrified even Su Ming.

34, 35, 36… 42, 44… and they did not stop manifesting right up until the 47th blood vein!

Su Ming could not continue any longer. The feeling like he was about to explode had become even more apparent. He could even vaguely hear the howls of the Wings of the Moon calling out from within Dark Mountain.

He raised his right hand. His breathing was rapid as it came out in harsh pants. His entire body was drenched in sweat. At the same time, he could not feel the movement of Dark Mountain's soul anymore. The strong aura that rushed towards him also disappeared. The roars which rang faintly in his ears also disappeared and everything returned to normal.

However, Su Ming knew that everything that had happened earlier was not normal at all!

'What a strong Berserker Art! I can feel that if I complete the third cycle of the burning of blood, the number of my blood veins manifesting will increase by several fold! This is only the third time. If I go through all nine times…'

Su Ming took a shaky breath. He began to feel a bit apprehensive about continuing with this method of training.

'It's not only nine times of that. From what I understand, once I have burned my blood nine times, I can then worship the moon of fire… once I worship it nine times, I can then obtain the power to control all fire!'

At that moment, Su Ming felt as if his body had become unbelievably powerful. After some time, he lifted his head and his eyes were bright with resolution.

'If I train with this Art using the pills… I will be able to reach the Transcendence Realm!'

Su Ming clenched his fists.

Chapter 40: Feeling of Animosity!

Translator: Mogumoguchan/Zenobys Editor: - -

Time passed by as Su Ming immersed himself in the process of quenching herbs and his training. Xiao Hong returned to the cave exhausted after a few days as Su Ming was meditating. Its red fur had darkened several shades as well, illustrating just how tired it was.

However tired as it may be, there were expressions of longing and pride on its face. It kept sniffing its right paw and grinned as if it was giggling foolishly.

When Xiao Hong came back, Su Ming opened his eyes slightly. When he saw Xiao Hong, he remembered what he witnessed the day he followed Xiao Hong into the forest. An awkward expression settled on his face.

Xiao Hong noticed Su Ming's gaze and turned around to look at him. It immediately ran towards him and raised its right paw proudly. It extended its right paw to Su Ming, urging Su Ming to sniff it again. It felt that it had to share everything that was good with everyone.

Su Ming did not know whether to laugh or cry. He no longer paid any attention to Xiao Hong and once again immersed himself in his training.

The month soon passed by. The date Su Ming was to go with the elder to Wind Stream Tribe loomed near.

During this period of time, Su Ming used up all of the Cloud Gauze Grass in his possession but only managed to create one Mountain Spirit. The high failure rate made Su Ming's spirits incredibly low.

At the very least, his training had been pretty successful. He had completely settled into the fourth level of the Blood Solidification Realm and managed to manifest two more blood veins, bringing the total blood veins he manifested up to 49 blood veins. He had also gradually adapted to the strangeness of the Fire Berserker Art.

However, the further down the path of the Blood Solidification Realm, the harder it was to solidify more blood veins. Lately, no matter how hard Su Ming trained, he could no longer solidify any more of his blood. He understood that this was related to the incompletion of the third burning of his blood.

Moreover when the moon was out at night, Su Ming acted according to his senses and tried to control the moonlight multiple times. However, the results were not obvious. It seemed like he could only control no more than a small ray of moonlight.

Even though it was only a small ray of moonlight, in Su Ming's hands, it was incredibly sharp. Even more so than his horn. Most importantly, Xiao Hong could not see the ray of moonlight. From that observation alone, Su Ming believed that he was the only one who could see the moonlight, no one else.

It was daylight. Su Ming stood up and looked around the fire cave. After a moment of silence he pushed his Barren Cauldron aside. He did not know how long he would stay at Wind Stream Tribe. He needed to make preparations.

On the walls of the fire cave were numerous fine ravines decorating the walls densely. Those ravines were created during the days Su Ming learned how to control the moonlight.

Once he packed up, Su Ming left the cave. Xiao Hong had already woken up. When it saw that Su Ming was about to leave, it followed him quickly. When they arrived outside the cave, it climbed onto Su Ming's shoulders, too lazy to descend the mountain on its own.

'It's a pity Mountain Spirit is too hard to make… There were eight holes underneath the picture of Mountain Spirit on the second door so it's obvious I have to offer eight of them… I wonder how long it'll take for me to offer up 8 Mountain Spirits without forsaking my own training…

'Besides, I also need to offer the pills called Fire of the South for the second door to open… But I've never seen the herbs required for the pills before. Thank the heavens for the bamboo slip the elder gave me. At least there are some descriptions of herbs there.'

Su Ming stood outside the cave and looked at the sun rising from the horizon He breathed in the refreshing cold air around him.

'I can only open the second door after I have gathered enough Mountain Spirit and Fire of the South… At the very least there is no need for me to create The Welcoming of Deities. Still, it just shows how rare The Welcoming of Deities is!'

As Su Ming was deep in his thoughts, Xiao Hong who was sprawled across his shoulders, grabbed his hair and hissed impatiently.

Su Ming patted the little monkey's head and jumped down the mountain peak. The wind blew against him. It made his shirt and hair flutter. It also made Xiao Hong clutch onto Su Ming's hair tightly as it screamed in terror.

Su Ming laughed. He grabbed onto a stone within his right hand's reach as he fell. Once he regained his momentum, he jumped down again. With his current abilities, Su Ming arrived at the foot of Black Flame Mountain before long.

Snow still covered the forests. They were really soft under his feet as well. He sank when he stepped on them. Su Ming then ran into the distance. He originally intended to return to the tribe but when he arrived at a crossroads, his footsteps faltered and he hesitated for a moment.

Xiao Hong was sitting on Su Ming's shoulders. It seemed to be in a comfortable position. Occasionally, it would sniff its right paw with an exhilarated expression. It was slightly surprised when it saw Su Ming stop.

The right path led back to his own tribe whereas the left path… Su Ming gazed at the path. It led to Dark Dragon Tribe.

"I'll just go and take a look… Xiao Hong, have you ever seen Bai Ling? Oh, that's right, you've never seen her. Do you want to see her?" Su Ming asked softly.

Xiao Hong widened its eyes. It scratched the fur on its face and did not make a sound.

"Alright. Since you want to see her, I'll let you look at her from afar," Su Ming spoke as if he suddenly had a perfectly logical reason to go to Dark Dragon Tribe. He smiled and patted Xiao Hong's head. When Xiao Hong looked at him with an unamused expression, Su Ming ran down the left lane quickly.

Su Ming arrived at the spot where he parted with Bai Ling when dusk arrived. The sun had turned red as it began to set. He squatted there and looked at the silhouette of Dark Dragon Tribe. He saw the other members of Dark Dragon Tribe moving in there but he did not see Bai Ling.

After a long time, Su Ming sank into his thoughts. He did not know what he was thinking. He only thought that Bai Ling was pretty. She was the prettiest girl he had ever seen in his life and he wanted to look at her a few more times.

After a moment of hesitation, he sat down quietly and chose not to take any action. Instead, he looked at the sky. When the sun was about to set and the sky about to darken completely, he stood up and walked forward briskly. He still kept a hint of awareness to his surroundings as he approached Dark Dragon Tribe. Nonetheless, he did not dare go too near the tribe. It was after all, not Dark Mountain Tribe. If he was discovered, there was a possibility he would be in danger.

While the relationship between Dark Mountain Tribe and Dark Dragon Tribe was not as tense as Dark Mountain Tribe and Black Mountain Tribe, it did not mean that they were at peace with each other. If they met in the wild, they still regarded each other with hostility. It would have been even more so if they had discovered Su Ming, who had been lingering outside Dark Dragon Tribe.

"Ah… I shouldn't have done this." Su Ming mumbled as he continued walking forward. When he was about 10,000 feet away from Dark Dragon Tribe, he stopped walking. Su Ming grew up in the tribe and had been regularly going out into the wild to collect herbs. On occasion, he even ran into members from Black Mountain Tribe. Caution and vigilance was practically second nature to him.

He had seen too much violence in his life. Even if most of the violence happened to beasts which the hunting team brought back, living in such conditions for years had already influenced him unconsciously as a child. Besides, he had already killed someone!

Not even Lei Chen had stained his hands with human blood before.

As such, even if Su Ming wanted to see Bai Ling for some unknown reason, his instincts that were buried deep within told him to move only during the night. As an act of caution, Su Ming also chose to stop 10,000 feet away from the tribe.

He squatted down and took a look at Dark Dragon Tribe. Then, he turned around resolutely without hesitation and left the area around Dark Dragon Tribe quickly.

Yet just as he took a few steps forward, Su Ming felt goosebumps. A sense of danger far stronger than his meeting with the two Berserkers from Black Mountain Tribe came crashing towards him.

As he leaped forward, he twisted his body abruptly and covered his head with both hands. His entire body curled into a ball as he hugged Xiao Hong tightly in his bosom, stopping in midair for a brief moment as if he was frozen.

That moment, a sharp whistling sound sliced through the air. A long gigantic spear about 30 feet flew towards Su Ming like lightning from within the giant wooden fence surrounding Dark Dragon Tribe. It rushed past Su Ming's body and stuck itself into the ground, creating a loud noise. The ground shook and snow flew into the air.

It also stirred up a wave of air which spread across a wide area around the spear. Su Ming was lucky he was cautious enough to avoid it beforehand. He landed on the ground as he moved along the air's wave current and ran forward at full speed immediately.

"Leaving?" A cold voice traveled from afar. A man with long hair wearing a shirt made of sackcloth chased after him with a fierce look in his eyes.

As Su Ming ran forward, he turned back and looked at him with a cold glare in his eyes.

Chapter 41: Si Kong

Translator: Mogumoguchan/Zenobys Editor: - -

The young man looked to be about 18 to 19 years old. He was strongly built. So much so that he could compete with Lei Chen. In his hands, he held a long spear. The spear was only about five feet long but its black body gave it a shocking and chilling aura. There was also a golden dazzle on the tip of the spear.

However, the spear was essentially not made of stone. It was made out of a material Su Ming had never seen before. He looked back from afar and when his eyes landed on the spear, his heart froze in fear.

It was a very, very familiar feeling.

Yet, he did not know where that familiarity came from. Nonetheless, it made him feel that danger was looming over his head. Su Ming ignored everything else. Only a basic instinctual need for him to remain calm was left.

'That person is not wearing hides but is wearing sackcloth instead. This sort of clothes… This person must have a pretty high status in Dark Dragon Tribe!

'I don't regret going near Dark Dragon Tribe!'

A glint appeared in Su Ming's eyes as he came to an answer in his heart.

"I did not go within 10,000 feet of the tribe. According to the rules among the tribes, if a person or a pair stands 10,000 feet outside the area of the tribe, he or she bears no ill will! I bear you no ill will. It's just that one of my friends is within your tribe and I wanted to see her." Su Ming ran at the full speed of a fourth level Berserker of the Blood Solidification Realm. His body was bent so low he was almost touching the surface of the snow in order to increase his speed. No tracks were left on the snow. As he ran, he shouted back towards the man pursuing him.

"Oh? If that's the case, if you're truly not an enemy, then don't run anymore. Come with me back to the tribe and we'll have the Elder verify your identity." A cold glare flitted through the young man's eyes. He spoke slowly but his speed did not decrease. He increased his speed instead and kept his eyes trained on Su Ming as if he was waiting for Su Ming to hesitate.

"As an outsider, how can I just walk into your tribe?" There were no signs of faltering on Su Ming side as he laughed and spoke to the man.

"True. Then what is the name of the person you know?" The young man spoke slowly once again as he continued giving chase. His demeanor did not change but he did narrow his eyes.

"I don't know her name but I do know that she wears white and she's really beautiful." As Su Ming spoke and continued fleeing, he turned back to look at his pursuer.

He saw a hint of murderous intent in the man's eyes when he heard Su Ming's words. He understood then. Su Ming had been wondering why the man would attack him with such ferocity even when he had not gone within 10,000 feet of the tribe. He was still not considered a threat with his current level of power. By right, even if he had drawn the attention of Dark Dragon Tribe upon himself, he should not have instigated such an attack.

There had to be a reason behind it. The young man with an obviously high status within the tribe was pursuing him alone and so, an answer formed within Su Ming's mind.

"I knew it, it's him!" The young man answered with a snort. He took a big step forward and raised his right hand as he continued pursuing Su Ming. A big amount of black mist immediately scattered around him and gathered around the spear on the man's back. A sharp cry echoed through the air after the black mist surrounded the spear a few times. Then, as if the spear was guided by the black mist, it floated above the man's head.

Su Ming narrowed his eyes. It was a Berserker Art!

The presence of Qi coming out from the man also proved just how powerful he was. He was slightly more powerful than Su Ming. Judging by the looks of it, he should have been at the fifth level of the Blood Solidification Realm but had only reached it not too long ago. He should have just had a few more blood veins than Su Ming. Nonetheless, since he had a Berserker Vessel, everything was different.

"You can see her after you die." There was more than 7,000 feet between them. Since the two of them had been running at full speed, they were already some distance away from Dark Dragon Tribe. Even so, the man was still the only one giving chase.

As the black mist surrounded the long spear, the sense of danger became even stronger. As the man spoke, his killing intent became even more obvious in his eyes. He pointed at Su Ming with his right hand in one swift motion and immediately, the black spear rushed towards Su Ming with a piercing trill.

As it traveled forward, the golden glow on the tip of the long spear flashed as though it could tear through a void. It came towards Su Ming at an unimaginable speed and within the blink of an eye, it was already within 3,000 feet away from Su Ming.

'Berserker Vessel!'

Su Ming narrowed his eyes. He recognized the object! All 49 blood veins within Su Ming immediately appeared. The circulation of blood within his body increased in an instant, causing the Qi within Su Ming's body to erupt. The act pushed Su Ming's speed and agility to the peak and at the very moment the long spear was about to touch him, Su Ming ducked. The wind whistled wildly above his head as the long spear missed the top of his head by about seven inches. It fell on the ground with a loud thud.

The force of the strike was by no means weaker than the one from Dark Dragon Tribe just moments ago.

A normal Berserker at the fourth level of the Blood Solidification Realm would have found it hard to avoid the attack but Su Ming specialized in speed and agility. As soon as he avoided the attack, he did not even spare the long spear on the ground a glance. Instead, a cold glare appeared in his eyes as he ran into the distance.

Su Ming did not even think about snatching the long spear from the ground. It was written within the beast skin scrolls that only Berserkers at the Transcendence Realm could make Berserker Vessels acknowledge them as their masters. Those below the Transcendence Realm would not have been able to do it.

Yet, it was odd that the man threw out the vessel so easily. It could have been taken away by someone else with ease. There had to be something wrong!

It was nearly dark.

Before long, the young man reached the location where the long spear was. An icy glare appeared in his eyes as he snorted. There was a light crease between his brows.

As the son of the tribe leader in Dark Dragon Tribe, Si Kong was probably not the strongest among the younger generation but he was definitely no common Berserker. He had the strength of a fifth level Berserker at the Blood Solidification Realm and had with him a Berserker Vessel. Killing a person who was only at the fourth level of the Blood Solidification Realm was easy.

Yet the person avoided the attack. The act alone made Si Kong wary and alerted him to the cautiousness of the other person.

'It's a pity. If he had picked up my Berserker Vessel, he would have died immediately.'

Si Kong hesitated for a moment but once he thought of something, he picked up the long spear carefully and gave chase once more.

Su Ming ran like the wind in the forest. His speed kept increasing as he ran but Si Kong kept up with him. The long spear would occasionally whisk past him and prevented Su Ming from widening the distance between them. There was still a few hundred feet between them as Su Ming ran into the forest.

However if Su Ming truly wanted to escape, it would not have been hard with his speed and knowledge of the forest. However, he did not have the desire to widen the distance between them. This was the second time he saw a Berserker Vessel. The fact that he had experienced its might, his desire to obtain the Vessel increased. He wanted the Vessel!

As he ran, he occasionally looked at the sky. When he saw that the sky had gradually darkened and the moon had appeared, a bright glint twinkled in his eyes.

'Berserker Vessels are all rare items. Hence, he must have another trick up his sleeve for him to throw it out so easily. Now, he's not closing the distance between us. If I were him, I would think about increasing the power of the Berserker Vessel… But looking at how cautious he is, there must be a price for him to pay if he he made that move. But I wonder, just how strong is the Vessel's true might?'

Su Ming made a decision.

As Si Kong continued pursuing Su Ming, he began to grow impatient. He did not expect his opponent to be so agile. It was getting dark and he was getting too far away from the tribe. He had made sure not a lot of people knew of his departure from the tribe. If he went back to the tribe late, it would be hard for him to explain himself. He gritted his teeth and grabbed at the air with his right hand. Then for the first time, the long spear surrounded by black mist appeared in his hands.

At that moment, Su Ming suddenly spoke a few hundred feet ahead.

"With how fiercely you're chasing me, I can see that you truly want to kill me! There is no hate between us. Even if you want to kill me, at least give me a reason."

"Why should I bother with idle chatter? You came within the area of my tribe and for that, anyone from my tribe could kill you! Even if we did kill you and Dark Mountain Tribe wanted to seek revenge for you, it's still your own fault!" Si Kong laughed coldly. He held onto the long spear tightly as he continued pursuing Su Ming. Cold waves traveled from the long spear into his arm.

Si Kong's gaze darkened. He snorted and raised his right arm along with the spear. Immediately, countless voices roared from within the forest. A great amount of black mist flowed out of the spear and gathered around it, turning the spear into an impressive black dragon!

The dragon had numerous claws and its whiskers moved in the air. It looked incredibly ferocious!

"No matter who you are, you must die today!" Si Kong grinned fiercely. His face was pale. Clearly, calling out the might of the spear had brought upon a great toll to his body. Just as he was about to throw the spear towards Su Ming, Su Ming opened his mouth and spoke.

"It's because I saved Bai Ling, right?" Su Ming suddenly said.

When Si Kong heard the name, he was momentarily stunned. The moment his actions faltered, Su Ming stopped running abruptly and turned around to look at him. He raised his right hand as well and swung it in his direction.

A sense of danger he had never felt before arose in Si Kong's heart. He narrowed his eyes as his demeanor changed completely. Just as he was about to throw the spear in his hand, he felt his body quivering. It was as if a huge gust of wind blew against him and also a strong blast of light pierced into his eyes. He saw the shadow of the blood red moon within Su Ming's eyes.

The shadow of the blood red moon became the only thing he saw. He felt a sudden pain in his entire body and coughed out a mouthful of blood. His eyes expressed confusion, bewilderment and bafflement as he fell onto the snow face down.

As he fell, the spear that he did not manage to throw gradually turned back into a common object as the black mist scattered. It fell to the side.

There was blood coming out from his entire body as it seeped into the snow. There was a faint silvery thread around his body which sank deep into his flesh. It felt like with just a slight tug, his entire body would have been torn apart.

He did not die. There was still breath within him. He just became unconscious due to the sudden blast of pain.

Su Ming's heart pounded against his chest. He looked at the spear with lingering fear. When the true might of the spear had been brought out by the before him, Su Ming had felt death.

"When you are fighting against someone, do not let your focus waver. Do not hesitate. If it is possible to kill your enemy with one strike within the shortest amount of time, do not wait till the last moment to do so." Su Ming mumbled as he remembered the words in his head.

'He had a Berserker Vessel. It was by pure luck that I won this battle!'

Su Ming squatted down and looked at the unconscious Si Kong. After hesitating briefly, Su Ming chose to bandage his wounds. He did not want Si Kong to die or cause trouble to Dark Mountain Tribe. He deduced that Si Kong would wake up soon.

Soon, a crazed look settled in his eyes as he looked at the long black spear lying by his side. He looked at it carefully and gradually found some clues regarding the spear. On many parts of the spear were tiny thorns that he would have missed if he had not observed the spear carefully!

After looking at it for a long time, Su Ming found and held onto the only small part of the spear that was without thorns carefully. He left the area quickly.