Chapter 26

The Night of the Blood Red Moon

The one-eyed man waited for a long time before he was summoned . When he was called, he entered the tent respectfully . After an hour, he exited the tent with an ecstatic expression, his mannerisms still respectful as he left .

Within the purple tent were two elderly men with completely white hair but their eyes still held a lot of life and vigor . Before them laid a very normal looking, empty small bottle .

One of the old men who wore a white robe held a pill between his fingers . He looked at it for a while . Then slowly, his gaze was filled with surprise and uncertainty .

He sank into deep thought for a moment after which he brought the pill to his nose and took a sniff . He closed his eyes in concentration . After a long moment, he opened his eyes abruptly .

"It’s just like he said . This pill has unbelievable effects! I’ve been in Wind Stream Tribe for many years but I’ve never seen such a thing in my life . By the looks of it, it doesn’t seem to be a medicine made from a long time ago either . There isn’t any sign of age on it so, it’s clear that it has just been made recently!"

"Just what is this…?"

"It’s a pity a long time has passed since the trade took place . The Fallen Berserker is not an easy person to deal with either or else we might get to know how this pill was made," the other old man spoke slowly .

"Don’t be reckless . A person who can produce such an item is either a very powerful Berserker in the Blood Solidification Realm . . . or a Fallen Berserker at the Awakening Realm who came from somewhere else . Brother Zhou, let me take this thing back to the tribe . Perhaps the Elder in Wind Stream Tribe can identify it . " As the old man in white spoke, he carefully placed the pill back into the small bottle . Then he waved his right hand and the small bottle disappeared .

"You do that . " The old man sitting before him nodded his head .

"This item is too important . I’ll be taking my leave first . If I get any information, I’ll tell you . " The old man in white stood up . He then held his fist and palm together as a salute towards the old man called Zhou . He quickly left the purple tent . The moment he stepped out of the tent, the outline of his body became distorted . He turned into white mist and rose into the sky . Instantly, he disappeared .

Daylight had almost arrived . On the vast plains some distance away from the square, was a big tribe . The size of the tribe was almost equivalent to the size of a city . It was surrounded by six other tribes the size of Dark Mountain Tribe . In the very middle was a big city made of stone and dirt!

The city looked magnificent like a giant beast had arrived on the land . The citizens within the city alone numbered more than thousands . It was not something Dark Mountain Tribe could ever hope to overcome .

The six surrounding tribes were affiliated with the city . Some of them were conquered by Wind Stream Tribe while some sought protection when some sort of disaster befell them and they became part of Wind Stream Tribe .

Wind Stream Tribe was a medium sized tribe but it was still considered weak for a medium sized tribe . After all, Dark Mountain was located at a rather rural area in the world . However it was precisely because of that, Wind Stream Tribe could rule over the entire area and accept tributes offered by numerous smaller tribes . It was also the only tribe in Dark Mountain that was qualified to contact members of the Berserker Tribe belonging to the upper class .

As the sun began to light up the sky, a white mist flew across the sky . It gathered outside the city and transformed into the old man in white .

The old man looked solemn as he immediately walked into the city . On the way, he met other members of Wind Stream Tribe . All of them would stop and bow towards him respectfully .

At the center of the city was a completely dark altar . The altar was built in the shape of a pentagon and was 100 feet tall . There was a drawing of a bird on it . The altar looked as if it was left behind since ancient times .

The old man in white stood underneath the altar respectfully . After a moment, a gentle voice traveled from the top of the altar .

"Shi Hai, what is it?"

"Elder, I was at Zhou Ran’s square and saw a medication I’ve never seen before . The effects of this herb are incredible…" The old man in white took a deep breath and spoke in a low voice .

"Oh? Let me see it," the gentle voice spoke slowly from atop the altar .

The old man in white lifted his right hand and bright light appeared from his palm . A small bottle materialized itself instantly . Then, as if there was some mysterious force attracting the small bottle, it floated upwards slowly towards the altar .

It was quiet around the area . The only sounds were that of the wind passing by . The wind caused the old man’s robes to flutter . He stood there, as still as a statue and waited silently .

After a moment, the gentle voice spoke once again but this time, there was a tinge of surprise in it!

"There’s only one?"

"Only one," the old man in white replied immediately .

"I’ve never seen a medication like this before… The makeup of this medication is something I don’t understand… And it’s clear this was made not too long ago… Who brought this to the square?" The gentle voice spoke solemnly .

"A Fallen Berserker," the old man in white spoke in a low tone .

"Find him . Use all the resources we have and find him! Tell him to join Wind Stream Tribe and I will treat him as a permanent guest here!" The gentle voice exclaimed almost immediately after the old man spoke the last syllable .

The old man in white took a deep breath and complied to the order respectfully . He could identify that the medicine was out of ordinary but he did not expect the Elder to invite the person to Wind Stream Tribe as a permanent guest . The status of a permanent guest was treated with extreme respect . Besides the tribe leader, the Elder and few other people, they were treated almost with the same importance as the other leaders of the tribe .

As the old man in white went away, he immediately had the entire Wind Stream Tribe carry out the Elder’s orders . He had cast a huge net to search for the Fallen Berserker!

As for Su Ming, he had just made a decision at home in Dark Mountain Tribe . Hence in the morning of the second day, he left the tribe alone and went into the forest . Then, he ran towards Black Flame Mountain .

Su Ming traversed through the forest without any hesitation . After reaching the second level of the Blood Solidification Realm, his speed and agility had increased so much even Lei Chen had a hard time keeping up with him at full speed . As he ran through the forest, his speed increased even further due to his familiarity with the place . By noon, he had arrived at the foot of Black Flame Mountain .

He climbed up Black Flame Mountain and went to the cave which he used for the quenching of herbs . Su Ming placed the basket down on ground . There were a lot of herbs in there, all of which he prepared for the purpose of quenching .

Xiao Hong was not in the cave . It was most probably out playing . Su Ming cast a glance around the cave . Once he was certain there were no signs of abnormality around, he sat down cross-legged on the ground . He concentrated on circulating the blood in his body until the 10 blood veins shone brightly on his body and his body reached the best condition possible .

There were even vague signs of the 11th blood vein manifesting itself, which could allow Su Ming to reach the third level of the Blood Solidification Realm .

‘The elder helped me to truly Awaken and he did say I was about to reach the third level… Not a lot of time passed since then but I feel that there’s enough blood within me now… The ancient Berserker Art is truly amazing . ’

Su Ming opened his eyes and the scene of the black substance oozing out of his body surfaced in his mind .

‘I might as well put aside creating more pills for now and break through the second level!’

Su Ming only took a moment to make his decision and brought out the Sky Stone he pillaged the other day from his bosom . He took a look at the herb and swallowed a Scattering Dust before plucking a leaf from the herb and swallowing it as well .

He closed his eyes and meditated once again . After a moment, Su Ming’s body was covered in sweat and surrounded by blood red light . The 11th blood vein showed signs of manifesting completely .

After a few hours, a muffled sound resounded throughout Su Ming’s body and the 11th blood vein manifested itself completely . A much stronger presence of Qi immediately erupted from Su Ming’s body .

Su Ming opened his eyes, which shone brilliantly .

‘The third level of the Blood Solidification Realm!’

He stood up, his face bright with excitement . After he moved his body to remove the numbness in his limbs, he brought out the herbs . He began the process of creating Mountain Spirit according to the methods in his memory .

Su Ming was no longer as clueless as he was a few months ago . He was already familiar with the process of quenching herbs and even more so at controlling the fire in the cave . As the temperature within the cave increased, Su Ming took off his clothes and stood beside the stone cauldron half-naked . At times he would bring one of the herbs to his nose whereas other times, he would crush the herbs and throw them into the cauldron .

Time passed by . The sky gradually began to darken . Silence also fell upon the forest and mountains . Even the sounds of the birds and beasts became a muffled whisper .

As the sky darkened, the moon rose into the sky but, the moon that night was different from the other nights . It was in a shade so red like there was a blood red moon in the sky .

The strange sight immediately covered the land with a strange atmosphere . It was especially so for the area around Dark Mountain . The sounds from the birds and the beasts completely disappeared . There was not even the slightest whisper from them . It was as if they did not dare to make a sound .

A red shadow sped through the forest at the foot of Black Flame Mountain . It was the little monkey . At that moment, its gaze was solemn and alert . It would lift its gaze towards the red moon occasionally and distress would flicker across its features .

As it ran forward, it hesitated . It still did not know that Su Ming had returned . It changed its direction and no longer ran towards Black Flame Mountain . Instead, it hid itself somewhere in the forest .

As the sky grew darker, the moon shone a brighter shade of red . By the time midnight arrived, the entire Dark Mountain seemed to have been dyed in blood .

At that moment, a weak cry came from within Dark Mountain . The cry grew louder as time passed and eventually grew so loud it traveled past Dark Mountain .

The cry seemed to be filled with endless resentment . Those who heard it were filled with fear . It was a cry that seemed to shake the soul . If anyone listened to it for a prolonged amount of time, they would feel like their blood was boiling . It terrified them .

The cry echoed through the skies as if it reflected the blood red moon . It made Dark Mountain appear to be shrouded in mystery .

That night, the three tribes around Dark Mountain were filled with wariness . The normal members of the tribe in Dark Mountain Tribe all returned to their houses under the protection of the Berserkers within the tribe . They were told not to leave unless it was absolutely necessary . The tribe leader also personally took command of the Berserkers to protect the tribe .

The elder stood at the highest place in the tribe . It was a stage made of giant wood . In his hands was the black bone cane . As he looked afar, his eyes were tainted with a hint of worry .

He felt Su Ming leave the tribe earlier but he did not expect the blood moon which only occurred once every three years to happen that night . It was months earlier than the previous appearances of the blood red moon . The strange phenomenon made him surprised and fearful .

"Fire!" After a long while, the elder spoke . Immediately, the tribe members surrounding the giant wooden stage brought out torches and placed them underneath the stage . The torches caused the stage to burn . The elder on the stage looked as if he was caught in a sea of fire but he was calm as he chanted in a strange language .

Dark Mountain Tribe was not the only one who did this . At the same time, in another direction from Dark Mountain Tribe, the same thing also happened in Dark Dragon Tribe . The elder of Dark Dragon Tribe wore a loose robe, hair untied . There was no telling whether the elder was a man or a woman . In the person’s hand was the skull of a strange, one-horned beast . The elder lifted it up high and a piercing cry escaped the person’s lips .

Among the tribe members of Dark Dragon Tribe stood a girl of extreme beauty . Her face was pale as she looked at the blood red moon in the sky .