Chapter 506: The 9 Supremes Unite

The sky eventually darkened, enveloping the battlefield in an endless splash of the colors of nightfall.

High in the sky, a pair of confused eyes peeked out from the clouds overlooking the earth, its gaze troubled and perplexed.

"Who, in truth, is Supreme Cloud?"

"From what I've heard, it seems that Han Sanhe had his suspicions. Does that mean that Dongxuan also would have some clue about this?"

"This Yun Yang... he can't possibly be Supreme Cloud. He's too young!"

"Furthermore, he has been under surveillance all the while. It began when he personally entered the battlefield and got ordered around by those marshals and generals. No, there's no doubt about it..."

"Most importantly, the Nine Supremes struck when he was in the battlefield. It is physically impossible for Yun Yang to be one of the Nine Supremes."

"Who then are the Nine Supremes?"

"It was too bad that Han Sanhe passed on so quickly."

"The clue regarding the Nine Supremes has just appeared before it broke immediately. That's his fate..."

The person in the clouds mumbled alone.

All of a sudden, eight brilliant rays fell from the sky like meteorites that fell to the earth. The eight beams cut through the layers of clouds and landed on the ground almost simultaneously.

The earth was in an unusual state of flux like there was a mass of earth dragons barreling underground. Red, orange, yellow, green, blue, purple, and black glimmered constantly on the surface, maintaining itself for a moment before everything vanished abruptly.

"The power of the Nine Supremes!"

The eyes of the person who was still high up in the sky widened in shock.

"Eight Supremes among the Nine Supremes are dead... However, this is..."

As he pondered upon it, the person grew increasingly frustrated and almost crushed his own head in exasperation.

"So this is it!"

"This is the truth!"

"The Spiritual Restraining Formation back then limited the Nine Supremes' powers, but those forces didn't dissipate... Instead, they were sealed up in Tianxuan Cliff..."

"As for the apparent reappearance of the Nine Supremes this time... were they merely manifestations of these powers being released?"

"No wonder the forces were strong but could hardly be maintained. This must be the truth!"

"As for the strange beams... this should be the last leg of the Nine Supremes' power... or was it? Why were there eight lights that suddenly blossomed on this stretch of land?"

"there isn't any trace of human presence within thousands of miles of this vast land..."

"What is going on?"

"Was it merely coincidence? Or is there more to this than meets the eye?"

...

"What plans do you all have?"

Yun Yang found the twelve youths in the Steel Cavalry's tent, but there were only eight of them left.

All eight of them were grieving, but their expressions showed firm resolution.

"If you all want to go home, I can arrange for you all to leave." Yun Yang said, "If..."

Eight rather innocent faces hesitated for a moment before one of them replied, "We want to take a break and send our brothers' remains back first... only then will we return to the Fortress of Resilience again."

"Why?"

Yun Yang frowned. "One war has taken four people away. Aren't all of you scared? Don't you all care?"

He was troubled as well. Looking at the determined teenagers, how was he supposed to explain it to their families? There was nothing fun about military and war!

"We..." The little one, the head of the group, was Li Erdan; after enlisting, he had given himself another name called Li Zhan. He hesitated then said, "Teacher... we know that there's more danger than safety by staying here..."

"However, we aren't willing to go back just like this..."

"First off, we still want to avenge our four brothers; secondly, we like this atmosphere, we like the battlefield, we like the military base... Third..."

He stalled, covertly lifting his head to steal a peek at Yun Yang's expression, and said, "Staying here, it's brutal, it's life and death all the time... but coming out, be it brutal or anguish, we've seen the outside world after all..."

Yun Yang grimly understood what they were saying...

They were right, of course. Coming out from a small, isolated village, they would not have known what they had missed if they had not experienced this vast world; they could have spent the rest of their lives peacefully in the small valley. Yet these passionate youths had seen the world in all its colors, how could they be willing to return to the closed-off village and spend the rest of their lives there quietly?

Yun Yang kept silent for a moment and said, "If you all want a title, you can follow me back to the capital. There, you will have me around. It's much better than staying here."

The eight youths were quiet, and Yun Yang felt resistance from the silence - it was a defiance of dignity.

"We want to depend on ourselves and work for it." Li Zhan said in a stuttering voice.

"Ambitious," Yun Yang complimented the youths.

The eight children flushed.

Yun Yang took out the mystical Qi cultivation arcane he had long prepared and explained it thoroughly before he watched the eight young ones repeat it once.

"No matter where you all stay..." Yun Yang said softly, "Never forget where your roots are. Understand?"

"Yes!" The eight teenagers were bright-eyed.

"No matter where you all are, what achievements you accomplish in the future... never forget the comrades and brothers who fought alongside you... never forget the comrades and brothers who sacrificed themselves beside you! Understand? Never forget their families either."

"Never forget, as a man, your responsibilities towards your friends, your parents, your families, your country... and your perished comrades' families!"

Yun Yang was grim as he said these words, his gaze blank and lifeless.

Wang Dingguo watched in silence from the side. While Yun Yang was speaking, he could clearly feel the genuine and brimming sense of responsibility from Yun Yang, the hefty weight each of his words carried! He could not help but look serious and respectful as well.

"We will surely remember teacher's lessons!"

The eight teenagers kneeled down and bowed together.

"Wang Dingguo!" Yun Yang turned to say, "Look after them well, but there's no need to coddle them. Do you understand?"

The words were contradictory, but Wang Dingguo understood once he heard them; he replied formally, "Don't worry, Young Master Yun. Old Wang understands!"

Yun Yang nodded and took out some banknotes. "Send them home!"

The youths wanted to refuse them but Yun Yang glared. "Your sacrificed brothers; do their families need not continue living?"

He pushed the notes over.

The eight youths held back a collective sob. There was five hundred thousand taels worth of banknotes!

Even Wang Dingguo who was watching from the side felt envious, but he was certain - no matter what it took, he had to let these young ones send the money back! This sum belonged only to the small village, no one else could touch it.

Yun Yang left, filled with a little relief and a no little sense of loss.

To work hard and start from scratch... the dream of youths was always this naïve and passionate.

However, Yun Yang was not opposed to the idea. He would let them learn the hard way.

Perhaps, they would become new legends, achieving everything from nothing one day; who could tell? However, Yun Yang knew the day would come when they realized the importance of relationships, connections, society, and favors. These would extinguish their passion, then they would go seeking for him in the capital.

Yun Yang did not wish to see that.

In spite of this, the paths of life were always decided by oneself. At a certain stage, at a certain junction, left or right would either be towards heaven or hell. The entrance was the same, though. Some people would pick heaven while some would choose wrongly and go to hell. That being said, there was still a possibility to fall into hell while being in heaven while there would also be ways to heaven despite being in hell.

"I wish all of you, in this lifetime, to never change your initial intentions or forget your early hearts!"

The words of blessing were kept at the bottom of Yun Yang's heart.

Eight teenagers watched their teacher leave, galloping away into the night, their eyes filled with respect and gratitude. The wash of purple robes would forever stay in the deepest part of their hearts.

"Teacher, take great care!"

The eight youths kneeled down quietly, bowing in silence to the direction of the faraway continent where the silhouette had disappeared.

"Get up, young ones."

Wang Dingguo sighed inwardly, "You all will still meet your teacher in the future."

...

Yun Yang, who was coming up near Tianxuan Cliff, urged his steed to gallop faster, like a red flash of light that swept past the snow. However, just as he sped past Tianxuan Cliff, he suddenly heard a deafening boom.

Yun Yang lifted his head to look in shock.

The Temple of Nine Supremes that stood tall on Tianxuan Cliff had unexpectedly collapsed, reduced to fine rubble that covered the ground.

"No!"

Yun Yang cried out subconsciously before he froze, his eyes wide as saucers as he shouted, "Why?"

Then, in the time it took for him to blink, a gout of power suddenly surged from the earth and slipped into Yun Yang, merging with his meridians and dantian. The process was faster than a split second, everything ending no longer than a snap of fingers; there was no more noise or further movement then.

Yun Yang trembled harshly. It was an incredibly familiar power that had merged with him. It was a feeling he only had when he was with his brothers.

"Brothers..."

Yun Yang was struck with a pang of insuppressible grief, but he understood what happened instantly.

He had triggered the remaining Nine Supremes' powers left behind by his brothers. With the identity of Supreme Cloud, the dying wish of his brothers, and the hopes of everyone for Nine Supremes to be one, the onus was all on him! When he had unleashed this force, he had also sealed his brothers' unfulfilled wish!

In the past, when the Nine Supremes' powers were present simultaneously to attack the Dongxuan army in an extremely temporal duration, it was not only the powers of the Nine Supremes that were at play; even their lingering wish could retain a big portion of strength and seek him out relentlessly.

In other words, Yun Yang still could not use any cultivation skill or manifestation of any Supreme but he was, right now, truly the Nine Supremes become one. He was an amalgamation of their respective beings, having undergone a thorough and extreme method.

Yun Yang, who was well aware of this, experienced no joy. He sprawled onto the horse's back and wept.

"Brothers... I will not be able to see you all anymore!"

For the Nine Supremes to become one was the late Nine Supremes' last wish, but it was Yun Yang's deepest dread. After the Nine Supremes' powers had combined into one, it would also mean that the remnants that initially belonged to the Nine Supremes would be wholly wiped away from the world, never to be seen again.

The sky brightened like never before, glowing like it was day in this exceptionally wintery night. The ominous clouds that hung in the sky vanished instantly as if blown away by a devastating hurricane.

The Milky Way was clear to view, as was the moon.

Yun Yang looked up at the starry sky.

Watching the myriad of blinking stars, it was as if he saw the long-absent faces of Supreme Earth and the others smiling down at him from the sky and blinking in relief.

Yun Yang could not help the ache that surged in his heart.

...

In the sea of clouds, a figure who was restrained by chains all over him rested against a tree, a slight smile hanging on his face as he looked at the sky.

"Not bad, not bad at all. This day has finally come."

"When the Nine Supremes unite, there shall be an upheaval of heaven and earth, of the world and empires alike. The Supreme shall reign unchallenged... Mr. Nian, your 'good' days are about to come. As for me, Heaven's Inquisition... I'm finally about to be freed..."

"Imprisoned here all these years... I wonder..."

"How does the outside world look like now?"