Beastmaster of the Ages

The pressure coming from the golden ball of fire seemed like something out of a nightmare. The sun emperor had never been so enraged; from the moment of his appearance, the sea of flames above burned even brighter, heating up the air so much that even the ground beneath them began to shift and crack. Mountains seemed to shift and rivers looked like they were flowing in reverse. He looked like he owned the sun itself, as if the world they were on was part of his body. The fact that he was here instead of at the wedding ceremony at the Myriaddragon Mountains seemed to suggest that he considered Li Wushuang far more important than the wedding he had painstakingly planned.

The moment Long Wanying saw him, she knew that it was all over. Thankfully, he came here. If we can lighten the burden on the battle over there even a little, we’ll have done our part.

Perhaps Yang Ce also shared that thought. The two of them didn’t seem to panic at all, knowing well that they were fated to die anyway. Still, they were still surprised by how important the sun emperor considered Li Wushuang. The only thing Long Wanying felt bad about now was that Yang Ce would no longer be able to escape. She had thought her death would be worth it, but now that had fallen through.

“It’s fine. If we die together, we might become childhood friends in the next life,” Yang Ce said. Even in the face of death and despair, his gaze never wavered.

The next instant, the sun emperor charged straight toward them. Yang Ce was still uninjured, so he charged in to stop the sun emperor, who used a simple punch. That punch alone sent Yang Ce flying as his darknight truefiends appeared, causing his chest to cave in. He vomited blood as his broken ribs tore into his organs, completely ruining him. He got slammed straight into the ground, his fall creating a crater a kilometer wide. That fiery punch completely charred the area ten thousand meters around them.

“Yang Ce!” Long Wanying’s eyes turned bloodshot once more. Before the sun emperor, they had no choice but to accept their fate.

A huge golden hand descended from the sky and gripped her by the head. The giant covered in golden patterns stood before her, looking down on her like the mere weakling she was with his star-core-like eyes, his gaze literally smoldering. Faced with the oxymoronic cold rage of the sun emperor, Long Wanying felt the kind of terror a mortal would feel toward a god. She understood that the slightest squeeze would be enough for him to crush her head. With her halfway stepping through the gates of death already, her life could come to an end in the next instant.

She stared through the gap in his fingers at the golden face. No matter how much she demanded herself to not be afraid, her body shook beyond her control like a frightened, captured rabbit. “Li… Li Wudi… I’m not afraid of you…. I killed your sister, so I got my revenge! Kill me then! I have no regrets, hahaha!” she said, mustering all the effort she could in an attempt to distract him enough so that she might allow Yang Ce to escape. She desperately hoped that he understood her intentions. If she could cry out to get him to run, she definitely would.

Though she claimed she would have no regrets, that was far from the truth. Yang Ce was the one she didn’t want to die no matter what. She would even endure endless torment to make sure he lived on. She forced herself to open her eyes wide, glaring straight at the sun emperor. However, even the capillaries in her eyes seemed to shake. Her neck almost seemed to be lengthened by the sun emperor’s grip. It was about to snap like a rubber band.

“I know you’re powerful and unmatched, sun emperor. You’re someone who can dictate the fates of everyone on the sun, but I want to make sure that you’re aware of how you failed to protect the person you most treasure! I killed Li Wushuang and personally ruined her bane-rings! I cut off her head! Kill me if you dare! What are you waiting for?!”

She didn’t know whether tears or blood was flowing from her eyes. All she cared about was that Yang Ce would escape, but she couldn’t even see that with her head being held fast in place. Her fingers felt like they were being electrocuted. She didn’t fear death, since it would probably be over in an instant. Yet she still feared the sun emperor; some things are terrifying, even beyond death.

“Yang Ce…” she mumbled the name as she despaired and closed her eyes. Tears continued flowing all over her face. Her weak body looked like a toy in the hands of a giant. Why hadn’t death come yet?

Then she heard the hoarse voice of a man coming from behind her, filled with killing intent. “Hey, do you believe I can stop you from killing her?”

It was Yang Ce! Long Wanying couldn’t see him, but she came to the despairing realization that he wasn’t someone who would abandon her and escape. “No!”

Though she wanted to push away the hand holding her head to look at Yang Ce, she wasn’t able to budge even a single finger. All she could see through the fingers was the golden giant looking up and beyond her. Then he said, “I don’t.” The entire time, he had been contemplating a fitting way to kill Long Wanying to quell his rage.

“Keep your eyes open!” Yang Ce said with aloof pride. This was how he had acted in his youth as Long Wanying recalled—rebellious, fearless, and straightforward. He had butted heads with almost everyone. Though he’d seemed to mature after his responsibilities grew, it seemed that this part of him had never changed. What was he planning to do?

Long Wanying desperately tried to look back, but still couldn’t. All she knew was that the sun emperor’s interest was piqued. It felt like a provocation—who would dare challenge the sun emperor?!

She immediately heard the howls of the darknight truefiends, forlorn yet firm. They had stayed to fight without turning back. All she could see was the golden figure narrowing its eyes. What in the world had happened? She had a really bad feeling about the situation.