Beastmaster of the Ages

”I guess I have Mu Ziyan to thank for this. Without her, I might never have been able to learn this move and would have no hope of returning to Orderia.” Tianming had grown to like her quite a bit after spending so much time together. ”I should find a chance to ask her about the violet fog in my soul.”

If he didn’t clear that up, there would always be a gap between them. He was hesitant about asking her about it as he was worried to learn the truth, as unlikely as that seemed. Still, that was a matter best left for later. He cleared his mind and used most of his time on mastering the Saintdragon Annihilation. Eventually, his other basic moves also grew in proficiency. Holding the Godsin, which was also known as the Formless Minor, he seemed to be able to comprehend easier. After all, the formless nature of the sword was similar to the void of Annihilation. He stood at the lake of Violetpeak, thrusting it forward tens of thousands of times a day without losing focus. It was difficult and tiring.

He looked at the water, which almost resembled a prison. The godfather he respected seemed as if he was beneath it, his red hair messy and his eyes crying tears of blood as he awaited their return. Tianming wanted to take Qingyu with him and never return, but it was impossible. The water was a prison. There was space even within water. There was void.

”Annihilation returns everything to nothing, just like death. Death is also a return to nothing.” He understood the basic concept, but his sword intent still seemed lacking. ”Pierce through water and space, pierce through this cage and understand this move. Only then can I return to Orderia and save him! I have to hurry!”

He forgot everything, seeing nothing but the cage, the distance, and the sun emperor. Strike after strike came faster than the last.

”Break! Break!” His eyes were bloodshot red. His hands moved like shadows and the Formless Minor was like an illusion that could hardly be seen. It pierced into the water and disturbed it, but water couldn’t be destroyed. It was like a cage that couldn’t be destroyed.

”I have to turn the impossible into the possible! Maybe that’s the true meaning of the strike!” He stilled his breath like a madman and treated the water like his biggest enemy, infusing all of his frustrations into it. Ying Huo, Meow Meow, and the rest wondered if Tianming was twitching because of a muscle cramp.

His strikes grew fiercer and fiercer, eventually involving sword ki. The Formless Minor changed in an imperceptible manner before vanishing from sight completely. He used the same move hundreds of thousands of times with minimal astralforce, raising his killing intent and will. It got more and more terrifying until he started roaring like a beast. When he next thrust, the strike no longer disturbed the water. Instead, all the water within ten meters twisted before vanishing into nothing in an instant. Even though it was a huge lake, there was a hole in the middle with no water. During that time, there was space at the center separating the water. There was nothing, there was the void. That was the power of Annihilation. While it looked rather plain, it was an ultimate killing technique. Once it was fused with the other moves, it would be even more terrifying.

”Hahaha!” He took a deep breath and began laughing. Only then did water flow into the hole to even it out. Even so, the area Tianming had attacked still seemed haphazard. If a person were there, they would be annihilated. Only he knew how powerful it truly was.

Even though it was said that the Ninedragon Tribulation was an eighth-realm divine art, Tianming believed that Annihilation alone was at that level. He had finally overcome its challenge. Fusing it with the other six moves shouldn’t be too hard, since he had overcome the basic hurdle. Learning this move was incredibly important. He went back to Violetpeak and took out the wardrum formation of the Ninedragon Imperial Tomb and the eight drumsticks. He found the one corresponding to the saintdragon.

”Let’s give it a try.” He used Annihilation on the war drum, which didn’t do much other than give the drum’s surface a light tap. But soon, the celestial patterns within them changed into a star map. Tianming cried out in excitement and called for Feiling and the rest to come.

”What is it, Big Brother?”

The others also came to see what was going on. When Lingfeng and Qingyu saw it, joy filled their faces.

”Is this the star map from the Imperial Dragon Tomb? Can we find Orderia with it?” Qingyu asked.

”Let me see.” As the owner of a divine astralship, albeit an amateur one, he knew how to use it to some extent. There were seven bright spots on the map, the center of which was a golden star of fire. It was definitely Orderia. Northeast from it was a violet star about the same size as Orderia, which should be the Violetglory Star. It wasn’t far away, after all.

”We should be able to go back according to this star map,” he concluded.

”That’s great!” The others cheered with joy. This was far too important. Returning far stronger than before was the wish of all of them. They had grown up seeing the sun and felt more at home there than they did here.

”Wait.” Tianming noticed something as they were celebrating. There were five other stars, all seemingly heliacal-class worlds, that weren’t far away from Orderia. The Violetglory Star wasn’t the closest one to the sun at all. Instead, there was a large and small white star that looked like demonic eyes not far away from Orderia.

”Isn’t that the legendary Skywolf Star?” Tianming said.

”That’s right.”

”It’s so close.”

”I see....”

The two white stars were five times closer to the sun than the Violetglory Star.