Beastmaster of the Ages

Come to think of it, he would definitely regret not ending my life back then, huh? Tianming thought. Lin Jianxing would be fraught with regret, a most unpleasant feeling. Then again, there’s nothing he can do about it now. As long as I don’t want to run into him in the Oldgod Domain, he can never touch a single hair of mine!

Tianming couldn’t be bothered with him and continued using the caeli inside the two green skeletons to help his divine wills grow. ”I only need a bit more time to reach the fifth level, which would probably make me unmatched among everyone who’s not yet an astral god.” He was rather looking forward to that. Finally, the day when he was no longer a pushover in this world was almost here. While he couldn’t quite determine how he would fare against astral gods yet, the confidence he had in himself was rising.

”If I had four more of those fingers, I’d be able to shake the entirety of Ebonia!”

”Oh, keep boasting, why don’t you?” Ying Huo chimed in.

Ten days later, Yin Chen suddenly made a lot of noise, drawing Tianming’s caelum out of the world of caeli. ”Bad news!”

”What’s wrong with you?” Tianming asked.

”I found... green cap!” said a silver scorpion on Tianming’s head.

”Green your ass!” He took it down and said, ”Now, what did you find? Talk slowly.” Every time Yin Chen got too anxious, its words would get mixed up. Tianming found that rather frustrating.

”I just... found a... green skeleton!” the scorpion finally said.

”A third one? Good boy. Looks like there’s quite a number of them around here. However, we can’t rush things. Let’s make sure nobody is in the vicinity first so that I can just go there to take it.”

”People are... somewhere nearby!” Yin Chen said, still as impatient as before.

”What level are they? If they’re strong, we’ll wait for them to leave, or maybe you can lure them away. If they’re weak, we’ll use them to hone our skills,” Tianming said, still relaxed.

”They are... stronger than... you are!”

”Then, try to lure them away.”

”Won’t work... they already... discovered the... skeleton and... are inspecting... it now!” Yin Chen said, still agitated. Yin Chen had discovered the skeleton at around the same time as the others, and there was no way for it to drive them away. ”They put... it in... their spatial... rings already!”

The skeleton had already been taken! What a nightmare! Tianming knew that the skeletons were probably related to some deep secret of the Oldgod Domain. It was quite a loss for someone stronger than him to have taken it. ”Tell me the name of the one that took it.”

”It is... the fellow... that stepped... on you!”

Tianming was stunned.

”Who stepped on who?” Ji Ji asked with a dark look, emerging from the lifebound space.

Tianming pressed its pink head back inside, then took a deep breath and grit his teeth. ”Dammit, what a bummer. Why’s Lin Jianxing showing up so often?”

”It’ll definitely be quite hard to take it back from him. Once he hands it in to the seniors when he gets out, it’ll be even harder,” Ying Huo said.

”Looks like that man’s our boss’ nightmare. Every time he appears, our boss starts losing hair,” Meow Meow said.

”Cat Bro, are you saying Little Li’s pubes will fall out from the shock?” Ying Huo asked.

”It’s possible! His balls have been shattered before, after all! They’re no longer in mint condition!”

Tianming quickly grabbed Meow Meow and gave its balls a hard flick. It yowled in pain and turned into a bolt of lightning that buzzed around inside the cavern, hatefully shrieking. ”There, yours aren’t mint anymore either.”

”That’s abuse! I’m going on strike for medical reasons! I won’t wake up until my balls are healed after a long, deep sleep,” it grumbled, legs closed tightly as it pitifully lay on the ground.

”How many years do you plan to sleep?” Tianming asked.

Meow Meow raised its paws and began counting. ”One day... two... maybe seven.... At least a million years!” It jumped straight from days to a million years, giving Tianming a hateful, yet pitiful look to try to inspire sympathy.

”Ahem...” he cleared his throat and gently cradled it. ”My brother, my precious lifebound beast, since you want to sleep so badly, how could I bear to deny you that?”

”Hey, what else are you planning to do?” It warily shielded its balls with its paws and tail, alertly watching Tianming.

”Don’t be so nervous, darling. With the others here as witnesses, I hereby promise that I’ll let you have enough sleep if you do me one last favor. If I wake you from your well-deserved sleep, I’ll call you Uncle,” Tianming coaxed.

Suspicious, Meow Meow said, ”Why do I smell something fishy?”

”Cat Bro, that’s called a ploy,” Ying Huo said.

”No, it’s no ploy! I’m talking heart-to-heart to you as your beastmaster!” Tianming said.

”Just say it! What do you want me to do?” The allure of uninterrupted sleep was far too tempting.

”Well, see, they took the green skeleton, right? Since you’re fast, I want you to lure someone away so I can swoop in to get what I want.”

”That’s easy! Deal! I’ll lure the girl away for you while you deal with that ball crusher fellow, right?”

”No! You lure the ball crusher away while I deal with his girlfriend.”

”Are you stupid? The green skeleton was taken by that ball crusher!”

”No, Yin Chen said that his girlfriend took the skeleton!”

”But why?”

”Cause ball crusher there said that it’s heavy to the point that it’ll affect his swordsmanship! Looks like he’s quite the dainty fellow, unlike me, who’s completely unfazed even though I’m carrying two of them.” Because of that, he had a chance to get the third set. ”Meow Meow, the march of history never ceases. In the long stream of time, the moment for you to shine has finally come. You must leave your mark in history and forge a glorious legend befitting of your stature!”

Tianming raised him up like a newborn cub. One could almost imagine a spotlight lighting up Meow Meow. ”Meow! Tell us humble historical witnesses of your decision!”

”Nyam... fppprruuu....” A bubble formed near its nostril. With an audible pop, it left the nostril and floated upward; Meow Meow had fallen asleep.