Beastmaster of the Ages

”Brother Yue is in the top ten of the Maniverse Ranking. He has an advantage on the Prehistoric Path, so it seems your father prefers him?” Suishen Shuang cautiously asked.

”They’re all the same—annoying! I don’t want any of them! Suishen Yue is especially fixated on my Suishen Blood, hoping I’ll help him enhance his simulacrum fold so he can advance further, become an eminent before two thousand years old and reach the top of the Maniverse Ranking!” Suishen Yao spat with disgust.

Suishen Shuang sighed, ”They’re so eager for House Suishen to have more young eminents. Your Suishen Blood is indeed a huge opportunity for Brother Yue. Moreover, since you’re a direct descendant, your union could solidify the future of our House Suishen.” Suishen Shuang lowered her head.

In fact, Suishen Shuang knew that Eminent Ranxing’s decision to have them compete was just to give her brother Suishen Yuan a chance to keep some dignity. The odds for the two candidates in the Prehistoric Path were roughly 80-20! Suishen Yuan’s chances were very slim.

However, the person beside Suishen Shuang, Suishen Yao, had a completely different mindset. She didn’t want either of them! Thus, she felt irritated, angry, and resentful about her impending fate, losing sleep night after night.

Recently, she couldn’t leave Myriadpath Valley because House Suishen feared she might even run away. She couldn’t escape her fate!

As the two friends chatted, they entered the Suishen Cave.

When their figures disappeared, Suishen Yuan’s arm instantly turned cold as ice.

”Major Pathkeeper, sorry, I’m not able to do anything,” Tianming stepped back two paces, lowering himself to give Suishen Yuan an excuse to back down.

Suishen Yuan glanced at his hands. He didn’t look at Tianming, nor did he respond to him. Instead, he asked Suishen Zhao, ”Little Zhao, you plan to take this person into the Prehistoric Path?”

”Yes, Brother Yuan,” Suishen Zhao nodded.

”Why? Don’t you want to pass a few more trials?” Suishen Yuan asked.

Suishen Zhao glanced at Tianming and shook his head. ”The Prehistoric Path’s talent trial accounts for seventy percent. My combination with him might have a chance. Similarly, Brother Yuan’s team of talents might also have a chance against Brother Yue’s team of experts.”

”Haha.” These words were pleasing to hear. Suishen Yuan’s brows relaxed and he said, ”Alright, I’ll take your well wishes. Let us brothers work hard together.”

”Of course,” Suishen Zhao nodded.

”I’m leaving first.” Suishen Yuan waved and walked away. After a few steps, he turned back and glanced at Tianming.

That gaze... how to describe it? Disgust? Repulsion? Contempt? Speechlessness? He managed to mix it all together. Like House Huang, he didn’t expect a black ring disciple would disgust him so much.

The key was, because Suishen Yao was venting, Suishen Yuan had been caught in the mess too. So he could only bear it and had no solution for now. Although Tianming had been very well-behaved in front of Suishen Yuan, just the previous scene made it impossible for him to ever forgive him.

”Brother Li,” Suishen Zhao waved to him and said, ”Come to Suishen Cave. The Prehistoric Path opens in five days, so let’s study some details in these five days.”

”Alright!” Tianming’s attention turned to the Prehistoric Path. He would partner with Suishen Zhao; a black ring disciple would participate in a trial that only 399 other gold ring disciples qualified for.

He would be a chicken among a flock of cranes!

”Suishen Blood?” The conversation between Suishen Shuang and Suishen Yao before entering Suishen Cave was overheard by the nearby Yin Chens which had just scattered around there.

Tianming’s Yin Chens in Myriadpath Valley was less than one ten-thousandth of those in the Xenoabyss. They were concentrated in places like Grandblue Palace, Huang Palace, the Grand Myriadpath Ruins, Suishen Cave’s entrance, Fallengrace Hall, and a few other places. Even if top experts discovered it, they would regard it as a mindless child spawn of other lifebound beasts.

It was those few Yin Chen that heard the term ’Suishen Blood’.

”Suishen Yao has blood that can enhance someone’s simulacrum fold? Such a magical thing exists?” Tianming found it fascinating. His decapath era godswords’s simulacrum was only onefold, while Suishen Zhao’s was eightfold

So, while Tianming’s totems had vast potential, he had no clue on how to advance them. ”Yin Chen, investigate what exactly Suishen Blood is,” he said.

”Alright alright.” As long as there were keywords, it would focus on capturing the term ’Suishen Blood’ in conversations among the millions of cultivators in Myriadpath Valley.

Tianming didn’t expect the term to be that uncommon. He had just entered the Suishen Cave when Yin Chen got news, which came from Huang Daosheng.

Huang Daosheng, like me, is teaming up with a top talent from the Three Exalted Houses to challenge the Prehistoric Path? He could only say that enemies were always destined to meet.

The top talent was clearly Yumo Yuanni whom he had seen. No wonder Huang Daosheng teamed up with him.

At that moment, Huang Daosheng and Yumo Yuanni were discussing Suishen Blood.

”Their expressions... were lewd,” Yin Chen said.

”Why would they look lewd discussing Suishen Blood?” Tianming guessed it might be some kind of heart blood or crystal in the brain? After all, it had to be special to enhance simulacrums for totems.

Yin Chen only sighed.

As Tianming eagerly wanted to know the answer, even considering stealing some from Suishen Yao, Yin Chen meaningfully said, ”Your expression... will be... lewd too.”

”Shut up, be more righteous about cultivation matters,” Tianming helplessly said.

”Got it!”

”Tell me, where’s the Suishen Blood on her body?” Tianming asked.

”The seventh... heptastar organ!” Yin Chen clicked its tongue.

Tianming was stunned. He had absolutely no word for this

”Understand now? It’s the... blood of... a virgin,” Yin Chen cackled. At that moment, it was like Ying Huo had possessed it.

Tianming was dumbfounded for a while before his brain finally processed it. ”Damn! Who designed it, so gross!” He finally understood why Suishen Yuan and Suishen Yue were so desperate to get Suishen Yao, despite her terrible temper. Her dowry was unparalleled.

”Truly worthy of the highest totemancer clan in the universe!”

***

Five days passed in a flash. Tianming felt House Suishen becoming lively with the opening of the Prehistoric Path. Suishen Yao held a high status in House Suishen and her marriage prospects were hotly discussed by many members of House Suishen.

Suishen Zhao was a top figure within House Suishen. Despite his young age, he had his own palace, which was very luxurious and filled with abundant midsky essence. Five days weren’t enough for cultivation, so Suishen Zhao mainly explained some details of the Prehistoric Path.

”Two hundred groups compete and the top ten get rewarded with Myriadpath Sourcespring springwater and merit points?” Tianming excitedly asked.

”Why, interested?” Suishen Zhao grinned.

Over the past five days, Tianming had gotten quite familiar with him. Once familiar, Suishen Zhao didn’t put on airs. Or at least that’s how it appeared.

On a deeper level, Tianming could sense that Suishen Zhao still saw their statuses as different. However, his upbringing and clan traditions made him not easily show the distinction. That was his better upbringing compared to Suishen Yuan.

Suishen Yao had received the same upbringing, but was a special case.

Faced with Suishen Zhao’s question, Tianming didn’t humble himself. ”Since we’re challenging it, we should have a goal, right? Do you really just want to experience it?”

Suishen Zhao shook his head, ”You and I are the youngest group to challenge the Prehistoric Path in Myriadpath Valley’s history. We don’t even have two hundred years between us! Such youth is rare. As long as we achieve anything, we’ll be in the annals of history! If we could, who would want to just experience it?”

”Exactly,” Tianming grinned, ”since that’s the case, let’s aim for the top ten.”

Suishen Zhao nodded, then frowned and said, ”The top ten is as difficult as ascending to the heavens, but having a goal and fighting spirit is a mental strength.”

”We haven’t started yet, don’t think it’s difficult. Let’s change our mindset,” Tianming said.

”What mindset?”

”Fight to the death to get into the top ten!” Tianming grit his teeth, eyes blazing.

Suishen Zhao was stunned, then laughed, ”Alright, you’re like me at eighty, bold because of ignorance!”

Tianming was wordless. This boy was just over a hundred and he was already acting old. He smiled, then leaned in and asked, ”Minor Pathkeeper, I want to ask a crucial question.”

”Go ahead.”

”The Fortuna Ranking has fivefold and tenfold rewards. So I want to know, if we get into the top ten, will the rewards still be multiplied like that?” Tianming asked.

Suishen Zhao didn’t hesitate much and nodded. ”To tell the truth, the top ten will give me fivefold rewards, and you’ll receive tenfold rewards!”

Receiving this confirmation, Tianming’s eyes lit up, ”Then we must go all out! The next Prehistoric Path opening is over a hundred years away. By then, I’ll only have fivefold rewards left, and you’ll have threefold.”

”Obviously. The problem is that the high rewards are proportionate to the difficulty. Our chance of getting into the top ten is at least ten times lower than my sister’s,” Suishen Zhao said.

”Understood.” Though Suishen Zhao wasn’t as determined, knowing the difficulty, Tianming was fired up. His eyes burned with intensity and fervor.

Suishen Zhao, though thinking it a bit fanciful, didn’t mind being inspired by Tianming’s fighting spirit. Though he doesn’t know much, this conviction is something I should have too, he concluded.

Yin Chen also informed Tianming that, these days, all of Myriadpath Valley was discussing the Prehistoric Path! No one wasn’t talking about it. Moreover, the fifth-to-last day was when the list was announced.