Beastmaster of the Ages

Qitian Cave was rich with color, especially in contrast to the dark and gloomy Yumo Cave. It definitely had a much more elegant air about it. Qitian Muchen flew toward a tall building within it. When he passed, people on the streets would hurriedly bow to him.

After some time, he reached a spot devoid of people. The buildings there were incredibly ancient, with plants overgrown all over the place. The tiny black beast on Qitian Muchen’s shoulder seemed incredibly excited since his arrival, jumping off its master and zooming around with its tongue out as it panted like a dog.

There were nine distinct streams of energy within its body, eight of them from the beastfaces that glowed with bright starlight, causing the tiny beast to emanate a majestic aura. Even though it hadn’t reached full maturity, it could easily make most lifebound beasts in Myriadpath Valley cower in fear.

”Yazi, calm down. It isn’t your first time doing this,” Qitian Muchen said, shaking his head with a resigned smile. He was helpless before the adorable ’baby’.

The little beast called Yazi was an agitated little thing. Despite its master’s words, it continued pacing around, and even howled like an excited wolf.

”Hey, if you’re so loud, you’ll startle my ’little sister!’” Qitian Muchen felt rather contemptuous of that form of address.

After he mentioned his little sister, he reached the deepest part of that area. There was an emerald courtyard ahead of him. His smile completely vanished when he entered the area and was replaced by a cold expression.

He walked into the courtyard and looked up. Amidst the countless trees and flowers was a girl dressed in a long green dress. She wore a veil and seemed incredibly lonely. One would think that she was a tree without looking too close. She was none other than Jian Qinghe.

Qitian Muchen expressionlessly looked at her, as a ruler would a subject, and called out to Yazi before walking toward her together with his beast. Jian Qinghe didn’t move in the slightest. All she did was stare at Qitian Muchen through her veil. There wasn’t any fear in her expression. Rather, it was filled with profound hatred and despair. The son of the valley lord was the source of many unhealable traumas that she had experienced.

Qitian Muchen sat down in a pavilion and looked at her, then began speaking in a soft but authoritative voice. ”Why’re you blankly staring? Yazi’s hungry.”

The little beast’s eyes shone as it spun around Jian Qinghe, panting. Rivulets of drool dripped off its tongue, causing her to shake with hatred and fear.

Qitian Muchen didn’t fear her reaction and only found it laughable. ”This is the reason for your existence, and it was decided at the moment of your birth. Destiny’s set in stone by the heavens, so you should’ve gotten used to it by now. Why’re you still looking at me that way?”

”You’ll understand once you’ve experienced everything I’ve experienced,” Jian Qinghe said.

”Hahahaha!” Qitian Muchen shrugged. ”How naive. I’ll never come to experience those things. Even though our births coincide, my body’s fundamentally different. It might sound crude, but you are nothing but a mere renewable piece of vegetable whose purpose is to nourish me. That hasn’t changed. You should be thankful that the heavens gave a vegetable like you a mind at all so that you can experience what life is like.”

Jian Qinghe didn’t say anything else. The years had proven that resistance was futile and would only lead to even more cruel suppression. Myriadpath Valley and the Million Mundi were ruled by the father of the person before her. There was no might in the entire world that could possibly stand up to Qitian Muchen. There was no escape, either, no matter how far she could run.

She took a deep breath and her body began changing. Her astrons shuddered as she turned from a body of flesh into that of a glowing plant, complete with flowers, grass, leaves, and vines! The luminescent plant parts gently glowed and let out a pleasant fragrance. It was a puzzling sight indeed.

Xian Xian had always been a plant, and not even it could turn from plant to animal. But the same didn’t apply to Jian Qinghe. Her limbs, especially, had been completely florified. When the flowers and grass on her body fluttered, all other plants in the courtyard seemed to be revitalized.

Qitian Muchen chuckled at the sight. ”Thanks to you myriadpath source spirits, my Yazi can only eat grass, even though the other Qitians get to consume the flesh of lifebound beasts. Imagine, a magnificent beast like Yazi, eating grass like a mere herbivore! Can you believe it? Jian Qinghe, you really should be honored by the fact that you’re even allowed to serve us.”

Jian Qinghe lowered her head and didn’t say anything. She knew there wouldn’t be a point to anything she said. Qitian Muchen didn’t hold back, either, though he saw no reaction. His little black beast had been incredibly hungry. When Qitian Muchen nodded, it immediately leapt toward Jian Qinghe’s florified limbs and body and began devouring her bite by bite!

Yin Chen saw the entire scene and observed the pained expressions beneath Jian Qinghe’s veil as the little black beast gnawed away at her. She uncontrollably groaned, despite trying her best not to show any of her suffering to someone like him. Who could possibly remain still and silent as they were being devoured?

”Yazi, don’t rush. Take it slow. The more you eat, the more she’ll grow. It’s been a thousand years and you’ve done this more than ten thousand times. Why’re you always in such a rush?” Qitian Muchen said, smiling. He bit a stalk of grass in his mouth and comfortably laid down, watching his lifebound beast feed with glee. This was nothing more than normal feeding for him and the pain of his so-called little sister didn’t seem to matter one bit.

The process lasted two hours. When the beast’s body began glowing green with enhanced vigor, a sign that its astrons were charged to saturation, Jian Qinghe’s body had basically been completely eaten up.

Yazi rolled on the ground and rubbed its belly like a drunk, falling asleep in satisfaction. Only then did Qitian Muchen get up and take it back into his lifebound space.

He turned and looked at Jian Qinghe, who had collapsed on the ground. Her face was completely pale. Her limbs were all gone and parts of her body had been ravaged by beast bites. Only her head and veil remained intact.