Beastmaster of the Ages

”What’re you doing? You’re messing up my display line-up!” A million antiquitean imperials angrily glared at Tianming.

”What display?” Tianming raised an eyebrow.

”Neat and orderly!” they replied.

”You’re copying... my quirk!” countless silver bugs angrily shouted.

”Who’s copying who!”

”Stop arguing!” Tianming sighed and looked at the vast crowd before him, then shouted, ”So why did you bring me here? Didn’t you say you had a great gift for me? Go ahead, give it to me!”

”I’m not giving it anymore! I’m going to beat you up to vent my anger!” the antiquitean imperials roared.

Tianming was dumbfounded

The next moment, the million antiquitean imperials shrank to the same size as House Yumo specters, strengthening their fragile bodies. They weren’t astral giants, so despite their previous large size, their bodies had been hollow. But now they posed a tangible threat. Even if each individual threat was minor, the sheer numbers made up for it.

They all took to the skies, forming a dense encirclement around Tianming and Moran.

Tianming wanted to find out if Sixth could not only make them speak in unison, but also control their combat actions. Commanding them in battle was entirely different from making them speak.

Speaking involved routine actions. But in combat, each combatant had different variables. Each would attack in unique ways, requiring a higher level of soul manipulation.

”This is truly impressive!” As the million specters surged toward him, Tianming immediately noticed a difference. The eyes of the antiquitean imperials turned blood red, like wildbeasts locking onto him. They abandoned their orderly formation and individually attacked!

”Getting them to speak is a form of direct control, but making them fight is more like implanting a malicious intent. I’ve been set as their target, while actual combat is left to their own instincts.” Otherwise, their divine abilities and battle arts wouldn’t vary as they did.

At least it confirmed that Sixth wasn’t omnipotent. ”It wants to dictate the tempo, but I’ll provoke it instead. This little brat has a short temper. As long as it gets angry, I can exploit its flaws!”

Tianming made up his mind.

”Let’s go!”

He handed Ji Ji over to Moran. Pink nova source flowed into her, enveloping her in a pink radiance that made her similar to Jiguang for a moment. At the same time, Ji Ji’s spiritual body materialized beside her.

The two charged forward together, one using wonder powers as crowd control while the other plunged straight into the enemy’s ranks and launched fierce attacks.

Of course, Tianming avoided unnecessary killing. Thanks to cosmic charts, as long as he refrained from lethal follow-ups, just defeating them wouldn’t accidentally claim innocent lives.

He focused his strikes on their heads, where their brains and vitae resided, using the flat of the Grand-Orient Sword’s blade.

A tenth-level foundationeer was smashed into the ground, immediately fainting on the spot.

”It worked?” Tianming’s eyes lit up.

But the next moment, Moran and he were swallowed by the tidal wave of a million attackers. It was like being in an ocean filled with a million tiny fish swarming two larger ones. Even a single bite from each could completely consume them.

Among the crowd were formidable individuals, like Princess Ying, whom Jiguang had contacted before. There was also the strongest antiquitean imperial, the Antiquitean Emperor himself. He was a super-zenith foundationeer! He would be at the top of Myriadpath Valley, but here he was only an emperor of one nation in the Xenoabyss.

Antiquitas Mortis had roughly the same number of eminent-level combatants as House Suishen. Those elites led the charge, attacking with a frenzy of divine abilities and battle arts.

Moran unleashed over a dozen wonders, holding back the overwhelming assaults. Her wonders swept through the palace, shaking its very foundations and tossing tens of thousands of antiquitean imperials away. Her fortuna-class wonders either shielded her body or created a multi-million-meter-wide wonder domain around Tianming and Moran.

Even so, numerous antiquitean imperials still forced their way in, disregarding their own lives. They were clearly more unstable than earlier, when they were shouting their synchronized speeches. At times, faint traces of individuality appeared in their eyes, though it was overlaid with overwhelming hatred for Tianming.

”This means their usual state is controlled, but their combat state is more like hypnosis?” Tianming deeply pondered.

Moran and he continued holding their ground. Suddenly, Moran turned toward him with a cold smile. ”You didn’t actually think this cosmic cartographer could be your ally, did you? She’s my ally!”

The wonder field’s suppression immediately targeted Tianming while Moran herself lunged at him.

Tianming remained calm. ”Ji Ji.” A single command made Ji Ji’s nova source withdraw from Moran’s body. Her wonders instantly vanished and she collapsed into Tianming’s arms.

”Secondly, it can’t control other Primordial Chaos Beasts!” Tianming continued drawing conclusions.

Moran weakly pounded his chest with her fists, but it was nothing more than harmless tapping. Even so, Sixth had succeeded in neutralizing one of Tianming’s key allies.

”Thirdly, it can’t control me!” If it could, none of its elaborate setup would be necessary.

Although the insights offered clarity, they didn’t change the immediate threat posed by Sixth’s rage. The sheer number of divine abilities from a million antiquitean imperials could obliterate Tianming.

Fortunately, he had Meow Meow and Fiveway Blitzrun.

”Who said I’d fight you head-on?”

Facing ten opponents was challenging.

Facing a hundred was life-threatening.

Facing a million was just sheer chaos, with only a few able to attack him, and most not even able to see him.

Using Fiveway Blitzrun, he darted through the crowd.

”You’re hiding in this palace? Let’s see if I can’t drag you out!” He coldly smirked and weaved through the massive horde. The imperial palace was enormous, and a sea of specters relentlessly chased after him.