Beastmaster of the Ages

To Tianming and the rest, it was quite troublesome for the Divine Sun Palace to be able to wear their formation down without any risk of being attacked.

”They’re able to strike at us while all we can do is defend, yet there’s nothing we can do about it. Well, the Divine Sun Palace doesn’t have infinite energy to attack, though. I heard Windheed Pavilion’s formation lasted nine attacks. Based on the brightness of its nova sources, I think it can only attack up to sixty or eighty more times,” Tianming said.

”Then it probably only has thirty-eight blasts or so left, so we have hope. However, it’s starting to feel like there’s only a fifty percent chance for us to win, though if they have any other trump cards, it’ll be even lower,” Fushen Gongyi said.

It was also Tianming’s first time seeing the sun emperor being so patient. This was unlike their usual style. The other Fushens no longer laughed, knowing that they couldn’t fight back at all. They could already feel the bombardment draining them more and more.

”I worry that he’ll send his army out to fight right as we’re sucked dry. The fifty million troops we have here may no longer be able to hold the formation and have to fight them head-on, which would give the Divine Sun Palace a chance to shatter our formation. There’s a chance we might collapse that way,” Fushen Gongyi anxiously said. The enemy’s unknown intentions made it hard to predict the fate of the Fushen Clan.

”Yeah. The sun emperor came despite knowing that we sent forty million reinforcements. That means he estimates at least sixty percent odds of winning.” It was unlikely that the sun emperor would fight an unwinnable war, given his current state, especially after the heavy losses he had suffered at the Myriaddragon Mountains and Azurecloud Continent.

By now, the flaming visage of the gigantic golden head was right above Tianming and Fushen Gongyi. Tianming grit his teeth and said, ”However, it isn’t like we have no chance at all. The Divine Sun Palace’s nova source reserves can run out. I believe that they’ll attack us when we’re at our weakest, but in turn, that also gives us a chance to finally fight back, so the enemy won’t be leaving without suffering any casualties. We can win as long as our ground forces have a chance to deal some damage.” In other words, it was quite unlikely for the Divine Sun Palace to take out the formation without suffering casualties as long as its reserves were limited. However, if they deployed troops, there was a good chance that they could deal the Fushen Clan a fatal blow, but that was a chance for Tianming to fight back.

”You’re right. The sun emperor is trying to force us to extinction! Even if they have more reach than us and can attack without suffering retaliation, that alone won’t be enough to wipe us out. If they want to exterminate us, they’ll have to get their own hands dirty, but that’ll be our cue to retaliate!” The Fushen Clan was all too used to situations like that. They had risen from countless other battles, often turning the tides in their favor. They were bug beastmasters that didn’t possess an inherent advantage in combat. After all, insects couldn’t quite measure against fierce beasts. The only reason they were able to overcome their enemies time and again was their ingenuity, which allowed them to turn the tables on their opponents. And they didn’t need Fushen Gongyi to tell them that, either. After the repeated bombardments, they stopped laughing and began building up resentment, constantly waiting for a chance to strike back.

As for the troops inside the Ninedragon Imperial Tomb, as long as Tianming didn’t fall, they would bide their time; life and death would be decided in a single instant. For now, the scales were tipped in the celestial orderians’ favor. Even they could tell how angry the Fushen Clan was from the diminishing sound of their mockery. Now, it was their turn to mock.

”These ignorant hicks really are fools. Looks like the Warlord understands them well. They were so quick to boast when they thought they had the advantage, but now they’re cowering like cowardly turtles while we wait to swoop in and decapitate them.” The grand prince, Li Tianyi, stood beside the Warlord as the sun emperor continued attacking with the backup Solar Wheel. They admired the sight of the resistance in Fushen Valley.

”The Fushen Clan is a lowly one that only uses underhanded tactics. They’re the very definition of lowborn scum that doesn’t deserve to occupy such vast swaths of land. If there’s a group in the Myriad Solar Sects that deserves to be completely eliminated, it would undoubtedly be them! They’re dirty, shameless, and vile. They represent the dark side of our world.” The Warlord seemed filled with rage. As ’just and righteous’ wargodeans, they had irreconcilable differences with their neighbors. If it weren’t for the celestial orderians, they might still be living under the foot of the Fushen Clan.

”Worry not, Warlord. One sect must be made an example and completely wiped out to stun the rest into shock before the fight even starts. We’ll crush their morale that way. The Fushen Clan is perfect to use as an example. After all, they’re nothing but disgusting stinkbugs. There’s no better target to crush under our feet. I heard that the Fushen Clan has really high birth rates, so they rely on swarm tactics to oppress you. Won’t the world be a much better place if we burned them all to death?” Li Tianyi seemed really sinister as he spoke. He truly did feel disgust toward the Fushen Clan, who were completely unlike the proud and refined celestial orderians that represented justice and all that was good. Insects didn’t belong on the flaming sun, after all. That was why they’d already sentenced the Fushen Clan to death before the sun emperor himself had said anything about it.

”Those vile, dirty, and uncultured bugs are a stain on the sun. If we wipe them out, wouldn’t it be a service to the sun, Master?” the Warlord said, turning to the Tumulus Pill God.

”That’s right. It just so happens that all the bugs are conveniently gathered here. We’ll use a strong fire to burn their nest up.”

”Hahaha!” Li Tianyi, Li Mumu, and Situ Yin laughed.

Situ Yin said, ”To be honest, this Li Tianming truly is naive. He only brought forty million troops here. If he’d picked one from Frostsoul Imperium or the Fushen Clan, he could probably save at least one, but he wanted to defend both. He really looks down on us and the Divine Sun Palace. Does he think he can overcome us just because the palace is at half power?”

Li Mumu said, ”I congratulate the Warlord and Deluge Emperor in advance. After we wipe out Fushen Valley, the sun emperor probably intends to go back north to replenish our nova source reserves. After that, we’ll use the same tactic against the Frostsoul Imperium. We’ll only strike after wearing them down.”

”And to think they thought we’d swarm them normally. They really underestimated us,” Li Tianyi said.

”With the Divine Sun Palace, we’ll always maintain our initiative. Not to mention, the Fushen Clan is counting on Li Tianming and his divine astralship. He alone is the spirit of their alliance. Once we take down the Fushen Clan, the remaining first-rate factions will be completely demoralized!”

”That’s right!” Li Tianyi turned and looked at the dark world ahead. ”That fellow was truly overconfident. If I were him, I’d let the other sects die and hide in the Myriaddragon Mountains. With his talent, I really don’t know why he didn’t choose to roam the astralscape instead of coming back to his death. At the end of the day, they’re nothing but fools. They overestimate themselves after their victory at the Myriaddragon Mountains, but they only managed that because of their ancestors.”

After he said that, the Divine Sun Palace launched yet another blast. The sun emperor turned back to look at him and said, ”That’s right, and you aren’t even Li Tianming. You’re a fool who couldn’t become someone like him even if you tried.”

”Esteemed Father!” Li Tianyi was completely embarrassed, being chewed out at his age. He hurriedly knelt, shaking from being called a fool. That was what many people secretly labeled him as, but there was nothing he could do about it. His father had known long ago that he would never become his successor, but he had many other accomplished younger brothers. As the oldest of them, he grew more and more obedient, making the sun emperor’s goals his life’s purpose. Even he thinks I’m a fool? Li Tianyi was quite unhappy, but he had no opinion of his own and only heeded his father’s words.

The sun emperor turned to the others and said, ”We can start preparing now. Attack on my signal.”

”Yes!” Their spirits flared up. This was the moment they were waiting for. Once the Fushen Clan was worn down, it would be time to start the harvest. The troops were ready and eager. As the biggest beneficiaries of this battle, the wargodeans had to contribute, so they would be fighting at the very front to pave a way for the fifty million troops behind them.

”Everyone, this is an important day in the history of the Wargod Clan! It’s the first time we’re fighting as one of the great races of the sun! We’re fighting for our own future! We’ll use the blood of the Fushen Clan to crush the spirit of the Ninedragon Army! They’ll become the whetstones that sharpen our weapons! We’ll trample on their corpses and become the top beastmasters in Orderia! Today is the day we wipe out those vile insects for good! They’ll suffer the same fate as the fools of the Windheed Pavilion!”