Beastmaster of the Ages

To the disciples of the Swordgod Lin Clan, the council hall might be the most sacred area of all. Not only did it represent deep respect and deference to their ancestors, it also stood for the core of the clan’s power. Branch masters or mistresses, on the other hand, were just people who managed the matters of the different branches, whereas the true power to dictate policy remained with the clan council. Anyone that was allowed within the council hall definitely had a higher status than branch leaders.

It was often said that half of the council was dead, while the other half was alive. The living dictated all policy before the dead. While the dead had passed, their wills, spirits, and souls remained within the hall to keep watch over the members of the living.

Those that were qualified to enter the hall couldn’t lack any of the four key aspects of power, status, contribution, and seniority. But even if one had all four, should they betray the clan’s expectations or bring shame to it, they would be kicked out of the council. Lin Xiao and Dongshen Yue were two such examples. The council members were from different branches, but they were already separate from their respective branches.

Many disciples believed that the council hall was a place with a grandiose appearance, but the truth was anything but. The construction of the council hall had followed the strictest simplistic traditions inherited from ancient times. It was situated within the Myriadsword Mausoleum and didn’t look eye-catching at all. Within it were simple wooden chairs lined up alongside long wooden tables, upon which ancestral tablets rested. There were three thousand of them in total, each of them marked with a name and set behind a small incense pot that was adorned with ever-burning incense sticks.

Behind the tables was a wall on which a wooden sword hung. Perhaps due to not being cleaned for a long time, a layer of dust and mold had built up on the sword. It looked to be rotting, seeming like it could crumble with a single touch. Two characters for ’wood’ (木 and 林) were inscribed onto the sword from top to bottom, making up the character for ’forest’, which was read as Lin.

The ancient, understated, and traditional hall gave off an aura of stifling mystique. The ancestral tablets were like the ancestors’ eyes, still and eternal as they overlooked the entire hall. The wooden chair in the center of the hall was occupied by an old man, weakly slumped into it as if he was paralyzed. Both of his hands rested on the armrests and he could only barely open one eye to look at the tablets. He was dressed in a twilight-yellow robe and his skin was wrinkled like bark, his veins popping out like tree roots. He almost looked like an old tree.

”Gu,” someone said from outside. ”I’m coming in.” They lightly pushed the door open. With an audible squeak, a ray of twilight sun entered the hall, considerably brightening it. The tablets seemed to be awakened from their dreams, the text on them slightly glowing.

The man that stood at the entrance was one-armed. The bridge of his was quite tall, like a sword plastered on his face, and his eyes pulsed with powerful sword ki. He was the master of the fifth branch, Lin Jie. He entered the hall and looked at the tablets. Then he respectfully bowed three times and kowtowed nine times, muttering something throughout. When he got up, he lit some incense sticks and put one in each pot. ”Please accept my humble offering, esteemed ancestors.”

When he was done, he bowed and backed off before sitting behind the old man called Gu with his head lowered. ”Gu, Lin Mu’s son has returned. Have you heard?”

The old man gently nodded. ”Let him be. We all have our own fates.” Gu’s voice was so hoarse that it sounded like bark rubbing together.

”Understood.” While his eyes slightly flashed, he still nodded. Standing up, he said, ”I’ll take my leave.”

”Lately, the formation of the Swordsoul Purgatory has been loosening up a bit, resulting in the increase of nova wildbeasts in the area. Do take someone with you to mend it,” said the old man.

”Very well.” Lin Jie nodded and backed off, still bowing, until he reached the entrance and closed the doors. The council hall was left completely dark once more.

”No clan lasts forever.... The end of my Lin Clan is also nigh.... It all started with the Ancestral Swordheart and shall end with the council hall.”

The ancestral tablets sank back into a deep abyss.

......

A mini ship rose high up into the sky. Though the veil of night had begun to shroud Ebonia, that wouldn’t stop the bustling activity of the corporation. Lights adorned the entire business sector, keeping operations ceaselessly running. From the sky, the countless lights looked like distant galaxies. Each of the sword peaks in the sea looked even more impressive against the backdrop of the night sky!

”Ebonia’s rather beautiful...” Feiling said, leaning against Tianming.

”That’s just the Infinitum Swordsea. Other places in Ebonia might not be like that. There’s many places where light doesn’t reach,” Dongshen Yue said.

”I see....” Tianming and Feiling exchanged glances.

”Big Brother, you have to stay safe and vigilant,” Feiling said, tugging on his sleeve a little reluctantly. She knew that the Swordsoul Purgatory might be more dangerous than any place he had gone so far. Tianming would be forbidden from using his lifebound beasts, totems, and divine wonders.

”Don’t worry. If there’s really any danger, who cares about the rules? I’ll use my totems and divine wonders no matter what rules they have! They’ll be shocked!” he confidently said.

”Hmph.” She seemed a little relieved after seeing his confidence. She cleared her throat and deepened her voice, saying, ”Do your best, Little Li. We goddesses will be going to the Caeli Vault to level up. If you aren’t able to keep up, you’ll never be able to raise your head around us!”

”Don’t worry, dear wife. I’ll break through to the Stellaminoris stage soon enough. You have millions and billions of years on me, but I won’t give up!”

”You little...!” She gave his arm an angry tug.

”Pssst, if you have time off, let’s do something fun. My pleasure balls are about to expire,” he whispered.

”Hmph! Shut up!” She shuffled behind Dongshen Yue, thinking that she would protect her.

However, Tianming made his appeal. ”Grandma, your granddaughter-in-law doesn’t want to cooperate in the making of your great grandson! Can you do anything about it?”

”Oh, just leave it to me. I’ll work that idea into her soon enough,” Donghsen Yue said, widening her eyes.

Feiling felt like she had fallen into a trap.

......

After Tianming parted from them, he headed back to Brokensword Peak, reading the book about the Swordsoul Purgatory as he traveled.