Beastmaster of the Ages

Eyes lighting up, Tianming nodded. ”Yes, Master.”

”There’s one common method for fortuna disciples to obtain the Myriadpath Sourcespring,” Lan Yun said.

”Master, please tell me,” Tianming eagerly said.

”The Fortuna Ranking,” Lan Yun replied.

”What’s that?”

”It’s simple. All fortuna disciples under the age of five hundred are ranked according to combat power. The top hundred disciples will be qualified to access the Myriadpath Sourcespring,” Lan Yun said.

”Yes!” Tianming was visibly excited. He had a goal now.

”You’re so happy, but do you know what the Fortuna Ranking signifies?” Lan Yun asked.

Tianming shook his head.

”It represents the top geniuses under the age of five hundred in the entire cosmos! The top hundred on the ranking are the hundred most powerful in all of Myriadpath Valley, the Million Mundi, and the entire cosmos. The top ten on the ranking are the ten most powerful and gifted beings in the cosmos, and first place means number one in the entire cosmos!” Lan Yun stressed, her eyes cold.

”The most powerful and gifted beings.... I understand!” Tianming felt a little suffocated because he knew that the Fortuna Ranking was the most authoritative ranking in Myriadpath Valley and the Mullion Mundi. It was completely separate from the Skyward Ranking, which was reset every round.

”You understand? What do you know? Then let me ask you this: do you know what level those in the top hundred are?” Lan Yun shot Tianming an irritated look.

”I don’t know,” Tianming said.

”The hundred and first to two hundredth disciples are all twelfth-level cosmic cartographers.”

”Twelfth level?” Tianming was startled.

Lin Ke and Fengqing Youmeng, who had reached first-level Cosmic Cartography before the age of five hundred, were the standard of an ordinary mundus, while Li Fan, a second-level cosmic cartographer, was at the bottom in Myriadpath Valley. The top hundred on the Fortuna Ranking were almost an entire cultivation stage higher than Lin Ke.

Tianming believed that bloodline, lineage, and the Myriadpath Sourcespring were all contributors. The large gap between them was the reason those from the Million Mundi did everything they could to enter Myriadpath Valley and continue their family lineages there so their descendants could all wear golden myriadpath rings.

”There are over a dozen foundationeers on the Fortuna Ranking, all of whom are under five hundred years old. Some of them are stronger than myriadpath saints over two thousand years old. A foundationeer can become the rex mundi of any mundus, but in Myriadpath Valley, they’re still considered young men and women. Do you see the gap between you and them?”

Foundationeers under five hundred!

”That’s crazy....” Tianming’s actual cultivation level was the first level of the Cosmic Cartography stage.

But if we go by combat power, I can already defeat a seventh-level cosmic cartographer and I’m not even a hundred years old. There’s still four hundred years before I turn a hundred. The Foundation stage is nothing.... So it looks like I’m still more awesome! Tianming had confidence in himself, but he couldn’t say anything because Lan Yun would probably laugh if he did.

”Don’t be discouraged. The fact that you’ve entered Myriadpath Valley and own a myriadpath ring puts you at the top of the Million Mundi. The astralscape of order is enormous. It doesn’t matter how outstanding you are, there’ll always be someone better than you. Others have inherited the legacy of their ancestors who’ve been here for thousands, or even millions of years. Of course you can’t compare to that. Change your mindset and work as hard as you can.”

”I understand, Master! I promise to live up to your expectations and repay you for saving my life,” Tianming said, cupping his fist.

”Alright.” His obedience pleased Lan Yun. Otherwise, she wouldn’t have said so much. ”Don’t wait for Myriadpath Valley to adapt to you, but adapt to Myriadpath Valley instead.” With those final words, she flew past Tianming, her blue dress fluttering in the wind.

”Goodbye, Master!” Tianming bowed with his palms facing outward, keeping his head lowered.

After Lan Yun left, he stretched his muscles, looked at the new courtyard that belonged to him, and finally breathed a sigh of relief.

”Aren’t you upset after being criticized and belittled for so long?” Ying Huo asked.

”What’s there to be upset about? What she said isn’t true, don’t I know that?” Tianming smiled. He was accomplished in all areas but would fail at all of them in the future? Eight orders were too many? Tainted? Time would tell whether or not that was true. As long as he was alive, he could deal with it all.

......

Grandblue Palace, outside Tianming’s courtyard.

”Master’s left.”

Two handsome young men stood under a golden tree. The one wearing white was Tianming’s fifth brother, Gongsun Yan, who entered Myriadpath Valley early on and was nearly five hundred years old. He was about to become a maniverse disciple. The young man dressed in purple looked much younger. He was Gong Xuan, an eight-level cosmic cartographer approaching four hundred years old, which made him almost on par with many internal disciples, like Huang Daoxiong. He was quite talented and had been a disciple of Lan Yun for only ten years. Before Tianming’s arrival, he was the junior brother of Grandblue Palace.

Lan Yun’s disciples were some of the best in the million mundi. Gong Xuan was still a sixth-level cosmic cartographer when he had challenged the Skyward Grandpath ten years before. At the time, he had made it to the top thirty on the Skyward Ranking. Although he didn’t have the most points, his combat power would have put him in the top ten.

Others believed that he would be in the top five, had he waited a hundred years to compete. However, he didn’t want to wait because it might have been impossible for him to advance two levels in just ten years if he did. It was best to enter Myriadpath Valley as soon as possible.

At that moment, the purple-robed Gong Xuan came running in.

”Fifth Brother! Fifth Brother! I have big news,” Gong Xuan said with a strange look on his face.

”Go on.” Gongsun Yan had a mature temperament and was much calmer.

”It’s about our junior brother. There’s news from the Skyward Grandpath....” Gong Xuan told Gongsun Yan everything he had heard about the events that transpired.

”He’s under a hundred years old and he killed Huang Jihuang? And Master was the one who protected him?” Gongsun Yan was shocked.

”Yes! It’s true,” Gong Xuan said.

”I wouldn’t have guessed it. But why else would Master accept a tainted beastmaster who’s despised by everyone? Wouldn’t she be mocked and laughed at for nothing? So there’s something special about him.” Gongsun Yan frowned.

”What’s so special about him? From what I hear, his tainted bloodline must’ve mutated to cause rapid progress in his early years. And that isn’t not all. He uses several cultivation methods, so his bloodline must be impure. In any case, he’s clearly a deformed freak. He isn’t going to be able to go any further in a few years. I’ve seen people like him in my native mundus. They’re powerful and brilliant at first, but are completely trash after a hundred years or so,” Gong Xuan softly chuckled.

”Is that so?” Gongsun Yan said, clasping his hands behind his back, his narrowed eyes staring in the direction of Tianming’s courtyard. ”Our junior brother’s eyes are full of arrogance. He doesn’t have the nervousness or shame of a tainted beastmaster. He actually dared to kill the descendant of an ancient house, and master’s protecting him despite all the trouble he’s caused her. I’m afraid he must be very proud.”