Beastmaster of the Ages

”Father, are you saying that House Suishen’s abandonment of Li Tianming means he’s been abandoned by the Three Exalted Houses and Myriadpath Valley as a whole? He’s dug his own grave by leaving Myriadpath Valley and has no chance of growing at all, since the Million Mundi isn’t optimal for cultivating top elites. Even if he doesn’t get hunted down and killed, he’s abandoned his future and will die in mediocrity, so I don’t have to prepare myself to face a foe like him anymore, right?” Suishen Yue asked.

”That’s right! He’s ruined his future. In other words, you have Suishen Yao to thank for getting rid of a huge future rival!” Suishen Hongtian said.

”But without her Suishen Blood, I’ve lost the chance to become an eminent. The thing you gave me also won’t come to good use now that the marriage’s been called off.”

”Are you a fool? Trading Suishen Blood to get rid of a huge potential foe is worth it. All you have to do is to keep uniting with Suishen Yao using the thing I gave you for a few hundred years. In the end, you’ll get more or less the same result, achieving twice your talent. Suishen Blood is only a starting boost. Even if you can’t become an eminent as fast, it’s only a matter of time as long as you use that item. It’s just a bit more work.”

”You’re saying that I still have to marry her?” Suishen Yue seemed stunned.

”You won’t?”

”She’s already been—”

”Do you love her?”

”I don’t.”

”Then why does it matter? She’s just a tool! You’re already being made fun of, so why should you care? Since you’ve fallen to rock bottom, you might as well frame yourself as someone who’s deeply in love and betrayed, but is still willing to forgive. Suishen Yao will never be able to marry after such a scandal. If you show up as a generous man with genuine intentions and appeal to the elders, they’ll be more than happy to take your offer.”

”Won’t I end up being seen as the biggest loser in all of it?”

”You’re already enduring mockery and rumors in Myriadpath Valley. Only by going through it will you be able to focus on what you truly want. You’ll gain a clear mind that’ll allow you to see through it all. Once you rise to the top, you’ll find that the people who mocked you will all kneel before you! It’s the only path available to you. Whether you have the courage to walk it is up to you!”

”Kneel to me. Once I rule over everything, trillions of lives will be in my hands! I’ll stand above them all....” How could Suishen Yue not desire that kind of glory, especially given his relatively low station? ”Suishen Yao, you’ve been disloyal to me, so don’t blame me for mistreating you!” Suishen Yue’s inner desires had been stoked by Suishen Hongtian. He stood up with his fists clenched tight and met his father’s gaze.

”Go! Only through trials and tribulations can you emerge a hero. One day, you’ll be able to dig out the eyes of everyone that’s given you a cold look!” Suishen Hongtian said.

”Yes! Suishen Yue nodded hard.

”Naturally, your time hasn’t come yet. Keep a low profile and wait for the storm to pass. Then you can start to show Suishen Ranxing and the rest your new side. Make sure to focus on him and all the elders and ignore Suishen Yao and her ilk. It’s pointless to go after her.”

”I understand!” Suishen Yue found a new goal after the short pep talk. Once more, he was firm in his desire to one day dominate everything.

***

”Breaking news! Read the Valley Times!” News of the scandal spread throughout Suishen Cave. The happiest of the three houses to receive word was House Yumo. Their major and minor pathkeepers occupied first place on the Fortuna and Maniverse Rankings. Additionally, the number of disciples they had that occupied the top ranks of both rankings as a whole exceeded that of House Qitian.

The fact that most of the people in the two rankings were under two thousand years old showed that each generation was getting stronger than the next. The youth was their future!

House Yumo’s powerful rise was no doubt thanks to starblood. Despite their domination, the presence of Tianming’s red-and-black name on the Fortuna Ranking was a huge matter for them. He was too popular as the pathkeeper that had broken countless records in Myriadpath Valley. He had even won the support of most of House Suishen after obtaining the great Suishen steles’ legacies, much to House Yumo’s chagrin.

However, lightning had struck right as they were pondering how to get rid of him. When word spread that Eminent Ranxing had declared Tianming a top fugitive and he was to be punished with extermination, along with anyone affiliated with him, booming laughter erupted in Yumo Cave. The laughter was so loud that it sounded like they were going insane.

”This turn of events is just unbelievable!”

”I’m laughing so hard right now.”

”Li Tianming’s a genius, alright!”

”Looks like our Yumo Xue’s defeat of Suishen Yao caused them to fuck up on their own!”

”I thought they had some kind of hidden trick up their sleeves.”

”I can’t.... I’m laughing so hard that my belly hurts....”

”Eminent Ranxing offered three kegs of springwater as a bounty. Should we add more to that?”

”I’ll offer a merit point!”

”Me too!”

”Brothers, we should head out right away. Once news of this spreads, there will be a lot of people out in the Million Mundi trying their luck. We should go too. Someone like Li Tianming is no doubt really famous in his world. He might be the son of some rex mundi. If we manage to hunt him down, we’ll be rich!”

”Let’s go!”

”I’ll say this first: if Li Tianming lives past a hundred, I’ll write my name in reverse from now on!”

”Isn’t your name Yumo Yu to begin with? Reverse the characters and it sounds the same!”

”Don’t mind the small details.”

Yumo Cave was filled with a festive mood. Nobody could wait to vent the frustrations that had been piling up since the Prehistoric Path.

”Among the minor pathkeepers, Yumo Yuanni is truly the weaker one. Yumo Xue, on the other hand, scared those two into dual cultivating. That’s an achievement, alright!”

”I didn’t think our minor pathkeeper had powers like that. Looks like I have to have him teach me a lesson once there’s a girl I’ve fallen for.”

That was the new running joke going around. Yumo Xue himself greatly enjoyed the joke. ”The guy who came up with that is a genius!”

Yumo Lingyue, who was beside him, asked, ”Big Brother, doesn’t this mean it’s over for Li Tianming?”

”That’s right. Even if he isn’t killed, losing access to our resources will cause his talent to go to waste and he’ll fade into mediocrity.”