Beastmaster of the Ages

Right as Tianming left, Eminent Jiguang emerged from the Lumistar Formation. ”Phew! Just barely made it!” he said.

When he arrived at the Myriadpath Celestial Formation, he went straight to Myriadpath Valley and headed toward the Grand Myriadpath Ruins. On the way there, his transmission stone lit up. As expected, Eminent Jiguang had reached out to him right after she returned. She truly was concerned for him.

He picked up the call and saw a projection of her figure. She seemed rather fatigued. ”Auntie, you’ve gone away for ten years this time around. Did you run into any difficulties?”

”Not really. It was just a bit of a tough search,” she said. She had to constantly remain vigilant while searching for the missing person within the Inner Yin, a dangerous and tumultuous place. If Yin Chen could enter it, Tianming could at least help her out. However, it simply wasn’t possible.

”Do you want to rest a few years?” Tianming asked.

Eminent Jiguang shook her head. ”The calm season doesn’t last too long, so there’s no time to rest. By the way, where are you? I’ll come to you.”

”I’ve been cultivating in the Grand Myriadpath Ruins over the past few years,” Tianming lied, his heart not skipping a single beat.

”Alright, I’ll head there then.” She hung up right before Tianming made it to the entrance of the ruins. It didn’t take long before she showed up.

”Let’s go.” There were many others in the Grand Myriadpath Ruins, so it wasn’t the best place to speak. The two of them went to a scenic cherry-blossom forest. Eminent Jiguang picked a large stone to sit on, feeling the relief of finally being able to rest.

”Yaoyao said you give good massages. Why don’t you give me one? I’m so exhausted,” she said as she stretched, accentuating her mind-blowing curves.

”Sure thing.” Tianming practiced the traditional art of the sky plunderers, using all kinds of techniques like pushing, pulling, kneading, and pinching.

”Mmmhmm.... It feels great....” Eminent Jiguang’s enjoyed the massage with her eyes closed. It only encouraged Tianming to not want to stop, ever.

Using her senses, she inspected Tianming’s cultivation. ”You used the grade-eight order fragment and reached the twelfth level, right?”

”Yes. I did it a few years ago. I’m only a step away from reaching the Foundation stage now.” Tianming was standing behind her and couldn’t see her belly at all.

”Good.” She looked up at him and suddenly smiled. ”Kid, are you a hundred years old yet?”

Tianming jumped at the realization. Fortunately, the Fortuna Ranking was in view. He looked at the top spot and noticed that his name had changed from red-and-black to orange-and-black. ”No—my ten times multiplier!”

It was a painful realization. No doubt, countless reverends and eminents had all breathed a sigh of relief that a ’monster’ was no longer sucking their springwater dry.

After using up all his springwater from before, Tianming had gained another ten kegs during the final ten years before he reached a hundred. Going forward, he would only be getting half a keg each year. However, nobody would expect him to have sixteen kegs’ worth of Yin-Yang Baleflame with him.

Eminent Jiguang said, ”You’re no longer a baby. I think you’ve finally become a feisty little kid. Youth sure is nice, just look at your smooth skin....”

”Auntie, your skin seems way smoother than mine,” Tianming said as he continued massaging her.

She did seem to enjoy the compliment. ”Where did you learn to talk like that, you brat? Are you using the same lines you use on Yaoyao? I won’t fall for it that easily.”

Tianming smiled without saying a word.

All of a sudden, she remembered something. ”Tell me. Did you and Yaoyao do the deed yet?”

”Not yet. I felt that we’re still young, so we should focus on cultivation first. That’s why I spent ten years in the Grand Myriadpath Ruins, so as not to disappoint her.”

Eminent Jiguang almost lost it when she heard that and blankly stared at him, speechlessly shaking her head. ”You’re just a straight-laced young boy, after all.... You don’t know anything about relationships at all. Forget it. You’re still young, so you’ll learn when you grow older.”

Tianming continued feigning innocence.

”Well, it’s not like your desire to focus on cultivation is a bad thing,” she continued with a wink. ”I brought you a gift this time as well.”

Tianming could guess what it was. Not only had she loaned him two kegs of springwater, she’d also given him two kegs of baleflame on her last return. Even then, she didn’t forget to bring him something again when she returned once more. ”Is it Yin-Yang Baleflame?”

”Yes. Guess how much?”

”One keg? Two?” he asked, feigning anticipation. Even though he had sixteen kegs of baleflame, receiving another keg for doing nothing was a delightful occasion nonetheless.

She held out four fingers.

”Four kegs?! Auntie, you’re awesome!” Tianming cheered. He would have given her a hug if he hadn’t been so concerned with keeping an appropriate distance.

Four kegs of baleflame were incredibly valuable. All told, she had given him eight kegs of wealth! It was an astronomical number for most people, close to what he had obtained by placing first in the Prehistoric Path with his ten-times multiplier. She wasn’t just looking out for him; she was absolutely spoiling him.

”You didn’t give Yaoyao nearly as much, did you?” Tianming said a little shyly after he took it all.

”I gave her some back then. She’s a princess of House Suishen, so she isn’t wanting for any more. Not to mention, it’d be safer for her if she cultivates slower. You’re different, however, and have to reach the Foundation stage to be in a safer spot. That’s why I felt like it’d be better to give it to you.” She had truly considered everything.

”Okay.”

”Don’t worry about owing me anything. Auntie doesn’t have any children of her own, so I’ll expect you to care for me when I turn old and dry,” she said.

”I’ll be sure to keep you plump and well fed! Your skin will look just as smooth as it does now for tens of thousands of years.”

”Hey, most people only live up to a few thousand years old, you know. You really take things too far, sometimes.” Despite the boast, she enjoyed the sentiment.

”Auntie, is it true that one can achieve true immortality after ascending beyond the Foundation stage?” Tianming asked. He wasn’t asking about extending one’s life with techniques like the demonesses of Fallengrace Peak used, but actually living beyond the age of ten thousand.

”Perhaps, but it’s so difficult that nobody’s managed to achieve it. Maybe I’ll reach the limit of cultivation myself soon,” she melancholically said. She had given him all the Yin-Yang Baleflame she had collected in the Inner Yin over the past ten years.