Beastmaster of the Ages

The Blissful Union entered the wormhole expressway, instantly vanishing from sight.

“Dammit!!” The group was furious, their refined features twisted into expressions of utter rage.

“Did we really let him escape just like that?”

There was something inside that astralship they all deeply coveted. They exchanged glances, their eyes blazing with uncontained fury.

“Wait!” a blue-haired man exclaimed, his eyes slightly narrowing. “That person must have a base in the Lower Star Ruins, right?”

“Yes!” As soon as the words were spoken, their gazes sharpened. Without hesitation, they shot back toward Wondrium. Moments later, they appeared before Fengqing Youmeng, surrounding her.

“Lord Envoys!” Fengqing Youmeng looked at them with confusion and reverence, her voice trembling. “Did you fail to capture that vile, inhuman criminal? My parents, my husband, my entire clan... sob... sob....”

Her helplessness and sorrow were palpable, stirring a sense of pity.

But the five powerful figures had no time for her emotions. The gold-haired man barked, “Do you know where that boy’s base is? Where would he usually take his astralship?”

“His base? His headquarters, you mean? I know! It’s in the neighboring Infinitum Mundus!” Fengqing Youmeng cried out with hatred. “Lord Envoys, that entire mundus is filled with his people. He established a faction there called the Tianming Dynasty. If you destroy that dynasty, it’d be like grabbing him by the throat. No matter where he fled, he’ll come crawling back!”

“Is he that kind of person?” The gold-haired man’s eyes lit up. Strength was irrelevant if a person had a glaring weakness. Weaknesses made even the strongest vulnerable.

“Yes, he’s that kind of person!” Fengqing Youmeng said, her voice trembling with intensity.

“Do we have coordinate markers within their mundus?” the gold-haired man asked.

“Yes! Absolutely yes! We have plenty of coordinates, enough to strike directly at their heart!” Fengqing Youmeng seethed with hatred.

“Lead the way! If we succeed, you’ll be rewarded!” the man replied with a sly grin.

“Yes!” Fengqing Youmeng repeatedly bowed in gratitude.

“Stop groveling. Let’s go!” The gold-haired man grabbed Fengqing Youmeng and hoisted her up. A xenogate opened and they entered together, their expressions ferocious and greedy as they made their way toward the neighboring mundus.

“Hurry up!” the gold-haired man urged.

“Lord Envoys, I’m locating an exit that’ll take us directly to the key location!” Fengqing Youmeng nervously cried out.

“Useless!” the golden-haired man scoffed at her incompetence.

“Our proud wonderians, the premier race of the Star Ruins, have been reduced to being bullied here. It’s a shame to the entire race!”

“When we return, someone will need to take charge of this mess,” another muttered in exasperation.

Fengqing Youmeng frantically searched for the exit. Finally, she found it.

“This is the one!” Once the exit was determined, the five super-zenith wonderians no longer needed her. They charged through the exit without so much as a backward glance at Fengqing Youmeng.

After they disappeared, her tear-streaked face turned into a smug grin.

“Mission accomplished. I’ve done well this time!” Her instant shift in demeanor was astonishing, like flipping a page in a book.

***

Outside, five figures clad in white descended upon the Infinitum Mundus with an air of overwhelming might.

“Two stars: one ether class, one infinitum class.”

“That boy’s base of operations should be on the infinitum-class world!”

A quick scan of the area confirmed their findings.

“There!” The five turned around; the black-and-white Blissful Union hovered behind them, silently suspended in the starry void.

Upon seeing the astralship, their eyes lit up with greed.

“I didn’t expect him to flee back here!” They had assumed Tianming would have disappeared far away.

“Could it be that he anticipated our pursuit and returned out of concern for his base, intending to face us in a decisive battle?”

“That seems likely...?”

“Commanding stars yet showing such foolish compassion? How laughable. Truly, there’s no end to the absurdity of the Lower Star Ruins.”

They had thought their mission would be challenging, but now it seemed laughably simple. The boy’s weakness had practically been handed to them on a silver platter. The Blissful Union before them opened its doors, revealing an empty interior, as though no one was inside.

However, the entire Infinitum Mundus seethed and erupted at that moment. The phenomenon was triggered by countless omnisentient threads extending from the many worlds within the mundus, manifesting a dense black-and-gold web that converged on Ebonia.

Even more black-and-gold threads extended from Ebonia and the Sun, finally gathering at the Blissful Union. The sphere became the nexus of the black-and-gold energy.

Of course, the omnisentient threads were invisible. The five could only sense an immense transformation within the mundus, as though a sleeping beast had awakened. Its heartbeat echoed like the explosion of nova sources, producing deafening roars.

A terrifying aura began emanating from within the Blissful Union.

“What... what is this?” the golden-haired man frowned.

“The Lower Star Ruins shouldn’t possess such power. Could this be an illusion... an act of deception?”

“Why doesn’t it feel like one?”

Their doubts didn’t last long.

A radiant figure emerged from the Blissful Union, instantly appearing before them.

“It’s... it’s that brat!!” the five chorused in shock. To them, Tianming had always been a hundred-year-old foundationeer child.

But now, standing before them was a figure shrouded in countless omnisentient threads. He was white-haired, clad in black, with gold-and-black eyes radiating imperial majesty, the Galactic Emperor of unparalleled power!

His presence had undergone a drastic transformation, from a harmless appearance to exuding a domineering aura that caused even the lofty wonderians to tremble.

Every return to the Infinitum Mundus had seen Tianming gain more omnisentient threads. His dynasty’s rapid expansion across countless worlds meant the power of faith exponentially grew.

When whole worlds were fervently discussing a single person, who could avoid being drawn in?

When the Galactic Emperor blessed his people and made them grow stronger, who wouldn’t wish to enjoy such miracles?

Even many lifebound beasts were his believers now, and the wonderians’ help had let his name spread through over 90% of the mundus. That was ten million worlds, each with at least a hundred billion people. It added up to an insane number.

Of course, the five wonderians didn’t grasp those details. They only sensed that Tianming had grown stronger, but couldn’t tell by how much.

“So you’ve resorted to some desperate method to push yourself to the limit, seeking a final showdown with us—” the gold-haired man sneered, but stopped mid-sentence.

The emperor-like youth before them didn’t utter a single word, but simply launched an attack.