Beastmaster of the Ages

”What do you want?” After her brief struggle proved that she couldn’t yet break the Sourcepath Shackles, Huang Qi finally composed herself and turned her attention to Tianming.

”Do you really need to ask? It’s to enslave you and take control of the Sea of Aeternity, of course,” Tianming said bluntly.

”They’re trapped here. Leaving means instant death, so they’re useless for your conquest. Even if you control this place, it’ll amount to nothing,” Huang Qi said coldly.

”Didn’t you say you can get them out of here with you and the Order Relic?” Tianming retorted.

”Why should I tell you anything?” Huang Qi sneered.

”If you won’t talk, then I’ll torture you again and again. Let’s see who breaks first,” Tianming said coldly, spreading his hands.

Huang Qi’s eyes were filled with hatred.

”When you lose, you have to accept the outcome.” Tianming cast his gaze down upon her.

”Whether or not the undying aeternals leave is another matter. There’s enough order fragments and overflow fragments in the Sea of Aeternity for me to quickly build a force of hundreds of billions of cosmic gods in the Upper Star Ruin. My first command is for you to get the undying aeternals to obey. Have them gather order fragments and overflow fragments and move them to the Ancient Oldgod Domain.”

”In your dreams! I will never help you conquer the Realm of Order!” Huang Qi gritted her teeth.

”Negotiating over a simple demand? Brothers, deal with her.”

Huang Qi wouldn’t yield until she stared death in the face. Reasoning with someone so stubborn was a waste of breath. A ruthless strike was the most efficient solution. The words had barely left his lips before Huang Qi collapsed, rolling on the ground in agonizing screams. All around Tianming, countless undying aeternals watched in pure fury, almost driven to the brink of complete madness. They surrounded Tianming from all sides.

Though they all possess orders and are potential believers, converting them is going to be tough. Tianming didn’t think he could ever resonate with these insect-headed creatures.

Knowing they were intelligent enough to understand, Tianming addressed them directly. ”Don’t just stand there. The Sea of Aeternity has more order fragments and overflow fragments than you can ever use. Obey if you want your queen to stop suffering.”

Huang Qi’s agonizing screams were heartbreaking. The mighty queen was now reduced to a writhing mess at Tianming’s feet. How could these fiery zealots possibly accept this? Even after Tianming stopped speaking, the undying aeternals kept roaring in desperate rage. Still, Huang Qi’s misery cut them deeply to the core.

”Start searching at once!” Amidst screams of agony, Huang Qi finally yielded. Compared to sacrificing the undying aeternals as mere cannon fodder, giving up the order fragments and overflow fragments was a compromise she could actually bear. Driven by the agonizing torment, she finally succumbed.

Though initially furious, the undying aeternals forced down their rage the moment Huang Qi spoke. The threatening circle around Tianming dissolved as they dispersed to carry out her command.

”You’re going back to the Realm of Order with me first.” Cradling Zi Zhen in his arms, Tianming turned back toward Huang Qi.

”I won’t go!” Huang Qi cried with her head bowed.

”Are you just worried about losing face in front of them?” Tianming chuckled. It was a double victory for him. The return of Sixth’s vita was one great joy, and forcing Huang Qi to submit was another. Both were incredibly significant.

”Don’t even think about getting a shred of information out of me.” Huang Qi stubbornly insisted.

Tianming felt no need to rush. He had been away for far too long, and the situation in the Primordial Sands was too unstable. With Sixth’s affairs settled, he needed to head back first to calm the waters, and then he could harvest the vast wealth of the Sea of Aeternity.

”Follow me, or you’ll never get any peace and quiet.” Glancing at her coldly, Tianming carried Zi Zhen back to the Ancient Oldgod Domain. The undying aeternals could only roar in frustration, completely powerless to intervene.

A short distance later, Tianming glanced back. Huang Qi looked completely disheveled and miserable. She was clearly filled with resentment, but she remained obedient and was indeed following right behind him. Meanwhile, the others had all left to deal with the order fragments.

”Why fight it? Since you’re under my control anyway, you might as well be sensible and just submit. At least play along for a bit. Who knows, you might end up winning without even trying,” said Tianming.

”You are a pawn of fate, destined to lose. You don’t even know what you’re up against,” Huang Qi replied.

”Looks like you know quite a bit.” Tianming arched an eyebrow.

Though Huang Qi kept her mouth shut, her attitude made one thing clear—she would rather be tortured to death than give up any critical information. Still, Tianming knew everyone had their limits. Since she couldn’t handle the torment right now, granting him access to the order fragments and overflow fragments was a compromise she could live with. All he had to do was keep pushing her boundaries, slowly forcing her to give up more and more.

There was no way around it; this wasn’t something he could accomplish in a single step. As an Aeternal Being, her resistance to the Sourcepath Shackles was simply too strong, making it impossible for him to turn her into a mindless puppet.

First, he would establish a supply chain connecting the order fragments and overflow fragments to the flameyellow descendants back in the Upper Star Ruin. Once this network was established, Tianming’s grip on the entire Upper Star Ruin’s foruna-class nova sources would be ironclad. A single spark could ignite a prairie fire!

It wasn’t long before he made it back to the Ancient Oldgod Domain, where Lingfeng was already waiting for him. The moment Lingfeng saw Tianming, he said, ”Hurry up, Brother! The five pantheons have already breached the passage and started attacking the imperial star!”