This conversation was very important. After all, everyone had their own ideas and Tianming would try to respect them. At the very least, he would try his best to convince them. His lifebound beasts weren’t tools; they were living, breathing brothers and sisters of his. Tianming had been worried ever since he had first glimpsed the dream from the Radix World Tree.
“Don’t worry about Xian Xian. I’ll find a way,” said Tianming.
After recuperating for a while, he got up, spread out the starmap, and looked at the two remaining black hole stars. One was on the far left of the map while the other was on the far right. Tianming was currently in the middle of the two.
“They’ve stopped searching for treasure so the people, as well as the ghoul kings, will have gathered around these two black hole stars. I’ll head over to one of them and take a look."
After selecting the star on the left, Tianming went on his way. He had a feeling he was close to soaring to the next level with the help of good karma. What he required was a truly wicked person to make his breakthrough. However, he could perhaps accomplish more, given his current strength, such as venturing into the two remaining black hole stars.
……
Near the black hole star on the right side of the starmap, hundreds of tribulation elders were spread out before Xue Yi as they reported what had happened in despair. Deathly silence followed. How many times had this happened?
The first time, Tianming had seized more than ten thousand tribulation manna. The second time, Xia Ziluan and Gu Yunge were killed. The third time, Ye Bodhi died and a hundred thousand tribulation artifacts were stolen from them. The fourth time, fifteen hundred tribulation elders were crippled.
Out of all four events, that was the most terrifying one. One man against thousands—he was considered a devil in the Kilostar Domain.
“This battle truly showed just how strong this man is.”
They had experienced this deathly silence and boiling anger too many times, and were no longer shocked. There was ruthlessness in the eyes of all the tribulation elders present. They grieved over the deaths of their people; who wouldn’t be angry? They stared at Xue Yi.
He was the commander for their operation in the Kilostar Domain and should be held responsible for allowing a junior to force them into such a situation. In fact, Xue Yi’s order to stop searching for treasure was an acknowledgment of Tianming.
Xue Yi frowned in puzzlement. What he couldn't figure out was how a person's strength could grow in such a short time?
“Even if he’s Xuanyuan Xi reborn, there’s no way he could soar to such an extent. Such progress is unprecedented in all two hundred thousand years of the Flameyellow Continent’s existence. Neither I nor the other two have the answer to this," said Xue Yi.
Although he was in great emotional distress, he had managed to compose himself and now considered Tianming an opponent equal to a sect master. That way, he wouldn't have to swallow the shame of attacking a junior.
In fact, the reason he had been forced into such a situation was something he would never even dream of—that is, the inheritance of the Primordial God-Emperor. For a cultivator to progress by slaying the wicked and gaining good karma was a miracle never before seen in all the history of the Flameyellow Continent.
The disparity in information limited Xue Yi’s imagination. Otherwise, he could have sent the wicked out of the Kilostar Domain at the very beginning. If he had done that, Tianming wouldn’t have had a chance. Sometimes, once a person missed an opportunity, they could only make up for the loss.
That was Xue Yi’s current situation. But he wasn’t the only one; the others had yet to figure out the cause as well.
“Where the hell did I go wrong?” Xue Yi laughed.
Before everything was clear, he had actually been played by a junior. But because of Ye Bodhi’s death, the entire Nonahall Divine Realm was now cursing and swearing at Xue Yi.
As he was lost in thought, a large group of people arrived. There were more than a thousand second-origin tribulation elders.
In terms of strength, they were close to the top in the Kilostar Domain. When gathered together, they were at least ten times stronger than the two thousand tribulation elders who had faced Tianming earlier. Leading them were the two ghoul kings, Ying Zi and Fu You.
As soon as Fu You arrived, he took half of the elders and headed straight to the other black hole star. Xue Yi’s gaze landed on Ying Zi, who was hidden in the shadows.
She held a black net in her hand that was full of spikes. Inside it was a bloody man. Many of the spikes had penetrated his flesh, bones, and internal organs, to the point that the man seemed to have become one with the net. One could imagine how painful it was. He was a middle-aged man who was originally very handsome, perhaps one of the most good-looking middle-aged men in the continent, with sharp eyebrows, starry eyes, a tall nose, and a short beard. He seemed gentle and learned. Even though his hair was disheveled and his body was covered in blood, he was still calm and composed.
It was Yi Xingyin. Upon closer inspection, one would see that the net he was trapped in had sixteen tribulation patterns. It actually exceeded the limit that most people were aware of. To many, the most powerful tribulation artifacts had fifteen tribulation patterns.
“Don’t we have another Shadow Prison?” asked Xue Yi.
“Yes. I prepared it for Li Tianming, and I’ll be able to catch him, as long as he shows up,” said Ying Zi.
“It’s alright if you set out with your lifebound beast. After all, there aren’t any traces. He’ll be trapped before he even finds you,” said Xue Yi.
“We have no choice. Now that things have escalated to this point, the army’s morale has been affected. If I’d known this would happen, I would’ve entered sooner,” said Ying Zi.
“It’s my fault for not taking this kid seriously.” By this point, Xue Yi had admitted defeat. “Ying Zi, we’re all counting on you now.”
“Don’t worry. There won’t be a problem with Yi Xingyin in our hands,” said Ying Zi.
“Yes.” Xue Yi drifted toward the man in the black net.
“Hey, Xue Yi! I haven’t seen you in a while, but your lips are just as captivating,” Yi Xingyin laughed.
“I can’t compare to the gorgeous Xingyin,” said Xue Yi.
I'm getting old. I heard that you were so angered by the most handsome man—the one called Li Tianming—you vomited three liters of blood! Isn’t it unbelievable?” Yi Xingyin laughed.
“Do people usually leave a few words before death so they appear fearless and apathetic?" Xue Yi shook his head and smiled.
“No, I’m sincerely mocking you. You’re truly a great big fool.” Yi Xingyin grinned.
“Oh.”
Xue Yi reached into the black net, his long fingernails pricking Yi Xingyin’s chest. A red insect crawled out from his palm and dug its way into Yi Xingyin’s heart.
“You can experience what it means to live in a sea of suffering.” Xue Yi withdrew his hand.
In an instant, Yi Xingyin curled up. His face paled, his body convulsed, and he foamed at the mouth. With both hands around his throat, his face had begun to turn purple.
“Are you trying to commit suicide? My friend, being alive is the worst kind of pain, while death is liberation. Stop daydreaming.” As Xue Yi roared with laughter, the Shadow Prison pulled Yi Xingyin's fingers away from his neck.
Yi Xingyin grit his teeth and stared at Xue Yi, the veins on his neck violently throbbing.
“What are you trying to say?” asked Xue Yi.
“Go... fuck... yourself....”
……
In another corner of the Kilostar Domain.
After Qing Ming separated from Xue Yi, he sent several groups back to assemble over there. With that done, he traveled to the other star alone. Because Long Cangyuan was the only leader at this black hole star, Qing Ming wanted to monitor the situation. According to their plans, Fu You would soon arrive with reinforcements. That way, they would have equal numbers at both black hole stars.
Qing Ming pulled out the starmap and glanced at it.
"The last black hole stars are separated by the entire Kilostar Domain. They’re really far apart, but I can be there in about an hour. Damn it! If my strength wasn’t restricted, I could be there in the blink of an eye.”
The sealing formation made it hard for Qing Ming; he felt as slow as a tortoise.
“Seventh death phase—that’s where I was two hundred years ago.”
Qing Ming was now over three hundred years old, and the oldest among all ghoul kings. Despite that, he was also the weakest. Many of the younger generation had surpassed him, such as Xue Yi and Zi Xiao.
He made his way forward as he thought about the starmap. However, he suddenly came to a stop when he sensed someone chasing him, and abruptly turned around.
A white-robed young man, more than three hundred years his junior, stood in front of him with a smile. "Hey, old man. I heard that you possess a terrifying broodmother lifebound beast. Can it give birth to many offspring?"
Qing Ming couldn't help but rub his eyes. There was no mistake, the man before him was Li Tianming, whom he had dreamed of meeting. He was actually preparing a trap to capture him, but instead, the brat had appeared in front of him without any warning at all?
“Don’t look so surprised. I’m asking you a question. Let me see your lifebound beast. My baby girl is hungry. I don’t think lifebound beasts should be eaten, since they have the capability to think, but the offspring of a broodmother beast are all mindless. Anyway, these broodmothers are great at breeding. Eating a few hundred tons of its offspring isn’t a problem, is it?" asked the white-haired man.
“Are you talking to me?” Qing Ming pointed to himself. Half of his face was covered in green lumps like a toad.
“Yes, I’m talking to you, Ghoul King Qing Ming. You’re no good. You might be over three hundred years old, but the evil you’ve committed is less than one-tenth that of Ye Bodhi. And I’d actually thought you were a big fish. How disappointing," the young man sneered.
“This is truly an eye-opener, Li Tianming." Shaking his head, Qing Ming laughed. The encounter seemed incredible to him. He continued, "Tell me, is Dugu Jin nearby?"
“No. Ah, forget it. I’ll stop pretending and come clean.”
“What the hell are you trying to do?”
“I’ve a huge appetite and I’m going to kill you, Ghoul King.”