Beastmaster of the Ages

It was late night at Lightning Manor.

It had been utterly crushed, with all of its pillars gone. When the tree topples, the monkeys will scatter, and by now, even many of the guards had run away.

No one would look fondly on a clan in its sunset.

In fact, several cases of looting, burning, and killing had taken place a few hours ago, leaving the manor in complete chaos right now.

Although the rain from earlier in the day had let off, it was still drizzling. Hence, the usually radiantly-lit Lightning Manor was currently pitch-black. The usual laughter and high spirits there were nowhere to be found, and only people crying in corners were left.

A man stood at Lightning Manor’s side gate. He was dressed in an oversized black raincoat that hid his identity, as well as the dagger in his sleeve.

The side gate of Lightning Manor creaked open.

“Big brother Feng….” An enchanting woman in black clothes walked over, carrying an umbrella.

“Big brother Feng, are you still well?” Liu Qing’s eyes were red.

“Shh! Come with me.” The man smiled. He entered Lightning Manor, and Liu Qing followed behind him.

The man was very familiar with Lightning Manor and easily made his way through it. In the current chaos, no one cared about him.

“Big brother Feng, I’m pregnant.” Liu Qing halted, tears flowing down.

“So will you follow me, or abort it and stay here?” The man turned around. His eyes wavered somewhat in the darkness, but his grip on the dagger remained firm.

“It’s best if you abort it. I’m a cripple now. My power will continue to disperse. In at most a year, I’ll be an ordinary person and unworthy of you.” The man gnashed his teeth.

“Big brother Feng, what’re you here to do?” Liu Qing didn’t reply, but instead asked another question, shaking.

The man’s face twisted into a smile. “Let me confirm. Is the Lightning Seigneur currently in his cottage while his lifebound beast is currently recuperating in Mythic Lightning Hall? And he even chased away everyone around him?” the man asked.

“How did you know?” Liu Qing’s eyes widened.

“I followed him for a day, and spent quite a bit on bribing the guards that ran away.” The man grinned.

“Don’t do anything foolish!”

“Wait here for me.” The man blended into the darkness.

Indecision and pain flickered across Liu Qing’s face, then she followed after him. They quickly arrived at where the Lightning Seigneur was resting.

He had been heavily injured yesterday, and emotionally hurt. Not only that, but he was nearly crippled, Mu Yang’s Apocalyptic-Will having run a hole through him as well as destroying his spiritsources.

However, he remained stubborn and chased everyone away.

The man arrived in front of the cottage. He said, “Choose. Between me and him, who do you want to die? If you shout, I will die. If you stay quiet, I will continue. Make your choice.”

Finished speaking, the man gently pushed the door open and entered.

As for the woman, she stood in the rain, tears streaming down. She covered her mouth, ensuring that no noise could come out.

Inside the cottage, it stank of alcohol. Sprawled inside was an old man, the floor around him covered in blood and alcohol. Obviously, his heavy injuries hadn’t deterred him from heavily partaking in wine. As of now, even moving was difficult.

“Well, well, well. Your lifebound beast is inside Mythic Lightning Hall right now being treated and yet here you are, getting drunk,” the man chuckled. Through his shadowing, he knew everything about Lightning Manor.

“Ah, Lin Tao, I once submitted to you. However, people like you are the kind that I, Li Yanfeng, despise the most. Treacherous, conniving, and calculative. How many have you schemed against and hurt?

“You think just because your Lightning Manor passed down a legacy, your descendants deserved wealth and glory? So even though I was stronger than those bastards of yours, you looked down on me and treated me as a lackey and cannon fodder! But, well, I was fine with that. I already knew you were arrogant.

“But what your clan never should’ve done was kick me away and humiliate me after I was defeated, making me an eternal laughingstock! I, Li Yanfeng, am very, very displeased!

“Bunch of hyenas, what skills do you have besides breeding? Since you made me angry, I’ll show you. Let’s see who kills you, Lin Tao, after being so damn cocky your whole life!”

Outside, Liu Qing’s hands were still clamped over her mouth and she didn’t make a peep.

Li Yanfeng’s hatred had been completely internalized. As soon as he stepped inside, he ruthlessly took action. He currently still had power at the Spiritsource level. For him, taking care of an old drunkard on his deathbed that had lost his mental faculties was an easy task.

His dagger smoothly slid into the old drunkard’s chest.

The Lightning Seigneur’s eyes shot open. Lightning flashed, revealing the black-clothed man’s delighted smile.

“Old dog Lin, look carefully. I’m Li Yanfeng.”

Lin Tao’s eyes bulged out. As the dagger was taken out, he died unwillingly.

The matter was over.

Li Yanfeng stood up. When he turned around, he saw the woman there looking at him with a pale expression.

“Why didn’t you shout?” Li Yanfeng had come here with the resolve to die and had been mentally prepared for her to shout. She could even have stopped him herself, or at least made noise, thus guaranteeing his death.

The only possibility was that she didn’t want him to die.

Li Yanfeng was stunned. “You mean your choice is to come with me and give birth to that child?”

Li Yanfeng was already crippled at this point, and was ready to die.

“Big brother Feng, I love you.” Liu Qing grit her teeth. In the beginning, it had merely been a marriage of convenience for her family and her brother’s position in Lightning Manor.

However, that had only been true at the start.

“What did I do to deserve this…” Li Yanfeng laughed. Who would have expected that after he had been prepared to lose everything, there would still be someone with him in her heart?

“In this life, I, Li Yanfeng, have done many things. I’ve lost, raged, been right, been wrong. I’ve been cowardly, and I think I could be considered to have had a glorious period. I even killed the Lightning Seigneur! Now, after all that, I still have you. I really did profit.”

He didn’t just have her, he also had a child. Li Yanfeng had never loved anyone before; his wives in Flamehaven were nothing but tools to give birth.

Now, he chose to go far, far away with her.

From now on, he would peacefully enjoy his life as a cripple and a farmer.

Only one other person would ever know that this particular farmer had killed the Lightning Seigneur.

……

On the way back, Li Tianming split from his mother and left Ignispolis. There was a place he couldn’t wait to go.

At the Vermilion Bird palace, the king was likely still struggling, but Ling’er would convince him. Li Tianming didn’t want to get in the way and possibly infuriate the king.

Carrying a blood-colored wine pot, Li Tianming went to a place called Mount Blueclouds, outside the city. It was where Midas was buried.

He had never visited in all these years, because he promised that the next time he came, he would bring enough of their enemy’s blood to drink their fill together. He arrived at a wooden tombstone that had long since become mottled and covered in green moss. The words Li Tianming had inscribed with blood had long since faded away as well.

“Here lies Midas, my brother.”

Originally, Li Tianming had come with the intent of moving Midas to the Wei Clan graves. However, now that he was here, he had second thoughts. Midas would have liked this place full of nature.

“I’m here, Midas.”

Li Tianming had brought Lin Xiaoting’s blood. Just as he had promised, he scattered it at Midas’ grave.

He spent two days there, chatting with Midas, even though Midas couldn’t hear. However, Li Tianming had the feeling it knew that vengeance had been served.

“After saying goodbye, I don’t know when I can come by again. Next time, I’ll bring even better news. Who knows, maybe I’ll be married and have children. Midas, you have to be happy in the afterlife. Let’s make a promise: in our next life, let’s be brothers again, okay?”

Li Tianming simply had too much he wanted to say to Midas.

Tomorrow would be the day the inspectors brought him away.

Li Tianming returned to Ignispolis. As he entered the gates, he met a young girl. She was dressed in white clothes as she sat atop her Tri-Colored Darkthunder Bird, preparing to depart.

“Xiaoxiao, where are you going?”

Lin Xiaoxiao simply coldly looked at him, then her Tri-Colored Darkthunder Bird zoomed northward, leaving Ignispolis behind.

Li Tianming understood how she felt. She surely hated herself. And even more unbearable would be Lin Xiaoting and Mu Qingqing’s sins, as well as the wild ambition of Lin Tao and Lin Tianjian. She was likely going out to explore the vast world away from Ignispolis.

“If fate wills it, we’ll meet again.” Although he said that, it would likely never happen.

After entering the city, Li Tianming overheard two major things that had happened in the time he was gone. First, Mu Qingqing’s supernal mentor, Liu Xueyao, was removed from her position and chased out from Flameyellow Scions Institute. Mu Wan had replaced her. And second, the Lightning Seigneur had been assassinated by party, or parties, unknown. Furthermore, Liu Qing of Lightning Manor had gone missing.

When he heard her name, Li Tianming was inadvertently reminded of Li Yanfeng, and how furious he had been from Lightning Manor’s attitude after losing.

He couldn’t have been the killer, could he? The more he considered it, the more believable Li Tianming found it. Then he ran away with Liu Qing after the murder? Did he actually have such charm?

However, there were still some parts Li Tianming didn’t understand.

Still, he really had been vicious to kill the Seigneur in a fit of fury. In fact, Li Tianming had to admire him somewhat. Li Yanfeng had gotten where he did through pure talent, without any background.

Did you kill him for me to see? Li Tianming smiled. Now, his ties to that man were completely severed.

……

Li Tianming quickly returned to Wei Manor. However, he hadn’t expected Wei Tiancang, Wei Jing, and Mu Yang to be so anxious to see him.

“Tianming, you’re back! Why did you run all over the place?” Wei Jing said gloomily.

Li Tianming had informed her that he was going to visit Midas, but not the exact location.

“Is something the matter?”

“Of course! We’ve been looking for you for two days now!” Wei Jing said.

Li Tianming had originally thought one day was enough to say his goodbyes.

“What happened?” Li Tianming asked.

“Come with me to the Wei Clan to see two people. After that, decide if you still want to go to Heaven’s Elysium.”

Li Tianming was confused. He had already promised the two vice-inspectors, and the departure was tomorrow. Who could change his decision this late in the game? Wouldn’t they be finished if they messed with the inspectors like this?

They quickly crossed the stone bridge and arrived at the Wei Manor proper.

Inside Sky Hall, Wei Tiancang was sitting at the side. His usual spot, at the head of the hall, was currently being commandeered by someone else, implying their status was even higher than his.

However, who in Vermilion Bird had a higher status than Wei Tiancang, other than the two inspectors?

Li Tianming lifted his head and saw an old granny.