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Beastmasters were a crop of enigmatic and yet interesting Cultivators. Jiu Zhou’s very own breed of Beastmasters had strayed from the true essence of Beast Mastery by fixating on the acquisition and the taming and nurturing of Spirit Beasts to be used for battle while neglecting the cultivation of their own strength.
As a result, the Beastmasters of Jiu Zhou lacked personal prowess. In their pursuit of numbers, many of them came to possess multiple Spirit Beasts with some even boasting dozens or twenty of such creatures in their command.
In the early stages of their cultivation, the Beastmasters had succeeded in overpowering their opponents through sheer numerical advantage. This led them astray, gradually deviating from the right path. They became so engrossed in nurturing and controlling their Spirit Beasts that they neglected their own personal development.
To that end, the Beastmasters of Jiu Zhou were not renowned for their superiority. In fact, they paled in comparison even to Golem Masters, who, despite their obsession with external elements, had not strayed from the purpose of enhancing their own abilities.
Contrarily, the Beastmasters of the Myriad Beast Domain took an entirely different approach.
They controlled only one Spirit Beast—one that was life bound to them through magical seals known as Beast Pacts.
If the methods of the Beastmasters of Jiu Zhou focused on the beasts, then the ones of the Myriad Beast Domain prioritized their own cultivation, which should have been the actual and proper path for all Beastmasters.
And the pinnacle of Beast Mastery lay in the technique known as Beast Form.
Back when Lu Ye was still in the Myriad Beast Domain, deep within the underground insectoid nest of the Black Tortoise Sect territory, he encountered a Beast—Formed Niu Meng who presented himself with the appearance of a formidable beast. That, plus the insectoid nucleus allowed Niu Meng to embody an abundance of vitality. Single-handedly, he nearly annihilated an entire squad of Cultivators consisting of Lu Ye and others. It was only with the instruction of the Grand Elder to break Niu Meng’s Beast Pact to release him from his Beast Form that they stood a chance of defeating him.
At the Ninth-Order just like Niu Meng, Zhou Hai, Pang Dahai, and Xia Qianqian each possessed considerable strength in their own right. Especially Zhou Hai in, who was known for his prowess with the sword. Yet their collective might, eclipsed by the might of Niu Meng’s brute strength, did not prevent Zhou Hai from suffering massive abuse by Niu Meng—a testament to the tremendous power bestowed by the Beast Form technique.
During their time in the secret realm of the Myriad Beast Domain, Lu Ye had created a Beast Pact with Amber and had learned the secrets of Beast Form, although he had not yet found the opportunity to reach the state— until today.
Beast Form was not something that could be triggered at will; rather, it required extensive accumulation.
However, this battle with He Bing provided the opportunity he had been waiting for. His survival instincts, the resolve to defeat He Bing, and his bond and unity with Amber—the fusion of their blood aura, Spiritual Power, and Amber’s innate Mutant aura—all fulfilled Lu Ye’s prerequisite conditions to enter Beast Form state.
But Lu Ye’s current transformation fell short of reaching Niu Meng’s level. Unlike Niu Meng’s change that saw him almost transfigured with real Spirit Beast features, Lu Ye’s body was enveloped in an orange glow, with amber luminescent tiger ears and tail appearing as distinct features.
This change left not only He Bing astounded, but also dumbfounded Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan. It had only been twenty days since Lu Ye had sold the Beast Pact technique to the Divine Trade Association and up until now, no Beastmaster in Jiu Zhou had ever achieved Beast Form yet. That was why He Bing, Li Baxian, and Feng Yuechan had never witnessed such a phenomenon before and no one knew what was happening.
But He Bing understood that the situation was spiraling out of his control. Whatever change was happening to Lu Ye, his already formidable aura was scaling up to unprecedented heights. In fact, he exuded an unbridled ferocity, his blood surging through every vein and artery with speed and intensity, and his Spiritual Power emanated like a blazing furnace—reminiscent of an ancient beast of boundless savageness broken free from its confines.
Back in the cave, Yi Yi was clutching the Nine Realm Scroll firmly in her fingers, diligently maintaining its operation, when Lu Ye entered Beast Form. Ripples swept across the surface of the Scroll like an earthquake, indicating an excessive strain within the spatial confines of the Scroll’s pocket dimension.
It was not the Scroll failing; but rather, Yi Yi wasn’t supplying enough Spiritual Power to allow the Scroll to operate at a capacity where it could sustain the sudden surge in power.
Yi Yi hastened to bolster the amount of Spiritual Power she was injecting into the Scroll and that finally stopped the trembling.
In the meantime, feeling the unnatural winds billowing in the midst of the rock column sprawl in resonance with his burgeoning Spiritual Power, Lu Ye could feel a surrealistic sensation.
A complete change in his perception of the world around him.
Everything seemed to have slowed down around him—so much so that it afforded him a clear view of everything —the look of surprise and panic now flickering in He Bing’s stare, the beads of blood trickling from Li Baxian’s forehead, and the gradual formation of Feng Yuechan’s sorcery…
There wasn’t any change in their speeds; it wasn’t their movements that had slowed. But it was his movements that had accelerated, causing that unreal sensation.
Without warning, He Bing lunged forward, his spear thrusting straight for Lu Ye with the intensity of a serpent while blasting Li Baxian aside before the latter could do anything.
Even so, He Bing’s instincts tingled wildly, warning him about some unknown, imminent danger.
Lu Ye’s growth in this battle had far outstripped his comprehension. What he initially thought was a secure victory since he had been playing safe had not turned out the way he expected. Instead of becoming weaker, Lu Ye had turned stronger. That prompted him to abandon his initial plan to defend and attack instead, only this time, it was Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan that daunted him not one bit at all; the difference in their power and his was apparent enough. Rather, it was Lu Ye, who started out as the weakest combatant in this skirmish that has now become the actual threat to him.
“Come on, come on! Hack him, hack him!”
A voice resounded within the depths of Lu Ye’s heart all of a sudden—one reminiscent of a babyish, fierce toddler —crying out at him as He Bing’s speartip drew near.
Inviolable was halfway through deflecting away the incoming blow when Lu Ye heard the disembodied voice. Startled by the sudden sound, what strength he gathered wavered momentarily, diminishing its potency by a fraction.
With a resounding clang, sparks flew and flames splashed in all directions as Lu Ye’s figure hurtled backward.
He Bing, fueled by his newfound momentum, unleashed a vicious flurry of blows, enveloping Lu Ye within its whirlwind, while at the same time, he was secretly relieved to find that Lu Ye’s sudden spurt of power did not exceed his anticipation.
He had overestimated Lu Ye—or so he believed.
Strike after strike, Lu Ye retreated steadily. Inviolable was now an instrument of defense rather than of offense, parrying and sideswiping away desperately every attack He Bing was throwing at him.
And with every stroke, the same disembodied, childlike voice squealed deep within his mind, ceaselessly chattering with a fierce and spirited tone like an incessantly annoying commentary.
“Left, left!”
“Here comes the right side! Oh, Heavens, that was sloppy!”
“Strike at him, not his spear! What’s the point of hitting his weapon anyway?! That’s pathetic!”
“Stab him, stab him in the stomach! In his chest! Gods, do you even know how to fight?!”
“Good chance, bite him! Bite him in the neck! Go! Go! Go!”
Every time Lu Ye wanted to do anything, the voice would appear. If anything, it was more bothersome than helpful. Lu Ye was still baffled as to the origin of the voice, up until he heard it urging him to bite He Bing in the neck. That was when Lu Ye realized the source.
“Amber?!”
“What?!”
[So it really is you!] Lu Ye mused deep inside.
Astonished, Lu Ye marveled at the fact that he could clearly hear Amber’s voice even in his Beast Form state. It wasn’t Amber speaking directly, but a manifestation of their deep spiritual connection.
Amber was able to transform into a cat at will, but it could not quite yet transfigure itself into humanoid form. It could not communicate in the human tongue but it has all along been able to forge spiritual connections and entering Beast Form had created a link between it and Lu Ye, allowing them both to communicate directly.
For one moment, Lu Ye did not know how to react. After knowing the tiger for so long, he knew nothing about the tiger’s behavior.
“Be quiet!” he scowled at the tiger.
“Ah, all right, all right!”
Amber yelped a reply and stayed silent after that, allowing Lu Ye to stay focused.
Meanwhile, He Bing was wearing a smug grin. Still under the mistaken impression that Lu Ye must have relied on some incredible technique, he was thinking that whatever transformation Lu Ye might have undergone, it did not translate into the superiority He Bing feared and anticipated.
The Combat Cultivator clearly was forced to remain on the defensive against his relentless onslaught.
Ten blows. That was the limit of how long the young Combat Cultivator would last, he surmised, if the Sword Cultivator and the Spell Cultivator had not been constant nuisances.
At least that was what he believed back then until a sudden upstroke of the Combat Cultivator’s saber carried such an indescribably ferocious burst of Spiritual Power that it bashed his spear off course.
The strength of his opponent’s blow shocked him.
Seizing the opportunity, Lu Ye pressed forward, not giving his foe any time to react at all. But the latter was stunned; he did not see a human lunging at him with reckless abandon. All he saw was a ferocious predator swooping down on him like a tiger out for blood.
Again and again, Lu Ye hurled endless blows at his foe, the ferocity of the assault so overwhelming that He Bing turned from surprised to terrified. The Combat Cultivator that he had regarded with indifference if not contempt had transformed into an entirely different person, exuding even greater strength than before.
Sword and saber gnashed against spear while blood trickled and splattered—some from Lu Ye plus some from He Bing.
Up until now, He Bing had received nothing more than just the scar that Li Baxian had left long ago when the fight was in its initial stage. Aside from that, He Bing had otherwise remained unscathed.
But Lu Ye’s present strength and power equaled that of a Fifth-Order because of Glyph: Bloodrage—making him quite close to He Bing’s level of prowess.
That, plus Beast Form gave Lu Ye what he needed to surpass He Bing.
What Lu Ye received from Beast Form was more than just an increase in strength, speed, and power; the influence of Amber’s animalistic nature rubbed off most prominently, leading him to become unprecedentedly wild and violent. His assaults became attacks driven by an insatiable bloodlust that he became immune to any fear or sense of self-preservation. He Bing was finding himself overwhelmed by Lu Ye’s relentless onslaught.
Feng Yuechan and Li Baxian’s eyes lit up at the astonishing shift in the battle. They quickly threw in what they could—spells, attacks, flying shafts—anything that they could put into play to support Lu Ye’s advance.
He Bing’s situation grew increasingly dire.
Realizing how the tables had been turned against him, He Bing frantically proposed a truce.
“Shall we call it a draw? There’s no need to fight to the death!”
Never did He Bing expect, since the onset of this battle, that he would be the one proposing peace. What should have been easy pickings turned into him sailing perilously close to the winds.
At this critical juncture, he could no longer underestimate Lu Ye and his companions.
Lu Ye, however, remained silent. He could see no room for any negotiation—not after all the fighting until now. This gauntlet could only be solved with the death of either side and He Bing still had the advantage—as soon as Beast Form and Glyph: Bloodrage ran out, Lu Ye’s strength and power would be back to the levels of the Third-Order. If He Bing was still around, they would be left vulnerable.
Furthermore, Lu Ye had no intention of revealing the secret of his Teleportation Ward. With Li Baxian and Feng Yuechan both identified, sparing him would only pose unnecessary risks.
At any rate, He Bing’s fate was sealed. He had to die. freёweɓnovel.com
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