Chapter 612 - 564: Mastering [Nameless]! A Parting Gift
Shi Ming now commanded four numbered Nirvana-rank skills, as well as his three greatest trump cards: the Apocalypse Divine Artifact, the Sword in the Stone, and "Nameless."
Unless Gu Nie himself descended, there was truly nothing to fear.
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「On New God Star, outside the First Civilization Cosmic Country.」
Huozhuang had become the new leader of the Red Wood Tribe. He had keenly observed that, recently, more and more peculiar creatures had been appearing across the land.
They were not like his own people.
Nor were they like the gods and their messengers the deceased Priest once described. Some were covered in blood-red fur, some had four pupils and two mouths, and some stood over three meters tall.
Their strength was formidable, far surpassing his own, which had only recently Awakened.
’Outsiders?’
The situation had changed drastically. Huozhuang often woke from nightmares and frequently led his tribe on migrations. The most recent cataclysm had occurred over twenty days ago. The planet had shuddered, and the altars of nearly every tribe had crumbled. Powers of different attributes gushed from the fissures, causing countless casualties.
Some elders said the gods had abandoned them.
Some Priests knelt on the ground weeping, proclaiming that the gods had fallen and that the darkest of times would soon befall the land.
Huozhuang didn’t believe it.
’Gods? What gods?’
𝘧𝘳𝘦ℯ𝓌𝘦𝒷𝘯𝑜𝑣𝘦𝓁.𝒸𝘰𝓂
’Gods, like the so-called kings, are nothing but lies spread across this land to fool the ignorant.’
’If only Mr. Ming were here.’
’He’s so powerful. He would surely know what the best thing to do is at a time like this.’
As he brooded, he saw a rift tear open in the distant sky. A massive, pitch-black ship emerged from it. A Half-Beastman, blood-red all over with two horns and two wings, stood at the ship’s prow, looking down upon the planet.
He radiated an arrogant, domineering aura filled with malice.
...
"Heh heh."
’To think there’s a life-bearing planet like this on the fringes of the First Civilization Cosmic Country’s territory... And based on my initial assessment, all the lifeforms here are natives. The strongest among them are merely Legend-rank? And there are so few of them?’
’These natives would be perfect for slaves.’
’Unfortunately, I can’t enslave them right now. The Sovereign’s orders are to enter the Tomb Star Realm as soon as possible, obtain enough Civilization Stones, explore its depths, and exchange them for some treasures in the divine treasury...’
The Half-Beastman gazed down reluctantly at the native creatures below.
’Sigh!’
’Or maybe... I can deal with them on the return trip?’
’I’m a Holy Hall expert. Dealing with these natives, most of whom aren’t even Legend-rank, should be child’s play, right?’
’Everything gained from exploring the Tomb Star Realm belongs to the Sovereign, but any extra profits made along the way are all mine. How could I not understand something so simple?’
’I’d better make my move now!’
’If I’m late, someone else will steal this prize!’
Brimming with brazen malice, the Half-Beastman leaped down from the ship. The curved blade on his shoulder oozed fresh, red blood, which dripped slowly onto the soil of New God Star.
Huozhuang heard only coarse panting and a vicious laugh. He shielded the tribe members behind him, retreating toward their temporary camp.
"Hahaha!"
"Scared already, you timid little brat? Don’t worry! I’m not going to kill you. Remember this ship above your heads. From this day forward, it is your sun, and I am your king. You are my first retainers."
"Now, obey me. Kneel and bow."
This wasn’t the Half-Beastman’s first time playing this role. He knew well that to make these natives fear him from their very souls, verbal threats weren’t the key. The key was to break their spines and kill their pillar of support.
He looked at Huozhuang, who stood at the very front.
Huozhuang gripped the Bone Saber in his hand and did not take another step back.
He still remembered Mr. Ming’s teachings.
’The saber must be steady.’
’And the heart, even steadier!’
The boy had long known for whom he wielded his weapon. Now was the moment to see his will through. If he retreated, he knew what fate awaited everyone in the tribe.
"Interesting."
The Half-Beastman stepped forward, his crimson blade dripping with a viscous, bloody fluid.
"Little whelp, I’ll give you a chance. Come on, challenge me one-on-one. If you win, I’ll let these people behind you go. How about it?"
The Half-Beastman laughed heartily.
’A teenage whelp like this couldn’t hurt me even if you gave him a hundred years to train. Besides, this is a native planet. What kind of profound power could an S-rank Awakened from a native planet possibly master? Nothing more than some crude, clumsy tricks!’
Huozhuang’s eyes were like a wild wolf’s.
’Grip the saber tightly, steady yet powerful!’
’The weapon has its own cunning path; its power can be guided!’
’Finally,’
’Fast! Fast! And faster still!’
S-rank skill! Death Holy Artifact!
This was the power Huozhuang had awakened during a tribal ritual, a power obtained after the tribe’s Priest sacrificed more than a dozen lives. It was a low-tier version of the "Skeleton Sanctuary," capable of borrowing a portion of the power from 72 different death totems!
In that instant, Huozhuang felt incomparably powerful.
Many people stood behind him.
The power of the Death Holy Artifact coated his Bone Saber, easily piercing the Half-Beastman’s tough skin. Under the black gleam of the blade, his crimson, bloody wing was severed in a single strike. With a THWAP, it fell to the ground. A torrent of blood gushed from the wound near his heart like a spring, washing over the blood-red saber the Half-Beastman was still carrying...
???
The Half-Beastman rapidly lost consciousness.
Even as he died, he couldn’t understand how this whelp, who only possessed the power of a Legend-rank, had managed to injure him. It was only as his body collapsed to the ground that his fading eyes discovered a sturdy figure that had, at some unknown point, appeared behind the boy.
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The scent of blood lingered, but the blade’s gleam had stilled.
Blood still dripped from Huozhuang’s Bone Saber. Held aloft, it continued to tremble.
The young chieftain also realized his enemy’s death had been far too easy. In his shock, he turned his head, only for his pupils to constrict and his lips to part in immense joy. He seemed to want to say something but could not make a sound.
The Bone Saber fell to the ground.
It landed with a CLANG.
"Mr. Ming!"
Huozhuang stared at the solid figure standing behind him. The man’s body, less than two meters tall, concealed astonishing explosive power. He also wore the clothing that symbolized the Lost People.
At that moment, how could he not understand how the powerful invader had died?
The tension in his heart suddenly snapped. The young leader’s eyes reddened, and two streams of tears—whether from joy or shock, he didn’t know—mixed with the stench of the Half-Beastman’s blood, carving two tracks down his face.
"It’s me."
"Huozhuang, you’ve gotten stronger."
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"Back then, you chose to become the ’King of Kingslayers,’ to become a true hero, pursuing what you wanted through sacrifice and hardship. In all this time, have you ever regretted it?"
By the bonfire, Shi Ming asked the boy.
Perhaps he was also asking himself.
Huozhuang’s gaze was still resolute. The fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy had never been as determined as he was in this moment.
"Mr. Ming, it’s just as you said when we last parted—"
"’Disaster is ever-present. The important thing is how to prevent it from happening.’"
"I would rather suffer the pain of failure than enjoy the bliss of incompetence. Even if the final result isn’t ideal, I can at least say as my life ends, ’I tried my best. I did all I could.’"
"Mr. Ming, can you stay a little longer this time?" Huozhuang asked cautiously.
Shi Ming didn’t answer.
He took out a gem that gleamed with a brilliant light.
The Holy Hall Origin extracted from the dead Half-Beastman.
New God Star was once Bertutan’s testing ground. Now that Bertutan was dead, the planet had become a transit point for off-world travelers entering the First Civilization Cosmic Country. Nirvana-rank beings wouldn’t have much interest in these natives, but among those of the Holy Hall, there was no shortage of malicious creatures.
This was a parting gift.
"Next time."
"When we meet again, I will properly assess the results of your training."