Fang Xingying raised his dull eyes and said, âAlright, Iâll leave then.â
He was a direct descendant of the Sterling House of Fang and should have a high status, but it was pathetic how he was today. Fang Chenhuan and Fang Shuyu were the leaders of this team. He had originally gathered this team, but everyone abandoned him for the two of them when they came.
âGet lost then. Weâll look for Junior Master Xingque ourselves.â
âJunior Master Xingqueâs ranking is rising, but he hasnât reached first place yet. He probably doesnât have many people around him, and we have to gather with him quickly. Itâs already been ten days,â Fang Shuyu said anxiously.
âNo problem!â Fang Chenhuan smiled and strode forth happily after getting rid of Fang Xingying.
âThat guy is ridiculous. Itâs better to die than live like a lazy worm.â Fang Shuyu turned back to look at Fang Xingyingâs figure with contempt in his eyes.
âHeâs a direct descendant, after all,â said Fang Chenhuan.
âJunior Brother Xingque is keeping him around for fun. That person is an oddball. I have no idea how he endures being humiliated every single time.â
âI bet you donât know about that. Even an animal has the urge to live.â
âHaha!â
Just when the group of nineteen were laughing, someone suddenly said, âThere seems to be someone in front!â
âQuick, itâs prey! Donât let him escape!â
âWeâll gather more points and give them to Junior Master Xingque before the Deepstar Battle ends.â
âChase after him!â
The commotion created by the group was large, and the prey in their eyes seemed to be walking, then ran when he saw them.
âItâs that Li Tianming!â someone yelled.
âQuick, capture him! Itâs a huge merit!â Fang Shuyu rejoiced.
âCapture him and give him to Junior Master Xingque. Heâll be happy!â
âEveryone, be careful. Donât accidentally activate his Astral Formation!â Fang Shuyu warned.
âHis lifebound beast is fast. Quick, encircle him!â
Fang Xingying, who was far away, heard their conversation. âLi Tianming?â He was briefly stunned as he quickly chased the group. He raised his head and saw a white-haired youth being encircled by nineteen disciples from the Sterling House of Fang. They were afraid of Tianmingâs lifebound beastâs speed, so they encircled him to block his escape. Nineteen of them, including their lifebound beasts, practically sealed off all of Tianmingâs routes.
Heâs finished. He canât even escape, Fang Xingying thought. He was feeling conflicted as to whether he should save him. âForget it. Iâll take a look at the situation first. Itâs fine if they accidentally activate his Astral Formation and eliminate him.â
Right at that moment, Tianming summoned his lifebound beasts, which caused everyone, including Fang Chenhuan and Fang Shuyu, to be shocked. âSo many stars?!â
âHow in the....â Fang Xingying was speechless. This battle was interesting, so the Deepstar Hall shifted to Fang Xingyingâs vision. From Fang Xingyingâs perspective, they could see the entire battle.
âThree lifebound beasts with over three hundred and ninety stars! One with three hundred and ninety-four stars, one with three hundred and ninety-seven stars, and one with four hundred and eighteen stars!â
âWho the hell is he?â
âI think heâs called Li Tianming.â
Tianmingâs name was being discussed, and many people were looking at him. He finally made his move. After a brief exchange, Tianming had a rough evaluation of their strength, âTwo in the eighth level, ten in the seventh level, and the remaining in the sixth level of the Empyrean Saint stage.â
Even the weakest among them could be a faction lord in the Human Branch, and they all had various types of phoenix lifebound beasts. All of them were tribulation beasts with at least a hundred and fifty stars. The highest was Fang Chenhuanâs lifebound beast, the vajra radiant phoenix, with two hundred and forty stars.
It was a golden phoenix, with claws and beaks that could be used as weapons. Furthermore, there was also Fang Shuyu in the eighth level of the Empyrean Saint stage, whose lifebound beast, a whitejade phoenix, wasnât any weaker. Whitejade was considered a variant earth-type, and it had a body like white jade that looked like a living statue. The phoenix was gorgeous, which instantly attracted Ying Huoâs attention.
âLeave those two phoenixes to me.â Ying Huo patted its chest.
âWhat are you going to do?â
âSteal her from him!â Ying Huo turned into a fiery streak and disappeared. The lifebound beasts in the surroundings were all phoenixes, which made for a spectacular scene. But being besieged by so many beastmasters under the lead of two eighth-level empyrean saints wasnât a simple matter.
Tianming could be eliminated if he wasnât careful. He had no idea how many people were watching his fight, but he knew it was time to show his strength to the Archaion Sect.
âThe stronger I show myself to be, the more resources Feiling can give me. Tribulation crystals are only a beginning!â Who knows, maybe Feiling could even decide the Deepstar Poolâs places.
âLan Huang!â Lan Huang had three hundred and ninety-four stars with the Infinite Stardragon Diagram dr.a.p.ed over his body. There was a lake nearby, and Lan Huang didnât even need to use his Azure Oceanic Purgatory. It jumped into the water and a bunch of lifebound beasts followed it in.
Meow Meow remained beside Tianming in its original form. Its Ninefold Chaos Thunderscape had been greatly boosted. It might be small, but the power it could put on display was terrifying. Chaos Disaster swept over and punished anyone who dared to approach. Then the cat shuttled around like a bolt of lightning, leaving lightning in its wake.
âSo fast!â The Sterling House of Fangâs disciples were dumbfounded. Nineteen of them were ganging up on Tianming, but why did their opponent look full of fighting spirit?
Fang Chenhuan smiled when he saw the scene. âHe must have a screw loose in his head to clash with us. This is our chance.â
âQuick, go up!â Fang Shuyu said.
âShuyu, watch closely!â Fang Chenhuan was excited and charged at Tianming. He even instructed the others to hold their attacks. âLi Tianming, I saw your battle with Xuanyuan Yufeng, and youâre pretty good. But are you even worthy of having such lifebound beasts with your pitiful cultivation?â
Fang Chenhuan held a long spear that shot forth like a bolt of lightning. His cultivation was in the eighth level of the Empyrean Saint stage, five complete levels above Tianming.
âOh?â Tianming smiled indifferently and separated the Grand-Orient Sword into two. He executed the Mortal Dao Sword with both swords, one life, and one death. His attacks were fast, and it seemed like the entire world was suppressing Fang Chenhuan when he brandished his swords.
The golden Grand-Orient Swordâs tip pierced through the spear, shattering the tribulation weapon. Fang Chenhuan watched with his eyes wide, dumbfounded. âWhat?!â
Tianmingâs sword pierced Fang Chenhuanâs chest. The Astral Formation was around anyways, so he could use his full strength to fight. And it was just as he had expected; the Astral Formation was activated and switched to the protection state.
Starlight began radiating out and enveloped Fang Chenhuang. He was spared from death, but eliminated.
âYou! How are you so strong?!â Fang Chehuanâs face twisted in the Astral Formation. Most importantly, he felt greatly humiliated for being defeated.
âWe have the advantage in numbers. Youâre still finished!â Fang Chenhuan said with a sinister expression. But what made him feel even worse was the fact that Tianming paid no attention to him and went after another opponent.
Right at that moment, the Astral Formation dragged the Vajra Radiant Phoenix into the formation as well. The formation was designed to expand until it enveloped the entire lifebound beast and waited for it to return to its lifebound space before shrinking back down.
âHey, be careful with it!â Ying Huo yelled.
Tianming turned his gaze over and saw a spark exploding in the Vajra Radiant Phoenixâs body. Ying Huo had planted the Infernal Blaze into its body earlier, and it exploded when it entered the Astral Formation.
Everyone was shocked by that, because the explosive power was intense. Furthermore, the flames also devoured Fang Chenhuan alongside his beast. When the Astral Formation finally stabilized, Fang Chenhuan and his lifebound beast were missing.
âChenhuan!â Fang Shuyi and other disciples from the Sterling House of Fang yelled. They were dumbstruck, and in disbelief over Fang Chenhuanâs death.
They belonged to the Sterling House of Fang, and they also had Astral Formations to protect them. So they didnât believe that they could be killed in the Deepstar Battlefield.
But now, not even Fang Chenhuan himself could react and was killed by the Infernal Blaze. They suddenly realized that despite being in the third level of the Empyrean Saint stage, Tianming was unbelievably strong.
âKill him!â
âTake revenge for Chenhuan!â
None of them escaped. On the contrary, they charged at Tianming together. But Tianming could even kill Fang Chenhuan with a sword, so why would he be afraid of them?
His lifebound beasts had already divided up the enemies, and wherever Tianming went, Astral Formations were being activated. In the end, he was surrounded by eighteen Astral Formations.
âWhereâs the last one?â Ying Huo asked.
âRan,â said Tianming.
The one who ran was the other eighth-level empyrean saint, Fang Shuyu. When she discovered that they couldnât defeat Tianming, she ran away while Tianming was dealing with the rest. The seventeen people were dumbfounded while they looked at Tianming in their Astral Formations.
âIs his cultivation rising?â
âHow can he possibly possess that speed in the Empyrean Saint stage?!â
âEven Chenhuan was defeated by him!â