Elder Cultivator

The great displeasure of having to deal with the Fearsome Menagerie fell upon Crossed Antennae. They were a troublesome sort who took on animal traits, which included an emphasis on the body. While some of their abilities still required an active use of energy, being generally tougher made the void ants’ job much more difficult. However, with proper tactics even the weaker ones could target the humans’ vulnerable points.

It was unfortunate that Bullet and Fire could only carry a modest amount of poison, but there were space concerns affecting stealth and mobility that they couldn’t get around. They might be able to drag around a proper sackful, but they wouldn’t fit through tiny cracks or avoid being spotted.

Not that Crossed Antennae could fit through small cracks either. She hadn’t reached the size of her mother, but she was over a centimeter long and now in a different classification of size entirely. Fortunately, her speed had grown with her size so she could dart behind cover and avoid notice. Since humans relied on their energy senses, as long as she avoided being directly spotted she would be successful.

Returning to the matter of the poisoners, technically Aconite had mentioned one that they could bring that could potentially wipe out the ship with a small dose. It was just guaranteed to kill them as well with no adaptation being possible. They had considered it, but the safety of Crossed Antennae took priority. Besides, if they couldn’t guarantee the poison spreading to the whole ship, that method would have been a failure.

The time had finally come to act. The ship was far enough across the border that even if they did choose to turn around because of the attack, they wouldn’t make it back anywhere safe. Thus, the humans would be trapped on the ship until the conclusion.

They did use a poison, put into the water stores of the ship. Its potency was minimal, but it was intended to keep their enemy off guard, with sluggish reactions. That should allow the void ants optimal effectiveness.

Their first targets were the Augmentation cultivators. Three of them, to be taken down simultaneously. Though Crossed Antennae thought it inefficient, Snips and Chops would be with her- she could not be without support. Which to her meant she needed to grow much stronger so she could stand alone… but it was difficult to outpace them.

Bullet and Fire would be going after another, using what direct poisons they had and hopefully killing their target in his sleep. The rest of the void ants would be going for the final target, a whole swarm of them. Yet their total fighting power was likely less than Crossed Antennae’s group.

The man Crossed Antennae and the others were going after was sitting in meditation. There wasn’t much to be done in terms of training, though the Tides did provide some energy where there would be none. Mostly, the man was likely using meditation to pass the time.

Being an Augmentation cultivator, he had exceptional senses. Even though there were no fluctuations of energy, the man’s eyes snapped open the moment they attacked.

Unfortunately for him, it was too late. Though normally he would be defended against attack by his robes, enchanted as they were, to the void ants they were nothing more than exceptionally sturdy silk. Which would have stopped their lesser brethren, but did nothing to prevent Snips and Chops from driving into the man’s sides while Crossed Antennae attacked from the front, all of them targeting one thing- his dantian.

Three void ants' jaws cut far beyond their physical reach, drawing upon strange mysteries of the universe. The man’s reaction was to try to crush Crossed Antennae between his palms, but his failure was to recognize the void ants as what they were. He called upon his energy even as his dantian was tearing apart, crushing with the force of great elephants stomping- which was nothing more effective than two palms slapping together with the energy being negated.

Crossed Antennae imagined it would have crushed any of the lesser ants, though. There were limits even to their chitin. Perhaps Snips and Chops might have survived… or tried to cut through the energy. As for her, she felt the impact on her abdomen and rear legs, but the natural flex of the man’s palms dulled the blow.

One of her legs was dangling limply as the man’s energy tore through him, though Crossed Antennae and the others didn’t let it blast outward and destroy the ship. Most of them couldn’t survive in empty space, and certainly not for a prolonged period. Plus, it was a good meal.

The second Augmentation cultivator died silently, though perhaps not painlessly. They hadn’t chosen poisons with any particular properties in terms of pain. Just quick incapacitation and then death.

The third one… perhaps it was a matter of timing, sensing something happening with the others. Maybe the legion of void ants made a mistake in their approach. Either way, she reacted with great violence, tearing a hole through the walls of her chamber and scattering void ants everywhere.

So Crossed Antennae was going to have to deal with that, and the rest of the ship was now alerted to them. It was time to fight. She willed her leg to move as she pleased, annoyed that she could be damaged at all.

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One thing was missing from Anton’s perception, and as far as he had heard nobody else had sensed it either- though the time lag of messages was enough that he couldn’t be certain. Someone may have already spotted the Domination cultivator.

There was some chance they’d been fed false information, but something that would make them prepare for greater danger without trying to direct their attention to anywhere specific was a rather weak ploy. Anton believed it was genuine. So either the Domination cultivator had changed his mind, the informants had been mistaken, or Sudin was able to hide his energy.

The last of those was the most likely, simply because the man was part of the Twin Soul Sect. Manipulating their own energy was something they did at a nearly fundamental level. Being able to display as a lower realm of power was not that odd.

Regardless of what actually came, however, he could only face off against the foes as they approached. Though according to his reconing, they should barely have passed the border now. They would be coming in contact with the Shining Cooperative and potentially Akrys.

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The Golden Huntsmen found traditional resource extraction from the lower realms to be trite and unappealing. Anyone could infiltrate cultivators and take what they had built up. Killing humans was easy. It was the challenge of great beasts that appealed to the Golden Huntsmen- and such beasts provided better materials than anything that could be extracted naturally.

Thus it was that they had set up for them a planet, seeded with life- though to maintain their sense of adventure, they hadn’t had a direct hand in the process. All they knew was that the planet had plenty of natural energy for beasts to grow wild and strong, thriving in battle and chaos. This was exactly what they wanted.

When the Tides of the World shifted, they were able to vaguely feel the planet as a whole, vibrant with energy. Thus the Golden Huntsmen eagerly made their way to the system, and as they drew closer the eyes of Vojtech their leader sparkled. He felt numerous powerful enemies. There might be beasts the size of mountains to battle.

A sudden surge of energy from the local sun resulted in quite unfortunate circumstances. A rapid solar flare ripped apart ten or twenty ships of unfortunates. In their haste, they had cut too close to the star, not expecting it to randomly flare so near to them. But the fact that they had been unable to avoid it made those who died weak. Vojtech cared not for their lives. Though he did direct them slightly further from the star, as tempting fate in the same way twice was a certain path to death.

As they approached the planet, Vojtech felt something odd. He clearly felt the energies of mighty beasts… but some also felt like cultivators. Had poachers come to take their game? How inconsiderate. Well, even hunters could become prey sometimes.

Vojtech was a master of bow and spear, so when he felt the incoming arrows he was surprised but not unable to react. He protected his own ship, leaving the others to defend themselves. They weren’t even that close to the planet yet, and arrows filled with the power of a star continued to fly towards them. No, not just any star. The local star that had also ‘randomly’ flared.

He narrowed his eyes. Even though this archer wasn’t a beast, he would be the first target. Then Vojtech would be able to properly hunt. He was sure it would be enjoyable.

Their ships continued to fall, but they had plenty. He cared not for the others, as they were responsible for their own lives. Many of them would make it down to the planet’s surface regardless. Their momentum would carry them into the atmosphere, and only the weak would die from a simple fall.

When they drew closer, Vojtech felt another anomaly. How unfortunate, these hunters had set up cities. Hopefully they hadn’t slain the best beasts. No, there were still plenty. He could feel them… in the cities? It made little sense, but perhaps they were beast tamers. How pathetic. A true hunter could take on any and all foes alone, without needing to rely on secondary beasts.

The moment they entered atmosphere, more ships began to fall. They were being attacked by flying beasts. Vojtech had missed them among the blur of many energies, and because of their small size. They looked like… normal sized eagles? A few were larger, but none had a hundred meter wingspan.

Vojtech began to take aim, but another arrow impacted his ship, setting it aflame even with his energy defending it. Fine, he would have to take care of that one first. Though he did take a few shots on the eagles on his way down as he leapt overboard.

He could feel his target. The aura of a great hunter, bow in… tiny paw? Was his opponent so far away he was hallucinating?

The attacks were real, regardless. He dodged and twirled as arrows flew up towards him and circled around from behind. As he responded with his own shots, the… beast? He really couldn’t properly call a tiny rodent a beast. The rat made strange movements, avoiding his attacks as it danced among strange buildings. In a small area around it, Vojtech sensed numerous other different beasts.

He kicked away an eagle that dared to approach, far too weak to consider a true threat. This rat, whatever it was, had a great store of natural energy. He wondered what it would taste like. It had energy beyond that of Life Transformation, but he was an Augmentation cultivator himself. He might tire, but he would take out his enemy with raw force.

He impacted a city street, cracking some form of pavement. Had wild animals taken over the homes of those who hunted them? No, the bow… it didn’t make sense. But he didn’t particularly care.

The exchange of arrows continued, but a moment later three lions attacked him. Neither were strong enough individually to give him pause, but the strangeness of the situation got to him. Why were there so many powerful beasts, and why were they… like this. Instead of increasing their size, as they naturally would, they were hardly larger than normal, but instead with energy like a cultivator. There was no way dumb beasts could develop such techniques on their own. Someone had interfered. Perhaps he’d find what planet it was and hunt them down, too.

Vojtech was forced to swap to his spear to keep the lions at bay, spinning it to block the incoming arrows. Elsewhere, he saw a hippopotamus tearing through others who landed in the city, quite violently obliterating them. Not just with its jaws, but also with water element techniques. The lions even gave off signs of cultivating sharpness of claws and teeth, not just raw power.

Truly fascinating. He would enjoy killing them all.

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