Chapter 861 - Living in Darkness

Within the vast Milky Way, the stars competed to see who shone the brightest.

Within the dense sea of countless stars, the star before Yang Jian was the dimmest and least noticeable of all, almost as other stars were meticulously blocking its light.

For a long time, Yang Jian said nothing.

He obviously needed to make a choice, a choice that might very well influence the rest of his life.

Logically speaking, this star didn’t quite suit his personality. At least, that’s how it seemed.

It was tiny and insignificant, the smallest and most ordinary star in the sky. Conversely, Yang Jian stuck out like a sore thumb. No matter where he went, he was always the center of attention.

The way Yang Jian saw it, this was an imperfect match.

However, there was a big problem: if he refused, the star might very well disappear again.

Then he had to go back and face that unbearable agony….

Imagine that a landlord’s daughter took a fancy to you and offered to marry you just as you were on the brink of starvation.

Now imagine that she looked like a beefy transvestite with an obvious five o'clock shadow. What would you do?

If you agreed, you would live on, but your future…..

If you refused, you would simply starve to death. You might even offend her and get beaten up for it.

Of course, it wasn’t really fair to compare the star to a transvestite, but it was still roughly the same situation.

Yang Jian licked his lips, eyes darting back and forth, then looked at the star and said, “Senior, could you tell me your name?”

“I am Nameless.”

“Hm?” Yang Jian started. Since when did the vast sea of stars have a “nameless star?” Could it be that this star was so low-level, it didn’t even have a name…..

Waaah, this was starting to look bad.

Internally, Yang Jian was quite resistant to forming a bond with this sort of star.

“Senior, how do you rank amongst the Emperor Star’s retainers?”

“Last place.”

…...

“What, are you disappointed?” asked the star. That sentence again! Yang Jian didn’t know how many times he’d heard those same exact words.

As the star dimmed before his very eyes, he grit his teeth and said, “I’m not disappointed. Since you chose me, I naturally won’t let you down

“Then you….”

“This junior is willing to accept your everything, both your glory and your sins.

Life was short!

Yang Jian cried out bitterly on the inside, but he had no other choice. He either accepted the star’s offer or he died. He was still young! He wanted to live on!

What glory? What sins?

The star was just a small fry…… wasn’t it?

As he was muttering to himself, he suddenly recalled that he and the star had become a single entity. If he didn’t trust in it, it might disappear again

When he thought of this, he psyched himself up. My life is under my control, not the heavens’! Even if that star is a small-fry, I, Yang Jian, am not!

“Then reach out your hand,” transmitted the star. Yang Jian got his emotions back under control, then looked intently ahead. He reached forward. The star looked as if it were easily within reach, but as he stretched out his hand it felt impossibly far away.

In his heart, he still felt some aversion to it. He didn’t know why, but as he stretched out his hand, he felt a strange mood come over him.

A link formed between him and the star. At the same time….

The dimly lit star suddenly burst with intense light. The surrounding stars no longer dared compete with it; soon, only the Emperor Star maintained its usual radiance.

Yang Jian was utterly astonished as he watched this unfold, eyes committing this dazzling, radiant moment to memory.

“Senior….”

“You have completed my test. I am the Nameless Star. My mission is to wipe out any and all existences that threaten the Emperor Star. Those who live in the darkness cannot be too eye-catching. I have always lived under the cover of the other stars. I leave the shadows only to deal sudden, decisive blows against our enemies. I am dim, for I have to hide my true self, but when I display my full radiance.... other stars must yield before me!”

The star’s transmission was sonorous and powerful. Yang Jian watched in a daze. He had absolutely no idea how to even begin describing his emotions.

He’d mistaken the star for a mere small fry. Little did he know, it was actually a hidden boss!

“You are too arrogant and too unyielding. This will not be to your advantage as you serve the emperor. If possible, you should change your disposition. Of course, that’s just a suggestion. The future belongs to you and the Emperor Star; you must decide it for yourself. All I can do now is give everything I am to you… Go on, young man. The future is in your hands!”

Back in that pristine white space, the immortals watched Yang Jian nervously. He was lying on the floor motionlessly, but just moments before he’d emitted eye-searing intense light. They still didn’t understand why.

Rumble.

Suddenly, a sudden ripple of power whirled around Yang Jian, who’d been lying there all this time.

The various major powers had yet to recover their spiritual energy. The sudden burst tossed them up into the air, then slammed into the ground without any respect whatsoever.

The six-pointed star reappeared on Yang Jian’s back. It carried him into the air, set him down onto the surface of the arena, then left his body. It flew up into the sky, stopping a few dozen meters above the ground.

Woosh.

A beam of deep blue light shot down from the star. Immediately, the spiritual formation carved into the arena lit up.

Lin, Bing, Dou, Zhe, Jie, Zhen, Lie, Zai, Qian.

The Nine Incantations flashed in sequence.

After the last of the characters lit up, all nine started to simultaneously emit intense light. The beams of light connected to the star.

After this, the star shrunk until it was half the size of a fist. Then it cast off the light of the Nine Incantations and gradually sunk into Yang Jian’s forehead.

It descended.

And merged into him.

Rumble.

Another wave of energy rolled past. Yang Jian, who was still lying prone on the ground, roared out in agony.

In this space, there was neither day nor night, so the immortals had no idea how much time had passed.

All they knew was that a long time passed before the agony on Yang Jian’s face finally subsided.

Suddenly, he opened his eyes. If you looked closely, you could see a star flashing through his pupils.

“Senior, I shall remember your glory.”

He faced east and bowed deeply. He seemed somehow different from before.

More steady, more reserved.

In truth, earlier, when he’d been writhing about in agony, he’d been receiving the memories the star had left for him. Glory? It had a glorious legacy indeed, yet since it lived in the darkness, it had no chance to enjoy it.

All it “enjoyed” was the weight of endless sins and living beside countless evils. Yang Jian’s agonized howls were caused by the pain of inheriting all those sins.

Even so, Yang Jian hadn’t wavered in the slightest.

Why? Because its glory was undeniable!

He bowed deeply to express his respect for the star. With a wave, his lance appeared in his right hand.

He fixed his gaze on Ye Zichen, then leaped into the air….

“Hey! Get the hell out of my bro’s body then die, you asshole!”