Chapter 1056
Unsurprisingly, there were many messages waiting for Anton when he came out of his state of meditation. Yet nothing had been urgent enough to disturb him by sending something to his emergency communicator, so that was good.
He was surprised, even at himself. The fatigue he’d felt wouldn’t have been enough to put him out of commission for what was apparently well over a decade. Though it was somewhat close, as he’d used everything he had.
Instead, he’d been overwhelmed with insights that he had to digest. His successful use of Constellation Shot to take down a Domination cultivator still felt almost like a dream, but he knew it to be real. And while he would like to say he could replicate it, it wasn’t really close. The situation had been quite exceptional, and repeating the task wouldn’t be easy.
Then again, he doubted any Domination cultivators would be so brash as to step foot in the lower realms again. Maybe in another six hundred years at the end of the next cycle… but by then Anton fully expected to be more than they could ever bargain for. And if they forced themselves into the lower realms without the benefit of the tides, even if Anton couldn’t take them alone the Lower Realms Alliance certainly could.
He took in the total losses reported with proper dignity. He’d have to go pay his respects to the fallen. But for the moment he should get out of this star and stretch his old body.
What was notable? Crossed Antennae wished to establish new colonies in the upper realms, somehow. Velvet had gone to visit the Spirit Slicing Sect and was in negotiations with the Chaotic Conglomeration. Rebuilding was… almost finished. Anton rather wanted to participate in some of that process, but he was sure people would forgive him for his absence.
Everheart somehow took over numerous systems within the territory of the major factions and even co-opted some of their cultivators. That wasn’t emergency news because… well, everyone expected that he was alive still. And doing another crazy thing that was primarily damaging to the Exalted Quadrant and Trigold Cluster was only a matter of indirect concern. Anton doubted that Everheart could even have proper allies- though perhaps the minions working for him might count. Rahayu certainly seemed to get along with him just fine.
Ultimately, he was less of a threat than the great powers. Not because he wasn’t dangerous- he might even be more dangerous- but because they could simply stay out of his way and they would be fine. The Scarlet Alliance couldn’t exactly up and move away from the others. Though if he suggested it Catarina would probably try to figure out how to make that work.
Taking in a proper assessment of himself, Anton found his cultivation advanced two steps while he was in his trance. That placed him at one hundred and seventy-one stars. Though he hadn’t bound all of those, both old and new stars. He was closer to a hundred bound stars, especially with replacing his first one hundred stars being a more lengthy process.