Immortal Path To Heaven

by Srtyi

"Master Ouyang, please smith a divine weapon for me!" "Master Ouyang, you're the only person who can forge a weapon with seven attributes. Please make my dream come true!" "Master Ouyang, could you..." "Ouyang my *ss! My surname is Ou!" Ou Yangming was an orphan who was adopted by a reputable old blacksmith from a military camp. After working as a helper under the old man for years

5. 129

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Chapter 129 Post-battle Distribution

While panting heavily, Ou Yangming turned to look around him and confirmed that he and the big yellow dog were safe.

He let out a deep breath and looked at the dog next to him. It was actually sticking its tongue out to breathe hard, but he knew by looking at its bright and excited eyes that it was still in high spirits.

In actual fact, even the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors could only flee at the sight of ten thousand Black Magic Crawlers. Although the ancestors were great at killing, they did not have enough protection, so they might end up in a tragedy after being bitten once by the crawlers.

Ou Yangming was enlightened when he touched his equipment set, which was barely even scratched.

When the pieces of equipment were appraised by the Military Fire, though they were found to be at the peak of Fine Grade and had 20 Points of Toughness, Ou Yangming clearly felt that his smithing art could not fully unleash the ores' potential.

There seemed to be an invisible gap above Fine Grade, which was incredibly difficult for anyone to break through. It was similar to martial arts cultivation, where some people would sense a bottleneck after a period of time. Without breaking through the bottleneck, one's cultivation base would remain stagnant and could not progress further.

Ou Yangming had heard of the theory from Old Craftsman a long time ago, but he never thought that he would arrive at a bottleneck so quickly. He pondered quietly while touching his armor.

If a normal piece of equipment at the peak of Fine Grade Rank Five had 20 Points of Toughness, could it resist the Black Magic Crawlers' mouthparts like the armor did?

A roar was suddenly heard at that moment.

The big yellow dog had opened its mouth to the size of a sacrificial bowl, and it breathed out in a terrifying manner. In the distance, multiple stalagmites instantly emerged from the ground, each one holding a few dead Black Magic Crawlers at the tip.

Ou Yangming was slightly stunned. He felt that while the yellow dog had just breathed as it did before, the breath was much more powerful. It had improved in might and quality. The big yellow dog tilted its head and hesitated before breathing out again.

Another bunch of stalagmites towered. Instead

in one direction, they twisted and extended out as though they formed a beautiful yet bloody rose.

Ou Yangming widened his eyes. He could not believe that the big yellow dog was so valiant that it would perform tricks with its breathing. Of course, he understood that the dog was not fooling around out of boredom. It was tempering its gifted ability. The more the tricks it played, the mightier its breathing, If the big yellow dog encountered something similar to the Black Magic Crawlers' king, perhaps it did not need to actively attack anymore because it could settle the issue simply by breathing out. The big yellow dog breathed twice in a row, then it quickly pierced its claw into the dead bodies around it as if it was exhausted. Consequently, the dog was in high spirits again.

"Roar…"

The third round of breathing commenced.

Ou Yangming shook his head and smiled bitterly. "The fella is actually taking the opportunity to practice its Breathing Skill.

'But I must say it picked the best timing.'

Feeling slightly moved, Ou Yangming quickly became emotionless as his consciousness rose such that he watched strangely as an outsider.

He had witnessed the big yellow dog's breathing before he entered the Chaos Cave, but he could not get anything out of it, not even through the integration of Heaven and man. The unique power that was inherited through a bloodline could not be easily imitated or solved.

Nevertheless, Ou Yangming wanted to see if he could gain useful information from it this time since his mental state seemed to have advanced.

The big yellow dog breathed again after a brief moment, and Ou Yangming entered the thoroughly meticulous state at once.

Time seemed to have slowed down, and he observed everything in depth. He could clearly notice every detail when the big yellow dog opened its mouth and could sense a frightening power had gathered over there. Afterward, the power gushed out of Big Yellow's mouth, and it merged with a certain energy in the void the moment it left, causing a disruptive change to happen.

Ou Yangming shivered a little as he had somewhat grasped the key.

"Pow…"

Countless stalagmites emerged from the ground once more, but Ou Yangming no longer paid attention to it.

When he closed his eyes, every step performed by the big yellow dog, as well as the comprehensive change that happened when its energy left its body to interact with the outside world, surged in his mind in a hurry.

The breathing was the big yellow dog's gifted ability, but Ou Yangming noticed something unordinary about it.

In fact, he was strongly confident that he could release a similar power if he could derive everything. Needless to say, based on Ou Yangming's strength at the moment, he might never be able to derive it.

The big yellow dog finally grew quiet after two hours.

Even though strength improvement was quite important, a foolish martial artist would not cultivate without resting.

Ou Yangming looked at the rather dispirited big yellow dog and said with a smile, "Hey, you gained quite a lot, didn't you?"

The big yellow dog immediately shook its head and approached him while wagging its tail. Just as it wanted to rub its body against Ou Yangming, he shouted, "Wait, you're too dirty!"

Feeling stunned, the dog glanced at itself, then at Ou Yangming's equipment set. It had a strange look in its eyes as though it was saying that Ou Yangming was not in a much better state.

Ou Yangming laughed out loud, then reached out his hands to hug the big yellow dog. He removed its helmet and rubbed its head several times.

The big yellow dog did not resist, and it even licked him with its tongue. Next, it shook its body in a strange way to remove the rare pieces of equipment on its body.

Though it was reluctant, it pushed the pieces of equipment to Ou Yangming.

Ou Yangming was startled, and he hesitated for a while before gritting his teeth as he made his decision.

"Big Yellow, can you promise me something?"

The big yellow dog barked softly, but Ou Yangming instantly understood what it meant.

It would never speak of the Devouring attribute to anyone else, and would never leak it in any way.

Ou Yangming nodded slightly, then picked up the special paw gauntlet to withdraw the Devouring attribute through his Military Fire. Following that, he tossed the gauntlet back to the pile of equipment and said, "Big Yellow, these are gifts for you." "Woof!" The big yellow dog barked in excitement.

It was still extremely happy although the important Devouring attribute was gone. After all, it was unwilling to part with the pieces of equipment after experiencing the great benefits.

As the big yellow dog opened its mouth, it actually swallowed the pieces of equipment.

Ou Yangming was taken aback, and he had a weird expression on his face. He reached out his hands to pull Big Yellow's mouth apart. If Ou Yangming had done this before they fought side by side, the big yellow dog would certainly bite him without any hesitation to show him how forceful its bite was.

However, the dog only shook its head at the moment. Seeing as it could not get free, it simply allowed Ou Yangming to do whatever he wanted.

Despite that, Ou Yangming only saw its deep esophagus no matter how long he looked, and he could not find out where the pieces of equipment had been swallowed to. He sighed helplessly and closed the dog's mouth, which reeked of blood, then tapped its head and said, "Let's go."

Since they had wasted two hours, Ou Yangming was eager to find the Ni family's Land of Inheritance.

Nonetheless, the big yellow dog shook its head. It bit Ou Yangming's sleeve to pull him in a certain direction.

Ou Yangming followed it while feeling dumbfounded, and they soon arrived beside the dead Black Magic Crawler king.

'I actually forgot about this fella,' Ou Yangming said with glowing eyes.

The peculiar crawling king possessed such a powerful mental power that could even attack his consciousness.

If he could grasp the power, would he not gain another killing weapon?

Of course, Ou Yangming understood that the Black Magic Crawler king's special attack was likely a gifted ability, similar to the big yellow dog's breathing. He could not imagine how difficult it would be to figure it out.

The big yellow dog took down the dead crawler king with its mouth, then gashed it and found a shiny round pellet.

Later, it presented the bead to Ou Yangming with a proud face as if it was waiting to be praised.

Ou Yangming pondered for a while. He obviously knew how valuable the item was, but he was not interested in the inner core, whose function was unknown.

He smiled and said, "Big Yellow, let's distribute the loot. The round pellet belongs to you while its dead body belongs to me."

The big yellow dog was startled, and it blinked its big eyes while sending an intense feeling of appreciation through the spiritual level.

It was then that Ou Yangming knew how important the inner core was for the big yellow dog.

The big yellow dog did not reject the offer, and it curled its tongue to swallow the inner core. Subsequently, there was an unusual surge of energy inside its body. The inner core's effect was exerted so quickly that it was unbelievable.

Ou Yangming studied the dog for some time to ensure that it would not be in danger, but even if it was in danger because of the core, he could not have done anything to help.

He shook his wrist to retrieve his military saber, then attached 2 Points of Devouring attributes to the saber before stabbing it into the crawler king's dead body.

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Chapter 130 Yin Grade Class Two

The military saber was easily stabbed into the Black Magic Crawler king's body, and energy instantly surged into Ou Yangming's body. He had added 2 Points of Devouring attributes after careful consideration. Although there was not much difference between 1 Point and 2 Points, Ou Yangming knew that the latter's conversion rate was much higher than the former.

When he absorbed from the same flesh and blood, having 2 Points of the attribute would be more beneficial than having just 1 Point. The effect might not be doubled, but it should not be treated lightly.

Ou Yangming would not have considered so much if he was absorbing from a normal Black Magic Crawler. On the other hand, there was much more possibility in a crawler king, which was even skilled in mental power. Given the circumstances, Ou Yangming was not going to waste the opportunity. The powerful Black Magic Crawler did not disappoint him indeed because the energy that flowed through his military saber was familiar. It was an intense pleasant sensation similar to when he absorbed the half-spirit beast's flesh and blood in the past.

If Ou Yangming did not know that the creature in front of him was a Black Magic Crawler king, he would suspect it had been secretly a half-spirit beast.

The surging energy nourished every corner of his body, and the extreme pleasure made him feel like he was walking on clouds.

Amidst the pleasure, Ou Yangming could feel that his Qi and blood were instantly replenished, and his essential Qi flowed in an unstoppable manner toward a greater height. Before long, a series of cracks were heard coming from his bones, and he had a sinister look on his face. When Ou Yangming suddenly roared, his aura became more extensive.

Yin Grade Class Two!

After absorbing the huge Black Magic Crawler king's flesh and blood, the mighty stimulation drove his essential Qi to a higher level. It was extremely rare that it happened, but it paled into insignificance in comparison with Ou Yangming's gain in mental power. The crawler king's flesh and blood contained unimaginably vast energy, which not only could be transformed into Qi, blood, and essential Qi, but could also improve one's mental power. Ou Yangming could sense that his mental power had greatly advanced again.

When he opened his eyes and used his mind, everything around him slowed down.

The instant Ou Yangming played a thought on his mind, he entered the thoroughly meticulous state. Moreover, he entered the state so ordinarily it was as if he was eating or drinking; it was not difficult at all. It felt as though everything should be that simple.

In actual fact, Ou Yangming had gotten into the thoroughly meticulous state because he was forced by the enormous threat where he narrowly escaped death. Even though Ou Yangming had barely grasped the ability, unless he pursued it for a long time or an unforeseen danger caused a drastic change in his emotions, he might not necessarily enter the state.

Despite that, after absorbing the crawler king's flesh and blood, which improved his mental power, the thoroughly meticulous state seemed to have been integrated into Ou Yangming's instinct. He was able to grasp the more powerful ability without effort.

Ou Yangming inhaled deeply and rubbed his hands to use appraisal art on himself.

[Race: Human)

(Equivalent Rank: Ordinary Human, Yin Grade, Class Two)

[Power: 7]

[Agility: 7]

[Physique: 7]

[Mental Power: 40]

[Skills: Military fist art, military blade technique, Military Fire Smithing Art, appraisal art, Precious Stone Embedding Art] (State: Integration of Heaven and man, thoroughly meticulous]

Ou Yangming was greatly surprised after performing appraisal art because he found that his mental power had increased to 40 Points. As compared to his improvements in the past, he had truly advanced by leaps and bounds this time.

He turned to look at the big yellow dog after exhaling, but his face changed right away.

After swallowing the Black Magic Crawler king's inner core, the big yellow dog did not move around as Ou Yangming did; it lay on the ground to sleep soundly instead. Judging from the way it was sleeping, it did not look like it would wake up soon.

Ou Yangming's face twitched, and he could not help but cry bitterly about the situation.

He could obviously sense that the moment was rather important for the big yellow dog, so he should not disturb it, but Old Craftsman's life was a pressing issue too.

Ou Yangming stomped his foot after some thought, then he fixed his gaze on the stones around him.

As his Military Fire burned, a stone quickly melted and the liquid that dripped down was slowly flattened and extended through his control. At last, a stretcher was formed.

This was probably the toughest stretcher in history.

Ou Yangming carefully placed the big yellow dog onto the stretcher. Perhaps the dog had slowly become used to his smell, it only twitched its body a little and stuck out its tongue subconsciously without responding anymore after that.

"Up!" Ou Yangming shouted.

He lifted the stretcher just like that, then quickly walked deeper into the cave.

While the big yellow dog had swallowed the precious stone that previously guided them, after walking in the cave for such a long time, Ou Yangming roughly knew the direction.

Not knowing if it was because they had killed all the Black Magic Crawlers that obstructed them, they were no longer hindered along the way. Besides, Ou Yangming's mental power became more stimulated as he went deeper into the cave. He even sensed after walking for two hours that a mysterious power ahead was vaguely calling out to him.

Needless to say, he had only sensed it because of his powerful mental power.

Ou Yangming sped up as he was surprised and delighted. Nonetheless, he had lost the sharp sense of smell because his companion was unconscious, hence he gathered his energy and dared not slack at all.

Finally, Ou Yangming was greeted with light after journeying in a hurry for more than three hours.

He seemed to have reached the end of the passage, but a dazzling light was seen at the end.

Ou Yangming did not know what exactly was waiting ahead, but he did not have a choice. He entered the light in a flash.

He took in the view around him after leaping up lightly. This place was actually a small ravine where Ou Yangming could only see as far as a few kilometers even when he overlooked from mid-air. That said, he was shocked to find that the area beyond the visible range was enveloped in a white fog that he could not see past. Similarly, the area above him was covered in fog too.

Ou Yangming wondered at that moment, 'Where exactly did the light come from?'

He looked around the place but still could not find the light source. It was as though the intense light in this place was a natural phenomenon.

All in all, everything in the place was illogical, but when he experienced them carefully, it felt like they were how they were supposed to be.

Ou Yangming put down the stretcher and inhaled deeply, then his face took on a strange expression. The air here doesn't seem right.'

He could not find a way to describe it, but the air was indeed slightly different. The air felt warm when he breathed in, and it was as if it could reach his limbs and bones, which made him feel relaxed.

Ou Yangming hesitated for a while before he finally squatted.

He performed the martial-art squat, which was the most basic posture in martial arts cultivation. Once he did the squat that he was exceptionally familiar with, he finally understood what exactly was different about the air.

As Ou Yangming sensed the surging essential Qi that was about to overflow, he was surprised but glad.

It turned out that there was a martial arts shrine in the ravine.

Each time Ou Yangming breathed, he could absorb certain energy from this place to be transformed into essential Qi along with his Qi and blood. After cultivating for only a short while, Ou Yangming could not help but feel like he wanted to cultivate until the end of time. Nevertheless, Ou Yangming worried about Old Craftsman's safety the most at the moment.

He could not continue to cultivate even after ensuring that the place was safe. With that, Ou Yangming lifted the stretcher again and walked toward the center with the big yellow dog.

A cottage was situated there, and the closer he was to it, the more he felt an unordinary aura.

However, the cottage was quite small so he could not enter it with the stretcher.

Ou Yangming put down the stretcher helplessly after a moment of hesitation. There shouldn't be any danger in this place.'

He glanced apologetically at the sleeping yellow dog, then entered the cottage by himself.

Next, he saw an elder sitting with his legs crossed inside the cottage.

Ou Yangming was taken aback, and he stared at the elder for a long time before confirming that the elder had already been dead for quite some time. Nonetheless, the corpse was still in good condition as it had not decomposed at all.

When Ou Yangming took a step forward to bow at the corpse, he thought, 'My ultimate goal of this journey is probably related to this corpse.' Nothing changed around him, thus Ou Yangming slowly inched closer to study the seemingly alive corpse, and he finally found something strange.

The dead elder held a jade box in his hands and was lowering his head as though he was looking at it.

Ou Yangming gritted his teeth and bowed at the corpse again. "Senior, I was entrusted by the Ni family descendants to search for the Land of Inheritance. Please excuse me for the intrusion." Following that, he retrieved the jade box.

If his goal was only to find the Land of Inheritance, he had probably achieved it already.

That being said, the inheritance was only a burden to him because it was the Life-prolonging Golden Pill that he truly cared about.

Therefore, Ou Yangming was determined to have control over every possible change.

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Chapter 131 Spiritual World

Ou Yangming opened the jade box slowly, then a peculiar luster was instantly emitted from the inside.

His vision became blurry because his consciousness had entered another wonderful world due to the luster.

It was a world that could not be described with words. In the world, his physical quality achievements such as Power, Agility, and Physique turned to nothing because the only power that could exist was mental power.

Nobody explained to Ou Yangming, but he somehow had the knowledge when he entered the world. This was the real Land of Inheritance, whereas the small ravine outside that was filled with strange air was simply a disguise.

Nonetheless, while the real land was wonderful, in terms of actual effect, it could not be compared with the small ravine outside.

This was because cultivating in the ravine was highly beneficial toward one's martial arts. Whether it was an inexperienced person who was new to martial arts or a Supreme Great Ancestor like Ni Xuetian, one could greatly benefit from the cultivation.

On the other hand, mental power was required for one to enter the wonderful world. How many people in the Ni family, or even the whole prefecture, possessed mental power and could release it?

After inspecting the world for a while more, Ou Yangming realized something ridiculous.

He found out that the Ni family's ancestor had actually set up a restriction in the world where even if one had mental power, as long as one did not carry the Ni family's bloodline, one could not enter.

As for how Ou Yangming managed to enter it… The only probable explanation was his mental power points.

Once his mental power was at a certain level, the restriction was non-existent for him.

It was just like how a baby could not climb a slightly higher step even if the baby had the strength of nine bulls and two tigers, but what if an adult had climbed it? An adult could easily climb the step by lifting his or her leg.

Needless to say, there was not such a huge disparity between Ou Yangming and the restriction.

After absorbing energy from the Black Magic Crawler king's flesh and blood where his mental power improved to a new height, his mental power happened to have surpassed the restriction limit, which was why he could enter the mysterious world.

Ou Yangming did not know whether to laugh or to cry when he understood everything.

'I'm truly very lucky.'

In the Land of Inheritance inside the spiritual world, colorful lights were emitted.

Each light represented one inheritance, and there were probably more than 10,000 of them in total.

After seeing the large-scaled Inheritance Lights, Ou Yangming's face changed. He instantly understood that the Ni family was not as simple as it seemed on the surface, and the wonderful spiritual inheritance was probably not something that could be achieved by a Supreme Great Ancestor.

Ou Yangming decided on a small thought after hesitating for a while.

Since he had gone so deep into the ravine, he could not leave empty-handed.

Nevertheless, Ou Yangming did not want to offend the Ni family completely, hence he purposely avoided those related to martial arts when he searched the lights.

A clan's grasp in martial arts was unquestionably the most obvious thing. If Ou Yangming accidentally saw a mysterious technique and unexpectedly learned it, he would not be able to explain himself no matter what.

On the other hand, no matter how cautious one clan was, strange skills were more likely to be leaked due to various reasons.

Smithing, medicine production, formation map, high-level appraisal art…

Plenty of information flashed in Ou Yangming's mind, which was too much for his eyes to take in.

Of course, Ou Yangming knew that he could not stay in the environment forever, and he had not come for the inheritance. Therefore, after briefly browsing the options, he decided on smithing and magic art.

Smithing was a straightforward choice because it was his survival skill, and he was not going to miss the opportunity of learning something more advanced.

As for magic art, Ou Yangming had decided on it because he noticed two words.

Mental power.

Yes, the magic art was a skill developed using mental power as the foundation.

After witnessing through the thoroughly meticulous state the big yellow dog's breathing, Ou Yangming was extremely interested in its gifted skill. He knew that if he used mental power correctly, he might also be able to release the same might.

Hence, after seeing the words 'mental power', his conception was attracted to it like a magnet, and he could not let go of it.

Time kept ticking away as Ou Yangming fathomed knowledge from the spiritual world in detail. After an unknown period of time, he suddenly experienced a splitting headache.

Next, he was distracted and had left the odd spiritual world.

"Ouch!" Ou Yangming squatted and put down the box. He grimaced in pain while holding his head, and was close to rolling on the ground.

He immediately understood that it was because he had over-consumed his mental power.

Mental power was constantly consumed when he stayed in the spiritual world.

If Ou Yangming was part of the Ni family, he would naturally be taken care of where he would be alerted in advance. However, since Ou Yangming had forcefully entered the world, he was not treated that way.

He wanted very badly to encounter a bunch of dead Black Magic Crawlers at that moment because he could compensate for the consumption by slaughtering them.

"Woof!"

The big yellow dog's bark was heard at the door all of a sudden.

Ou Yangming was stunned. He quickly covered the box as it contained a clear jade bead, which was the source of the mysterious light. Once he closed the box, everything became normal as though nothing ever happened.

If he had not experienced the immense pain that gave him the urge to crash into a wall and had not gained extra knowledge in his head, he might actually think that everything was just a dream.

Ou Yangming flashed to leave the cottage.

The big yellow dog had gotten up from the stretcher, but it seemed different from how it was before.

Although its outer appearance remained the same, its temperament underwent drastic changes. Ou Yangming felt an enormous pressure when the big yellow dog simply stood in front of him.

He blurted when a thought crossed his mind, "Supreme Great Ancestor?"

The big yellow dog exerted force through its legs to jump, and it transformed into a yellow light to arrive next to Ou Yangming. If Ou Yangming's mental power was still as powerful as before, he could naturally sense everything clearly by entering the thoroughly meticulous state. He only felt something chilly beside him at that moment, then the big yellow dog appeared and licked his hand in a friendly manner several times.

Ou Yangming smiled bitterly. He wanted to rub its head, but he stopped halfway.

'I'm actually going to caress a Supreme Great Ancestor's head, am I out of my mind…'

That said, the big yellow dog quickly noticed his move, and it actually moved its head to his palm to rub against it.

Ou Yangming could not help but laugh. He went with it and placed his hand on the dog's head.

"Ah, I can't believe that you've become a Supreme Great Ancestor even though we came in together." Ou Yangming lamented. "I've only advanced one class, which is far from what you've achieved."

The big yellow dog tilted its head and cast a disdainful look at him to expose his lie.

Indeed, in terms of mere cultivation base, Ou Yangming and the big yellow dog were Heaven and Earth apart as the former was in Yin Grade Class Two while the latter was in Extreme Grade. Nonetheless, even the dog scorned at Ou Yangming when he said that he had only advanced one class.

It was worth noting that mental power upgrade was much more difficult than essential Qi improvement, and Ou Yangming's mental power had actually highly benefited. Obviously, what the big yellow dog truly envied was the fact that Ou Yangming's potential burst out when he was on the verge of death, and he progressed from the integration of Heaven and man to the thoroughly meticulous state.

The apprehension of Heaven and Earth's path was tougher than mental power cultivation.

Many Supreme Great Ancestors had put in their utmost effort to arrive at Extreme Grade, but could not fathom the mysteries between Heaven and Earth, so they could not achieve the integration of Heaven and man, let alone the thoroughly meticulous state.

In comparison, the big yellow dog's mere power and its breakthrough in Blood Meridian were not worth mentioning. Ou Yangming grinned and ignored the big yellow dog's look. He said, "Big Yellow, we've found the Land of Inheritance and the inheritance that they need. What about the Life-prolonging Golden Pill? Where's that thing?"

The big yellow dog blinked. It instantly understood what Ou Yangming meant.

Even though it was part of the Ni family, it had traveled together with and fought alongside Ou Yangming. It was true that they trusted each other with their life.

The big yellow dog hung its head and no longer showed the aura of a Supreme Great Ancestor.

Ou Yangming sighed. "Big Yellow, I'll never beg you for anything else, but I must save Old Craftsman. No matter what it costs, even if I have to risk universal condemnation, I… I don't care!"

He did not speak in a high tone, and the words were said so calmly that they did not sound threatening at all.

Despite that, just like he said, he did not care.

The attitude that he displayed frightened the big yellow dog, which had become a Supreme Great Ancestor. It suddenly looked up deeply at Ou Yangming, then turned to enter the cottage. Ou Yangming's eyelids twitched. He immediately figured that there had to be something else in there, but he was so immersed in the spiritual world earlier that he did not notice it.

Nevertheless, it would be inappropriate for him to enter the cottage again. The big yellow dog came out after a brief moment, and it held a jade bottle in its mouth.

Ou Yangming was so excited that he began breathing quickly. There was no need for him to ask because the feeling transmitted through their spiritual connection was clearly telling him what was inside the bottle.

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Chapter 132 Smooth All The Way

Ou Yangming reached out his hand to take the jade bottle from the big yellow dog's mouth. Perhaps he was too excited, his hands were slightly shaking.

The big yellow dog shook his head a little and bared his teeth, but the seemingly ferocious look appeared amiable for Ou Yangming.

He carefully kept the jade bottle. There was no need for him to check its authenticity because he trusted Big Yellow.

Ou Yangming opened his arms to hug the big yellow dog, and he used so much strength that even the tough dog stuck out its tongue.

The big yellow dog had just advanced to the next level, but it was still a Supreme Great Ancestor. 'A great ancestor shouldn't be tormented like this…' It widened its eyes and plucked up its courage, but just as it was going to bark to display a great ancestor's prestige again, Ou Yangming mumbled, "Big Yellow, thank you."

The big yellow dog was stunned, and its bark was stuck in its throat. The suspended aura was making the dog feel unusually uncomfortable, but it somehow felt a warm feeling in its heart, so it could not be resentful at all.

'Hmph, I'm a generous dog, so I won't argue with a child like him,' the big yellow dog said it to itself as it was unwilling to admit defeat.

Nonetheless, the dog had no idea that its eyes looked incredibly gentle, which was completely different from the aggressive look it had when it fought the Black Magic Crawlers.

That said, before the big yellow dog fully released its warm feelings, Ou Yangming let go of it and said, "Big Yellow, let's go, I must give it to Old Craftsman as soon as possible! Hey, why do your eyes look so strange? Are you sick…"

The big yellow dog was speechless.

Ou Yangming's face suddenly changed when he brought the big yellow dog to the cave that led to the ravine. "Oh no!"

The dog cast a surprised look at Ou Yangming, but it was slightly vigilant.

'What is this young fella up to this time? Is he going to play the same trick again to make me feel sad?'

However, Ou Yangming sighed at the big yellow dog and said, "Big Yellow, I'm afraid that you won't be able to get out."

The big yellow dog looked at him strangely as it was confused.

"Do you remember what Senior Ni Xuetian said? Once someone enters Extreme Grade, one will be sensed by the Black Magic Crawlers in the Chaos Cave, and the creatures will hurry over tirelessly." Ou Yangming sighed and expressed with a bitter smile, "We're both armored, but it's impossible to eliminate every Black Magic Crawler…"

They had gone around the Land of Inheritance before entering it, so they knew very well how dangerous the areas around the land were.

Although they had killed a nest of 10,000 Black Magic Crawlers along the way, it did not mean that there was only one nest in the entire Chaos Cave. If Ni Xuetian was right about the Black Magic Crawlers being able to sense Extreme Grade powerhouses, and that the creatures would pursue a powerhouse as such resolutely, every Supreme Great Ancestor in the world would be killed even if they gathered in the cave together. Nevertheless, the big yellow dog suddenly opened its mouth to spit out a scarf. The moment the scarf was unfolded, there seemed to be a strange fluctuation in the air around them.

Ou Yangming was stunned, and he immediately understood that the scarf was not as simple as it seemed. It was certainly a treasure, and he somehow felt that it looked familiar…

He shouted at once when he remembered what it was, "Big Yellow, you actually stole a dead person's belongings, you're being too disrespectful! Ah, oh my god! You even swallowed it! T-that's unreasonable, stay away from me and don't lick me anymore!"

The big yellow dog's knees went weak such that it almost fell. When it turned around, it glared angrily at Ou Yangming, who was jokingly smiling back at it.

Ou Yangming was elated after acquiring the Life-prolonging Golden Pill, and the feeling of joy was indescribable. He could not wait to share the good news with everyone else in the world.

Despite that, Big Yellow was his only companion in the cave, so who else could he have fun with?

The big yellow dog barked and pounced on him.

Ou Yangming could have dodged it, but instead, he hugged it and fell to the ground.

The big yellow dog stuck out its tongue to attempt licking Ou Yangming's face, but Ou Yangming resisted it with all his might. With that, the human and the dog fought jokingly.

After an unknown period of time, their fight finally ended with the big yellow dog being victorious.

Ou Yangming got up and knocked the dog's head, but the dog simply ignored him.

"Big Yellow, why did you remove the senior's scarf? Does it have a magical effect to drive out the crawlers?"

The big yellow dog nodded proudly, then it picked up the scarf with its mouth and lifted its head as a gesture to Ou Yangming to follow it.

Following that, it dashed out of the peculiar Land of Inheritance.

Ou Yangming turned to look at the place once more. He had a feeling that this was not the end of his fate with the land.

'Perhaps I'll visit this place again one day.'

After entering the deep passage and arriving at the next intersection, Ou Yangming was about to sense the exit when he saw the big yellow dog taking one of the paths without any hesitation.

Ou Yangming was startled, and he quickly sensed with the integration of Heaven and man while following the dog.

He was surprised because the path chosen by the big yellow dog was actually the same as what he sensed. Ou Yangming blinked and mumbled to himself, 'Did Big Yellow guess it blindly, or did it achieve the integration of Heaven and man too?'

However, he recalled that the big yellow dog's apprehension in Heaven and Earth's mysteries was not at that level yet.

When they arrived at another intersection, Ou Yangming slowed down on purpose. Nonetheless, the dog turned to glance at him scornfully, then it went on the right path again.

It was then when Ou Yangming finally realized that the big yellow dog had indeed attained the unique ability that prevented it from getting lost in the Chaos Cave.

Unquestionably, the dog had gained the ability from the Land of Inheritance. It was probably a treasure similar to the scarf in its mouth, but it did not show it to Ou Yangming.

Ou Yangming had no idea how many rare and precious treasures there were in the Land of Inheritance, and he made a mistake by not inspecting the place thoroughly.

In spite of that, he was not upset because he was certain that the jade box that was left by the big yellow dog was the most precious treasure of them all. Ou Yangming had browsed the spiritual world through his consciousness and had earned a huge advantage as he remembered something impressive.

Besides, he was content after obtaining the Life-prolonging Golden Pill, thus the extra rewards were just icing on the cake. It was great to have them, but it would not matter if he did not get his hands on them.

Ou Yangming shook his head smilingly and caught up to the big yellow dog, then they exited to the outside world together.

In the beginning, they looked relaxed but were actually wary against the powerful Black Magic Crawlers that might appear again. Nevertheless, they realized after walking for an hour that the crawlers could no longer threaten them.

They had come across a Black Magic Crawler along the way, but it was not a healthy crawler. Judging from its dispirited state, it looked like an old crawler whose time was almost up and would die at any time.

That being said, the crawler suddenly regained vitality when the big yellow dog approached it, and the crawler went from being weak to being agile again. Even so, Ou Yangming and the dog were surprised because the crawler fled instead of wanting to attack them.

It was as though they were demons or ghosts, but having said that, the crawler stopped again after escaping just a hundred meters away because it was depleted of energy.

After witnessing the scene, even a fool knew that the crawlers could not obstruct Ou Yangming and the big yellow dog anymore.

In fact, the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors together would not find a normal Black Magic Crawler anymore, let alone the big yellow dog.

At last, Ou Yangming and the dog arrived at the beautiful cave a few times faster than they took when they entered the cave.

As soon as they exited, the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors approached them.

Ni Jingtong expressed out loud, "You've returned, did you… Ah, Big Yellow, did you find it?"

His voice suddenly raised. It was evident that even a Supreme Great Ancestor like him could not control his emotions at the moment.

The big yellow dog swung its head to toss the scarf. The scarf was so light that it seemed like nothing, but it flew toward the elder steadily under the dog's control.

Ni Jingtong accepted the item right away. Without despising the big yellow dog's saliva at all, he studied the scarf for some time and even sniffed it before he laughed like a madman. "They found it, they found it, haha…"

His voice slowly deepened as he laughed, and he soon began crying. Ou Yangming was dumbfounded. 'What's going on?' Ni Jingshen sighed and hugged Ni Jingtong, then turned to explain to Ou Yangming, "Lil' Ou, hundreds of lives in the clan were sacrificed for this day, Jingtong's close relative being one of them. Please excuse him for losing himself."

Ou Yangming sighed as he instantly recalled Old Craftsman. "I understand, I'm sorry for your loss, senior."

Ni Xuetian suddenly called out when he stared at the big yellow dog with his bright eyes, "Big Yellow, you, you…"

His voice quickly drew the attention of the other two elders, who turned to look at Big Yellow as well.

Subsequently, their eyes lit up with insuppressible joy.

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Chapter 133 Big Yellow Backs Him Up

Supreme Great Ancestor, it was the aura of a Supreme Great Ancestor.

Although the great ancestors did not notice it at first, it was because the Land of Inheritance was too important to their clan. The effort put in by the Ni family for the inheritance was far beyond what one could imagine. Therefore, the great ancestors neglected Big Yellow's cultivation base earlier. Of course, it was also because they never imagined the big yellow dog would advance to the next level. Big Yellow was a half-spirit beast, hence the meaning of it being able to become a Supreme Great Ancestor could not be conceived by Ou Yangming, but the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors understood it very well. The elders even forgot about their clan's Land of Inheritance after realizing what had happened.

On the other hand, the big yellow dog's eyes wandered about and it lifted its head proudly with an indifferent look on its face.

Ou Yangming curled his lips and almost laughed out loud. He definitely had not known the dog for a long time, and it was at least a much shorter time than the three Supreme Great Ancestors had known it. Nonetheless, after fighting side by side with the big yellow dog, Ou Yangming understood it better than the few elders did.

It was not only because Ou Yangming and the dog had fought alongside each other in a battle of life or death, but mainly because they had built a wonderful spiritual connection. Despite that, nobody else in the world would know of the mysterious matter.

As such, after seeing the big yellow dog's expression, Ou Yangming knew that it was going to stick its tail up.

Sure enough, once the three Supreme Great Ancestors questioned tirelessly, the big yellow dog admitted it. The dog looked as though its advancement into Extreme Grade made sense, and that it would only be unreasonable if it had not broken through!

Nevertheless, the three great ancestors ignored the big yellow dog's pretentious look because they were satisfied that it had indeed entered Extreme Grade.

Ou Yangming cleared his throat when the three elders slowly calmed down.

It was then when the great ancestors remembered that an outsider was still present.

Ni Jingshen said with a red face, "Lil' Ou, we forgot our manners."

Ou Yangming quickly responded, "Senior, I feel your happiness for Big Yellow, it's fine." He paused before he added, "Since I've found your clan's Land of Inheritance, I've completed my task. May I leave?"

Ni Jingshen and the other elders exchanged glances, but Ou Yangming vaguely sensed that there was something behind their looks.

Ou Yangming shivered a little. He would never make evil guesses about other people, but he would also not picture a person to have a perfect heart, thus he was alert when he noticed the elders' look.

After all, Ou Yangming found the Ni family's greatest secret, so it would not seem strange even if they murdered him.

"Uhm, Lil' Ou, we promised to teach you the way of using mental power once the Land of Inheritance is found," Ni Jingshen said after clearing his throat, then added with a kind smile after a pause, "How about you cultivate for a period of time in our clan and leave when you've successfully learned it?" Ou Yangming answered without any hesitation, "Thank you for your kindness, seniors, but I'm truly worried about my elder's health so I'd like to go home. Please forgive me."

"Lil' Ou, Big Uncle is only doing it out of goodwill, you might lose the chance if you leave now," Ni Xuetian responded with a frown, then suggested seriously, "You might as well get a servant to send the medicine back home, we'll make sure that nothing goes wrong."

However, no matter how he tried to persuade, Ou Yangming insisted to leave and even expressed directly, "Thank you for your generosity, but I've made up my mind. I must return to serve the old man. I'll come to apologize for the offense once he recovers."

Ni Jingshen and the other great ancestors looked displeased because they had joined hands to urge a Yin Grade junior to stay, yet the junior rejected their offer firmly. The embarrassment and unhappiness were making them feel uncomfortable.

If Ou Yangming had not just rendered a commendable service for the Ni family and had an unclear relationship with Ni Yinghong, the elders would have slapped the ungrateful fellow into meat paste long ago. That said, the big yellow dog suddenly stood out at that crucial moment. It made its way to Ou Yangming and sat next to him.

Ou Yangming sighed and said internally, 'Big Yellow, you finally came forward. If you didn't, I might have to give up my life here.'

The big yellow dog cast a disdainful look at him as though it was scorning him for having to rely on it in the end.

Ou Yangming could not help but laugh because he knew that Big Yellow was taking revenge on him for mocking it at the Land of Inheritance. Nonetheless, he was glad and content that the big yellow dog had stepped forward for him.

In actual fact, the big yellow dog was the reason Ou Yangming was able to reject the three Supreme Great Ancestors so confidently, so if it still did not stand up for him, he might have to give in to the elders' request.

After all, Ou Yangming had only come to retrieve the spiritual medicine for Old Man. He could persevere to a certain extent, but would not be overly stubborn, hence he would not mind giving the impression of weakness if there was a huge difference in strengths.

In spite of that, Ou Yangming wanted to watch Old Man recover even if he had a slight chance.

Ni Jingshen and the other elders looked at each other as they finally realized something after seeing the big yellow dog's act. After the adventure, it turned out that things had developed beyond their expectations and plan.

"Big Yellow, you're saying…" The big yellow dog barked and leaned against Ou Yangming. This time, as dumb as one was, one could clearly understand what was going on.

Ni Jingshen and the two great ancestors exchanged glances again, but this time, they seemed helpless. "Ah, we've only offered out of kindness, but since you're determined to leave, we shall not force you to stay." Ni Jingshen hesitated for a while before he added, "We'll send you back now, and get someone to escort you back to the camp." "Thank you, seniors." Ou Yangming sighed a breath of relief, then tore a piece of cloth to cover his eyes.

Seeing as Ou Yangming was so eager to leave, the elders did not know whether to laugh or to cry. In the Ni family or even the whole prefecture, numerous people would approach the elders to do everything to be recognized! On the opposite, the great ancestors were mercilessly rejected when they actively approached Ou Yangming for an offer. They lamented at the huge contrast.

Following that, Ni Jingshen pulled Ou Yangming to lift him up and flashed to leave the place, whereas the big yellow dog pricked up its ears and followed them closely.

Ni Jingtong and Ni Xuetian looked at each other and were slightly worried. 'It's not good that Big Yellow is so close to Ou Yangming…! That being said, there was nothing they could do, so they only watched as the big yellow dog followed Ou Yangming and left.

They hurried throughout their journey, and by the time Ou Yangming's blindfold was removed, they had already returned to the Ni residence.

At that moment, those in the clan who were qualified to know of the situation had already gathered to wait for the result. The people who were optimistic had actually thought they would only receive news after roughly half a month, thus they did not expect the three great ancestors to return after less than three days.

Even though the great ancestors were trained to maintain their composure, the gain from the adventure was too massive. Not only was their clan's Land of Inheritance found, but Big Yellow had also advanced to Extreme Grade.

The latter's importance was not inferior to the former at all, and in fact, the elders were even more excited about it in a certain way as compared to the Land of Inheritance being found.

Therefore, even the usually stern Ni Jingshen could not hide the smile on his face.

Since the great ancestors contacted the other people and returned so quickly, most people guessed the outcome. With that, the whole Ni residence was filled with a joyous atmosphere. The great ancestors did not stop them because they wanted to boost the clan's morale and cohesion through the matter, so they allowed them to guess as it was what they wanted.

Once Ni Jingshen put down Ou Yangming and removed his blindfold, he said softly, "Lil' Ou, you mustn't easily leak the clan's important place, please forgive me for the request." "Senior, you're being too polite, it's a matter of course," Ou Yangming quickly replied to him, then continued after a pause, "Since we're back, I'll bid farewell."

Ni Xuetian suddenly asked, "Lil' Ou, can you do something before you leave?"

Ou Yangming was startled, but he said, "Please tell me what it is, senior."

"You probably connected your mental power with Big Yellow before you entered the Chaos Cave, am I right?" Ni Xuetian questioned.

"That's right, I'm guessing that it's Big Yellow's gifted ability, and I truly admire it." Ou Yangming was moved.

Ni Xuetian laughed and asked in a friendly manner, "Lil' Ou, since you've both returned, the connection no longer has a purpose. Can you remove it?"

While he asked in a negotiating tone, Ou Yangming could see a resolute look through his eyes. Ou Yangming immediately understood that Ni Xuetian would not just let it be if he refused to break the connection.

"Senior, aren't you asking the wrong person? I have no idea how my consciousness is connected with Big Yellow's, so you shouldn't look for me even if you want it removed!" Ou Yangming responded with a bitter smile.

Ni Xuetian grinned and expressed, "Lil' Ou, we can't let someone who has such a connection with Big Yellow to leave the clan no matter what!"

He was very straightforward, but the weight of his words was even more evident because there was no room for discussion.

Ou Yangming's eyes were bright, but he felt chills when he looked at the grinning Ni Xuetian. He nodded after some thought, "Okay, I'll give it a shot!"

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Chapter 134 Attitude Change

"Big Yellow, I'm extremely honored to have experienced so much with you." Ou Yangming cut to the chase after approaching the big yellow dog, and said with a sincere smile, "I'll never forget everything that happened in the Chaos Cave."

"Woof!" The big yellow dog barked emotionally as though it knew what was about to happen, and it seemed rather sad.

Ou Yangming rubbed its head out of habit, but he did not notice that the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors looked displeased when he did that.

Not to mention that Big Yellow had entered Extreme Grade, it would never have gotten so close to someone when it was only in Yang Grade in the past!

Apart from Ni Yinghong, who was adept in cooking and loved by Big Yellow, nobody else in the Ni family could do that.

However, the big yellow suddenly trusted an outsider so much, thus the great ancestors were ill at ease.

Ou Yangming said softly, "Big Yellow, I must return as soon as possible to meet my old man, so I can't stay here. Please remove the connection between us, I'll come back to find you once I'm done."

Ni Jingshen and the other two great ancestors thought, 'When you come back, it'll only be strange if you manage to see Big Yellow.'

Nonetheless, they tried their best to look natural so as to not enrage the big yellow dog.

Big Yellow tilted its head as if it was pondering, whereas Ni Jingshen and the other great ancestors watched silently without making a sound. Though they did not urge the dog, they were not going to compromise.

At last, Big Yellow nodded. It glanced at Ou Yangming and opened its mouth slowly, where a wonderful power was instantly released.

The great ancestors exchanged glances and sighed a breath of relief. They were rather concerned earlier because they would not be able to do anything if Big Yellow was unwilling to break the connection. Perhaps they would have to let Ou Yangming leave, but fortunately, the worst-case scenario did not happen.

Nevertheless, the other Ni family powerhouses looked at one another as they were confused. It was true that Big Yellow had an unordinary position in the clan, but the three great ancestors never valued it that much in the past!

Why did their attitude toward the big yellow dog change drastically after it left the Land of Inheritance?

Unusual energy entered Ou Yangming's body, and he experienced something magnificent; a hint of Big Yellow's consciousness was drifting in his spiritual world.

They were communicating through the amazing connection at the moment, but the communication was in a mysterious port. Be it Ou Yangming or Big Yellow, if one of them backed away, the connection would be broken.

Despite that, there was a tacit understanding between them that could not be put into words, hence their consciousness kept going back forth as none of them wanted to initiate the break.

Ou Yangming was agitated, and he gritted his teeth while reaching out to hug the big yellow dog.

Next, Ou Yangming's consciousness instantly rose.

The state of the integration of Heaven and man!

Ou Yangming and Big Yellow's consciousness merged into one, and they entered at the same time the state of having a thorough understanding of Heaven and Earth's energy.

Ni Xuetian's face took on a ghastly expression as he exclaimed, "How is that possible?"

He did not find it strange that Ou Yangming fathomed the integration of Heaven and man because the young fellow would not be qualified to enter the Chaos Cave if that was not the case. That said, although Ou Yangming achieved it, it did not mean that Big Yellow could achieve it too. Even if their mental conception was connected through a certain gifted ability, it was unlikely for something like that to happen.

At the very least, Ni Xuetian was not confident about having attained that standard.

The big yellow dog blinked. It instantly understood that it was definitely a great opportunity for it.

Without further ado, it let go of its mind and allowed Ou Yangming's consciousness to guide it in nature. Their mental conceptions were like a fish that swam in Heaven and Earth as though they were the ocean. The figures in the natural environment near them, as well as the trees and rockeries far away, everything in the world became the goal that they pursued. The integration of Heaven and man.

Under Ou Yangming's lead, the big yellow dog truly had a taste of the state's wonder.

On the other hand, the people around them felt something strange.

Ou Yangming was clearly in front of them, but he seemed to not exist at all because he had become one with Heaven and Earth. After a long time, Ou Yangming exhaled deeply and let go of the big yellow dog. He looked deeply at it and winked discreetly.

The big yellow dog cast a grateful look at him, then closed its eyes and lay on the ground without moving an inch.

Ou Yangming turned to say, "Seniors, Big Yellow has cut off its connection with me."

Ni Jingshen and Ni Jingtong looked at Ni Xuetian simultaneously. Even though they had higher seniority, they had not achieved the integration of Heaven and man, so their sensing ability in terms of the mysterious spiritual aspect was inferior to Ni Xuetian's.

The look on Ni Xuetian's face was unpredictable as he studied Ou Yangming and the big yellow dog in confusion.

Ni Jingtong cleared his throat and asked, "Xuetian, how is it?"

"It should be alright," Ni Xuetian finally answered forcefully after keeping quiet for a long time. Subsequently, he asked in all seriousness, "Lil' Friend Ou, may I ask how you did it?"

The crowd was stunned, and they widened their eyes to look at Ou Yangming in disbelief.

'What did the great ancestor just say?' Due to Ni Yunhong and his younger sister, and the fact that they needed Ou Yangming's power, the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors had been addressing Ou Yangming as Lil' Ou.

However, the crowd heard Ni Xuetian calling him Lil' Friend Ou instead of Lil' Ou.

While the terms of address were only different by one word, their meanings were completely different.

Ni Jingshen and Ni Jingtong were also anxious and doubtful when they looked at Ni Xuetian because they did not know what exactly he was up to.

Ou Yangming's face changed, and he quickly waved his hand and expressed, "Senior, please don't frighten me, I don't deserve the term of address."

"Hehe, if you don't deserve it, who else in the world deserves it?" Ni Xuetian looked at Ou Yangming with a grave expression, then flapped his sleeve and glanced at the big yellow dog. "It's fine. Since you're so eager to save your elder… Have you acquired the golden

pill?"

"Big Yellow has given it to me," Ou Yangming immediately answered.

"Okay, stay here for a night, I'll arrange…"

"Senior, I'm anxious to return home so I'd like to leave now. Please fulfill my wish!" Ou Yangming interrupted him without hesitation.

The other Ni family members looked furious as they thought Ou Yangming was courting death for having the guts to cut off a great ancestor. "Okay. Wangyang, escort Lil' Friend Ou back to the Immense Forest Military Camp," Ni Xuetian simply smiled and replied to Ou Yangming nicely, then ordered after some thought, "Get some rare restoratives from the storeroom too and tell Xuehai to give the best, there's no need to be stingy at all."

Ni Wangyang was baffled because Ni Xuetian did not treat Ou Yangming like that earlier. Why did he change in the blink of an eye? That being said, whether Ni Wangyang understood it or not, he dared not disobey the Supreme Great Ancestor.

He responded softly, "Brother… Ou, let's go."

Since the Supreme Great Ancestor had actually addressed Ou Yangming as Lil' Friend Ou, as thick-faced as Ni Wangyang was, he dared not regard himself as a senior anymore. Nevertheless, he could not bring himself to call Ou Yangming an uncle.

Ou Yangming was delighted. He cupped his hands at everyone, then followed Ni Wangyang to the storeroom.

At the courtyard's entrance, he stopped abruptly to look in a certain direction where he fixed his sharp eyes on someone for a moment. Afterward, Ou Yangming turned and left as if nothing happened.

The Ni family members looked at each other as they were puzzled.

Ni Xuetian instructed with a deep voice, "Don't clamor and don't disturb Big Yellow. We'll talk about it once Big Yellow awakes, you may leave now."

"Yes." The crowd subconsciously lowered their voice as they dared not alarm the seemingly asleep big yellow dog, then they left in an orderly manner.

After a brief moment, only Big Yellow and the three Supreme Great Ancestors were left. "Xuetian, what's going on?" Ni Jingshen questioned.

Ni Xuetian's attitude change confused the other two great ancestors too. They were obviously not concerned about the spiritual medicine from the storeroom, but they could not neglect Ni Xuetian's attitude. "Uncles, do you know what happened just now?" Ni Xuetian asked slowly while looking at them, then inhaled deeply before he continued, "If I'm not mistaken, not only has Big Yellow entered Extreme Grade, but it has also achieved the integration of Heaven and man in terms of its comprehension in Heaven and Earth's energy."

"What?"

The other two Supreme Great Ancestors gasped.

It was the integration of Heaven and man, a state that they desired and searched for tens of years, but their efforts had been to no avail.

Big Yellow must have broken through to Extreme Grade and arrived at the peak of a half-spirit beast because it had a chance encounter during the adventure. In fact, it could probably advance a step further to have unlimited achievements. In spite of that, it would be too forceful to say that Big Yellow had comprehended the integration of Heaven and man.

"Could it be… Related to Ou Yangming?" Ni Jingshen was moved.

Ni Xuetian nodded. "That's right. Earlier on, I sensed that Ou Yangming released his mental conception, and he became one with Heaven and Earth. It's exceptionally rare that someone can achieve such a level in the integration of Heaven and man, but Ou Yangming actually entered the state together with Big Yellow. H-how did he do it?"

He asked himself a question in the end, but it was destined to not have an answer.

Ni Jingshen and Ni Jingtong's faces changed because they finally understood Ni Xuetian's attitude change.

"Xuetian, since Ou Yangming helped Big Yellow fathom Heaven and Earth, does it mean that he can help us too?" Ni Jingtong suddenly raised a question.

Ni Jingshen's eyes glowed as he was deeply moved too.

"I have no idea either, but… It's very possible!" Ni Xuetian smiled bitterly.

Ni Jingshen sighed. "Do you think we were being too harsh on him just now?"

"Yes." Ni Jingtong nodded in agreement. "He helped us find the Land of Inheritance, but we gave him such a treatment. Ah, we must apologize to him and seek his forgiveness."

"That's right!"

"Yes!"

Ni Xuetian twitched his mouth and cursed, 'Maintain a reserved manner and have some self-respect. Where's your dignity as a powerhouse?

'You're actually thinking about admitting your mistake to a little Yin Grade martial artist for the integration of Heaven and man.

'If word gets out, what would other people think of the Ni family?

'But… Even I must admit that if I'm in their shoes where I haven't perceived the integration of Heaven and man, I'll likely be worse than them.'

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Chapter 135 Attacked Halfway

When the prefecture's gate was opened, eight horses galloped out at the speed of light.

Apart from Ou Yangming, Ni Wangyang, and two juniors, who sat on mounts, the other four horses carried two big sacks each.

After receiving orders from Ni Xuetian, Ni Wangyang made a trip to the storeroom indeed. By the time he returned, he carried eight sacks with him. Although Ou Yangming did not know much about medicine and had no idea what the sacks contained, he could smell a faint fragrance when he went closer to the sacks. The fragrance channeled straight to the bottom of his heart, making him feel relaxed.

Putting aside everything else, Ou Yangming could tell from the fragrance itself that the medicine contained in the sacks were incredibly valuable.

No matter how the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors treated Ou Yangming before, he was no longer resentful because of the eight bags of medicine. Nothing could compare to Old Craftsman's life, so it was undoubtedly more worthwhile for the great ancestors to express goodwill to the old man instead of flattering Ou Yangming

The fine horses from the Ni family were superior to the carefully chosen horses in the military camp.

Even after galloping fast for half a day, the eight horses were still in high spirits, hence Ou Yangming could not help but exclaim.

Nonetheless, Ni Wangyang still decided to stop and rest at night. He proudly explained to Ou Yangming that the horses were not ordinary horses, but creatures that carried the rare bloodline of a spirit beast.

Ou Yangming began guessing after hearing him.

Not only did the Ni family have the big yellow dog, which was a half-spirit beast, but they also had fine horses that carried the rare bloodline of a spirit beast.

When Ou Yangming recalled the odd creatures and the magnificent Land of Inheritance in the Chaos Cave, he wondered how many more secrets the Ni family had yet to uncover…

Needless to say, Ou Yangming was somewhat moved, but he knew very well that he would never devise a plan on the Ni family. As long as Ni Yinghong and Big Yellow were still in the clan, he would unlikely do anything to harm them.

Ni Wangyang was also extremely friendly toward Ou Yangming. He asked, "Brother Ou, when are you returning to the prefecture?"

Ou Yangming was taken aback.

'I haven't even returned to the Immense Forest Military Camp, why is he asking me something without a basis?' Upon seeing Ou Yangming's confusion, Ni Wangyang said with a smile, "I heard from Yunhong that he promised to teach you the Suit Skill if you manage to find our clan's Land of Inheritance. Oh, there's also Yinghong's appraisal art, hehe…"

He curled his lips into a smile when he uttered the last sentence.

Ou Yangming blushed because he knew why Ni Wangyang had smiled. Just as he was about to defend himself, his face suddenly changed, and he looked at their surroundings vigilantly.

Ni Wangyang was startled. "Brother Ou, you don't have to be so nervous, nobody will touch the Ni family's goods on this path."

He was a bold man due to his skills such that he carelessly rested on an empty space on the ground after traveling quickly for a long time. According to what Ni Wangyang said, he had also done it out of his experience. Even though Ou Yangming disliked an experience like that, he agreed with Ni Wangyang's action because he was also hurrying home.

Nevertheless, Ou Yangming somehow had a bad feeling about their surroundings at the moment as if a huge crisis was lurking somewhere. After advancing to the thoroughly meticulous state, his sensing ability became much stronger, and he became sharper especially when someone harbored evil thoughts against him.

"Senior Ni, be careful!"

Following that, Ou Yangming unloaded his new equipment set from the horse and began putting it on. The equipment set was revamped where each piece was at the peak of Fine Grade Rank Five. In actual fact, after the pieces of equipment were upgraded, the upper limit of the attachable attributes increased as well. Despite that, Ou Yangming had used all his stored attributes on the big yellow dog's equipment set in the Chaos Cave, thus his equipment set retained the original attributes.

Even so, when Ou Yangming retrieved the pieces of equipment, other than Ni Wangyang, the two Yin Grade masters were envious.

Ni Wangyang's face darkened, and he thought, 'This young fella's really making a fuss out of nothing. I've already told him that nobody will dare to touch the Ni family's goods, but he's still being so pretentious. He's not showing me respect at all.

'If it wasn't for Yinghong, I'll definitely teach him a lesson.'

However, just as Ni Wangyang thought so, he felt a tingling sensation on his scalp as a sharp sound pierced the air.

It was an arrow, and it was one that was directly aimed at Ni Wangyang. The arrow's speed and accuracy were excellent but most importantly, it was shot unexpectedly. The archer had shot the arrow right after locking on to Ni Wangyang as the target.

Though Ni Wangyang had finally sensed it, he could not evade the arrow perfectly.

He roared and twisted his body forcefully, but he knew very well that he could probably not escape the sneak attack. While Ni Wangyang would not lose his life, a severe injury was likely inevitable.

Ni Wangyang was surprised and mad at that moment, but he could only watch helplessly as the arrow shot toward his shoulder.

In actuality, the arrow was initially targeted at his chest, but he managed to switch its final target by forcing a dodge.

That said, a flash of saber-light suddenly appeared at the spur of the moment.

Ou Yangming's military saber had touched the arrow lightly. It did not seem like he had exerted much power through the saber, but the slash was so wonderful that the arrow's direction was shifted up a little, with the precondition that the arrow's speed and power were unaffected. The slight shift caused the deadly arrow to change its direction by which it brushed past Ni Wangyang's hair. Apart from a few strands of long hair that were lost as a result, Ni Wangyang was not harmed.

"Ah

"Who's that fella hiding in the dark? Get your *ss out here!" Ni Wangyang roared furiously after he managed to dodge the attack. Before his voice died away, he had retrieved his weapon, which was also a military saber.

Ou Yangming was slightly stunned. It was common for tough men in the military to use a military saber as a weapon, but a clan member from the Ni family had plenty of other choices.

Therefore, it was unusual for a clan powerhouse to use a military saber as a weapon.

Ni Wangyang flashed and darted in the direction where the arrow was shot. He had identified the enemy's identity right away although only a shot was made.

A Yang Grade powerhouse, the attacker was definitely a powerful Yang Grade master. One would be courting death to confront a Yang Grade divine archer from a distance away, hence Ni Wangyang charged at the attacker without any hesitation.

Nevertheless, three more arrows were shot in a row.

Ni Wangyang was well-prepared this time, so he either blocked with his saber or shifted his body to avoid the arrows. Ni Wangyang played it safe, but he was not afraid at all.

Ou Yangming's eyes lit up as he noticed a hint of military skills in Ni Wangyang's body technique and blade art. The Ni family powerhouse had surely served in the military, and his character was rather similar to a soldier's style, which was why he preserved such a deep impression of a soldier.

All in all, Ou Yangming felt a close connection with Ni Wangyang when he saw the saber technique.

Seeing as Ni Wangyang was close within reach, a black figure jumped out abruptly and stabbed his longsword at him.

Ni Wangyang yelled, and the two Yang Grade powerhouses instantly clashed. In spite of that, Ni Wangyang was quickly relieved when their weapons clashed and sparks flew. The Yang Grade powerhouse's power and essential Qi were inferior to Ni Wangyang's, and he was at most in Yang Grade Class One. Being an elder of the Ni family's direct line of descent, Ni Wangyang could easily take down the enemy.

All of a sudden, Ou Yangming shouted as he noticed something, "Senior, be careful, there are two of them!"

Subsequently, another arrow was shot from the dark, and it was aimed at Ni Wangyang once more.

Ni Wangyang was so infuriated that he bellowed a few times. Fortunately, he was able to shift and evade the arrow as he was more powerful than his opponent. The two Ni family disciples made up their minds after exchanging glances, but just as they were going to charge out regardless of the cost, Ou Yangming ordered softly, "Hide behind the horses and protect yourselves. Don't distract Senior Ni, or you'll be harming him instead of helping him!" If Ou Yangming had given another reason, the disciples would have ignored him, but they were hesitant to make a move after hearing what Ou Yangming said. Their shoulders were not solid enough, so they could not take the responsibility of having harmed their clan's senior.

Afterward, Ou Yangming dashed out.

They were on empty ground at the moment, but the ground was uneven and there was a flowing river beside. Ou Yangming moved up and down, and he seemed to be moving forward by stepping on different nodes each time he leaped, which was an exceptionally strange feeling.

The Yin Grade archer, who was still hiding in the dark, was appalled.

Being the long-range archer of the sneak attack, he had noticed Ou Yangming long ago and hated the young fellow for blocking the first arrow that was supposed to hit its target. Thus, he was determined to kill Ou Yangming when the young fellow actually approached him. Of course, the archer was not going to spare Ou Yangming even if he begged for mercy because the archers' ultimate goal of this attack was the golden pill.

However, when the archer lifted his bow a few times with the intention to shoot an arrow at Ou Yangming's chest, he strangely realized that there was never a good time to release the arrow.

Ou Yangming's body seemed to have become one with his surroundings when he approached the archer such that the archer did not have an opportunity to shoot his arrow. This was because the attacker had a feeling that Ou Yangming would certainly avoid the shot.

The archer broke out in a cold sweat and thought, 'What the hell is this, what the hell, what the hell…'

While he was in a daze, Ou Yangming had arrived roughly ten steps ahead of him. Ou Yangming flashed a big smile at him, then swung his wrist to hurl three flying knives.

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Chapter 136 Killing Them To Shut Their Mouth

The three flying knives attacked the archer in a triangular shape.

It was natural that the knives were not as fast as the bow and arrow, but they carried unexplainable power when Ou Yangming casually threw them. When the flying knives shot out, the whole world seemed to be moving with them too.

The archer experienced a strange feeling because he suddenly realized that he was threatened by the knives as if he was naked in a world of ice and snow; he would be frozen to death by the intense chill at any time. Needless to say, what truly threatened his life was not the chill, but the killing intent from the flying knives. The archer broke down internally at that moment.

He initially thought the assassination would be effortless, but he ended up encountering such a peculiar incident. A young man, who was only in Yin Grade, had actually evaded his locked-on shot and even threatened him with three flying knives.

The incident had surpassed his life experience of a few decades.

Nonetheless, the archer was a powerful martial artist, after all, so he did not react slowly even though he was shocked.

He finally managed to shoot the arrow, but the arrow that was originally aimed at Ou Yangming could only be shot to get rid of one of the flying knives.

Yes, the violent and deadly arrow, which gave Ni Wangyang the Yang Grade powerhouse a hard time, could not even get rid of two flying knives.

After making the shot, the archer flashed and pounced on his opponent in a straight line.

Since he could not harm Ou Yangming with his bow and arrow, he would suppress the young fellow with his strength.

The archer was a Yang Grade powerhouse, hence he was extremely confident about going against a Yin Grade martial artist and was unconcerned even if the Yin Grade martial artist was slightly weird.

While charging forward, he swung his bow to block the two flying knives.

As powerful as the flying knives were and as uncertain as their tracks were, they could not avoid the bow.

"Pow!"

A soft voice was heard as the archer's arrow easily hit the first flying knife. Following that, his bow hit the second and the third knives.

Afterward, the scene that he had expected came into view.

The over-confident Ou Yangming, who had fearlessly charged at the archer, somehow swayed his body and backed away in a flurry.

'I've come out now, yet you're going to escape?' The archer sneered.

Nevertheless, just as he thought so, a series of odd explosions were heard. As a result, he was surrounded by flying shards.

A Yang Grade powerhouse's strength was far beyond a normal person's imagination. The archer roared at the crucial moment, and his essential Qi surged, causing his robe to expand.

Despite that, he reacted too hastily, and the shards came out of nowhere.

The flying knives' shards that were driven by explosive power could pierce through a half-spirit beast's flesh, let alone a human's body. "Ah,"

The archer shrieked miserably, and his body was soon covered in holes and blood.

On top of that, two of the steel shards actually shot into both of his eyes. Although he had looked up to avoid the tragedy, his eyes went pitch-black, and he was soon in extreme anguish before he fell butt first to the ground.

Ou Yangming scoffed at a distance away. 'How dare he resist the explosive flying knives with his body? He really doesn't know the immensity of Heaven and Earth.'

He dared not guarantee that a Supreme Great Ancestor could block the shards from an explosive arrow, but since a half-spirit beast could be hurt by the arrow, a Yang Grade martial artist could certainly not resist the shards.

Of course, if Ou Yangming's flying knives were not at the peak of High Grade Rank Five, he could not have caused such powerful damage. The archer's painful shriek frightened the other Yang Grade martial artist, who was still fighting with Ni Wangyang.

While he cursed his incompetent partner for failing to get rid of three Yin Grade martial artists from afar, he kept glancing around to look for a window to escape.

This was because the remaining attacker knew that he could not defeat Ni Wangyang on his own. If he continued the fight, he might have to give up his life.

Ou Yangming ran over at that moment, and he shouted while throwing his military saber in the swordsman's direction, "Watch out for my saber!"

He actually threw the military saber the same way he tossed a flying knife. In actual fact, if the swordsman was not fighting with Ni Wangyang at close range at the moment, he would also be facing flying knives instead of a military saber. The military saber whistled in the wind as it zoomed toward the attacker. Whether it was the timing or the angle, they were so perfect that the saber seemed unavoidable. It was also because Ni Wangyang was exchanging blows with that swordsman at the moment. If the swordsman attempted to dodge the attack, he would be hotly pursued by Ni Wangyang. Thus, it was better to choose the lesser of the two evils, and besides, who would actually pay importance to a weapon thrown by a Yin Grade martial artist?

With that, the swordsman wielded his sword as though he drew a flower to block the military saber lightly. He even wanted to use leveraged force to deflect the saber towards Ni Wangyang so as to earn a chance to escape. That said, he suddenly felt that his hand became lighter.

It was a sad feeling, but before he could figure out what exactly had happened, he felt intense pain in his shoulder.

The attacker groaned like an injured ferocious beast and even jumped.

It was then that he suddenly realized what had happened during that instant.

His well-tempered titanium sword was actually cut by the military saber?

Yes, it was simply cut, though it had only contacted the saber in mid-air for a split second…

The military saber's force did not reduce as it had even left a gash on his body.

'What kind of military saber is this? Could it be a secret treasure from ancient times? If that's not the case, how can it be so sharp?'

Just as the attacker was distracted, he felt another stinging pain on his left thigh. When he lowered his head to look, he noticed that his left leg had left his body and flew far away.

Who was Ni Wangyang? After fighting his opponent for a long time, he was certainly not going to be merciful when there was a sudden change in the situation. If he had not thought about keeping the swordsman alive, he would not have only slashed the swordsman's leg away.

"Ah,"

The agonizing shrieks were heard one after another as the two unlucky Yang Grade powerhouses collapsed.

On the other hand, the two Ni family Yin Grade martial artists, who were ordered by Ou Yangming to hide behind the horses, widened their eyes and mouth in disbelief.

Their clan's elder was just attacked by two Yang Grade powerhouses from near and far a while ago, but the tables were turned in a blink of an eye. The two Yang Grade powerhouses, who sneaked an attack, were moaning on the ground, and it was clear from their state that the battle was over.

However, how exactly did the battle end? The Ni family disciples were puzzled and dazed.

They saw Ou Yangming charging out to throw three flying knives, as well as his military saber, then… Then that was it.

Just as they were flustered and feeling at a loss, Ni Wangyang's thunderous voice was heard. "Why are the two of you still standing there? Quickly come over to clean up the mess!"

The two disciples immediately regained their senses and ran over.

Before Ni Wangyang shouted, he had destroyed the two attackers' dantians and had broken their limbs' meridians in a flash. Consequently, the attackers were useless people who could not stir up trouble anymore.

Once they were carried to the side of the main road, Ni Wangyang questioned fiercely, "Who are you? How dare you attack the Ni family's cavalries? Are you tired of living?"

The swordsman widened his eyes and glared at Ou Yangming's military saber, then asked while gritting his teeth, "What weapon is that? Could it be a legendary… Magic tool?"

As for the blinded archer, he asked with an ashen face, "I'm sure I won't get to live since we've fallen into your hands, but I'd like to ask, what were those three flying knives?"

The attackers knew that they were bound to die, but they were not resigned to the outcome.

They had just been defeated in a weird and unexplainable way, so the feeling of indignation was indescribable.

"Heh, looks like you're not aware of the situation yet, let me help you!" Ni Wangyang laughed hideously and rubbed his hands as he wanted to loosen the men's bones. He felt that he had just been disrespected because the captives simply disregarded his question.

That being said, Ou Yangming reached out his hand to stop him. "Senior, let me ask them something."

Before the fight, Ni Wangyang would have agreed to Ou Yangming's request, but he would feel displeased. In spite of that, there was a slight change in his attitude at this moment.

Ou Yangming's attacks did not seem wonderful at all. He had just thrown some flying knives, followed by a military saber.

From an outsider's point of view, perhaps that was all he did, and he had only succeeded because he was blessed with luck. Nonetheless, Ni Wangyang, who was personally involved in the fight, knew very well that the seemingly miraculous success was not an accident.

Therefore, he treated Ou Yangming with a completely different attitude.

Ou Yangming looked at the attackers coldly and said, "Tell me who ordered you to come. I'll kill you quickly if you tell the truth, and I'll answer your questions, but if you don't, we'll see if your bones are tough enough to withstand the Ni family's elder's blows."

Ni Wangyang's face changed, and he actually looked worried.

"Alright, since he lied to us, he should be punished!" The swordsman scoffed, then continued after a pause, "The person who hired us was from the Ni family…"

"Whoosh…"

Before his voice died away, a flash of saber-light was seen as the swordsman and the archer's heads flew up into the air and rolled a few times before falling to the ground.

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Chapter 137 Life-prolonging Golden Pill

Ou Yangming forced a smile at Ni Wangyang. The Ni family's powerhouse had a cold and stern look on his face as he said, "Brother Ou, the men had ill-intentions, and they wanted to slander someone from the Ni family. Please don't be confused by them."

"I understand. Don't worry, senior, they went all out to go against you earlier, and they weren't going to spare you at all," Ou Yangming responded with a smile and added after a pause, "Based on that point alone, I know that they were definitely the Ni family's enemies, and they couldn't have been ordered by someone from your clan."

"I'm at ease since you're sharp-sighted." Ni Wangyang twitched his mouth. He was still red with anger, but he forced a smile at Ou Yangming. Following that, he turned to order the two Ni family disciples strictly, "Send their corpses back to the clan for the great ancestors to handle them!"

The two baffled Yin Grade martial arts exchanged glances. Though they were unwilling to, they responded to Ni Wangyang and cleaned up the mess before leaving in a hurry with the corpses.

Ni Wangyang finally calmed down. "Brother Ou, since the problem has been solved, it's best for us to hasten on with our journey through the night. Ah, the sooner we arrive at the Immense Forest Military Camp, the sooner we'll be at peace."

Ou Yangming quickly nodded in agreement. "Senior, you're right. Yang Grade martial artists have come, but if a Supreme Great Ancestor attacks us next, we'll be doomed…"

"Brother Ou, don't worry. How can a Supreme Great Ancestor lay his or her eyes on us?" Ni Wangyang could not help but laugh. "That's… Not necessarily the case!" Ou Yangming touched his chest and expressed meaningfully.

Ni Wangyang was stunned, and he was instantly guilty when he thought about the Life-prolonging Golden Pill that was carried by Ou Yangming. He was so confident earlier because he thought nobody knew about the Life-prolonging Golden Pill. If that was the case, by using the Ni family's name, he could have successfully escorted Ou Yangming back to the Immense Forest Military Camp.

However, if news of the Life-prolonging Golden Pill had spread…

What if one was a Supreme Great Ancestor? One's life was still limited. In order to prolong one's life, would one even offend the Ni family?

Honestly, even Ni Wangyang coveted the Life-prolonging Golden Pill. He curbed his thoughts and said, "Stop thinking so much, let's go!" They got on their horses, then headed toward the military camp even though it was already nighttime.

Although there were no Supreme Great Ancestors in the Immense Forest Military Camp, even a powerhouse of that level would not dare to act without restraint in the camp. The military camp represented the imperial family and the country, which was not something that could be fought against by ordinary people.

Therefore, as long as Ou Yangming and Ni Wangyang arrived at the military camp, at least their safety was guaranteed.

After traveling day and night, they finally returned safely to the military camp.

Ou Yangming was no longer a nobody because his reputation had spread far and wide in the camp after the smithing challenge against Ni Yunhong. In fact, his prestige was not inferior to Old Craftsman at all.

When they entered the military camp, Ou Yangming was recognized before he could report himself, hence he and Ni Wangyang entered the Armament Camp without obstruction.

According to military rules, goods that enter the military must be checked. Despite that, ever since Zhang Yinfan from the Provision Camp was executed and chopped into pieces, nobody had the guts to go against Ou Yangming anymore. As such, the squad leader who was guarding the gates waved his hand to let the horses pass. "Brother Ou, you have quite a high reputation in the military camp!" Ni Wangyang sighed once he entered the camp because it reminded him of his past. He had stayed in the camp for a long time, so he knew the place better than Ou Yangming did.

After seeing how the other people acted, Ni Wangyang knew that Ou Yangming definitely had a high status in the military camp.

Ou Yangming simply grinned. Since they had returned to the camp, he naturally did not have the mood to talk nonsense with Ni Wangyang. He quickly led Ni Wangyang to the courtyard, but he was stopped by a white-haired elder as soon as he entered.

"Greetings, Elder Xuehai," Ou Yangming immediately greeted with a grave expression on his face.

The elder was the medical elder invited from Ni Yunhong's clan. He was a person who focused on medical art and was unconcerned about external affairs, but like the three great ancestors, he treated Ni Yunhong and his younger sister with special respect. Hence, the medical elder hurried to the camp after receiving Ni Yunhong's request, and he even kept Old Craftsman alive with spiritual medicine.

"Have you brought the spiritual pills?" The medical elder nodded at Ou Yangming, then frowned after glancing at Ni Wangyang, who entered after Ou Yangming. "Old Craftsman is extremely weak now. Without the Life-prolonging Spiritual Pills, I can't guarantee how long he can stay alive." Ni Wangyang was stunned, and he shook his head with a bitter smile. "Uncle Xuehai, you've misunderstood. I'm not here to supervise you, I've come to deliver you a message from Great Ancestor Xuetian."

"A message from Great Ancestor Xuetian? Okay, go ahead." Ni Xuehai raised his eyebrow.

Ni Wangyang quickly answered, "Great Ancestor Xuetian said that you may use the spiritual medicine generously once Old Craftsman's life is prolonged, and that you must help the old man regain his health as soon as possible. The great ancestor has ordered me to pick some medicine from the storeroom, can you see if they're suitable?" Ni Xuehai looked at Ou Yangming and Ni Wangyang in confusion, then left the room to take a look. He seemed rather surprised when he saw the eight sacks, and his face could not help but change when he smelled the vague fragrance in the air. When the medical elder finally opened the sack one by one to see what they contained, he gasped.

"Wangyang, did you pick them from the storeroom?"

"Yes," Ni Wangyang replied to him loudly, "Uncle Xuehai, make do with them for now and let me know if they're insufficient, I'll go back to bring more for you." Ni Xuehai's face darkened as he scolded, "You're a prodigal son! Do you know how tough it is for the clan to gather spiritual medicine? There are plenty of herbs here, how are they insufficient? Are you trying to empty the storeroom?"

Ou Yangming's eyelids twitched, but he was secretly grateful. While Ni Wangyang did not say anything, he was Ni Yunhong and his younger sister's uncle, after all, and he chose great spiritual medicine for Ou Yangming out of his love for his nephew and niece.

Nonetheless, Ni Xuehai sighed after losing his temper for a brief moment. "Ah, Old Craftsman is still close to dying, so he can't be saved by worldly spiritual medicine. I can't save him even if I use all the medicine here…"

Without further ado, Ou Yangming retrieved the precious jade bottle and expressed, "Senior Ni, this is the Life-prolonging Golden Pill that I acquired from the Ni family's forbidden area, the Chaos Cave. Old Man's life can be saved with this spiritual pill, right?" "What? The Life-prolonging Golden Pill…" Ni Xuehai was frightened. He asked as he carefully accepted the jade bottle, "D-did you find the Land of Inheritance?"

"Yes," Ou Yangming answered seriously, "If that isn't the case, I wouldn't have gotten my hands on the Life-prolonging Golden Pill."

Ni Xuehai studied the jade bottle admiringly and sighed. "I can't believe that I'm able to see such a peculiar medicine while I'm still alive." "Uncle Xuehai, this matter shouldn't be delayed, it's best that you use the medicine now!" Ni Wangyang cleared his throat.

A medicine of such high level felt much hotter than a hot yam when it was held in one's hands. If it attracted greedy eyes, Ni Wangyang was not confident about protecting it. Ni Xuehai's face changed, and he instantly waved his hand and said, "You're right, come with me."

Subsequently, the three of them tiptoed into the room.

Ou Yangming immediately noticed Old Craftsman, who was already as thin as a lath on the bed. A lump came into his throat, and he almost broke into tears.

Ni Xuehai cast a cold look at him. "Don't alarm him!"

Ou Yangming recalled Ni Yinghong's warning right away, where he was told not to let Old Craftsman have extreme emotions, so he forced himself to hold back his tears.

Ni Xuehai opened the jade bottle after sitting by the bed, then poured out a thumb-sized pill.

The medicinal pill seemed to contain an unbelievable power, and it released a cooling fragrance the moment it was poured out of the bottle.

Not to mention Ou Yangming and the rest, even Old Craftsman let out a sound while he lay on the bed. In particular, there was a slight movement on the old man's throat as if he was yearning for something.

"Life is truly wonderful…" Ni Xuehai sighed and uttered softly, then put the pill into Old Craftsman's mouth. Ou Yangming looked at the old man eagerly, whereas Ni Xuehai explained with a deep voice, "Old Craftsman is still extremely weak, which is why he expressed his desire for the medicinal pill when he smelled it. Hehe, he has consumed the golden pill. If everything goes smoothly, the preliminary effect can be seen in half an hour's time."

While Ou Yangming was anxious, he forced himself to calm down. "Senior, should I stay away?"

Ni Xuehai hesitated before he replied, "Wait."

Half an hour passed by in the blink of an eye. Ni Xuehai placed his hands on Old Craftsman's hands, then remarked after a brief moment, "His heart meridian has become solid, so he can withstand the joy of suddenly seeing you. You may stay." Ou Yangming was overjoyed upon hearing him, and he approached Old Craftsman in a flash.

After an unknown period of time, the old man finally opened his eyes.

His vision was still blurry such that he could not focus on anything even after he opened his eyes.

"Old man…" Ou Yangming lowered his head and choked with sobs.

Old Craftsman shivered a little. He went from looking lost to being dazed, and from being dazed to being conscious. At last, he had a clear look at the person in front of him.

"B*stard, is that you?"

"It's me, old man, I've come back to see you!" Ou Yangming's eyes were blurry due to his tears, and he forced a smile at the old man.

Old Craftsman used a lot of effort to look up, and he glanced around the room like he was looking for a weapon. Nonetheless, he gave up after some time and mumbled, "As long as you're back, as long as you're back…"

Ou Yangming could not hold it in any longer, and he burst out crying.

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Chapter 138 The Golden Pill's Magical Effect

Ou Yangming's cry was earth-shattering.

Previously, he was attacked halfway during his journey to the prefecture, but he ended up advancing to Yin Grade in the dense forest. Everything he experienced was a huge misfortune for a teen of his age, but the fact that Ou Yangming persevered until the end and killed Zhang Yinli proved how tough his psychological quality was. However, he found out after he returned to the military camp that Old Craftsman had passed out.

Ou Yangming really grew at that moment.

Before this, although he looked like he made unnecessary fuss all the time after being adopted by Old Craftsman, the old man had actually always been his psychological support. Ou Yangming was at ease as long as Old Craftsman was around because he knew no matter how much he overdid things, the old man would protect him at all costs.

That said, his biggest support collapsed that day.

Therefore, Ou Yangming immediately matured. When he went to the Ni residence, entered the Chaos Cave, and was even attacked by a nest of Black Magic Crawlers, he never wanted to give up. On top of that, he broke through during a moment of life or death, and he stepped into the thoroughly meticulous state.

It was all because he knew that his support had fallen down.

Ou Yangming could only depend on himself in the future, and the old man, whom he had treated as a support in the past, was waiting for him to save his life.

Hence, Ou Yangming was able to be as steady as a rock throughout his experiences after receiving the bad news. No matter what happened and how difficult things were, he never flinched and was steadfast.

Unless one experienced the mental journey oneself, one could never imagine what it was like.

After finally seeing the old man nagging at him again, Ou Yangming could not hold in his emotions anymore. The string that had been tightened in his heart was finally let go, and he broke down right away.

Old Craftsman was confused as he looked at Ou Yangming dumbfoundedly.

'I didn't hit him, why is he crying like his parents are dead? But he doesn't even know where his parents' ashes are, so why is he crying like he's at a funeral…'

Feeling furious, the old man shouted with energy that he had gathered out of nowhere, "B*stard, shut up, I'm not dead yet!"

Ou Yangming was struck dumb, and his cry was instantly stuck in his throat as he could not wail anymore. He recalled Ni Yinghong's warning again, where he was told not to make Old Craftsman experience extreme emotions. 'Have I just violated the taboo by crying like I'm attending a funeral?'

As such, he immediately stopped and looked at Old Craftsman, who was glowing in health but looked exasperated. Even though the old man's face was still so thin that the bone structure on his face could be seen, he did not seem like he had just recovered for a brief moment before death.

Ou Yangming turned to look at Ni Xuehai.

Ni Xuehai stepped forward right away, then checked Old Craftsman's pulse and congratulated him with a smile, "Congratulations, old man."

Being a Ni family's elder, his hair was already white, and he looked a few years older than Old Craftsman.

Old Craftsman regained his composure and asked, "Ah, this brother is…"

"I'm Ni Xuehai. You've fallen sick due to worry, so Brother Lil' Ou Yangming invited me over to treat you. Hehe, a kind man is always rewarded, you've fully recovered," Ni Xuehai said with a smile and sent Ou Yangming a signal with his eyes. Ou Yangming quickly understood that Ni Xuehai was warning him.

His face turned red as he suggested, "Old man, you've recovered, but your body's weak after laying in bed for many days, so it's best for you to rest more."

"Do I not know my body condition?" Old Craftsman scoffed and pulled a long face. "I'm hungry, go make some food for me, b*stard."

Ou Yangming responded to him and left the room.

Nonetheless, before he headed to the kitchen, someone had brought meal boxes over. Ni Xuehai's voice was heard at the same time. "I've made arrangements for the old man's meals. He'll have to take some medicinal porridge and slowly take in other types of food. Send him the meal boxes and stay with him these next few days. Don't make him angry, but don't make him too happy as well. He has to recuperate for some time, but he'll be fine in roughly half a month's time." Ou Yangming's eyes lit up as he asked, "Senior, how's the golden pill's drug efficacy?"

Ni Xuehai fell silent, but just as Ou Yangming's cheerful heart was slowly sinking into an icehouse due to the disappointment, he sighed. "Ah, the Life-prolonging Golden Pill is indeed so mysterious that it is unpredictable. It's not something that I can imagine…"

"Senior, has the old man's body actually recovered?" Ou Yangming was startled.

"Didn't I tell you? Did you not hear me?" Ni Xuehai turned around to cast an exaggerated look at him.

Ou Yangming mumbled, "Senior, when did you tell me?"

Ni Xuehai was slightly mad. "Didn't I say that he has fully recovered? He just has to be taken good care of according to the medicinal meals I've prepared, and he'll be full of vigor in no time."

"You… You were actually telling the truth in the room…" Ou Yangming had a strange expression on his face.

"Hmph, when have I ever lied?" Ni Xuehai was displeased.

Ou Yangming quickly apologized, but he silently cursed.

'Since Old Craftsman has recovered, why did you have to look so shocked? I was worried for nothing.'

Nevertheless, he was not a doctor, hence he could not understand Ni Xuehai's thought.

According to Ni Xuehai's medical art, he had spared no effort in helping Old Craftsman, but he was at a loss other than using the Life-prolonging Spiritual Pills to keep the old man alive. On the other hand, one Life-prolonging Golden Pill was all it took to make Old Craftsman's weak pulse strong again.

Not only that, but Old Craftsman's bearing and energy were entirely different from before.

The nearly nature-defying process was completed by a small golden pill, so how could Ni Xuehai not be moved? How could he contain his feelings? Ou Yangming happily carried the meal boxes into the room to serve Old Craftsman.

Perhaps the golden pill's effect was too powerful, or perhaps Old Craftsman had lain in bed for too long, his body felt uneasy. Therefore, the old man insisted on getting out of bed after having his meal.

The instant his feet touched the ground, he was surprised and dubious about his own body.

'Is this thin body really mine? What exactly happened during this period of time?'

However, no matter how much he questioned, Ou Yangming assured him that he had fallen sick from being too worried, and he was temporarily unconscious as a result. That being said, he had fully recovered after the recuperation.

Ou Yangming decided not to let anyone know that Old Craftsman had been on the verge of death. He also decided to keep it a secret from the old man himself.

With that, another ten days passed, and Old Craftsman was visibly recovering quickly.

In addition, the old man's body became stronger each day as Ni Xuehai prepared medicinal food for him with different rare spiritual medicine. While Old Craftsman had not recovered his best state, which was when he was younger, due to the short span of time, he was a different person from when he first regained his consciousness.

Ni Xuehai bid his farewell after ten days and left two medicinal food recipes.

Ou Yangming tried hard to make the medical doctor stay. Not to mention that Old Craftsman had not gone back to his peak state yet, even if he did, Ou Yangming was unwilling to let the great medical doctor leave.

A human's body was made of flesh and blood, after all, so it was inevitable for one to become ill one day.

Despite that, Ni Xuehai insisted on leaving. He told Ou Yangming to send Old Craftsman to the prefecture if he was still worried, and that he would take care of the old man.

Ou Yangming remembered his words. Though he understood that he would likely have to rely on the Ni family for protection if he sent Old Craftsman to the prefecture right away, he would not hesitate if it was necessary.

Finally, Ou Yangming raised a question when he sent Ni Xuehai and Ni Wangyang away, "Senior, how long can one's life be prolonged with the Life-prolonging Golden Pill?"

Ni Xuehai answered after he pondered, "Based on Old Craftsman's body condition, as long as there aren't unforeseen events and he remains cheerful, he'll live for at least ten more years." "Ten years!" Ou Yangming's eyes glowed. "Senior, if the ten years are up, what's the effect of consuming the golden pill for a second time?"

"For the same medicine, it's most effective during the first time, whereas it'll be unsatisfactory during the second time," Ni Xuehai answered helplessly and added to himself, 'Even if the second golden pill is effective, do you think you can attain it?'

Ou Yangming asked again, "Apart from the Life-prolonging Golden Pill, is there another spiritual medicine?"

Ni Xuehai wondered and replied to him, "There is, but it's nearly a legendary item, and it's something that you can only dream of getting."

Nonetheless, Ou Yangming unexpectedly sighed a breath of relief and expressed, "Thank you for your pointers, senior. When I visit you in the future, I hope that you'll tell me more about it."

"I told you that it's something beyond your imagination." Ni Xuehai furrowed his eyebrows.

"I didn't say that I'll look for it now. Besides, I have ten years to do that, it's more than enough time." Ou Yangming could not help but laugh. "Wangyang, the young fella talks really big, and he truly doesn't know the immensity of Heaven and Earth," Ni Xuehai shook his head and commented after watching Ou Yangming return to the military camp. He later sneered. "Does he want to obtain a few treasures in just ten years? Heh, even the three great ancestors together dare not claim that!"

He was struck dumb when he turned to look. "Wangyang, what are you thinking about?"

Ni Wangyang pondered deeply as though he did not hear him at all.

"Uncle Xuehai, I'm thinking about an encounter before I arrived," he suddenly responded without frowning anymore, then told the medical elder about the sneak attack that took place after he left the prefecture. When Ni Wangyang finished, he added, "After what happened, I kept thinking, how did Ou Yangming do it?"

It was Ni Xuehai's first time hearing something like that, so he asked out of curiosity, "How did that young fella do it?"

"I don't know. Everything he did was plain and simple, but he managed to pull off the seemingly dull act." Ni Wangyang smiled bitterly then continued after some hesitation, "Perhaps he'll really achieve something after ten years…" The Ni family elders exchanged glances, and they somehow looked uncertain.

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Chapter 139 Dull

For the next half of the month, the Armament Camp was bustling with people.

When Old Craftsman fell sick and Ou Yangming went to the prefecture, everyone lost interest in the Armament Camp; when Old Craftsman slowly recovered and Ou Yangming returned, the Armament Camp was instantly in the spotlight once more.

In particular, Ou Yangming, the newly risen Military Fire Blacksmith, became someone that everyone pursued. In fact, even the generals treated him in a friendly manner, and he suddenly became the new appointee in the camp.

Nonetheless, Ou Yangming focused completely on Old Craftsman as he mostly spent time having casual talks with the old man.

In the beginning, Old Craftsman was extremely glad, but he became slightly worried after a long time.

"Young fella, you're spending time with me every day, have you finished your own work?"

Ou Yangming replied to him cheerfully, "Old Man, don't worry, I've completed my basic homework every day."

Indeed, whether it was the martial-art squat or the mental power cultivation that he carried out late at night, he never slacked. In actuality, the two basic cultivations were a piece of cake for him.

"Young man, don't speak nonsense. I've recovered, and I don't need you to serve me, so go smith a few more pieces of equipment." Old Craftsman was highly dubious of what Ou Yangming said, and he waved his hand. After a short pause, he added, "Sir Kang has been diligently running around lately to get things done. He should be credited for my recovery, so go thank him for me."

Ou Yangming thought, 'Kang Weibo is only running errands, how's that a tough job?'

Nevertheless, he would not disobey the old man's instruction. Besides, since Kang Weibo had been working hard for Old Craftsman, Ou Yangming was not going to be stingy with rewards.

Honestly, there were at most five people in the entire military camp who knew the truth of the old man's illness. Most people thought Old Craftsman fell seriously ill, and Ou Yangming went to the prefecture to seek the spiritual medicine needed, which was found in the end so the old man was cured. However, those who knew the real reason and story kept their mouths shut without saying a word.

Old Craftsman pondered and said, "Young fella, there's something else that I need you to do."

Upon hearing the old man's serious tone, Ou Yangming dared not neglect him, thus he responded, "Old man, please give me the instructions."

"Do you remember that General Chen Yifan asked me to smith a weapon for me?" Old Craftsman asked with a deep voice.

"Of course, I remember," Ou Yangming answered.

Old Craftsman nodded and explained, "General Chen has been treating us well, so we must complete the task he entrusted to us perfectly. Ah, but my old body can't take it anymore, so I'm afraid that I'll have to hand over the task to you."

Ou Yangming immediately stuck up his chest and assured, "Old man, don't worry, isn't it just a weapon? You can leave it to me!"

"Very well, that's how a good disciple should be," Old Craftsman said happily, "But having mere determination doesn't count, you must train harder to not embarrass us."

"Yes, I understand."

Seeing as Ou Yangming promised him casually but still stayed in the room, Old Craftsman raged with fire, and he quickly scanned the room.

Ou Yangming was frightened because he was extremely familiar with the old man's look. He jumped and informed loudly, "Old Man, I'm heading to the smithing workshop now." Before his voice died away, he had already fled.

"Young fella, don't blame me for being unreasonable. I'm growing old, and you must rely on yourself in the future." Old Craftsman sighed after he reprimanded Ou Yangming, then he shook his head and furrowed his eyebrows. 'After falling sick, I somehow have a feeling that my body has miraculously become much better.'

People were usually weak after being severely ill, and the case of a patient being strong and robust after being sick had never been heard of. The old man was confused as he touched his hair. 'Could this be a sign of me having a sudden recovery right before death?'

Ou Yangming ran to his smithing workshop at the speed of light. He took a look at the materials inside, then shook his wrist as he retrieved some steel.

As his Military Fire burned, piece after piece of equipment was formed in his hands.

After just a brief moment, twenty pieces of different equipment were laid out on the table. Following that, Ou Yangming took ten precious ores from a compartment in a corner of the room.

It was a place that was specially set up to store precious ores. Kang Weibo would send helpers to check the spot regularly, the ores would be replenished if they were lacking, so Ou Yangming did not need to worry at all.

Needless to say, Ou Yangming was the only person in the Armament Camp who could enjoy the treatment-even Old Craftsman was not treated that way.

The smithing challenge that was held in the Armament Camp had truly caused an enormous and positive change in the way Ou Yangming was treated.

Even though everyone still addressed Old Craftsman as the chief of Military Fire Blacksmiths, everyone knew that the title remained only because nobody dared to offend Ou Yangming. If that was not the case, the term of address would have been used for Ou Yangming long ago. As Ou Yangming's Military Fire danced again, ten precious ores instantly disappeared, and four pieces of Attribute Equipment appeared on the smithing table.

The four pieces of Attribute Equipment were attached with 5 points of attributes in total, especially the military saber that was a super weapon with 2 Points of Power. If it was shown to the other people in the military camp, even a captain like Liu Zhengye would rack his brain to get his hands on it.

As for the remaining 5 points of attributes from the ores, Ou Yangming had naturally kept them for himself.

Despite that, Ou Yangming frowned when he looked at the weapons on the smithing table.

He was not satisfied with them.

Honestly, after smithing with the absurd materials in the Chaos Cave, Ou Yangming began looking down on normal materials.

Not to mention normal steel, even if he was presented with featured steel, he could point out their shortcomings.

If he compared the pieces of equipment that were smithed using steel with the ones that were smithed in the Chaos Cave…

Ou Yangming's face reddened because he had a sudden urge to destroy the scrap metals.

He wondered how Liu Zhengye and the other captains would lament if they knew that the pieces of equipment that they valued were regarded as scrap metals by him. Ou Yangming sighed as he packed the pieces of equipment, then carried them toward the equipment depot. His arrival quickly caused a disturbance in the depot, but Kang Weibo arrived soon and was elated when he saw the equipment. Ou Yangming had brought four pieces of Attribute Equipment once he returned to the camp, one of them even had layered attributes. It was a huge favor. As such, Kang Weibo only had one thought at that moment, 'My hard work when Old Craftsman was sick wasn't in vain.'

"Sir Kang," Ou Yangming greeted after glancing at Kang Weibo. Kang Weibo was happily checking the pieces of equipment when he heard Ou Yangming, hence he immediately ran over to the blacksmith and bent over a little. "Master Ou, what orders do you have for me?" Ou Yangming said, "After this, get someone to send steel and a hundred precious ores to my smithing workshop." "What? A hundred precious ores?" Kang Weibo widened his eyes and twitched his mouth such that he could not let out another word.

If Ou Yangming had asked for twenty or thirty precious ores, he would have agreed even if he was reluctant, but a hundred ores were truly beyond his authority limit.

"You won't get any more equipment this month if you can't do it." Ou Yangming scoffed and left.

'The young master has gotten really quick-tempered, but the problem is that a hundred precious ores is beyond the limits of my authority.' Kang Weibo was struck dumb as he watched Ou Yangming leave.

He stomped his feet and left as fast as he could to look for Supervisor Qu Jianming from the Provision Camp.

After hearing Kang Weibo's complaint, Qu Jianming uttered after some thought, "Give them to him!"

Kang Weibo gulped. "Sir, those are a hundred…"

"Hehe, since Master Ou has such a big request, we must fulfill it. As long as he submits the same number of equipment, the more the precious ores we give, the better."

Kang Weibo's eyes lit up, and he agreed to the supervisor to flatter him. He understood the theory very well, but he was not someone who could make the call. Thus, he naturally had to act dumb in front of a boss who was qualified to make the decision.

A hundred precious ores along with pieces of steel were sent to Ou Yangming's smithing workshop that night.

Ou Yangming spent three days to refine every piece of equipment.

Based on his speed, he could have easily completed everything in a day, let alone three days.

In spite of that, Ou Yangming did not want to scare the other people to death, so he could only force himself to slow down. Even then, his "slow" speed almost stupefied Kang Weibo and the rest.

That said, Ou Yangming was not delighted about his work at all.

If it was not because he wanted to recover the lost attributes in his mind, he would not have smithed the normal pieces of Good Grade and High Grade equipment. Ou Yangming's mind was still on the powerful materials in the Chaos Cave.

His ability could only be unleashed to its full potential if he smithed with those materials. Besides, Ou Yangming also felt that he needed to make a trip back to the cave if he wanted to complete what Old Craftsman had promised General Chen Yifan.

Nonetheless, before General Chen could approach him, another general had visited.

Commanding General Fang Yihai from the South Camp had paid Ou Yangming a visit with Guards Captain Yu Hailiang.

The general was a direct and honest man, so the first thing he said was, "Master Ou, since Old Craftsman has recovered, can you head to the prefecture? Hehe, my family members have been anxiously waiting for your arrival."

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Chapter 140 The Young Eagle Leaves Its Nest

Ou Yangming furrowed his eyebrows a little and looked rather troubled. "General, I'm sure you know that even though the old man seems okay now, he was ill for a long time so it'll take a certain amount of time for him to fully recover. I'm too worried to leave at a time like this…"

Fang Yihai laughed out loud. Being one of the people involved, he naturally knew that Ou Yangming had not said it to decline his request. The relationship that Ou Yangming and Old Craftsman shared was definitely much closer than one that was shared between a father and a son who were blood-related.

Nevertheless, the general had come prepared this time, and he would never do anything that he was not confident about. "Master Ou, this is the military camp, after all, so it's not the perfect place for an old man to recuperate. If Old Craftsman goes to the prefecture too, he'll be provided with better medical conditions."

Ou Yangming's eyes lit up as he was obviously moved by the idea. Feeling delighted, Fang Yihai quickly seized the opportunity and said, "Brother Ou, the Fang family has hired several reputable doctors at the prefecture to wait for Old Craftsman's great arrival."

Ou Yangming asked after a moment of hesitation, "General, how is their medical skill as compared to Ni Xuehai's?"

Fang Yihai's smile instantly froze, and he replied to him with a bitter smile, "Ni Xuehai is the number one famous doctor from the Ni family, and he has profound knowledge in medicine. Not only is he the best in the prefecture, but he's also one of the few best ones in the entire capital."

He secretly wondered, 'I honestly don't know how much of a lucky b*stard you are. You weren't suppressed by the Ni family after defeating their young master in a smithing challenge, and even became friends with Ni Yunhong. On top of that, you managed to invite the Ni family's best to the military camp.' With that, even if the other people had plans for Ou Yangming, they would be too afraid to reach out to him. If that was not the case, based on Ou Yangming's formidable smithing ability, his residence would have been filled with all sorts of guests long ago.

"General, I'm incredibly grateful for your kindness," Ou Yangming responded after some thought, and continued after a short pause, "I'll inform the old man right away, he'll probably agree."

In actual fact, Ou Yangming wanted to head to the prefecture long ago. Nonetheless, he did not pay importance to the doctors invited by Fang Yihai because it was Ni Xuehai and the peculiar stones in the Chaos Cave that he was really after.

Needless to say, it was easy to get Ni Xuehai's help, but difficult for Ou Yangming to enter the Chaos Cave once more. That said, since his days in the military camp were dull, leaving was just a matter of time.

After promising Fang Yihai, Ou Yangming immediately asked Old Craftsman.

However, Ou Yangming felt like a bucket of cold water was splashed in his face when the old man responded.

"Why should I go to the prefecture? I'm not going, I'm not going! My life here is great, and I didn't lose an arm or break my leg, so I can still smith a few pieces of equipment to survive. I'm not going!" Old Craftsman rejected without any hesitation.

He was unwilling to leave the military camp because it was his home, and he rather died at home than anywhere else.

Ou Yangming twisted his face in agony for a moment and expressed, "Old man, if you're not going, I'm not going either!"

"You? Why are you going to the prefecture? Didn't you just come back from there?" Old Craftsman asked curiously. He cared for Ou Yangming more than he did himself. "Old Man, I'm sure you remember General Fang Yihai? I promised to attach Unique Attributes to some pieces of equipment from his clan. The pieces of equipment and the ores are at the Fang Residence in the prefecture, and it's impossible for them to send them here," Ou Yangming explained, then shrugged, "I don't usually break promises, but since you insist on not going, what else can I say? In any case, I won't go if you don't go." "Nonsense! Since General Fang has invited you, why are you rejecting him? You must go no matter what! I'm telling you, you must do your best for General Fang, it'll be highly beneficial for your future!" Old Craftsman glared at Ou Yangming and bore the same aura that he had when he lectured the young fellow in the past. When the old man was extremely agitated, he could not help but pace back and forth. "It's a rare opportunity, a rare opportunity…" Old Craftsman knew very well how difficult it was for someone to be recognized by a general, who was even willing to train that person. He would not be bothered, but Ou Yangming needed the opportunity. Despite that, Ou Yangming shook his head and insisted. "Old man, I told you, I'll definitely not go if you don't go!"

"B*stard, are you trying to drive me mad? How dare you not go when it's such a great opportunity?" Old Craftsman glared at him in anger, then turned to walk toward his bed. Ou Yangming was stunned and puzzled as he thought, 'What's the old man doing? He's not taking things too hard, is… F*ck, oh my god!'

His eyes widened right away because he saw the old man pulling out a big rod from the foot of his bed.

He was afraid of the big rod.

This was because the item left a deep and unerasable mark in his memory. "Old man, where did you find it?"

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"Hmph, b*stard, did you think that I couldn't find it if you hid it in the smithing workshop? Heh, spare the rod, spoil the child. I see that your body has been itching since I haven't been teaching you a lesson for a long time?"

The old man wielded the rod and asked madly, "I'm asking you again, are you going or not?" Ou Yangming hesitated for a while before he answered firmly, "Old man, I don't want to leave you." "You…" Old Craftsman swung the rod but hit Ou Yangming's butt because there was more flesh there. "Are you going or not?"

Ou Yangming shrieked and jumped while holding his butt, but he stuck to the same answer. "If you don't go, I won't go, and I won't go even if you beat me to death!"

Old Craftsman was struck dumb, and he could not hit the young fellow anymore.

He sighed and uttered, "The prefecture actually has a great view, and I've been wanting to go take a look. Alright, I'll go with you."

Ou Yangming was holding his butt and was ready to be hit the second time, thus he did not expect the old man to change his mind.

He blinked suspiciously. "Old man, you're not lying to me, are you?"

Old Craftsman rebuked, "When have I ever lied to you?!"

In actuality, many parents in the world were unconcerned about how they lived, but they would spare no effort in doing anything that would benefit their child. It neither mattered how much effort they had to put it nor was it important if the matter was to their liking.

A child was everything to parents.

Ou Yangming naturally sensed the change in Old Craftsman's mind, and he felt rather guilty. Nonetheless, as told by Fang Yihai, the prefecture's medical conditions were far from what the military camp could compare. Moreover, in order to let the old man enjoy the rest of his life, Ou Yangming was already willing to offend the Ni family's three Supreme Great Ancestors, let alone swindling the old man himself.

When Ou Yangming informed Commanding General Deng Zhicai from the Middle Camp that he and Old Craftsman would soon leave the military camp, the general sighed. "I knew that the Immense Forest Military Camp can't make you-a legendary dragon-stay, but I didn't expect you to grow so quickly too. Ah, I have such a narrow vision."

"General, I'm only leaving to smith some pieces of equipment for General Fang. Besides, it's best to nurse the old man back to health in the prefecture." Ou Yangming smiled apologetically. "Tell me the truth then, are you coming back?" Deng Zhicai laughed and asked.

Ou Yangming was taken aback. He was going to say that he would definitely return, but he could not let a word out when he suddenly recalled the negative feelings he had from smithing in the camp during the past few days. After experiencing the steep and majestic mountain, would he still be willing to view in peace the scenery behind the small hill?

"Forget it, I give you my permission." Deng Zhicai shook his head a little, then added after a pause, "General Chen from the West Camp has been taking good care of you, so you should thank him before you leave."

Ou Yangming showed him an embarrassed smile and he bid his farewell.

Nevertheless, once he arrived at the West Camp, Chen Yifan waved his hand before he could even speak. "Go, go, go, you can leave if you want to, but when are you going to smith my weapon for me?"

Ou Yangming's slight reluctance to part disappeared because of Chen Yifan. He stuck out his chest and assured, "General, don't worry, I'll definitely smith a weapon that'll suit you best."

"Come with me." Chen Yifan scoffed and brought Ou Yangming to an empty ground, then retrieved a spear from the weapons rack. "Young fella, watch me closely, this is the weapon that I like the most." Following that, he shook his wrist and wielded the spear. The spear appeared to be a living dragon in his hands, and his body twisted in a wonderful way with it. In addition, Chen Yifan kept reciting a chant when he manipulated the spear, causing Ou Yangming to be in high spirits. Chen Yifan stopped and asked with a deep voice after performing once, "Did you understand what you watched?"

Ou Yangming gathered his thought for a while where the purple light flashed in his mind. He kept replaying everything that happened earlier, and his eyes eventually lit up. "Thank you, general, I understood it." Chen Yifan instantly froze. He had planned to perform again but did not have an excuse for that.

He glanced dubiously at Ou Yangming and questioned, "Did you really understand it?"

"Yes, I really understood it."

Chen Yifan's mouth twitched. "Okay, remember to smith the weapon for me. Now, you may leave."

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Once Ou Yangming went far away, he groaned and mumbled, "The young fella has even learned my finest spear technique, so I'm finally considered his master now, right? Heh… But did he actually learn it?"

Even Chen Yifan was uncertain at that moment.

After Ou Yangming left the military camp with Old Craftsman the next day, Kang Weibo made a sorrowful trip to Ou Yangming's smithing workshop.

He did not have high hopes that Ou Yangming would return again after he left.

Kang Weibo had thought that he could at least live a few good years if he relied on Ou Yangming, the newly risen Military Fire Blacksmith, hence he did not expect his blissful days to fly away so quickly.

That said, his body froze the instant he entered Ou Yangming's smithing workshop, and he could not move an inch.

Kang Weibo's lips trembled when he saw the room that was full of pieces of equipment, and his face glowed. He repeated the same words over and over again, "I'm rich, I'm rich, I'm rich…"

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Chapter 141 Planned Carefully Before Making A Move

The noon sun was not blazing; it felt like a gentle warm current flowing on one's body, which made one feel lazy.

A carriage took its time to travel on the main path, but when it was near the city's gate, rapid gallops were suddenly heard as horses sped in its direction.

Ou Yangming, who accompanied Old Craftsman in the carriage, was awakened by the noise. He quickly looked outside through the window gap. Their journey from the military camp to the prefecture was not of a smaller scale than the one before.

On top of that, due to the long preparation time, Commanding General Fang Yihai from the South Camp had even found an excuse to personally escort his guests. Similarly, Chen Yifan, who claimed to be Ou Yangming's master and his representative from home, did not show an impression of weakness at all. Not only did he send Liu Zhengye, but he also dispatched three squads.

Although Liu Zhengye was not on par with Fang Yihai, Old Craftsman and Ou Yangming appreciated the kind gesture.

Nonetheless, even with such a solid team, Ou Yangming was extremely sensitive about everything Perhaps it was due to the many accidents that had occurred previously. Despite that, after seeing the people who were on the fine horses ahead, Ou Yangming let his guard down and even smiled.

Old Craftsman asked in confusion, "Young fella, is it someone you know?"

Ou Yangming quickly answered, "Old Man, sit tight, it's Ni Yinghong who has come."

"Oh, it's…" Old Craftsman furrowed his eyebrows a little and looked at Ou Yangming with worry. He hesitated to finish his sentence.

"Old Man, just sit still, I'll ask them to go slower," Ou Yangming said smilingly. Old Craftsman scoffed. "You've been nagging them to go slower throughout the journey. The journey, that's supposed to take three days and three nights if the horses galloped fast enough, would end up lasting for almost half a month. Are you trying to make my old body rot?"

It was just like the old man said; Ou Yangming had been repeating two words throughout the journey, which were 'slow' and 'steady'.

They actually took half a month to travel from the military camp to the prefecture, which was the slowest marching speed recorded in history. Nevertheless, Old Craftsman was surprised that neither Fang Yihai nor the normal soldiers complained at all.

In actual fact, Fang Yihai had only remained his composure because Ou Yangming guaranteed that his success rate of attributes attachment was definitely above 30%. Besides, Ou Yangming had also promised to attempt binding layered attributes to the pieces of equipment.

Therefore, Fang Yihai dared not urge Ou Yangming so as to maintain the young fellow's good mood.

As for the low-level soldiers…

Since the South Camp's commanding general was present, how could they have the guts to complain? Ou Yangming grinned and got off the carriage. He noticed the gentle figure among the cavalries from a distance away.

"Brother Ni, how have you been!" He greeted with a smile.

Ni Yinghong smiled weirdly and replied to him, "Brother Ou, you've returned to the military camp for more than a month, so I thought you no longer want to learn the Suit Skill and appraisal art!"

Ou Yangming laughed out loud, "As long as you're willing to teach, I'm willing to learn."

"Okay, my older brother has been waiting at home, please!"

Seeing as things were off, Fang Yihai quickly interrupted, "Ni Yinghong, I'm the one who has invited Master Ou here, so even if you'd like to invite him to your clan, you should go after the Fang family."

"Oh, is that so?" Ni Yinghong curled her lips into a slight smile and looked like a cunning little fox. She said, "If that's the case, Brother Ou can go with you while I bring the old man to my clan."

"No!" Fang Yihai refused without any hesitation. He obviously understood how important Old Craftsman was to Ou Yangming. It would only be strange that the young fellow would stay in the Fang residence if the old man was taken away.

The general cursed, 'She's such a clingy, sly fox. How can she take such drastic measures?'

That said, Ni Yinghong suddenly spread out her hands and expressed helplessly, "Okay, Elder Xuehai has actually made preparations to treat Old Man, but since General Fang disallows, I'll ask him to forget it."

Ou Yangming's eyes instantly glowed. "Senior Xuehai is here too!" Fang Yihai's face twitched. He was resentful. 'Is a national medical elder that amazing? But it does sound quite amazing…' "General Fang, since Senior Xuehai is already waiting for Old Man, how about we make a trip there first?" Ou Yangming immediately turned to ask.

Fang Yihai smiled bitterly, but he could not object to it.

However, before he could decide, Ni Yinghong voiced out, "General Fang, there's actually something I'd like to ask. "Go ahead." Fang Yihai was somewhat startled.

SO

"Have you invited Brother Ou here for the archer equipment set?" Ni Yinghong questioned seriously.

Fang Yihai pulled a long face and answered with another question, "So what if that's the case?"

The matter was actually not a secret anymore, but it was the first time someone had spoken about it so openly, thus it made sense for him to be displeased.

Ni Yinghong showed a disdainful smile. "According to what I heard, many people from the Fang family disapprove of it! Hehe, if they don't trust Brother Ou, why have you invited him here?"

Fang Yihai's face took on an unpleasant expression, and his eyes looked fierce. In spite of that, unlike the hot-tempered general's usual behavior, he did not rebuke Ni Yinghong.

Ou Yangming understood the situation after hearing them.

The archer equipment set was quite important for the Fang family, but while Fang Yihai was an honorable figure in the South Camp, his power of discourse in his clan was worrying.

Ni Yinghong added, "General Fang, instead of letting Brother Ou receive insults at the Fang residence, how about you let him be my guest at the Ni residence? What do you think?"

Fang Yihai sneered. "As long as I'm around, nobody will insult my guest."

Ni Yinghong shook her head and suggested, "How about this? My older brother and Brother Ou will have a smithing challenge tomorrow noon as a learning experience for them. If the people from the Fang family are interested, they can come to watch."

She had only spoken about it casually, but Fang Yihai's eyes lit up right away. He inhaled deeply and cupped his hands at Ni Yinghong. "Okay, I'll remember this and repay you the favor in the future!"

He turned to say to Ou Yangming apologetically, "Master Ou, you've heard what we said. Indeed, I haven't made the best arrangements this time, but don't worry, I assure you that there won't be any more mishaps from tomorrow onward."

Ou Yangming naturally smiled and said that he was fine with it, but he shook his head and sighed when Fang Yihai left with his squad. "Ah, I didn't think that helping someone was going to be so tough…"

Ni Yinghong smiled sweetly and responded, "The queue of people who want to help General Fang extends from the prefecture to the military camp. He has asked you for help because he values you!"

"Is that so? What about the people who want to help you?" Ou Yangming blinked.

"There are probably two queues of people who want to help me!" Ni Yinghong answered proudly.

"Ah… I was being impolite, it turns out that you're more welcomed than General Fang. I admire you for that!"

"You're flattering me, Brother Ou, you're flattering me!"

They laughed and conversed happily.

"Uhm…" Old Craftsman suddenly came out of the carriage.

Ou Yangming and Ni Yinghong quickly stopped laughing and approached the old man at the same time. Although they had not rehearsed it, they naturally supported Old Craftsman by holding one of his arms each. Old Craftsman was dumbfounded, and he remarked with a bitter smile, "Ah, I don't deserve this treatment."

Ni Yinghong grinned. "Old Man, you're a senior, so of course you deserve it." Ou Yangming nodded as well. "Old Man, you deserve it indeed."

Ni Yinghong blushed and rolled her eyes at him, whereas Ou Yangming pretended to ignore her.

Old Craftsman wanted to correct the way Ni Yinghong addressed him out of habit but sighed when he saw her and Ou Yangming making eyes at each other. In fact, the old man was also less worried.

With that, they entered the Ni residence together.

Ni Xuehai had indeed been waiting for a long time, and he took in Old Craftsman as soon as he arrived.

Ou Yangming wanted to follow them too, but he could only back away when Ni Xuehai glared at him.

If there was someone other than Old Craftsman whom he respected and feared, it was none other than the doctor who treated Old Craftsman.

Ni Yunhong made his way over by then and comforted Ou Yangming with a smile, "Brother Ou, don't worry. Since Old Man consumed the golden pill, he'll surely be fine." Ou Yangming nodded. "Brother Ou, you've put in a lot of effort to get me here instead of letting me go to the Fang residence, what exactly is it for?" "Brother Ou, I know that you're interested in every skill related to smithing, am I right?" Ni Yunhong grinned.

"That's right." Ou Yangming was stunned.

"Hehe, are you interested in boring?" "Boring?" Ou Yangming asked in confusion. "Yes, it means making a hole on a piece of equipment to embed a gem in the future." Ou Yangming's eyes shone. "Is the Fang family adept in boring?"

Ni Yunhong laughed out loud. "Brother Ou, you're really smart. Hehe, in terms of the Suit Skill, the Ni family is definitely the best in the prefecture! But equipment boring is the Fang family's expertise. You picked up the Gem Embedding Art right away when Yinghong taught you, so you're gifted enough to learn the new skill."

"Brother Ni, why are you helping me?" Ou Yangming asked after he kept quiet for some time.

Ni Yunhong pondered and sighed. "Brother Ou, there was an unforeseen event among the Ni family a month ago. Ni Xueming's bloodline branch was removed from the clan by the great ancestors, and the disciples in his branch are now useless. That said, he managed to escape before he was caught."

Normal people would be baffled when Ni Yunhong suddenly brought up the unrelated matter.

Nonetheless, Ou Yangming immediately understood that the two Yang Grade powerhouses who attacked him but were killed by Ni Wangyang were likely hired by Ni Xueming

Ni Yunhong added, "His bloodline was the most one among the clan's branches, but he had aged and his days were numbered. He decided to take the risk but ended up harming others and himself."

"It's already in the past, so let's not talk about it." Ou Yangming laughed after remaining silent for some time. He expressed after a pause, "Tomorrow at noon, I'd like to see if your skills have improved."

"Tomorrow will be your show, so I'm not going to be involved!" Ni Yunhong responded snappily. They laughed together and no longer bore grudges against each other.

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Chapter 142 Live Performance

At noon the following day, Ou Yangming was led by Ni Yunhong and his younger sister to an empty ground.

Many people were already seated at the venue. Apart from Fang Yihai and the people around him, Ou Yangming noticed many familiar faces.

Those people were the Ni family's elders, and they—including Ni Wangyang-looked at him in confusion.

Ou Yangming knew very well that some of them were feeling indignant for Ni Xueming.

It was true that Ni Xueming was the culprit; he had even schemed a plan on Ni Wangyang because he coveted the Life-prolonging Pill that Ou Yangming carried. However, most of the elders would blame Ou Yangming for being the source of the offense.

No matter what an outsider did for the Ni family, it was supposed to be a matter of course. At most, the outsider could be dismissed with some small gifts, but why was the clan's most valuable Life-prolonging Golden Pill given to the outsider?

The elders felt that it was better to give the golden pill to Ni Xueming than to Ou Yangming. Needless to say, Ni Xueshu and the other elders from the main bloodlines were above them, and the three Supreme Great Ancestors were also overseeing the matter. Therefore, the elders dared not openly display their dissatisfaction.

Fang Yihai stood up and laughed. "Haha, Master Ou, Master Ni, I can't believe that I'll be watching another challenge between you two."

Ni Yunhong's face froze, and he responded, "General Fang, I'm afraid that I'll have to disappoint you."

"What?" Fang Yihai asked in confusion.

"I'm not feeling very well today, so I won't be smithing," Ni Yunhong explained in a serious tone, then his eyes wandered about. "But since so many seniors have shown up, we can't let you down…"

Ou Yangming could not help but laugh when he noticed the signal from Ni Yunhong. "Everyone, since the challenge isn't going to happen, I'll exhibit my abilities." He walked over to the center of the courtyard where a board was already prepared and various materials were piled. Apart from steel, there were also tens of precious ores.

As expected, the Ni family's background was unpredictable, and they were not inferior to the Immense Forest Military Camp at all.

Ou Yangming glanced at the materials and picked a piece of steel. As he played a thought in his mind, his Military Fire burned and enveloped the steel.

The spectators paid full attention to observe the process. Although there were not many in the crowd who knew smithing art, they were from noble families of power and influence, hence their knowledge was on a different level. In fact, they were familiar with smithing performances as such, so they were able to draw conclusions after observing in detail.

Nonetheless, the people who knew the trade were struck dumb in a flash.

This was because Ou Yangming's every move seemed to be in an exceptionally mysterious state. Whether it was the burning Military Fire, the flowing steel, or Ou Yangming's body, they all looked like they had become one.

Not to mention no flaws could be spotted, the spectators were actually bewildered.

The more one knew smithing art and the higher one's level of attainment in it, the stronger the feeling of bewilderment.

Ou Yangming was enlightened with the state of the integration of Heaven and man when he fought Ni Yunhong that night and was introduced to skills. That said, through different opportunities and training, he had only successfully fathomed it when Old Craftsman smithed with the Layering Art.

The myriad techniques in the world led to the same destination.

When Ou Yangming comprehended the integration of Heaven and man in smithing art, he naturally performed it through martial arts as well because his cultivation base was already at a certain level.

During the smithing performance, Ou Yangming displayed the real and original integration of Heaven and man.

At the spur of the moment, the conceited powerhouses who were incredibly adept in smithing art were also stunned. There were even some who trembled and began losing control of themselves.

Nevertheless, most of the martial artists were baffled. They only saw a ball of fiery flame, and a weapon was slowly taking form due to the burning process.

At last, the Military Fire disappeared, and a longsword was formed in Ou Yangming's hands.

This time, instead of smithing a military saber, he smithed a longsword, which was something he rarely smithed. The longsword was smithed using the swordsman's—his attacker'sweapon as a reference. While its length and pattern were slightly different, one could easily tell that Ou Yangming had forged a good sword.

Of course, Ou Yangming had already known the weapon's grade and rank through his burning Military Fire.

[Item: Distinguished longsword]

(Equivalent Rank: Ordinary Tool, High Grade, Rank Five]

[Attributes: Sharpness 15, Toughness 15, Durability 14)

"Seventh Uncle, what… Do you think about his standard?" An extremely soft voice was heard out of nowhere.

When the crowd turned to look, they saw Fang Yihai questioning a white-haired elder. His voice was soft, but none of the people present were ordinary so they heard him clearly.

The elder's face turned red, and he reprimanded, "Fang Yihai, what do you mean?"

Fang Yihai looked surprised. "Seventh Uncle, didn't you doubt Ou Yangming's skills? Now that you've seen his ability, what do you think?"

If one had only looked at his puzzled look, one would think that he had made an unintended mistake, but the people present more or less curled their lips into a smile.

How could the commanding general from the Immense Forest Military Camp's South Camp make such a lowly mistake? Ou Yangming could not help but laugh too. If he had not witnessed it himself, he could never imagine Fang Yihai doing something like that.

The elder, who was being questioned, was even redder in the face when he noticed the faint smiles from the people around him. Just as he was about to explode, his partner next to him remarked, "I may not know smithing art, but I know that the piece of equipment speaks the truth. If you're curious about the little friend's ability, why not appraise it?"

Ni Yinghong approached Ou Yangming and told him softly, "Those two men are stubborn elders from the Fang family, but even though the first elder, Fang Xuande, is stubborn, he's their clan's chief boring master. As for the second elder, Fang Yide, he's a cunning old man, so you must be careful."

Ou Yangming twitched his mouth. For some reason, he had a strange feeling when he heard the words 'boring master'.

"Grandfather from the Fang family, do you trust me to carry out the appraisal?" Ni Yinghong looked up with a smile.

"If I don't trust you, who else can I trust?" Fang Yide laughed out loud.

In actuality, everyone knew that any appraisal master who carried out the task in an event as such would not speak carelessly.

Following that, Ni Yinghong rubbed her hands to release the Appraisal Light. Her eyes glowed as she announced, "Everyone, this equipment is at the peak of High Grade Rank Five."

"It's a High Grade Rank Five indeed…" Fang Xuande mumbled and lamented. Though he was also a blacksmith, he could not have completed the smithing process so perfectly if he was in Ou Yangming's shoes. "Seventh Uncle, how about you evaluate Master Ou's skills?" Fang Yihai urged with a smile.

Fang Xuande looked in front and was in a daze.

After witnessing the godlike integration of Heaven and man during Ou Yangming's smithing process, he found it impossible to affront his conscience and belittle the young blacksmith even if he wanted to.

Fang Xuande was not the only sharp-eyed one here, after all. Besides, he was an experienced and pure blacksmith in the trade, thus he could not bring himself to put down another person.

He could only laugh bitterly while being stared at by many people. "Master Ou has already achieved such a high level of attainment in smithing art at a young age, he's truly a genius!" On the other hand, Fang Yide's eyes wandered about as he sneered. "Seventh Elder Brother, a piece of equipment at the peak of High Grade isn't common, but it's not like you've never smithed one before, so why do you have to praise him so well?" 'If one looks at the result alone, it's true that it's just a piece of equipment at the peak of High Grade Rank Five; if one watches the whole process and is also a blacksmith, the intense feelings of shock and disappointment are unbearable,' Fang Xuande said to himself although he shook his head without saying a word. Despite that, he could not say those words in front of other people.

Fang Yide realized that something was off. This was because Fang Xuande was actually the leader of those who objected to Fang Yihai's suggestion of letting a young blacksmith attach attributes to their clan's equipment. If even Fang Xuande gave up, Fang Yide alone could not change the situation no matter how hard he tried…

He scoffed and raised a question, "Master Ou, you're skilled in smithing High Grade equipment, but have you stumbled upon a piece of Fine Grade equipment?"

The crowd was shocked, and even Ni Yunhong and his younger sister were hesitant. Ou Yangming had not come from an influential family, hence he had little opportunity of coming across Fine Grade equipment. Even if he was well-trained in the Immense Forest Military Camp, he could not get his hands on them.

"The pieces of equipment that the Fang family wants to bind Unique Attributes to are pieces of Fine Grade equipment. If you can't even smith a piece of Fine Grade equipment… Hehe, hehe, hehe…" Fang Yide glanced at the crowd and laughed instead of finishing his sentence, but the crowd understood the meaning behind his words.

Ni Yunhong and the other people looked at each other, not knowing how to reply to him.

They recalled that Ou Yangming had never smithed a piece of Fine Grade equipment indeed.

While High Grade and Fine Grade only differed by one word, the difference was worth 10,000 taels of gold. Ou Yangming smiled faintly at Fang Yide. "Judging from what you say, I'll pass the test if I smith a piece of Fine Grade equipment?"

Fang Yide replied to him with a laugh, "Little friend, we'll talk about it after you attempt it."

Ou Yangming looked deeply at the man and confirmed that he was the one who was actually challenging Fang Yihai.

He chuckled and asked, "Brother Ni, does your residence have featured steel? May I borrow some?"

"Brother Ou, you're being too polite. If you need them, I'll ask someone to bring them here," Ni Yunhong answered and waved his hand. Subsequently, someone carried some featured steel over.

When Ou Yangming's Military Fire burned and danced again, the square became dead silent. The crowd watched the fire with different expressions on their faces, but they were all nervous.

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Chapter 143 Genuine Strength

Fang Xuande's eyes burned bright, but he looked rather strange and confused as though he wanted to witness a miracle or was worried about something. On the other hand, Fang Yide's eyes flickered and looked at Ou Yangming with strong enmity. Nonetheless, nobody could tell. The smithing of the archer equipment set was an incomparably huge matter in the Fang family. Regardless of the task's final leader, that person would receive unimaginable benefits. It was evident that Fang Yide was unwilling to let Fang Yihai lead the task.

Therefore, he had spared no effort in roping in Fang Xuande, the number one smithing powerhouse in their clan, to object to the matter.

After all, Fang Yihai actually spoke carelessly in order to achieve his unspeakable goal; he claimed that a 16-year-old teen had acquired God-given Attributes. Putting aside the legitimacy of the news, so what if it was true? Without convincing smithing abilities, how could the clan entrust the unreal hope to a young junior?

That said, things began to develop beyond Fang Yide's expectations.

Not knowing what tricks Ou Yangming had employed during the smithing process, Fang Xuande became so immersed in it that he seemed to have toned down and was not very against the idea anymore.

It was a terrible nightmare for Fang Yide.

His only hope was that the young fellow did not understand Fine Grade equipment very well.

However, when the Military Fire burned and completely enveloped the piece of featured steel, Fang Yide's heart skipped a beat. For some reason, he had a bad feeling about it.

Fang Yide turned to look at Fang Xuande, hoping to catch a clue from the blacksmith's face because he was acknowledged as the most powerful blacksmith in their clan.

Nevertheless, Fang Yide's heart slowly sank because he saw once more how absorbed Fang Xuande was.

Ou Yangming had seen featured steel many times, but he had definitely not come across it much. In fact, it was his first time smithing and refining with a material like that.

Despite not having forged with such a material, he had previously smithed with tougher material.

It was the stones in the Chaos Cave, the ones that countless Black Magic Crawlers gnawed on with their mouthparts but could only obtain a bit of powder. The stones were superior to featured steel be it their toughness or their natural firmness.

Ou Yangming had easily refined the stones that day, so the substandard featured steel was not worth mentioning. As his Military Fire burned, the piece of featured steel melted slowly like butter. Ou Yangming then controlled with his mental conception to transform the dripping liquid into a longsword. The familiar words appeared in his mind again. [Upgradable composition found, upgrade?]

W

"Upgrade.'

After giving the instruction through his mind, the attributes of the longsword, which was enveloped by Ou Yangming's Military Fire, were quickly improved. Ou Yangming devised a plan once he was aware of the Fang family's secret weapon. As such, this moment was unquestionably the perfect opportunity to carry out the plan. Hence, he attached the Sharpness and Toughness attributes generously. After just a brief moment, the longsword achieved the maximum limit reachable by the raw material.

[Item: Extraordinary longsword]

(Equivalent Rank: Ordinary Tool, Fine Grade, Rank Five]

[Attributes: Sharpness 20, Toughness 20, Durability 18]

A faint smile was seen on Ou Yangming's face. He curbed the fire, then placed the longsword on the smithing table, and nodded with a smile. "Thank you for the trouble again."

Ni Yinghong could not help but laugh. "Hehe, I don't think it's troublesome at all."

Following that, she rubbed her hands again and released the Appraisal Light.

Ou Yangming was moved. When he previously appraised pieces of equipment with Ni Yunhong and Zheng Ziwen, Ni Yinghong could already perform appraisal art. In spite of that, she could not execute it as fast as she could at the moment; she was restrained by her mental power and dexterity.

Most importantly, she had to rest for 15 minutes after using the art once and could never perform it twice in a row without panting heavily after.

On the opposite, Ni Yinghong was relaxed and did not feel burdened at all when she used appraisal art this time. There was a huge disparity between the changes, and perhaps a stranger could not tell, but Ou Yangming identified that her mental power had greatly improved.

Ou Yangming lamented. The Ni family had utilized their clan's Land of Inheritance right after it was found, and Ni Yinghong was unquestionably one of the first batches of people who benefited from it. "Grandfather from the Fang family, this sword is at the peak of Fine Grade… Rank Five!"

Ni Yinghong was surprised at first, but just as Fang Yide was secretly delighted as he thought Ou Yangming had failed, she gave him a despairing answer.

Fine Grade, Rank Five!

Whispers and discussions were instantly heard because even some powerhouses, who were adept in smithing art, were suspicious of the outcome.

"Impossible!" Fang Yide could not help but shout.

In actual fact, he knew that it was extremely unlikely that Ni Yinghong had lied, but he was in disbelief because the two pieces of equipment were evaluated to be at the peak of Rank Five.

The probability of smithing a piece of Fine Grade equipment by using featured steel was not low. Most blacksmiths with genuine talent could produce a similar result, but Rank Five… That was a piece of Rank Five equipment.

'That young fella has just smithed two weapons. One's a High Grade, one's a Fine Grade, but both are in Rank Five?

'I don't understand smithing art very well, but it's not like I know nothing either. Even if you want to lie about it, can you please not make it too obvious…'

"Indeed, it's not very possible." Questioning voices were heard one after another. Not only were the people from the Fang family doubtful, but some people from the Ni family had also stood up to express their discontent through their bright eyes.

Needless to say, those from the Ni family who voiced out were powerhouses from their bloodline branch. Besides, they were only displeased with the result and none of them dared to accuse Ni Yinghong of a falsification.

Ni Yinghong kept a straight face as if everything was within her expectations.

"Grandfather from the Fang family, may I ask why it isn't possible?" She asked plainly.

Fang Yide scoffed and answered, "It's possible that the longsword is of Fine Grade, but Rank Five… Hehe, if I'm not mistaken, the longsword earlier is also in Rank Five, am I right?"

"You're right," Ni Yinghong answered.

"If that's the case, every piece of equipment smithed by Master Ou is in Rank Five?" Fang Yide smiled brightly.

Some people among the crowd laughed in secret and thought, 'That's such an unreliable statement. I'm afraid that only someone who knows nothing about smithing will believe that.'

"Hmph!" Ou Yangming suddenly scoffed and turned around, then he made his way to the side of the board again.

He drew everyone's attention right away, by which even Ni Yinghong was surprised because she did not know what he was up to.

Ou Yangming glanced at the items on the board and reached out for an iron ingot. It was the most ordinary smithing material, which was usually used by a new blacksmith for practice or to mold pieces of normal equipment on a large scale.

Even the most ordinary yet official Military Fire or Spiritual Fire Blacksmith would not bother using it.

Nonetheless, Ou Yangming studied the iron ingot for a while, then used his Military Fire to begin smithing. Everyone in the crowd looked at one another as they were baffled.

The better the raw material in equipment smithing, the higher the equipment's grade. Ou Yangming had displayed his absolute ability in smithing art, and had even forged a piece of equipment at the peak of Fine Grade Rank Five with featured steel.

Given the outcome, why had he chosen the most ordinary iron ingot?

Among the plenty of materials available, the iron ingot was undoubtedly the easiest material to be shaped. As Ou Yangming's Military Fire burned, the material visibly melted at the speed of light, and a greave was instantly formed.

Ou Yangming shook his wrist to curb the fire, then casually placed the greave on the table.

Subsequently, he proceeded to retrieve a featured iron ingot, and his Military Fire burned once more to envelop the material. "Hey?" Fang Xuande asked in bewilderment, "Is he trying to…" "Is he trying to what?" Fang Yihai asked out loud. Amid the many people from the Fang family, he had the most confidence in Ou Yangming. He had witnessed the smithing challenge between Ou Yangming and Ni Yunhong, hence he knew very well that the teen could not be viewed as a normal person. "There's a unique method among blacksmiths, and it's used to test one's skill," Fang Xuande said hesitantly, "The method involves smithing a full basic equipment set with different materials because the limit of each material causes a huge difference in the equipment grades. However, the specific rank of pieces of equipment from the same grade shows the blacksmith's genuine strength."

Fang Yihai and the other spectators came to a sudden realization.

Nevertheless, it was also the exact reason they began looking at Ou Yangming strangely.

Smithing art's mystery was endless, and the types of material available were unusual. Nobody had the guts to claim that they could master smithing with every material. Normally, a person who was adept in smithing with featured iron ingot might not necessarily be able to master smithing with steel or materials of a higher level.

Similarly, one who was great at smithing with steel might not be great at smithing with featured iron ingot. In fact, one might not actually be better than a blacksmith with a slightly inferior quality but was destined to use featured iron ingots forever.

Hence, a blacksmith's genuine comprehensive strength could be shown by smithing all sorts of equipment with different materials.

Ou Yangming released his power without restraint. He looked like he was kneading the featured iron ingot as though it was dough, and another greave was produced again after a brief moment.

Two greaves, but two different materials.

That being said, it was not the end because Ou Yangming picked up another piece of steel. He studied it as if it was calculating something, then when the Military Fire burned again, part of the steel was instantly removed by melting it.

The remaining portion was quickly used to form an arm guard.

Ou Yangming seemed like he was addicted to the process. He put down the newly formed greave, then picked up a piece of featured steel to produce another arm guard.

Once he was done, he suddenly turned to ask with a smile, "Senior Fang, can you please choose a material for me?"

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Chapter 144 Admitting Defeat

The crowd looked at Fang Xuande at the same time, whereas Fang Xuande blushed and could not let out a word.

On the other hand, Fang Yide knew that things were getting bad, so he quickly said, "Being able to smith with common materials isn't much. If you're really so capable, you should try smithing with uncommon materials!"

The crowd cast a strange look at him.

'Isn't that request rather unreasonable?'

One would obviously choose a material that one was familiar with for equipment smithing. As for the uncommon, weird, and rare materials, although it was possible to smith an item that had the same equivalent rank, it was extremely difficult.

Other than a top-notch elder, who had profound experiences in smithing art after studying it for more than a decade, nobody would have the guts to respond to the request.

Fang Xuande furrowed his eyebrows. Just as he was about to remark that it was a forceful request, Ou Yangming agreed smilingly. "Okay, as you wish. Brother Ni, can you please prepare some uncommon materials?"

While Ou Yangming was smiling, his angry tone was obvious even for a fool.

Fang Yihai was red with anger and was especially displeased with Fang Yide. Nonetheless, Fang Yide was a senior in his clan, after all, hence Fang Yihai could not reprimand the senior, or he would be committing an offense by disrespecting a senior. It was not a responsibility that he could bear.

"I'll fulfill every request made." Ni Yunhong smiled and looked deeply at the people from the Fang family. After he gave an order, someone brought two types of material.

The materials were neither steel nor featured steel, but their grades and ranks were comparable.

Ou Yangming accepted the materials and glanced at Fang Yide. He expressed without hiding his contempt at all, "Senior, if you're still unhappy with these two materials, there's nothing else I can do. You may look for someone else."

Following that, he shook his wrist, and the Military Fire burned again.

Ou Yangming had fallen asleep after his first encounter with the Military Fire because he had insufficient strength, and his physical and mental powers were exhausted by the fire. Since Ou Yangming was no longer the person he used to be, if he was only using the Military Fire at such a level, he could go on forever without taking a break.

After all, his 40 Points of mental power were not just for decoration.

"Boom…"

When his Military Fire burned violently, a loud explosion was actually heard from the material, and the fire became mightier as though oil was poured into it.

Ou Yangming was taken aback because it was his first time coming across material like that. It seemed like the material was compatible with the Military Fire because it began melting without him needing to use a lot of effort.

He was moved because he immediately understood that it was an advantage.

Even though he did not know what material it was, the Ni family, which had a profound background, definitely knew the material's unique traits. Therefore, it was definitely not chosen randomly; Ni Yunhong had prepared it on purpose. Ou Yangming was rather grateful for the fact that Ni Yunhong put so much thought into the details for him.

Since Ou Yangming had probed the material's unique traits, he was not going to hold back. He released more of the Military Fire so as to quickly reshape the material. Ni Yunhong and his younger sister looked at each other and wondered, 'Ou Yangming's being too impatient.'

Based on the explosion and the uncontrollable Military Fire earlier, they were certain that Ou Yangming had stumbled upon the material for the first time.

Theoretically, he should be cautious during the smithing process, and it would make sense even if he was a few times more careful than usual. If Fang Yide dared to use it as an excuse to stir up trouble later, at least the Spiritual Fire Blacksmiths who were present could shut his mouth.

However, Ou Yangming did the opposite. Instead of slowing down, he sped up instead, thus the siblings were concerned.

Nevertheless, regardless of what everyone thought, the helmet was steadily formed in Ou Yangming's hands.

Once he was done smithing the helmet, he fixed his gaze on the last material.

Ou Yangming knew nothing about the material too, but since it was prepared by Ni Yunhong in advance, how would he be disappointed?

With that, a brand new armor was successfully formed in Ou Yangming's hands. Moreover, he did not consume much power, and the total time spent left the professionals in awe.

"The Fang family probably has an appraiser too, please come forward to appraise the pieces of equipment," Ou Yangming said after he finished smithing the equipment set. Fang Xuande announced seriously, "I'm an appraiser, I'll do it!"

Ou Yangming was stunned because he did not expect the old man to be having two professions simultaneously-it was somewhat rare.

Afterward, Fang Xuande stepped forward with a grave expression on his face, and rubbed his hands to release the Appraisal Light.

"A Common Grade greave." He looked up at Ou Yangming before he added, "Rank Five, at the peak."

The Appraisal Light was released once more.

"A Good Grade greave, Rank Five as well.

"A High Grade greave, Rank Five, at the peak.

"A Fine Grade arm guard…" He stammered and continued after a while, "Rank Five, at the

peak."

By then, the square was dead silent. Apart from Fang Xuande's voice that echoed in the air, no other noise was heard.

Fang Xuande looked at the last two pieces of equipment, then gritted his teeth before releasing two Appraisal Lights in a row. Everyone focused on him at the moment to wait for the final judgment. Fang Xuande frowned as if he was deeply confused.

"Grandfather from the Fang family, I know that you're feeling dubious, but if it's Rank Five, that's what it is," Ni Yinghong suddenly blurted. She asked after a short pause, "Seventh Grandfather, are you still not aware of what state Brother Ou has been smithing under?"

Fang Xuande's face changed right away, and he mumbled, "Could it… Could it really be… That state?"

"What state?" Fang Yide questioned though he knew that things were not in his favor.

Fang Xuande moved his lips but could not bring himself to say it.

Despite that, a loud and hearty laugh was suddenly heard. "Haha, could it really be the integration of Heaven and man?"

"The integration of Heaven and man?"

"Impossible!"

"How can the legendary state appear on a

teen?"

"Heh, Yihai is probably having wishful thinking. How could he speak so carelessly!"

Criticisms were heard one after another, and the place became as noisy as a market. That said, the people who spoke kept quiet after a brief moment.

This was because they suddenly noticed that the people who questioned were all from the Fang family, whereas the Ni family powerhouses fell silent and looked at them strangely. Those who had come from the Fang family were not fools, after all, hence they looked at each other after noticing that something was off.

"Ah…" Fang Xuande sighed. "You don't have to doubt anymore. Other than the integration of Heaven and man, I really can't think of another reason for his wonderful smithing movements."

He announced after taking a glance at everyone, "Among these two pieces of equipment, one is at the peak of High Grade Rank Five while the other one is at the peak of Fine Grade Rank Five. Every equipment is in Rank Five."

The people from the Fang family shut their mouths. Although their Seventh Grandfather had confirmed it, they were still in disbelief.

Fang Xuande inhaled deeply and actually bowed to the ground at Ou Yangming in front of everyone else. "I have eyes, but I failed to see. Please forgive me for having offended you, master."

Everyone was frightened and even Fang Yihai quickly jumped out instead of mocking the elder. "Seventh Uncle, what are you doing?" Fang Xuande shook his head and explained, "The smithing path's mystery is unparalleled, and anyone can be a master regardless of age. Since Master Ou has fathomed the integration of Heaven and man, he's qualified to be my master."

Ou Yangming immediately responded, "Senior, you're being too polite, I don't deserve the title."

If he actually accepted the formality in front of Commanding General Fang Yihai from the South Camp, the consequences would be unbearable…

Fang Xuande chuckled. "Master Ou, the Fang family is blessed that Yihai was able to invite you. Please…"

"Seventh Elder Brother!" Fang Yide's face changed as he watched his opportunity leaving him before he could seize it. He could not help but put up a desperate fight. "The fella may be adept in smithing, but he might not necessarily be good at attaching attributes. The Fang family's collection wasn't… Easily gathered, are you really confident about entrusting the task to a boy like him?"

"No matter how old he is, since he has apprehended the integration of Heaven and man, his success rate in attributes attachment is much higher than mine," Fang Xuande answered after some serious thought even though he was startled. He waved his hand and added, "You don't have to convince me anymore, I've decided to suggest Clan Leader appoint him for the task."

Fang Yide fumed with anger and glared at Ou Yangming

"Senior, General Fang, I was initially sincere about helping you, but I was deliberately obstructed a few times. Heh…" Ou Yangming raised his eyebrow and cupped his hands at the two seniors. "I'm done suffering from this ill treatment, and I don't want to interfere in your clan's matter anymore. I'll be leaving first!"

He cast a cold look at Fang Yide and vividly expressed his extreme discontent. At that moment, even a fool could tell how indifferent Ou Yangming was feeling.

Next, Ou Yangming turned and left without any hesitation.

'Your clan is that one who asked me to attach the Unique Attributes, but you made it look like I'm begging you instead.

'Heh, why do I have to stand your attitude?

'I won't take it! I'm not going to play this game anymore, you can play it all you want!'

Those were the impressions he gave when he turned to leave resolutely such that nobody could make him stay.

Fang Yihai and the other people widened their eyes. The general instantly called out to him, "Master Ou, please wait!"

However, Ou Yangming seemed like he did not hear the general at all. He did not slow down and left the courtyard in a flash after speeding up a little.

When Fang Yihai was about to pursue him, Ni Yunhong stopped him.

The general was taken aback. He suddenly recalled that he was at the Ni residence instead of the Fang residence, so he could not act without restraint.

After watching Ou Yangming leave, Fang Yihai shot a furious look at Fang Yide.

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Chapter 145 Covertly Pleasing

Ou Yangming returned to his room and conversed happily with Old Craftsman for some time before he noticed a familiar figure through the window.

He made an excuse to leave without leaving a trace and went far from the room with Ni Yinghong

Ni Yinghong stopped and turned to smile when they arrived at the garden. "Master Ou, you're truly a master in acting, your performance was just right, and it's really praiseworthy." Ou Yangming shrugged. "Ahh, I wonder who exactly was the one who gave me the idea of making the Fang family beg me for help?"

"I only suggested, but if you didn't have the same thought, you wouldn't have agreed and even performed so well, right?" Ni Yinghong blushed.

Seeing as Ni Yinghong was about to rage, Ou Yangming quickly stopped teasing her and said in a serious tone, "Brother Ni, thank you!"

Ni Yinghong's eyes lit up as she blurted all of a sudden, "Can you really not tell, or have you been addressing me this way on purpose?" Ou Yangming was stunned, and his heart beat fast when he looked at the charming face in front of him. He opened his mouth as he wanted to admit it, but was suddenly afraid because he was worried. 'If I expose her identity, are we not even going to be friends anymore?'

The smart Ni Yinghong got her answer when she noticed how anxious Ou Yangming was. She put her hands behind her back and expressed, "I'm actually happy with the current state, and I don't want to change anything."

Ou Yangming stared at her with his bright eyes. "What about the future?"

"The future?" Ni Yinghong hesitated before she answered, "The future is such a huge topic, and it's full of uncertainties, so I dare not think much about it."

"You don't have to think about it if you don't want to," Ou Yangming responded proudly. He slapped his chest and assured, "Leave everything to me, I'll do things well!"

Ni Yinghong kept blinking. She wanted to remark that Ou Yangming was talking big, but when she saw the look of determination in his eyes, she could not bring herself to ridicule him.

Nonetheless, she was always not someone who would admit defeat. She pouted her lips and said, "Leave the future for the future. Fang Xuande is already begging my First Grandfather, what are you going to do?"

Ou Yangming giggled. "Let it be and don't let it affect me!"

Ni Yinghong initially wanted to make things difficult for the young fellow, but she laughed when she saw how relaxed he was. As Ou Yangming had said, he did not do anything wrong at all. In any case, the Fang family was the concerned party, thus he did not need to bother one bit.

With that, they began talking casually in the courtyard and the atmosphere became more harmonious. Just as Ou Yangming had the urge to take their relationship to the next level, familiar footsteps were heard.

Ou Yangming quickly curbed his thought and acted like a gentleman. He put on a straight face without smiling.

Ni Yinghong's eyes glowed, and she could not help but laugh internally. For some reason, she was also feeling slightly regretful. 'Ah, my useless older brother, he really doesn't know how to pick a good time!'

If Ni Yunhong, who had hurried here, knew what she was thinking, he would probably burst out crying. Ni Yunhong paced toward Ou Yangming and Ni Yinghong in a hurry and sighed a breath of relief when he saw that they were acting decently. "Brother Ou, I have good news and bad news for you. Which one would you like to hear first?"

Ou Yangming grinned. "The good news, of course!"

Ni Yunhong replied to him straightforwardly, "I've spoken to Fang Xuande. They must pay a price to get your help. When we previously invited you to come, we promised to teach you the Suit Skill and the high-level appraisal art, so they must reward you in a similar way if they truly want your help."

"Brother Ni, you've spared no effort in helping me." Ou Yangming was touched.

"It's not a big deal!" Ni Yunhong waved his hand and smiled.

"You've said the good news, so what's the bad news?" Ni Yinghong asked.

'Younger sister, why are you more impatient than this b*stard?' Ni Yunhong secretly teased her. That said, he revealed, "The bad news is Fang Yihai has gone to look for Old Craftsman, and the old man is looking for you everywhere!"

Ou Yangming slapped his forehead and spoke with regret, "I've made a mistake, I've made a mistake. I actually forgot about that…"

Ni Yinghong furrowed her eyebrows. "It's not strange that Fang Yihai came up with the idea, but how did he find Old Craftsman?"

"Someone obviously brought him to the old man!" Ni Yunhong scoffed. His stern voice suggested that there was an irrepressible fire in his heart.

Ou Yangming immediately recalled that not everyone from the Ni family was friendly toward him earlier. Some of them cast cold looks at him while some looked at him with hatred.

ce

He shook his head helplessly. This was the difference between a big clan and the military. In the military camp, if two parties disliked each other, they could simply fight each other with real weapons. It was just like how the soldiers from the East Camp and West Camp opposed each other because their respective commanding generals were incompatible.

Nevertheless, regardless of how they fought, they always strived to do their best and would neither become a disgusting person nor be a drag on someone else!

Due to that, the soldiers were much better than a certain elder in the Ni family!

Ou Yangming sighed. "Forget it, nothing can be done since things have turned out like this. I'll see what Old Man has to say. Hehe, don't worry, I won't suffer any loss!"

He would naturally do his best to execute tasks given by the old man, but if it was beyond his ability, he could not be blamed for every mistake.

Ou Yangming noticed Fang Yihai as soon as he returned to his room. He did not know what the general had told Old Craftsman because they were conversing happily.

The young fellow was rather dumbfounded because even though he had been carefully serving and never neglected Old Craftsman after they left the military camp, the old man was sometimes gloomy because he missed the camp. As such, Ou Yangming even doubted if he had made the right choice by bringing the old man out.

Upon seeing Old Craftsman laughing out loud, Ou Yangming could tell that the old man was genuinely happy; it was not forced at all. Ou Yangming was curious but grateful at the same time. No matter the reason Fang Yihai had come, he would return the favor because the general managed to cheer the old man up.

Ou Yangming cast aside the thought and approached them. "General, you're here. Please forgive me for not having welcomed

you!"

Fang Yihai laughed out loud. "It was me who visited without a notice." "B*stard, I can't believe that you did some proper business today!" Old Craftsman expressed with a bright smile, "You did well today. You actually smithed every piece of equipment to Rank Five even with different materials, even I can't do that!"

Fang Yihai commented, "Old Craftsman, it's because you've raised him well. You're the only one who's capable of doing that!" 'When have I ever taught this b*stard so many things? Based on his performance today, his smithing art is superior to mine.' Old Craftsman looked proud, but nobody knew that he was actually quite bewildered. Despite that, it would be impossible for the old man to admit that Ou Yangming's smithing art had nothing to do with him. "Master Ou, I'll bid my farewell since you've returned." Fang Yihai stood up and nodded at them, then left even though Old Craftsman had asked him to stay.

Old Craftsman sighed. "Ah, the general is the general, he's a particular man!"

Ou Yangming's eyes wandered about as he asked, "Old Man, what else did he tell you?"

"He just told me some happy things and struck casual conversations with me. Ah, the military life is still the best," Old Craftsman responded, then he looked at Ou Yangming and asked, "Does General Fang have a favor to ask from you?"

"Old Man, how did you know?" Ou Yangming was surprised.

"Do you really think that I'm an idiot? Hmph, he's the general, yet he humbled himself to visit me and even talked to me with patience for a long time. Heh, I've never been treated like that throughout my years in the military camp, so I'm sure that it has something to do with you!" Old Craftsman looked at Ou Yangming like he was looking at a fool.

Ou Yangming shouted, "Ah! Old Man, you even perceived that! I guess you've really recovered."

"If it's not too troublesome to help General Fang, you should agree to it." Old Craftsman said after cursing at him jokingly. His face suddenly took on a grave expression as he added, "But if it's too difficult or if it's related to someone's interests, just do what you can. Remember, your safety is a priority."

"Old Man, don't worry, I'll handle it well."

'The young fella has finally grown up. I no longer have to worry about him or give him pointers.' Old Craftsman lamented as he looked at the confident Ou Yangming. It was a joyful matter, but why did he feel like he had lost himself in a reverie?

After Ou Yangming bid farewell and left, he indeed met Fang Yihai a distance away from his room. The general greeted him with a fist salute, "Master Ou, I apologize for what happened today.""General Fang, you're being too polite, you weren't the one who offended me," Ou Yangming responded plainly.

"Master Ou, Seventh Uncle has asked me to invite you to our residence tomorrow," Fang Yihai said meaningfully, "He'd like to explore the Embedding Art with you."

Ou Yangming grinned. "Since the senior has summoned me, I'll definitely obey the order." Fang Yihan was elated. "Okay, I'll be welcoming you tomorrow!"

When Ou Yangming sent the general out of the Ni residence, he voiced out after a moment of hesitation, "General Fang, it's Old Man's first time here in the prefecture, so he's not very used to it. If an old friend often visits him to catch up with him, he'll probably be delighted."

Fang Yihai understood what he was trying to say. "Master Ou, don't worry. The Immense Forest Military Camp is always closely connected with the prefecture, so people from the camp will always come."

"Thank you." Ou Yangming bowed at the general seriously.

Once he sent Fang Yihai away, before he could even return to his room, he was already stopped by Ni Yunhong and his younger sister, who brought him out of the residence.

According to them, Ou Yangming had previously come and left the prefecture in a hurry because of Old Craftsman, hence he did not take a good look at the place. This time, they were determined to bring him around. Ou Yangming agreed without any hesitation when he saw the eager Ni Yinghong. With that, they left the Ni residence and headed to the liveliest area in the city.

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Chapter 146 An Encounter On The Way

The prefecture was where the county's capital was located. It was a bustling place that could not be compared with the military camp, which was fortified and faced the boundless immense forest.

Ni Yunhong and his younger sister led the way. They were heading to the prefecture's night market.

In the prefecture, people had completely different living habits than those from the military camp and the town. For most people here, nighttime was the real beginning of a day.

When the siblings and Ou Yangming arrived at a brightly lit street, Ou Yangming suddenly smiled and said, "Look."

The siblings were slightly stunned when they looked toward where he was pointing, but they quickly laughed.

A familiar old man was standing there.

It was Zheng Ziwen, the Yi Pavilion's appraiser. He was looking around at one end of the street as though he was searching for something.

Ni Yinghong grinned. "It's such a coincidence that we're able to encounter him here."

"Let's go meet him." Ou Yangming nodded and smiled. "He's a good person."

Ni Yinghong instantly pursed her lips and smiled so that even her big eyes were narrowed. "Yes, he's indeed a good person, a really good person!"

They smiled at each other as they recalled the days of their appraisal task in the basement. In order to let Ou Yangming understand appraisal art, Ni Yinghong had prodded Zheng Ziwen and used other tricks to make the appraisal master employ the art. She only stopped when Zheng Ziwen was exhausted and had no energy left. Without Zheng Ziwen's selfless help, Ou Yangming could not have grasped appraisal art.

Ni Yunhong was rather jealous when he saw his younger sister and Ou Yangming smiling at each other. He decided to keep an eye on Ou Yangming so as to prevent his dear sister from being captivated.

Ou Yangming went with the stream of people in the crowd and shouted, "Master Zheng, what a coincidence!"

Zheng Ziwen was startled, but his eyes lit up when he turned and saw Ou Yangming. He could not help but flash a bright smile as he responded, "Haha, Master Ou, you're… Uh, ah… I have something else to attend to, I'll talk to you next time!" He was actually elated when he first saw Ou Yangming, but he quickly noticed Ni Yinghong, who was behind Ou Yangming. A penetrating chill immediately arose from the bottom of Zheng Ziwen's heart because he recalled his miserable experience that lasted a few days in the basement.

Equipment appraisal was supposedly a small matter-like daily life—for him. However, the task that they did together had given him a taste of how tormenting hell would be.

After continuously using appraisal art for a few days, not only was Zheng Ziwen's mental power exhausted, but he had also made an overdraft of it. As a result, he was mentally disorganized for the next few days and had no energy to do anything at all.

In a way, Ni Yinghong had left him with an incredibly deep and unerasable impression.

Upon seeing the little devil, Zheng Ziwen could not help but shiver. He was mumbling something to himself, and he subconsciously wanted to leave.

Just as he began shifting his feet, Ni Yinghong's voice was heard. "Master Zheng, how have you been!"

Zheng Ziwen halted and smiled, but he looked more awful than if he was crying. "Oh! Isn't that Master Ni? Forgive me for not noticing you earlier."

Ni Yinghong replied to him with a smile, "Master Zheng, you're a busy and proud man, so it's not strange that you didn't notice a nobody like me."

"Master Ni, you misunderstood me, that was not the case." Zheng Ziwen's face changed. Ou Yangming could not bear watching them anymore, so he asked, "Master Zheng, are you waiting for someone?"

Zheng Ziwen sighed a breath of relief because he dared not be entangled with the little devil any longer. He quickly answered, "Ah, Master…"

"Brother Zheng, it's too difficult for us to keep addressing each other as masters. How about we just use terms of address for friends?" Ou Yangming waved his hand and suggested.

He was not over 16 years old yet, hence it was quite funny for him to be calling a man, who was in his thirties, a brother. Nonetheless, Zheng Ziwen, who knew Ou Yangming's abilities very well, was delighted. "Okay, it's my honor to have a friend like you, Brother

Ou."

All of a sudden, a figure showed up from a distance away, and that person laughed when he saw who were present. "It's Master Ou and the Ni family masters!" The person who came was Head Shopkeeper Lin from the town. He nodded at everyone else and asked, "Master Zheng, is Old Tributary Shen still not here yet?"

"Old Tributary Shen? Are you talking about Old Sir Shen Xiyuan?" Ni Yunhong suddenly blurted.

Lin Yichen's face took on a grave expression as he answered, "Yes, it's Old Sir Shen."

Feeling surprised, Ni Yunhong questioned, "Old Sir Shen hasn't gotten involved in external affairs for years, why are you looking for him?" "Master Ni, there's a small issue in the Yi Pavilion. Someone came to gamble on stones, and the person who came has ill-intentions, so we're hoping to invite Old Tributary Shen to oversee the matter and give us some pointers."

Ni Yunhong furrowed his eyebrows and commented, "How can someone from the prefecture not treat the Yi Pavilion with respect?"

Zheng Ziwen interrupted. "The person isn't from the prefecture, he's an influential person from Linlang County."

Ou Yangming was moved, so he began paying attention to the matter.

They were in Changlong County at the moment, which was right next to Linlang County. Due to the counties' geographical location, they competed with each other in many aspects. It was not only survival of the fittest between the officials, but also among civil organizations.

Ni Yinghong suddenly laughed and said, "Shopkeeper Lin, even if someone from Linlang County has come, it doesn't have anything to do with you, right?"

Lin Yichen smiled bitterly and spread out his hands. "Indeed, it wouldn't be appropriate for me to meddle in the issue half a month ago, but I was ordered and transferred to the prefecture to be the head shopkeeper. There's nothing I can do…"

"Head Shopkeeper Lin, you've been promoted! Congratulations!" Ni Yinghong's eyes wandered about.

Lin Yichen waved his hand. Coincidentally, a young man, who was drenched in sweat, ran over and reported, "Head Shopkeeper, Master Zheng, Old Tributary Shen is unwell and is bed-ridden, so he can't come today!"

The faces of Lin Yichen and Zheng Ziwen changed right away. Old Tributary Shen was renowned for being adept in identifying raw gemstones, thus they would be confident if the tributary came, but since he could not come, they felt troubled.

Ni Yinghong suddenly chuckled. "Head Shopkeeper Lin, you only thought of Old Tributary Shen. You've forgotten about someone else who also has great achievements in stone gambling."

"Who is it?" Lin Yichen asked as he was shocked.

"Someone who seems so far away but is actually very near," Ni Yinghong answered slowly.

Lin Yichen turned to look at Ou Yangming, but he remarked with a bitter smile, "Master Ou previously opened a top-notch gem, but it was only a coincidence."

AS

Ni Yinghong smiled and expressed, "I thought it was a coincidence too, but now I know that might not be the case."

Ou Yangming trembled a little and looked at Ni Yinghong as he was surprised. 'Could she have noticed something?'

On the other hand, Lin Yichen asked in a serious manner, "Master Ni, what do you mean?"

Ni Yinghong put her hands behind her back and answered proudly, "Brother Ou has apprehended the integration of Heaven and man, so he has a superb sense toward the way of nature. Even if he can't fully perceive raw gemstones, he's much more powerful than ordinary people!" "What? The integration of Heaven and man?" Lin Yichen's face changed drastically. He looked deeply at Ou Yangming and bowed respectfully. "I have eyes but was too blind to see, please forgive me, Master Ou."

Ou Yangming quickly replied to him, "Head Shopkeeper Lin, you're being too polite."

Zheng Ziwen looked at Ou Yangming in disbelief because he did not expect the young man, whom he had worked with for several days, to be such a substantial figure. Nevertheless, Zheng Ziwen glanced at the little devil again and cursed.

'Master Ou is still so humble, even though he's fathomed the integration of Heaven and man. On the opposite, you're so proud for some reason…'

Lin Yichen rubbed his hands and said, "Master Ou, He Liangce, the He family's eldest young master, mainly runs a business of raw gemstones and gems in Linlang County. He's now at the Yi Pavilion, and he specifically asked to contend with the prefecture's stone gambling master. If you can defeat him, our pavilion will definitely reward you well!" Ou Yangming looked at him and smiled. "Why? Do you have a business conflict with the He family?" Lin Yichen smiled without saying a word, but the answer was crystal clear.

Zheng Ziwen suddenly spoke, "Brother Ou, He Liangce is a new famous appraiser from Linlang County, and he has suppressed Changlong County. If you can be victorious, you mustn't hold back at all. You must pursue him so that he loses his reputation!"

Ou Yangming was actually uninterested in challenges as such, but he was a little moved when he heard how impassioned Zheng Ziwen was.

It was a battle between the two counties, hence he should do it without any hesitation because he was from Changlong County. Besides, it would be the perfect opportunity to repay Zheng Ziwen's kindness.

"Okay, since you've said that, I'll go take a look, Brother Zheng."

Lin Yichen and Zheng Ziwen were overjoyed, so they quickly led the way. However, Lin Yichen wondered throughout the journey, 'Since when have Zheng Ziwen and Ou Yangming suddenly become so close? It looks like I should rely on him more in the future.'

They quickly made their way to the Yi Pavilion.

A few people approached Lin Yichen as soon as they saw him, and they looked rather anxious.

Despite that, Lin Yichen flapped his sleeve and instructed, "Go and invite Young Master He Liangce over, we'll go pick some stones in the backyard." A 50-year-old elder asked cheerfully, 'Head Shopkeeper, has Old Tributary Shen come?"

"Old Tributary Shen can't come because he's ill, but we've invited Master Ou." Lin Yichen looked plainly at him, then said to Ou Yangming after a pause, "Master Ou, let's go ahead."

The other people were dumbfounded when the head shopkeeper addressed the teen as a master. They reacted as though they had just seen a ghost.

'Is a young man like him actually a master?' 'Head Shopkeeper Lin, even if you can't find a suitable candidate, you can't try to please the public by randomly getting someone to fill the spot…'

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Chapter 147 Appraise Raw Gemstones

Ou Yangming entered the backyard while being dubiously looked at by the workers.

Although it was quite late at night, the backyard was still brightly lit. On top of that, Ou Yangming was surprised to see that layers of different raw gemstones were already gathered.

Lin Yichen let out a hollow laugh and explained, "Master Ou, our store isn't usually fully opened at night, but it's different today."

Ou Yangming had already been attracted by the various raw gemstones; there were at least 10,000 of them. The raw gemstones had different appearances, and most of them were useless while a part of them contained amazing attributes.

For example, the Substitution Gem that Ou Yangming possessed. If the gem's function was leaked, he would not be able to keep it safe.

Ou Yangming felt like he had just entered a treasure mountain when he looked at the numerous gemstones.

He was carried away and lost self-control at the mere thought of the mysterious attributes hiding inside the raw gemstones. Needless to say, he was excited because he had a trick to sense the gems inside the raw gemstones. On the other hand, even the most powerful appraiser would not have such a crazy feeling Lin Yichen smiled when he saw how highly spirited Ou Yangming was. "Master Ou, if you're able to defeat He Liangce in the raw gemstone challenge today, as the host, I'll let you keep all the gems you pick!"

"Hehe…" Ni Yinghong puffed out her cheeks and commented with a smart look in her eyes, "Head Shopkeeper Lin, you're really acting as you please. According to what I know, He Liangce has just risen in Linlang County, but he has challenged more than just one precious stone store throughout his journey here."

"Master Ni, did you forget that the Yi Pavilion doesn't mainly deal with precious stones? Hehe, besides, isn't it the natural responsibility of people from Changlong County to defeat people from Linlang County?".

Ni Yinghong exclaimed, "You're really good with your speech, but I suppose the raw gemstones that you were talking about doesn't include these few?"

She pointed with her slim finger, and the rest could not help but laugh when they looked in that direction.

There were over 10,000 raw gemstones in the backyard, but only three gems were placed where she was pointing at.

The three gemstones were gigantic. In terms of their size only, they were much larger than the rest of the raw gemstones combined.

Lin Yichen shook his head and smiled bitterly. "Master Ni, you're kidding. It's obvious that the three gemstones contain a gem each. Stone gambling tests one judgment and experience, but it also involves one's luck. If these three gemstones are among the other gemstones to be picked, wouldn't it be considered cheating?"

Everyone else laughed. It was also then that several people arrived together. The person who led the group of people was the white-haired supervisor from the Yi Pavilion. A few men and women, who dressed differently from the other people, followed behind him. They surrounded a young man, who was in his twenties, like stars twinkling around the moon.

The man had a complexion as clear as jade, and he seemed to be giving off a warm aura, hence one would feel inclined to approach him.

Ou Yangming was slightly stunned. Based on Lin Yichen and Zheng Ziwen's expression of urgency, he had pictured the He family's young master to have a threatening aura, which was why they were so anxious. Therefore, Ou Yangming was taken aback when he saw the man because his outer appearance and attitude were out of his expectations.

He Liangce's eyes wandered about, but he laid eyes on Ni Yinghong for a second before looking away.

He grinned. "Head Shopkeeper Lin, where's Old Sir Shen?"

Lin Yichen cleared his throat and replied to him, "Young Master He, unfortunately, Old Tributary Shen is ill, so he can't show up for the time being."

"Ah…" He Liangce openly showed how regretful he was. "How unfortunate indeed. I've come all the way from Linlang County and passed by seventeen cities, where I've exchanged views with precious stone appraisal masters in each city. Many of them recommended Old Sir Shen to me, so it's quite a pity that I'm not fated to meet him in the prefecture."

He was obviously boasting a little, but due to his expression and attitude, nobody actually despised him. In fact, the other people vaguely sympathized with him for having missed the opportunity.

Ou Yangming somehow had a feeling that something was abnormal, as if He Liangce had the power to influence someone else's emotions and senses. That said, Ou Yangming did not know if the power came from He Liangce himself or if the young master had achieved it through other means.

"You may not have the chance this time, but perhaps you'll meet him in the future." Lin Yichen chuckled, then introduced after a pause, "Young Master He, this is Ou Yangming, the Yi Pavilion's appraisal master. He'd like to gain insight on the skills of Linlang County's number one precious stone appraisal master."

Ou Yangming thought, 'What do you mean by the Yi Pavilion's appraisal master? You're speaking carelessly…'

Nevertheless, he was not going to expose the lie in front of everyone else.

The other people from Linlang County cast strange looks at Ou Yangming.

It was not odd for a young man to be an appraiser because, while not many people were born with mental power, there were definitely more than just a few who were.

However, it would be quite a joke to say that a young man like Ou Yangming had great achievements in raw gemstone appraisals.

Even though the people from He Liangce's side reacted that way, He Liangce kept a plain smile on his face. "Okay, since it's the Yi Pavilion's appraisal master who asked, let's have a challenge."

"Young Master He, every raw gemstone that the Yi Pavilion has acquired lately is here, you may select together with Master Ou." Lin Yichen nodded with a smile, then added in a serious tone, "According to the rules, you both have an hour to choose ten raw gemstones from the pile. Once stone-cracking is done, you'll be judged based on the number of gems and their quality, and the superior one will be deemed victorious."

ОSomeone from He Liangce's side suddenly blurted, "Head Shopkeeper Lin, since he's the Yi Pavilion's raw gemstone appraiser, he must've studied the gemstones here more than once. Isn't the challenge unfair?"

"It's fine." He Liangce waved his hand.

Though he had only uttered two words, it was obvious how confident he was.

Ni Yinghong expressed all of a sudden, "Master Ou has never been here before, and if you don't believe it, there's no need to go on with the challenge."

The other people were stunned, and they looked at her with shock.

He Liangce laughed out loud and remarked, "Since the Ni family's little princess has spoken, of course, we believe it."

Ni Yinghong blushed right away, and she glared at him angrily.

Although Ou Yangming had already guessed her identity, and they both had faintly pointed it out, it was completely different from having it revealed with solid proof.

When Ni Yinghong thought about how Ou Yangming would look at her at that moment, she was embarrassed and enraged. Despite that, she was able to control herself and showed only a hint of her emotions.

He Liangce felt rather strange, but he would never have figured out-not even if he was beaten to death-how exactly he had offended the little princess.

Nonetheless, it was not the time to dwell on the matter. He Liangce cupped his hands at Ou Yangming and uttered, "Master Ou, please!"

Ou Yangming twitched his mouth and suppressed the urge of laughing out loud. The fact that Ni Yinghong's real identity as a lady was revealed in this situation made him want to burst out laughing.

In spite of that, he suddenly felt a chill when his eyes met He Liangce's.

"This is clearly Ni Yinghong's first time meeting him, but why was he able to identify it right away?' Ou Yangming looked deeply at him before he said, "Young Master He, please."

Almost at the same time, they walked into the bunch of messily arranged raw gemstones. Ou Yangming reached out his hand to casually touch the gemstones next to him. Each time he did, a glimpse of red light was seen on his palm.

It was the sign of his Military Fire burning, but it only lasted for a split second. It could not be seen once Ou Yangming let go of the raw gemstone. Even if people were watching him at that moment, nobody would notice the mysterious happening.

That being said, Ou Yangming put on a full act. He could already tell the result by touching the raw gemstone, but instead of making a decision so easily, he studied them carefully from time to time.

As for the raw gemstones that he especially paid attention to, most of them were actually just for show. If someone paid a lump sum to purchase the stones, that person would make a loss so huge that he would have to give up even his underwear.

On the other side, He Liangce carried out the process differently.

Instead of touching every raw gemstone, he stood on a good spot to scan them, then he began looking and picking only after 15 minutes.

However, by then, everyone could tell that He Liangce picked gemstones that he had already noticed during the observation, and he was doing a targeted search.

In short, Ou Yangming was casting a net to catch every fish regardless of their size; He Liangce targeted those that had better quality before proceeding to select them.

While their methods were absolutely different, one could tell from the crowd's expression which one was more reliable.

Everyone from He Liangce's side looked proud as if their victory was already guaranteed.

In comparison, Lin Yichen and the others looked grim, which was clear that they were not confident.

Indeed, Ou Yangming was a gifted person, but he had not been reputable in this trade, after all. Hence, even Li Yichen, who knew Ou Yangming possessed the ability of the integration of Heaven and man, was being ill at ease.

Ou Yangming reached out to casually brush his hand past a precious stone.

He initially wanted to pretend like he was inspecting it, but the instant his Military Fire appeared, he sensed an indescribable blue ocean.

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Chapter 148 The First Choice

A sky blue color instantly occupied Ou Yangming's mind, and there was a split second when he even thought he had entered the unbelievable space.

Without any hesitation, he conveniently picked the raw gemstone.

Nonetheless, he did not draw anyone's attention because he had done similar moves earlier. Besides, was it not the most normal thing for a raw gemstone appraiser to study a gemstone in detail on his hand?

Ou Yangming would only attract attention if he could pick good raw gemstones that also contained a gem each without studying them carefully. As Ou Yangming's Military Fire contacted the raw gemstone, he could sense the enormous energy that it held. He was certain that it was the most valuable gemstone among the others that he had seen, or touched.

Even the faint Military Fire was reminding him not to miss the treasure no matter what.

By browsing the surface of the raw gemstones, Ou Yangming actually had extremely limited knowledge of them. Nevertheless, after observing for a long time, especially when he kept paying attention to He Liangce's selection process, he had some understanding of the gemstones.

The so-called raw gemstones actually had some differences.

Most of them looked just like normal stones while some had some bumps due to various reasons. Through the corners of those bumps, one could actually notice more things.

It was how He Liangce chose the gemstones. He was not bothered about raw gemstones that had an extremely normal appearance, so much so that he would not spare a look at them at all; he focused on those with bumps.

Although it seemed like an opportunistic method, Ou Yangming knew it was unquestionably the most appropriate way.

People like He Liangce did not have the Military Fire as Ou Yangming did, hence they could not identify the truth of those raw gemstones. Even if they were truly skilled enough to make guesses through the different appearances, they could not arrive at a conclusion by just touching them.

It was undoubtedly impossible for a normal person to appraise with close attention all 10,000 raw gemstones in an hour.

Given the limited time, the best method was to invest it in gemstones that could be easily judged.

Ou Yangming was holding a flawless normal raw gemstone at the moment.

He put it down after some thought, then continued picking up the next stone.

Zheng Ziwen rubbed his hands. If he did not know appraisal art was ineffective toward raw gemstones, he would have gone over to appraise them.

Seeing as Ou Yangming checked every gemstone despite the outcome, Zheng Ziwen could not help but stomp his foot and remarked softly, "Ah, it's not good that Brother Ou's doing this…"

Ni Yunhong hesitated before he responded with a soft voice too, "Brother Ou learned smithing art in the military camp, and he hasn't come across raw gemstones before this, so he naturally doesn't know much."

"Elder Brother, have you forgotten that he previously brought a gem back from the Yi Pavilion?" Ni Yinghong pouted her red lips. "Hehe…" Ni Yunhong chuckled. "Didn't he just succeed once? What can it mean? When luck comes, nobody can stop it." None of them could refute what he said because if they were to ask themselves honestly, even Ni Yinghong did not think Ou Yangming could actually perceive the raw gemstones.

The integration of Heaven and man was the most mysterious gain in the comprehension of nature, but it was unheard of for someone who possessed the state to have the ability to see through raw gemstones too.

"Uhm… Should we remind him to focus on those with openings?" Zheng Ziwen asked carefully.

The difficulty of appraising raw gemstones without an opening was ten times harder than appraising those with an opening, and the probability of making a mistake was also higher.

In official challenges, those who had inside information would know how to choose.

However, Lin Yichen waved his hand after he pondered. "Master Zheng, since we've chosen Master Ou, we should trust him. Perhaps he'll surprise us."

Zheng Ziwen was startled, so he asked, 'Head Shopkeeper, do you really trust his ability?" "I don't." Lin Yichen shook his head without any hesitation.

"If you don't, why…" Zheng Ziwen was red with anger.

"I don't trust Master Ou's skills, but…" Lin Yichen kept a straight face as he explained, "I trust his luck!"

The other people looked at each other because they finally understood why Lin Yichen decided to let Ou Yangming take up the challenge.

"A-aren't you trifling with the matter?" Ni Yunhong frowned as he was displeased.

Lin Yichen sighed and explained, "Old Tributary Shen's ability in this is the best in the prefecture, but he's bed-ridden now, and nobody else is his match. If that's the case, I can only choose to believe in luck…"

He sounded extremely helpless, thus Ni Yunhong was speechless after hearing what he had to say.

Yes. They could not compete in terms of ability with the He family's eldest young master, who had been victorious in challenging seventeen different cities in a row. Therefore, getting a lucky person to fill in the spot might actually yield an unexpected result.

Of course, it was only doable because it was a unique situation-stone gambling. If it was for a challenge that tested one's real skills, Lin Yichen would never have allowed Ou Yangming to do it even if he was not in the right mind.

An hour sounded like a long time, but the selection process passed in the blink of an eye.

In the beginning, Ou Yangming was still holding back as he did not want to be too obvious. He soon realized that even though his appraisal speed surpassed He Liangce, it was impossible for him to touch all 10,000 raw gemstones in the backyard.

Hence, after half an hour, he simply gave up pretending and began checking at the speed of light.

Ou Yangming weighed each raw gemstone in his hand, then he tossed them aside and picked up another one.

The crowd would have an unconventional misunderstanding of him by judging from his action alone.

They would think he was weighing the gemstones instead of inspecting them.

The raw gemstones that Ou Yangming examined were all-inclusive. Apart from the three huge ones, which were put aside on purpose, he had touched the other gemstones regardless of their size. In fact, he also looked at the ones that He Liangce had specially marked.

Needless to say, it was not against the rules because both of them could appraisal any raw gemstone before the time ended.

That said, the other people lamented when they saw what he was doing.

In particular, the high-level shopkeepers in the Yi Pavilion were fuming with anger, and they cast unfriendly looks at Lin Yichen.

Lin Yichen was not the prefecture's head shopkeeper before this; he was only a head shopkeeper in the Immense Forest Town. For some reason, he was suddenly promoted to be the prefecture's branch's head shopkeeper.

The sudden leap caused many other people to be jealous of him.

As such, those who deemed themselves qualified to replace Lin Yichen secretly drafted a complaint in their head at that moment.

Once the challenge ended, they would report the matter to the headquarter to accuse Lin Yichen of being ignorant and arbitrary.

It was not only humiliating that the Yi Pavilion found an obvious amateur to challenge the famous He family's young master, but their reputation would also be ruined if news spread. Even if it was just for the sake of their store, they must not let Lin Yichen stay. Lin Yichen could naturally sense the unfriendly looks from the people behind him. Honestly, he was dismayed after seeing Ou Yangming's performance, but he had chosen the path and decided on the candidate himself, so he must persevere even if he had to suffer in silence.

At last, a loud sound was heard coming from the gong.

Lin Yichen inhaled deeply because the difficult moment was finally over.

No matter the outcome… Uhm, he was actually feeling hopeless already, but at least the unbearable moment was over. "Gentlemen, the time is up, please come out."

He Liangce immediately stood up and smiled as he walked out.

On the other hand, Ou Yangming put down the last raw gemstone, and he clapped his hands to get rid of the stone powder before he walked out.

The only thing he lamented about at that instant was the lack of time…

Even though he could sense the truth in the raw gemstones through the Military Fire, he needed to appraise. The better Ou Yangming felt about the gemstone, the more valuable it was. However, other than the unique raw gemstone that gave him a feeling of a blue ocean, while the other stones gave him notable and unremarkable feelings, he needed more time to identify them.

Ou Yangming had sped up the process, but he still failed to appraise everything.

Nonetheless, he believed that he would not lose the challenge.

He Liangce still had a warm smile on his face. He had noticed Ou Yangming's performance, but he neither looked nor treated the amateur with disdain.

Based on his morals alone, he could subdue most people.

"Master Ou, this is your home ground, so you may start choosing first," He Liangce said gently.

Before Ou Yangming could even let a word out, an elder, who was next to He Liangce, scoffed. "Young Master, he knows nothing about appraising raw gemstones, why should you treat him with such respect?".

"It's fine." He Liangce frowned and turned to smile at Ou Yangming. "Brother Ou, my clan's tributary has a prejudice against you, please forgive him."

The fact that he addressed the matter on the spot made it hard for anyone to be mad at him. Ou Yangming could not help but laugh. "Since you're giving me the opportunity to choose first, I'll go ahead."

He walked into the pile of raw gemstones again and picked up one of the stones.

After seeing what Ou Yangming did, the eyes of Lin Yichen and the rest glowed, whereas people from He Liangce's side rebuked him.

"Despicable!"

"Shameless!"

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Chapter 149 Fine Grade Gem

The first raw gemstone that was chosen by Ou Yangming was unexpected.

It was not a full stone without a cut, but one that had a notch on one corner. Of course, most importantly, Ou Yangming was obviously thoughtless when he touched the stone, whereas He Liangce was the one who had actually paid attention to it.

In other words, the first stone that was chosen by Ou Yangming was actually the one that He Liangce had paid the most attention to earlier. No wonder He Liangce's people could not help but denounce Ou Yangming, whereas Zheng Ziwen and the rest looked rather embarrassed.

"Head Shopkeeper Lin, it's inappropriate of you to do this!" The white-haired elder, who had spoken earlier, remarked with anger.

The thick-faced Lin Yichen cleared his throat and was about to fool him with his words.

Right then, He Liangce laughed and waved his hand. "Don't shout blindly. When was there a rule in precious stone appraisal that one's not supposed to choose something that was appraised by the other person? Master Ou has inspected most of the raw gemstones here, so according to what you said, does it mean that I'm left with no options?".

The people behind him exchanged glances and were forced to keep quiet.

Yes, Ou Yangming had been randomly looking through the raw gemstones earlier. Although he seemed to have searched cluelessly like a blindfolded fly, he had gone through many raw gemstones. If their logic was adopted, the challenge could not go on anymore because the stones that were appraised by their young master had also been touched by Ou Yangming. In that case, it meant that their young master would lose the challenge by default. Ou Yangming grinned. No matter what, He Liangce's bearing was deeply convincing.

"Young Master He, how about we both pick one each?" He took a step back and said, "Please."

"Alright, I'll show my inadequacy then." He Liangce hesitated for a while before he agreed. He was a straightforward person, so he walked into the bunch of raw gemstones and glanced for only a brief moment before he picked one

up.

He Liangce had gone with his own order as he picked one of the raw gemstones that he had carefully appraised earlier. Ou Yangming secretly sighed a breath of relief when he realized that he had guessed it right; He Liangce only chose those that had inspected earlier.

Following that, Ou Yangming went to another corner without a sound and took another raw gemstone.

The crowd could not help but express their surprise when he picked up the gemstone. Everyone thought he would play the same trick by choosing one that He Liangce had paid attention to. Within the hour earlier, even though He Liangce could not check all 10,000 raw gemstones in the backyard, he had expressed extreme interest in roughly 50 of them.

If Ou Yangming picked from those raw gemstones, he would likely get something good.

Nonetheless, Ou Yangming's second choice was not from the bunch of stones, hence the crowd felt that it was strange.

The white-haired elder even guessed, 'Did my mocking and Young Master's generosity influence the b*stard so that he dares not openly steal Young Master's achievements anymore?'

On the other hand, He Liangce calmly took his second piece as though he was not surprised by Ou Yangming's choice. They had locked onto their respective targets, so they chose their raw gemstones without any hesitation in a short span of time.

Ou Yangming seemed like he had only scanned the raw gemstones briefly earlier, but he remembered well the ones that gave him a unique feeling.

It was worth noting that He Liangce's vision and judgment in raw gemstones were top-notch and could not be compared by ordinary people.

Among the 50 half-naked raw gemstones that he attached importance to, roughly 20 of them actually gave Ou Yangming a unique feeling. In other words, He Liangce had a 50% success rate in obtaining precious gems among the 50 stones.

Such a probability was shocking even for half-naked raw gemstones like that.

The first one that Ou Yangming had chosen happened to be the one that gave him the best feeling among the bunch of half-naked raw gemstones. Therefore, he quickly beat He Liangce to it and picked it.

Needless to say, among the remaining raw gemstones, apart from the sky blue one, there were also three that were not inferior to it at all. That said, Ou Yangming did not pick all of them at once.

It was incredibly difficult to pick a gem of such a grade among half-naked raw gemstones and ordinary ones. If he were to find three or even four of them at once… The other people would likely associate his luck with something else.

Once the twenty raw gemstones were placed on two different sides on the ground, Lin Yichen inhaled deeply and asked, "Ladies and gentlemen, the stone-cracking process begins now, who should we begin with?"

"Since I started picking first, you may start with me." Ou Yangming smiled and pointed at one of the gemstones. "Open this one first!"

Various tools had already been prepared in the Yi Pavilion, and professional stone-cracking masters had also come.

A middle-aged man amid the masters took the lead, and his eyes looked fierce as he glanced around. Ou Yangming felt a tingling sensation when he noticed it.

He was slightly taken aback. 'This stone-cracking master is actually a Yang Grade powerhouse?

'Since when were Yang Grade powerhouses so worthless?' 'Brother Ou, this is Yue Dingtian, the number one powerhouse in the prefecture's Yi Pavilion. His greatest hobby is stone gambling," Ni Yunhong whispered to Ou Yangming, then spoke even softer after a pause. "He's rewarded very generously, but he uses all his money in stone gambling. When he's out of money, he satisfies himself by doing stone-cracking, and he's considered the person who's the most addicted to it." Ou Yangming nodded. There really is any kind of person in this world.

'But since he's a stone-cracking master who's also a Yang Grade powerhouse, his speed must be superior to an ordinary person's.'

Yue Dingtian studied the raw gemstone for a while before he retrieved a slicing knife to shave it. As the crowd watched the stone being shaved continuously, as though its skin was being peeled, they were nervous.

Even the people from He Liangce's side, who were confident about being victorious, were tensed up.

He Liangce stole a glance at Ou Yangming but did not notice any sign from his face. He was moved, and he guessed that the young fellow was either extremely confident or an amateur who did not know the immensity of Heaven and Earth. He Liangce also furrowed his eyebrows a little because he was surprised that he could not perceive Ou Yangming.

Yue Dingtian worked extremely fast, and he announced after the last shave was made, "No

gem."

The people from He Liangce's side were instantly relieved. They exchanged looks as though they were telling each other that they knew Ou Yangming was only a pretentious person without genuine skills. On the other side, the workers and supervisors from the Yi Pavilion looked embarrassed, and they were strongly displeased with Lin Yichen, who had just been promoted and transferred here.

'It's fine that you failed to invite Old Tributary Shen, but why did you ask a weird and insignificant young fella to take the challenge instead? Aren't you ruining the Yi Pavilion's reputation on purpose?'

He Liangce grinned and took one of the ten raw gemstones in front of him. "Thank you for the trouble, Elder Yue."

Yue Dingtian was stunned, and he stared at He Liangce with his cold eyes as he commented, "Young Master He, you even know who I am, you've indeed come prepared."

"Since I was coming to the prefecture, I asked around for some information. Hehe, that's all, Elder Yue, you're overthinking," He Liangce responded calmly. "I hope that's the case," Yue Dingtian said.

Without further ado, he accepted the half-naked raw gemstone and wielded the knife. The same scene of a stone being turned over appeared once more.

Ou Yangming shook his head a little. Perhaps the other people had not noticed, but with the integration of Heaven and man, as well as the thoroughly meticulous state, he could easily tell that Yue Dingtian valued this raw gemstone more than he did Ou Yangming's.

It was evident that the powerful Yang Grade powerhouse had doubts about Ou Yangming too.

Yue Dingtian maneuvered the slicing knife at the speed of light. Once he shaved roughly half of the gemstone, he suddenly slowed down.

A green luster was emitted from within the raw gemstone. "It's glowing, there's indeed a gem inside!" The people around He Liangce smiled brightly. 'Sure enough, our young master is impressive.'

After a brief moment, the gem was successfully removed from the raw gemstone. It was not a huge gem, and its color seemed to be flawed, but it was much better than the raw gemstone that was chosen by Ou Yangming, which contained nothing.

Yue Dingtian announced coldly, "A Good Grade gem. It can improve some Physique."

When the crowd turned to look at Ou Yangming, he smiled and retrieved the half-naked raw gemstone.

The people from He Liangce's side looked disgruntled, but they could not do anything about it. They also had contradicting thoughts because they did not know if they wanted the raw gemstone to contain a gem or not.

Nevertheless, they did not need to wonder anymore after a short while because they quickly became furious.

This was because a red gem was seen in Yue Dingtian's hands.

Based on its color alone, everyone knew the gem's grade was above Good Grade.

As expected, a flash of a smile was seen on Yue Dingtian's face. "This is a Fire-resistant Gem, and it's of Fine Grade. Master Ou, you have a good eye indeed."

He Liangce's people were indignant. 'Does Ou Yangming have a good eye? It was picked by our young master, okay?' Lin Yichen's eyes lit up, and he smiled gladly.

'Lucky, he's really lucky! 'With this Fine Grade gem, we won't be defeated today.' The supervisors and workers, who were standing behind him, reacted as if they had just seen a ghost. "This… How is that even possible!'

He Liangce's eyes glowed because he was rather surprised and regretful too.

Despite having paid importance to the half-naked raw gemstone, before stone-cracking was done unto it, he did not know exactly what its grade would be…

After looking deeply at the expressionless Ou Yangming, He Liangce was finally feeling a little uneasy.

'He actually acquired a Fine Grade gem. Have I really used up my good luck after challenging seventeen cities, and I'm going to fall badly here?'

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Chapter 150 The Last One

"Young Master He." Yue Dingtian nodded at He Liangce and asked, "Which raw gemstone are you choosing?" "I choose this one," He Liangce quickly curbed his thought and answered. He changed his original plan and chose the raw gemstone that he deemed to be the best among all. During the whole hour, He Liangce had not observed all gemstones like he was fishing for a needle in the sea. Instead, he focused on roughly 50 half-naked raw gemstones. On top of that, He Liangce had actually eliminated about 30 of them in his head, so he only had eyes for about 20 of them.

In actual fact, he was already mentally prepared when he let Ou Yangming make the first pick. Therefore, he was calm even when the white-haired elder and the rest stamped with rage. Despite that, He Liangce was not a deity, after all. Although he had a good feeling about the 20 raw gemstones, he was not 100% sure they contained a gem, and he did not know what grade the gems had. Hence, He Liangce was absent-minded for a split second upon seeing a Fine Grade gem. Though he had regained his composure, there was an extremely subtle change in his mentality. When Yue Dingtian asked He Liangce this time, he no longer answered with a casually picked raw gemstone, but one that he was the most confident about and had the best representation.

Yue Dingtian did not crack the stone right away after receiving it. He studied it for a while and nodded slowly. It was worth mentioning that based on the half-naked stone's portrayal alone, it looked much better than the one that contained a Fine Grade gem.

Nonetheless, Yue Dingtian had seen plenty of raw gemstones that had a fine exterior but a poor interior. Thus, after he nodded, he began shaving it without any hesitation.

As the crowd watched anxiously, or with eagerness, or while cursing the raw gemstone, it was opened very quickly.

Sure enough, the stone contained a gem. It was a smooth and round gem, which was obviously superior to the first one, but it was not as eye-catching as compared to the Fine Grade gem.

"A High Grade gem, not bad."

It was quite difficult to hear such a remark from Yue Dingtian, but in actuality, it was because the gem was already at the peak of High Grade. He had cracked uncountable raw gemstones in his life, but there were very few gems that were on par with this one.

Yue Dingtian subconsciously glanced at the Fine Grade gem, then at the faint smile on Ou Yangming's face. He could not help but feel suspicious.

'Did Ou Yangming have sheer dumb luck or did he really notice something in it? 'But the fact that he was able to find the best one among the 50 half-naked raw gemstones, which were carefully picked by his opponent, his luck… It doesn't seem like it could be merely explained with luck, right?'

Nevertheless, Yue Dingtian was from the Yi Pavilion, so he did not have anything against it, and he chuckled to himself instead.

Ou Yangming already had a well-thought-out plan, so he casually picked a raw gemstone and handed it to Yue Dingtian.

The same process repeated, and soon enough, Yue Dingtian had cracked 18 raw gemstones. Only a powerful Yang Grade martial artist could continuously crack stones without any effort while keeping a straight face. If Ou Yangming was in a battle of life or death against Yue Dingtian, perhaps he could kill the Yang Grade powerhouse, but he could definitely not contend with him in terms of endurance.

Needless to say, everyone's focus was not on Yue Dingtian's endurance at the moment.

Even if he was one of the best Yang Grade powerhouses among those who were present, he could not deprive the two young men of their glory.

Once 18 raw gemstones were cracked, the winner and the loser had somewhat been decided already. Unless a superb gem was suddenly found in the two remaining gemstones, there was no longer suspense.

Among the 18 raw gemstones, apart from Ou Yangming's Fine Grade gem, 3 High Grade gems, 4 (TN: The original number given is 5, but it doesn't add up correctly. We've corrected it for the context) Good Grade gems, and 1 Common Grade gem were also obtained. The crowd unceasingly praised the 50% success rate (TN: Author originally stated that the success rate is above 50%, but in the correct case where only 9 gems were acquired, the success rate should be only 50%. We've corrected it for the context), and the high-quality gems made them feel like they were dreaming

Out of the 9 (TN: The original number given is 11, but there should only be 9. We've corrected it for the context) gems acquired, 7 of them came from He Liangce's raw gemstones.

He had chosen 9 raw gemstones where 7 of them contained a gem, 3 of which were even High Grade gems. Even though he had only picked half-naked raw gemstones, his skill amazed the crowd.

In comparison, the crowd felt rather complicated about Ou Yangming.

Only 2 gems were found from the 9 raw gemstones that he had chosen. Other than the Fine Grade gem, which he had only gotten through plain dumb luck, there was only another Common Grade gem, which was the most ordinary one of them all. If Ou Yangming did not have the Fine Grade gem as a base, the result would be so shameful that he would want to bury his head.

However… There were no ifs!

When the other people looked at the dazzling Fine Grade gem, they did not know how to describe and evaluate it.

Yue Dingtian suddenly said, "The last two gems. Young Master He, I'd like to crack yours first, what do you think?"

The meaning behind his request was obvious. If the last raw gemstone did not contain a convincing gem, the challenge's winner and loser were already decided.

He Liangce responded gracefully, "Okay, thank you for the trouble."

Yue Dingtian worked at the speed of light as he cracked the last raw gemstone that was chosen.

"Wow, it has a gem!"

"Young Master He truly deserves his reputation. Ah, it was a glorious defeat!" "Yes, he lost by luck, not by skills."

The number of spectators had increased by a few times. Other than the Yi Pavilion's supervisors and workers, many outsiders had come to watch. Even then, Lin Yichen gave an order that everyone was welcomed.

Of course, it was also because he felt that their victory was already guaranteed. Without the Fine Grade gem, he would not have given the order.

Nonetheless, the whispers between the outsiders perfectly represented everyone's thoughts.

It was true that He Liangce had lost, but everyone regarded him as a big winner.

"Everyone, my task has ended." Yue Dingtian laughed and glanced at the crowd as he said, "I don't need to say more about this challenge's outcome, right?"

"Hmph!" The white-haired elder behind He Liangce scoffed angrily. "He just had a lucky stroke, and he stole the victory from my young master, what's so great about that!"

"Enough, don't make it seem like we can't afford to lose." He Liangce furrowed his eyebrows and waved his hands. He cupped his hands and expressed, "My skills are inferior, so I admit my defeat!"

Lin Yichen sighed a breath of relief. He was already certain about their victory when the Fine Grade gem was attained. Fine Grade gems were the finest of all gems. Even Lin Yichen had not seen many of them, and according to records, gems of that grade were basically found by accident. In raw gemstone appraisal challenges as such, the chances of finding a Fine Grade gem was incredibly low.

That said, before He Liangce acknowledged his defeat, he was still quite worried.

It was only after that when he stopped overthinking.

He Liangce cupped his hands at Ou Yangming and the rest. "Master Ou, I hope we'll have another chance to exchange views again in the future."

Ou Yangming grinned. "Okay." The white-haired elder had a grave expression on his face as he blurted, "Young Master, the challenge hasn't completely ended yet!"

He Liangce was stunned, so he asked, "What?"

"Isn't there another raw gemstone left? Brother Yue, could you please crack it too?" The white-haired elder said with a smile.

"Is it necessary?" Yue Dingtian asked.

"Since it's a challenge, let us be convinced about the defeat. Hehe, perhaps the last raw gemstone contains another Fine Grade gem!"

The other people exchanged glances because they quickly figured out the elder's intention.

He Liangce had chosen 10 raw gemstones, 8 of which contained a gem, 3 of which were High Grade gems. His high success rate was enough to silence those who questioned him.

On the other hand, while Ou Yangming obtained a Fine Grade gem from his raw gemstone, he had only acquired 1 other Common Grade gem among the 8 remaining gemstones.

He ended up being victorious because of the Fine Grade gem, but if the last raw gemstone did not contain a gem, his 80% failing rate could not convince the crowd.

Even if the challenge's final outcome was spread far and wide, He Liangce's reputation would not be ruined.

Yue Dingtian had obviously guessed this earlier, hence he decided to crack He Liangce's last raw gemstone. Who knew, after He Liangce admitted his defeat, someone actually brought up the matter.

"Master Ou, the winner and the loser have been decided, you have the right to not crack the last stone." Yue Dingtian hesitated before he turned to look at Ou Yangming. Ou Yangming laughed out loud. "Head Shopkeeper Lin, you promised to let me keep all the gems that I gained if I'm victorious, right?"

Lin Yichen's face twitched. He was so regretful that he did not want to talk about it…

'Mother, if I knew that a Fine Grade gem would be found, I wouldn't have been so generous!'

The thought of giving the Fine Grade gem to Ou Yangming under everyone's watch gave him a tingling sensation. 'How am I going to explain to the headquarters…' In spite of that, he could only bite the bullet as everyone looked at him. "Yes, as long as the gems were found from the raw gemstones that you picked, they belong to you." 'I may have lost one Fine Grade gem, but there are 3 High Grade gems to compensate for the loss. I hope they'll be enough.'

Ou Yangming smiled and said, "Great. If that's the case, why shouldn't I crack it?"

Yue Dingtian shook his head and sighed. He felt sorry for Lin Yichen.

Since Lin Yichen had given away the Fine Grade gem, even if the Yi Pavilion won the challenge, one could not tell if the headquarters' boss would regard the outcome as a blessing or a misfortune…

The knife in Yue Dingtian's hand flashed, but he suddenly slowed down after a brief moment. Everyone was stunned, but they quickly became thrilled.

The white-haired elder's face changed as he wondered, 'That fella isn't struck with dumb luck again, is he?'

As Yue Dingtian's knife kept flashing, finally, another gem was presented to the crowd. Everyone was stupefied when they saw the gem, and they widened their mouth so big that they could swallow the gem at once.

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Chapter 151 A Benevolent Act

"It's a unique gem, but its attribute is unclear…" Yue Dingtian opened his mouth and uttered with difficulty, "A Fine Grade

gem."

He turned to look, but he neither looked at He Liangce nor at the furious and regretful white-haired elder. He fixed his gaze on the Yi Pavilion's new head shopkeeper, Lin Yichen.

When Ou Yangming first acquired a Fine Grade gem, Head Shopkeeper Lin was delighted

Although he had lost the valuable gem, he managed to ruin He Liangce's reputation, hence the merit offset the fault. Nonetheless, when the second Fine Grade gem appeared, Lin Yichen's face took on a ghastly expression.

Letting Ou Yangming have the first Fine Grade gem was still within Lin Yichen's authority limit, but if Ou Yangming were to take both Fine Grade gems, the head shopkeeper would likely lose his position.

This was because he could not hide the matter even if he wanted to.

There was only one thing that Lin Yichen lamented about at that moment…

'Young Master Ou, can you not have such nature-defying luck!'

Nevertheless, deep down, he could not help but wonder, 'Is everything really a result of his luck?'

"N-nice one, a Fine Grade gem! Brother Ou, we'll meet again if we're fated to," He Liangce said out loud while looking deeply at Ou Yangming. Following that, he nodded at the crowd and left in a hurry with his people. As for the white-haired elder, who had spoken a few times, he lowered his head with a sullen look on his face without saying a word.

He was probably full of regret at the moment.

If the last raw gemstone was not opened, Ou Yangming would still be victorious for having obtained one Fine Grade gem, but the two-ninth success rate would be a big flaw. As long as one was not dumb, one could tell that something was fishy.

However, everything became different when the second Fine Grade gem was attained.

As clueless as a person was, one would think Ou Yangming was superior to He Liangce in raw gemstone appraisal.

In and out, the effect of it was huge and unimaginable.

Once He Liangce and the other people were far away, the backyard was dead silent for a moment before loud cheers filled the air.

Not everyone who stayed were the Yi Pavilion's supervisors and workers, they were from the prefecture, so they sincerely hoped that the store could defeat their opponent. Therefore, shouts of joy were inevitable when the result was decided.

Many known figures even approached Lin Yichen to congratulate him with complicated looks.

They knew that the Yi Pavilion's reputation would ascend to a higher level without a limit from then on.

Despite that, Lin Yichen did not look very cheerful. He dismissed the crowd with a few words, and he looked even more displeased when he returned to the backyard because Ou Yangming was fiddling with the 2 Fine Grade gems. Ou Yangming smiled and asked, "Head Shopkeeper Lin, are you reluctant to give them away?" "Frankly speaking, the headquarter notified us a month ago that all Fine Grade gems, if found, had to be purchased at all costs." Lin Yichen sighed and smiled bitterly. "Though I don't know why they gave such an order, there must be a reason behind it."

"What do you plan to do, Head Shopkeeper Lin?" Ou Yangming tossed the gems in his hand.

On the other hand, Ni Yinghong smiled sweetly. "Head Shopkeeper Lin, are you planning to go back on your word?"

Lin Yichen was stunned. "Miss… Ni, you're kidding. Since I promised him, why would I break the promise?"

He addressed Ni Yinghong as he should because He Liangce had revealed her identity.

"Master Ou, please take the Fine Grade gems away." Lin Yichen lowered his head and waved his hand. He looked dismayed.

Ou Yangming chuckled and pondered before he said, "Head Shopkeeper Lin, if you'd like to purchase these gems, it's possible."

"What?" Lin Yichen suddenly looked up at him in disbelief.

He would be confident about purchasing the gems from Ou Yangming if they were only High Grade gems, but they were Fine Grade gems. Gems of such a grade could not be measured with gold and silver anymore. Normally, they could only be exchanged with treasures of a similar grade.

"Brother Ou, don't you want these Fine Grade gems?" Ni Yunhong could not help but laugh. "If you don't want them, you can exchange them with the Ni family, we won't let you suffer a loss!"

Lin Yichen looked gloomy right away. Even if he thought with his toes, he knew who Ou Yangming would choose to deal with.

That said, Ou Yangming shook his head and responded, "I found these gems at the Yi Pavilion, and Head Shopkeeper Lin is an old acquaintance, so I can't harm him."

Lin Yichen was startled. His lips trembled a little, and his heart was warm. 'How loyal, Ou Yangming is such a loyal friend.'

Ou Yangming turned and asked with a smile, "Head Shopkeeper Lin, if I give you both Fine Grade gems, how are you going to repay me?"

"Master Ou, you can just tell me anything you want." Lin Yichen gritted his teeth.

"I'd like to pick ten more raw gemstones here and take them away. What do you think?" Ou Yangming answered.

The other people were surprised, and they cast a strange look at him.

'He's actually exchanging 2 acquired Fine Grade gems for ten raw gemstones.'

While the 2 Fine Grade gems were also obtained from the raw gemstones in the backyard, nobody dared to guarantee that another gem of the same grade could be found from the remaining gemstones.

Thus, no matter how they viewed Ou Yangming's suggestion, it was highly beneficial toward the Yi Pavilion.

Li Yichen's eyes glowed as he wanted to accept the deal, but he somehow could not let a word out.

Ou Yangming had gotten 2 Fine Grade gems from 10 randomly selected raw gemstones, so if he were to choose from the pile again, would he gain more and better gems?

If anyone else had given the suggestion, Lin Yichen would accept it without any hesitation, but he could not make up his mind because Ou Yangming was the one who proposed the idea.

Lin Yichen turned to look at Zheng Ziwen, Yue Dingtian, as well as the supervisors in the store. He noticed that they looked uncertain too.

Ou Yangming looked at them calmly without rushing them to make a decision as though he was not very concerned. Ni Yinghong suddenly asked with a smile, "Head Shopkeeper Lin, these raw gemstones in the backyard are going to be sold to outsiders too, right?"

Lin Yichen was dumbstruck but casually answered, "Yes, other than those with a special price, each of them will be sold at 50 taels of gold each."

"Head Shopkeeper Lin, that's so immoral of you! You're making more than twice their original cost…"

"Master Ou, if you visit the Immense Forest Town, I'll sell them to you for 20 taels of gold each, but 50 taels of gold is the lowest price in the prefecture," Lin Yichen quickly explained.

"Okay." Ni Yinghong smiled brightly and offered, "Head Shopkeeper Lin, I'll give you 500 taels of gold, and you let me pick ten raw gemstones."

Lin Yichen's face changed because he instantly understood the reason behind it, so he bowed deeply at Ou Yangming with an apologetic smile on his face. "Master Ou, please forgive me for being ungrateful when you were being kind. For the sake of General Deng and Master Ziwen, please forgive me this time."

Zheng Ziwen's face changed as well, and he apologized embarrassedly, "Brother Ou, we weren't content with what we were given, please forgive us."

Yue Dingtian and the other people blushed too because they were ashamed.

They had been thinking about how Ou Yangming might receive greater benefits after making the exchange, but they never realized he could pay just 500 taels of gold to purchase 10 raw gemstones from the 10,000 stones left. If they were to compare 500 taels of gold with 2 Fine Grade gems… Could they even be compared? Besides, those were 2 Fine Grade gems!

If they rejected Ou Yangming's suggestion and accepted the 500 taels of gold instead, the bosses from the headquarter would certainly cut them into pieces.

"It's fine as long as you change after realizing your mistake," Ou Yangming commented with a smile and asked, "Can I choose the raw gemstones now?"

Lin Yichen quickly answered, "Master Ou, please."

Ou Yangming entered the pile of raw gemstones again, but he did not pick them randomly. He had fixed his targets, so he retrieved ten of them very quickly.

Lin Yichen and the other people naturally watched him, but they were puzzled after seeing what he did.

Ou Yangming had picked ten raw gemstones that did not have a notch. It was far more difficult to get good gems from them as compared to half-naked raw gemstones. They began wondering again as they looked at Ou Yangming.

'Is he extremely confident, or is he really that lucky?'

Subsequently, Ou Yangming left the Yi Pavilion with ten raw gemstones and got onto the carriage with the Ni family siblings.

The siblings had wanted to bring ou Yangming around the bustling night market, but due to the incident that took place, they no longer had the mood to do so.

However, just before they boarded the carriage, Ni Yinghong scoffed and left on her own.

Ni Yunhong spread out his hands helplessly and said, "Brother Ou, please forgive my younger sister, she can't board the carriage with you."

Ou Yangming felt like he had lost something, but he could not express it.

Once they returned to the Ni residence, Ni Yinghong invited a stone-cracking master after getting Ou Yangming's agreement.

The stone-cracking master was not as powerful as Yue Dingtian, but he was also a Yang Grade martial artist. As he cracked the ten raw gemstones one by one, 1 High Grade gem and 2 Common Grade gems were found.

When the news spread, everyone praised Ou Yangming and the Ni family siblings for their benevolent act, but they also had better judgments about Ou Yangming's skills. After all, he had chosen flawless raw gemstones this time, but he achieved a 30% success rate and secured 1 High Grade gem.

Though the result could not be mentioned on equal terms with the 2 Fine Grade gems, it was enough to convince the other people and shut their mouths.

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Chapter 152 First Magic Tool

In a room, Ni Yinghong put down five raw gemstones and looked at Ou Yangming with her bright eyes as she asked, "Tell me, can you really perceive the stones?"

Ou Yangming chuckled and answered, "You know I've fathomed the integration of Heaven and man."

"We knew that long ago. Hmph, isn't it just the integration of Heaven and man? Is there a need to show off…" Ni Yinghong pouted her lips, but she said to herself, 'The state seems quite desirable. Hmph, I'm not envious at all!'

Ou Yangming giggled. "Indeed, there's no need to show off, but after having the state, I had an obscure feeling about these stones. I had a good feeling about them, so I chose them."

Ni Yinghong was not fully convinced, but she realized after some thought that it could not be explained any other way.

Although there were no similar cases with other powerhouses, who apprehended the integration of Heaven and man too, the state was achieved when one comprehended nature. It varied from person to person, hence there was no absolute standard for it.

Besides, Ou Yangming had grasped the state as a Military Fire Blacksmith.

There were people like him in the past, but they were exceptionally rare like phoenix feathers and unicorn horns.

On top of that, there were no detailed records of the unique ability being attained by a person who understood the mysteries of the integration of Heaven and man through smithing art. Perhaps Ou Yangming's ability had come from that.

Ni Yinghong pondered for some time before she finally approved of his statement. "I've given you everything, so do as you see fit!" Afterward, she turned and left right away.

Since Ou Yangming found out her real identity; a woman, as thick-faced as she was, dared not stay in the room for a long time at night.

Ou Yangming smiled and was rather moved as he watched her leave.

After leaving the Yi Pavilion, Ni Yinghong left on her own by giving the excuse that she would not board the carriage. As soon as she returned home, she found five similar-sized raw gemstones to substitute five of the actual ones before Ou Yangming and the rest were back.

Being the Ni family's eldest young lady, it was easy for her to make the substitution.

As such, among the ten raw gemstones that were cracked by the Ni family's stone-cracking master, only five were the ones that were picked by Ou Yangming. The five remaining real gemstones had been discreetly brought to this room. Ou Yangming inhaled deeply as he relished the beautiful lady's consideration and kindness. He could not help but become immersed in it.

A thought suddenly crossed his mind: if he could really spend his life together with her forever, he would be content without wanting to pursue anything else. However, old Craftsman's thin and ill-looking face surfaced again at the next instant.

Ou Yangming shook his head hard. 'Who am I to indulge in being in a special place? Before I grasp absolute power and the way to prolong Old Craftsman's life, I can't relax nor slack at all.'

He sighed and suppressed his thoughts to the bottom of his heart.

Following that, he focused fully on the raw gemstones.

Without needing to touch them, Ou Yangming knew what they roughly contained. They contained 1 Fine Grade gem, 3 High Grade gems, and a gem that gave him the feeling of a vast ocean, respectively.

Ou Yangming did not attach much importance to the High Grade and Fine Grade gems because the feeling of the blue sea was still fresh in his memory.

When Ni Yinghong sent the raw gemstones over, she had brought different suitable tools as well.

Nonetheless, Ou Yangming felt that his unbreakable military saber was the best tool for him.

As he shaved the raw gemstone with his saber, the gem was finally removed. Once he had fully retrieved it, he was drawn by the light that was emitted.

After hesitating over and over again, Ou Yangming exerted his Military Fire on the blue gem.

[Item: Impeccable Gem (Blue)]

(Equivalent Rank: Magic Level Common Grade]

(Attribute: Increases mental power's upper limit by 5%]

Even though it only had one attribute, Ou Yangming's eyelids twitched, and he almost exclaimed

Mental power was an incredibly unique power, and it was completely different from essential Qi.

While Ou Yangming learned from Big Yellow a technique to increase mental power, it was suitable for the big yellow dog, but not as effective for humans.

Therefore, even after practicing with a lot of hard work, Ou Yangming's mental power had not increased much.

With this gem's assistance and his 40 Points of mental power, he could easily increase his metal power by 2 Points.

Yes, 2 Points of mental power did not seem a lot, but it was not the end of his mental power's limit. In the future, perhaps the attribute could benefit him in a way that was beyond his imagination.

Moreover, the gem was of Magic Level Common Grade.

The meaning that it carried was enough to let one connect it with something else.

Ou Yangming removed his waist sash after some thought.

There were three grooves on the sash, but two of them were already occupied, leaving the last one empty. The waist sash had advanced to the peak of Fine Grade Rank Five after two grooves were used, and its standard was the greatest among all pieces of equipment that Ou Yangming had come across.

As he looked at the final groove, he gritted his teeth and burned the Military Fire in his hand.

If an ordinary influential person had discovered this Magic Level gem, that person would certainly value it very much. He or she would gather capable craftsmen to smith a piece of unique equipment according to the gem's pattern and would do anything to unleash the equipment's function to the extreme.

Nevertheless, that was not what Ou Yangming had in mind.

To him, there were two types of equipment: usable ones, and non-usable ones.

If its function could not be effectively exerted, as great as the piece of equipment was, he would not cherish it.

Hence, after acquiring the blue gem, Ou Yangming's first thought was to embed it to the waist sash. A usable piece of equipment was the best kind of equipment, after all.

If he had not previously embedded the Substitution Gem to the waist sash, perhaps it was not Zhang Yinli who would have died, but him.

As Ou Yangming's Military Fire burned, there was indeed a wonderful change to the blue gem's volume, and it slowly adjusted to the groove's size.

If his wasteful act was witnessed by renowned powerhouses from the gem trade, they would definitely cry and reprimand him for wasting a natural resource.

Each time a gem's shape changed, it would lose some power. Additionally, nobody knew how many years it had been since a Magic Level gem was found. Nobody would handle a Fine Grade gem so recklessly, let alone a Magic Level gem.

That said, Ou Yangming was the only person in the room, thus he handled the gem as he wished without any concern.

Eventually, the Military Fire completely changed the gem's outer appearance. Ou Yangming's eyes glowed as he placed the gem to the groove with shaking hands. Almost at the same time, his Military Fire fully enveloped the waist sash.

Ou Yangming had carried out the process so directly not only because he wanted to use the piece of equipment as soon as possible, but also because he possessed the Military Fire.

He believed if he wanted to transfer the gems elsewhere one day, his Military Fire would allow him to do so without damaging the gems' quality. "Ding…"

A wonderful sound as if gold and jade had touched each other was heard.

Ou Yangming was instantly satisfied. It was the sign that the gem had perfectly fit into the piece of equipment, and it was also the greatest charm of the Military Fire.

Needless to say, Ou Yangming's role in the process must not be underestimated. If he had not given his full attention, the process could not have been completed so smoothly.

After all, the Military Fire had only played a role in the transformation while Ou Yangming was the one controlling it.

The instant the gem was embedded on the waist sash, Ou Yangming heard a deafening sound in his head. His mental power was actually released uncontrollably, and he entered the thoroughly meticulous state at once.

Although the purple Military Fire allowed Ou Yangming to enter a similar state when he was smithing or fighting, this time, he did not rely on the fire's power. Instead, he had achieved this state by relying on his own energy.

His mental power, which rose high, merged with the purple light and observed every change in the waist sash like a deity.

Ou Yangming even felt like time was flowing backward at that moment.

It was as if he witnessed the moment the gem was in contact with the sash, as well as everything that happened after that.

He saw how the gem's power flowed into the waist sash, and how it became compatible with the powers of the sash and the two other gems.

If a slight mistake appeared during the process, there would only be one consequence: the piece of equipment would be destroyed, and the gem would shatter.

Nonetheless, through the Military Fire's control, it ended in a near-perfect state.

Ou Yangming felt his head vibrate a little as he awoke from the godlike state. As his Military Fire surrounded the waist sash, its attributes were clearly shown in his mind.

[Item: Magic waist sash (Green)]

(Equivalent Rank: Magic Tool, Common Grade, Rank One)

[Attributes: Toughness 21, Physique 4]

(Skills: Blood Flight (Activation condition: Abundant Qi and blood), Substitution (Accumulates Qi and blood, substitutes death), Mental power's upper limit increased by 5%]

'Green, Magic Tool, 21 Points!'

Upon seeing the notification, Ou Yangming felt like endless stormy waves surged in his heart.

'A Magic Tool!

'I finally broke through.'

Before this, no matter how hard Ou Yangming tried, he could not smith something beyond an Ordinary Tool. Even when he attempted with the Chaos Cave's mysterious stones, the result was still the same.

This time, he seemed to have realized the truth behind it and figured how to smith a piece of equipment that was above an Ordinary Tool.

It was the legacy of a skill that was meant to be; it was mighty energy that was displayed from a mysterious power that came from the endless void.

It was a legacy that was obtained from a unique environment of the integration of Heaven and man, the thoroughly meticulous state, as well as the burst of mental power and the purple Military Fire that became compatible with each other.

Ou Yangming exhaled deeply and looked highly spirited. He was full of unprecedented confidence.

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Chapter 153 He Who Talks Too Much Is Meant To Slip Up

The Fang family was one of the few big clans in the prefecture, and it was only second to the Ni family.

Fang Yihai and Xiaoxiao Sheng arrived at the Ni residence the morning after to wait.

Xiaoxiao Sheng's eyes lit up at the sight of Ou Yangming, and he remarked, "Master Ou, your martial arts cultivation base has improved once more."

Ou Yangming grinned and replied to him, "Indeed, I can't hide from your lightning eyes, senior!"

Fang Yihai was slightly stunned. He thought to himself after scanning Ou Yangming from head to toe, 'This young fella is truly nature-defying, nothing can stop him.'

When Ou Yangming returned from the dense forest after killing Zhang Yinli, he had already entered Yin Grade Class One.

Even Fang Yihai was stunned by his cultivation speed. Nonetheless, some people were simply gifted and had enormous powers.

They gained a huge advantage when they were in Force Grade, thus they could advance to Yin Grade faster than the others.

Despite that, Fang Yihai had never heard of anyone who maintained such a fast cultivation speed after having moved one grade up already.

The trip to the Fang residence this time was so that Ou Yangming could attach Unique Attributes to some pieces of equipment, which was considered the clan's secret. As thick-faced as Ni Yinghong was, she was not bold enough to tag along.

Therefore, there were only three people who set out.

The Fang family was a rich and influential family, so their residence's decorations were not inferior to the Ni family's at all.

It was evident that some aspects were interdependent when a clan's wealth and legacy were at a certain level and point of time, thus a clan's foundation could be identified through some inconspicuous details.

Some people had been waiting in the Fang residence for a long time.

Apart from Fang Xuande, there were also two other old men.

One of them smiled at Ou Yangming while the other's eyes were lowered as though he was half-awake.

Ou Yangming suddenly became tensed up when he noticed the latter.

'A Supreme Great Ancestor!'

The thoroughly meticulous state instantly allowed him to spot the fearsome energy that surrounded the elder. Although the old man had curbed his aura, he could not hide it from Ou Yangming. All of a sudden, the old man opened his eyes and cast a strange look at Ou Yangming as he remarked, "Lil' Friend, you have a good eye!"

Ou Yangming dared not be impolite because he was facing a Supreme Great Ancestor, after all.

"I didn't mean to offend you, please forgive me, senior."

The old man waved his hand and said, "It's fine. In actual fact, we should be thanking you instead."

Fang Xuande turned to look at him and asked, "Grand Elder, you're…"

"You've found a great little friend, he perceived my cultivation base at one glance. Hehe, I have confidence in him!" The old man chuckled.

The other people were taken aback because they did not expect Ou Yangming to have such a frightening vision.

Xiaoxiao Sheng cleared his throat and introduced, "Master Lil' Ou, this is Fang Zhaoyang, the Fang family's Supreme Great Ancestor; this is Fang Zhengde, our clan's patriarch for this generation."

Ou Yangming bowed at them but was still curious about something.

Between them, apart from Fang Zhaoyang, who was a Supreme Great Ancestor, in terms of cultivation base, Xiaoxiao Sheng was the best.

'Xiaoxiao Sheng is at the peak of Yang Grade Class Five and is a half step to being a great ancestor.

'But why is his surname not Fang, and he considers himself as Xiaoxiao Sheng instead?'

Ou Yangming was even more confused when he noticed how the rest treated Xiaoxiao Sheng without reservation as if he was a core figure in their clan.

Nevertheless, Ou Yangming was not interested in exploring the disputes and the past of a big clan.

Fang Zhaoyang asked, "Lil' Friend, I heard you want to learn our clan's Tool-chiseling Secret Technique?"

Ou Yangming was stunned for a while, but he quickly understood what it was, and he cursed, 'Boring is boring, why do you have to say that it's tool-chiseling? As nice as it sounds, it's just boring…' Despite that, he responded respectfully, "Yes, I'd like you to guide me, senior."

"The Tool-chiseling Secret Technique isn't our clan's lost study, and there's someone who's adept in the art." Fang Zhaoyang smiled and continued after a pause, "We need you to attach layered attributes to some pieces of equipment, and if you do it well, I'll ask Xuande to teach you everything."

Ou Yangming's eyes glowed, and he quickly thanked, "Thank you, senior!"

It was extremely difficult to get a Supreme Great Ancestor's promise.

That said, Ou Yangming somewhat realized that he had actually benefited from the Ni family. If the Ni family had not taken his side and even snatched him away when he arrived at the prefecture, perhaps the situation would be completely different.

Fang Zhengde stood up and said, "Master Lil' Ou, please come with me."

Following that, they headed to a secret room. Ou Yangming was drawn when he saw the pieces of equipment, precious ores, and gems that were stored here.

Normal types of equipment were helmets, arm guards, greaves, and weapons. However, in the room, a longbow replaced the military saber. Other than that, there was also a precious sash, a pair of boots, and a cloak.

Ou Yangming saw the precious sash, the boots, and the cloak slightly longer.

Even though he could smith most types of equipment, he was clueless about these three types of equipment. "Master Lil' Ou, I heard you're also an appraiser. How about you take a look at these pieces of equipment first?" Fang Zhengde stated with a smile.

Ou Yangming responded to him, then took a step forward to touch them for a brief moment.

In actuality, he knew their attributes, grade, and rank the instant he touched them, but it would be quite shocking if he simply revealed them.

"This helmet is at the peak of Fine Grade Rank Five, it's quite good. As for this armor, it's a Fine Grade Rank Four…" Ou Yangming stated after he acted pretentiously for 15 minutes. He continued to disclose the properties of the other pieces of equipment until he reached the longbow, where he spoke in confusion, "This weapon is probably the equipment set's essence, am I right? But it seems like it's only in Fine Grade Rank Three…"

Before Ou Yangming came, he had actually roughly found out about the trip's purpose.

An archer's equipment set!

This was the reason the Fang family had looked for him.

In spite of that, since the task involved an archer's equipment set, its core is naturally the longbow.

Contrary to what Ou Yangming had expected, while the other pieces of equipment had achieved Fine Grade Rank Five if not Fine Grade Rank Four, the core was only a Fine Grade Rank Three.

No matter how he looked at it, it was not quite reasonable.

"Ah…" Fang Xuande sighed. Since he was the best in smithing art in the clan, it only made sense that he explained the matter.

"Master Lil' Ou, honestly, the longbow that we need must contain a certain element. We've been providing the element for decades and invited countless smithing masters to smith it, but Rank Three is the best we can get…" He sounded very helpless.

Ou Yangming was moved, and he instantly associated the matter with the Fang family's unique skill — tool-chiseling or boring.

Clearly, the longbow was not as simple as it seemed.

"If we found you earlier, we would've asked you to smith one," Fang Xuande shook his head and uttered.

"Do you not have the materials for this longbow anymore?" Ou Yangming asked as a thought crossed his mind.

Fang Xuande smiled bitterly. "It's incredibly difficult to gather that material, and we'll only be able to gather it at least at the end of next year, but…"

"Cough…" Fang Zhengde suddenly coughed and cut him off. "Master Ou, can you see if you're able to improve its rank?"

He was obviously asking a question to fill in the conversation because he wanted to stop Fang Xuande from continuing.

Fang Xuande was dumbfounded, but he realized that he had slipped up, hence he quickly shut his mouth.

Ou Yangming answered after some thought, "I can try. I might be able to do it."

"What?"

A few of them uttered at the same time. Even Fang Zhaoyang, the Fang family's Supreme Great Ancestor, looked at him in high spirits.

"I said, I might be able to do it." Ou Yangming was taken aback.

Xiaoxiao Sheng quickly questioned, "Master Lil' Ou, if you attempt it, will you damage the longbow?" Ou Yangming glared at him and responded, "Senior, are you underestimating me?"

"How certain are you about succeeding?" Xiaoxiao Sheng smiled embarrassedly.

Ou Yangming pondered. He wanted to say that he was roughly 75% sure that he could do it, but he decided to say, "Around 50%…"

The other people exchanged glances as they thought a 50% success rate was worth a try.

"Okay, Master Ou, please attempt to improve its rank as much as you can," Xiaoxiao Sheng said, then added after a pause, 'The Fang family promises that as long as you do your best, you'll be our most honorable guest, and we'll protect you in the future no matter what happens."

Ou Yangming was shocked. It would seem more appropriate if Fang Zhaoyang or Fang Zhengde had given the promise instead.

That being said, after looking at the other people from the Fang family, he understood that the promise represented the Fang family's promise.

Ou Yangming nodded. He took the longbow and turned it around to study it for some time.

Regardless of the situation, he could not let anyone see the Military Fire's secret, so he racked his brain to come up with a reason. "This longbow is smithed pretty well, but its fine structure is a little flawed, which is why it's only in Fine Grade Rank Three."

"Its fine structure is flawed?" Fang Xuande immediately had a strange look on his face, and hesitated for a moment before he revealed, "Master Lil' Ou, this longbow was personally smithed by Master Wu Hongxi!"

Ou Yangming was stupefied. "Master Wu Hongxi, the Fine Grade King?" "That's right."

'Oh no…' Ou Yangming said to himself.

Master Wu Hongxi was a truly renowned peerless figure. He had smithed uncountable pieces of equipment throughout his life, and he was particularly honored for smithing pieces of Fine Grade equipment.

It was said that 70% of the pieces of Fine Grade equipment smithed by him were at the peak of Rank Five, and he gained the respectable title of Fine Grade King due to this glorious achievement.

'How can I talk nonsense like that? The fine structure is flawed? If he hears this, I'll…'Ou Yangming dared not think further.

However, as the people from the Fang family gave him questioning looks, he had to bite the bullet and complete his lie.

Ou Yangming glanced at Fang Xuande before he asked, "Senior Fang, what was my success rate of smithing pieces of equipment at the peak of Fine Grade Rank Five yesterday?"

Fang Xuande was startled. There was a drastic change to the look on his face, and he was soon lost for words.

In addition, the other people stopped casting doubtful looks at him too.

The peak of Rank Five. Every piece of equipment that was smithed by Ou Yangming yesterday was at the peak of Rank Five despite their different grades.

As such, Fang Xuande shut his mouth, but he was secretly feeling more bewildered.

'Could the famous Master Wu Hongxi's level of attainment in fine structure be inferior to this young fella's?'

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Chapter 154 The Shock From Triple-Layering

Ou Yangming had forced Fang Xuande to retreat. Following that, he shook his wrist, and his Military Fire instantly burnt.

He initially wanted to make a grand gesture, but he dared not act on that thought anymore. It was best to speak the truth.

As Ou Yangming's Military Fire spread, it quickly enveloped the longbow.

The people from the Fang family had a grave expression on their faces. Although Ou Yangming had guaranteed earlier that the longbow would not be damaged, they could not help but feel anxious.

This was because the archer's suit was too important for them.

Ou Yangming could not understand their feelings, but he could sense it through his bright eyes.

He did not take too long to complete the task because he had explained that the issue was in the longbow's fine structure. Besides, if Ou Yangming knew the theory and could smoothen the weapon, he should not delay the process.

Needless to say, if he did not know the theory and where the defect was, even if he were to do it eternally, he could not make effective amendments to the piece of equipment.

After 15 minutes, Ou Yangming exhaled deeply and moved his wrist a little to curb the Military Fire.

While looking weary, he handed the longbow to Fang Xuande, who had been impatient for a long time.

Fang Xuande's eyes lit up, and he rubbed his hands slightly to release the Appraisal Light onto the longbow.

Next, he instantly smiled cheerfully and announced, "Nice, it's at the peak of Fine Grade Rank Five indeed!"

Fang Zhaoyang and the rest looked at each other. Even the most cunning person smiled with joy at that moment.

In actual fact, they were rather concerned when they invited Ou Yangming, but it seemed like they made a wise choice.

Fang Xuande hesitated for a while before he bowed at Ou Yangming.

It was not a normal formality, but a salute that was similar to what was done by a disciple to his master.

Ou Yangming was shocked, so he quickly dodged and asked, "Senior, what are you doing?"

Fang Xuande asked in a serious manner, "Master, may I ask how exactly was its fine structure flawed?"

He was previously dubious when he asked the same question, but he finally believed it when Ou Yangming really managed to upgrade it to Rank Five.

As the Fang family's chief blacksmith, his obsession in smithing art was far beyond what one could imagine.

Since there was a great opportunity for him to gain experience, he could not help but raise the question. Ou Yangming smiled bitterly and thought, 'You're asking me, but who am I going to ask? 'Is there really an issue with the longbow's… Fine structure?'

He felt unusually regretful at that moment. 'I really shouldn't have talked so much nonsense!' "Xuande!" Fang Zhaoyang furrowed his eyebrows and reprimanded, "You shouldn't ask what you shouldn't ask!"

Fang Xuande responded after some hesitation, "Yes, Great Ancestor."

Ou Yangming sighed a breath of relief and explained right away, "Senior, I'm not trying to be selfish because it's my own skill, I really have a difficult reason behind it…"

He was going to learn the boring technique from Fang Xuande later, so he did not want to offend him.

Fang Xuande cast his unhappiness aside and said, "I understand, you've learned it from another master. Ah, how can a secret technique like that be taught so easily? I was being greedy…" In actuality, if Ou Yangming was just a nobody, the people from the Fang family might have handled things differently. However, Ou Yangming was not only close to the three other generals from the Immense Forest Military Camp at the moment, but he was also the Ni family's distinguished guest, so they naturally would not have other thoughts.

Ou Yangming was in two minds, but he decided to raise his concern, "Senior, I've spoken carelessly earlier. If that person finds out, I'll be in huge trouble, so…"

Fang Zhaoyang laughed. "It's a small matter, so don't worry, nobody will spread it."

Ou Yangming quickly thanked him because he would not want to be questioned by a smithing master like Wu Hongxi one day.

"Lil' Friend, since you can upgrade the longbow to the peak of Rank Five, can you also upgrade the other pieces of equipment too?" Fang Zhaoyao smiled brightly as he asked.

'Isn't that such a casual request…' Ou Yangming twitched his mouth.

"I can try to upgrade the armor, but I can't do anything about the boots and the precious sash. I've never learned how to produce them, so I don't really understand them." He shook his head and spread out his hands.

"If you don't know, just learn! I believe you'll understand them as long as you learn about them," Fang Zhaoyang remarked.

Ou Yangming was deeply moved, thus he replied to him with a smile, "If that's the case, thank you for the trouble."

After using his Military Fire to upgrade the armor to the peak of Rank Five too, the other people no longer doubted what he said.

Yes, the longbow's fine structure must be flawed, but as for how it was flawed… They used their bold and imaginative mind to come up with strange reasonings to convince themselves.

Once Ou Yangming was done, he fixed his gaze on the previous ores.

The ores were not ordinary ores such as the Power Ore or the Agility Ore. When Ou Yangming picked one up and released his Military Fire, he found out that it was a unique ore that could add a Precision attribute.

He asked after some consideration, "Senior Fang, do you only need me to attach the Precision attribute?"

"There are actually two attributes, which are Vision and Precision," Fang Xuande quickly answered, and he added after a pause, "Just use whichever attribute you're more confident with."

Ou Yangming frowned. "Senior, there's a certain failure rate in attribute attachment."

Fang Xuande chuckled. "Don't worry, we won't blame you even if you fail."

"What I'd like to ask is — what's the highest acceptable failure rate for you?" Ou Yangming asked with a deep voice."

"If you can bind one attribute, we'll accept a 40% failure rate, but…" Fang Xuande was stunned at first, but he replied to him after he pondered, and continued with bright eyes, "If you can layer attributes, we'll accept a 60% failure rate!"

The request for such probabilities was unquestionably a nightmare for the blacksmiths from the Immense Forest Military Camp — even Old Craftsman could not fulfill it.

Nonetheless, Ou Yangming wondered and asked, "What if I can fix three attributes to a piece of equipment?"

The people from the Fang family began breathing rapidly. "If you can fix three attributes, we'll accept an 80% failure rate!" Fang Zhaoyang cut Fang Xuande to it. "If you can go four and above, there won't be a limit, so you can carry on without worries."

Since Ou Yangming had raised the question, did it not mean that he had a way to bond more than three attributes?

Honestly, the Layering Art was exceptionally difficult, but most importantly, there were very few blacksmiths who were adept in it.

Based on the Fang family's capability, they could find masters who were famous for it.

That said, those masters valued their reputation very much, and they dared not promise that they could achieve triple-layering. As such, they naturally could not bind attributes to these pieces of equipment.

On the opposite, Ou Yangming was a highly spirited and fearless young man, who agreed to the request right away.

Of course, that was only the impression that Ou Yangming gave, hence the people from the Fang family did not know the real reason behind it.

After picking up a helmet, Ou Yangming burned it with his Military Fire and tossed a precious ore into it. When he curbed his fire some moments later, the equipment was already bonded with 1 Point of Precision.

Seeing as Ou Yangming succeeded during his first attempt, the other people smiled delightfully. This is a good start, it's a great sign.'

Nevertheless, instead of putting down the helmet, Ou Yangming retrieved another precious ore.

This time, everyone else watched him with a serious face when his Military Fire burned again.

Ou Yangming later exhaled as he curbed his fire, and he smiled at the eager men. "I was lucky enough to have accomplished the task."

The men cheered, and Fang Xuande even inspected the helmet with appraisal art. He shouted, "Both the Precision and the Vision attributes are added, nice!"

Though Ou Yangming did not understand why they valued the suit so much, he reminded, "Gentlemen, if you'd like me to add the third ore, the failure rate will be quite high."

The other people looked at Fang Zhaoyang, who gritted his teeth and gave permission, "Go on and add it!"

Ou Yangming nodded and retrieved another ore for Vision before tossing it into the fire. As his Military Fire burned, the Vision 1 attribute was instantly withdrawn. On top of that, even the Vision and Precision attributes, which had been attached to the helmet earlier, were withdrawn as well.

He humphed and stopped the fire from burning, then he said with guilt, "I'm sorry, I failed."

The men could not help but look regretful, but nobody blamed Ou Yangming for it. It was triple-layering, after all. If he could pull it off in one go, he was probably not a human, but a deity.

"It's okay, Lil' Friend. Take a rest, and we'll continue later," Fang Zhaoyang comforted with a smile.Even though his heart was actually bleeding, he could not express it. Besides, the elders had tacitly agreed not to give Ou Yangming any pressure. After resting for half an hour, Ou Yangming seemed to feel extremely energetic again. He kept adding precious ores to the helmet, and he only stopped sulkily after it was attached with 3 Points of Vision.

Despite that, Fang Xuande held the helmet, which had 3 Points of Vision, like it was a treasure. Once he confirmed the helmet's attributes, he could not help but shout, "Triple-layered attributes, they're really triple-layered attributes. We did it!".

Fang Yihai grinned from ear to ear. "Seventh Uncle, I told you, Master Ou can do it." "Yes, he can do it indeed!" Ou Yangming asked, "I've just done triple-layering. Senior Fang, do you need me to continue?"

The secret room fell dead silent at that instant.

'He has failed once when he attempted triple-layering, what about quadruple-layering?'

The men looked at Fang Zhaoyang, but this time, the great ancestor was not that decisive.

He said after a brief moment, "Let's end it here. We'll discuss again when everything's done."

"Yes." The helmet was put aside while the second piece of equipment was handed to Ou Yangming. Ou Yangming looked plainly at it, then he released his Military Fire to begin refining it. However, he started to calculate to himself.

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Chapter 155 Scared Away?

Five days. Ou Yangming stayed in the Fang residence's secret room for five days.

When a person's cultivation base arrived at Yin Grade, he or she would undergo enormous changes, one of them being the ability to cultivate essential Qi to replace sleep.

Needless to say, it only applied to some special cases. For instance, if someone had to maintain absolute focus at short notice. During that time, a martial artist could cultivate essential Qi to substitute sleep temporarily. Ou Yangming was a Yin Grade martial artist, so he could naturally do it.

In actual fact, when he was still in Force Grade, he had completed this step by transforming the flesh and blood of countless quarries into Qi and blood for his own. Now, he was only reaching his goal using another method.

Throughout the five days, Ou Yangming had attached triple-layered Unique Attributes to every piece of equipment.

The failure rate increased as the number of attributes being attached increased, and the most nerve-racking moment was when the third layer of Unique Attribute was being fixed.

Ou Yangming succeeded during his second attempt on the helmet, but when he worked with the other pieces of equipment, he failed at least twice before he really succeeded.

On average, ten to fifteen precious ores had to be consumed for a successful triple-layering process on a piece of equipment. The Fang family's bosses grimaced in pain and wiped their cold sweat as their hearts ached, but they comforted Ou Yangming while patting their chests as though it did not matter.

When seven pieces of equipment, which consisted of five different types, were laid out in front of everyone, they had mixed feelings. Although there were only five types of equipment, there was one extra arm guard and greave each.

All in all, they had given up 85 precious ores for the seven pieces of equipment. 85 precious ores! In order to smith the archer's suit, they had made countless sacrifices to accumulate the precious ores.

Nonetheless, they were content that Ou Yangming could arrive at this step.

After all, every piece of equipment was layered with three attributes.

Fang Zhaoyang sighed and said, "Lil' Friend, you've worked hard."

Ou Yangming was unwilling to give up when he looked at the remaining precious ores. "Do you not need me to go on?".

"If that hasn't happened, these attributes will be enough, but if…" Fang Zhaoyang smiled bitterly, then he continued after some hesitation, "Perhaps we'll still need your help in the future!"

Ou Yangming nodded regretfully, but he cursed.

'Who said that they'll do it regardless of the cost? They're being stingy now.'

Honestly, he was already satisfied with what he had achieved so far.

Only 21 points of attributes were actually used for the seven pieces of equipment, whereas more than 60 unique purple lights were stored in his mind.

Ou Yangming had not expected the gain before he came.

Nevertheless, he was rather curious about what Fang Zhaoyang was talking about, but he could tell by the look on the elder's face that he would not be able to find out.

"Xuande, teach him how to do tool-chiseling. Tell him everything you know, and don't keep anything to yourself." Fang Zhaoyang sighed.

Fang Xuande responded to him. He also knew that this was not the end yet because they might still need Ou Yangming's help in the future. Since that was the case, he might as well do the young man a special favor this time as much as he could.

When they arrived at a smithing workshop, Fang Xuande cut to the chase, "Master Lil' Ou, it's not easy to chisel a hole in a piece of equipment. If you're slightly careless, the equipment will be damaged, and its equivalent rank will drop."

Ou Yangming nodded and expressed, "I know, it's the same as trying to embed a gem."

Fang Xuande was stunned, so he asked, "Have you learned the Gem Embedding Art?"

"A friend of mine from the Ni family taught me a little about it," Ou Yangming answered with a smile.

"Very well, it's great that you've learned it before. If you want to chisel a hole, you must first have a clear understanding of the equipment," Fang Xuande said as he retrieved a greave. He slowly brushed his hand across the equipment and explained, "Every piece of equipment is different, and the chiseling of holes in them will cause various effects. The point that we're looking for is the aggregation point of different tensions in the equipment…"

He shook his wrist and put his finger on a certain point on the greave. "Right here. If you chisel a hole here, the damage on the equipment will be minimal."

Ou Yangming accepted the greave and studied it for a long time, but he was still puzzled.

Fang Xuande chuckled. "You won't be able to see the mystery in it by just looking at it. Come, let me teach you."

Sure enough, he did not hide anything to himself. He shared with Ou Yangming his personal experiences and every bit of knowledge that he had gained.

In the beginning, Ou Yangming did not fully understand it, but his eyes slowly lit up as Fang Xuande explained further.

When Old Craftsman taught Ou Yangming about the Military Fire, he had only told him what should be done.

Why did he have to do this? What was the benefit of doing this?

Even Old Craftsman had no idea. On the other hand, the Fang family was an inherited clan that had a profound background. While Fang Xuande, the number one blacksmith in the clan, did not possess the unique Military Fire and was not on par with Ou Yangming in terms of empirical aspects, his knowledge in theories was superior to even ten Ou Yangmings.

Ou Yangming was unquestionably enlightened with great wisdom after he was taught the knowledge.

He used to wonder during smithing processes in the past why it was difficult for the Durability attribute to be on equal terms with the equipment's grade and rank. The answer was finally revealed to him.

In addition, Ou Yangming vaguely felt that perhaps his evaluation of Wu Hongxi, the Fine Grade King, was right. The longbow's fine structure was flawed indeed.

However, the higher the equipment's level, the deeper the flaw was hidden, hence it was difficult to be noticed. One could only make adjustments according to one's feelings, so one could imagine the effect of it.

After Fang Xuande was done explaining, he took another piece of equipment and explained again patiently, then he said, "In order to successfully chisel a hole in a tool, apart from needing to find a suitable point, the process is also very important. You have to do it according to the different tensions…"

Following that, a spiritual fire burned slowly in his hands.

Ou Yangming had already released his mental power by then to watch Fang Xuande's every move in detail.

Under the integration of Heaven and man and the thoroughly meticulous state, Fang Xuande had no secrets at all. Not to mention he was already teaching Ou Yangming everything, even if he was really hiding something, he could not hide them from Ou Yangming.

Eventually, a groove appeared on the greave indeed. It was incredibly strange because the groove seemed to have been naturally formed through uncanny workmanship. It was as though the groove was already there when the equipment was smithed, and that no extra work was done to form it.

Fang Xuande curbed his spiritual fire and smiled with satisfaction when he looked at the greave. "Hehe, I didn't expect myself to perform so well today, I haven't been able to achieve this for a long time." Ou Yangming remarked sincerely, "Senior, I admire you for being old but vigorous."

He genuinely meant what he said. Since Fang Xuande did not have the unique Military Fire, he had fully relied on his strength and experiences to arrive at this step. Ou Yangming had always admired figures with genuine skills.

Subsequently, Fang Xuande retrieved a greave and handed it to Ou Yangming. "I've taught you everything I know. You'll have to explore and practice on your own from now on. Remember, practice makes perfect."

Ou Yangming responded to him and felt the greave for a while before he held it tightly.

Fang Xuande waited for some time, and he could not help but frown when there was still no sign from Ou Yangming. "What are you doing? Aren't you going to find the point?"

"Senior, haven't I found it already?" Ou Yangming was surprised.

"What? Nonsense. You've found it already?" Fang Xuande looked mad. He reached out to snatch the greave from Ou Yangming, then carefully touched it while he calculated in his head. That said, Fang Xuande stopped after some time, and his face took on an extremely strange expression.

He found it. He had found the most suitable point.

'But… But how is this possible…

'This point?'

Fang Xuande pondered, and he finally confirmed that Ou Yangming had also placed his thumb on this point earlier. He twitched his mouth and passed a saber to Ou Yangming. "Here." Ou Yangming received the saber and wielded it, then he placed his thumb on a certain point on the blade.

Fang Xuande took the saber and inspected it carefully for a moment. His face suddenly reddened as he asked, "How did you find it?"

Ou Yangming scratched his head and answered, "The point is so obvious, anyone could've found it…"

One needed to be exceptionally observant to find the point, and the better one's ability to perceive, the better.

Since Ou Yangming had achieved the thoroughly meticulous state in his understanding of nature, it was just as he had said — the point was not a secret and was not difficult to be found.

Similar to a program, without knowing the settings, one would really have to rack one's brain to figure it out.

However, once the settings were complete, one only needed to press on a button to confirm it.

Fang Xuande's lips trembled a little. He inhaled deeply and said, "Okay, chisel a hole in it."

Ou Yangming responded to him again. His Military Fire soon enveloped the saber.

He first withdrew the saber's attributes, then burned a groove on the suitable point, and finally returned the attributes to it once everything was done.

The process was not long as it was only half of the time taken by Fang Xuande when he carried out the same process.

Seeing as the Military Fire disappeared, Fang Xuande studied the saber closely to look at the seemingly naturally-formed groove. He then shook his wrist to release the Appraisal Light.

The military saber had not only gained a groove, but most importantly, its quality had not declined at all.

Fang Xuande's beard and hair stood on ends, and he stared at Ou Yangming like he had just seen a ghost. On the spur of the moment, he shouted out loud and ran away with the saber.

Ou Yangming reached out his hand to call out to Fang Xuande a few times, but Fang Xuande turned a deaf ear on him.

He was confused when he put down his hand. 'Even if my performance was quite exaggerated, I couldn't have scared him so much that he has gone mad, right?'

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Chapter 156 This Point Is Right!

A few top-notch bosses from the Fang family sat opposite each other in the secret room.

The equipment set that had just been attached with attributes by Ou Yangming a while ago was placed in front of them.

Fang Zhaoyang took the longbow and turned it around several times to look at it as if he was reluctant to part with it. It was obvious from his facial expression that he was overjoyed.

"Yihai, the person whom you recommended did not let us down indeed." Fang Zhaoyang laughed. "You've contributed greatly to our clan!"

Fang Yihai quickly responded, "Great Ancestor, it's my duty to serve the clan."

"Oh right, since you've been stationed at the Immense Forest Military Camp, did you notice anything unusual about the immense forest?" Fang Zhaoyang nodded and asked.

"There's nothing different about the immense forest. The soldiers from different camps are still going in to hunt in batches, and they haven't noticed any abnormalities too. It's just that…" Fang Yihai answered seriously. He suddenly furrowed his eyebrows and said hesitantly, "The number of half-spirit beasts in the forest seems to have increased, but it's not a big deal because it has always been like that every few decades."

"The number of half-spirit beasts increased?" Fang Zhaoyang finally put down his longbow and remarked, "It's not a big deal indeed if this happened in the past, but I can't say the same now."

Fang Yihai nodded. "Yes, I'll increase our manpower once I return, as well as the number of times they enter the forest. I'll definitely verify the matter."

"Okay." Fang Zhaoyang nodded as he was pleased. "If the disaster isn't coming, we won't have to talk about it, but if it's really coming, we'll have to prepare in advance."

"Yes." The few important figures from the Fang family bowed and responded to him.

Fang Zhaoyang looked at the longbow and ordered with a stern tone, "Once Xuande returns, let him rest and get him to chisel a hole in the bow on an auspicious day. This is our only chance, so we must succeed!"

Everyone else nodded and had a grave expression on their faces.

Right then, they heard footsteps that sounded like the wind.

A flash of figure was seen, and Fang Xuande appeared in front of them. What surprised them more was the usually steady person was holding a saber with his eyes widened at the moment, and he looked rather odd.

"Xuande, what are you doing? Great Ancestor is here, you mustn't be so unrestrained!" Fang Zhengde expressed his discontent.

Nonetheless, Fang Xuande turned a deaf ear to him. He hurried to the great ancestor with a saber.

The other men were dumbfounded, and they had the same thought at the same time.

'Has Xuande gone mad?'

Despite that, they were soon at ease.

This was because Fang Xuande pointed at the blade instead of slashing the saber at the great ancestor. "Great Ancestor, look…"

Fang Zhaoyang cast a surprised look at him, then at the blade.

A groove was seen on the blade, and it was polished so smoothly that it had a perfect luster.

"Xuande, you did quite well. Keep it up, and our clan's future will depend on you!" Fang Zhaoyang nodded with a smile.

On the other hand, the other people looked at him and shook their head.

It was true that the groove was polished perfectly, but it was not Fang Xuande's first time achieving something like this, so they could not understand why he had suddenly made a fuss about it.

Fang Xuande shook his head and said, "Great Ancestor, it wasn't me who chiseled the hole."

"Oh, it wasn't you?" Fang Zhaoyang was stunned, and he seemed moved, but he quickly shook his head and mumbled, "Impossible…"

The rest of them were slightly shocked too because they could not figure out who else in their clan could accomplish something like that.

When they recalled that Fang Xuande had just… Everyone's face changed at that instant, and Fang Zhengde commented, "It's impossible. Master Lil' Ou may be talented in the Layering Art, but the Tool-chiseling Secret Technique is completely different from that art, so how could he have grasped it?"

The other people nodded in agreement. It was difficult for them to believe that ou Yangming had made the groove.

Fang Zhaoyang asked in all seriousness, "Xuande, tell me, who did this?"

"It was Master Lil' Ou." Fang Xuande looked stern, and he glanced around him to see how the other people reacted. "You might not believe me, but I only taught him once, once…" He eventually slowed down and even spoke like he was talking in his sleep. "But once was all he took to grasp the Hole-searching Art and Hole-chiseling Art."

"What? He even learned the Hole-searching Art?" Fang Zhaoyang's face changed as he asked with an unsmiling face.

If Ou Yangming had only succeeded in hole-chiseling, it would cause a sensation between them, but they knew that he was a top-notch smithing master, after all. In particular, his mighty ability in the Layering Art was beyond one's reach.

Therefore, they could at least accept the fact because it was natural for an extraordinary person to have extraordinary accomplishments.

That said, hole-searching was different. Not every point on a piece of equipment could be chiseled, and there was an extremely high requirement for it. If a hole was carelessly chiseled onto a piece of equipment, the equipment would become useless the moment the groove was formed.

Fang Xuande nodded his head hard and swore, "Yes, I tried it. Master Lil' Ou didn't just find the key point, he also found it ten times faster than I did!"

Everyone else twitched their mouth and thought, 'Even if you want to flatter him, you shouldn't exaggerate…'

Fang Xuande was the best blacksmith in their clan, and he was the best in the Tool-chiseling Art. If someone else was ten times better than him, it was simply unimaginable.

"Yihai, go get Master Lil' Ou here," Fang Zhaoyang instructed after some thought.

Fang Yihai quickly responded to him and left.

"Great Ancestor, are you…" Fang Zhengde asked hesitantly.

"I haven't decided, but since Xuande praised him so much, let's take a look," Fang Zhaoyang responded casually. Fang Zhengde's face changed. "Great Ancestor, even if Master Lil' Ou is gifted, he has only learned the Tool-chiseling Art for a… Less than an hour."

He initially wanted to say 'a day', but on a second thought, he could not bring himself to say it.

"Don't worry, this matter will affect the Fang family's future, so I won't make a rash decision." Fang Zhaoyang chuckled.

When Fang Yihai went to the smithing workshop excitedly, he indeed saw Ou Yangming sitting on the chair helplessly. "Master Ou, Great Ancestor has asked you to go over." Fang Yihai approached Ou Yangming and grabbed him. He was elated, thus he was more friendly toward Ou Yangming.

Before this, while he had a place in the clan, he was not ranked high enough among the elders, and he had not won the great ancestor's heart.

This time, it was different. Fang Yihai's position in the great ancestor's and the patriarch's hearts had greatly improved, which would be beneficial for his future.

Ou Yangming muttered and wanted to just bid his farewell, but he thought, 'I've just learned the Tool-chiseling Art, so if I suddenly turn against them and leave, I might be terribly rebuked…'

Hence, he got rid of the dust on his body and returned to the secret room with Fang Yihai.

However, Ou Yangming instantly felt something different this time.

The elders cast questioning looks and him, causing the smile on his face to freeze a little.

Fang Zhaoyang asked, "Lil' Friend, I heard you've learned the Hole-searching Art?"

Ou Yangming was struck dumb, but he quickly understood that the Hole-searching Art was the art to find a suitable point for a groove.

He pursed his lips slightly and answered, "I have superficial knowledge of it."

"Very well, let me take a look at your superficial knowledge then." Fang Zhaoyang reached out his hand and displayed his strength as a Supreme Great Ancestor when a shield, which was at the corner, flew into his hand.

"Take a look at it and find a suitable point for a groove."

Ou Yangming hesitated for a while, but he obeyed the instruction and took a look at it. Nonetheless, he immediately looked puzzled.

The other people sighed a breath of relief at the same time and were somewhat expressing their delight through their eyebrows.

Ou Yangming's performance had been quite shocking.

If he could learn the Hole-searching Art so easily… Even Fang Zhaoyang would not be able to accept the truth because it would be such a heavy impact, so much so that he would not be willing to bear it.

Fang Xuande was surprised. 'Why is this young fella suddenly frightened?'

Ou Yangming turned the shield around to study it for some time before he finally raised a question, "Senior Xuande, may I ask how many grooves can there be on a piece of equipment?"

In actuality, the answer was already shown on his waist sash.

Nevertheless, he wanted to hear the opinion of a true successor.

Fang Xuande answered, "It's subjective. According to a piece of equipment's grade, rank, and material, some can only have one, while some can have three of four grooves."

Ou Yangming could not help but laugh. "Indeed."

He pointed at two spots on the shield and stated, "Based on my observation, these two points are suitable."

The other men looked at each other and were shocked.

It turned out that the young fellow was not troubled. He only wanted to ask a question because he had not stumbled upon treasures with two holes and above.

If that was the case, did it mean that he had really grasped the Hole-searching Art?

Fang Zhaoyang took the shield and closed his eyes before he felt about the shield with his hands.

He had also learned smithing art when he was younger, but he mostly focused on martial arts in his life, which was why he managed to become the clan's Great Supreme Ancestor.

Fang Zhaoyang had also learned his clan's Hole-searching Art before. On top of that, he had never really forgotten about it because it was a secret technique that was handed down to them.

Of course, knowing it was one thing. It was hard to say how many times he had practiced

it.

For a long time…

For a long time…

For a long time…

Fang Zhaoyang finally opened his eyes. As the crowd looked at him eagerly, he pointed on a spot on the shield and said, "This point is right."

Following that, he closed his eyes again and fully focused on calculating and searching. The faces of Fang Zhengde and the other men finally changed, and they looked at Ou Yangming even more strangely than before. That being said, there was also a feeling of deep respect and envy in their looks. 'This young fella is indeed…. Not an ordinary person!

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Chapter 157 Request Again

After half an hour, Fang Zhaoyang finally opened his eyes and was reassured. "Not bad, young fella. You really found both points."

Following that, when he noticed the strange looks on the other people's faces, he asked as a thought crossed his mind, "How long did I take?"

Fang Zhengde cleared his throat and answered, "Great Ancestor, around an hour."

"Huh? An… Hour!" Fang Zhaoyang mumbled and lamented to himself.

'When Ou Yangming found the embedding points earlier, he only took two glances as he turned the shield around. Why did I spend such a long time?'

He shook his head and sighed. "Ah, I'm old and unfit for this now…"

The other people from the Fang family thought, 'Even when you were younger, you weren't that great at the Hole-searching Art. That said, the ability to use time to compensate for your shortcomings and finally finding the accurate points is pretty good.' Fang Zhaoyang pondered and suddenly asked, "Lil' Friend, I have a question to ask."

Ou Yangming was neither humble nor disrespectful as he responded, "Senior, please go ahead."

"This equipment set has already arrived at its limit. In your opinion, how can we improve its combat power?" Fang Zhaoyang asked. Ou Yangming was stunned, but he thought, 'If the pieces of equipment are really in my hands, that won't be the maximum number of attributes that can be held.'

Nonetheless, he could only keep it to himself.

"Great Ancestor, are you going to use the Tool-chiseling Art?" Ou Yangming asked softly.

"Haha, there are certainly two ways to improve pieces of equipment of such level," Fang Zhaoyang replied to him without hesitation and explained seriously, "One is by making a Formation Map Suit where corresponding formation maps are imprinted on the pieces of equipment to produce a wonderful power that increases their overall ability; the other is by embedding gems."

Ou Yangming was slightly moved, and he instantly recalled the Suit Skill that Ni Yunhong[1] used during the smithing challenge. He had secretly studied it in the past, but he ended up gaining nothing. Nevertheless, Fang Zhaoyang had just mentioned the key — formation maps. It seemed like the process was only doable through formation maps.

Fang Zhaoyang added, "The Fang family knows nothing about Formation Map Suits, but we have our own knowledge in the Gem Embedding Art, so we'd like to take this

path."

Ou Yangming nodded. "Senior, you're right. The right thing to do is to make use of advantages and avoid shortcomings." "Very well. Since you approve of this, help me see how many grooves can be chiseled onto these pieces of equipment." Fang Zhaoyang laughed.

Fang Zhengde trembled a little, and he wanted to advise the great ancestor against it. However, he instantly stopped when he noticed the faces of the other elders. He knew very well that Ou Yangming had gained everyone's approval through his capability.

Ou Yangming nodded with a smile and picked up the longbow.

He had just learned the Tool-chiseling Art and wanted to inspect some good pieces of equipment. Since Fang Zhaoyang did not mind, he would not decline the request.

Ou Yangming turned the longbow around to look at it once. He only studied it once, then he looked up and announced while being watched by the other people, "This bow is pretty good, it can have three grooves." "Three grooves?" The faces of the other people changed as they were both surprised and delighted.

Even if they were not a blacksmith, they understood that it was better to have more grooves.

"This isn't right…" Fang Xuande frowned and expressed, "We've already checked it before. The longbow can at most have only two

grooves."

"Let me take a look at it," Fang Zhaoyang said with a deep voice.

Fang Xuande quickly responded, "Ah, it's just a small matter, let me do it."

The other people nodded as well because they felt hopeless at the thought of Fang Zhaoyang's speed earlier.

Despite that, who was Fang Zhaoyang? He pulled a long face and ordered coldly, "Give it to me!"

This time, nobody dared to object to it anymore.

Fang Zhaoyang took the longbow and shut his eyes as he slowly felt around the weapon. The other people exchanged glances and understood what they were all thinking about.

'We can take a nap and come back later…'

Of course, nobody actually left, they did not even show their discontent.

As expected, it was only after an extremely long time — longer than the last — that Fang Zhaoyang pointed on a spot and said, "This is the first one."

The rest of them immediately nodded. Whether it was Fang Xuande, who knew the Hole-searching Art, or Fang Yihai, who knew nothing about it, they shouted, "Great Ancestor, you're impressive." After a long time again, Fang Zhaoyang said, "This is the second one."

Ou Yangming nodded but did not want to speak anymore.

Fang Yihai and the others obviously did not have the guts to be undisciplined in front of their great ancestor. On the other hand, although Ou Yangming did not want to offend the Supreme Great Ancestor because of the time taken, it was impossible for him to put down his pride to flatter the elder.

Once Fang Zhaoyang found two groove spots, he became much slower. He had been feeling the longbow with his fingers for half an hour, but he could not find the third suitable point.

Fang Xuande inched closer to Ou Yangming and asked carefully, "Master Lil' Ou, did you really find three groove spots?"

Ou Yangming replied to him snappily, "Why would I lie to you?"

"But Great Ancestor can't find it…" Fang Xuande responded softly.

Ou Yangming took a step forward and pointed on a spot on the longbow despite being looked at strangely. "It's here!"

Everyone else was taken aback, and Fang Yihai's face took on a ghastly expression. Ou Yangming must be tired of living for being so unrestrained in front of the great ancestor. In spite of that, Fang Zhaoyang had unexpectedly opened his eyes and touched the spot as he mumbled, "How can it be this spot? How can it be… Here? Ah… I understand! Yes, this is indeed the point! Lil' Ou, you're amazing!" He stood up abruptly and laughed out loud.

If Fang Zhaoyang had slowly searched for a longer time, perhaps he still could not find the spot. It was only due to Ou Yangming's reminder that he came to a sudden realization.

Similar to solving a problem, one could not find the answer when one puzzled over the problem for a long time. After knowing the answer and deducing the problem in reverse, it was easily solved.

"Try finding them too." Fang Zhaoyang passed the longbow to Fang Xuande. Fang Xuande had been very impatient, so he quickly focused and calmed down to begin searching

"Are you not satisfied because I'm wasting time?" Fang Zhaoyang asked as he looked around.

"No."

The other people including Ou Yangming subconsciously answered at the same time.

This was because they did not need to think about the answer. If they were to express their dissatisfaction to a Supreme Great Ancestor, they would definitely be punished.

"I'm aware that I'm wasting time when I'm searching the holes, but…" Fang Zhaoyang sighed and glanced at Fang Xuande, who was fully immersed in touching the longbow with his eyes closed. "If I didn't do that, I wouldn't be at ease!"

It was then that the rest of them came to a sudden realization, and Ou Yangming's heart skipped a beat. He finally found out that Fang Zhaoyang valued the matter much more than he had imagined.

Ou Yangming was curious. 'What exactly is the matter that the Supreme Great Ancestor attaches so much importance to?

'Could the Fang family have a secret like the Ni family does?

'And the place is so dangerous that an archer's suit is needed to eradicate demons…'

Ou Yangming shook his head and got rid of the crazy thought. 'I'm really overthinking.'

Fang Zhaoyang said, "Once Xuande is done inspecting it, you may check it too if you're interested. This matter must be done perfectly, without a single flaw."

The other people responded to him, but they did not step forward.

If they did not trust the great ancestor and Fang Xuande, could they trust anyone else?

Fang Xuande stood up after some time, and he looked confused. "It's impossible. I've checked it before, and I clearly found only two possible points on the longbow…"

Ou Yangming cleared his throat and spread out his hands. "Senior Xuande, did you forget that I've upgraded the longbow's equivalent rank?"

"You… When you upgraded it, did you smoothen out the tensions too?" Fang Xuande suddenly looked up in astonishment.

This time, Ou Yangming smiled bitterly.

"I have no idea either." He shook his head and added after some thought, "If I try to do the same again in the future, perhaps I'll find the answer."

Fang Xuande nodded. He suddenly turned around and expressed, "Master Lil' Ou is exceptionally talented, and he's beyond ordinary people. I request that he chisel holes and embed gems in the archer's suit instead, and I hope you'll allow it, Great Ancestor, Patriarch."

A strange atmosphere filled the secret room at once.

Fang Zhaoyang looked deeply at him and questioned, "Does he have a better hold of it than you?"

"Yes, a genius can't be weighed with logical reasoning!" Fang Xuande answered without any hesitation.

Without witnessing Ou Yangming's unbelievable way of searching holes, Fang Zhaoyang and the others would ignore Fang Xuande's request.

However, their doubts were removed after they watched Ou Yangming's performance.

Even if Fang Xuande had not proposed the idea, the others were actually having similar thoughts. When Fang Xuande decided to withdraw himself from the task, they became more certain of the idea.

Fang Zhaoyang nodded and said to Ou Yangming seriously, "Lil' Friend, we need to trouble you again." Everyone else lamented. They had actually figured that they would need to request Ou Yangming's help again in the future if his skills improved such that he could perform quadruple-layering of attributes.

That being said, they did not expect it to happen so quickly.

Moreover, instead of quadruple-layering, they were requesting him to perform the Fang family's secret technique — the Tool-chiseling Art.

Ou Yangming clicked his tongue and wondered, 'What's going on? Why are they asking me for help again? What I did was really… Not too much!

[1] Author made a typo here by writing Ni Yinghong instead of Ni Yunhong. We've corrected it for the context

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Chapter 158 An Old Friend Asked To Meet

Another three days passed before Ou Yangming finally managed to leave the Fang residence and return to the Ni residence.

In actual fact, Ou Yangming had only chiseled holes to make grooves for the seven pieces of equipment throughout the three days. If he had worked at his normal speed, he could actually finish the task within a day.

Nonetheless, the people from the Fang family dared not be too unrestrained. Therefore, Ou Yangming was allowed to rest each time he finished chiseling a hole and was only asked to continue when he was full of spirit and energy again. Ou Yangming had repeatedly told them that he could manage it and that they could trust him.

Even then, everyone from the Fang family persuaded him nicely while they adhered to their own opinion.

As such, Ou Yangming could only stay there helplessly for three days. He quickly left when he was done settling every piece of equipment.

Needless to say, Ou Yangming kept reminding before he left that everything he did and said in the Fang residence must not be spread. Fang Zhaoyang promised him since there was no reason to decline the request.

Even though Ou Yangming had only stayed in the Fang residence for ten days, he had become friends with the powerhouses from the Fang family's higher-ups. He went to meet Old Craftsman as soon as he returned to the Ni residence.

Old Craftsman was in great condition, where he had somewhat returned to his peak state without any sign of aging.

Ou Yangming was extremely satisfied with the Life-prolonging Golden Pill's mighty effect.

After having a meal with Old Craftsman, he was brought to the side room, which had been rebuilt into a smithing workshop. In addition, Ou Yangming could tell at once that the workshop was built with reference to the old man's private workshop in the military camp.

In other words, when Ou Yangming looked at it, he thought they had shifted Old Craftsman's workshop from the military camp. "Look, Eldest Young Lady Ni ordered them to rebuild it." Old Craftsman laughed. "With this smithing workshop here, I won't feel lonely anymore."

Seeing as the smithing workshop was equipped with various materials, Ou Yangming commented, "Old Man, Eldest Young Lady Yinghong has really put in a lot of effort into this!"

Old Craftsman cast a meaningful look at him. "Yes, but she didn't do it for me."

Ou Yangming blushed. "Old Man, you're kidding me."

10L

The old man laughed heartily, but he looked slightly worried after a brief moment. "Young fella, the eldest young lady is nice, but she doesn't match you…"

"What?" Ou Yangming was stunned. He scratched his head and remarked, "Old Man, she's quite a nice person…"

Old Craftsman sighed and responded seriously, "She's the Ni family's eldest young lady, so she has a noble status. On the opposite, you're just an orphan, so how can you deserve her?"

Ou Yangming quickly realized that he had misunderstood the old man earlier.

He smiled embarrassedly. It was reasonable for Old Craftsman to be worried, but the old man had no idea that after he fell sick, Ou Yangming was no longer the little kid that he used to be as he had become independent.

Nevertheless, no matter how great Ou Yangming's achievements were, they could not seem to change Old Craftsman's mind because the old man regarded him as a young fellow who would never grow up. "Old Man, don't worry. As long as you're willing to, I'm definitely going to marry your daughter-in-law!" Ou Yangming patted his chest. "Young fella, it's good to have a desire, but you mustn't do anything wrong…" Old Craftsman's face changed a little, and he warned Ou Yangming softly. Ou Yangming did not know whether to cry or to laugh when he saw how concerned the old man was. 'What are you thinking…'

A loud and clear voice was suddenly heard outside. "Ou Yangming, are you here?"

"Coming!" Ou Yangming quickly called out, and his eyes lit up right away. He even winked at Old Craftsman and said to him softly, "Old Man, I'm going to seduce your daughter-in-law!" Old Craftsman glared at Ou Yangming and wanted to hit him, but the young fellow had already dodged and escaped.

"Forget it. There's no need to worry if it's a blessing, and even if it's a curse, it can't be avoided. Children have to take care of themselves when they grow up, so there's nothing I can do…" The old man shook his head and sighed for a while. When he curbed his thought and looked at the different ores on the table, he felt his hands itch.

Ou Yangming approached Ni Yinghong with brisk footsteps.

Though Ni Yinghong was still dressed like a man at the moment, since Ou Yangming had found out her real identity, she looked charming to him even in that outfit.

Ni Yinghong blushed when he noticed Ou Yangming staring at her with his perceptive eyes. She scoffed. "You finally came back? Hmph, Old Man has been waiting for you for ten days!" Ou Yangming wondered, 'Old Man wouldn't care how long I've been away. I'm sure you're the one who has been missing me…' Of course, he would be a fool to actually say it out loud. He giggled and explained, "The Fang family's archer suit is unusual indeed, so the matter was delayed by a few days." Ni Yinghong's eyes glowed. "How's the archer suit now? Tell me about it."

Ou Yangming did not hide anything from her, hence he told her everything he encountered at the Fang residence.

When Ni Yinghong heard that the five types of equipment in the Fang family had all been triple-layered with attributes, she could not help but feel stunned.

In actuality, if it was the Power or Agility attributes that were attached, it would not be too surprising to use less than a hundred precious ores to complete the task. Both the Fang family and the Ni family could have done it.

However, the Fang family had prepared ores for the Vision and Precision attributes, which were much more valuable. Therefore, even the rich and influential Fang family had to give up on quadruple-layering. Despite that, this was just the beginning.

When Ni Yinghong heard Ou Yangming brag about how he grasped the Hole-searching Art and Hole-chiseling Art during the first time, she wrinkled her nose and looked at him in disdain.

It was clear that she was trying to express how he should not have told her something lame, which could be easily exposed, just to make her happy.

Ou Yangming apprehended her look right away, and he felt a tingling sensation on his scalp.

That said, he knew that the matter sounded like a fantasy indeed, and he would also be dubious if it had not happened to him.

Ou Yangming's eyes wandered about, and he suddenly reached out to hold Ni Yinghong's tender hand.

Ni Yinghong widened her almond eyes, but before she could rage, Ou Yangming pulled her into the old man's smithing workshop.

She struggled for a while, but she dared not be enraged in front of Old Craftsman.

Ni Yinghong could only glare angrily at the shameless rascal as she decided, 'When there's only the two of us the next time, I'll definitely make him… Make him…

'What should I make him do?

'If I punish him too lightly, I can't vent my anger; if I punish him too heavily, what if he really leaves because he can't take it?'

Just as Ni Yinghong was having a dilemma, Ou Yangming let go of her hand.

"Old Man, lend me your equipment."

Ou Yangming noticed the helmet on the platform.

Unquestionably, Old Man had smithed it while Ou Yangming and Ni Yinghong were conversing earlier.

Old Craftsman was dumbfounded when he saw the young fellow pulling the reluctant young lady into the workshop, but before he could reprimand Ou Yangming, he saw him picking up the newly smithed helmet.

The instant Ou Yangming picked it up, the look in his eyes changed.

It took only a split second, but Ou Yangming became incredibly calm and focused. Old Craftsman and Ni Yinghong sensed the change in the atmosphere, so they immediately shut their mouths and watched Ou Yangming attentively.

Ou Yangming turned the helmet in his hands once, then he grinned as he said, "Yinghong, appraise it."

Ni Yinghong pouted her lips and thought, 'Who allowed you to call me by my first name?'

While she complained, she would not make things difficult for Ou Yangming in front of Old Craftsman.

She rubbed her hands to release the Appraisal Light.

Ou Yangming chuckled. As soon as the light went away, the Military Fire burned in his hands and enveloped the helmet.

When the fire disappeared after a brief moment, a groove was seen on the helmet.

Ou Yangming tossed the helmet back to Ni Yinghong. "Appraise it again. How is its quality?"

Ni Yinghong was surprised, but she proceeded to inspect the equipment, and she soon looked like she was in disbelief.

"Y-you actually found the node?"

Ou Yangming responded proudly, "Isn't it just a node? How hard can it be?"

Old Craftsman was stupefied too, and he wondered, 'This young fella actually grasped the legendary Boring Skill too?

'It… Wasn't me who taught him that, right? As thick-faced as the old man was, he had to admit that Ou Yangming had mastered things that were beyond his capability. Ni Yinghong was left in awe, but she was displeased when she noticed the arrogant look on Ou Yangming's face.

She was struck with an idea, and a strange expression was seen on her face. "Brother Ou, something huge happened in our clan when you weren't around these few days."

"What?" Ou Yangming asked curiously.

Ni Yinghong answered with a sweet smile, "Young Master He Liangce came to visit the three great ancestors. He made it through the Testimony Path that was hosted by the ancestors, and he was qualified to enter the Land of Inheritance to cultivate mental power's secret technique!"

Ou Yangming's face changed, and he felt ill at ease when he looked at Ni Yinghong.

"Oh right, where's Big Yellow? Where did it

go?"

"Big Yellow was sent to the Land of Inheritance by the great ancestors a long time ago. I haven't seen it for a long time either." Ni Yinghong was rather regretful.

Ou Yangming nodded. When he was going to speak again, a servant from the Ni family[1] had hurried over to say, "Young Master Ou, a soldier visited and said that he's Sui Hezhi from the West Camp[2]. He asked to meet you!" Following that, the servant glanced at the eldest young lady and expressed anxiously, "If you don't want to meet him, I'll ask him to leave."

"No, I'll go meet him now," Ou Yangming quickly responded although he was slightly startled.

That being said, he somehow had a bad feeling about this.

[1] The author originally wrote 'the Fang family' here, but they're at the Ni residence, so the servant couldn't have come from the Fang family. We've corrected it for the context

[2] The author originally wrote 'South Camp' here, but Sui Hezhi is from the West Camp. We've corrected it for the context

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Chapter 159 Help

Ou Yangming met his old friend, who had not shown up for a long time, in the living room.

Sui Hezhi was considered a notable figure as he was a part of the Guards in the West Camp. Although he was not on par with the squad leaders from the Guards of the five camps, he was not inferior to squad leaders who were not from the Guards.

Back then, he had made things a little difficult for Ou Yangming when they exchanged blows, but he gave a wild beast to Ou Yangming every ten days from then on in exchange for their friendship.

Nonetheless, as Ou Yangming became more capable than anyone had expected, and as he crossed paths with people with higher rankings, they no longer contacted each other.

If Ou Yangming was still in the Immense Forest Military Camp, perhaps they would have conversed for a while if they met.

However, the fact that Sui Hezhi had suddenly visited Ou Yangming in the prefecture could only mean that something was off.

Both of them lamented when they saw each other, especially Sui Hezhi, who had somewhat watched Ou Yangming rose to an unreachable height in a short span of time. Even though Ou Yangming was still polite when they reunited, Sui Hezhi knew very well that there was a huge disparity between them, and they could not be like how they used to be.

"Brother Sui, when did you arrive at the prefecture?" Ou Yangming asked with a smile.

Sui Hezhi quickly answered, "Master Ou, I was ordered to come here three days ago." Ou Yangming furrowed his eyebrows. "Brother Ou, we're old friends, so you don't have to be so constrained, and you don't have to call me a master. Remember, we're always friends."

Sui Hezhi felt a warmth in his heart. It did not matter if Ou Yangming was being sincere or not because the fact that he said that was enough to make Sui Hezhi feel deeply touched.

"Master Ou, thank you for remembering me." Sui Hezhi nodded and was rather anxious. "We were still thinking – if you ignore us, we really don't know what to do anymore." "What?" Ou Yangming frowned and asked, "What do you mean 'we'? What happened?"

"By we I meant our brothers from the Immense Forest Military Camp, who have come to the prefecture," Sui Hezhi answered sternly, then asked after some hesitation, "Master Ou, do you still remember Jiang Chengwei?"

me

Ou Yangming's eyes moved a little. He instantly recalled the fearless archer and squad leader from the Middle Camp, who had protected him even if it cost his life.

There were very few people in the Immense Forest Military Camp who was a squad leader and an archer at the same time. Besides, Jiang Chengwei had died because of Ou Yangming, so how could Ou Yangming forget him?

Seeing as he nodded slowly, Sui Hezhi asked in a careful way, "Master Ou, do you know Squad Leader Jiang's family?"

"I heard him say that he had applied for home leave to visit his family in the prefecture. He has a younger sister…" Ou Yangming responded, and his face darkened at once. "Could it be that his family is in trouble?"

Sui Hezhi nodded and was glad.

In actuality, after he had asked to meet Ou Yangming and brought up Jiang Chengwei, he was waiting to see Ou Yangming's reaction.

If the young master was unmindful, Sui Hezhi would be dispirited, and he would not talk about the matter further.

When he saw Ou Yangming's reaction, his heart burned with fire.

"Master Ou, help!" Sui Hezhi stood up abruptly and kowtowed at Ou Yangming. Ou Yangming was taken aback, so he immediately reached out his hand to help him up. "Brother Sui, what are you doing? Quickly get up!"

Sui Hezhi initially wanted to kneel until Ou Yangming agreed to help, but he felt a huge power when Ou Yangming helped him up.

In terms of power only, Sui Hezhi was not inferior to Ou Yangming at all. Nevertheless, when he tried to resist the force, his power had strangely reversed and was offset by his follow-up force. Subsequently, Sui Hezhi was somehow lifted by Ou Yangming.

As for how exactly Sui Hezhi had gotten up…

He was still puzzled even when he was already standing.

Sui Hezhi looked at Ou Yangming in astonishment and exhaled deeply. The present Ou Yangming had indeed become a figure who was beyond his reach.

He recalled the times when he exchanged blows with Ou Yangming and taught the blacksmith the military's first technique and blade art.

Those scenes seemed so vivid at the moment, but they were already gone with the wind.

Despite that, Sui Hezhi curbed his emotions at once. "Master Ou, please save Squad Leader Yan!"

Ou Yangming twitched his mouth as he wondered, 'What are you talking about?

'You were just talking about Jiang Chengwei's family, but now you're suddenly talking about Yan Haobo. The change is too fast.'

"Ah, Brother Sui, what exactly happened? Tell me slowly."

Perhaps Sui Hezhi was influenced by Ou Yangming's composure, he finally recollected himself.

Following that, Ou Yangming found out the entire matter through the soldier.

After Jiang Chengwei and the other soldiers died in the fight, the Middle Camp, the South Camp, and the West Camp had given a pension each. The Middle Camp and the South Camp were obliged to do it because their men had died, but the West Camp's pension came from Chen Yifan's own pocket.

General Chen considered himself as ou Yangming's master, hence he had a favorable impression of the soldiers, who died protecting his disciple.

Since Jiang Chengwei was from the prefecture, his pension was naturally given to the military camp in the prefecture to be passed on. On top of that, Chen Yifan had somehow lost his mind as he even ordered his Guards to visit the family members of the deceased soldiers. If the family members had reasonable requests, he would act at his own discretion.

When the general gave the order, someone naturally had to run the errand.

Yan Haobo was the squad leader who was instructed to come to the prefecture, and given that he was coming to the prefecture, Liu Zhengye had asked him to bring Sui Hezhi, who was friends with Ou Yangming, along.

They initially thought that it was going to be a regular trip of an official duty.

However, when they arrived at the address given by Jiang Chengwei before he passed, they were shocked.

The residence was no longer occupied by Jiang Chengwei's family, but by a few unrelated strangers.

When Yan Haobo questioned the strangers, not only did they deny all knowledge of the matter, but they also remarked disdainfully, "How dare a squad leader from a remote military camp drop in? You have a death wish!'

Yan Haobo was very well-experienced, thus he instantly left and asked around.

Jiang Chengwei and his younger sister had been depending on each other. Apart from the ancestral house, they did not possess anything valuable. Before Jiang Chengwei joined the military, he and his younger sister had been living poorly. Fortunately, Jiang Chengwei gained a firm foothold in the military due to his martial arts background, so he was able to live a better life with his younger sister. That said, everything changed after he died in the fight.

Three days after the bad news came, someone visited his younger sister and insisted on selling their house.

Jiang Chengwei's younger sister was obviously unwilling to sell it, but the people threatened her to choose between the house or her life.

Therefore, the house's owner changed on the fifth day. As for Jiang Chengwei's lonely younger sister, she was nowhere to be found.

At the very least, nobody had seen her, and nobody knew her whereabouts.

Yan Haobo was infuriated after finding out what had happened. Though Jiang Chengwei was the Middle Camp's squad leader and was not directly related to the West Camp, the Immense Forest Military Camp was not that huge, so they used to have a nodding acquaintance. Moreover, the soldiers had always adopted a hostile attitude toward people who bullied soldiers.

As such, Yan Haobo immediately barged into the house.

Nonetheless, the men were already on guard such that five Yin Grade martial artists attacked when Yan Haobo and Sui Hezhi entered.

Yan Haobo made a prompt decision by letting Sui Hezhi break out of the encirclement, and he ended up resisting the five martial artists on his own. While Yan Haobo fought with a desperate attempt to cause destruction to both sides, he had fallen into enemy hands in the end.

Sui Hezhi thought about Ou Yangming as soon as he escaped. If Ou Yangming wanted to stay out of the matter or his hands were tied, Sui Hezhi could only hurry back to the Immense Forest Military Camp to report to the general. Ou Yangming closed his eyes after hearing the whole story.

He was expressionless, but Sui Hezhi somehow sensed a hair-raising chill as if the temperature around them lowered.

'I applied for home leave as I'm visiting my younger sister in the prefecture.

"Okay, it's a blessing to be able to travel with you, Master Ou.

'Boom –

The insignificant squad leader had used Heaven and Earth as its bow, and his body as the arrow. He shot the most dazzling arrow in his life.

ero

The explosive arrow on his body soon exploded, causing numerous steel shards to burst in all directions. Additionally, there was a drizzle of blood in that area.

As Ou Yangming kept his eyes shut, his eyes became bloodshot as the tragic scene surfaced again.

Amidst the flesh and blood, Ou Yangming even saw the head and the face of the squad leader, who did not die in peace and looked like he was asking him a question.

'I was the one who invited Jiang Chengwei to travel together, and he died without his corpse intact in order to protect me.

'But I actually forgot about his family.' An intense feeling of regret bit Ou Yangming's nerves, and a fire burned his heart like it was going to turn him into ashes.

"Brother Sui, has Squad Leader Yan been captured?"

"Yes," Sui Hezhi answered involuntarily as he shivered.

"Is Squad Leader Jiang's younger sister still missing?"

"Yes."

"She's likely in a terrible spot, right?"

Sui Hezhi hesitated for a while, but he answered, "Yes."

Although it had not been confirmed, and there was no proof that she was already dead, they believed that the weak lady who lost her older brother's protection had unlikely survived.

Ou Yangming finally opened his eyes, which were full of intense and undisguised killing intent.

"Let's go!"

Sui Hezhi was dumbfounded. "Where to?"

Ou Yangming smirked. "Where you came from is where we're going!"

Sui Hezhi followed him nervously, but for some reason, his footsteps were steadier, and he was feeling more thrilled.

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Chapter 160 Cruel And Merciless

Martial Arts Alley.

It was on a street in the prefecture for the middle-class. The people who lived here were not as wealthy as the Ni family and the Fang family, which were inherited clans, but they were much better than the people who lived in slums.

When Ou Yangming and Sui Hezhi arrived at the Martial Arts Alley, they heard a clamor.

A few big men, who were dressed like runners, guarded the alley to disallow anyone from passing. By looking from outside the alley, Ou Yangming and Sui Hezhi could see that the floor was covered in blood.

Ou Yangming raised his eyebrow and felt his blood boil. He strode into the alley.

"Who are you? Stand right there!" One of the runner's face changed and shouted while he swiftly swung a metal rod at Ou Yangming's shoulder.

"Hmph!"

Ou Yangming scoffed and tilted his body a little to dodge the rod wonderfully, then he leaned forward.

The runner, who had lost his footing, screamed and was sent flying such that he crashed into his partner behind him. The two of them instantly groaned and rolled on the ground like gourds.

As a result of the noise, the people inside were alerted, but before they had come out, Ou Yangming and Sui Hezhi entered the house.

After Ou Yangming entered the house, Ou Yangming understood why they were daring enough to want to murder someone for money.

The house was a great place indeed. Not only did it have a spacious courtyard and a few rooms, but the buildings were also handled with care. The place was marvelous, but it gave off a special feeling of peace. If a weak lady lost the protection of a powerful older brother, it would be difficult for her to protect the property.

A few men quickly surrounded them. Apart from the few runners, there were also three men, who were dressed like martial artists, and a plump middle-aged man.

"It's him, yes, it's him!" The middle-aged man's eyes lit up at the sight of Sui Hezhi and was elated. "Constable Yang, this fella is one of the bad guys who trespassed the private property. Quickly arrest him and interrogate him by torture! Ah, there's another b*stard here, arrest…"

Before he could finish, his vision became blurry. The young man, whom he regarded as a b*stard, had unexpectedly appeared in front of him.

"Be careful!"

"Dodge!"

The voices that were suddenly heard suggested to the middle-aged man that something was off. Nonetheless, he heard a gust of wind before he could even react.

Following that, the middle-aged man's body involuntarily flew up and turned one round in the air before he fell hard to the ground. The middle-aged man felt an immense pain on his face while he was also dizzy from the fall, and the pain quickly turned numb such that half of his body lost sensitivity.

Constable Yang and the three martial artists charged at the same time, but Ou Yangming had attacked swiftly, decisively, and mercilessly. Therefore, even though the men gave their all, they could not manage to save their friend.

The four of them felt their faces burn as well, and they tried to grab Ou Yangming at the same time with the intention to take down the fanatic.

Nevertheless, Ou Yangming suddenly roared, "The military is capturing gangsters, and anyone in the way — including their family members — will be killed!"

His voice was like deafening thunder in the void that subsequently shook their minds.

Not to mention Constable Yang subconsciously slowed down, the three martial artists froze as well.

Despite that, Ou Yangming did not slow down. He lowered his body and went close to the inner arm of one of the martial artists, then launched a hit with his fist like a venomous snake that came out of a cave to catch its prey. He punched at such perfect timing, which was when the man was hesitating. In addition, Ou Yangming's body movement was unpredictable, so it was impossible for the man to guard against him. The martial artist only had the cultivation base of Yin Grade Class One, hence he was punched in the neck before he could even react.

A loud sound was heard, then the man's body instantly went weak. Ou Yangming's punch was merciless as it simply decided the man's fate. Just as the man wanted to dodge, he was already killed.

"Little Brother!" Another martial artist widened his eyes and shouted sorrowfully as he pounced on the man regardless of the cost. However, Ou Yangming dragged and pushed the corpse away without batting an eyelid.

The other martial artist was mournful, but he subconsciously hugged his brother's body, and it was then when he felt a throbbing pain on his abdomen. When the martial artist lowered his head to look, he saw a dagger being stabbed through his and his brother's abdomen.

He recognized the dagger because it was his brother's weapon.

Ou Yangming had dragged the corpse earlier to pull out the dagger, and he used the dead body as a cover to stab the dagger through it to injure the other martial artist. On top of that, Ou Yangming shook his wrist to channel surging essential Qi into the martial artist's body, causing the man's internal organs to disintegrate.

Having suffered such injuries, even God could not save the martial artist.

The remaining martial artist turned pale and was frightened. His cultivation base was similar to his companions', and he had thought that they would be fine if they attacked together. That said, his partners had died in the blink of an eye, hence he shivered in fear with knees that had gone weak.

Constable Yang gasped. Being a constable, he had seen plenty of fierce people. Even then, he had only encountered very few who were cruel, merciless, and could kill with one fatal move.

"Who are you? Aren't you afraid of being wanted by the authorities for killing innocent people?" The constable backed away and yelled. He sounded fierce, but he was standing in a defensive stance; ready to retreat at any time.

"Wanted?" Ou Yangming sneered. "Sui Hezhi, were these three men involved?"

Sui Hezhi was dumbfounded. He had witnessed the skills of the few men and knew that they were more than just mediocre, but they were weak against Ou Yangming and were killed almost instantly.

After being asked loudly by Ou Yangming, Sui Hezhi quickly answered, "Yes, they were all involved!"

"Very well! According to the law, their heads should be chopped off for attacking and killing a serving military officer, and their family members will suffer the same fate!" Ou Yangming said with a deep voice, then he roared like a killing god at the last martial artist. "Do you want to be seized, or do you want to be killed?"

When Ou Yangming questioned, his mental power suddenly burst out. Although it could not cause physical damage, it became an enormous mental pressure.

The martial artist collapsed due to fear, and he trembled so much that he could not even let a word out.

In actual fact, while Ou Yangming's mental power posed a certain pressure on the man, it would not be extremely fearsome.

Nonetheless, he had attacked ruthlessly earlier and killed two men without warning. As such, his malicious act was more effective than words and pressure, by which the last martial artist was already shaking with a palsy of fright.

Ou Yangming sneered and turned to say, "Constable Yang, seeing as we share imperial funds and goods, I won't kill you, but if you dare to interfere, don't blame me!"

Constable Yang's face was as white as a sheet. He mumbled, "Wh-which military camp are you from? What military order are you serving?"

"You don't deserve to know," Ou Yangming uttered coldly. He later ignored the constable and approached the plump middle-aged man.

Constable Yang's face was green and white, but he felt a chill when he looked at the corpses on the floor. When he looked at his terrified followers behind him, he no longer wanted to push his luck.

He had actually guessed the reason behind this matter when Ou Yangming brought up the military, thus he got rid of the idea to stop the fight. When one brought evil upon oneself, there would be no hope of escape, after all…

When Ou Yangming cast a cold look at the plump man, the man quivered out of fear and shouted, "Mi-Military Master! I'm an officer from the Liang family. Please spare me, this has nothing to do with me…"

Even the Yin Grade martial artist had sprawled on the floor due to Ou Yangming's ruthlessness, let alone this middle-aged man who obviously lived a comfortable life.

Ou Yangming said slowly, "I've come on military orders to investigate an important matter, and you'll answer me when I ask. If you answer well, I'll spare you; if you don't, you'll end up like them."

"Yes, yes!"

"What's your name?"

"Liang Jiafu, my name is Liang Jiafu, and I'm an officer from the Liang residence." He kept bringing up the Liang residence, which was evident that he was strongly hopeful about it.

Ou Yangming scorned. "Where's the squad leader who was captured by accident?".

"In the cellar, he's in the cellar!" Liang Jiafu replied to him tearfully, "We didn't plan to hurt him as we only wanted to scare him away, but he insisted on attacking us, so we were left with no choice!"

"Where are the two other men who also attacked him?" Ou Yangming continued to ask.

"They're on duty today, so they've returned."

Ou Yangming signaled Sui Hezhi with his eyes, but he quickly asked, "You're just an officer, so how did you hire five Yin Grade masters to set an ambush?"

"Military Master, when your comrades came and asked around for information, I was naturally informed, so I only hired them to protect myself." Ou Yangming casually asked a few questions, and he asked so quickly that the man had no time to think.

At the spur of the moment, Ou Yangming questioned, "Where's the original female owner here? Did you kill her?"

"No!" Liang Jiafu subconsciously blurted, but he quickly reacted and explained, "Military Master, we really didn't kill anyone! We only scared the lady away, but she went missing in the end."

"Master Ou, I found him!"

Sui Hezhi shouted in excitement as he carried Yan Haobo and ran over.

Yan Haobo was obviously severely injured because he could not use his limbs, but as long as he was still alive, Ou Yangming could heal him.

Ou Yangming's ears twitched a little, and he uttered coldly, "Return to the camp!" "What?" Sui Hezhi asked as he was startled

Ou Yangming did not explain and simply ran away after carrying Yan Haobo. Sui Hezhi was confused, but he followed the young fellow.

Liang Jiafu sighed a breath of relief because he managed to survive.

On the other hand, Constable Yang had a grave expression on his face because he had a vague feeling that this was not the end, and a bigger storm might be coming.

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