“Brother Ou, you’re finally out.” Ni Yunhong walked over to them quickly.
He was not a soldier, but due to his identity as the Ni family’s eldest young master, there were rarely any places in Changlong County that were out of bounds for him. As such, the young master could enter and leave the military camp freely.
Ou Yangming’s eyes lit up, and he asked in a hurry, “Brother Ni, has Elder Sister Ying returned?”
Ni Yunhong paused for a while, then he nodded but did not look too well.
“What happened to Elder Sister Ying? Is she…” Ou Yangming’s heart sank.
“My younger sister is well, can you not curse her?!” Ni Yunhong glared at him.
Ou Yangming could not help but roll his eyes. ‘Your expression earlier is the real culprit, okay!’
“Ah…” Ni Yunhong sighed and continued, “Great Ancestor took her away as soon as she came back.”
“Oh, where did they go?”
“I have no idea either.” Ni Yunhong spread out his hands, and he looked rather dispirited. “I realized that I’m not as popular as my younger sister now.”
Ou Yangming did not know to cry or to laugh. “Elder Sister Ying is your younger sister, okay? Do you have to be envious of her?”
Ni Yunhong shook his head. “I’m not envious of her, I just… I’ll work hard to catch up to you!”
The difference between the two young men was not too huge when they first met, but there was now a huge disparity. Therefore, it was inevitable for Ni Yunhong to feel dismayed.
Ou Yangming chuckled and responded, “Okay, I’ll work hard to not let you catch up to me!”
Ni Yunhong was displeased. “If you continue to work hard, aren’t you cutting off any means of survival for me?”
Ou Yangming laughed out loud as he was quite cheerful.
Since Ni Yinghong had returned safely and was together with the Ni family’s great ancestor, there was no need for him to worry.
That being said, Ou Yangming was still deeply troubled by something, and he would feel uncomfortable if he did not raise the question. “Brother Ni, do you know what ‘Iron Blood Loyal Heart, sacrificing for a noble cause’ means?”
“What?” Ni Yunhong replied to him with another question.
“Nothing.” Ou Yangming spread out his hands. There was no need for him to ask further questions if Ni Yunhong knew nothing about it.
He suddenly turned around to ask, “Captain Wang, do you happen to know about it?”
Wang Leshui’s face took on a ghastly expression when Ou Yangming inquired about the phrase just now. The expression was gone in a flash, but Ou Yangming saw it clearly.
“Master Ou, this…” Wang Leshui smiled bitterly. Ou Yangming said without any hesitation, “Captain Wang, this is extremely important to me. If you know anything, I hope you’ll answer me honestly.”
Being faced with Ou Yangming’s sharp eyes, the smile on Wang Leshui’s face became more bitter.
The captain looked around them and lowered his voice. “Master Ou, frankly speaking, I’ve heard of the phrase, but I don’t know much about it. If you wish to find out, there’s someone you can ask.” Ou Yangming’s eyes glowed. “Who?” “Elder Universe,” Wang Leshui was solemn. “I guarantee that nobody knows this better than Elder Universe does.”
“Thank you, Captain Wang.” Ou Yangming looked deeply at the captain, then he turned to nod at Ni Yunhong and left.
Ni Yunhong looked at Ou Yangming dumbfoundedly, then he took a glance at Wang Leshui. He kept feeling like he was excluded.
Wang Leshui sighed and waved at someone else to serve Ni Yunhong, whereas he left to look for Li Xinfan.
After Li Xinfan found out about what happened earlier, he had a grim look on his face. The Supreme Great Ancestor looked in the distance, and he was looking at the direction of the Immense Forest Military Camp.
“No… This timing is wrong! Is the beast tide going to happen earlier this time?”
The general pondered then instructed with a straight face, “Leshui, ask Chen Yifan to get his *ss back to the Immense Forest Military Camp now. Let him dispatch the armaments and keep an eye on the immense forest; they need to be ready to dispatch soldiers at any time!”
Wang Leshui was hesitant. “Sir, General Chen is still holding on to the spear, and he’s not willing to leave…”
“Hmph! Tell him that I’ll personally snatch the magic tool away if he still fools around. When that happens, let’s see if he can still keep the spear!”
“Yes!” Wang Leshui shivered and left right away.
Despite that, he felt a strong sense of crisis where the impending event would cast their shadows before them.
Chapter 226 - A Catastrophe That Happens Every Hundred Years
The mysterious Elder Universe was probably the only person in the prefecture who could occupy a huge area of land for a vegetable farm.
Most of the people on the farm were ordinary people, whereas people from different forces dared not extend their forces into that area.
Ou Yangming hastened to the vegetable farm. Just as he was looking for someone to inform the elder of his arrival, the faces of the people who saw him changed, and they immediately fled.
‘Do I look that scary?’ Ou Yangming was puzzled as he touched his face.
Since he could not find anyone to deliver the message, and he did not want to waste time outside, he stomped his foot and entered the farm without permission.
As soon as Ou Yangming stepped into the courtyard, he sensed unusual energy brushing past him. It was a mental power scan, which was automatically activated as though he had touched a switch when he entered.
Ou Yangming furrowed his eyebrows because he sensed a familiar feeling from the power.
It was not that he was familiar with the mental power’s source; he was familiar with its operation mode.
The Runes Secret Technique.
It was definitely an operation mode for the Runes Secret Technique.
Ou Yangming was struck with a thought, ‘Could Elder Universe be a great Runes Master
too?”
“Hmph, why have you come?” A familiar voice was heard as Elder Universe had unknowingly appeared near Ou Yangming.
Ou Yangming shivered a little because he did not realize how the elder had appeared.
Needless to say, had he already been on guard and entered the integration of Heaven and man, as well as the thoroughly meticulous state, he certainly would have noticed. Nonetheless, Ou Yangming did not do that recklessly because it would mean that he was challenging Elder Universe’s authority.
The young fellow took a deep breath and greeted, “Greetings, senior.”
“You’re excused.” Elder Universe looked at him in confusion and asked, “Why did you come here by yourself? You’re not here to set a fire, are you?”
“It looks like the elder regards me as an arsonist.’ Ou Yangming’s face darkened a bit. Nevertheless, when he recalled the previous incident, he felt like he had brought this upon himself.
Ou Yangming cleared his throat. “Elder Sister Ying is in isolated cultivation with her elder, so I came here alone.”
Elder Universe studied him for a while and said, “Young fella, did that little girl tell you that you can’t come in here as you wish? Heh, the last person who came in was a young fella in Extreme Grade. Do you know how he ended?”
‘A young fella in Extreme Grade?’ Ou Yangming was stunned.
He smiled bitterly. “Senior, I initially wanted to ask someone to inform you of my arrival, but they fled far away the moment they saw me. I can’t force them, so I could only enter without permission. Please forgive me, senior.”
Elder Universe scoffed. “When you set the fire back then, you made it look like a devil had reincarnated, so it’s natural that the ordinary people became afraid of you.” ‘If you recruited a few martial artists, the awkward situation wouldn’t have happened,’ Ou Yangming cursed while he forced a smile. Out of curiosity, h
e questioned, “Senior, what should the other people do if they can’t make their presence known?”
“Of course they’ll have to wait outside.” Elder Universe rolled his eyes.
“How long do they have to wait?”
“It depends on my mood. If I’m not in a good mood, they’ll have to wait forever,” Elder Universe answered casually.
‘Is that appropriate?’ Ou Yangming twitched his mouth. Despite that, when he thought about how the elder referred to a Supreme Great Ancestor as a young fella in Extreme Grade, it seemed like everything else did not matter.
Elder Universe waved his hand. “Forget it, forget it. You’re as dumb as a cow, I wonder what the little girl sees in you. Hmph, what do you have to say? Tell me quickly and get lost after that!” Ou Yangming instantly curbed his thought and asked, “Senior, I’d like to ask—what does ‘the man possesses Iron Blood Loyal Heart while the lady sacrifices for a noble cause’ mean?”
“What’?” Elder Universe tensed up abruptly, and his eyes looked fierce at that moment.
A mighty and irresistible power spread in the void at that instant. It was Elder Universe’s aura, which was as heavy as a mountain, and it was spreading far and wide without being restrained at all.
Ou Yangming quivered and subconsciously entered the state of the integration of Heaven and man.
Inside his spiritual world, he somewhat sensed a wall.
It was a wall gathered from one’s aura. Not even the slightest gap could be found on the wall, and it was incredibly terrifying because it was about to crush him.
Ou Yangming’s face changed, and he identified right away that he would not end well if he fought the aura rashly.
Without having to think, Ou Yangming’s essence, energy, and spirit rose once more. Everything around him seemed to have undergone a subtle change, even the wall of aura was approaching him at a slower speed.
It was the thoroughly meticulous state. After having entered the microscopic world numerous times, Ou Yangming had better control over the wonderful power.
The wall of aura still existed and the enormous pressure did not reduce, but Ou Yangming could now spot the cracks and weak points on the wall.
Bacteria, which was invisible to the naked eye, was plainly visible under a microscope.
Similarly, Ou Yangming seemed to be wearing microscopic glasses when he entered the thoroughly meticulous state. As such, the world that he saw was entirely different from the world through an ordinary person’s eyes.
Ou Yangming’s body began to shake at an extremely strange frequency. In just one breath, he swayed more than ten times from different angles.
Of course, from a normal person’s point of view, he had only swayed once.
That said, the sway was all it took for a fearsome wall of aura to penetrate his body, and it could no longer affect him.
Even though Ou Yangming passed the test, deep down he was in awe of Elder Universe.
The elder’s aura alone was so powerful that it was even tougher for Ou Yangming to resist than Chen Dishou’s spear. Was a Supreme Great Ancestor at the peak of Extreme Grade that frightening?
Elder Universe’s aura did not go on for long. He shook his head and came back to his senses, then his aura disappeared as he glanced at Ou Yangming. However, he had an unexplainable look in his eyes.
“Your reaction is pretty good; you didn’t take even half a step back when you were faced with my aura.” Elder Universe laughed and remarked, “Most of the young fellas in Extreme Grade can’t withstand it.”
Ou Yangming flashed a smile and said, “I was just lucky. I’m still far from you, senior.”
Elder Universe sneered. “Why did you ask me that?”
Ou Yangming hesitated because he did not know how to explain himself.
Even so, Elder Universe seemed to have guessed it. He asked slowly, “Did the He family from Linlang County send someone here already?” “You really know!” Ou Yangming looked up in a flash.
“I don’t just know about it. Heh, I’m afraid that I’m the only person who truly experienced what Linlang County and Changlong County went through.” Elder Universe sighed.
Ou Yangming bowed deeply at the elder. “Senior, please enlighten me.” Elder Universe shook his head. “Since you already know and have come to ask me about it, could that… Could that little girl be the lady this time?” Ou Yangming was anxious, but he dared not urge Elder Universe.
The elder pondered and raised a question, “Young fella, do you know where the immense forest at Changlong County’s border leads to?”
“I don’t.” Ou Yangming shook his head dumbfoundedly.
“Heh, for countless years, nobody knew where the depths of the immense forest led to,” Elder Universe noted with a deep voice, “but once in every hundred years, a spirit beast will come and drive large groups of ferocious beasts out the forest to invade the Humans’ territories. We call it the beast tide, and it’s the greatest disaster that threatens the Humans.”
Ou Yangming inhaled deeply and asked, “I’ve stayed in the Immense Forest Military Camp for a long time, but why have I never heard of
it?”
Elder Universe chuckled. “The beast tide occurs once in a hundred years, so most ordinary people won’t encounter it at all. If that’s the case, why should we let them live in fear?”
Ou Yangming was struck dumb because he realized that it was reasonable.
“Senior, what exactly are spirit beasts? I’ve seen many half-spirit beasts, but how are spirit beasts as compared to them?” Ou Yangming inquired about the creatures.
“Spirit beasts are powerful beings that are detached from the world’s power. They’re so mighty that the world can no longer accommodate them.” Elder Universe took a slight glance at Ou Yangming, then he looked in the distance with hollow eyes. “Every spirit beast is a disaster!”
Elder Universe’s strength was considered by Ou Yangming to be unfathomable. In that case, how powerful would something that is called a disaster by the elder be? For some reason, a chilly intent rose from Ou Yangming’s heart and his spine began to turn cold.
Ou Yangming uttered as he was moved, “I understand.”
“You understand?” Elder Universe had a strange look on his face. “What did you understand?”
“I learned the Suit Runes Skill from the Ni family and found that they came up with the Runes Secret Technique, which could upgrade Common Grade arm guards into Good Grade arm guards. However, instead of profiting from it, they searched for ways to present the technique to Master Lu and even promoted it in the military,” Ou Yangming expressed, “I couldn’t understand why they did that, but now I do.”
Elder Universe giggled. “When a bird’s nest is overturned, no egg can remain intact; the three fellas from the Ni family are well aware of this.”
Ou Yangming nodded then suddenly focused and spoke sternly, “Senior, since the spirit beasts appear once in a hundred years, the Humans surely have a way to resist them. Could it be related to the He family and the Ni family?”
Elder Universe stared at the young fellow and responded with a grim look, “You’re right. The He family’s man possessed Iron Blood Loyal Heart while the Ni family’s lady sacrifices herself for a noble cause; this is the only way for Changlong and Linlang to kill the spirit beasts.”
Chapter 227 - I Want To Kill The Spirit Beast
Ou Yangming’s face took on an extremely ghastly expression. By now, as foolish as he was, he knew the real reason the Ni family’s Three Great Ancestors were so ambiguous and hesitant even after he put in so much effort.
The young fellow spared no effort in asserting himself for Ni Yinghong.
Whether it was the smithing of magic tools, martial arts cultivation base, or the comprehension of nature, Ou Yangming vividly displayed his potential.
In actuality, in terms of the smithing of magic tools alone, he was already a priceless treasure.
As long as he said a word and was willing to p
rovide a magic tool, even a formidable Supreme Great Ancestor would be willing to handle affairs for him.
Even so, once He Liangce visited, there was a 180-degree change in the Ni family’s great ancestors’ attitudes. Although they did not reject Ou Yangming, the fact that they let him travel with He Liangce and Ni Yinghong into the dense forest was enough to show their standpoint.
Ou Yangming had been indignant about it for a long time and had cursed the great ancestors for being evil wolves that were never content with what they were given.
It was not until today when he finally realized that he had wronged the elders. If the great ancestors only considered their selfish desires or the benefits for their clan, they would not need to choose between Ou Yangming and He Liangce.
Nonetheless, in order to face the upcoming beast tide and to eliminate the spirit beast, which was so mighty that it was also feared by Elder Universe, the great ancestors were forced to make a different choice.
Ou Yangming did not know what to feel at that moment. It was inevitable for him to feel resentful toward the Ni family’s great ancestors, but he also vaguely admired them.
If he was in their shoes, could he have done the same?
“I heard that the He family’s eldest young master has come to the prefecture, so he’s probably the He family’s candidate for the Iron Blood Loyal Heart. Ah, among the ladies from the Ni family, that little girl is unquestionably the most outstanding one among her peers, so she probably can’t… Escape from the disaster,” Elder Universe stated with a deep voice.
“Senior, He Liangce only has the cultivation base of Yang Grade, and Elder Sister Ying’s cultivation base can be overlooked. Even if they join hands, I’m afraid that their effort will be to no avail, am I not right?” Ou Yangming curbed his thought and responded.
Elder Universe looked deeply at him and said, “You know, there’s a rule in the immense forest-a Human Supreme Great Ancestor can’t enter the forest. Do you know why?”
Ou Yangming shook his head. “I don’t.”
“It’s because the immense forest is mysterious and has endless magical effects. Once a Human Supreme Great Ancestor enters, his or her aura will be absorbed and be fed back to ferocious beasts in the forest, stimulating the birth of a batch of great-ancestor-level half-spirit beasts.” Elder Universe chuckled. “This is why a Human great ancestor never steps foot in the immense forest unless the beast tide happens.”
Immortal Path to Heaven c1-725 Page 135
