Ou Yangming and his companions arrived at the Governor’s Residence. As compared to Feng Yiyuan and the others, who were relaxed and did not seem to be concerned about the disaster caused by the Aquatics, the residence had an undercurrent and was filled with an extremely suppressive aura.
After stating their purpose of visitation, Ou Yangming and his fellows were denied entry as the person-in-charge used the excuse that Peng Huachi was unconscious. Ou Yangming could sense that the people here were on guard against him.
He was not insistent, hence he went to the general’s residence but faced the same outcome. At this point, as self-restrained as he was, he could not help but become a little enraged.
They were not in Changlong City so instead of letting the goshawk stay inside the city, Ou Yangming ordered it to gather with Multi-armed King Kong. In any case, the 5-kilometers distance was a piece of cake for the gigantic beasts, thus they could get to the young fellow right away if he summoned them.
Feng Yiyuan arranged incredibly luxurious rooms for Ou Yangming and his companions. In fact, even the Ni family’s compound in Changlong City was inferior.
Even so, Ou Yangming’s smile disappeared after he entered the courtyard and asked the servants to leave.
“Elder Brother, they went overboard!” Jiang Jiumei was the first to speak her mind. “Are they trying to hide the truth from the public?”
Ni Yinghong wanted to say something but was hesitant. She did not know in detail her great ancestors’ plan, but she more or less knew something. Different clans in Changlong County had come together and were somewhat going to turn their governor and commanding general into figureheads. The same situation was even more obvious in Canghai County, by which the governor and the commanding general appointed by the imperial family were unconscious. Moreover, the fact that they were disallowed from receiving foreign visitors showed that they were likely fraught with grim possibilities.
Ou Yangming waved his hand and said, “Jiumei, don’t simply say things if you don’t know that truth.”
“Yes.” Jiang Jiumei pouted her lips. She was unhappy, but she did not want to make him angry.
“Elder Brother, what should we do next?”
“We came to slaughter the Aquatics’ spirit beast. As long as we complete our task, we’ll leave the city,” Ou Yangming answered in a deep voice.
“Huh? We’ll leave?” Jiang Jiumei widened her eyes as she was shocked. The answer seemed different from what she had imagined.
Ou Yangming explained snappily, “No matter what happened here, it has nothing to do with me, so I won’t cause any trouble as long as nobody provokes me. The same goes for you too…”
Jiang Jiumei gritted her teeth when she noticed the young fellow’s piercing eyes. “Yes.”
Nonetheless, Ou Yangming did not realize that as he spoke, Big Yellow kept blinking while it stared in a certain direction. It disguised its movements very well and had been clever all along, so the young fellow did not notice it.
After advising the ladies and asking them to rest in their rooms, Ou Yangming entered another room with the birdcage.
Seeing as nobody else was present, the little red bed released its origin’s spiritual world and let Ou Yangming practice the Phoenixes’ secret techniques inside. Perhaps the young fellow was already at the peak of this world and rarely encountered a competitor. However, after witnessing the appearance of the dragon and the phoenix, even the proud little red bird underwent an enormous change, let alone him. As such, they began yearning for more in martial arts.
Nevertheless, they did not notice that Big Yellow had secretly left the courtyard while nobody was paying attention.
It was a dog, but it was unexpectedly huge. In that case, it would definitely cause panic if it appeared overtly among the crowd.
Who knew, the fellow shook its body after it left the courtyard and somehow shrunk by half in size. Even if Ou Yangming was present at the moment, he could not have thought that it was the big yellow dog that he was familiar with.
Big Yellow tucked its tail and flashed to jump into another courtyard.
The big yellow dog’s furs were stuck closely to its body as it curbed its aura. As a result, nobody would notice it as it seemed to have become a spirit in the dark.
If a fearsome spirit beast decided to stroll in the city while concealing its aura, ordinary people would not be able to spot it at all. On the contrary, as hard as a normal person tried to hide, one could not avoid a spirit beast’s eyes, ears, and vision.
Before long, Big Yellow arrived at a large residence at the west end of the city. It did not startle anyone when it went over the wall and entered.
Following that, it tiptoed and sneaked its way to a room.
The big yellow dog was a spirit beast, but it knew humans very well because it grew up in a world of humans. Therefore, there were no hiccups throughout its journey.
All of a sudden, it stopped and twitched its nose while looking elated. It shook its body again to shrink its body, then it quietly entered a room through the corner of a window.
A peculiar plant was seen in the room. It looked like a shaky inverted pyramid but still stood firm, which was quite astounding.
Big Yellow’s eyes lit up right away. It blinked and opened its mouth to an extreme such that it became the size of a sacrificial bowl. Subsequently, it swallowed the entire plant.
The big yellow wagged its tail, and its body quivered because it was overjoyed. Despite that, it suppressed its excitement after a brief moment, then it left the room carefully. Throughout the process, Big Yellow was wary and did not leave any clues behind.
It quickly returned by the way it came, and it shook its body again once it was back in the courtyard. Consequently, the big yellow dog’s body grew and went back to its initial state.
Big Yellow opened its mouth and yawned, then it fell sound asleep in the most comfortable position ever.
That said, it did not know that a servant entered the strange room half an hour after it left the place. The servant carried a big kettle, which was filled with a faint gold liquid.
Just as he was about to pour the liquid on the plant, he realized that his master’s treasured plant was gone.
The servant screamed and caught everyone’s attention in the residence, hence the news was spread in no time.
Soon enough, Feng Yiyuan, Xiao Hualing, and the others arrived. Their faces took on grave expressions when they saw the empty room.
“Brother Feng, what do we do now?” Xiao Hualing’s voice trembled a little. “Sir assigned this task to us, but we didn’t complete it and even… Lost the thing. How can we take it if sir blames us?”
Feng Yiyuan stomped his foot as he was furious. “How did you guard this place? How could it disappear without leaving a trace? Hmph, is there a spy here?”
The people around him fell to their knees almost at the same time. The head protector noted, “Sir, we dare not relax at all after receiving your order, so I arranged enough men for a three-layered protection. Besides, everyone on duty is an elder from the clan so there can’t be a traitor here.”
Feng Yiyuan looked fierce, which was the exact opposite of how he would usually act. Although he knew there was calmness in every serious matter, the problem was too severe this time, so he could not calm down at all.
Just as everyone was under pressure, and Feng Yiyuan looked more menacing than before, a gentle voice was heard coming from behind.
“Did you lose the Tree of Splendour?”
Feng Yiyuan and Xiao Hualing shivered. They immediately lowered their heads and turned around with respect. “Greetings, sir.”
A scholar in his thirties had unknowingly appeared behind them. He wore white clothes and carried a unique aura as deep as the sea, causing one to be so afraid of him that one would not have the guts to defy him at all.
Even though Feng Yiyuan and Xiao Hualing were Supreme Great Ancestors, they were frightened when they witnessed the scholar fight the Aqu
atics’ spirit beast. Thus, they dared not disobey the man at all.
The scholar walked straight to where the plant was planted before and scanned the area for some time. Afterward, he lifted his head as though he was deducing something.
He scoffed coldly after a moment and stated, “A kin was here, so no wonder it went missing just like that.”
Feng Yiyuan and Xiao Hualing looked at each other. They were surprised yet overjoyed.
‘Since he found a clue, he might not punish us. That being said, given that he called the thief a kin, how could that being be easy to deal with?’
The scholar turned around and asked coldly, “Did that young fella enter the city today?”
“Yes, sir. Master Ou has entered the city, but he didn’t bring the two spirit beasts inside,” Feng Yiyuan answered with respect.
“People like you can’t tell if he actually brought them inside with him.” The scholar grinned and said after some thought, “Bring me to him.”
“Sir, are you going to meet him just like that?” Feng Yiyuan was stunned.
Their initial plan was to let Feng Yiyuan test Ou Yangming’s attitude so that things would be easier for them. However, the sudden incident completely messed up the scholar’s plan.
Feng Yiyuan did not object to the scholar’s idea, but he was quite worried.
If the scholar took down Ou Yangming and denounced him, how would the spirit beasts outside the city react? The scholar might have a notable combat power, but he was by himself, after all.
A convoy left the courtyard after 15 minutes, and it was slowly heading to where Ou Yangming was at.
At this moment, Big Yellow, which was lying by the door, sneezed and opened its eyes to look in a certain direction in bewilderment. It knew what was in that direction, but it could not understand why there was an intense hostile aura over there.
The big yellow dog blinked and seemed to have understood something, but it made up its mind after it looked around.
‘I’m not going to reveal the truth no matter what.’
At last, the convoy stopped. Feng Yiyuan personally went forward to knock on the door.
Chapter 496 - A Scholar From The Upper Realm
“Woof!”
Big Yellow, which was lying behind the door, barked without any hesitation. Its voice was filled with threat and discontent.
Feng Yiyuan furrowed his eyebrows. Although he was afraid, he cast aside his worries when he thought about how fearsome the scholar behind him was.
Perhaps he would offend Multi-armed King Kong and the goshawk—two frightening spirit beasts—if he offended Ou Yangming, and he would most likely die a graveless death. Nonetheless, if the great ancestor flinched at this moment, he would probably be killed by the scholar in the blink of an eye.
He did not know what the peculiar plant was, but the extent the scholar valued it was nothing like he had ever seen.
Feng Yiyuan sighed and asked loudly, “I’m Feng Yiyuan, and I’m requesting a visit. Is Master Ou here?”
Ni Yinghong and Jiang Jiumei had been alerted by Feng Yiyuan and the others long ago. They looked at each other and walked out.
Big Yellow wagged its tail and approached them out of habit as soon as it saw them. Putting aside Jiang Jiumei, it had an unordinary relationship with Ni Yinghong, so much so that Ou Yangming was lacking in some aspects.
The two ladies glanced at Ou Yangming’s but noticed that there were no movements inside. Nevertheless, they did not find it strange because the young fellow had been entering a strange realm from time to time throughout their journey. They could not understand it, but they knew he must not be disturbed.
Ni Yinghong and Jiang Jiumei exchanged glances again before the former went to open the door.
Feng Yiyuan flashed a smile at them and looked at them with bright eyes. “Miss Ni, please forgive me for disturbing you so late at night.”
“Senior Feng, you’re being too polite.” Ni Yinghong nodded. She replied to the great ancestor with kind words but did not step aside, which was clear that she did not intend on letting him in.
The great ancestor’s smile froze a little, and he was secretly furious. ‘This little girl doesn’t know how to appreciate favors at all. I’ve personally come, but she won’t let me enter at all. If my daughter did the same, I would lecture her for sure.’
“Hmph!”
All of a sudden, a scoff was heard coming from behind Feng Yiyuan, causing him to cast aside his displeasure and anger.
He curbed his thought and asked sternly, “Miss Ni, is Master Ou here?”
“Senior Feng, Lil’ Ming is cultivating in his room, so he mustn’t be disturbed now. Please excuse him.” Ni Yinghong smiled apologetically.
“Cultivating?” Feng Yiyuan was stunned, and he had a strange look on his face.
He thought about numerous reasons when Ni Yinghong opened the door but Ou Yangming was nowhere to be seen. Even so, he did not expect this reason at all.
‘What time is it? Where is he at? The Aquatics’ spirit beast will attack at any time, but he can still cultivate in isolation and not care about what’s going on outside… Will anyone even buy this excuse?’
Seeing as Feng Yiyuan’s expression was changing, Ni Yinghong sighed.
In actuality, she knew her reason sounded unreliable, but it was indeed the truth. It did not matter if people believed it or not because she would not care at all.
Feng Yiyuan took a deep breath and forced himself to suppress his anger. “Miss Ni, I suggest you ask Master Ou to come out soon. Sir has personally visited, and he’d like to meet him.”
Ni Yinghong was startled, and she had a grave look on her face.
She figured that there was only one person in the entire Canghai City that Feng Yiyuan would regard as a sir.
The young lady turned to look faintly at a certain room. Ou Yangming would definitely show up if he heard Feng Yiyuan, but there were still no movements from the room.
Feeling helpless, Ni Yinghong said, “Senior Feng, Lil’ Ming really can’t be here right now, so please excuse him.”
Feng Yiyuan and Xiao Hualing looked at each other and almost could not believe what they heard. They had revealed the visitor’s identity but were refused entry. This had not only caused them to be embarrassed, but the powerhouse behind them probably could not take it anymore too.
Sure enough, a furious voice was heard.
“How presumptuous!”
Before the voice died away, a wind was stirred up, and it gushed between the two men.
Feng Yiyuan and Xiao Hualing flashed away to evade the wind. They knew the scholar was already infuriated and was going to enter the courtyard through the hardest means. Given his power, he would not care to bully juniors, but he would also not hesitate to let them suffer a bit if they were ignorant and blocked his way.
Despite that, Feng Yiyuan and Xiao Hualing soon saw that Ni Yinghong and the other lady stood side by side and were not going to give way even when the scholar strode forward.
‘They’re being reckless!’
The two great ancestors cursed internally at the same time, but they were somewhat envious and in admiration.
‘We were fearless and had lofty sentiments too when we were younger, but as we grow older, we became used to putting steadiness as our priorities and no longer have great aspirations.’
The scholar’s aura became more intense with every step he took. His aura seemed to have become tangible when it arrived at a certain point, and it directly suppressed the other people.
Everyone else around the courtyard was sensible enough to have dispersed long ago. In fact, even Feng Yiyuan and Xiao Hualing—Supreme Great Ancestors—stayed far away because they knew the scholar’s attack would be earth-shattering if he attacked with rage. If they stayed near the scholar, they would be caught in the disaster for sure.
Ni Yinghong and Jiang Jiumei swayed their bodies but still blocked the main entrance. They were not equipped with pieces of equ
ipment smithed by Ou Yangming, hence their combat powers were quite low. After sensing the scholar’s remarkable aura, their eyes lit up, and they brushed their hands across their waists.
Next, they were armed with a longsword each, and Ni Yinghong held a small round shield in her hand too.
The scholar fixed his gaze on them and exclaimed, “Interspatial bags?”
“Interspatial bags…” Far away, Feng Yiyuan and Xiao Hualing were surprised too. On top of that, it was clear through their eyes that they coveted the items.
The items were interspatial bags, which were interspatial treasures. While they were the lowest-ranked interspatial treasures, they could not be possessed by ordinary people.
It was worth noting that the Feng family was one of the inherited aristocratic families in the eight counties, and their position in Canghai City was similar to the Ni family from Changlong County, the He family from Linlang County, and so on. As such, they also had a channel to communicate with the upper realm.
Having said that, even the Feng family never possessed such a valuable treasure.
The scholar had actually descended from the upper realm due to a certain reason, but he only had the lowest-ranked interspatial bag with him. The space in the bag was so small that he could only store the Tree of Splendour, as well as some personal items. Most importantly, the scholar’s interspatial bag had aged so much that it would rupture at any time. Therefore, he was not less dazed than Feng Yiyuan and the others when he saw the ladies’ interspatial bags.
He was enraged when the Tree of Splendour went missing because it was one of the rare treasures in the world, but he was somehow in a much better mood after seeing the interspatial bags.
“Senior, please stay where you are. Yangming is cultivating in isolation, so he can’t be disturbed!” Ni Yinghong stressed seriously.
The scholar scoffed. “My treasure went missing, and I suspect it’s your doing. If you don’t want me to disturb him, quickly return the treasure to me.”
Big Yellow shrunk its neck a little behind the door. It was the only one that knew what the scholar meant.
Ni Yinghong kept a straight face. “Senior, we won’t admit it if you accuse us without proof. We haven’t left the courtyard after we came here, so your missing treasure has nothing to do with us.”
Immortal Path to Heaven c1-725 Page 292
