In the beginning, the visions of the 10 powerhouses went blurry, then they realized that their partners and Ou Yangming had disappeared, but an odd sound could be heard coming from behind them.
They turned around separately and instantly spotted the big multicolored tiger, which had been modified countless times. Whether it was its ice-cold eyes or the rising snake head at the end of its tail, they made the powerhouses shudder with fear.
“Kill…”
The 10 people reacted differently. Some were steady and calm, but some were high-spirited and even initiated attacks.
They learned different things and mastered dissimilar skills, so they also made various choices.
Ou Yangming closed his eyes, but he used his conception to split 10 big multicolored tigers to fight the Yang Grade powerhouses.
Even with Lil’ Red’s help, it was tough to do 10 things at the same time.
That said, not only was Ou Yangming doing it, but he also did it whole-heartedly. Beads of sweat could be seen on his forehead, which proved that he was giving all he had without relaxing at all.
The task to get 1,000 powerhouses to advance was also a test for Ou Yangming, and he wanted to use the opportunity to make further progress.
Unquestionably, his mental power was his greatest asset, so he could make the best of both worlds by testing himself in this situation.
On the other hand, nobody could guarantee if this was a blessing or a misfortune for the Yang Grade powerhouses.
Ou Yangming and the little red bird watched the 10 powerhouses fight hard on 10 battlefields. While the powerhouses’ abilities were mediocre, some unique abilities that they displayed were astonishing.
After half an hour, a powerhouse at the peak of Yang Grade grunted. Blood could be seen flowing out from the corner of his mouth.
Subsequently, the mental power that enveloped him disappeared right away.
The powerhouse looked gratefully at Ou Yangming and sat with his legs crossed.
“Send another person in.”
Ou Yangming’s voice spread far and wide and echoed in the secret realm.
Chapter 536 - Everybody’s Delighted
Outside the secret realm, everyone was waiting anxiously.
In particular, the 10 martial artists chosen to be in the second batch paid close attention to whatever was going on. Although they tried their best to hide it, the others could still tell from their rather uneasy looks and actions.
This was because they knew they would enter Extreme Grade if they succeeded.
As confident as they were, they could not be indifferent about this at all.
All of a sudden, a majestic voice was heard from the entrance. “Send another person in.”
“What?”
Everyone else looked at each other as they could not understand what was going on.
Earlier on, they were told that they would enter the realm in groups of 10. Why was only one person asked to go in now?
Nonetheless, before they could figure it out, Wu Hanning responded, “Yes.”
Her Royal Highness turned around and pointed at someone seriously. “You, go in.”
The person being pointed was the first person among the 10 powerhouses from the second batch. He was slightly shocked, but he immediately calmed down and cupped his hands at the prince. “Yes, Your Highness.” Following that, he strode toward the entrance and entered.
His vision went blurry as he entered the secret realm.
When he could see everything clearly again, he could not help but gasp, and his face reddened a little.
Inside the prairie-like secret realm, there were 10 people excluding Ou Yangming, and each of them was distanced out. Nevertheless, apart from 1 powerhouse that was sitting with his legs crossed, the 9 other cultivators looked grim and were flashing around as though they were fighting against something ferocious.
The powerhouses at the peak of Yang Grade knew why they were summoned here, hence they expected this long ago.
Nevertheless, the powerhouse that just entered the realm did not expect to see 9 people being concurrently drawn into illusions created through the Simulated Spiritual Fist.
The fact that Ou Yangming was adept in the Simulated Spiritual Fist and could help powerhouses at the peak of Yang Grade advance to Extreme Grade was not strange at all. Having said that, before this, he could only help one person at a time. Whether it was in the ring or among the influential aristocratic families in the capital, there was never a case where 2 powerhouses experienced the simulation at the same time.
At this moment, everything that the powerhouse witnessed had truly overturned his understanding of this.
‘It turns out that Master Ou has become so potent that he can let 9 people cultivate in illusions at the same time.
‘N-no!’
He fixed his gaze on the only powerhouse that was sitting with his legs crossed. When he sensed the change in that person’s aura, his face changed.
It was the aura of a person at the peak of Yang Grade, but the aura kept expanding and carried a Supreme Great Ancestor’s quality.
‘This person’s advancing to Extreme Grade now!’
Given that the person was making his way into Extreme Grade at the moment, it could only mean that he comprehended something due to Ou Yangming’s Simulated Spiritual Fist and could advance already.
The newly-entered powerhouse looked up at Ou Yangming in awe and with respect.
‘This is the real reason for sending a group of 10 people in at one time!’
At the spur of the moment, Ou Yangming opened his eyes and asked coldly, “What’s your name?”
The powerhouse answered with a grave expression, “I’m Dai Hongru. Greetings, Master Ou.”
Ou Yangming nodded and questioned, “They’ve already acknowledged me as their teacher. What do you think?”
Dai Hongru was stunned. He could not help but ponder without saying a word.
In a group of 10, if one of them agreed with it, the rest would cast their worries aside for sure; if a powerhouse entered alone, one would consider too much.
Ou Yangming furrowed his eyebrows; he could not afford to waste his time and energy on this person. Since the man hesitated, it could only mean that it was not meant to be.
“Forget it, be careful.”
Dai Hongru was dumbfounded. Just as he was wondering what he should be careful about, he felt like the view in front of him changed; other than himself, the other people disappeared. The man could not help but smile bitterly and thought, ‘What’s this? Is he attacking me because I disagreed with him?’
Even so, he would not be resentful toward Ou Yangming because of this. Instead, he curbed his thought as much as possible and focused on the fight.
Ou Yangming was controlling 10 battlefields separately, where he split his conception into 10 parts. Even though it was rather exhausting, it was the best way to train his mental power.
Inside the spiritual world, 10 powerhouses at the peak of Yang Grade exerted their utmost forces to fight. Ou Yangming was doing his best too, and the fights were even tougher for him. He intentionally suppressed the big multicolored tigers’ powers in the ongoing fights, such that the beasts were only more forceful than their opponents by a thread each, but that was all that was needed to create life-or-death oppressions for the powerhouses.
“Roar…”
Another person roared like a monster. The muscles on his body bulged as if a titanium wall protection was formed, causing Ou Yangming’s eyes to lit up.
It was clearly a secret technique. If it cooperated with Big Yellow’s Indestructible Defense, the effect would certainly be greater.
Subsequently, that person strode at a great pace and forcefully slashed the big multicolored tiger into halves. While having brute courage, he also stumbled upon the opportunity to enter Extreme Grade. As such, he retreated from the illusion and bowed at Ou Yangming, then he began to break through.
Ou Yangming grinned and uttered, �
��Another one.”
This time, whether it was Wu Yuanwei, who was controlling the secret realm, or the people outside, they became familiar with the situation.
The second powerhouse at the peak of Yang Grade instantly entered. He was also struck dumb when he saw what was going on inside the realm.
Could a human even target 10 such powerhouses in one go? It was worth noting that the illusions were not only puzzling the cultivators, but they were slightly adjusted at any time according to their conditions.
After all, how could Supreme Great Ancestors be made so easily?
However, Ou Yangming managed to do it.
Before this, nobody dared to imagine that one could exchange blows with 10 powerhouses at the peak of Yang Grade at the same time.
“What’s your name?”
“I’m Xu Yingda…”
“Okay. They’ve acknowledged me as their teacher, so what do you think?”
Xu Yingda was startled at first, but he reacted fast enough and responded, “I couldn’t have asked for more. Please accept my salutation, teacher.”
Perhaps he would be concerned if he was asked to become Ou Yangming’s disciple, but acknowledging the young fellow would only mean having another senior, thus he would not hesitate at all.
“Very well. If that’s the case, I’ll customize a magic tool for you if you succeed in advancing to Extreme Grade.”
“Ah…” Xu Yingda suddenly looked up in disbelief. He felt like it was unrealistic for something so great to happen to him.
Ou Yangming scoffed and ordered, “Curb your thought, and don’t be careless.”
Xu Yingda obeyed him right away, and he began to look serious. Regardless of the benefits he might receive in the future, he would have to enter Extreme Grade first, or those benefits would only be imaginary.
Before long, a mental power descended from the sky and sent him into an illusory world.
At this moment, Wu Yuanwei, who was hiding in the dark while he controlled the secret realm, was sincerely in admiration.
Ou Yangming had indeed surpassed Extreme Grade and arrived at Spirit Grade, and he was also one of the incredibly rare casters in that boundary. The elder had not gone to the upper realm, but he knew some secrets about the upper realm because he controlled the secret realm.
Judging from Ou Yangming’s potency, he would have a place of his own even in the Spiritual Realm.
‘I hope he’ll create another miracle within a century.
‘If he really becomes a Venerable One…’
Wu Yuanwei shook his head as he dared not think further.
Soon enough, the third and fourth powerhouses retreated from the spiritual world too. They exchanged glances and strived to enter Extreme Grade at the same time. Whenever someone left the spiritual world, Ou Yangming requested another candidate.
Each time someone new entered, Ou Yangming would ask the perfunctory question. He never gave them any hint and would not delay any time.
After raising the question, no matter how the powerhouses replied to him within 5 breaths, he would pull them into the spiritual world. Besides, he treated everyone equally, where he never slacked nor neglected them even if they rejected him.
The third batch of powerhouses at the peak of Yang Grade was sent in after 2 hours.
It was then when the first cultivator that began to break through to Extreme Grade quivered a little, and a powerful aura was released from his body.
He had broken through the limit and the barrier, so he successfully entered Extreme Grade.
The powerhouse stood up and was about to laugh out loud when he noticed something odd in the space around him as though he was being confined. His heart tensed up, and he was ashamed when he looked around.
He turned around and bowed at Ou Yangming, by which he saluted as an apprentice to his teacher. Afterward, his body seemed to have been drowned by water as he slowly disappeared.
Outside the secret realm, a flash of a figure was seen as someone came out.
There was a huge disturbance at once as everyone stared at that person.
It had been nearly 3 hours since the first batch of powerhouses entered, and while more people went in along the way, nobody had come out, so the people outside were more or less worried. Therefore, there was a commotion when the first powerhouse came out.
When everyone stared at him and sensed his aura, they cheered.
An Extreme Grade powerhouse—the person that came out was an Extreme Grade powerhouse.
Without a doubt, Ou Yangming’s Simulated Spiritual Fist did not fail because cultivators at the peak of Yang Grade could still become Supreme Great Ancestors.
The news quickly spread as if it grew wings. At the same time, the others were also informed that they could receive a magic skill tool if they acknowledged Ou Yangming as their teacher.
Everyone else was envious, and they could not wait to enter soon.
One could wish to enter Extreme Grade, but one might only get a once-in-a-lifetime chance to gain a custom-made magic tool.
As time passed, more people came out from the secret realm.
The people slowly calmed down as the lights shone. Instead of discussing how many Supreme Great Ancestors Master Ou Yangming could produce, they began to ask each other about the type of magic tool they wanted.
Another flash of light was seen as Dai Hongru walked out with excitement written all over his face.
A good friend of his asked him enthusiastically, “Brother Dai, what magic tool do you want?”
Dai Hongru was stupefied, and he asked that person in return, “What magic tool?”
The area outside the secret realm fell silent, and everyone looked strangely at him.
Chapter 537 - Some Joyful, Some Sorrowful
Dai Hongru looked around and noticed everyone looking strangely at him. He could not help but get goosebumps, and his excitement from having advanced to Extreme Grade seemed to have disappeared at this moment too.
Although he did not know what happened, he could tell from the looks on everyone’s faces that something was off.
His good friend twitched his face and said, “Brother Dai, you… Oh, you’re the eleventh person to enter, so you don’t know, do you?”
The other people were stunned too, then they sighed and discussed with one another.
It seemed like the treatment could only be enjoyed by the first group of 10 people. All of a sudden, the remaining powerhouses at the peak of Yang Grade became sulky. They did not lose their fighting spirits, but they kept sighing.
Dai Hongru furrowed his eyebrows, and an odd feeling arose from his heart. He questioned closely, “Brother Liang, what exactly happened?”
His good friend’s name was Liang Xing, who was also at the peak of Yang Grade. With a look of regret, he explained, “Ah, Brother Dai, you have no idea. The 10 people from the first batch have acknowledged Master Ou as their teacher.”
Dai Hongru’s eyelids flickered. Needless to say, he did not forget what Ou Yangming told him when he entered the secret realm.
Besides, he clearly remembered Ou Yangming asking him if he would like to become his student too.
However, Dai Hongru hesitated for a while but because of that, Ou Yangming never gave him another chance.
For some reason, Dai Hongyu felt like he missed something important. He took a deep breath and asked, “Brother Liang, what will happen if someone acknowledges Master Ou as their master?”
Liang Xing looked strangely at him and responded snappily, “Hey, did you forget who Master Ou is? Ah, that’s Master Ou—the greatest blacksmith in the world, and someone who can smith magic tools!”
Dai Hongru cut him off because he was impatient. “I’m aware of all of that, but what does it have to do with being his student?”
Liang Xing shook his head and sighed. “Master Ou promised to customize a magic tool for each of his apprentices. Those are magic tools, and they’re custom-made, so they must be at least magic skill tools. Tel
l me… Hey, Brother Dai, what happened to you? Why do you look so pale?”
He was so focused on talking that he just only noticed that Dai Hongru had a ghastly look on his face. On top of that, the man’s aura of a newly-advanced Supreme Great Ancestor was also becoming unstable.
Dai Hongru inhaled deeply and suppressed his agitation, but his face looked awful and frightening.
As dumb as the others were, they could tell that something was wrong. They looked at each other and had the same thought, ‘Did this fella know about this but rejected Master Ou?’
In actuality, if one was asked to acknowledge someone as their teacher, one would likely not agree to it and might even beat up that person.
Nevertheless, if the presumptuous person was Master Ou, how would the situation turn out to be?
Dai Hongru’s face changed, which became so gloomy and fearsome that nobody dared to get close to him anymore. He had just become an Extreme Grade powerhouse, after all, hence the other Yang Grade powerhouses would not have the guts to offend him before they advanced.
After a brief moment, another flash of light was seen as Xu Yingda walked out from the secret realm.
A cheerful smile could be seen on his face, and his joy from entering Extreme Grade made him seem less steady. Even so, nobody would ridicule him because they could sense the intense change in his emotion. If they were in his shoes, they would probably behave in a more exaggerated manner.
Someone approached Xu Yingda as soon as he came out. The person bowed and greeted, “Brother Xu.”
Xu Yingda chuckled and said, “Ah, Brother Leng. Hehe, looks like you’re about to go in too.”
“I should be next.” The Yang Grade powerhouse, whose surname was Leng, nodded hard. Before Xu Yingda could say anything else, he quickly expressed himself and bowed to the ground, “Brother Xu, I have something to ask.”
“Brother Leng, please tell me what it is.” Xu Yingda was dumbfounded, and he immediately helped that powerhouse get up.
Even though that cultivator at the peak of Yang Grade had not entered Extreme Grade, he would soon enter the secret realm. As such, he might be on par with Xu Yingda once he came out after that.
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