Immortal Path to Heaven c1-725

by Heaven's White Crane

  He cleared his throat and said, “Of course, I’m aware of that. That said, for the sake of my reputation, I’ll never smith pieces of equipment that can expand by 5 times if I’m not confident.” He later turned to ask the antelope, “I can only guarantee a triple expansion-and-contraction extent. Can you accept that?”

  “Master, why can’t you give me more?” The antelope stared eagerly at him and asked.

  Ou Yangming responded coldly, “The materials that you prepared can only allow me to smith an equipment set of such level unless you provide more and better materials. The bigger the expansion-and-contraction extent, the more effort I need to put in, and the higher the failure rate. Are you sure you can take the failure rate?”

  It was a groundless statement, but the antelope and the lazy turtle strongly agreed with him.

  A triple expansion-and-contraction margin was considered amazing to them. As for 5 times… Perhaps the pieces of equipment of some powerhouses from the Demons in this world could achieve that, but they certainly required rare and precious materials, which were unimaginable, let alone obtainable.

  The antelope nodded and replied to Ou Yangming, “Master, please use my current build as the prototype.”

  After sensing that Ou Yangming was slightly displeased, it dared not wish for a 5-times margin.

  In actuality, if Ou Yangming had not given the antelope too much hope, not to mention a triple expansion-and-contraction extent, even if it was only a double margin, it would have been overjoyed.

  Ou Yangming nodded and scanned the antelope carefully before he started to smith.

  The pieces of equipment meant for the Walking Beasts were different from those made for the Humans. Many problems would arise if one was inexperienced, but Ou Yangming had smithed pieces of equipment for Big Yellow more than once, thus he was absolutely confident about the things that he needed to take note of.

  A greave was smithed after a brief moment, but Ou Yangming simply made it an ordinary magic tool as he did not attach any Skill Attribute to it.

  Even so, the antelope was satisfied with the ordinary magic tool.

  Being the Beasts’ hard-pressed mountain kings, it was incredibly difficult for them to acquire suitable magic tools, by which it was far beyond ordinary people’s imaginations.

  The Beasts mainly trained their physical powers, where they could train their bodies to be as tough as steel.

  However, if they could gain greater defensive and offensive abilities through a layer of equipment, their combat powers would surely improve significantly. This was a known fact to every race.

  The Beasts were never willing to fight against their enemies’ pieces of equipment with their bodies; it was merely a helpless choice. After all, who would not want to kill their opponents with pieces of powerful equipment if they could?

  By going against fully-armored enemies with only their physical powers… They were simply asking to be tortured!

  There were probably very few creatures that would make the unconventional choice. At the very least, the antelope was not one of them.

  When the antelope put on the greave, its body suddenly shivered as its foreleg bulged. The expansion margin was not big—only 50%—but the visual effect was quite notable.

  Afterward, when its body was fully expanded, the greave grew as well and was very fitting; it did not constrain it at all.

  Following that, the antelope ran around for some time. It was delighted the moment it stopped.

  “Thank you… Master!”

  Chapter 558 - The Rune’s Magical Effect

  Since the antelope was satisfied, Ou Yangming was at ease as he smithed the other pieces of equipment for it.

  The level of smithing was not difficult at all for Ou Yangming. Besides, with the unique Military Fire’s help, he even achieved an extremely frightening success rate of 100%. Even when he finished smithing every piece of equipment needed by the antelope, he had not failed at all.

  Both the big lazy turtle and the antelope were dumbfounded, and they respected Ou Yangming’s skills even more.

  Whenever beasts requested human blacksmiths to smith pieces of equipment for them, they would always prepare several sets of material. This was because they were afraid that the blacksmiths might make mistakes and damage the pieces of equipment, but this would make sure there were new materials to continue the smithing processes.

  Normally, the failure rate would increase when the Wish-fulling Clay was added to a piece of equipment. Therefore, it was incredibly normal for even renowned human blacksmiths to make several slips throughout the smithing process for an equipment set.

  As for those that succeeded perfectly in one go… Okay, the big lazy turtle and the antelope did not think that they had very limited knowledge, but it was especially rare to find such successful blacksmiths, which was why they had strange expressions on their faces.

  Ou Yangming shook his wrist to curb his Military Fire as the last piece of equipment was formed.

  It was an antelope headgear, and the most striking part about it was unquestionably the bulges on top for the antelope’s horns. Ou Yangming knocked it with his hand and noted, “I carved a formation map on this headgear. Go ahead and try it.”

  The antelope’s eyes lit up right away. It did not forget what Ou Yangming promised it earlier; the power of its natural gift—the Gravitational Force Suppression—would be increased by 30%.

  In actuality, not to mention 30%, even if the increase was only 10%, the antelope would have danced with joy.

  It carefully accepted the headgear and put it on without any hesitation. Following that, it channeled its spiritual power into the equipment in the blink of an eye. Sure enough, the antelope immediately noticed that a certain power was brewing inside the headgear, and it could naturally release it with a flash of thought.

  Ou Yangming added, “Try it out and see if there are any errors; I can still fix it.”

  Although blacksmiths were always responsible for their works, he only said that because he wanted to witness the antelope headgear’s mightiness.

  The antelope nodded hard and looked around but could not find a target. As daring as it was, it dared not use the power on Ou Yangming.

  Ou Yangming laughed and looked at the big lazy turtle, which was stunned. It quickly uttered, “I can’t, that…”

  Before it finished its sentence, the young fellow stated, “The spiritual herb will be yours too.”

  The lazy turtle was dumbfounded for some time before it turned to shout at the antelope, “Come! Let me experience your gifted power!”

  Upon hearing the turtle, the antelope was taken aback. Nonetheless, it instantly curbed its thought and lowered its head to release the peculiar yet forceful power.

  It was an exceptionally formidable power. The instant the antelope released it, it had a feeling that the power had indeed surpassed its natural gift.

  Next, the big lazy turtle completely lay prone on the ground and wailed as though it was suffering immense pain.

  The antelope gasped. ‘This is a powerhouse from the Turtles, which are known for having remarkable defensive abilities. My Gravitational Force Suppressed might be a little unique, but it couldn’t have caused such an exaggerated reaction from it, right?’

  On the other hand, the lazy turtle glared indignantly at the antelope. All of a sudden, it widened its mouth to shoot a black water arrow.

  The antelope felt a chill in its heart, and it jumped away without any delay. It curbed its gifted power and yelled, “I wasn’t the one that wanted to attack you, so why are you taking revenge on me?”

  Stunned, the lazy turtle blinked its large eyes and looked away embarrassedly.

  In actual fact, it knew who the real culprit was. Even so, after witnessing Ou Yangming’s marvelous smithing ability, it knew it must not offend the seemingly tiny human blacksmith.

  Therefore, it could vent its resentment on the antelope, but it dared not get mad at Ou Yangming.

  Ou Yangmi
ng could not help but laugh, but he could not be bothered about comforting the big lazy turtle. Since the fellow wanted to gain so many spiritual items, it must pay a certain price. At this moment, the young fellow was already attracted by the queer power released by the antelope.

  He had carved a Rudimentary Rune on the headgear. The rune, which was a special rune with an erosive power, corresponded with the antelope’s Gravitational Force Suppression Rune quite well in his sea of consciousness.

  Nevertheless, according to Ou Yangming’s initial deduction, the rune was not useful for Spirit Grade powerhouses because such a powerhouse’s defensive power could easily disintegrate it.

  Having said that, when the rune was matched with an Intermediate Rune, there seemed to be an unexpected magical effect.

  The big lazy turtle would not have been infuriated by suppression from sheer gravitational force, let alone a rudimentary Erosive Spell. On the contrary, when the two combined, the effect was so notable that the lazy turtle could not withstand it at all.

  Needless to say, it was also because the big lazy turtle did not release its power at all. If it had met force with force, nobody would be able to tell the outcome.

  When Ou Yangming looked at the lazy turtle, which was slowly calming down, as well as the antelope with an apologetic smile on its face, he was suddenly struck with an idea. ‘Given that this is only the effect of the combination between an Intermediate Rune and a Rudimentary Rune, the resulting power from 2 combined Intermediate Runes will probably be even more unbelievable, right?’

  Unfortunately, Ou Yangming only possessed 2 Intermediate Runes for the time being. If he were to let them merge… He was not feeling hopeful at all.

  “Are you satisfied?” The young fellow curbed his thought and asked.

  “Yes, I’m satisfied!” The antelope quickly nodded.

  “Okay.” Ou Yangming reached out his hands and rubbed them in front of the antelope.

  “Human master, you’re…” The antelope was surprised.

  “Woof,” Big Yellow barked and questioned the antelope, “Your fur—are you trying to go back on your word?”

  The antelope shook its head right away after coming to a sudden realization. “I dare not, I dare not.” Following that, it kept shaking its body, causing its long fur to fall automatically. Before long, it became bald.

  Big Yellow opened its mouth and laughed out loud.

  Ou Yangming twitched the corner of his mouth because the antelope looked strangely hilarious.

  The antelope chuckled embarrassedly. Perhaps it would have plucked up its courage to fight other spirit beasts that ridiculed it like that, but it gave up that thought after glancing at Ou Yangming.

  “Our deal is completed, so please help yourself, Your Excellency.”

  The antelope lowered its head at Ou Yangming to salute him, then he put on the pieces of equipment and said, “Thank you, master, I hope to see you again.”

  Subsequently, it flashed and left in an instant.

  Ou Yangming reached out to pick up the fur and pressed it a few times. He later released his mental power to sense it as it was curious, and his face could not help but change.

  His mental power was exceedingly great, but his consciousness sensed nothing when he tried to look into the fur. Even though the young fellow’s hand was clearly telling him that he was indeed holding a ball of fur, his mental conception could not sense it.

  It was his first time experiencing such an odd situation, thus he naturally felt like something was weird.

  “Lazy turtle, have you seen… Fur like this before?” Ou Yangming asked while holding the fur.

  The big lazy turtle thought, ‘I have a name too—I’m not a lazy turtle!’

  It did not feel anything back when Ou Yangming addressed it as such; it always felt like it was not too bothered because it would leave the young fellow anyway. However, due to the drastic change in the overall situation, the turtle was unwilling to be addressed like that.

  The turtle sensed the fur and shook its head. “No, that fella’s probably a mutated spirit beast, which is why it possesses this unique ability.”

  Ou Yangming’s eyelids flickered, and he immediately ordered the big yellow dog, “Big Yellow, chase it back.”

  Big Yellow’s eyes gleamed. “Okay, I’ll chase it back and slaughter it to eat it!”

  The young fellow glared at it and instructed, “Go and ask if it’d like to follow us. I can provide it with better pieces of equipment free of charge.”

  “Why?” Big Yellow widened its eyes and shouted.

  Ou Yangming waved the fur in his hand helplessly and responded, “This is useful for me, so quickly go!”

  While Big Yellow was reluctant, it did not want to quarrel with Ou Yangming over a proper business. As such, it sighed and pursued the antelope.

  The big lazy turtle was confused. “Master Ou, you need to be very wealthy to recruit a spirit beast. You… Oh, that won’t be your concern, but isn’t your condition too favorable for that antelope?”

  “Its importance is beyond what you think.” Ou Yangming nodded, and his eyes suddenly darkened as he added, “Big lazy turtle, I need your help later.”

  “What do you need me to do?” The lazy turtle quickly responded.

  “If it’s not willing to follow us, please release a restraining order on it too!”

  The lazy turtle blinked and agreed to help the young fellow, but it could not understand what exactly the antelope’s fur could do.

  ‘Is he planning to keep spiritual items inside the fur to hide them from other powerhouses?

  ‘He can simply send them into the space I’m in, and there won’t be a problem anymore.

  Ou Yangming waited quietly for about 15 minutes before 2 figures returned at the speed of light. He curled his lips into a faint smile because given that the antelope was willing to return, anything could be discussed. Of course, he was confident about fooling the mutated fella.

  Chapter 559 - Making A Friend

  “Your equipment set is pretty good, but that’s all it is. It’s because the materials that you prepared are too poor…” Ou Yangming tole the antelope. By the time he finished, he flushed a little even though he was thick-faced.

  After all, this was the Spiritual Realm—the well-known Spiritual Realm.

  The minerals that could be found here were far better than what could be found in the lower realm. In fact, Ou Yangming knew less than 30% of the minerals that were presented by the antelope, or he would not need to carry out a trial run earlier.

  When Ou Yangming smithed pieces of equipment for the antelope, he did not give him all, hence there was plenty of room for improvement.

  Everything was because of him and had nothing to do with the pieces of equipment.

  The antelope blinked and asked in confusion, “Human master, I’m aware that I’m not capable enough to find better materials, but… Why did you ask me to come back?” It made an unrealistic guess, but it was so inconceivable that it dared not be so sure.

  Ou Yangming cleared his throat and cut to the chase. “Your fur is rather useful for me, so I’d like to make a deal with you. As long as you’re willing to come with me, not only will I smith pieces of higher-level equipment for you, but I’ll also provide you with better cultivation resources. The Humans have alchemists, where the pills refined by them can help you upgrade your strength as fast as possible.” He was highly-spirited and confident as he spoke.

  On the other hand, the antelope kept blinking as though this was its habit whenever it pondered.

  ‘Follow a human?’

  This had never crossed its mind. Nonetheless, it was instantly moved when it lowered its head to look at the equipment set on its body, as well as when it thought about the cruel reality of competing against many spirit beasts on the 10,000 Beasts Ridge.

  Even so, it could not get past a certain stage in its heart.

  “Honorable human master, I’m extremely touched by your kindness, but I don
’t want to be another living being’s pet beast.” The antelope felt troubled as it added, “If you’d like to subdue me, regrettably, I can only reject you.”

  Ou Yangming laughed out loud and said, “Ask them what they are to me.”

  Big Yellow barked and answered right away, “A friend.”

  The big lazy turtle swayed its large neck and wondered, but it could not figure out what kind of special relationship it shared with Ou Yangming. As such, it could only say, “We’re probably friends.”

  Perhaps the outcome would be different if Multi-armed King Kong and the goshawk were present. Since the powerful spirit beasts were absent, the statements that were given by Big Yellow and the lazy turtle cleared the antelope’s concern.

  It looked around and seemed like it was unwilling to leave the ridge.

  Ou Yangming chuckled and immediately added, “Brother Antelope, you might be fully equipped now, but you also have to be careful of possible sneak attacks from covetous mountain lords on the 10,000 Beasts Ridge. On the contrary, if you become a Venerable One someday and return, the ignorant ones won’t even think about attacking you anymore.”

  The antelope looked up abruptly and mumbled, “A Venerable One…”

  It was evident that the term was a huge stimulation for it.

  Ou Yangming nodded sternly. “That’s right. If you come with me, your chances of becoming a Venerable One will definitely be 10 times higher than your chances now.”

  A Venerable One was such a formidable being that even Ou Yangming dared not say he could certainly arrive at that boundary. Nevertheless, this did not stop him from deceiving the antelope. In any case, he only said that its chances would increase by 10 times but did not guarantee that it would become a Venerable One for sure.

  The antelope’s eyes reddened a little. It would have given a snort of contempt if another human had told him the same thing; it would not believe such a fragile promise. However, the human in front of it was different as he was a great blacksmith among the Humans. More importantly, he did not make a single mistake at all when he smithed the equipment set for it.