Immortal Path to Heaven c1-725

by Heaven's White Crane

  Despite that, he simply giggled without explaining himself.

  “Since you’re not outsiders, you may enter, but…” The ape turned its body to the side, then it looked at Fat Antelope and the Silver Ridge Giant Leopard and continued, “Their cultivations bases are too low, and they don’t have our race’s aura, so it’s best to leave them outside.” Seeing as Ou Yangming’s face changed, it quickly added, “Don’t worry, as long as I’m here, they won’t be bullied.”

  It sounded plain and not the least threatening but for some reason, Ou Yangming and his companions were strongly convinced as if the ape was being reasonable. It felt like they would suffer a disaster if they did not obey it.

  Ou Yangming looked deeply at the ape and knew it definitely cultivated a special technique that allowed him to have such a queer ability.

  Nevertheless, he did not sense any evil intention from the ape. After a moment of hesitation, he finally turned to instruct the 2 spirit beasts, “Stay here for the time being.”

  What surprised him was Fat Antelope and the Silver Ridge Giant Leopard agreed right away instead of objecting to the idea. It seemed like they were affected by the ape’s words and changed their minds obediently.

  With that, Ou Yangming passed the obstacle with Big Yellow. As he continued to walk up, he looked forward to what would come.

  At the foot of the mountain, there were mostly low-grade spirit beasts, and the human blacksmiths and alchemists there were unquestionably those with the lowest standards. As long as they could smith magic tools, they would be qualified to smith for spirit beasts on the high platforms even if they could only smith Common Grade Rank One magic tools.

  The mountainside was where middle-grade spirit beasts gathered. Over there, human blacksmiths and alchemists had exceptional standards.

  At the very least, the blacksmiths were only qualified to smith on the high platforms if they could always smith Good Grade magic tools. Needless to say, for an elder like Bai Zhiyi, he had many other knacks apart from smithing ordinary magic tools. According to Ou Yangming’s deduction, the elder could even enter the peak without any problems.

  Having said that, Bai Zhiyi somehow stayed in a tall tower at the half of the mountain to smith pieces of equipment and conveniently guided 3 of his juniors. He did not intend to enter the peak at all.

  Ou Yangming was not making baseless guesses; these were what he inferred after he saw the standards of the blacksmiths at the mountainside.

  He had gained a lot from the foot of the mountain and the mountainside. If he entered the peak, would he be able to benefit more? This was what the young fellow was most concerned about.

  After walking for some time, Ou Yangming was surprised because no high platforms could be seen anymore, and the road was quiet as not a single spirit beast could be seen. If he was not certain that he was on the right path, he would suspect if he had left the 10,000 Beasts Ridge.

  Ou Yangming hesitated for a while but decided not to release his mental conception to search the area.

  This was not the Humans’ territory, after all, and it was being watched over by the Venerable One. If he made a rash decision by releasing his mental conception and caused trouble, he would not get the outcome that he was hoping for.

  Without warning, Big Yellow shouted, “There’s a smell ahead!”

  “What smell?” Ou Yangming’s eyes shone.

  “Many powerhouses,” Big Yellow answered after a moment of hesitation. It was appalled as it added, “They’re not weaker than the goshawk and the big lazy turtle.”

  Ou Yangming’s face changed. At this point, he knew the goshawk and the big lazy turtle were spirit beasts between the middle grade and the high grade in the Spiritual Realm. If the regulation was more flexible, it would not be a problem for them to enter this place.

  Of course, as compared to Multi-armed King Kong, they were inferior by a whole level.

  That said, spirit beasts of the goshawk and the big lazy turtle’s level were considered potent beings. Since Big Yellow said there were many of them, it could only mean that high-rank spirit beasts that entered the peak seemed to be gathered together.

  Ou Yangming could not understand why, but he quickened his pace.

  After a short while, they were greeted with a giant platform when they took a turn.

  Over 50 spirit beasts were seen below the platform, whereas a crystal wall could be seen on the platform. The wall seemed dark at the moment while the high-grade spirit beasts were scattered around.

  Ou Yangming’s sudden appearance caught some of the spirit beasts’ attention. They glanced at him and were shocked.

  A spirit wolf bared its fangs and laughed as it commented, “This is odd—why is such a young fella here? Did he come to the wrong place?”

  The spirit beasts opened their mouths and laughed with evil intentions. Though not all of the high-rank spirit beasts were paying attention to Ou Yangming and Big Yellow, mental powers from over 10 of them were enough to pose enormous spiritual pressures on them.

  Big Yellow quivered a little, but it stood straight.

  Ou Yangming furrowed his eyebrows a bit, but he did not notice the pressures at all.

  After all, he had witnessed the appearance of the dragon and the phoenix, and he was always with the little red bird and withstood pressures in its spiritual world. Not to mention these high-rank spirit beasts, even Venerable Ones could not subdue him through mere spiritual pressures.

  However, after sensing the pressures, Ou Yangming understood why the ape persuaded him out of letting Fat Antelope and the Silver Ridge Giant Leopard up.

  If the 2 spirit beasts were present, they would have been frightened out of their wits.

  “Hey, these 2 fellas are doing quite well.” The spirit wolf looked strangely at Ou Yangming and Big Yellow. “Hey, who are you? Where do you want to go?”

  Chapter 585 - Auction Mode

  Ou Yangming cupped his hands in neither humbly nor arrogantly. “I’m Ou Yangming, and I’d like to take a look at the mountain peak.”

  “The mountain peak?” The spirit beasts were stunned at first, then they had strange looks on their faces one after another.

  As for the spirit wolf, it tilted its head and cast a scornful look at Ou Yangming. The spirit beasts here had been waiting for a long time. Although they were not impatient, it would be nice to adjust their moods once in a while due to some trivial matters.

  “Hehe, young human, are you trying to climb to the mountaintop?”

  “That’s right.”

  “Do you know what kind of beings are allowed at the peak?”

  Ou Yangming shook his head and answered, “I have no idea, but I was going to consult you.”

  The spirit wolf yawned and explained, “The peak can only be entered by spirit beasts at the peak. Heh, you’re quite ambitious to have such a thought but… You’re reaching for something beyond your grasp.”

  It laughed out loud as soon as it was done, whereas the other high-rank spirit beasts smirked at Ou Yangming too.

  A blacksmith was a profession that required time to settle down. There were reputable and unparalleled geniuses in this trade, but more of them worked hard and achieved success step by step. Besides, so what if Ou Yangming was a genius? Given his age, the high-rank spirit beasts were not interested in him at all.

  “Woof…” Big Yellow suddenly barked out loud. It protected Ou Yangming’s honor with its courage.

  The spirit wolf glanced at it and noted, “Little fella, don’t simply bark or you won’t even know how you’ll die.

  They were both spirit beasts, but Big Yellow’s strength was far from that of the spirit wolf. It was worth noting that the big yellow dog was astounding for being able to muster its courage to roar at a stronger powerhouse.

  Ou Yangming flashed to get in front of Big Yellow and asked, “Senior, may I ask what you’re doing here?”

  The spirit wolf was shocked. “Since you’ve come up here, do you not know?”

/>   “It’s my first time joining the Trading Meet, and I’ve only been seeing high platforms along the way.” Ou Yangming continued after some thought, “This is the only place that seems different, so I’d like to consult you.”

  The spirit wolf seemed to be bored. It waved its hand and rejoined, “I see. I really wonder what sheer dumb luck you have that you’re able to get here.”

  Big Yellow looked at the spirit wolf in resentment, but it finally decided to stomach the insult after it considered the disparity between their ranks and powers.

  “This is where high-rank spirit beasts gather. Those that can provide pieces of equipment and pills for us aren’t ordinary human blacksmiths and alchemists anymore; human masters that can enter this place are real masters,” the spirit wolf explained.

  Ou Yangming was dumbfounded. It turned out that these spirit beasts categorized human masters into different levels too.

  He wondered and questioned, “What about the masters below?”

  “They’re simply fame-fishing masters that aren’t worth mentioning.” The spirit wolf chuckled.

  Ou Yangming was hesitant to speak, but he could not hold it in anymore, so he noted, “I met a blacksmith—Elder Bai Zhiyi from Danzhou’s Smithing Alliance.”

  The spirit wolf was indifferent at first, but it smiled bitterly after hearing the elder’s name. “Of course, Elder Bai’s a master, but he only smiths 3 pieces of equipment for us every time he comes, then he wastes his time by smithing for those middle-rank and low-rank fellas. Ah, it’s such a pity…”

  Ou Yangming was moved. Sure enough, Bai Zhiyi’s standard matched his guess, and the elder was acknowledged in the Trading Meet.

  “Mount Liang Wolf King, is it right for you to say that about Elder Bai?” A faint voice was heard. “Did you forget who smithed a piece of Half-Silver Equipment for you a decade ago when you were still a middle-rank spirit beast?”

  It was an odd spirit beast that spoke. It did not seem strong, but a thin layer of black mist spiraled its body. Around it, no other spirit beasts were seen.

  The spirit wolf’s face changed, and it clearly feared the other spirit beast. “Hmph, I wasn’t speaking ill of Elder Bai; I only think that it’s quite a pity.”

  Subsequently, the spirit beast with black mist turned to look at Ou Yangming and Big Yellow. “Given your cultivation bases, you shouldn’t be here, but I trust Sir Venerable One’s arrangement that there won’t be such an obvious careless mistake.” It asked the young fellow after some thought, “Are you a blacksmith or an alchemist?”

  Ou Yangming answered honestly, “I’m a human blacksmith.”

  “Oh, since you’re a blacksmith and can come here, are you capable of smithing pieces of equipment for us?”

  Many spirit beasts were struck dumb at first, then they could not help but laugh. Mount Liang Wolf King even shook its head and remarked, “I might believe it if he’s 20 years older but now… Haha…”

  The other spirit beasts nodded in agreement.

  They were not mocking Ou Yangming on purpose because that was the reality.

  Human blacksmiths that could provide pieces of equipment for them were renowned masters among the Humans, and they only arrived at their boundaries after being steeled over and over again. As such, even if the blacksmiths were not more than 100 years old, they had at least cultivated hard for decades. Even if the young fellow in front of the spirit beasts was a genius, they figured that he could not have arrived at that stage.

  Ou Yangming pondered for a brief moment and ignored the spirit beasts’ attitude.

  Just as he wanted to raise a question, a cheerful voice was heard. “It’s out!”

  The young fellow was startled. He instantly noticed that every spirit beast focused on the crystal wall on the high platform.

  Without them knowing, the crystal wall had lit up. A piece of equipment that looked like an armor floated on it, and the equipment’s equivalent rank, attributes, and original size were indicated in words beside it.

  [Item: Walking beast’s armor]

  [Equivalent Rank: Magic Tool, Good Grade, Rank Four]

  [Attributes: Sharpness +29, Toughness +28, Power +1 (White Silver), Durability 28]

  [Skill: Indestructible Defense (Intermediate)]

  [Wish-fulfilling Degree: 4]

  Ou Yangming’s face changed. The properties were supposedly known only by appraisers, but they were completely revealed on the peculiar crystal wall.

  Even though the armor was only a Good Grade magic tool, which was not even at the peak of Rank Five, apart from a White Silver Attribute, it was also attached with the Indestructible Defense Skill.

  The young fellow turned to look at Big Yellow and thought, ‘This fella’s natural defensive gift is also the Indestructible Defense.

  ‘Big Yellow hadn’t become a spirit beast before this, hence its Indestructible Defense Skill is only a rudimentary one. Even so, now that it has become a spirit beast, I didn’t make up to it with an Intermediate Rune. Ah, I really miscalculated.’

  The big yellow dog looked strangely at Ou Yangming because it did not know why he was looking regretful.

  “What a walking beast’s armor—I’m taking it.” A humongous creature from the Elephants stomped its foot and shouted, “I’ll bid 1,000 spirit ores!”

  “Hmph, 1,100!” Another spirit beast with a similar type of build roared.

  “1,120!” A quiet spirit beast spoke for the first time.

  Ou Yangming found it extremely interesting as he watched from the side. It turned out that the spirit beasts were not gathered to wait for a master to smith pieces of them, but a master would smith and auction the tools.

  Spirit ores—Ou Yangming had seen one in the lower realm, but spirit ores were incredibly scarce over there. Other than those influential forces, there was an exceptionally slim chance of finding them.

  On the contrary, the situation seemed different in the Spiritual Realm. Spirit ores were not so abundant that they were everywhere on the roads, but judging from the high-rank spirit beasts’ bids, there were definitely plenty of them.

  Mount Liang Wolf King clicked its tongue on the side and noted after some time, “Young fella, watch closely—this is the kind of equipment that we need. If you’re not capable of smithing something like that, you should leave soon.” It glanced at the peak and added, “If you’d like to ascend to the peak, you should settle us first.”

  Ou Yangming grinned and asked, “They’re all participating in the auction, but why aren’t you joining them?”

  The spirit wolf rolled its eyes and responded, “Didn’t you see the equipment’s original size? Even with a Wish-fulfilling Degree of 4, I can’t use it.”

  “I see, I thought you’re not interested in this type of equipment.” Ou Yangming nodded.

  Mount Liang Wolf King glared furiously at him and expressed, “It’s a piece of White Silver Equipment with a skill, so how can anyone not be interested? Hmph, can’t you see that the few fellas there are almost getting into the fight because of it?”

  Below the high platform, high-rank spirit beasts that were qualified to wear the equipment seemed to be ready to jump at each other’s throats.

  Having said that, Ou Yangming knew they would not fight no matter what as long as the 10,000 Beasts Venerable One was keeping watch over the place.

  As expected, they eventually had fiercer disputes, but every spirit beast restrained themselves and dared not attack one another regardless of how vicious they looked.

  Ou Yangming looked away and gazed at the peak too. He asked slowly, “If I’d like to go to the peak and see the view over there, do I need your permission?”

  Mount Liang Wolf King was stupefied. “You haven’t given up yet?”

  “Why should I give up?” Ou Yangming chuckled.

  The spirit wolf finally had a grave look on its face. “At the very top, only spirit beasts at the peak are seen. The pieces of equipment that they need are extraordinary as each one has to
be customized. If you’re not capable enough, you’ll only waste their time if you go up. In other words, you’ll be courting death.”

  Ou Yangming responded, “Thanks for your pointers, Your Excellency.”

  Mount Liang Wolf King looked deeply at him and asked, “Now, do you still want to go up there?”

  “Of course, I never give up.” Ou Yangming smiled with his eyes narrowed.

  Since he entered the Spiritual Realm and had the opportunity to witness the abilities of higher-ranked masters, why should he give up?

  “Hmph, you really don’t know your place.” The spirit wolf was slightly mad. “Since you’re so persistent, start by smithing something with the same rank as that equipment.” It reached out its claws to point at the crystal wall. “If you can’t even smith something like that, you should stop having wishful thinking.”

  Ou Yangming looked up and looked at the armor on the crystal wall. He pondered seriously and replied to the spirit wolf with a smile, “Okay, I’ll try.”

  Chapter 586 - Applying What He Had Just Learned

  ‘Try?

  ‘Did this young fella say that he’ll try?’

  Mount Liang Wolf King looked at Ou Yangming in confusion as though it suspected that it heard him wrongly.

  After seeing the armor’s properties on the crystal wall, how dare the young fellow say that he would try?

  Although the armor was only a magic tool of Good Grade Rank Four, it was still a piece of White Silver Equipment that could activate a skill. It was worth noting that the White Silver Skill Equipment was far more valuable than an ordinary piece of White Slate Equipment.

  In fact, even an ordinary High Grade magic tool’s actual value was far from that of a piece of White Silver Skill Equipment.

  Mount Liang Wolf King thought that the young fellow would quit after learning of its difficult request. Who knew, he had the guts to attempt the task.

  The spirit wolf twitched its mouth and scoffed. “Fine. Since you’re not afraid of failure, you can give it a go.” It added after a pause, “But nobody will prepare any materials for you.”