Chapter 620 - Parting Gift
Xu Feiyu went forward and scanned the 2 equipment.
Ou Yangming and Xu Guangji had coincidentally made the simplest choice; they smithed an arm guard each.
This was within Xu Feiyu’s expectations, so he was observing their qualities at the moment. Given his eyesight, he could roughly deduce a piece of equipment’s basic quality without needing to use appraisal art.
As at this moment, he could not help but furrow his eyebrows when he looked at the 2 equipment on the smithing table. This was because the elder could tell that they were both Good Grade magic tools, but he could not perceive their specific ranks.
Bai Zhiyi chuckled and said, “Brother Xu, you can appraise them.”
The elder was not too worried because he had witnessed Ou Yangming’s smithing ability. Besides, he was victorious in the previous round, hence it would be a draw even if he was defeated this round. Therefore, Bai Zhiyi smiled without looking concerned at all.
Xu Feiyu nodded calmly. He first picked up Xu Guangji’s arm guard, and he found out its properties as a white light flashed in his hands.
The elder’s eyes lit up, and he was delighted. He nodded at his precious grandson and secretly approved of his skill.
Xu Guangji did not give up after being defeated in the previous round. Instead, he unleashed greater potential.
The arm guard in Xu Feiyu’s hands at the moment of a magic tool of Good Grade Rank Four.
A Good Grade Rank Four—Xu Guangji never smithed anything of this quality in the past.
Xu Guangji’s limit had always been Good Grade Rank Three, but he put on an extraordinary performance today. At the very least, he defeated his past self, thus Xu Feiyu was comforted and pleased.
After putting down the arm guard gently, Xu Feiyu announced loudly, “Xu Guangji, a magic tool of Good Grade Rank Four.”
“Good Grade Rank Four—how amazing!”
“Hehe, looks like Brother Xu broke through again. He’s not far from smithing magic tools at the peak of Good Grade.”
“Yes, the Beast King Sect has a worthy successor!”
The crowd below the platform beamed and discussed with one another.
They regarded Xu Guangji as one of theirs. Since that was the case, they naturally hoped that he would be victorious. Sure enough, the fellow did not disappoint them.
Following that, Xu Feiyu waved his hand and picked up the arm guard in front of Ou Yangming.
A similar white light was seen, but the smile on his face froze.
After a moment of hesitation, Xu Feiyu gritted his teeth and released the white light again.
‘The first Appraisal Light might be wrong, so let me release another one!’
Nonetheless, when the second Appraisal Light returned the same answer for him, his face took on a ghastly expression.
The discussion below the platform stopped, and the spectators noticed Xu Feiyu losing himself again. When they recalled what happened previously, they could not help but look at each other and had a strange thought in their heads.
‘Did Xu Guangji lose again?’
‘But Xu Guangji smithed a magic tool of Good Grade Rank Four. If that fella’s better than him this time too, it can only mean…’
Upon thinking about this, everyone had wonderful expressions on their faces.
Bai Zhiyi went forward. He had guessed the answer, so he gave Ou Yangming a thumbs-up then turned around and asked, “Brother Xu, what’s the appraisal result?”
Xu Feiyu looked deeply at him and uttered, “Elder Bai, congratulations.”
Bai Zhiyi giggled and smiled brighter than before. “I’m just lucky… It’s all luck, luck!”
He said that it was lucky, but he exclaimed internally, ‘Ou Yangming—this young fella impressed me once more.’
If Bai Zhiyi were to smith using the most ordinary materials, he dared not guarantee that he could smith anything decent.
Not to mention the peak of Good Grade Rank Five, even for Good Grade Rank Five, he dared not boast about being able to do it every time.
After all, Ou Yangming had chosen incredibly normal materials. One could not make something out of nothing—without good materials, how could a piece of high-quality equipment be made? At the end of the day, this was not done improperly but through honest smithing.
Xu Guangji’s face changed abruptly. He took several steps forward and questioned, “Is-is this really a magic tool at the peak of Good Grade?”
Xu Feiyu sighed and handed him the arm guard.
After accepting the equipment, Xu Guangji released an Appraisal Light too.
Appraisal art was not mastered by many people in the lower realm. Even if one grasped the art, one would not anyhow release it.
On the contrary, it seemed like every blacksmith that was also a Spiritualist in the Spiritual Realm knew appraisal art. Moreover, they could communicate with the universe’s spiritual power and release the skill even if they were not casters.
Xu Guangji pursed his lips tightly after his light flashed. He suddenly looked up and stared at Ou Yangming with a strong feeling of discontent. Subsequently, he jumped off the high platform without saying a word, then he squeezed through the crowd and ran away.
The people below the platform exchanged glances and lamented.
Xu Guangji was famous in the Beast King Sect and was publicly acknowledged as a rising star.
However, he kept being defeated by an outsider in smithing art, which was his expertise.
His first defeat could be due to having chosen the wrong challenge, but his second defeat proved that his foundation in smithing art was indeed inferior to that of his opponent.
Xu Guangji was a proud man, hence he was too embarrassed to face the people after suffering a heavy blow.
Although Xu Feiyu did not stop Xu Guangji from leaving, he cast a fierce look at Ou Yangming.
Xu Guangji was his grandson, one that he valued the most. He devoted all his life to this grandson, and he was well aware of the child’s nature. The impact today was definitely a head-on blow for Xu Guangji, a devastating one on his confidence.
If Xu Guangji could not overcome this difficulty, perhaps this would be the end of his achievements.
The thought of this caused Xu Feiyu to develop intense yet indescribable hatred for Ou Yangming.
If one’s look could kill, Ou Yangming would have been slashed numerous times already.
Bai Zhiyi frowned and took a step forward. He stood in front of Xu Feiyu and asked in a deep voice, “Brother Xu, you were the ones that suggested the competition. Why? You can’t afford to lose now?”
There was a strong enmity between Bai Zhiyi and the Xu family, and even when they met earlier, Xu Guangji treated him impolitely when he was a junior. As broad-minded as the elder was, he could not ignore it, thus he did not feel sorry at all when Xu Guangji left disappointedly and defeated. Instead, he felt similar to when Zhu Bajie ate the ginseng fruit; every pore on his body had a warm and fuzzy feeling.
Xu Feiyu was stunned, then he laughed out loud. “Brother Bai, you’re overthinking this. I’m delighted to see this little friend being remarkably skilled in what I love to do, so I wanted to see the exact standard of his smithing art.”
Bai Zhiyi knew he was lying through his teeth, but there was nothing he could do. “You don’t need to know his standard. I only have one question for you—given his age and cultivation base, is he qualified to join our sect?”
The people below the platform exchanged glances and realized something all of a sudden.
If Ou Yangming were to join their sect, they would be fellow disciples.
Many people would be displeased if an outsider defeated Xu Guangji, but if that person was one of theirs, the competition would simply be a learning experience between 2 disciples, and the result would not matter so much.
Xu Feiyu grinned and responded, “Brother Bai, it’s not up to me whether or not he can join our sect!”
He
decided to utilize his connections to prevent the young fellow from joining the Beast King Sect no matter what. If not, it would be an indescribably heavy impact for Xu Guangji to see the fellow every day.
Bai Zhiyi curled his lips as he had perceived the elder’s thoughts already. He chuckled and said, “Lil’ Ou, show them some real skills.”
Ou Yangming was dumbfounded, and he asked, “What real skills?”
The elder laughed out loud. “Go all-out and smith a few pieces of equipment for everyone to see and let them judge if you’re qualified to join the Beast King Sect!”
He was highly-spirited, and he had a confident smile on his face.
Xu Feiyu’s face changed. If Ou Yangming really showed off by smithing pieces of high-quality equipment, it would be useful even if he tried to be a hindrance. In any case, he must not object to Bai Zhiyi’s idea at this moment.
Ou Yangming could not help but laugh. He did not know if he was going to join the Beast King Sect, but he could not flinch at this time. Even for the sake of Bai Zhiyi, the young fellow must not pretend to be helpless and miserable.
As he pondered, he recalled how Xu Guangji spoke proudly of a piece of Dual White Silver, Dual Skill Equipment when they first met.
He smirked and thought, ‘Dual White Silver and Dual Skill… Are they really worthy of being proud of?’
Ou Yangming glanced at Bai Zhiyi, then he closed his eyes as if he was deep in thoughts.
Countless runes surged in his sea of consciousness, and he finally settled on 2 of them after a brief moment.
The young fellow was not idle throughout their journey to the sect. He had used his spiritual space to derive 3 sets of Dual Skill Runes, and these 2 runes belonged to one of those sets.
As his Military Fire burned again, a small and round shield was quickly formed.
Ou Yangming opened his interspatial bag and retrieved 2 spirit ores shining in mysterious lusters.
“High Agility Spirit Ores…”
Many people among the crowd were well-informed, so they exclaimed softly.
High Agility Spirit Ores and Tremendous Power Spirit Ores were not ultimate treasures, but they were also rare and precious items.
Even so, Ou Yangming simply shook his wrist and tossed the 2 spirit ores into his fire.
The crowd exclaimed, and even Xu Feiyu was shocked as well.
‘Seeing how casual he is, is he really confident?’
Ou Yangming continued to smith. After attaching 2 White-Silver-level Agility attributes, he began to carve Skill Runes.
15 minutes—this time, Ou Yangming did not delay any time, by which he finished the equipment after only 15 minutes.
The young fellow smiled and curbed his fire, then he handed the small, round shield to Bai Zhiyi and expressed seriously, “Elder Bai, I’m eternally grateful to have been under your care since we met. Now, I’ll offer you a gift by smithing a piece of equipment for you, so kindly accept it.”
Bai Zhiyi conveniently accepted the shield but before he could appraise it, Ou Yangming cupped his hands and added, “Elder Bai, since the Beast King Sect doesn’t welcome me, it’s not right for me to join the sect shamelessly. I hereby bid my farewell.”
Ou Yangming turned around and glanced at the other people with a heroic spirit as though he had realized his ambition. With that, he smiled cheerfully and strode out of the building without looking back.
Chapter 621 - Invite Him Back
The main hall was oddly silent.
Everyone including Bai Zhiyi and Xu Feiyu looked at each other. They seemed to be clueless about what exactly happened.
Oh, it seemed like that young man had left in displeasure and no longer wanted to join the Beast King Sect because he was unhappy with the assessment given.
It was truly out of everyone’s expectations.
Nonetheless, the crowd was slightly furious after they figured out the problem. In fact, even Bai Zhiyi felt slightly uneasy.
‘Yes, you’re exceptionally gifted and superior, but this is the Beast King Sect, which is one of Danzhou’s Nine Great Sects and a supreme force that’s being watched over by a Venerable One.’
For generations, apart from disciples that had been nurtured since young in the sect, successful outsiders must be steeled thoroughly if they wanted to join the sect.
All in all, the Beast King Sect was not an ordinary sect that could be joined by anyone.
Xu Feiyu was stunned for some time, then he blurted angrily, “This! This is too much!” He looked enraged but was secretly overjoyed. ‘I can’t believe that the young fella’s quite a personality and looks down on the Beast King Sect.’
Even so, in this case, even if Ou Yangming went back on his word, Xu Feiyu had a legitimate reason to shut him out.
In actuality, Xu Feiyu was not an unreasonable person. Normally, he would not mind recruiting a few more talents for the sect. After all, blacksmiths like him that depended on the sect would only have better days if the sect became more formidable.
Nevertheless, due to Xu Guangji, he was unwilling to let Ou Yangming stay in the Beast King Sect.
What would one feel if one was in Xu Guangji’s shoes? What would it feel like to always see the person that defeated one showing off in the sect every day?
If the situation went on for a long time, even if Xu Guangji did not go crazy, he would not get up after the wall and would never rise again.
For the sake of his grandson, Xu Feiyu would not mind shutting out a genius.
In any case, given the sect’s foundation and strength, having one more or one less genius would not make too much difference.
“Yes, it’s too much!”
“Hmph, what does he take the Beast King Sect as?”
“As gifted as he is, he mustn’t be recruited into our sect!”
Complaints were heard one after another, and the people looked displeased.
Being disciples from the Beast King Sect, they would always be envied and respected outside whenever they mentioned their sect. Deep in their bones, they valued and worshipped the sect very much.
Therefore, they became cold-hearted and unhappy when someone regarded the sect as nothing.
Bai Zhiyi was regretful when he noticed the angry faces.
Just as he was thinking of a way to comfort them, a sonorous and powerful voice was heard coming from outside. “What’s all this noise!”
It was not loud, but it sounded like thunder, causing the people to feel dizzy. Some of them staggered but luckily, they were supported by the people beside them, or they would have fallen and embarrassed themselves.
The crowd turned to look at the same time. Their faces changed when they saw who it was, and they quickly shut their mouths as they dared not say another word.
Bai Zhiyi and Xu Feiyu exchanged glances. Shocked, they immediately got off the high platform and walked toward the entrance.
“Sect Elder, why have you come?” Xu Feiyu smiled apologetically and asked carefully.
The person at the door was a white-haired elder. He was old, but he was in high spirits. In particular, his eyes were so sharp and bright that nobody dared to look straight at him.
This elder was an extremely important figure in the Beast King Sect. He was Peng Yanbing, the chief of the blacksmiths in the sect, as well as one of the only few sect elders.
However, the sect elder had not shown up in a long time, hence this happened when he suddenly appeared.
“Of course I came here for something.” Peng Yanbing scoffed. He glanced at the crowd with bright eyes and questioned, “Why are you gathered here instead of practicing smithing art?”
Xu Feiyu instantly answered, “Sect Elder, there was a smithing art competition here earlier, which is why they’ve gathered here.”
“Oh, who was involved?” Peng Yanbing asked as he was interested.
“Xu Guangji and an outsider,” Xu Feiyu responded seriously, “Sect Elder, that outsider spoke conceited nonsense and looked down on our sect, which
was why everyone clamored!”
He was afraid that Peng Yanbing would favor talent, thus he amplified Ou Yangming’s demerits. Being a sect elder, Peng Yanbing was obliged to protect the sect’s honor. Since the elder was now aware of how presumptuous the young fellow was, he would not recruit him regardless of how gifted he was.
Sure enough, Peng Yanbing humphed angrily and asked, “What did that outsider say?”
Feeling anxious, Bai Zhiyi expressed right away, Sect Elder, he didn’t speak conceited nonsense; he was only compelled against his will, so he left in dissatisfaction.
“Hmph, what do you mean he was compelled against his will?” Xu Feiyu was outraged. “Plenty of people want to join the Beast King Sect but aren’t given a chance. We gave him the opportunity to join us by letting him perform his skills, but he responded with such an attitude and said that he won’t bother unless we line the streets to welcome him. What’s that if it isn’t an act of presumptuousness?”
Bai Zhiyi glared at him and remarked, “Old man! You’re talking nonsense! When did he say that?”
Xu Feiyu sneered. “That was what he meant. If not, why would everyone be so mad?”
The crowd was dumbfounded. Even though they thought that Xu Feiyu exaggerated it, they were displeased with Ou Yangming indeed and were unwilling to offend the elder, thus they decided to keep quiet.
Among them, several hot-tempered ones even nodded in response. Since Ou Yangming looked down on the Beast King Sect, they deemed him their enemy. There was naturally no need to adopt gentle means against an enemy, so much so that framing him up would also be considered a light punishment for him. They were already regretful that they could not teach the young fellow a lesson themselves.
Peng Yanbing frowned and waved his hand.
Bai Zhiyi and Xu Feiyu had a lot more to say, but they shut their mouths obediently. Nobody dared to be impolite in front of the sect elder.
The sect elder glanced at them and asked, “Who’s that outsider?”
“Sect Elder, that person’s Ou Yangming. I met him during the Trading Meet on the 10,000 Beasts Ridge, and I brought him back with the intention of recruiting him due to his unbelievable natural gift in smithing art,” Bai Zhiyi answered at once.
Immortal Path to Heaven c1-725 Page 366
