“Big Uncle, I’ll go take a look.” Ni Xuetian sighed. “I should also talk to him about Yinghong.”
“Okay. Xuetian, be careful with your words. If he asks for any form of compensation, we will agree to it,” Ni Jingshen reminded him.
“Yes,” Ni Xuetian responded to him, then he flashed away and left.
On the other hand, Ni Xuehai sighed because the inexperienced teen had grown up. Though Ou Yangming was not a giant tree, he was not someone who could be ignored.
XXXX
Ou Yangming arrived at the military camp excitedly. Based on his status, there was no need for him to report his arrival, thus he went to the Armament Camp while many soldiers looked at him respectfully.
The Armament Camp was still a bustling place, and it had somewhat flourished.
As soon as Ou Yangming arrived, someone recognized him and left to make the announcement.
The soldiers outside were grateful for Ou Yangming because he did not fear the imperial merchant and stood up for a soldier’s family member; the craftsmen in the Armament Camp revered him from the bottom of their hearts.
Whether it was the ordinary blacksmiths or the Military Fire Blacksmiths, they all developed a deep respect for Ou Yangming.
Ever since Ou Yangming modified the molds for arm guards, the molds had been playing a big role in their daily tasks, and nobody dared to question his ability anymore. Master Lu and Old Craftsman arrived together after a brief moment.
Before this, Master Lu had a slightly higher status than Old Craftsman, but Ou Yangming could tell from the way they walked shoulder-to-shoulder that the master had regarded the old man to be on par with him.
It was not only because of Ou Yangming, but because Old Craftsman’s smithing art was not to be overlooked. In particular, after fathoming the integration of Heaven and man, the old man advanced by leaps and bounds and was far beyond Master Lu’s reach in certain unique situations.
“Master Ou, you’re finally back.” Master Lu flashed a bright smile. “Without your presence, the new molds that were smithed couldn’t be used at all.”
Ou Yangming was surprised. “Did you forge new molds?”
Master Lu sighed. “We were researching new Rune Molds, but our efforts were to no avail. Instead of wasting time, we were thinking about making more molds for the arm guards.”
He glanced at Old Craftsman and continued, “Ah, I always thought I’m a genius in runes, but it turns out that the two of you have already surpassed me.”
Ou Yangming looked at Old Craftsman as he was struck dumb. The old man commented with a grin, “Master Lu, you’re being too polite.”
Master Lu shook his head and explained, “I taught Old Craftsman the path of runes. He couldn’t grasp it in the beginning, but once he learned it, heh… The molds that he smithed were much better than the ones I’ve accumulated over the years!”
Ou Yangming’s eyes lit up as he realized that Old Craftsman finally perceived the key of the Upgrade Rune after studying it for some time.
This was the disadvantage of not being gifted with mental power; one would take much longer than Ou Yangming and Master Lu to comprehend runes.
Despite that, Old Craftsman understood the Upgrade Rune after he put in a lot of effort to explore it. Hence, he began to smith molds too.
Master Lu was not optimistic about it at first, but after just a few times, Old Craftsman managed to smith molds of better quality than his.
While the molds did not contain the unique Counterattack attribute, they had a 60% success rate in enhancing arm guards to Good Grade. The result alone was much better than what Master Lu achieved ten years ago from his research.
It was no wonder Master Lu sounded bitter when he spoke earlier.
Ou Yangming could not help but laugh because he knew it was the advantage of the integration of Heaven and man. Old Craftsman had not entered the thoroughly meticulous state, so he could not perfectly engrave every rune’s veined pattern.
Even so, with the integration of Heaven and man, the old man was superior to Master Lu.
The difference in states could result in a huge gap regardless of the trade.
Ou Yangming congratulated Old Craftsman as he was glad, then he said to the master, “Master Lu, I didn’t come to amend molds today.”
Master Lu was dumbfounded. “Then you’re…”
“I’ve been reading books for a month in the Ni family’s library, so I gained more knowledge in the path of runes. I’ve come to put them into practice today,” Ou Yangming stated.
“Oh…” Master Lu looked disappointed, then he asked with a bitter smile, “Master Ou, are you looking to find a lost rune drawing too? Ah, my chance encounter could be discovered but couldn’t be sought.”
Ou Yangming cursed, ‘What do you mean by a chance encounter? The Ni family’s Three Great Ancestors planned it on purpose, okay? Without their approval, you couldn’t have stumbled upon the crucial rune.’
That said, he would not say his thoughts out loud.
Ou Yangming smiled. “I didn’t find a new Upgrade Rune, but I have unique feelings about certain runes, so I’d like to amend and combine them.”
Master Lu was stupefied. He warned, “Master Ou, we’re talking about runes now. If you carelessly alter them, I’m afraid that…”
“There’ll be a huge loss?” Ou Yangming could not help but laugh. “If it’s done away from the crowd, it shouldn’t be a problem,” Master Lu suggested after some thought.
“That’s fine.” Ou Yangming spread out his hands. “Find me a remote area and let me test it out.”
Master Lu was disgruntled. If Ou Yangming was not the one who made the request, he would have slapped the person who requested it; he dared not object to the idea when he saw Ou Yangming’s face. The military camp was tight on resources, but once Master Lu gave the order, a suitable place was found.
When Ou Yangming arrived at the remote area, he was surprised to see that not only Master Lu and Old Craftsman had come, but Commanding General Li Xinfan and Ni Xuetian from the Ni family had also shown up.
Ou Yangming tensed up a little. Li Xinfan was the military camp’s commanding general, after all, thus nobody could restrict him.
However, why was Ni Xuetian present too? Could he have guessed something? Seeing as how things had already developed so far, Ou Yangming was certain that he would not change his plan because of Ni Xuetian.
He moved away from the crowd and closed his eyes to refresh his spirit.
A rune emerged above the military saber’s visualized image, which was in the center of the Runes Formation in Ou Yangming’s sea of consciousness. It was not particularly clear, but the veined patterns on it were faintly visible.
If more time was given, the patterns would become clearer, but Ou Yangming had a feeling of urgency, so he could not wait any longer.
The Military Fire burned in his hand, causing a piece of steel to be melted into a mold.
Chapter 233 - Military Saber Rune
Chapter 233 Military Saber Rune
Reshaping steel was nothing much because Ou Yangming had done the same many times when he practiced carving runes.
It was when a rune began to surface on the steel mold that everyone else began to look enlightened.
In actuality, the people who were present knew Ou Yangming must have comprehended something to have visited the military camp. Nonetheless, before a rune was drawn and before its function was tested, nobody believed he could achieve the nearly impossible target.
That said, even when their rationality was telling them Ou Yangming could not succeed, the look in their eyes kept changing according to the dancing Military Fire. Through their eyes, it was clear that deep down they had strong anticipation.
Ou Yangming was their greatest or perhaps their final hope.
If even the young fellow, who kept working miracles, could not improve runes, they knew they could not count on anyone else.
Soon enough, veined patterns were
seen on the steel mold. As Ou Yangming fixed his gaze on the mold, flashes of lightning-like glows were seen in his eyes. It was an unusual occurrence that was a result of refining a rune from the sea of consciousness.
After all, Ou Yangming did not visualize the Military Saber Upgrade Rune in the Runes Formation from the outside world; the rune was born in his consciousness.
If he wanted to shift the rune’s essence to the outside world, it was bound to be an entirely different situation.
When there were more of the rune’s veined patterns on the mold, the uncommon look in Ou Yangming’s eyes became clearer.
Ni Xuetian and Li Xinfan exchanged glances because they were both shocked. As knowledgeable as they were, they could not confirm what was happening to Ou Yangming.
Nevertheless, it seemed like any abnormal change on Ou Yangming was reasonable because he created so many miracles that people became used to it.
Ou Yangming focused on the mold in his hand. For the first time, he realized how difficult it was to carve a rune on it.
It seemed like every veined pattern on the mold was restricted by a certain power, and he needed to use ten or a hundred times of his power to etch deep marks on it.
The young fellow vaguely sensed a magnanimous power, which was everywhere.
It was the world’s mighty power.
When Ou Yangming first smithed a magic tool, and when he attempted to push two of the Ni family’s great ancestors into the state of the integration of Heaven and man, he experienced a similar barrier.
Only by breaking the hurdle could he accomplish his goal.
A thought crossed his mind at that moment, ‘Is this rune that upgrades a military saber’s grade and rank connected to the power of the world’s obstacle?’
Despite that, Ou Yangming was surprisingly resolute. Regardless of the difficulties and hardships ahead, he was not going to be stopped from moving forward.
Ou Yangming gathered his mental power and transformed them into a sharp needle tip to penetrate the world’s hindrance. At last, the young fellow heard a faint “pop”.
He curled his lips into a proud smile. As he engraved the rune whole-heartedly, the veined patterns in his sea of consciousness were perfectly shown on the mold.
Ou Yangming exhaled deeply and curbed his Military Fire.
Everyone around him furrowed their eyebrows at the same time. Ou Yangming had successfully carved a rune on the mold, but even Li Xinfan, who knew nothing about the path of runes, noticed an issue.
The rune was… Too shallow!
Before this, whenever a rune’s veined patterns were seen, be it on the molds that were modified by Ou Yangming or on the molds that were forged by Master Lu and Old Craftsman, they were etched deeply on the material. However, the patterns on the steel mold were much shallower, and some areas were only faintly visible.
The people had the same question in their minds.
Could the rune function?
Ou Yangming blushed a little because he noticed the problem after he was done with the process.
However, it was not the consequence of his laziness. He gave his all throughout the process, but the new rune in his sea of consciousness just turned out to be like this.
It was quite an amazing achievement that Ou Yangming was able to replicate the rune without any mistake, but it was certainly beyond his capability if he wanted to perfectly recover the parts that had not been completely revealed.
Needless to say, Ou Yangming would not be upset or disappointed about it. He knew if the Runes Formation operated a few more days in his consciousness, the new rune would slowly become clearer and more flawless.
“Master Ou, what… Rune is this?” Master Lu asked carefully.
Ou Yangming cleared his throat and answered, “This is a rune that I came up with, and it’s used to improve an inexpensive military saber’s grade and rank.” “Military sabers?” Li Xinfan had a fierce look in his eyes.
As the military’s commanding general, he knew better than anyone else the importance of military sabers.
A military saber was the most commonly used and the most economical weapon in the military. Regardless of the branch of the military, almost every soldier would be equipped with a military saber.
Low-cost Good Grade arm guards could increase a military’s combat power.
On the other hand, affordable Good Grade military sabers could elevate a military’s combat power to more than twice its original level.
It was not a myth; it was decided according to a military’s features.
A Supreme Great Ancestor could eliminate a hundred-men team with ease. Nonetheless, if every soldier in the team carried a Good Grade military saber, even a great ancestor in Extreme Grade would have to pay a price to wipe out the army.
If the hundred-men team was a combination of soldiers from different branches, and each soldier was equipped with a Good Grade weapon and Good Grade protective gear…
The Supreme Great Ancestor would have to think thrice before he or she attacked; one would have to decide if the fight against the team would be worth it.
Li Xinfan looked at the Rune Mold with bright eyes. If the mold could enhance cheap military sabers’ grades and ranks, it would be so worthy that its value would be inestimable.
Master Lu was struck dumb when he looked at the Rune Mold, and he asked after some time, “Master Ou, would you mind if we test it out?”
Ou Yangming chuckled. “Since I smithed it, I obviously want it to be tested.”
“Okay.” Master Lu happily took the mold back to the bustling Armament Camp, where he found a Common Grade military saber and burned it with the Military Fire before putting it on the mold.
Ou Yangming and the other people knew he was imitating an ordinary blacksmith’s method.
Burning through the Military Fire and hammering were two completely different processes. Master Lu finished the steps after some time, but he smiled bitterly once he was done studying the saber in his hands. “Master Ou, this military saber didn’t change.”
It was evident that the first attempt failed.
Everyone regretfully shook their heads. They were mentally prepared for the outcome, but they could not help but look disappointed when Ou Yangming was confirmed to have failed.
Ou Yangming had created too many miracles in the past, thus they expected too much from him.
If Master Lu was the one who came up with a new rune, nobody would look forward to it.
“Continue,” Ou Yangming uttered with a smile.
“What?” Master Lu was dumbfounded.
“The design for the rune isn’t complete, so it’s far from perfect. In that case, it’s only natural that it doesn’t have a 100% success rate,” Ou Yangming explained, then he waved his hand and urged the master. “Keep on trying.”
Master Lu was a little startled. He dared not refute the confident Ou Yangming, hence he nodded and subconsciously retrieved a new Common Grade military saber to try again.
The other people looked at each other quietly.
Ou Yangming was probably the only person who could make Li Xinfan and Ni Xuetiantwo Supreme Great Ancestors-desert their military affairs and cultivation, respectively, to watch a nearly impossible experiment like fools.
Before long, the second military saber was also engraved with the rune, but it was clear from the way Master Lu shook his head that it was a failed attempt too.
Nevertheless, Master Lu learned well. Instead of questioning Ou Yangming, the master tried with another military saber. With that, after trying with five military sabers, even Old Craftsman, who trusted Ou Yangming the most, could not bear to watch anymore.
The old man sighed. “Young fella, the path of runes is broad and profound. It’s fine to fail once; we can discuss and try again.”
He was the only person who could criticize Ou Yangming frankly. Even Li Xinfan and Ni Xuetian chose to keep quiet.
Ou Yangming expressed after some thought, “Old man, please try a
few more times. If I fail ten times, I’ll give up.”
Before Old Craftsman could give any comment, Master Lu had already taken the sixth military saber.
This was Ou Yangming’s status—the well-deserved status of a great Military Fire Blacksmith who could smith magic tools.
Old Craftsman shook his head gently and glanced at the two expressionless Supreme Great Ancestors. In the end, he sighed and decided to keep quiet.
The sixth and seventh sabers failed to be upgraded.
When Master Lu began to test the eighth military saber, he no longer had an expression on his face because he was merely completing his task; he did not have hope anymore.
Soon enough, the eighth military saber was also etched with the rune. Master Lu removed it from the mold and casually scanned the weapon. Just as he was going to throw it away, his heart skipped a beat.
The master quickly widened his eyes and inspected the military saber carefully.
He immediately attracted everyone’s attention, especially Li Xinfan, who took a step forward to snatch the military saber. Ou Yangming shouted coldly, “General Li, please don’t distract Master Lu!” Li Xinfan halted and was embarrassed. Even so, he dared not say no, let alone express his anger. Being a Supreme Great Ancestor and a commanding general, Li Xinfan truly embarrassed himself for having his hands and feet tied by a little Yin Grade martial artist.
In spite of that, Li Xinfan was not furious at all.
If the mold could upgrade inexpensive military sabers, he would gladly be reproached by Ou Yangming every day! Eventually, Master Lu looked up with widened eyes as he was in disbelief and was in awe. The master mumbled, “It’s a success… It’s a success!”
When he repeated himself, he roared with every power he had in his body, causing his voice to echo in the whole military camp.
Chapter 234 - Enter the Capital To Meet The Emperor
Chapter 234 Enter the Capital To Meet The Emperor
“Let me see it!” Li Xinfan and Ni Xuetian reached out their hands and shouted almost at the same time.
Master Lu was stunned. He held back the excitement and shock as he was feeling troubled.
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