In the forest, He Liangce turned to look at his companions. Instead of being impatient, he praised with a smile, "I see you're both fully equipped—that's great."

"Brother He, our pieces of equipment are at the peak of Fine Grade Rank Five." Ou Yangming laughed. He intended to show off when he spoke.

He was previously taken aback when he found out that He Liangce's cultivation base was at Yang Grade.

However, he was certain he surpassed and was far ahead of He Liangce in terms of smithing art.

He Liangce nodded and remarked, "Nice. If that's the case, you should have a certain ability to protect yourself in the forest."

Ou Yangming was stunned. There was nothing wrong with He Liangce's words, but it somehow sounded off to him.

"Let's go, we'll have to travel for a few days to arrive at the strange bamboo." He Liangce grinned at them and walked ahead.

Ou Yangming pouted his lips and gave Ni Yinghong an eye signal.

Ni Yinghong seemed to have noticed something, so she flashed a bright fairy-like smile at him, then she followed behind He Liangce nimbly.

Her cultivation base was still below Yin Grade, but owing to Elder Universe's guidance, her combat power was decent. Besides, her equipment suit was specially smithed by Ou Yangming.

Every piece of equipment was attached with 3 Points of Power or Agility.

Ou Yangming did not layer them with more attributes not because he was incompetent, but because 3 Points of Unique Attributes each was already considered outstanding. In order not to shock the other people, that was as far as he could go.

Nonetheless, Ni Yinghong was extremely agile throughout the journey as if she was weightless.

As for Ou Yangming, his equipment set was naturally of a higher level. Moreover, his helmet had 5 Points of Vision.

Wherever he looked, even if he did not employ the integration of Heaven and man, and even if the forest was not brightly lit, he could easily discern the dangers that lurked in the dark.

The three of them walked in a single file for half a day before Ou Yangming, who was holding the line, was suddenly alerted.

Due to the Vision +5 attribute, he noticed a venomous snake hiding on a big tree in front of them.

The snake's body looked the same as the tree; like a piece of withered bark. Without the mighty Vision attribute, Ou Yangming could not have spotted it.

He Liangce, who was scouting in front, was still clueless as he was heading straight to the tree.

Ou Yangming hesitated for a while, and he decided not to warn the young master.

He had no grievances against He Liangce, but the fellow told him during their first meeting that he wanted to marry Ni Yinghong. Furthermore, it was clear through He Liangce's actions that he did not casually say it; he had acted on his word.

Although Ou Yangming could not kill someone like him in front of Ni Yinghong, it would be great if he was killed in the forest.

At last, He Liangce arrived at the big tree and walked past it unsuspectingly.

Ou Yangming's eyelids twitched as he prayed to himself. Nevertheless, he was disappointed because the venomous snake simply laid on the tree without moving an inch and let He Liangce walk past it.

Ni Yinghong followed He Liangce's path. Though she was already on guard, there was no way she would notice what He Liangce could not notice.

Just as she walked past the big tree, the venomous snake suddenly moved for some reason.

The snake was like a strong wind as it widened its mouth and bared its sharp, curved fangs at Ni Yinghong.

A flash was seen in Ni Yinghong's eye as she was appalled. She quickly backed away.

Before she could even pull out her longsword, a saber beat her to it and slashed the venomous snake into two.

He Liangce, who was in front, stopped at once. He shifted away but immediately stopped steadily to scan their surroundings with his lightning eyes.

Even though Ou Yangming was hostile toward He Liangce, he could not help but commended him for his quick wits during an emergency.

Since Ou Yangming had controlled the scene, there was no need for He Liangce to hurry over to them. As such, it was only right for He Liangce to check their surroundings for other threats.

The He family's young master was not a flower grown in the greenhouse because he had great experiences in facing attacks.

He Liangce stopped inspecting after a brief moment, then he returned to Ou Yangming and Ni Yinghong. He apologized when he noticed the venomous snake on the ground, "Younger Sister, I'm sorry for being negligent."

"There are many venomous beings in the forest, and this venomous snake hid wonderfully just now, so you can't be blamed, Elder Brother," Ni Yinghong spoke with lingering fear. Following that, he turned to smile brightly at Ou Yangming. "Lil' Ming, thank you."

This was her first time addressing Ou Yangming so intimately in front of someone else. Though He Liangce was the only other person around, it was enough to make Ou Yangming burst with joy.

"Hehe, it's only right for me to serve a beautiful lady." Just as Ou Yangming was going to express some formalities, his face suddenly changed.

He seemed to have noticed a shadow at the limit of his vision. Almost at the same time, his mind instantly tensed up, and he naturally entered the integration of Heaven and man.

Ou Yangming took a step forward without any hesitation and pulled Ni Yinghong to his back. He warned softly, "Be careful, something's out there."

He Liangce raised his eyebrows because he was a legitimate Yang Grade powerhouse, but he did not notice any danger. Despite that, without any delay, he fixed his gaze in the direction where Ou Yangming was looking at.

That said, without a Vision +5 attribute, he could not notice anything even though he paid full attention.

Struck with an idea, He Liangce kicked a broken twig with the tip of his foot, which was the length of a child's arm, to launch it in that direction. The broken twig was not tough enough, but it carried his enormous essential Qi.

Next, a shout was heard a distance away. Subsequently, a shadow flew out, revealing a dark brown ape. The ape's arms were especially long, but two fangs stuck out from its mouth. It glared hatefully at He Liangce and the others, then it swung its arms and went far away in the blink of an eye.

"Oh no, it's a Long-armed Devil Ape!" He Liangce's face took on a ghastly expression. He ordered softly, "Brother Ou, quickly take Miss Ni along and go 5 kilometers away from here!"

Ou Yangming was dumbfounded. "Why?"

"Because the apes normally travel in a group. If one of them is here, there must be a nest nearby," He Liangce explained as fast as he could, "They're agile and adept in hiding their tracks. Once they come as a group, we won't be able to guard against them."

Ou Yangming and Ni Yinghong exchanged glances and were uncertain.

"Leave now or it'll be too late! Brother Ou, even if you don't think for yourself, you should consider Miss Ni's safety, right?" He Liangce expressed sternly.

"Elder Brother He, what about you?" Ni Yinghong asked hesitantly.

"Heh, don't worry, I'm confident about getting away." He Liangce smiled faintly but with pride.

Before Ni Yinghong could say anything else, she felt tightness on her wrist because Ou Yangming had grabbed her. "Let's go!"

As soon as Ou Yangming's voice died away, he pulled Ni Yinghong and ran in the opposite direction of the Long-armed Devil Ape.

On the other hand, He Liangce dropped his smile, then turned and looked ahead.

Deep sounds were vaguely heard after a short while.

He Liangce looked up without fear, but he mumbled, "We encountered Long-armed Devil Apes so soon. Could that thing have appeared already…"

※※※※

Ou Yangming escaped at the speed of light with Ni Yinghong, who struggled a bit at first but eventually stopped. They traveled swiftly and went 7.5 kilometers away before they stopped.

When they finally looked at each other, Ou Yangming felt rather guilty.

Ni Yinghong neither refused to leave nor did she behave willfully, but there was an unusual look in her beautiful eyes.

"Elder Sister Ying, do you think I'm a coward?" Ou Yangming asked.

"No." Ni Yinghong shook her head and sighed. "I'm just thinking that I'm being a burden to you."

He Liangce was a Yang Grade powerhouse, and although Ou Yangming only had the cultivation base of Yin Grade, he had a great accomplishment in killing a Yang Grade powerhouse and was also a powerful sorcerer who could control flames. As compared to the two young men, the normally proud Ni Yinghong could not help but lament.

Ou Yangming immediately comforted her, "Elder Sister Ying, you don't have to think that way. I believe your future accomplishments won't be inferior to ours."

Ni Yinghong could not help but laugh. "How do you know?"

"Elder Universe," Ou Yangming answered seriously, "If Elder Universe didn't see the talent in you, he wouldn't have accepted you as his apprentice. Besides… I can feel that your mental power improved very fast."

Back then, it was strenuous for Ni Yinghong to perform appraisal art in the town, but she was able to do it with ease now.

It was true that her mental power was much weaker than Ou Yangming's, but she could not be underestimated anymore.

Ni Yinghong said with a faint smile, "My mental power was able to improve because of you."

"The Land of Inheritance?"

"Yes." Ni Yinghong slowly sat down and placed her longsword beside her. She wrapped her arms around her legs and asked plainly, "Tell me, do you and Elder Brother He think I'm useless?"

She was normally regarded as someone who was blessed by Heaven, and she was not beneath Ni Yunhong, the widely acknowledged smithing genius.

Nonetheless, Ni Yinghong met Ou Yangming and He Liangce, who even became her travel companions this time, hence she suffered a greater mental pressure.

Furthermore, while she did not refuse to leave, the feeling of being a burden made her feel even more dismayed.

It was similar to when a person at the top suddenly discovered there were stronger and more talented people out there in the world. If one did not experience the feeling of disappointment oneself, one would never understand it.

Ou Yangming pondered and answered in all seriousness, "Elder Sister Ying, I don't know about the others, but you're the prettiest and the most important one in my heart."

"Is that true?"

"Absolutely!"

"Oh? As compared to Old Man?"

"Huh? Th-this…"

Ou Yangming stammered and became in a daze.

'Should I tell her the truth or the lie? The truth, the lie, the truth, the lie…'

A soft and gentle hand covered his mouth without warning.

Ni Yinghong buried her head in his chest and curled her lips into a smile.

'Thank you, Lil' Ming!'