Ou Yangming's face took on an extremely ghastly expression. By now, as foolish as he was, he knew the real reason the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors were so ambiguous and hesitant even after he put in so much effort.

The young fellow spared no effort in asserting himself for Ni Yinghong.

Whether it was the smithing of magic tools, martial arts cultivation base, or the comprehension of nature, Ou Yangming vividly displayed his potential.

In actuality, in terms of the smithing of magic tools alone, he was already a priceless treasure.

As long as he said a word and was willing to provide a magic tool, even a formidable Supreme Great Ancestor would be willing to handle affairs for him.

Even so, once He Liangce visited, there was a 180-degree change in the Ni family's great ancestors' attitudes. Although they did not reject Ou Yangming, the fact that they let him travel with He Liangce and Ni Yinghong into the dense forest was enough to show their standpoint.

Ou Yangming had been indignant about it for a long time and had cursed the great ancestors for being evil wolves that were never content with what they were given.

It was not until today when he finally realized that he had wronged the elders.

If the great ancestors only considered their selfish desires or the benefits for their clan, they would not need to choose between Ou Yangming and He Liangce.

Nonetheless, in order to face the upcoming beast tide and to eliminate the spirit beast, which was so mighty that it was also feared by Elder Universe, the great ancestors were forced to make a different choice.

Ou Yangming did not know what to feel at that moment. It was inevitable for him to feel resentful toward the Ni family's great ancestors, but he also vaguely admired them.

If he was in their shoes, could he have done the same?

"I heard that the He family's eldest young master has come to the prefecture, so he's probably the He family's candidate for the Iron Blood Loyal Heart. Ah, among the ladies from the Ni family, that little girl is unquestionably the most outstanding one among her peers, so she probably can't… Escape from the disaster," Elder Universe stated with a deep voice.

"Senior, He Liangce only has the cultivation base of Yang Grade, and Elder Sister Yingʼs cultivation base can be overlooked. Even if they join hands, Iʼm afraid that their effort will be to no avail, am I not right?" Ou Yangming curbed his thought and responded.

Elder Universe looked deeply at him and said, "You know, thereʼs a rule in the immense forest—a Human Supreme Great Ancestor can't enter the forest. Do you know why?"

Ou Yangming shook his head. "I donʼt."

"Itʼs because the immense forest is mysterious and has endless magical effects. Once a Human Supreme Great Ancestor enters, his or her aura will be absorbed and be fed back to ferocious beasts in the forest, stimulating the birth of a batch of great-ancestor-level half-spirit beasts." Elder Universe chuckled. "This is why a Human great ancestor never steps foot in the immense forest unless the beast tide happens."

Ou Yangming was stunned, and he suddenly felt like the world is so huge that nothing could be too peculiar.

"The immense forest is massive and is a shelter for the beasts, but the Humans have a secret technique to resist them," Elder Universe continued and explained after a pause, "If the He family has a talented genius, whoʼs also a male, he would be taught a secret technique to increase his cultivation base to the peak of Yang Grade, then he would cultivate the Iron Blood Loyal Heart Art."

Ou Yangming blinked his eyes. He knew Elder Universe was talking about He Liangce.

"If the man successfully cultivates the Iron Blood Loyal Heart Art, his cultivation base will always be maintained at the peak of Yang Grade. He may continue to cultivate in the future, but he'll never break through."

"Is the strange technique going to be used against the spirit beast?" Ou Yangming furrowed his eyebrows.

"Yes." Elder Universe sighed. "Once the beast tide bursts out, the Humans will dispatch soldiers to fight the ferocious beasts, whereas the He familyʼs man and the Ni familyʼs lady will be escorted by elites into the depths of the immense forest to locate the spirit beast."

Ou Yangming's eyes lit up. "Shoot the horse first to shoot the rider, capture the ringleader first to capture the bandits!"

"Heh, you're quite smart, young fella." Elder Universe could not help but laugh. "The spirit beast is the root of all sins, so unless it is slaughtered, the Humans won't be able to live in peace."

Ou Yangming nodded. "But I don't understand—how can they slaughter the spirit beast?" He also thought to himself, 'He Liangce and Ni Yinghong can't even kill you, let alone a more powerful spirit beast.'

Elder Universe shook his head and explained, "Based on their respective cultivation base, they obviously can't kill the spirit beast. However, once He Liangce detaches the Iron Blood Seal on his body, his cultivation base will instantly break through its shackles, allowing him to become a great ancestor. On top of that, his previously constrained potential will burst out and he'll even arrive at the peak."

"That's impossible!" Ou Yangming widened his eyes.

He would believe it if the process could allow He Liangce to become a Supreme Great Ancestor, but he certainly did not think that the young master could arrive at the peak and become on par with Elder Universe.

"Heh." Elder Universe sneered. "There are endless secret techniques in the world. This is the greatest secret technique that can be used to eliminate spirit beasts, so how is it impossible?"

Ou Yangming was speechless, and he figured that there must be a reason the secret technique was so highly anticipated by many people. Furthermore, if the effect was not nature-defying, how could it be the ultimate killing weapon of the two counties to go fight the spirit beast?

Elder Universe added, "When the He family's man advances to the peak of a great ancestor, the Ni family's lady will activate a secret technique to stimulate her mental power and potential, which will be transformed into the richest essence for the man. The man will then absorb the essence to advance beyond the world's limit, and he'll become a superb powerhouse that can contend with the spirit beast."

"The lady sacrifices for a noble cause. Does that mean she'll die without her corpse intact?" Ou Yangming's face darkened.

Elder Universe nodded. "You're right; that's the price that has to be paid by the Ni family's lady. Every hundred years, someone has to sacrifice so that both counties can live in peace, and that Ni family will continue to stand tall for a thousand years."

"What about the man?"

The elder curled his lips. "How can a man who becomes a superb powerhouse through such a bewitching method end well? For generations, every man who has cultivated the Iron Blood Loyal Heart died in the fight, no exceptions. They were not strong enough to kill the spirit beast, but they can still perish together with the beast because...." An unusual look was seen on the elder's face. "They cling to the spirit beast and detonate themselves."

"Senior, why do you know so much?"

Elder Universe answered faintly, "Because I've experienced it once…"

Ou Yangming was startled for a while, but he soon developed a huge respect for the elder.

He did not expect the elder to be so old.

Countless thoughts crossed Ou Yangming's mind, then he suddenly asked, "Senior, can any lady from the Ni family carry out the task? Or… Can ladies who aren't from the Ni family cultivate the Ni family's secret technique too?"

Elder Universe cast an odd look at him. "If I guessed it right, He Liangce has proposed to Ni Yinghong, am I right?"

Ou Yangming nodded with a grim look on his face. "He probably did, but the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors haven't agreed."

Ni Xuetian and the other great ancestors did not inform Ou Yangming, but he could tell from their arrangements.

Elder Universe laughed. "Even if they disagree now, they'll have to agree with it soon. How could the Noble Sacrifice Secret Technique be cultivated by ordinary ladies? Firstly, the lady must be gifted with mental power, and the stronger her potential, the better; secondly, the He family's man who practices the Iron Blood Loyal Heart has to choose the lady, and the lady must be someone he can work in harmony with."

Ou Yangming questioned with a long face, "Are other options not allowed?"

"If anyone dares to fake anything related to this matter, one will be making a joke out of the lives of countless Humans from the two counties. Heh, if something like that happens, not to mention the Ni family, even I won't sit by idly." Elder Universe smiled smugly.

"Must it be her?" Ou Yangming's face twitched.

Elder Universe looked quietly at the young fellow and finally sighed. "I feel sorry for the little girl too. Do you think I won't be willing to let someone else replace her? But in order to cultivate that secret technique, the lady must have the Blood Meridian Legacy from beyond the heavens. Moreover, the better the lady can work with the Iron Blood Loyal Heart, the higher the chance of the man becoming a superb powerhouse. This is why… We're left with no other options."

Ou Yangming fell silent. After hearing the reason, he felt as though a scorching fire was burning in his heart, and he could not find an outlet to vent.

Who could he blame?

He Liangce? If the fellow had not appeared, everything would not be such a mess.

That said, Ou Yangming was mournful at the thought of He Liangce's possible ending, so he could not bring himself to blame him.

He Liangce did not choose Ni Yinghong for himself; he chose her to eliminate the spirit beast. As said by Elder Universe, nobody had other options in this matter.

In that case, could Ou Yangming blame the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors or the other people?

It would seem more far-fetched if he did. Instead of blaming them, he would seem like he was venting his anger on them.

Ou Yangming lowered his head and was flustered.

Elder Universe sighed and shook his head. He looked at Ou Yangming with compassion, but deep down his eyes were filled with strong killing intent.

He did not want to break the loving pair, but if Ou Yangming could not break free from the devil inside him, he would raise a butcher's knife and get rid of all possible changes before the tide.

Ou Yangming clenched his fists after a long time, and he began to look resolute.

On the other hand, Elder Universe was full of killing intent, but he did not show it on his face at all. He comforted Ou Yangming in a friendly manner, "Young fella, look on the bright side!"

"Thank you for your comfort, senior, but I won't admit defeat." Ou Yangming pouted his lips.

"Oh, what are you planning to do then?" Elder Universe casually asked.

Ou Yangming answered seriously, "I found the way to solve this."

"What?" Elder Universe hid his palms in his sleeve and was ready to launch an attack at that moment. Given that he was incredibly experienced, even Ou Yangming could not notice anything.

Despite that, Ou Yangming was not bothered about the elder. He uttered at once, "That spirit beast is the culprit behind everything, the world will be in peace as long as it is slaughtered."

"What?" Elder Universe exclaimed because he was taken aback.

The front and back parts of what Ou Yangming said seemed related, but they carried completely different meanings.

Ou Yangming proudly announces, "I… Want to kill the spirit beast!"

Elder Universe widened his eyes and mouth because it was his first time in hundreds of years hearing someone talking nonsense like that. Even so, for some reason, an unusual heat gushed out of his heart like a torrential flood; it could not be suppressed at all.