"Spirit beast… Kill the spirit beast…" Elder Universe laughed and questioned, "Who doesn't want to kill the spirit beast? But what do you think it is? Do you think you can kill it just because you want to?"

Ou Yangming grinned. "Senior, it's a man's responsibility to resist a spirit beast, how can we let a lady sacrifice herself?"

"You're only saying that because you've never seen a spirit beast's might; you won't say the same if you see one." Elder Universe sighed. His eyes looked blurry as though he recalled the deepest memory in his head. "That spirit beast is too powerful…"

Ou Yangming raised his eyebrows. He could somewhat guess the spirit beast's might judging from how Elder Universe—a Supreme Great Ancestor at the peak of Extreme Grade—was so fearful. There was no doubt that He Liangce and the Ni family's great ancestors had no options, so how could Ou Yangming have any options?

The young fellow cast this matter aside for the time being. Needless to say, he made up his mind that if he could kill the spirit beast one day, he would definitely bring along Elder Universe's formidable combat power.

Elder Universe suddenly felt a chill when he noticed Ou Yangming staring at him. Even so, as knowledgeable as he was, he could not guess the young fellow's thoughts.

"Senior, do you study runes too?" Ou Yangming changed the topic.

"I've lived for a very long time, so I've sort of dipped into everything." Elder Universe was proud.

He made himself sound humble, but his expression sold his real feelings.

Ou Yangming's eyes lit up. "Do you know Master Lu?"

Elder Universe stroked his long beard. "Didn't you say the Ni family passed on the technique to upgrade inexpensive arm guards to the military through him?"

Ou Yangming nodded. "The Ni family didn't just upgrade arm guards. If different weapons and armors can also be enhanced, Humans will benefit greatly from it. Since you have the ability to do so, why don't you lend a helping hand?"

"The path of runes is too vast and profound. It was a God-given opportunity that the Ni family was able to come up with an Upgrade Rune. Besides, I've aged, so even if I'm willing to create a rune, I lack the power to do so." Elder Universe sighed.

"Two heads are better than one. Senior, if you're willing to humble yourself and discuss with Master Lu and the other blacksmiths, perhaps you'll gain something!" Ou Yangming suggested without any hesitation.

"Young fella, you belittle the spirit beast, as well as the path of runes." Elder Universe laughed while shaking his head. He waved at Ou Yangming and said, "Okay, I'll give you a test. Come with me."

He led Ou Yangming into the vegetable farm and hesitated for a brief moment before he guided the young fellow to a remote courtyard.

It was evident that the destructive power that Ou Yangming previously fiddled with was still fresh in Elder Universe's mind, so the elder dared not let the scourge into the farm.

"I've studied runes for many years, so I did gain something," Elder Universe said plainly, "Now, I'll show you a few runes. Learn them and feel them to see if they're different."

While he spoke, he kept swaying his body. In a flash, peculiar stones appeared in the courtyard.

The stones were carved with weird veined patterns. They were scattered in the courtyard as if they were not connected at all, but there was a vague feeling that they were bound together by a mysterious power.

Ou Yangming scanned the stones with a lot of focus. He obviously could not notice anything if he only looked at the stones, but once his mind entered the integration of Heaven and man, as well as the thoroughly meticulous state, he instantly noticed a tremendous change in the environment.

He did not know how to describe it, but he felt something extra in the air.

It was a kind of unique energy. An ordinary person who lived in the courtyard would feel refreshed and physically fit, whereas a martial artist who cultivated here would be able to achieve his or her goal by doing half the work.

At this moment, Ou Yangming thought about the Ni family's Land of Inheritance in the Chaos Cave.

The unique power that was gathered in that place was far richer than it was here.

A flash was seen in Ou Yangming's eyes as he looked at the stones carefully. He became incredibly curious.

The arrangement of the stones was enough to cause a huge effect on its surroundings. As such, the rune's effect was not inferior at all to the rune that could improve pieces of equipment.

Elder Universe watched Ou Yangming in silence. He was well aware of the young fellow's mighty mental power, which was why he brought him to the courtyard and set up a Runes Formation.

Nonetheless, the elder was feeling somewhat regretful. The Runes Formation was so mysterious that even he had only scratched the surface after having researched it for decades. Ou Yangming was a genius, but it was impossible for him to gain anything from it.

Ou Yangming fixed his gaze on the Rune Stones around him. The stones were already uncommon and unordinary, so after being carved with runes, they were able to cause such a bizarre effect.

As he stared at one of the stones, he asked, "Senior, the rune on this stone is probably related to mental power, am I right?"

Elder Universe was slightly stunned. "How do you know?"

"I saw it in one of the ancient books at the Ni residence, but I didn't think it could be used like this."

"Hehe, the path of runes isn't something you can imagine." Elder Universe was proud. "What do you think about it now?"

Ou Yangming responded, "This place that is surrounded by these runes contains more… Power, so much so that I'd like to cultivate here because I'm sure it'll be very effective."

Elder Universe was dumbfounded, and he could not help but look surprised. 'This young fella actually perceived the effect of a Runes Formation. Indeed, he's talented and has a good vision.'

"Young fella, try your best to remember the runes. Once you memorized them, you may discuss the path of runes with me," the elder said leisurely.

Ou Yangming was moved, and he expressed his gratitude through his eyes.

It was unquestionable that the runes were highly valuable, and all of them combined were exceptionally worthy if not priceless. Nevertheless, Elder Universe casually found an excuse to teach Ou Yangming everything, causing the young fellow to wonder when he could repay the kindness.

Despite that, Ou Yangming had no idea that Elder Universe had developed killing intent against him earlier. The elder was only willing to teach him runes as a form of compensation and to see if he was a promising person.

Following that, Ou Yangming curbed his thoughts and looked at the stones again to remember them.

He quickly furrowed his eyebrows because he realized that the runes were all so great that a lot of mental and physical efforts were needed for him to remember any one of them.

Although Ou Yangming's mental power was top-notch, he was limited to remembering only roughly four runes. However, there were at least ten Rune Stones around him, each one etched with a different rune.

Even if his mental power doubled, he could not remember so many runes.

Of course, Ou Yangming could fulfill his wish if he was given about four days to slowly absorb and digest everything, but if he did that, Elder Universe would likely treat him lightly.

Ou Yangming shook his head. When he turned to look, he happened to see the scornful smile on Elder Universe's face.

It somehow inspired emulation from him.

He did not want to be looked down on, and he was unwilling to embarrass himself in front of the Supreme Great Ancestor, who was at the peak of Extreme Grade.

Ou Yangming reached for a piece of steel as he was struck with an idea.

It was the raw material used for the smithing of molds in the military camp, but after he was done with the task, he used it to practice runes engraving.

Ou Yangming did not get rid of the steel on his way here. He initially planned to derive and practice the three runes that allowed one to gather mental power faster, but it was perfect for another function at the moment.

The Military Fire burned in his hand and enveloped the steel, which was turned into a stone after a brief moment.

At the same time, different runes appeared on the steel.

Elder Universe was secretly disappointed when he took a look at it. He could tell that Ou Yangming was imitating the Rune Stones, but he did not stop the young fellow.

The imitation method was indeed an essential technique in runes study. Without powerful mental power, one could only explore through this method.

On the other hand, the method would not be worth it for a powerhouse who possessed mental power.

Ou Yangming's mental power was exceptional, and he could visualize rune drawings in his mind. While it required a huge consumption of his mental power, the effect would be greater than what he could achieve through the lowly imitation method.

'Ah, I thought he could create another miracle, but it looks like I was thinking too much.' Elder Universe thought.

Nonetheless, since the elder had given his word, he would not break the promise.

He put his hands behind his back to see how long the arrogant young fellow would take to grasp every rune.

Ou Yangming was unaware of what Elder Universe was thinking because he was observing a stone through the thoroughly meticulous state. At last, the steel in his hand took a new form, and the veined pattern on it was the same as the one on the stone.

"Boom…"

In his mind, the purple light flowed out and circulated the rune.

Next, a new rune surfaced in Ou Yangming's sea of consciousness.

The rune seemed quite obscure for now as it had not been solidified, but it truly existed.

Ou Yangming curled his lips into a smile. He realized that his rather exhausted mind became stimulated all of a sudden.

Every stone on the ground was so alluring that he felt like he had endless energy to be used.

The young fellow immediately looked at the second stone.

Subsequently, the Military Fire burned again to wrap the steel. The veined pattern on it disappeared at once, and was replaced by a brand new rune.