All of a sudden, a flash of fingers was seen in the void, which was accompanied by whistles and a fierce might that shrouded over the area.

A Yang Grade powerhouse.

Based on the force that was displayed by He Defu when he attacked, it was clear that his cultivation base was at Yang Grade. Although he was not at the peak of Yang Grade like Xiaoxiao Sheng, he could not be underestimated.

Ou Yangming focused and entered the integration of Heaven and man at that instant.

Just as he wanted to evade the elder as he usually would, he was struck with a strange thought.

Instead of dodging, Ou Yangming stopped and reached out for the elder's fingers.

He Defu's eyes lit up, and he began to smile hideously. 'This young fella is courting his death.'

Nonetheless, the elder later sensed an indescribable pressure, which was released from Ou Yangming's body. The pressure was so enormous that Elder He was frightened from the bottom of his heart.

With that, the might of the powerful fingers in mid-air reduced, and the elder's body swayed a little.

"Pow!"

When the fist and the fingers clashed, Ou Yangming trembled a bit and took several steps backward.

On the other hand, He Defu did not gain any advantage too. He flew backward at a high speed and even staggered before he found his footing when he landed.

Elder He widened his eyes and stared at Ou Yangming in disbelief.

After all, he was a Yang Grade martial artist, but he ended up not gaining an upper hand when he went head-on against a Yin Grade martial artist.

Moreover, He Defu was slightly terrified. The killing intent from Ou Yangming's body was able to affect his mental state, causing his mind to waver, which was why he could not fully unleash his power.

Ou Yangming's eyes glowed, and he curled his lips into a smile.

Sure enough, the mental power that he released could greatly affect a martial artist, where his opponent's strength could be weakened.

Ou Yangming had encountered many powerhouses before this, including several Supreme Great Ancestors, let alone Yang Grade martial artists.

Despite that, he could only resist the powerhouses because of his skills and his equipment set, not because of mere power.

Therefore, it was his first time fighting a Yang Grade martial artist recklessly.

Even so, he was extremely satisfied with the outcome.

He Defu turned slightly pale, and he roared as he flashed to charge at Ou Yangming again like a ghost.

It was embarrassing to be forced to retreat by a Yin Grade martial artist, hence Elder He was determined to recover lost ground, or he would be a laughing stock.

Despite that, Ou Yangming neither avoided the elder nor let him have it his way; the young fellow launched another hit at his chest.

This time, the punch was accompanied by a stronger mental conception impact.

Ou Yangming's mental power was formidable, but he could not attack by converting the power into substance. However, when he attached it to his fist force, he could raise the momentum to an unreasonable level.

He Defu paused abruptly. He could not wait to peel off the skin and pull out the tendons of the unappreciative Ou Yangming, but when he was halfway making an attack, the young fellow released an incredibly fearsome power through his fist.

The moment He Defu sensed the pressure, he felt like he was up against a Supreme Great Ancestor.

Elder He recalled the time he made a huge mistake in front of the He family's great ancestor—Supreme Great Ancestor—who raged as a result.

It was a feeling that was enough to make He Defu suffer a mental breakdown.

Fortunately, He Defu had seen a great deal of life, where his decades of experience played an important role during the crucial moment. The elder stood steadily and did not shudder with fear.

That said, the huge pressure affected him greatly.

Whether it was through his body movement or the power of his attack, he could not display their mightiness at all.

"Pow!"

Ou Yangming's punch arrived on time as he hit He Defu's body.

He did not make any changes to his punch, which was simply made in the forward direction.

Having said that, great deeds were usually done in the simplest ways. As such, the power that was gathered in the simple punch was marvelous.

He Defu was still being pressured by Ou Yangming's mental power, thus it was inevitable for him to react slower than before. Even though he tried his best to evade the punch, he was hit in the shoulder.

The elder groaned due to pain, then he exerted force through the tip of his toes to soar into the sky and retreated.

As soon as He Defu was roughly 35 meters away from Ou Yangming, he exhaled deeply, allowing the nightmare-like feeling of fear in his heart to disappear at once.

'What a pity,' Ou Yangming thought. While he could attach his mental power to his fist force, he was restricted by the distance.

Once he was more than 35 meters away from his opponent, the effect would be negligible.

He Defu exercised his shoulder after he landed on the ground. Before long, he yelled strangely again and charged at his opponent because he was not resigned to the outcome.

When the elder was within a 35-meter radius from Ou Yangming, the horrifying feeling surfaced again. Under pressure, Elder He froze, and his limbs became powerless as though he was severely ill.

Without showing any mercy, Ou Yangming punched the elder's other arm.

The young fellow had the opportunity to kill the elder, but he got rid of that thought ever since he was informed of the gratitude and grudges between the He family and the Ni family.

He Defu grimaced in pain, and he flew away again to keep a distance from Ou Yangming.

This time, the elder stood still and looked at Ou Yangming in awe. No matter how fierce he looked, he dared not take another step forward.

Ou Yangming smiled proudly because as he had expected, the mental power had endless magical effects when it was attached to his fist art.

Even if he did not use the integration of Heaven and man, as well as the thoroughly meticulous state, he could imitate a Supreme Great Ancestor's aura to repress a Yang Grade powerhouse.

At the end of the day, the momentum from his fist intent was so powerful that it was not inferior to a Supreme Great Ancestor's.

Ou Yangming laughed when he looked at He Defu, who looked threatening but was faint in heart. "Elder He, do you have anything else to say? If you don't, I'll be making a move first."

He Defu twitched his mouth, but just as he was going to speak. Ou Yangming took a step forward with a dark face.

Consequently, the elder flew backward like a startled bird. It was only after he went quite a distance away when he realized that Ou Yangming was looking at him mockingly after taking a step forward.

"You! How dare you trick me!" He Defu was furious.

Ou Yangming sneered then ignored the elder's roar and turned to leave.

He Defu was deeply infuriated when he watched the young fellow leave with confidence. The elder let go of his fists but clenched them again, but he did not have the guts to pursue his opponent despite being mad.

Elder He screamed internally.

'Ou Yangming, I won't let you have an easy time!'

※※※※

Ou Yangming continued to hurry on with his journey.

He was feeling much better because his gloomy and dispirited feeling was almost gone after his fight against He Defu. At times, a battle was the best outlet.

Once he returned to the military camp, Old Craftsman and the other people knew he was going to leave for the capital; they were reluctant to see him leave.

Master Lu asked the young master frankly, "Master Ou, did you manage to derive runes for other weapons?"

Ou Yangming glared at the master and responded snappily, "How many days has it been? Even a deity won't be able to do it!"

"I was being too impatient, please forgive me, Master Ou." Master Lu was embarrassed.

Old Craftsman cleared his throat. "Master Lu has been skipping his meals to engrave runes, so he should be forgiven for being impatient."

Ou Yangming quickly expressed, "Old Man, I'm not aggrieved."

"Really?"

Ou Yangming answered firmly, "Really. Even if I dare to lie to other people, would I be daring enough to lie to you?"

Old Craftsman scoffed. "You're a cunning young fella. You've lied to me many times, haven't you?"

Ou Yangming blushed. "Old Man, please have mercy on me."

Master Lu was envious when he watched them. After all, the old man was probably the only one who could reprimand Ou Yangming without restraint.

"Master Ou, you're finally back." Loud laughter was heard as Li Xinfan arrived as soon as he received the news. He cut to the chase. "Are you well-prepared?"

"I'm ready to set out at any time," Ou Yangming responded seriously.

He initially did not care much about entering the capital to meet the emperor, but after knowing that the imperial family had an Almighty Being who could resist a spirit beast, there was a 180-degree change in his attitude.

Li Xinfan chuckled. "Master Ou, the Yi Pavilion asked me to deliver a message to you. They heard that you're entering the capital, so they'd like to invite you to join the Treasure Appreciation Meet, which is held once a decade. What do you think?"

"What's the Treasure Appreciation Meet?" Ou Yangming was confused.

"It's a distinguished meeting where various treasures are gathered. Many famous blacksmiths will smith divine weapons during the meet, which is an unprecedentedly grand occasion," Li Xinfan explained with a stern face, then added after a pause, "Master Ou, if you come out top at the meet, there'll be a higher chance of His Majesty adopting rune carving."

Ou Yangming was startled. "Will His Majesty not adopt it?"

"The smithing of armaments involves too many things, so it's not easy for His Majesty to make changes even if he wants to." Li Xinfan forced a smile and shook his head as he sighed. "Those people with vested interest won't give up so easily."

General Li was the commanding general in the prefecture, but he did not have the power to decide certain things.

Ou Yangming looked deeply at the general, and he knew that it would not be a smooth sail for him to request for changes in the armaments.

Nonetheless, since he had already decided, he was going to take down any obstacle in his way.

The young fellow looked in the distance and seemed to be looking toward the Chaos Cave. "Elder Sister Ying, remember—wait for me…"