"Master Ou, I've heard a lot about you." Wu Hanfeng cupped his hands and smiled brightly.

Ou Yangming's eyes lit up. "This general is…"

"Master Ou, this is Wu Hanfeng, my fourth older brother." Wu Hanning beat Wu Hanfeng to it. "He's in charge of patrolling the palace at night and was alarmed when you suddenly tried to advance to the next grade, so he brought some men to take… Set up a protective barrier for you."

When Wu Hanning mentioned the word "take", Wu Hanning had a ghastly look on his face, but the princess suddenly changed her choice of words and said something completely different.

Wu Hanfeng glanced at her gratefully and thought, 'She normally speaks bluntly to me and her other brothers, but we're related by blood, after all, so she still protected the imperial family's image.'

Ou Yangming was stunned. When he looked at the guards, who were either standing in the open or hiding covertly, he smiled bitterly and said, "I was in a trance after I left senior's place, so I broke through to my next martial art boundary in the palace. Please forgive me, Your Highness."

Wu Hanfeng quickly responded with a smile, "Master Ou, you're being too polite. Not to mention the Martial Arts Battle this time, based on your identity as an Advanced Blacksmith, you deserve to do that in the palace."

Wu Hanning twitched his mouth and smiled strangely.

His Highness the fourth prince was right, but not every Advanced Blacksmith was qualified. Besides, even if one was permitted, one could only break through a martial art boundary in a specially arranged courtyard at a special time.

Ou Yangming was the first person who regarded the palace as nothing and did it without any permission.

Although they knew the young fellow acted so recklessly because of their ancestor, it was not something they could say out loud.

"Master Ou, your clothes are wet, so let me ask someone to get you a change of clothes." Wu Hanfeng looked at Ou Yangming and cleared his throat before he added softly, "So you won't be discourteous when you meet Father later."

Ou Yangming immediately thanked him, "That'll be great. Thank you, Your Highness."

Wu Hanfeng gave an order, then someone brought brocade clothes for Ou Yangming.

Once the young fellow changed his clothes, he looked like he took on a new outlook.

The pressure from the elder at the secret realm was so intense that Ou Yangming almost felt like he was going to be suppressed.

After Ou Yangming witnessed the elder summon the wind and the rain without any effort, he felt like time flowed in reverse. He felt as powerless as when he was still in Force Grade and was hunted down by Zhang Yinli, who was a Yang Grade powerhouse.

He had not had the feeling for a long time.

Nonetheless, it was that feeling that broke his proud shell, he almost lost his mind and finally broke through to the next grade in the palace.

Ou Yangming's mental state changed enormously after he succeeded to break through, and he gave off a completely different feeling.

Wu Hanning was surprised when she looked at Ou Yangming's smiling eyes. For some reason, she sensed an indescribable pressure.

The pressure was not intense as her elder brother did not notice it at all, but she noticed the difference because she had great mental power too.

Wu Hanning touched her interspatial bag on her waist. She envied the awe-inspiring Ou Yangming at the Myriad Treasure Meet too, but she was still confident about fighting him.

The Simulated Spiritual Fist was not the only secret technique from the imperial family.

Nevertheless, when the princess stood next to Ou Yangming this time, she trembled from the bottom of her heart. If the two of them were to have a life-or-death battle at the moment, Wu Hanning dared not say that she was confident even if she used the imperial family's secret treasure, which had been upgraded to a higher level.

Wu Hanfeng led the way and conversed with Ou Yangming. He was definitely not a simple figure for being able to stand out among the other princes. The man came from the imperial family and could not be compared by ordinary people be it in his bearing or his knowledge.

In some aspects, even Ou Yangming was far from him.

At the very least, when Wu Hanfeng humbled himself from being His Highness the Prince and sincerely made friends with someone, one would feel refreshed.

The palace was massive, but everything was arranged in order. Under the prince and the princess' company, Ou Yangming arrived at the imperial study.

Once they entered, even Wu Hanfeng kept quiet and behaved carefully. On the other hand, Wu Hanning acted the same.

Ou Yangming could tell at one glance how much each of them was favored. That said, considering that Wu Hanfeng was His Highness the Prince, he probably had to withstand more pressure than Wu Hanning.

Just as Ou Yangming was guessing, footsteps were heard.

Wu Hanfeng signaled Ou Yangming and bowed to the ground right away. Ou Yangming hesitated for a while before he did the same.

If Ou Yangming was extremely confident and bold, he might not be willing to perform the salutation, but he put down his ego after meeting the imperial family's real powerhouse. Moreover, being a citizen, it was fine if he kneeled before the emperor.

"Get up."

A gentle power flowed toward Ou Yangming and helped him get up.

Ou Yangming's face changed because he could tell that one had to at least be a great ancestor to release such power.

When he stole a glance, he noticed a middle-aged man in a dragon robe smiling at him. The man motioned his hand in the air, and a strong power was released from his body.

"Greetings, Your Majesty. I'm Ou Yangming," Ou Yangming tensed up and greeted the man at once.

He thought, 'Legend has it an emperor's reign doesn't last longer than 40 years, and every prince that inherits the throne will have a huge cultivation base improvement and will become a great ancestor.'

The young fellow was previously dubious of the legend, but he believed it now.

Since he could help a powerhouse at the peak of Yang Grade become a great ancestor through the Simulated Spiritual Fist, based on the imperial family's foundation and capabilities, they could do the same too.

Wu Kangzhe nodded and remarked, "What a spirited and powerful young fella; the Humans are fortunate to have a good man like you when a disaster is approaching."

Ou Yangming was sweating as he replied to the emperor, "Your Majesty, you're overpraising me."

"Do you think my precious words are nonsense?" Wu Kangzhe walked to the center and sat.

Ou Yanging was struck dumb, and he could not let a word out.

Wu Kangzhe laughed out loud upon seeing the look on Ou Yangming's face, but he did not hide how much he admired the young fellow.

'Your Majesty, even if you admire me, you don't have to do this, do you?' Ou Yangming was puzzled. It was worth noting that this was their first meeting, yet His Majesty the Emperor did not disguise his feelings at all.

Following that, Wu Kangzhe asked Ou Yangming some questions while the young fellow gave the most concise answers. Ou Yangming stayed clear-minded in front of the emperor and did not forget himself because he was suddenly favored.

There were two kinds of powerful figures in the world.

One was powerful because of one's status and identity, whereas one was powerful by oneself.

The former would be elated about being recognized by a superior, but the latter would not react the same. This was because the latter achieved what he did not through another person's appreciation but through his hard work and capabilities.

Therefore, even when His Majesty the Emperor expressed his admiration for Ou Yangming, the young fellow did not waver.

After a long time, Wu Kangzhe raised a question, "Is Mentor Dishou well?"

Ou Yangming looked up in shock.

Wu Kangzhe explained, "I learned from Mentor Dishou when I was younger. It was decades ago but the past is still vivid in my mind, and I can't forget it."

"Your Majesty, Mentor Chen is well, but… I don't know where he is," Ou Yangming stood up and answered seriously.

"I heard Mentor Dishou taught you everything about the Suicidal Throat-locking Spear?" Wu Kangzhe smiled.

Ou Yangming pondered and answered, "I only scratched the surface of it."

"Hehe, scratched the surface?" Wu Kangzhe shook his head and asked, "If you've just gained a superficial understanding of it, why would Mentor Dishou agree to a promised fight?"

"Your Majesty, I'm still quite confused about that, and I don't exactly know what's going on." Ou Yangming forced a smile.

Wu Kangzhe flashed a smile, which was rare. "Let the older generation deal with the mess, but I heard something that might be disadvantageous for you."

Ou Yangming's eyes lit up. "Your Majesty, please give me some pointers."

"Mentor Dishou's… Opponent found a good disciple. I heard the disciple has never learned martial art but resonated with a supreme magic tool during the entrance test." Wu Kangzhe looked at Ou Yangming with pity. "That magic tool is not to be treated lightly, and if you really have a battle against that disciple in the future, you might be facing a… Supreme Great Ancestor."

Wu Hanning and her elder brother were taken aback too when they looked at each other.

It was evident that it was their first time hearing about this secret.

Ou Yangming's eyelids twitched. He was not bothered about magic tools.

However, the magic tool must be remarkable to be able to let an ordinary person, who had never practiced martial arts, become a great ancestor in a short period.

In comparison, while Ou Yangming smithed magic tools too, they were far from that supreme magic tool.

There were greater powers than his in this world, and he was not the mightiest be it in terms of martial art cultivation base or the smithing of magic tools.

Wu Kangzhe suddenly fixed his gaze at Ou Yangming and asked, "Ou Yangming, I'd like to ask—why did you get involved in the military's equipment?"

Ou Yangming felt his scalp went numb, and he sensed a tremendous threat beside him as if his head would be chopped off if he gave an unsatisfactory answer.

"Your Majesty, I'm an orphan, but I grew up in the military, which was where I learned my arts. I've seen the pieces of equipment used by my brothers in the military, I've seen valiant ferocious beasts in the forest, and I've also witnessed my brothers being torn apart by those beasts," he answered after he took a deep breath, then he looked up and stared at His Majesty the Emperor. "I only hope that more of my fellow soldiers can survive the great disaster."