Ou Yangming exhaled deeply and looked away from the flame, which was still burning.

Although the Sky-devouring Elder's body had turned into ashes and would not rise again, the fire did not go out as it kept burning. Ou Yangming stared at it for a long time but could not find the fire's fuel.

Nonetheless, he now knew these secret techniques were mysterious and unpredictable. In particular, the imperceptible flame could not be treated lightly.

Ou Yangming pondered for some time before he bowed sternly at the fire and expressed with respect, "Thanks for the help, senior."

He was not a fool, so he knew someone had secretly helped him when he exchanged blows with the elder earlier.

The elder was depleted of essential Qi in the end, so much so that he could not generate interspatial shields anymore and was forced to escape by activating his mental power. This was exactly the reason Ou Yangming had the opportunity to trap him right away.

Given the elder's cultivation base, his control over his body was probably at a thoroughly meticulous state.

Even so, he did not know what having his essential Qi exhausted meant.

It would be fine if that was all, but when the elder performed a self-harm secret technique and could almost escape, he was burned by the blazing fire. If Ou Yangming still could not notice any clue, he would simply be incompetent.

He did not know who was helping him, but no doubt, it was a kind gesture.

In a dark corner, the little phoenix staggered.

'Senior?

'I became a senior… If those old fellas hear about this, will they beat me to my death?'

Ou Yangming quietly waited, but the scorching fire suddenly disappeared.

He was stunned, but he sighed and cupped his hands. "Since you're not willing to meet me, I dare not force you to do so, and I'll make a move first. Thanks for your help today, and I promise to be at your service in the future if you ever need me."

The young fellow did a fist salute and flashed out of the small alley.

He figured that the unknown powerhouse probably had his reasons for hiding in the dark.

Nevertheless, he did not know that the little phoenix was hopping and chirping in the dark corner at the moment.

The little bird had regarded Ou Yangming as its kind long ago.

Since they were of the same kind, according to a rule passed on since ancient times, the little bird must comb its feathers neatly and present its best side during their first official meeting. It was a form of respect and a genetic imprint on a phoenix's marrow.

Who knew, just as it did its best to comb its feathers to look its best, Ou Yangming left just like that.

'He left…'

In the dark, the little phoenix stopped as if it was immobilized.

It was only after Ou Yangming completely disappeared from the small alley it shouted furiously.

The little bird breathed a red fire from its mouth, but it forcefully swallowed the flame after it extended roughly 3.3 meters forward and had not burnt anything.

It was worth noting that the fire was unordinary because it could burn everything and turn everything into ashes once it was released. It could even be used to destroy Heaven and Earth.

In actuality, based on the little phoenix's character, it would not bother about the Humans in this world at all. The city was important to the Humans, but it meant nothing to the little bird. As such, it would not be a mental burden to the bird even if the city was burned to nothing.

However, the little phoenix found someone of its kind.

Even though it had not spoken to Ou Yangming, it could tell that he had an extremely deep feeling for the city, or he would not have fought the Sky-devouring Evil Remnant just like that.

The Sky-devouring Evil Remnant was insignificant to the little bird, but it could dominate in this world.

Since Ou Yangming, whom the little phoenix regarded as part of its clan, would fight such an enemy to protect the city, how could it destroy it?

The little phoenix looked around for a while, then it flapped its wings and flew into the distance in the form of red light.

※※※※

Ou Yangming left the small alley in a hurry and made his way to the gate where the giant beast roared.

Since the hidden senior did not want to come out, he was not going to ask for more. Moreover, he was incredibly worried about the spirit beast's attack, so instead of continuing his search, he hastened toward the wall.

Despite that, he was dumbfounded when he arrived at the wall.

Three spots on the initially magnanimous wall had crumbled, and it was evident from the miserable holes how intense the fight was earlier.

The young fellow was even more surprised to see the strange looks on the Supreme Great Ancestors' faces. Especially after he arrived, the powerhouses stared at him with more respect.

Yes, though the great ancestors respected him very much before this, they revered him more at that point.

Ou Yangming swayed his body and went up to the top of the wall. He was startled when he looked outside the city.

Far away, countless ferocious beasts of different kinds gathered, but they somehow stared at the prefecture without advancing as though they were worried about something.

The young fellow could not help but gasp because he noticed how huge of a crisis the city was under.

Given that there were three massive holes on the wall, the ferocious beasts could charge in if they were willing to risk their lives before it was completely fixed. If that was the case, they could trigger an endless slaughter.

Fortunately, the ferocious beasts were hesitant as if they were possessed.

"Master Ou, why did you come back?"

Several people approached Ou Yangming at once. They were Li Xinfan, Deng Xiyuan, Elder Universe, and a few other important figures in the prefecture.

"I was worried because of the loud noise." Ou Yangming frowned and smiled bitterly. Afraid that the men would nag him, he quickly questioned, "What exactly happened?"

Li Xinfan and the others had complicated looks on their faces. The general sighed and explained, "Master Ou, the spirit beast showed up. It's… A high-rank spirit beast."

"High-rank—what? A high-rank spirit beast!" A fierce look was immediately seen in Ou Yangming's eyes.

He had not seen a spirit beast, but he knew only ordinary low-rank spirit beasts had descended in the past. Even so, they were able to cause disasters. Therefore, if a high-rank spirit beast had come, would it not be more dangerous than the other beasts in the past?

Elder Universe and the others looked stern, and their hearts were heavy.

Ou Yangming asked after some thought, "Where's the high-rank spirit beast?"

"It ran away?"

"Ran away?" Ou Yangming had a weird look on his face as he wondered, 'Why is everything not making sense today?'

"Yes, it ran away; we forced it to retreat." Li Xinfan later took a step back and kowtowed at Ou Yangming. "Thank you, Master Ou."

Following that, Deng Xiyuan, Elder Universe, the Ni family's Three Great Ancestors, and the others took a step back each and saluted Ou Yangming too. They uttered at the same time, "Thank you, Master Ou."

Ou Yangming was taken aback because he had never received such treatment.

"Please get up now, don't make this difficult for me."

That said, no matter how Ou Yangming tried to stop them, they insisted on bowing at him. On top of that, they spoke so loudly that their voices spread far and wide on the wall.

With that, even Supreme Great Ancestors on the further walls bowed at him as well. It was a sincere act as they did not force themselves to do it at all, which was such a stirring scene.

"Thank you, Master Ou!"

A sound current was formed as the words echoed on the walls. The wills of the people united like a fortress, causing everyone to be roused.

Ou Yangming glanced around and knew something must have happened, or Li Xinfan and the others would not have reacted like that.

"General Li, what are you doing?" He asked in a deep voice.

Li Xinfan stood up straight and asked, "Master Ou, do you know how we forced that high-rank spirit beast to retreat?"

Ou Yangming shook his head and asked the general in return, "I have no idea. It… Isn't related to me, is it?"

"Master Ou, you were the one who did it!" Li Xinfan sighed.

The young fellow was struck dumb, and he was in disbelief. According to his calculations, he was fighting the elder—the Sky-devouring Devil God's follower—when the spirit beast appeared, so how could he have fought the beast?

A thought crossed his mind, 'Was it the senior hiding in the dark?'

The little phoenix, who was soaring in the sky, sneezed hard. It scratched its nose with its close and grunted, then it continued to fly away.

"Master Ou, you smithed a weapon each for us and attached skills on them." Li Xinfan chuckled, then he added seriously, "When the spirit beast ruined the wall, we incited the skills on our magic tools to harm it. Later on, we even released the skill on our armors, but the spirit beast was scared away."

Ou Yangming widened his eyes. "Did that… Actually happen?"

It was truly unbelievable that a formidable spirit beast was frightened away like this.

"Master Ou, that high-rank spirit beast's an eight-armed giant beast. Its combat power was so fearsome that it was still fine after being attacked by nearly 100 skills," Elder Universe noted with a nod, then he continued, "If I'm not mistaken, the beast only suffered external wounds. It's such an… Unimaginable creature!"

Everyone fell dead silent on the walls as they were afraid.