The scholar slowly opened his eyes and looked at Ou Yangming with a complicated look. Instead of answering, he asked slowly, “You’re not a caster from this world, am I right?”
“How do you know?” Ou Yangming calmly asked him in return.
“How could a powerhouse like you be brought up in this world?” The scholar chuckled, and his eyes lit up as he raised another question, “I suppose that female caster is your apprentice?”
Ou Yangming experienced many things throughout these 2 years, hence he had long trained to be shrewd. Even so, he could not help but twitch his mouth after he heard the scholar. Moreover, a strange look was also seen in the young fellow’s eyes as he thought, ‘What will Elder Sister Ying think if she hears this?’
Although the scholar was severely injured and could not move around, his vision was not affected.
He was slightly stunned after he noticed Ou Yangming’s expression, and he had an odd look in his eyes.
“I get it now—you’re not here to take in an apprentice, but to find a suitable human cauldron, am I right?”
The scholar assumed that a powerhouse that could cooperate with a spirit beast to defeat him in a short period and left him severely injured could not be a local cultivator at all. If that was the case, why would such a remarkable cultivator descend to this realm? Apart from an accident, perhaps this would be the only explanation.
Human cauldrons were very much prohibited in the upper realm. Even though authoritative clans or powerful forces still use them despite the prohibition, in most places, nobody dared to cross the line. Nonetheless, it would be an entirely different case here.
Even the most upright powerhouse could not spread his love here.
Ou Yangming looked coldly at the scholar and cursed internally, ‘This fella is becoming more outrageous.’ Nevertheless, he did not stop him and showed an unpredictable expression on his face. This was because the more the scholar said, the more the young fellow could understand.
Sure enough, a smile was seen on the scholar’s burnt face after he noticed Ou Yangming’s expression. “You’re the local powerhouse that subdued two spirit beasts, am I right?”
“Before you ask for my name, aren’t you going to introduce yourself?” Ou Yangming questioned.
The scholar cleared his throat and answered, “Alright, I’m Hong Feiyu—a Spiritualist Guardian from the Jubilation Sect. I’m sure you know my sect, am I right?”
‘Know my *ss!’ Ou Yangming thought, but he scoffed as if he was indifferent toward it.
Hong Feiyu immediately said, “My sect might not have a good reputation, but our technique is legitimate. Hehe, it suits you very well too, brother!” He suddenly changed to address Ou Yangming as a brother to close the gap between them.
“Why?” Ou Yangming asked.
“As long as you learn our sect’s technique, you’ll definitely be able to get the most out of the human cauldron. Not only will you advance to a higher boundary, but you’ll also be able to enjoy it very much, so why not?” Hong Feiyu answered in a deep voice. He was rather wary and afraid when he was captured by Ou Yangming, but he instantly became confident when he brought up his sect.
Ou Yangming chuckled and declined to comment. He questioned again, “How do you know I’ll need your technique for sure?”
“Hehe, regardless if you made a lot of effort to get to the lower realm or came here by accident, since you’re here, there aren’t any restrictions. Don’t you want to have a good time, brother?” Hong Feiyu tried to tempt him.
The young fellow looked at him with a straight face.
Hong Feiyu smiled embarrassedly. Countless thoughts crossed his mind at the moment.
‘Was I mistaken? But since I’m in his hands, I must move him with my words or actions no matter what, or I won’t be able to survive.’
“How did you come to the lower realm?” Ou Yangming suddenly asked after some time. His eyes were bright, and he even released enough pressure as though he would kill Hong Feiyu if he did not answer him well.
“Brother, please don’t misunderstand. I only came to this realm by accident,” Hong Feiyu quickly said and smiled bitterly as he explained, “I was on an adventure but accidentally stumbled upon a Tree of Splendour, but it’s guarded by a formidable spirit beast. I did all I could to lure the spirit beast away and stole the tree once it left, but it reacted so fast that it pursued me right away.”
He paused and shook his head as if he was quite upset about it. “I’m not a match for that spirit beast, so I ran with all my might but somehow ended up in an interspatial disorder. By the time I woke up, I appeared outside the city.”
“An interspatial disorder?” Ou Yangming looked at him in shock, then he turned to look at the little red bird on his shoulder.
The little red bird blinked its lively eyes to scan Hong Feiyu before some time, then he communicated with Ou Yangming through its conception. “He’s not lying; I can sense it. That said, given that he survived the interspatial disorder… He’s incredibly lucky!”
After getting along with each other for some time, Ou Yangming and the little red bird told each other everything.
Therefore, the young fellow also knew the little red bird was also unlucky to have come to this realm due to the interspatial disorder.
In spite of that, the little bird belonged to one of the greatest races, which was the Phoenixes.
Though it had not grown into an adult yet, the Phoenixes were born with interspatial abilities. As such, while it could not break free from the interspatial disorder, it would not be in danger too.
On the other hand, other living beings would unquestionably be doomed if they were stuck in the turbulence.
The fact that Hong Feiyu managed to survive in that situation was similar to putting an ordinary person on a battlefield with thousands of soldiers and horses. By the end of the war, even as corpses were seen everywhere and there was a river of blood, that person would still survive and was unharmed.
It was worth noting that the chances of that happening were exceptionally low, which was why the little red bird could not help but lament because the scholar was unbelievably lucky.
“How did you survive the interspatial disorder?” Ou Yangming stared at Hong Feiyu as he asked. He knew the scholar would not be able to answer the question, but he would not be content unless he asked.
At this point, even the little red bird stopped fooling around and became serious.
“Honestly, I have no idea what happened either.” Hong Feiyu smiled bitterly and added after a pause, “I thought I was going to die for sure, but I ended up surviving and wasn’t injured at all. Thinking back, I do feel that it was quite absurd.”
A horrified look could be seen in his eyes.
“What do you think if I send you back into the turbulence again?” Ou Yangming asked after some thought.
Hong Feiyu’s face changed, and he begged the young fellow, “Brother, please don’t! If you plan to do that, you might as well just kill me. That feeling… I really don’t want to experience it again!”
Ou Yangming could not help but laugh. “Okay, let’s talk about the Tree of Splendour now. Where exactly did the plant go?”
The scholar was dumbfounded. He stared at Ou Yangming for some time before a bitter look was seen on his face.
He had already become a prisoner, thus there was no need for Ou Yangming to lie to him at all. Hence, he was certain that the young fellow did not steal the Tree of Splendour.
In actuality, Hong Feiyu guessed it when Ou Yangming and Big Yellow defeated him effortlessly. ‘Since he’s so powerful, he could’ve gone to the residence to openly snatch it away. Why would he have to secretly steal it, which is an arduous and fruitless job?
The scholar and Ou Yangming never interfered with one another at all, but the former went to find the latter because of the Tree of Splendour.
He was simply courting death!
Hong Feiyu was utterly regretful.
“Brother, I dare not hide anything from you, but the Tree of Splendour really went missing in the residence, which was why I came to find it and ended up causing these misunderstandings.” He forced a smile. “I was reckless, so please forgive me for offending you.”
Ou Yangming curled his lips in disdain. “Perhaps it was a misunderstanding when you first came, but what were you thinking after you saw the ladies? I suppose I don’t need to elaborate any further.”
Hong Feiyu was struck dumb, but he could not justify his actions.
He initially came because he wanted to find the Tree of Splendour and intended to punish the thief. However, after seeing Ni Yinghong and Jiang Jiumei’s interspatial bags and magic skill tools, and after getting to know Ni Yinghong’s identity as a caster, his thoughts changed drastically.
They were all treasures and were cultivation resources, so Hong Feiyu planned to take forcible possession of them.
Ou Yangming noted, “You’re captured by me now because you’re inferior, but if we were inferior to you instead, I’m afraid that they’ll be in utter misery by now.”
Hong Feiyu quivered because he could sense a deep enmity in the young fellow’s words.
Though Ou Yangming was saying the truth, the scholar dared not admit it at all.
“Brother, you’re overthinking. I’m willing to pass you my learnings without any reservations to exchange my life.” Hong Feiyu immediately offered.
The little red bird flapped its wings indifferently on Ou Yangming’s shoulder. Given how mighty the Phoenixes were, one with their bloodline inheritance would be taught any kind of technique, so why would one need any treasure from this fellow, who would be best kept under the table?
Ou Yangming nodded and looked at Hong Feiyu as he wondered what he should do with him.
It would not be too much to kill him considering how he coveted Ni Yinghong and Jiang Jiumei earlier, but it seemed quite wasteful to kill a supreme powerhouse as potent as a spirit beast.
All of a sudden, Ou Yangming’s ears twitched. He turned and said, “Big Yellow, come in.”
Big Yellow flashed and jumped inside.
“How did your inspection go? Did you find any clues of the thief?”
The big yellow dog was about to shake its head when its furs tensed up.
For some reason, the little red bird widened its eyes at it.
Feeling guilty, Big Yellow dared not lie anymore, so it widened its mouth and spat out the Tree of Splendour in one piece.
Ou Yangming was surprised yet overjoyed. “You found it?”
“Woof!” Big Yellow barked, but it looked somewhat bashful.
The young fellow’s eyelids flickered, and his mouth twitched. “You… You were the one that stole it?!”
“Woof!”
Ou Yangming was speechless. “…”
Hong Feiyu’s face was covered with tears. “…”
