“Yes, Master Kurong’s the greatest smithing master in Danzhou.” Zhiming the Venerable One raised his eyebrows and noted, “If Master Kurong’s here to appraise the suits, I’m sure that his public opinion will be convincing.”
Zhiming the Venerable One and the other Venerable Ones from Danzhou looked delighted at this moment.
The suits that were smithed by Ou Yangming and Qu Zhengde respectively were top-grade works whether it was their qualities or outer appearances.
Even the Venerable Ones were moved after they saw the Suit Attributes, so much so that they wanted to take forcible possession of them. Needless to say, it was only a subconscious reaction. They would not mind forcing a trade if Ou Yangming the Qu Zhengde were blacksmiths without backings but given the smithing masters’ identities, even if they had such a thought, they would not act on it.
Nonetheless, it was exactly because the suits were so outstanding that they could not make the final call.
Moreover, due to their similar statuses, the Venerable Ones could not bring themselves to outrage their conscience or be partial.
Just as the Venerable Ones from Danzhou were hesitant to make a decision, Ai Hongli gave such a suggestion.
Being the greatest smithing master in Danzhou, Master Kurong was absolutely qualified to appraise the suits. Even so, the Venerable Ones from Danzhou could not make a similar request because he was considered the landlord here. On the other hand, Ai Hongli was not afraid at all. Once he proposed the idea, Zhiming the Venerable One agreed with it.
Lingfeng the Venerable One and Tiandao the Venerable One exchanged glances. The former then stated, “Fellows, Master Kurong’s a part of Mount Wuzhi.”
Ai Hongli could not help but laugh. “Lingfeng the Venerable One, you don’t need to be concerned. Can we not trust Master Kurong?”
Lingfeng the Venerable One’s eyes lit up. “Alright, since you say that, Venerable One Ai, we’ll invite Master Kurong here.”
He nodded at Tiandao the Venerable One, who cupped his hands at everyone and flew away in a split second.
Ai Hongli grinned, but an absolutely cold look could be seen deep inside his eyes.
Ever since he arrived at Mount Wuzhi, Master Kurong had not shown up. As such, he could not help but guess that the master had reached the end after that fight, which was why he could not make an appearance.
Ai Hongli had only given this suggestion because he was doubtful. Nevertheless, judging from how the 3 Venerable Ones from Mount Wuzhi acted, his confidence shook. It seemed like Master Kurong was fine, or the Venerable Ones would not anyhow invite him here under this situation.
Ou Yangming and Qu Zhengde looked at each other. Earlier when they smithed, they were well-matched opponents; now that they were done, they were secretly in admiration after looking at each other’s products.
Only those that were as capable as them could understand how difficult it would be to smith these pieces of equipment.
Since they could smith pieces of equipment of this standard, it meant that they had approved of each other’s capabilities. Therefore, they did not look at each other with enmity from afar. Instead, they looked at one another like like-minded people.
Yu Xiuming, who was watching the competition, clenched his fists while he looked at the 2 suits.
He did his best to control his expression, but he was feeling unperturbed as the sound of a tsunami roared and echoed in his head.
“I can do it too! I can do it too!”
He was also extremely confident about smithing pieces of equipment of such a level, but the god of destiny made a fool out of him as Ou Yangming appeared in Danzhou. If not, he would have been the one competing against Qu Zhengde.
The square suddenly fell silent as everyone waited quietly.
When Zhiming the Venerable One and the others calmed down, they somehow recalled something.
Master Kurong had been cultivating in isolation for a century. Rumor had it that his time was almost up, hence he stopped going out to meet people.
If that was the case, would it be suitable to invite him here at this moment?
Although Master Kurong had consumed an Eternal Pill and even went to the Beast King Sect, very few people were aware. Furthermore, since the Eternal Pill was involved, those that knew about this kept their mouths shut too.
Nobody would complain about having a long life. Besides, everyone knew there would not be a lot of that life-saving pill. The more the people that knew, the lower the chances of one getting the pill. They would do everything they could to keep it a secret, so why would they spread the news?
This was why even Zhiming the Venerable Ones and the others from Danzhou were clueless about this too.
All of a sudden, Lingfeng the Venerable One tensed up and cupped his hands with respect at the sky. He uttered loudly, “Welcome, Master Kurong.”
While the other people were stunned, they immediately saw 2 bolts piercing through the sky.
Master Kurong was more senior than all of the Danzhou’s Venerable Ones, thus it would not be much for them to welcome him with the most honorable etiquette.
At the spur of the moment, apart from Ai Hongli the Venerable One, even Chi Ningyun and Qiu Chengwang from Zhangzhou bowed at the master.
The lusters landed on the ground. They were Master Kurong and Tiandao the Venerable One.
Master Kurong’s eyes flickered as he smiled. “You don’t need to be so polite.” As he lifted his hand, an incredibly gentle power was released to hold everyone up.
Everyone including Ai Hongli was taken aback.
The controlling technique was not much, but it was difficult because Master Kurong did it effortlessly. Only when his power held the people up, they noticed that something was unusual.
Putting that aside, the master’s ability to become one with nature was the biggest reason everyone was shocked.
Ai Hongli’s eyes were gleaming. Being a top-grade Venerable One, his senses were unquestionably the strongest. He could sense a strong vitality from Master Kurong, and it felt entirely different from the lifeless aura that he sensed a century ago when he met the master.
His face twitched. As steady as he was, he felt like he had just seen a ghost at the moment.
Master Kurong did not notice the change in Ai Hongli’s thoughts, but he could vaguely sense the odd look in his old friend’s eyes. Despite that, he did not think too much as he only thought that Ai Hongli was only surprised by his new lease of life.
After consuming the Eternal Pill, Master Kurong’s potential burst out, and he was born again through the fire. Consequently, his aura definitely became entirely different from before.
He could not keep this a secret even if he wanted to.
Therefore, he waved his hand readily and greeted, “Venerable One Ai, long time no see. How have you been?”
Ai Hongli curbed his thoughts and rejoined, “It has been a century since we parted. Your cultivation base has improved significantly, so congratulations.”
Master Kurong smiled faintly. “Venerable One Ai, you’re kidding. I’m still in this old body and if anything at all, I’ve only gotten older.” He was ridiculing himself, but it was such a delightful feeling that one would feel much closer to him right away.
Chi Ningyun and Qiu Chengwang looked at each other. Their faces could not help but change as they sensed the subtle change.
The experienced Venerable One was far more capable than they imagined.
Ai Hongli forced a smile. He could not be bothered about being polite anymore, so he scanned Master Kurong with bright eyes.
After some time, he raised a question, “Master Kurong, you… Have you already taken… No, have you found the direction of your path?”
Master Kurong looked at him and asked with a smile, “Venerable One Ai, why do you ask that?”
Ai Hongli took a deep breath and responded in a deep voice, “When we met a century ago, your vitality was already declining. Am I right?”
TIandao the Venerable One’s face changed as he was furious. “Venerable One Ai, what are you talking about? Don’t you think that you’re going overboard?”
Zhiming the Venerable One and the rest did not say a word, but it was clear from their frowns that they found it rather inappropriate too. Having said that, they were also quite curious, and they wanted to know the truth more than Ai Hongli the Venerable One did.
Ai Hongli the Venerable One nodded and expressed, “I’m eager for knowledge, so please forgive me for my indiscreet remark.”
Seeing as he admitted his mistake in a poised manner, Tiandao the Venerable One could not continue to reprimand him.
Ai Hongli was a guest from afar, after all, and he was also a top-grade Venerable One. As displeased as the others were, they could not hold him accountable for this.
Master Kurong waved his hand. Upon seeing this, Tiandao the Venerable One shut up at once and quietly took a step back.
Inside Mount Wuzhi, if Master Kurong did not show up, the decisions made by the 3 Venerable Ones would always be the final call; if the master was present, he would naturally have the authority.
“Venerable One Ai, my vitality was indeed declining a century ago, and my time was almost up.” Master Kurong sighed. “Perhaps God didn’t want to see me fall like that, so he gave me an opportunity and let me be born again.”
As long as one had strong willpower when one consumed an Eternal Pill, one would be able to undergo rebirth through the fire.
Master Kurong meant something else and said the truth, but it sounded entirely different to Ai Hongli and the rest.
Ai Hongli’s eyes shone brighter than before. “Master Kurong, this opportunity that you’re talking about—have you found your path?”
Given that he kept asking questions without bothering about what other people were thinking and feeling, it was evident how important this matter was to him. It had surpassed everything else, which was why he was so eager to find the answer.
Master Kurong looked quietly at him and sensed his anxiousness.
However, he did not find it odd. This was because he had a similar mentality to that of Ai Hongli before he found the path that belonged to him.
At this point, Master Kurong felt like he saw a glimpse of his past self on Ai Hongli the Venerable One.
This was the exact reason he particularly empathized with Ai Hongli and understood how he felt.
Ai Hongli the Venerable One suddenly gritted his teeth and kowtowed to Master Kurong. “Master, please let me know.”
Master Kurong sighed and answered, “I’ve found my path indeed…”
