Light grey sunlight shone through the window, making the hall even brighter.
Ou Yangming’s eyes were burning as he looked at Master Duan, waiting for his answer.
Master Duan was calm and collected. He picked up a piece of spirit pork meat and put it in his mouth before he chuckled and answered, “There are all sorts of strange things in the Big Ruins. Some are formless and hard to grasp; some are powerful and can shake the sky with their bare hands; some are as tough as steel and can’t be destroyed by swords and knives. Nonetheless, the most terrifying things are the corpses left behind by the ancient powerhouses. Even if they only have battle instincts, they’re very frightening as some can even fight against Venerable Ones.” He deliberately paused and picked up his bowl and took a big gulp of liquor.
Jiang Yingrong tucked her black hair behind her ear. She was showing off her mature woman’s aura to the fullest, making people’s hearts waver. She could see Master Duan’s controlling attitude. Her pair of beautiful eyes, which seemed to be able to speak, turned as she covered her mouth and laughed. “Master Duan, you still haven’t told us what would happen if the divine statues aren’t guarding outside.”
Master Duan was prepared to keep everyone in suspense. His long sleeves had fallen into his liquor, but he still refused to speak. His face was full of emotions.
“They’ll attack the city!” He Jian’s arms trembled as he held a carving knife.
“Attack the city?” Ou Yangming’s voice was raised a few degrees, and a hint of surprise appeared on his face.
“Yes, that’s why the Big Ruins has been known as a cursed land since ancient times. It’s indescribably dangerous. Now, less than 30% of the places that humans have explored are covered in black mists. Even sunlight can’t penetrate them.” He Jian’s voice was hoarse. After saying that, he kept his mouth shut. He had always been a taciturn person. He did not like to talk, nor did he like to be boisterous.
Master Duan glanced at He Jian with a hint of resentment. His gaze seemed to be saying, ‘It wasn’t easy for me to strike a pose and look impressive, and yet you gave away the answer just like that. You’re really not a good friend.’
He snorted and grumbled, “Old He, couldn’t you let me keep them in suspense and have some fun? In the future, if you want me to help you to smith carving knives, you’ll have to increase the price by 10%. Otherwise, I won’t be willing to smith them! In this city, there are only 2 people who can smith pieces of White Silver Equipment, and I’m one of them. The other person is in seclusion all year round. When the time comes, I’ll make sure that you’ll find yourself at a loss.” Master Duan waved his hand and looked like he would not be open to negotiate the matter. He just quietly sized up He Jian.
Ou Yangming found that while He Jian was silent and did not like to talk to others, he had the highest status among the 3.
Nonetheless, he did not have the aura of a cultivator, which was a huge doubt in itself. After all, this was the Big Ruins. Even Lil’ Man had the cultivation of the Extreme Grade. Could people without a cultivation base survive in this cursed land?
The answer was clear. They would not be able to survive—not at all.
Once Lil’ Man finished the dishes in his bowl, if Ou Yangming did not give him any food, he would only eat plain rice. The little girl looked around and smiled gently. She gave Lil’ Man a large bowl of dishes and tiptoed to bring them to his bowl.
Her name was Jiang Qingcheng. She had her mother’s surname, and her name implied that she had a stunning smile. Indeed, she had such potential at this moment. Lil’ Man glanced at the snow vegetables in his bowl and stared at Jiang Qingcheng for a moment. In the end, he still ate plain rice only. The little girl felt like a kitten that had been provoked. She pouted and asked, “Why aren’t you eating the vegetables?”
Lil’ Man raised his head and looked at the beam in the room. He did not say anything.
“Why aren’t you eating?” Jiang Qingcheng asked again.
Lil’ Man glared at her and said, “You’re so annoying!”
This scene made the other 4 people burst into laughter.
Ou Yangming patted Lil’ Man’s shoulder and said in a low voice, “Eat them quickly! Don’t waste them.”
Only then did Lil’ Man eat the snow vegetables in the bowl along with his rice. This made Master Duan feel amazed.
He smiled and asked, “Brother Yu, is this child your younger brother? He’s very interesting, and he’s also very talented. Why don’t you let him learn smithing from me? It’s a great opportunity that many children in the city can’t even hope for.”
The corner of Ou Yangming’s mouth twitched, and he cursed internally, ‘With your level, aren’t you afraid of misleading other children?’
However, he looked at Lil’ Man and responded softly, “Whatever he wants to learn, I’ll respect his choice. I won’t make a choice for him. Not now, and not in the future. I’ll always ask his opinion first.”
As his voice spread, He Jian’s eyes flashed.
Master Duan did not give up. He shifted his gaze to Lil’ Man and asked in a gentle voice, “Lil’ Man, are you willing to become a smithing master that everyone respects? When that time comes, you can go anywhere in the Big Ruins no matter how dangerous it is.”
Lil’ Man was not afraid at all. He asked, “Can I kill people?”
Master Duan shrunk his neck and did not answer.
On the contrary, He Jian revealed a look of surprise in his eyes. He thought to himself, ‘His murderous aura is too strong. If this goes on, he’ll surely be swallowed by his inner demon.’
After an hour, everyone was full.
He Jian gave Ou Yangming a look and walked out.
Ou Yangming did not hesitate and followed him.
He Jian stopped and waited for Ou Yangming to catch up. As he walked, he asked, “Brother Yu, how do you plan to settle Lil’ Man?”
Ou Yangming was slightly stunned. He never thought that the quiet He Jian would ask such a question. After thinking for a while, he said, “I’ll first teach him to establish his heart and dispel the resentment in his heart.”
He Jian nodded and noted, “It won’t be simple. The resentment in Lil’ Man’s heart is too deep.”
He paused for a moment, and his eyes revealed a look of reminiscence. He sighed and explained, “100 years ago, a young man wanted to borrow a sword from me. I saw that his heart for the path was entangled with demonic intent, and his sword heart was no longer pure, so I refused to lend him one. Later, he stirred up a storm in the Big Ruins and at least 1,000 people died under his sword. Only then did I understand that I had to lend him that sword that day no matter what. It was not for myself, but for the people of the world.”
“What do you plan to do then, Master He?” Ou Yangming knew that since He Jian said so, he must have his arrangements.
“Let Lil’ Man learn to sculpt wood with me. I’ll resolve the killing intent in his heart,” He Jian suggested.
Ou Yangming hesitated for a moment. Seeing He Jian’s sincere expression, he finally agreed to it. While He Jian didn’t say much, he was much more reliable than Master Duan.
In fact, Master Duan’s smithing attainments were indeed among the top 10 in this big city. Despite that, due to Ou Yangming’s overly “abnormal” smithing skills, he thought little of the master’s level of attainment. Furthermore, the young fellow did not understand the smithing standards in the Big Ruins.
He Jian left without any hesitation.
After putting away the bowls and chopsticks, the sky had already darkened. The cold and dark moonlight sprinkled down from the sky.
In the small courtyard, Lil’ Man was doing breathing exercises. The muscles on his body were like dragons, and a black pattern suddenly lit up. With him as the center, all the spiritual Qi within 20 meters from him surged and turned into a small cyclone. Black gas rolled up into the sky one circle after another, and there were faint white electric arcs flashing on his skin, stirring up a prairie fire and emitting muffled sounds.
Ou Yangming took a big step forward and tapped his interspatial bag.
Several thousand spirit ores were rolled up by his sleeves and landed around Lil’ Man, piling up like a small mountain. The spiritual Qi around Lil’ Man was so dense that it was unimaginable. Of course, this method was only suitable for Spiritualists below Intermediate Spiritualists. After all, the amount of spiritual Qi required for a Spiritualist above Intermediate Spiritualists to break through the realm was enormous. It was impossible to maintain the spiritual Qi in ordinary spirit ore.
“Boom…” The cyclone became larger.
A white lightning bolt fell from the sky, causing the cyclone to flash with white electric arcs.
The mark on Lil’ Man’s forehead turned blood-red, piercing through all the black patterns on his body. Hundreds of spirit ores instantly turned into a pile of powder, which was blown away by the cyclone.
“Break!” Lil’ Man let out a muffled roar. The spiritual Qi in his Dantian was like water in a river as they surged ceaselessly and crashed toward the shackles on a Spiritualist.
“Crack!” This was the sound of the barrier being broken. Afterward, the child’s body was shrouded in a faint light.
Ou Yangming saw that the patterns on Lil’ Man’s body had faded away, and the spirit ores around him had turned into powder.
Lil’ Man opened his eyes, and an aura of a Rudimentary Spiritualist spread out.
Ou Yangming’s eyes also revealed a smile, and he said softly, “After stabilizing your cultivation base, go and learn wood carving from Master He.”
Lil’ Man looked at Ou Yangming’s eyes and asked word by word, “Can I kill people?”
‘The younger one is, the more obsessed one is!’ Ou Yangming lamented to himself then answered, “Wood carving can’t be utilized to kill people, but a sword can.”
Lil’ Man was silent for a long time. He looked up at the sky and nodded, “Okay, I’ll go and learn it.”
Ou Yangming let out a long sigh of relief. If Lil’ Man refused to go, there was nothing he could do.
However, he did not have the ability to get rid of the hostility in Lil’ Man’s heart.
Jiang Yingrong was a tailor—an excellent tailor.
There were all kinds of spiritual herbs in the house. The spiritual Qi was strong and the smell was good.
Jiang Qingcheng was barefooted and fair. She smiled and said, “Mother, Lil’ Man isn’t simple at all, and Uncle Yu is even more so!” This was how she addressed Ou Yangming. Each time Ou Yangming heard the term of address, his face would turn bitter. He was a young man who had not even gotten married yet! How could he be an uncle?
“Yeah, he can refine pills and he’s also a caster. How can he be simple?” Jiang Yingrong bit off a thread with her teeth and answered with a smile.
The little girl sat on a bench, her feet swaying back and forth, and her calves were slender and long. She added, “Besides, Grandpa He is preparing to teach Lil’ Man wood carving. Back then, I cried and shouted at him, but he refused to teach me. On the other hand, he has only known Lil’ Man for a month, and he’s going to teach him already.” She puffed up her cheeks, which were red and looked adorable.
“Are you jealous, Lil’ Qingcheng?” Jiang Yingrong pinched her face.
“No!” The little girl turned her head. “I’m just thinking that the Longevity Alley has become lively now, so I won’t be bored in the future.”
“You’re still stubborn?” Jiang Yingrong untied her shirt belt, revealing her lustful body.
“I’m not stubborn. I really think Lil’ Man is interesting.” Jiang Qingcheng swayed her feet more frequently.
“Is there anyone in the Longevity Alley who isn’t interesting? Are they all interesting?” Jiang Yingrong smiled but no matter how one looked at it, there was a strange look in her smile.
“What about you, Mother? Are you interesting?” Jiang Qingcheng turned her head.
“I’m just a tailor!”
…
“Mother, I want to eat cucumbers.”
“Here. This is very precious in the cursed land so eat less of it.”
“I don’t want to eat the end of the cucumber! It’s bitter.”
“Then eat it from the start!”
“It’s also bitter.”
