The Star Trace Suit was extremely powerful, but it was not merely made for defense, unlike Qu Zhengde's equipment set. In terms of defensive ability only, the equipment set that was meticulously prepared by Qu Zhengde could soundly defeat the Star Trace Suit.

Nonetheless, Ou Yangming was good at meeting emergencies. Since his suit was being a letdown at this time, he decided to use his power to replace it.

In any case, other people were not familiar with his suit. Regardless of the special ability that he released, he could easily confuse the others.

As at this moment, the flame around his Star Trace Suit was not the suit's power, but the Heavenly Phoenix Fire that was nearly invincible in the Spiritual Realm.

When the flame began to spread, not to mention the cold intent that was originally born from the Heavenly Phoenix Fire, even the illusion that was tempered by Qu Zhengde through hard work was destroyed by it without any effort.

All of the negative effects no longer existed in front of the Heavenly Phoenix Fire like snowflakes being melted by fire. Moreover, given Ou Yangming's capability at the moment, if he only maintained the fire within several meters from him without expanding its coverage, the blazing fire would not be too much of a burden to him. Even if the young fellow were to burn it for a day and a night, it would not be strenuous at all.

Needless to say, if he were to blindly increase the fire's range, the situation would be entirely different.

The Venerable Ones looked at the 2 blacksmiths at the same time. After seeing how they dealt with the situation, they were secretly approving.

Although it was not a head-on confrontation, they could tell the blacksmiths' real standards through some details.

This time, the blacksmiths had tied again.

Ou Yangming might be suspected of cheating by doing this, but it would be fine if nobody noticed it.

As the illusion and the snow continued, they could not affect the people much but given that they were only Equipment Skills, they truly exceeded everyone's expectations for being able to go on for so long. Even Master Kurong could not help but look impressed.

He could naturally do the same, but he dared not guarantee that Yu Xiuming could have achieved this standard if he was in Ou Yangming's place.

At this moment, Master Kurong was actually glad that Ou Yangming emerged as a rising star, or Danzhou might need to admit defeat in this Big Smithing Competition.

"Pow…"

All of a sudden, a weird sound was heard in the air.

Everyone's faces changed as they looked at the same time.

Yi Haobo was quivering. The sound was released from his armor.

It was worth noting that the other people that were present were not ordinary figures. In particular, the Venerable Ones were sharp-eyed, hence they could observe even the slightest change if they focused.

At this moment, they clearly saw an incredibly tiny crack on Yi Haobo's armor. It was not eye-catching at all, by which it could not have been spotted if one did not look carefully. Even so, the tiny gap immediately became the last straw. As such, the faces of Zhangzhou's powerhouses changed.

Qu Zhengde was not as sharp-eyed, but he heard the sound clearly and was smart enough to guess the truth. As he took a deep breath, the cold intent entered his stomach through his nose and reached his brain through his spine.

'I lost!'

Nobody told him, but he knew he had been defeated in this long and exhausting fight.

"Ah…"

Ai Hongli sighed as well. He shook his head and looked deeply at Ou Yangming, then he said out loud, "Master Kurong, there's no need for the battle to go on anymore. We… Admit defeat."

Chi Ningyun and Qiu Chengwang looked at each other. They were not resigned to the outcome, but they could not make any objections on this occasion. If they were defeated, they were defeated. They would lose the competition but not lose their image if they openly admitted defeat, but they would be embarrassing themselves if they pestered their opponent endlessly.

Fang Kaiyou and Yi Haobo looked at each other from afar. They slowed down almost at the same time and curbed their spiritual powers.

This was because they knew if they suddenly cut off their spiritual powers right away, the suits would unquestionably be negatively affected. If they were slightly careless, the pieces of equipment might be seriously damaged.

Ou Yangming raised his eyebrows. He was very confident about his pieces of equipment, but he was only truly relieved when his victory was confirmed.

He smiled at Yuqi the Venerable One and the others and mouthed, 'I didn't let you down."

Yuqi the Venerable One and the others were already beaming. Indescribable joy filled the hearts of the people from Danzhou.

Lingfeng the Venerable One laughed out loud before he stated, "I hereby announce that the Big Smithing Competition between Danzhou and Zhangzhou has ended. Master Ou Yangming, who represents Danzhou in the competition, emerges as the victor."

His voice spread far and wide until it filled the whole mountain. Furthermore, instead of being cut off, it continued to spread to the further mountains.

Whether it was the disciples that were cultivating on the various mountains or the blacksmiths that had been waiting for news on the hillside, they were stunned when they heard the news. Following that, they quickly cheered as loud as they could.

Their voices undulated such that the whole of Mount Wuzhi turned into a cheerful ocean in an instant.

They were in Danzhou, after all. Therefore, when Ou Yangming, who represented Danzhou in the competition, was announced as the victor, everyone from Danzhou was overjoyed from the bottom of their hearts.

On the contrary, the powerhouses from Zhangzhou that came on the flying boat with Ai Hongli and the other Venerable Ones were pale and dispirited.

They were filled with confidence before they arrived. Qu Zhengde was known as a one-in-a-million smithing genius and was renowned in Zhangzhou, thus none of them thought that he would fail. Even when they witnessed Ou Yangming's shocking performance, they still had confidence in Qu Zhengde.

Nevertheless, the cruel truth proved to them that there was always someone better out there, where an even more brilliant smithing master existed in Danzhou.

In the Beyond Heaven Pavilion, Luo Qiwen and Yue Anzhi looked at each other and nodded.

At last, the intense fight had drawn to a close. On top of that, the 2 treasure ores made a great appearance during the competition, so the Beyond Heaven Pavilion was able to gain a notable reputation.

Luo Qiwen pondered for a brief moment and asked, "Elder Yue, we received news that Master Ou Yangming has established his store. Is that true?"

Yue Anzhi nodded and responded, "Yes, but the store has just started out. Even if it's supported by the Beast King Sect, it's not worth mentioning at all."

"Hehe, one will be more grateful for timely assistance instead of extra help," Luo Qiwen noted in a deep voice, "Let's get involved as well."

Yue Anzhi laughed out loud and commented, "Pavilion Master Luo, you're far-sighted indeed. You have my respect."

A jubilant atmosphere filled Mount Wuzhi. Even though the people from Zhangzhou had not left, most people could not wait to celebrate.

In the square, Danzhou's Venerable Ones would not act impolitely, but they could not hide their happiness as well.

Ai Hongli received the armor from Yi Haobo and inspected it carefully. Other than the tiny notch, it was not harmed elsewhere. Despite that, given that it was such a precious item, even a tiny crack could make one's heart ache.

Qu Zhengde kept quiet for some time before he suddenly looked up at Ou Yangming. "Master Ou, I know why I lost."

Ou Yangming was dumbfounded. "Why?"

"I lost because of the materials that I chose." Qu Zhengde sighed and explained, "As mighty as an illusion can be, it's still an illusion and will not affect pieces of equipment at all. On the other hand, your Cold Snow Suit's constantly releasing cold intent to attack the Blood Refining Suit. Ah, normally, the attacks wouldn't mean much, but there'll be a huge difference if the skill's activated under extreme control."

"Yes, your Blood Refining Suit was in a disadvantageous spot indeed," Ou Yangming replied to him after some thought. He paused for a while and continued with a cold look in his eyes, "But even without the gap, the Cold Snow Suit won't be inferior to the Blood Refining Suit at all."

"Now that the outcome has been determined, there's no point talking about this anymore." Qu Zhengde smiled bitterly. He stared at Ou Yangming and expressed sternly, "Master Ou, if you're going to travel to Zhangzhou in the future, you must come to the Seven Stars Sect!"

Ou Yangming was taken aback. He asked half-jokingly, "Why? Are you planning to take your revenge because you suffered a devastating defeat?"

Who knew, Qu Zhengde answered seriously, "Yes, I'll be working hard after I go back so that I can make further progress. If there's a chance in the future, I'll go against you again, Master Ou."

He spoke heroically. Not only the Venerable Ones from Zhangzhou, but even Master Kurong and the others regarded him with special respect.

Judging from his character and spirit, even if he was defeated today, he would surely become an outstanding figure.

Ou Yangming's smile went away as he responded with a serious expression, "Alright, if that's the case, I'll certainly visit you at the Seven Stars Sect if I travel to Zhangzhou in the future, Master Qu."

Qu Zhengde nodded and bowed to everyone, then he jumped up to the flying boat and left with Ai Hongli and the others.

The powerhouses from Zhangzhou might seem like they lacked grace for leaving in such a hurry, but nobody reprimanded them considering how they must be feeling at the moment. As for Mount Wuzhi, they began to celebrate crazily after they left.

Now that the big competition between the prefectures had ended, Danzhou would definitely be superior to Zhangzhou in equipment smithing for at least 3 decades. This had become an undisputed fact.

Ou Yangming was naturally complimented by many people and became the main character of the feast.

His title as the greatest blacksmith below the Venerable-One-level spread in Danzhou and was acknowledged by everyone.

Amidst the bustling celebration, Ou Yangming found Yuqi the Venerable One. They could not help but feel deeply moved when they saw the bustling scene on Mount Wuzhi.

They looked at each other and had the same thought.

'It's almost time for Multi-armed King Kong's recondition…'