The Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 1881 - Discrepancy, Defeat, Leave One Arm Behind

Qing Shui was startled by the situation, this Elder Jian Nu was very powerful. If his Nine Yang Dragon Soul had not undergone a striking breakthrough, Qing Shui predicted a massive and miserable loss with his previous strength.

However, his strength now was like Heaven and Earth compared to before. Hence, the old man's swift, fierce, and revolutionary attack seemed like a piece of cake to Qing Shui. He could not feel any deadly life threats.

Dragon-capturing Hands!

Qing Shui used the Golden Battle Halberd while performing Dragon-capturing Hands. A gigantic golden dragon dashed towards the Elder Jian Nu. It was a clash of spiritual attacks and Qing Shui's Nine Yang Dragon Soul was several times more destructive against spiritual attacks.

Plus, Qing Shui's Nine Yang Dragon Soul had greater attacking force than the Elder Jian Nu. Hence, the collision was violent. The white rays' explosion and gold rays' condensation painted a colorful and magnificent scenery.

Qing Shui paused, he did not use techniques like the Emperor's Qi and the Art of Pursuing against the Elder Jian Nu. They were yet to force Qing Shui into desperation with their current strengths. Nevertheless, the Elder Jian Nu was the most powerful man Qing Shui had ever met. To have such a daunting strength, no wonder these people were arrogant and confident.

As the halo dispersed, Qing Shui stopped. Elder Jian Nu stood far away while looking flustered. There was a slight blood stain at the corner of his mouth and his face was pale, indicating that he was injured. He stared in disbelief at Qing Shui from far, was unable to face the reality till the very moment.

He was not someone who could not afford failures, but this opponent was too young to be true. In the previous fight, he sensed that the opponent had been lenient. Thus, he could not even feel Qing Shui's actual strength.

Devil, the absolute devil. All the genius youngsters he met before did not even deserve to be mentioned.

There were a lot of geniuses in the Great Confucian Empire. Yet, upon seeing this young man, Elder Jian Nu realized that they were nothing. As a powerful Alchemist, he was aware of Qing Shui's whereabouts.

"You lost!" Qing Shui said with a smile. He sounded calm and not surprised at all as if he had predicted his victory.

"Mm!"

After a long time, Elder Jian Nu answered softly. It sounded more like a long sigh of ratification. It was the helplessness of being forced to accept the cruel reality. Raising his head, he asked Qing Shui, "Why did you go easy on me?"

Under normal circumstances, a serious injury or even death was expected in a battle like this. Meanwhile, Elder Jian Nu only suffered light injuries. For his own safety, Qing Shui was not overly lenient, or else, it would have been cruel to himself. He would die in grief if a careless mistake took his life away without making his best attempt. It was a taboo for the warriors in a battle.

"I never kill without discrimination. Besides, I don't think you're someone I should kill," Qing Shui answered directly.

"I lost, I can't possibly invite Mr. Qing anymore, can we leave?," Elder Jian Nu looked at Qing Shui in despair.

"Absolutely. However, you can't just come and leave so casually. It's not a place for you to mess around. You, leave an arm behind or keep your life, it's your choice," Qing Shui pointed at the man who wanted to kill him initially.

"You, you……" His arm was already disfigured, but still was better than to chop it off. At once, his body was soaked in cold sweats. He stared at Qing Shui, looking dumbfounded and speechless.

"I'll give you three breaths' time, I'll do it if you don't. Yet, it is hard to tell whether I'll take away your arm or your life," Qing Shui gave this middle-aged man a cold stare. Qing Shui disliked people who wanted him dead, he must at least give this man a profound lesson as a future warning for the men of the Great Confucian Empire.

Qing Shui remained silent. He closed his eyes and raised his head slightly while the clock was ticking. Elder Jian Nu took out his sword without a word.

Ahh!

With a painful scream, one arm fell onto the ground. Qing Shui opened his eyes and turned around, "Go, bring your arm along!"

"Let's go, we shall go back!" Qing Shui said to Lan Lingfeng and the others. Qing Shui did not bring Yiye Jiange this time because she had to babysit Qing Xiu and the battlefield was not suitable for kids.

This fight also made Lan Lingfeng and others realize their strength discrepancies. Initially, they thought they could catch up with Qing Shui by practicing hard these years. They only wished to bring the gap closer, but they never dreamt to outperform Qing Shui one day.

Nevertheless, they could never keep up with Qing Shui now. Some of them were happy for Qing Shui's improvement, but each of them wished to grow stronger. Thus, they held their breaths and swore to train hard.

Tantai Lingyan stood beside Qing Shui, her strength was the greatest besides him. Yet, she could not gauge Qing Shui's actual strength. She knew it was not Qing Shui's full strength that she felt previously since his combat skills were much stronger than his graded strength.

Yet, she could not even feel his graded strength today.

Qing Shui held Tantai Lingyan's hand and headed back. Qing Shui's personality changed gradually and subconsciously. This time, Qing Shui experienced a huge realm transformation, he could now look clearer into some issues.

Tantai Lingyan struggled but failed, after all, there were many people around.

Though everyone kept quiet, it was known that these women were not only ordinary friends with Qing Shui. Everyone knew it very well.

Qing Shui noticed Tantai Lingyan's gesture which showed that she was bothered. Looking at her softly blushed and beautiful face, Qing Shui smiled. Tantai Lingyan spotted his smile and understood his meaning.

She stopped resisting and had a strange feeling. This was no longer new to her. This man brought her too many 'first time' and she gave him almost every 'first time' she had. She wondered if the biggest misunderstanding in their first meeting was still regarded as a mistake……

"Qing Shui, you beat the Elder Jian Nu today, they will send a stronger man next time," Yin Tong initiated a conversation.

"Let them come, oh ya, anyone knows who fell ill in the Great Confucian Empire?" Qing Shui skipped this question previously as he was pissed.

"I am not sure too, it seems to be a State Master," Yin Tong shook his head.

"Hmm, State Master. The State Master of an empire could rule the world. A State Master is the master and guardian of an empire with powerful strength and high prestige. The Great Confucian Empire is a strong force, this State Master should be no ordinary man," Qing Shui said with a smile after thinking shortly.