The Ancient Strengthening Technique

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AST 915 - "Lord Of Nine Palace", Kill!

Qing Shui took advantage of the battle that allowed the Nine Palace Steps to improve rapidly into the Lord of Nine Palace realm.

It was only then that Qing Shui was deemed the rightful owner of the 'Nine Palace Steps'. He was finally able to truly grasp the quintessence of the Nine Palace Steps, a feat that thrilled him. After all, the Nine Palace Steps was undeniably strong.

"Path of Sky Prison!"

A black silhouette-like halo flashed from Tianyu Liangyi's body, a subtle gleam of golden light bursting outwards towards the surroundings. Next, his golden pupils shot a light at Qing Shui that locked him down fiercely.

"Sky Prison Bloodbath!"

A flicker of a silhouette flashed across Qing Shui with an instantaneous force that could slice the heavens apart.

Qing Shui's pupils constricted as he tried to move out of harm's way. However, when he attempted to do so, he realized his movements had been slowed down considerably. He knew that this was due to Tianyu Liangyi's odd eyes. Moreover, his opponent seemed to have his strength boosted by multiple levels - his aura felt distinctly different than before.

"Qing Shui, move quickly! He's burning his life force to increase his power and try to kill you! Move away quickly……" The old man from the Mu Clan shouted as he threw a bunch of Crystal Demonic Beast Cards at Tianyu Liangyi to delay for more time.

Even though Qing Shui could evade Tianyu Liangyi's attack the first time, he realized it was quite difficult to do the same given his current situation. The second blade was coming his way, and this time it was undodgeable. Time seemed to pass slowly, but this had all happened in under a minute.

Qing Shui retrieved his Poison Dragon Dagger and promptly swapped to the Violet Gold Divine Shield.

Shield Attack!

Godly Armor Shield!

Divinity Protection!

With a stomp on the ground, Mu Qing, who had been coming to his aid, was swiftly swept back by the aftershock of the force.

Bang!

Chrriikkk…...

A sharp and uncomfortable noise pierced through the air as Qing Shui was bashed backward, blood gushing out from his body. The Violet Gold Divine Shield had been shattered completely, but the fist-sized violet stone had been knocked loose, rolling to the far side of the battlefield.

A nasty cut appeared from his stomach to his chest, blood spewing from the opening, almost deep enough to reveal his inner organs. Qing Shui could feel his life force draining vigorously from his body as well.

With no time to lose, he quickly took out a piece of the Golden Buddha Aura Lotus and devoured it like a madman. As soon as he ate it, a blinding stream of light enveloped his vital organs like a protective shield, acting as a cork to prevent his life force from draining from his body.

While enduring the extreme pain of his gaping wound, he tapped a few acupoints on his body and applied the Jinchuang Powder to his gash. He used the beast skin of a Martial Saint level beast as a 'bandage' and wrapped it around the wound. The skin bandage being stained quickly from the blood oozing from the cut.

All of this happened within two breaths of time.

"How can this be? How is it possible?" Tianyu Liangyi was in shock, albeit for a moment. Qing Shui had settled his wound very quickly, but Tianyu Liangyi realized he had missed an opportunity to kill his opponent during the two breaths of time Qing Shui had taken to mend his wound.

Tianyu Liangyi's life force was still draining away, because the 'Path of Sky Prison' was one of no return. Once the ability was unleashed, he could only use his killer move to try and annihilate his opponent at the price of his death. He was ready to die along with everyone else in this battle.

However, his killer move hadn't been able to kill Qing Shui successfully. He needed just a little bit more to kill him - it would've been enough if it hadn't been for that damned shield. Tianyu Liangyi wielded his sabre once more and rushed towards Qing Shui with the unwillingness to give up.

The previous assault had been his most powerful one, but Qing Shui had possessed that miraculous shield to defend himself from getting killed by the invincible force of the former could shield himself against his assault this time. Although he couldn't unleash a force quite as deadly as he did previously, he could still inflict heavy damage on Qing Shui. As long as he could take him out, nothing else really mattered to him.

Descending Heaven Talisman!

Fiery Golden Eyes!

Emperor's Qi!

At this point, Qing Shui decided to use everything, as he faced his opponent who possessed a powerful ability. However, Qing Shui's debuff abilities were more frightful, to the point of stopping Tianyu Liangyi completely in his tracks after being hit with the weakening abilities. Tianyu Liangyi turned pale, but after stopping for a brief moment, he continued to rush towards Qing Shui with his sabre in hand.

He couldn't accept the turn of events and was more than determined to fight Qing Shui, despite already sealing his fate to death. The Path of Sky Prison was a one-way ticket to death, so he was prepared to die for his cause.

This time, Qing Shui evaded Tianyu Liangyi's attack in a calm fashion. The sabre attack was the same one as before, yet the force of the attack had weakened drastically compared to the previous strikes.

If he could evade this attack, it would mean that Tianyu Liangyi would die without successfully being able to kill Qing Shui. The killing move was certain to kill Qing Shui if it landed, but even so, he had not succeeded. Supposedly, no one could match up to his formation techniques, but apparently this was not true, as he looked at the formation that had been set up by the young man in front of him.

He had failed by the hands of a formation technique. This young man had created a formation he could never figure out. He had been careless, and that led to his defeat, because he had taken lightly his opponent's formation in the beginning of the fight…...

Perhaps this was his miscalculation, but he would never die peacefully knowing that it had been his fault all along.

"I won't accept this!"

Tianyu Liangyi tilted his head towards the heavens and roared loudly. There was a hint of feebleness and regret in his voice as he exploded, his body shredding into pieces before vanishing from the air.

Qing Shui watched Tianyu Liangyi as he vanished from the air. He finally felt a sense of relief after knowing that he had defeated Tianyu Liangyi, a man deemed too dangerous in this world. If Qing Shui didn't have the Golden Buddha Aura Lotus at that time, he would have died more than a few times already.

The fight had ended, and his intense spiritual and mental fatigue began to crawl back.

"Qing Shui!"

A soft sensation wrapped around his hand as a celestial-like voice rang out. He turned his head and, to his surprise, Mu Qing was standing by his side. Her expression of shock and deep concern immensely imprinted onto Qing Shui's mind.

She didn't care if she was tainted with the blood on his hand……..

"I'm fine!" Qing Shui chuckled while holding onto Mu Qing's hand. At that moment when he had been struck by Tianyu Liangyi's deadly attack, he had seen this woman coming towards him without hesitation. He didn't know what to feel back then, but she had indeed leaped towards him during the battle. Perhaps in that sort of situation, he had thought that only his mother or his wives would risk their lives for him. After all, being able to risk one's life for another required an immense amount of courage…...

The old man and the members of the Mu Clan were already surrounding Qing Shui to check on him. When they saw Mu Qing holding hands with Qing Shui, they couldn't help but let out a few chuckles. It was only then that Mu Qing realized that she was holding Qing Shui's hand and immediately released her grip.

As Mu Qing lowered her head, she could see Qing Shu, whose blood was everywhere on his body. Without hesitating, she held onto Qing Shui's hand once more and said, "How is your wound?"

"It's fine, I'm an alchemist myself, you know." Qing Shui let out a few laughs.

"I will go with you and tend to your wounds" Mu Qing said as she bit her lips, feeling the blood rushing to her face intensely.

The other members laughed teasingly as they left to tend to their own matters after realizing Qing Shui was fine . There were many things that needed to be done, including looking after the number of casualties from the Mu Clan.

Qing Shui gave them an abundant supply of Jinchuang Powder to treat the injured members.

"Qing Shui, this is something precious that fell out from your broken shield. Keep it for next time, when you need it most," said the old man from the Mu Clan as he handed Qing Shui a violet stone.

Qing Shui didn't expect the Violet Gold Divine Shield that he had used for years had shattered and broken. He received the stone from the old man, and with one glance, immediately threw it into his Realm of the Violet Jade Immortal to keep it safe.

At least something had been left from the broken fragments of his shield this time. Last time, there had been no remnants from the Lunar Silk Garment whatsoever when it had been torn apart. In any case, he still felt bitter as he remembered the Violet Gold Divine Shield being shattered into fragments.

Suddenly, he remembered Mu Fengyang's words. He had been told that a Grade One Martial Emperor was known to possess the strength of 100 stars without depending on external powers or effects. Somehow Qing Shui was able to understand what he meant because once a cultivator broke through to Martial Emperor, they would not be able to depend on power from outside sources. The weapons and armors of a Martial Saint wouldn't be able to handle the might of a Martial Emperor. At the same time, lower grade gemstones and medicinal pills with temporary effects would lose their usefulness and purpose as well.

Most powerful cultivators depended on their fists in a fight, using no weapons to inflict pain on their opponents. Ordinary weapons would not be able to endure the ruthless power of a Martial Emperor, and the only weapons that could match up to such power were divine weapons of myths and legends. Clearly, these formidable weapons were not easy to find either.

Because of this, special metal materials and extraordinary blacksmiths would be sought after by many cultivators as they grew in power. After all, weapons with formidable abilities were necessary and crucial when one reached the realm of a Martial Emperor.

It would be easy to acquire a weapon for a powerful Martial Emperor, but getting a weapon of daunting power would not be an easy feat, especially for lower-level Martial Emperors. Divine armors and defensive artifacts were scarce in number. Although the amount of materials in the World of the Nine Continents was considered abundant, blacksmiths who could forge such precious materials were few in number.

He looked at the giant golden sabre nearby and immediately kept it for himself. Mu Qing then quickly pulled him away to tend to his wounds, followed by a row of cheers from the young people in the Mu Clan. As the laughter accumulated, Mu Qing began to hasten her footsteps as she dragged Qing Shui along with her.

Qing Shui remained silent, as he allowed Mu Qing to pull him into her building instead of his room.

Mu Qing's face was flushed red. She didn't know what to feel, and she suspected that some members of the Mu Clan would think that the two of them were in some kind of intimate relationship…...

This building belonged to Mu Qing, so on most days, no one would come unless they had urgent business with her. Most of the time, there would only be cleaners coming by to tidy up the place when she wasn't around.

The decorations inside the building were simple and elegant. Landscapes and portraits, as well as calligraphy were hung across the walls. Coincidentally, the decorations in this building were pretty much the same as those in the Azure Cloud Pavilion. Qing Shui almost doubted himself when he first entered the building with Mu Qing.

"Let me treat your wounds" said Mu Qing. She immediately grabbed a medical kit for Qing Shui as soon as she entered the room.

"You know about medicine?" Qing Shui showed interest in her skill, as he smiled pleasantly towards Mu Qing.

"I'm not a very good alchemist and I'm still an early stage physician, mind you." Mu Qing replied with a laugh.

Having some basic medical ability was common in the World of the Nine Continents. Most of the population were martial cultivators who would periodically get injured, so knowing some general medical knowledge was basically a necessity. Sometimes, they could even save their own lives when treatment was needed immediately.

"I'm okay, so it's fine!" Qing Shui smiled.

"Even so, I need to clean your wounds and cover them up. You lost so much blood, so there's no way you're fine" said Mu Qing with an insistent tone. When she first saw his wound, she was taken aback by the severity of the cut. The blade had cut too deeply into his skin, and for Qing Shui to be alive after receiving such wound was a miracle. Having assured herself that he would remain alive, her heart calmed down and was becoming bolder by the minute…….

"Let me do it myself!" Qing Shui said quickly.

"Just let me bandage you up." Mu Qing spoke softly as she gripped the medical kit tightly.

Qing Shui was persistent at first, but eventually nodded his head and remained silent. He could feel her fluctuating emotions and kind intentions. Mu Qing had decided to tend to his wounds, but would not bother him with unnecessary things after that. She only wanted to hold on to her memories with him a bit longer by helping him with some things for his sake.

Qing Shui loosened his bandage and took off his bloodstained clothes. Mu Qing wasn't embarrassed as she looked at the horrible wound on his topless body. A man was baring his well-defined body in front of her, his bare shoulders finely chiseled against the realistic structure of his refined muscles, yet all she could see was the exposed wound on his chest.

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