Ancient Strengthening Technique

Chapter 11 – First Handling of Hidden Weapons

This state of enlightenment could only be hoped for and not actively sought after. As the saying goes “10 years of hard training was not worth a single instant of enlightenment” It all depended on fate and luck of the individual!

Qing Shui did not know that he was currently in this state of enlightenment, he activated both the Ancient Strengthening Technique and Blue Lotus Art and slowly but naturally circulate both streams of Qi to complement his detailed execution of the Solitary Rapid Fist. The fist techniques that he demonstrated seemed to have a profound meaning inside them, yet each technique also contained a clear methodology, displaying the essence of the Solitary Rapid Fist thoroughly.

After he awoke from his enlightened state, the skies had already turned dark. It was as if he just had a surreal dream.

Qing Shui consolidated his thoughts and started to demonstrate each stance according to the insights he gained. The power, control of strength and accuracy of each and every stance he punched out greatly shocked him!

This was the true might of enlightenment, he could gain experience even when he was not sparring with an opponent!

An instant of enlightenment had allowed Qing Shui’s strength to undergo earthshaking changes, even his psyche was affected, gaining confidence about traversing the road ahead.

Qing Shui was too immersed in the intricacies of what he had gained insight into, even when he ended his cultivation practice, he did not realise what had just occurred. After he had calm his thoughts, he realised that an unpleasant smelling, thick black layer of mud-like substances was oozing from his pores.

Impurities Cleansing? Qing Shui knew that this was an effect of the Ancient Strengthening Technique, it happened just when he had broken through to the first-layered heavens previously. If he did not witness this personally, he would not have believed that there was so much filth and impurities inside the small body frame of his.

“Why did this happen again? My impurities were not cleansed when I broke through to the 2nd-layered heavens, could it be… that bout of enlightenment from just now caused it?.” Qing Shui realised.

“This is simply…. too inconceivable, no wonder people say enlightenment could only be hoped for and not sought after, the benefits it brought were too valuable, too heaven defying.. this was simply like hacking. (MC was referring to the gaming hacks in his previous life)”

Qing Shui ran towards a small creek near the mountainside and washed away all the filth that was covering his body. After his ablutions, he began to observe the changes in his body after the 2nd round of impurities cleansing. His skin was fair and seemed to shine with a radiant glow, his muscles were corded, but not exaggeratedly so, unlike some of the 3rd generation disciples from the Qing Clan.

He took off his clothes and washed them in the creek before sunning them on a nearby rock and thought “In the stories, people who transcended their dimensions usually have things such as storage rings, magical bag of holdings, gold and jewelry, peerless martial arts and ravishing beauties crowding around them but what about him. Qing Shui had lived in this mountain village for 10 years, and he knew that stuff in those legendary stories are rarely true. Although the Qing Clan was located in a remote region, Qing Yi had surely traveled broadly and seen many things, as for Qing Luo, even in the major cities, he could also be considered as an expert.. Even both of them have not even vaguely heard of things that Qing Shui was thinking about!

Gold and jewelry, Qing Shui do not have, but in this mountain village, the Qing Clan was the one with biggest authority, he led a relatively comfortable life. Moreover, people in the villages don’t really need a large amount of money to survive, majority of them lived off the land, farming and hunting in the boundaries of the mountains. Most of the time, the normal villagers would not dare to go into the deep mountains, it was rumoured that other than fierce beasts, there were even demonic beasts in there!

Beautiful girls, Qing Shui licked his lips and then sighed, looking at that prepubescent body of his, staring at his little bird [1], it would still be long before he could enjoy any carnal pleasures. In his past life, he was addicted to video games and as such, the only relationship he ever had was wrecked due to his obsession with games.

After he was reborn in this world, with the defects of his body, in the beginning if it was not for Qing Yi’s love for him, he may have already committed suicide. After all, in this world where martial arts meant everything, fate had dealt him a cruel blow.

Fortunately, the games he played in his past life actually altered his destiny in this world. After breaking through to the 2nd layered heavens of the Ancient Strengthening Technique, boundless energy infused his body, reaffirming his determination to walk on the arduous road of cultivation.

Particularly that moment of enlightenment, which also allowed Qing Shui to master the initial stages of the Solitary Rapid Fist. Everytime he thought of this, he would unconsciously extend his arms and start to practice the stances of the Solitary Rapid Fist. His fists when struck out were fast, quick, accurate, yet it was also clear and there was a fluidity in his motions that was not there before. This is the state of the heart necessary to execute the Solitary Rapid Fist! If not for the sudden flash of insight that allowed him to grasp the state of heart needed, even if he could manage to execute such powerful and flawless techniques, it would still not be fully complete.

As he slowly retract his arms, and wore his now dried clothes, a small feeling satisfaction filled his whole body. It was almost noon, feeling the wind blowing against his face and the heat of the high sun that shined upon the ground, Qing Shui decided to walk forward. This mountain was not far from the Qing Clan, and at the place Qing Shui was in, there was a naturally formed shelter. The shelter was not that tall, one would only need to walk about 200 meters to reach its peak.

At the summit, Qing Shui could see the farmlands far away, that patches of green fields seemed endless as it stretches on and on. The land of Qing Clan was almost 100 li huge, this discovery made Qing Shui startled. This world was just too huge.. even a mountain village could be this large, then what about the nearby Hundred Miles City?

On the top of the mountain, there was a region infested with wildlife. Gigantic trees were all about and the chirps of birds and cries of unknown insects filled the air creating a cacophony of noises. Qing Shui sensed that this forested region was brimming with life! It was a suitable place to cultivate his hidden weapon techniques!

He nonchalantly picked up 2 small pebbles lying on the ground, closed his eyes and circulate the Qi in his body according to the principles of the Solitary Rapid Fist, together with the knowledge he gained regarding the appropriate amount of strength to use, the angles to aim and the techniques needed to execute it!

In the time it took to brew a cup of tea, Qing Shui became motionless, even his breathing was controlled almost to the point of silence. The sound of his heartbeat also grew softer and softer.

A small yellow bird landed near Qing Shui’s side as it energetically bounced here and there, not treating Qing Shui as a source of danger. Qing Shui had faded into the background, becoming one with the surroundings!

——

A black bird as big as an eagle, with a wingspan of about 3m wide, glided through the air from far away, with vision as sharp as needles.

At this moment, the yellow bird near Qing Shui chirped noisily in fear and started to fly away in the direction away from the black eagle. Apparently it has noticed that a predator was stalking it. As the black eagle flew nearer and nearer, Qing Shui eyes snapped open, revealing hints of intense concentration. With a flick of his hand, the pebble in his right hand flew through the air with speed akin to a burst of lightning, creating crackling sounds as it gained velocity.

“Pu!”

The eagle dropped dead without even having the time to utter its death cries. It was killed by a pebble that penetrated cleanly through its brain.

The sides of Qing Shui’s mouth, slightly curled into a smile.

“So this is the way to use hidden weapons.. how terrifying.” Qing Shui slowly walked downhill, advancing towards the corpse of the eagle.

The corpse of the eagle landed near a forested region at the western side of the mountain. The western region was the place where members of the Qing Clan hunted for food. It is exceedingly dangerous for one to enter without companions or without a high level of cultivation. This forest was also named Greenwood forest as characterised by the greenwood trees growing on the boundaries of the forest.

The Greenwood forest was off limits to anyone who had not cultivated to the realm of Martial Warrior, 7th Grade. Even if one had reached the 7th Grade, they would still not dare to traverse here alone nor belittle the danger of this forest.

“Hmmm, how dangerous can it be? I will just take a peek at the corpse of the giant eagle and come back.” Curiosity was burning in his heart as he carefully took measure of his surroundings.

Once he had determined that there was no danger nor anything suspicious, he slowly trekked down towards the corpse of the giant eagle.