Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 1484 - Xia Royal Castle, Visitors to the Inn, She Knows the Art of Healing Too

Upon hearing Yin Tong’s words, Qing Shui didn’t think the other party was deliberately making things difficult—they shouldn’t be—and so he flashed a smile and continued. “We are newcomers. What do you say about us leaving now? There’s no need to upset everyone over such a small issue, right?”

“Small issue? Is this a small issue?” Another man alongside the former burly man remarked derisively at Qing Shui.

“Would this matter bring about any adverse effect upon the Shi Clan otherwise?” Qing Shui laughed and watched as the expression in their eyes began to turn apathetic. This was not how power should be handled. Power was not about drawing a mark on territory and forbidding anyone’s entry, nor regarding it as an offence when someone did.

“This will make the Shi Clan look bad. The rules that have been established must be followed; nothing can be accomplished without norms or standards. Who will show the Shi Clan its due respect in future, if we don’t follow them?” That man insisted stubbornly.

“Ha-ha, I’m not sure who set these rules, how big this area is, or if everyone else conducts themselves like the Shi Clan, refusing entry even through air. I wonder, should a Divine pass through here, would you stop them too?” Qing Shui sneered.

“Impudent! I will repeat once more: this is the rule of the Shi Clan. We can let you go if you leave some items behind. If not, we will act according to the rules.” The man in the middle was angered as well.

The superiority that the Shi Clan lived in had always stayed with them. As far as they were concerned, it was a universally accepted principle that the regulations they established must be followed. They were flattered wherever they went—that was the superiority of status. In combination with being powerful, they started to grow arrogant.

“Then, how about we stay?” Qing Shui was calm and composed. In fact, he wanted to see what these young people had up their sleeves, what they had to back up their words.

“Leave the most precious item you have on each of you behind.” One of the women spoke up sternly.

“That won’t do. Besides, everyone has his own subjective opinion of what is most valuable to himself. Let’s take men for example. What’s the most prized item on a man? If it were you, would you give it?” Shaking his head, Qing Shui said seriously.

Qing Shui’s words were a little crude, considering he was speaking to a woman.

“You are the one looking to fulfil a death wish. There’s no one else to blame. Brothers, get him.” The man was furious. The newcomers had made a move and teased his own women. How could he stand for this? There was no use for any more words now.

Qing Shui did not panic even when the flock of Crowned Golden Feathers charged towards him. Instead, he held out the Soulshake Bell and shook it.

The current state of the Soulshake Bell was drastically different from its past. Qing Shui wasn't sure if the Grade Nine Soulshake Bell had reached its peak, but there was hardly any more room for further improvement. Even further refining did not seem to have much effect.

Among the thirty Crowned Golden Feathers, nearly ten of them faced issues; three of them defected, two dropped dead, another three attacked in hysteria, while the last two failed to defend themselves in time and were hurt in the process.

The sudden change in events took his opponents by surprise. With blinding speed, Qing Shui appeared behind the nearest Crowned Golden Feather and attacked.

Bang!

With a resounding blast, the enormous Crowned Golden Feather was struck dead. By this time, countless attacks had begun to rain down upon Qing Shui but none had done any damage.

“Come back!”

At that moment, the man stood up in mid-air and cried out.

Even so, Qing Shui’s Golden Scaled Dragon Elephant had killed two of the Crowned Golden Feathers and one had died at the hands of Yin Tong. It was fortunate that no one had gotten hurt. At the same time, the two elderly men appeared in front of them.

“Thank you, Sir, for showing mercy!” They said politely.

It wasn't that Qing Shui was afraid of killing, only that he did not wish to be so ruthless towards these people. He did not want to increase his kill count any further, and so there was no murder. However, if they didn’t learn to appreciate such a gesture, then Qing Shui would have no qualms eliminating them either.

The only reason for this was because Qing Shui hadn’t viewed them as worthy opponents. Otherwise, he would not have shown any mercy the moment those words of “killing them” had tumbled out of his enemy's mouth; there was no use holding back on those who wished for his demise.

The present Qing Shui would not make a fuss over it as he pleased. Hence, even when these people started their yelling about wanting to take his life, he was still able to show mercy.

“Can we leave now?” Qing Shui asked with a smile.

“Of course, it was the Shi Clan’s brusqueness at fault this time around. I’m not sure if I could interest you and your companions in visiting the Shi Clan?” One of the old men invited.

Qing Shui wasn’t sure what the old man’s status within Shi Clan might be, but he reckoned it wouldn’t be too low in the hierarchy. With a shake of his head, he declined. “We still have things we need to tend to. Perhaps next time, if we ever pass through here again in the future.”

Without excessive demand, the old man thanked Qing Shui again before watching them leave.

"Grandpa Chao, how strong are they?" The man who led the group asked.

“I don’t know, but killing us would have been as easy as breathing for them. Qian Feng, you are already old enough now. Some things require you to think before you act, just like today’s incident. Not only were they not stopped, we looked bad in the process and most importantly, it affected our state of mind as well.” With a sigh, the old man said.

The man was in dismal spirits too. Just like what the old man had said, not only did he look bad in front of his own women, he had been badly defeated too. He felt a wave of despair and hopelessness, even to the extent where he no longer felt like moving forward on the road of cultivation. This was probably what affected the mood.

……

Qing Shui did not bother with speculation over how the Shi Clan must be feeling; they were mere passers-by in his book. After today, the chance of them ever meeting again was near zero.

Half a year later, the trio reached the Great Xia Dynasty’s main city. It was also where they decided to spend some time before moving on. While looking for other successors of the Battle God or those who had received the Battle God Inheritance, they travelled in search of more treasures and to improve their skills. If possible, they also combined their own strengths.

That was the only way to survive in Haohan Continent; perhaps they would be able to contend with opponents such as the Demon King in future. He promised the Golden Battle God that he would do his best to bring the Battle Gods to success again, through completion of this promise wasn’t an obligation. But since he had already given his word, he decided to give it a go.

Besides, it wasn’t like he had anything else to do now. Regardless of whether he would take any action about the Five Tiger Immortal Sect after this, he could only leave it for now. Tantai Lingyan was smart. She pretended to be indifferent about it in front of Qing Shui, as though she no longer had any thoughts about it, but Qing Shui knew she didn’t forget and that she was working hard. As long as there was a possibility, she was not going to give up.

The Five Tiger Immortal Sect had a Divine among them, and so Qing Shui made up his mind as well to work hard in cultivation to improve his power. The two things complemented each other: both required him to increase his strength.

[ Great Xia City ]

The main city was always called Great Xia City. In this region, the Great Xia Dynasty was a strong presence among the many dynasties, though it was nowhere near the power of the Ice Domain Dynasty or Tree Deity Dynasty. Still, they could be considered to have barely squeezed into the Top Five ranking.

This was true for especially Great Xia City; this was the essence of the Great Xia Dynasty, where the strongest converged. This was where dragons hid and tigers crouched, and the issue of who had power was a complicated affair. This was where different factions stood in great numbers.

“Look at the inn ahead. Why don’t we head over there to rest our feet and have a few drinks?” Yin Tong pointed at an extravagant inn in the distance and said, smiling.

“Alright!”

The inn was a good place. There was wine, meals, rooms to stay in, and sources of gossip and news. It was where anyone would go to once he arrived at a new destination; the inn was a big place with many patrons, but it was very safe.

“Welcome! Please come in!”

Once they were at the door, they were warmly greeted by the smiling face of a middle-aged man. Such a man with a natural upturn in his lips and chubbiness of his face had an affable element to him, born with the attributes of an inn receptionist.

The trio sat in the sitting room on the sixth floor of the inn. It was not the highest level in this inn, but it had the most number of people. The first two levels were taken by the average folks, while the third and fourth were occupied by merchants without much cultivation. Any floors above the fifth and sixth levels were occupied by people who practiced the art of Wu. They had visited the seventh floor but it was almost vacant, which was why they decided to settle in on the sixth.

The furnishings in this inn were decent; each of its four walls had drawings of the landscape, allowing one to feel at peace. In addition, the wooden floor was clean and spotless.

The downside was that with the number of people, it was inevitably loud with chatter. Still, those who paid patronage to the inn did so for this ambience. Otherwise, they could have just ordered their food to enjoy back in their room. This was just like how some people visited the internet cafe despite owning a computer back home; they did it for such an atmosphere.

They ordered a few of the inn’s specialty dishes, all of which were in the variety of premium meat from a beast or exotic vegetarian options. The name of the dishes sounded decent and the aroma that filled the place smelled good as well, but Qing Shui couldn't say he held much excitement for them. After all, when it came to culinary skills, he had yet meet anyone better than himself. Even if he did have an advantage in the quality of his ingredients, his proficiency was undeniable.

They also ordered some of the wine here, Flower Wine!

That was the inn’s exclusive wine, brewed with some part of the flower; it tasted refreshingly fragrant and sweet, a little like red wine but better, at least in Qing Shui’s mind. That said, he still preferred his Tiger Bone Liquor, Plum Blossom Wine and other alcohol.

They were quick in their service; the eight dishes and a bowl of soup were served. The three had developed some sort of understanding through their journey. There was no longer a need to stand on ceremony, and they conversed as they ate together comfortably.

“Brother, we should do something while we are here. We can't simply move forth aimlessly.” Yin Tong and Qing Shui clinked their glasses as the former stated happily.

In the other places where Qing Shui had been, he had always established an Imperial Cuisine Hall and they had all achieved great results. He did not bother with it when he was in Soaring Dragon Continent. He wondered if he should resume his old profession while they were here.

A physician's status was high; as long as one had medical skills, coming into contact with the strong was not be an issue, only a matter of time. Even though being a physician was safe, there were still risks associated with the profession, but Qing Shui wasn't afraid.

“Brother, do you have any good suggestions?” Qing Shui glanced over at Yin Tong and asked.

“I'm someone who can't pick up anything. Ling Fei has some medical knowledge, so why don't we set up a clinic?” After some consideration, Yin Tong responded.

Qing Shui was taken aback; he hadn't realized the woman knew the art of healing. To say that she had “just some knowledge” should be Yin Tong’s modest way of putting it. Then it was likely her skills at healing shouldn't be too bad. It seemed like there was no way he could avoid going back to his old profession now…...

“Alright, let's open up a clinic. Sister-in-law, why don't you help check my pulse!” With an arm outstretched, he wanted to see the extent of Ling Fei’s ability.

Now, it was Ling Fei’s turn to be taken aback, but she extended her hand nonetheless and took hold of his pulse. On the side, Yin Tong looked on with confidence.