Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 828 – Cloud Adventurer Guild, Heading for Tiger Gorge Mountain

There was a weapon’s rack filled with various weapons on the side which included the saber, spear, sword, staff, battle axe, hatchet, scythe, dagger, and hammer. There were even various gloves and even claws.

Qing Shui was aware of how the Black Obsidian could measure one’s level. If a person could leave behind a mark, it would mean that he was at Peak Houtian cultivator and if he could leave a mark that was one inch deep, he would be a Xiantian cultivator. Peak Xiantian cultivators could leave a mark that was three inch deep; elementary Martial Kings could leave a mark that was one foot deep; Peak Martial Kings could leave a mark that was three feet deep; early Martial Saints could break this Black Obsidian which was four meters tall.

Qing Shui looked at the weapons but did not head over. He merely reached out his hand to touch the Black Obsidian then exerted some strength, his entire palm sunk it, creating a hissing sound.

“Sir, is this alright?” Qing Shui smiled and said to the old man.

As he looked at Qing Shui’s state, a hint of surprise flashed in the old man’s eyes. He stared at the deep and clear palm print that was left behind. Although this was the standard for an Elementary Xiantian level, the old man was sure that this young man had not given it his all. Xiantian cultivators would not be able to do this so easily, even if they were Peak Xiantian cultivators. Most importantly, the old man could feel a vague feeling of attraction and mysterious powers from this young man.

Although the weapons here were not the best, they were specially made and were suitable to conduct the tests but this young man didn’t use them. This was also why the old man found Qing Shui mysterious. However, whether or not the adventurer displayed their full prowess was their own choice and he could not comment on anything. He merely smiled and nodded, then led Qing Shui to handle the administrative matters.

Xiantian cultivator adventurer certification!

Since the other party chose not to give their all, then it must be his choice to not reveal his abilities. Therefore, the adventurer certification that the old man had given Qing Shui was for the Xiantian level.

“Lad, have you thought of entering our Cloud Adventurer Guild?” After settling the administration for Qing Shui, the old man asked casually.

As he heard the old man’s question, Qing Shui thought of the current situation across the world. Almost every city had an adventurer guild but these guilds did not have any headquarters as they were too big and no one could link them together. If it was within a city, there would still be a way to facilitate for the teamwork and join forces to deal with other adventurer guilds.

The competition between adventurer guilds were very intense and there were usually many adventurer guilds in a city, just like how it was for clans. They would continue to compete while they worked together or even asked the assistance of their friends to join forces to defeat their competitors. Adventurer guilds who were weak would be easily crushed.

“I haven’t thought about it yet. If I were to join an adventurer guild one day, I’ll definitely join Cloud Adventurer Guild.”

Qing Shui was very certain about this, because he didn’t had any plan to join an organization like an adventurer guild. Since the administration were completed, Qing Shui prepared to take his leave. The old man sent him off.

Once he stepped out the door, Qing Shui saw a silhouette from the corner of his eyes as it entered a building far away. He felt that the silhouette was very familiar but it had disappeared in a flash, thus, he did not give much thought into it.

It was a lady.

However, thinking about it, how could there be anyone that he could recognize in the Heavenly Beast City? Therefore, he didn’t pay much heed and he head back towards the hall once again with a smile .

The place was very messy, with many people shouting out to look for helpers for the missions they had taken up. However, not far away, there were a few people who weren’t shouting. They only held up a sign on which a few words were written.

“Looking for people to head to the Tiger Gorge Mountain!”

If he was someone new to the place, Qing Shui would definitely not know what kind of place the Tiger Gorge Mountain was. But now, he was aware and was also slightly interested in it. The Tiger Gorge Mountain was quite far from the other cities, with wilderness on one side. However, the wilderness was the safest while the other three directions were all filled with danger.

On the north side of the Heavenly Beast City was a huge and towering Tiger Gorge Mountain with stretches of mountains that reached up into the clouds. Not just within the Heavenly Beast City but also within the entire Tiger Roar Country, the Tiger Gorge Mountain was well-known as a dangerous place, especially the deeper areas within it.

The name of Tiger Roar Country came from the Tiger Gorge Mountain. The Tiger Gorge Mountain in the north of the Heavenly Beast City was very large, which spanned out to almost millions of li. Moreover, there were plenty of ferocious beasts as well as venomous worms and snakes. Hence, people who were weak would definitely not dare to enter.

The greater the danger, the greater the returns. Therefore, there were still many people who viewed money to be more important than their lives and would take the risk to go in there. The Tiger Gorge Mountain was filled with various interesting beasts, heavenly and earthly treasures, and precious medicinal herbs that were many times more abundant than any other places. There were many people who would be willing to die for riches and thus, countless people would enter everyday. There were many who would go missing but there would also be rumors of people who became rich overnight or acquired a heavenly and earthly treasures which made their cultivation level to increase by leaps and bounds.

What Qing Shui needed now were medicinal herbs, especially a Sky Penetrating Grass which was 5,000 years old or older. Therefore, after he had arrived to the Central Continent, he would head over as long as there was a chance for it to be found in certain places.

He noticed a few people that were heading for the Tiger Gorge Mountain. As he thought of how he was unfamiliar with the area, he decided to head there with other people as he still wanted to live and experience life.

As Qing Shui headed over, he started to assess them. The group had five people, three men and two ladies. One of the men was in his middle-age while the other two appeared to be in their thirties, all of them were quite good looking. The two ladies should also be in their thirties. One of them wore a Knight attire, her beautiful long hair tied up with a red string. Her eyes were especially bright, her upright nose and slightly curled lips gave the feeling of inhibition. She was an attractive lady who was both beautiful and appeared to have a strong character, with a curvy figure and a height that matches most guys.

The other lady was different. She wore a light blue pleated dress, her long black hair draping down. She did not have any strong features but was still a beauty with a gentle and quiet disposition. However, Qing Shui felt that she was slightly inferior to the previous lady.

“Can I join?” Qing Shui went over and asked the middle-aged man.

Qing Shui did not know the reason they were heading to the Tiger Gorge Mountain, nor did he have the impulse to ask them. He just had the urge to enter the Tiger Gorge Mountain and did not have any special motives.

They had already noticed him when Qing Shui was walking over. However, after he finished his question, they were all stunned. Ordinary people would first ask what mission they were taking and assess to see if it was suitable before they ask if they could join.

The middle-aged man was stunned for a short moment. He looked at Qing Shui, as if he had some hesitation.

“Uncle Gang, I feel that this lad is quite good. Why don’t we let him join us?” The lady wearing a Knight attire smiled and said.

After the lady finished her words, the other young men looked at Qing Shui curiously before he looked back at the lady. A few others who had asked earlier were all rejected by her. One of them were even a Grade Ten Martial King. However, why did she not even ask for this guy’s cultivation level? Could it be because he was good looking?

“Since lass Lingyun has said it, then let’s go.” The middle-aged man smiled and said.

Qing Shui was stunned. He didn’t expect this to be so easy. They didn’t even ask the reason he was heading to the Tiger Gorge Mountain or ask for his cultivation level. The reason he didn’t ask any questions was because he could estimate their cultivation level, but to them, he should appear to be a Peak Xiantian cultivator.

“Lad, my name is Qi Gang.” The man took a step forward and said.

He then pointed to the lady wearing a Knight attire and said, “She is Long Lingyun, and she is Qian Mo, a summoner The other two are brothers, the elder brother is Cui Hao and the younger brother is Cui Dang.”

“Nice to meet you. I’m Qing Shui.” Qing Shui smiled and greeted them.

Qi Gang was the oldest and strongest, he was an early Martial Saint. Qing Shui had been in the Central Continent for quite a while but the only Martial Saints he had encountered were from this group. There were two of them. The other one was Long Lingyun, who was also an early Martial Saint.

The weakest among them were only at Martial King level. All of them were around Grade Five Martial King.

“Brother Qing Shui, I wonder what level you’re at. Do you mind sharing with us?” The elder brother, Cui Hao, asked.

Qing Shui took out his adventurer certification which stated that he was a Xiantian cultivator adventurer.

“So you’re a Xiantian cultivator. This time around, we’re heading slightly deeper into the Tiger Gorge Mountain to explore and train ourselves, we’ve randomly picked up a few missions which require us to collect medicinal herbs and hunt down demonic beasts. It’s very dangerous for Xiantian cultivators to enter.” The younger brother Cui Dang smiled and said. However, there was a hint of contempt in his smile.

“Haha, thank you for your concern. My battle prowess is still acceptable and so is my survival skills in the wilderness.” Qing Shui didn’t feel anything when faced with the brothers’ challenge. To him, these two were merely two jumping monkeys.

“Alright, Cui Hao, Cui Dang, let’s go on our way.” Long Lingyun interrupted the two brothers who wanted to continue.

After she said that, Long Lingyun took the lead to head out while the others followed her.

When they had reached outside, Long Lingyun called out her own demonic beast. It was a Peak Martial King Silver Horned Eagle which was about 15 to 16 meters big. Qi Gang also called out a flying beast, it was a Two-Headed Flying Wolf which was a Grade Eight Martial King.

Qi Gang and the two brothers went up the Two-Headed Flying Wolf. Just when Qing Shui waited for Qi Gang to bring him up, Long Lingyun spoke up, “There’s already three of them. You can just join elder sister.”

Qing Shui wanted to say that he would just squeeze in with them when he saw the fury in the Cui brothers’ eyes. He thanked Long Lingyun and was pulled up onto the Silver Horned Eagle.

Long Lingyun pulled Qing Shui up with one hand and Qian Mo with the other. As Qing Shui kept his abilities concealed, he could only ask the other’s help to bring him up. Only Martial Saints had the ability to fly.

Qing Shui was actually quite curious about this lady who called herself elder sister. To think that she was already an early Martial Saint at such a young age. He had came across many people in the Central Continent but this was the only time he had seen a Martial Saint.

This lady gave him the feeling that she was not an ordinary people. Although she appeared to be very young, many people’s age could not be discerned by the eyes alone.

“Do you guys go on adventures often?” Qing Shui stood on the Silver Horned Eagle and asked with a smile.

Although the sound of the wind was strong, their voices could still be clearly heard.

“We’ve only met these few days. The Cui Brothers are more familiar with the area and it’ll save us some time.” Long Lingyun said and smiled as she looked at Qing Shui.

“Those two brothers seem to like the two of you.” Qing Shui smiled and said before he stared at Long Lingyun.