Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 933 – The Fall Of Gu Wu, Encouragement, The Participation Of The Silken Web Ridge

Before that, Qing Shui could feel a subtle green aura seeping into his body. The aura was leaked from the Jade Jiao when it had ascended to the sky abruptly. In the end, he didn’t really dodge their attacks at all…

Gu Wu was dead after he was struck on the head by Qing Shui’s Primordial Flame Whips, splitting his brain apart in an instant. Overwhelmed with a sense of relief, Qing Shui watched as Gu Wu fell straight to the ground from the sky. The Heart Toxin Talisman was nonetheless invincible – psychological offense would always be the best tactic in a battle.

Unless the person affected had a heart of a stone or was a kindhearted person of righteousness who would not be tempted by corrupt thoughts, the Heart Toxin Talisman would immediately attack the psychological mind without a doubt.

However, Qing Shui still wasn’t sure what kind of effect the Heart Toxin Talisman would inflict against those with weaker cultivation and power. But if the talisman was used against an early Martial Emperor, he or she would be greatly affected, causing their minds to be susceptible to psychological attacks. In any case, Qing Shui was satisfied as long as his opponents were affected by the talisman.

Thump!

Gu Wu’s corpse landed on the grounds of the arena with a loud but dull thump. The body of a Martial Emperor had been strengthened to become as sturdy as solid steel, which explained why his bones and limbs weren’t shattered when he fell from a high altitude.

Qing Shui then slowly descended to the arena. There was a great benefit in battling this man from the Poison Mountain Stockade and that was the discovery of the ‘Primordial Flame Whips’ attack. The whip attack was not only convenient and fast, but also nimble due to the sentient characteristic of the Primordial Flames. With time, the Primordial Flames would be able to achieve the ability to transform into something much greater…..

When he was presented with the possibility of transformation, he became excited by the idea of the Primordial Flames transforming into a demonic beast, which he surmised to be extremely powerful and intimidating. A skill that could transform would at least be considered a skill of legendary level. In spite of that, not all legendary skills have the ability to transform.

The crowd below the arena were stunned by the outcome. No one said a word, filling the atmosphere with a moment of eerie silence. However, they were relieved that it was Gu Wu who had fallen, because nothing bad would happen if the Mu Clan emerged victorious. But if it was the other way around, no one would be able to stop Gu Wu from spreading death throughout these lands.

Even if Qing Shui were to be defeated and the Godly Sword Clan was to intervene in the fight with Gu Wu, a bloody war would break out with no way to tell who would win and who would lose. The innocent bystanders would be desecrated as well.

Now that Qing Shui had won, their peace would be secured. If the Poison Mountain Stockade were any wiser, they would not stir up trouble anymore. Should they decide to ignore their wisdom and ruffle Qing Shui’s feathers in the future, the annihilation of their sect would become a reality, rather than a fictional fantasy.

Qing Shui folded his fists and bowed to the crowd surrounding the arena. Then he looked towards to the members of the Poison Mountain Stockade and said: “Seniors of the Poison Mountain Stockade, are there any more words you wish to speak to us?”

“No more!” After a brief moment, the old leader of the Poison Mountain Stockade spat out two words unwillingly and arduously.

“Today is an auspicious day for Mu Qing and I. Thank you for the ‘entertainment’ you had gifted to us. I hope there will be no more cases of such amusement. A man as wise as you should never do such shocking things from now on. I don’t wish to see the Mu Clan getting hurt. Should they be hurt, I will repay their sufferings 100 times more to the assailant, regardless of who they are. Whether they are from a large sect or an aristocratic clan, it doesn’t matter – more of them are being annihilated everyday.” After giving his final speech, Qing Shui turned away and slowly descended from the arena.

The members of the Poison Mountain Stockade went up the arena and collected Gu Wu’s corpse. Meanwhile, the old man turned to the crowd while cupping his hands and said: “The Poison Mountain Stockade has further matters to attend to, so we will take our leave now. Farewell!”

Such behavior wasn’t strange, after all, they had lost their face completely, so staying any longer would be pointless. Losing Gu Song and Gu Wu had cost them dearly, leaving them with two options to choose in this situation.

One, either continue to fight with Qing Shui or two, swallow their pride and leave quietly without ever retaliating. The latter would be possible if Qing Shui and Mu Clan could show how strong they would be in the future. If they managed to soar to a high position, then the Poison Mountain Stockade could only remain silent for the sake of their survival.

But if it was otherwise and the Poison Mountain Stockade gained a high position instead, they would definitely come back and settle their score with Qing Shui, crushing the Mu Clan in the process.

If Qing Shui could let them leave quietly, then he must have the confidence to brush them off should they retaliate once more. Letting them go served as an encouragement to the Mu Clan and himself. The Poison Mountain Stockade could be seen as a poisonous wolf that would devour them anytime. They would always need to be cautious of their surroundings and they had to be diligent in their cultivation. If they were able to do all of the above, then the poisonous wolf would eventually become as insignificant as a tiny ant.

After all, a tiny ant would definitely have a hard time rising up to the top again.

The wedding ceremony continued as normal, but progressed at a hasty speed instead. Around mid-afternoon, most of the guests had left, leaving only the members of the Godly Sword Clan, Dong Clan and Sun Clan, as well as the Silken Web Ridge.

These members were welcomed into the large hall of the Mu Clan, this time for the banquet that only close friends and family were allowed to join. After watching Qing Shui’s performance today, they knew what they should do next – form an alliance with one another.

The Silken Web Ridge were made to stay by Qing Shui, which the others had acknowledged. Everyone knew there was something mysterious between Qing Shui and the leader of the Silken Web Ridge, but no one said anything about it. Both of them didn’t have any particular interaction that could arouse their suspicion. In any case, the members of the Mu Clan were already informed about the existence of Qing Shui’s other wives and they were not really surprised. After all, most of them had a number of wives themselves too.

They knew Qing Shui would become a man of utmost importance in the future, so no one in the family expected Mu Qing to be his only wife. The members of the Mu Clan were already quite old and with that came the experience and wisdom to judge things with clarity. Whatever Qing Shui had set his mind to do, they decided that they would not interfere with his decision.

Mu Qing sat on Qing Shui’s left side, while Yu He sat on his right, which she invited herself to do so. Qing Shui took the opportunity to ask Yu He why she had come to the Eastern Victory Divine Continent and she gave him a simple explanation before ending the conversation.

After that, the Mu Clan, Godly Sword Clan, as well as the Dong Clan and Sun Clan requested to form an alliance once again. The key member would of course be Qing Shui himself. At the same time, Yu He was also requesting to join the alliance, which Qing Shui was more than happy to welcome her into.

He was also pleased to know that the Silken Web Ridge would be joining the alliance as well. Should anything happen in the future, things could be settled without much resistance.

And so, the banquet lasted until late at night. Mu Qing and Yu He left first, so that Mu Qing could show Yu He her room. Before Yu He left, she had a depressed expression on her face, but she only revealed it when she had her back turned from everyone else. Tonight was Qing Shui and Mu Qing’s wedding night, after all.

The members of the Godly Sword Clan, Dong Clan and Sun Clan were also staying in the Mu Residence for the night before leaving tomorrow morning. Qing Shui knew he wouldn’t be able to enter the Realm of the Violet Jade Immortal tonight, so he had already used up his time for today in the morning just before dawn.

Their newlywed room was Mu Qing’s building that she had designed herself. The decorations inside the rooms were elegant and not a shred of girly items could be seen inside. The elegant air of the room had given the entire place a sense of nobility. The bed was covered in a golden satin blanket embroidered with the golden luan and phoenix design to signify their status as husband and wife. Beside Qing Shui stood his wife wearing a golden phoenix dress, as he glanced at her lovingly.

Mu Qing was shy and bashful when she noticed the loving look in his eyes. The subtle curve at the corner of her lips was too seductive and with such display from an elegant and intellectual woman like her, Qing Shui couldn’t resist the temptation to conquer her entire body for himself.

He scooped her up from her feet and placed her on the bedsheet. The softness of the bed and the loving woman in his arms made him growl in passion, filling the room with a layer of romantic air that would linger until dawn…

……..

Yu He stood in front of the bedroom window watching the lights pouring in from the festival lights. The whole area was still brimming with the atmosphere of new year, so she might have to stay for a few days before she could go back home. Besides, the Mu Clan was still in celebration of two happy events, making it worse to go away now. Even though the sky had turned dark, laughs and giggles could be heard from some of the rooms in the Mu Residence.

When the image of Qing Shui and the eldest daughter of Mu Clan making passionate love flashed through her mind, she felt a painful throb in her heart. She came all the way for him, but she realized the past feelings between the two of them had already faded away. It has been a long time since they had seen each other.

She was afraid of losing what they had before. All of her efforts were because of him and she was prepared to give herself to him. She only had Qing Shui in her heart and nobody else could replace him anymore.

She had never thought of marrying someone other than Qing Shui. If they could not be together, then she would rather be alone for the rest of her life. All the years of effort were for her to catch up to his footsteps, so that she would not be a burden to him…

Looking at the illuminated window in the building far away, she recognized that room as the bridal chamber for Qing Shui and Mu Qing. Yu He had a yearning expression on her face. One day, she might be able to become a bride to someone who would love her unconditionally.

During the day, she noticed his gaze when he saw her. There was a hint of pleasant surprise and sincerity in his eyes, but they were completely different compared to his eyes back then at the Hundred Miles City. He was already a man of high position and there was no need for him to take advantage of her like before…

The next day, Qing Shui woke up late yet again, an unusual occurrence for a man who prioritizes morning training. Last night was his wedding night, so he decided to cut himself some slack. When he and Mu Qing finally woke up, they went back into having sex again. After they were done, the sky was already bright, illuminating the room with a subtle daylight from the outside.

The daylight in the winter was late as usual.

“Qing Shui, I am officially your wife now,” Mu Qing said with a chirpy mood.

“You have been my wife even before the banquet. You will still be my wife even without the formalities and the ceremony.” Qing Shui embraced Mu Qing while he spoke with a grin.

“It’s weird, you know. Fate is a curious thing. You are from the Greencloud Continent and I am from the Eastern Victory Divine Continent. The distance between us is millions and billions li away, yet we were able to meet each other and walk down this path.” Mu Qing stared at Qing Shui with her beautiful eyes, as she pondered their destiny to become one with each other.

“And that’s why I said our marriage is a gift graced by the heavens. You are destined to be with me,” Qing Shui chuckled.

“Qing Shui, does Sister Yu like you?” Mu Qing asked with a smile, suddenly changing the topic to something else.

The sudden question caught Qing Shui by surprise, but he managed to maintain his smile and said: “Are you jealous?”

“I am serious. The woman came all the way here to find you, don’t you feel anything for her?” Mu Qing scoffed.

“She came here to find me?” Qing Shui was confused as he looked back at Mu Qing.

“She didn’t exactly say that but I know she was talking about you. All the effort she had put on herself was because of you and that she wanted to match up to you. I don’t know what happened between you and her to make her change to the way she is, but did you abandon her long time ago?” Mu Qing blinked profusely, clearly curious about their past.

Slap!

After being stunned by her question, he quickly slapped her butt and said: “What nonsense are you talking about, we haven’t seen each other for many years, that’s all.”

Mu Qing blushed as she squinted her eyes at Qing Shui, but then quickly reverted to her cheerful self and said: “You know, you can actually marry sister Yu if you want to.”

Mu Qing’s words shocked Qing Shui thoroughly. It would be normal if Huoyun Liu-Li had spoken those words instead, but coming from a refined woman like Mu Qing was a bit unexpected. He could only remain silent as he looked at her with a smile curled at the corner of his mouth.

“Don’t look at me like that. I just think Sister Yu has endured enough hardship as it is,” Mu Qing said with an embarrassed expression on her face.

“Silly woman, are you willing to share your man with someone else just like that?” Qing Shui was entertained by his wife for being naive in matters of romance and relationships.

“I’m not willing to share my husband with anyone else. How should I know that a woman like her would have feelings for a blockhead like you…….”

Qing Shui was utterly silenced by his wife in an instant!

The Godly Sword Clan, Dong Clan and Sun Clan had already left in the morning. However, Dong Yan and Sun Yan stayed behind because they knew Qing Shui would be leaving in a few days. By then, they would be able to send him off personally as his sworn brothers.

Behind the courtyard, Qing Shui and Yu He sat opposite to each other around the table in a pavilion.

Yu He smiled while staring at Qing Shui the whole time they were sitting down.

“Sister Yu, even though we haven’t seen each other in a long time, you don’t have to stare at me like that!” said Qing Shui as he looked at the elegant woman in front of him.

“You really have grown much more mature, in fact. You and Mu Qing are made for each other.”