Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 413 - Joyful Yu He, Crimson Gang, Divine Marionette Pellet

“Sister Yu, come sit here!”

Qing Shui pulled Yu He and sat her down. He then had the servers set two dishes and a pair of chopsticks.

Yu He was a bit stunned, but she also understood when she had started having feelings for this small man. It might be that now, he was no longer the young man in the past.

Thinking of when she met him for the first time, his fallacious reasonings interested her. Furthermore, he was also a rascal and even received benefits from her again and again by unfair means.

“Is old grandpa still OK?” Qing Shui asked. Yu He was a bit distracted, but she smiled.

“Grandpa is well. Is everything going smoothly?”

Qing Shui knew what she meant with her question. After all, when he previously went to Yan Clan, Yu Donghao and Yu He had also seen it. Qing Shui smiled as he nodded.

“Are you leaving Hundred Miles City soon?” Yu He calmed her mind and looked at Qing Shui.

After Qing Shui poured some wine he replied, “I am still not clear about it. Let’s talk about it after the new year. I might possibly be leaving since there are still a lot of things that I have to do.”

He was no longer the young man who just came from Hundred Miles City. He was now a tiger that had climbed up mountains and wanted to roar proudly across the whole forest. He was a large dragon that ascended to the sky and wanted to roam around.

She felt that she was getting further and further away from him. She could not succeed in chasing after his presence. Thinking of her previous husband, she recalled that he did not return for the whole night when they got married. However, on the second day when he returned, he was already dead.

They were young at the time and did not have any feelings for each other. That was the reason why she did not feel anything when he died. However, because of the status of his clan, and the fact that Yu Donghao was severely injured, she felt that her life would be unbearably miserable because her wedding contract could not be removed.

It was Qing Shui who had let grandpa recover his cultivation level and let her remove her wedding contract without a hitch. But now, she discovered that her heart had completely belonged to him.

Even though it was full of hardship, there was also happiness.

“Sister Yu, what are you planning to do in the future?” Qing Shui seemed like he was asking as he wished.

Hearing Qing Shui’s words, Yu He smiled bitterly. She looked at him seriously and answered, “The decisions are not important anymore. In the past, my decisions were all for one person. But now, it doesn’t matter.”

“What if, by some chance, it wasn’t like how you thought it was? What if actually that person was waiting for you all along?” Qing Shui looked at Yu He seriously.

Yu He’s body shook helplessly as she stared into Qing Shui’s clear eyes. They were still as clear as before and still so good looking. Seeing a warm smiling expression allowed her to find some of the previously familiar feelings.

Her eyes slowly became wet. However, they carried a sliver of happiness and charm as they looked at Qing Shui. She exerted all her strength as she nodded her head. The tears trickled down her face.

Qing Shui extended his hands and gently wiped her tears. Feeling her delicate skin, so soft and smooth without any makeup on, his face slowly turned red.

……

When Qing Shui was walking home, he was still thinking about Ye He’s parting words.

“Qing Shui, I will wait for you forever!”

Qing Shui was stopped by one person as he was about to reach home. It was a valiant and cold man. Qing Shui could already feel a bandit’s aura from this person at first glance.

Not only was the man valiant, he was also very tall. The expression on his face was stiff and reserved. The lips that were tightly closed made people feel that he had a lot of personality and was disciplined.

Qing Shui looked at this big fellow doubtfully.

“Can we talk for a while?” The man asked straightforwardly.

Qing Shui knitted his brows. Judging from his request, he must have known about Qing Shui. After thinking deeply for a while, Qing Shui nodded and walked towards the quiet nearby street.

“Why are you looking for me? And who are you?” Qing Shui asked.

“Sir, I assume that you know about the Crimson Gang. Oh, other people call us the Crimson Gang……” The cold man replied. He seemed like he was reading Qing Shui’s expressions.

Qing Shui already knew some things about the Crimson Gang. After all, the Qing Clan had at one point also delivered money to them. However, on the contrary of what one might expect, Qing Shui did not have any opinion on the Crimson Gang.

It was in bandits’ nature to not care about anything and heavily injure their opponents at all costs. Therefore, the stronger a bandit gang was, the fewer people there would be to easily act on them. If they were to lay hands on them, they must catch everything in one net. If not, it would cause endless trouble. The bandits also based themselves in the World of The Nine Continents by relying on the words “Fierce” and “Absolute”.

Qing Shui looked at the cold man calmly and he slightly squinted his eyes. He forced his sharp gaze on his opponent. The intimidating aura slowly pushed down on him. Qing Shui did not hold back the killing intention in his eyes at all.

It had only been a short while and the cold man was already drenched in sweat. However, he still locked eyes with Qing Shui. His eyes were firm. Even though both of his feet were already shaking, he was still holding on.

Qing Shui never thought that this person would have such a firm and persistent wisdom which reminded him of the Green Wolf Gang. He thought about the teenager named Qing Lang. Unfortunately, there was no longer any news about him. Originally, he was still thinking of making the Green Wolf Gang more powerful. However, now he reckoned that they should have left, or maybe there could be other reasons. In life, there would be a lot of people who come and go. Qing Shui, who lived as a human for two generations, had long since accepted the unpleasant fact.

“Say it. Why did you come to look for me? Oh yeah, you have not told me who you are,” Qing Shui asked gently as he withdrew his intimidating aura.

When Qing Shui’s aura was withdrawn, the cold man immediately felt like he had put down a mountain. All of a sudden, he collapsed to the ground.

“Thank you, sir, for holding back. I am the second person in charge in the Crimson Gang. I am Li Hong. This time, I came here to inform you that there was someone who wanted to injure you,” Li Hong said hurriedly and stood up.

“Your boss.” Qing Shui suddenly smiled.

In reality, Qing Shui hardly ran into this kind of incident. Normally, people who took the risk to come here would come with an attractive offer. For example, to take over the position as the boss. He had heard these kinds of stories many times before, but he never thought that he would run into it himself today.

“How did you know? So you already known about it?” Li Hong looked at Qing Shui in shock.

Qing Shui looked at Li Hong’s strange look, not knowing if it was acted out. Qing Shui thought that no matter what the purpose was, this person must have taken a really huge risk. Seeing as this person was also calm, he may not be an honest man.

It was just that previously, he had been severely scared by him. In any case, killing him just now would be easy and could be done in just a moment.

“Say it. What’s the purpose of you doing this? Is it for the boss’s position?” Qing Shui asked as he calmly looked at Li Hong.

“Haih, actually, I am doing it for those five hundred brothers of mine. At that time, it was exactly because the boss seeked for the loveliness of a woman that led to the death of four thousand and five hundred of our brothers. The five hundred brothers survived by chance. And now, he has once again set his sight on you, Sir. Therefore, I knew that if I don’t come, the remaining five hundred brothers of ours will also be finished,” Li Hong replied slowly as he let out a sigh.

Qing Shui knitted his brows. Since this person was the leader of five thousand people, he should be a warrior at the peak of Xiantian Realm. So much so that he could possess the strength of a Martial King, or maybe even the high level Martial King warriors. On the other hand, the clan that would rather withdraw to this place to chase after them could also be quite formidable. That was why they did not dare to be so high profile. If not, they would absolutely have been able to walk harshly and unreasonably in Cang Lang Country. Of course, if they ran into some supreme hermit, they would be in bad luck.

“You think that you will be able to save all your people if you come and look for me?” Qing Shui asked while remaining calm and collected.

Li Hong shook his head. “At least I have tried my best. And also, do not look down on the boss. He is a poison maker. The poisons that he makes are very powerful.”

“Do you want to be the boss?” Qing Shui asked.

The cold man was startled. He smiled and said, “Actually, ever since the members in Crimson Gang got chased by other people, they have wanted to live normal lives. Entering the sect may be easy, but if they ever thought about leaving, it would be as hard as climbing up to heaven. I have had enough of this kind of life where we have today but no tomorrow. Even becoming an adventurer in the large continent is better than this.”

“Exactly, I am asking you if you want to be the boss. If you become the boss, wouldn’t you be able to do as you wish? Wouldn’t it be up to you whether you want to dismiss or reorganize the Gang?” Qing Shui asked again while smiling.

Li Hong looked at Qing Shui with a fiery look. “Sir, are you serious?”

“Of course, but I hope that you can promise me a few things,” Qing Shui said after thinking for a while.

At that moment, Li Hong was already madly happy. The insanely joyful expression made Qing Shui slightly knit his brows. Unfortunately, Li Hong did not see it.

Li Hong knew that the boss’s original purpose was to let Qing Shui become his patron. However, he knew that Qing Shui might not agree to it. That was why he wanted to use the “Divine Marionette pellet” that he accidentally acquired to completely control Qing Shui. However, he never thought that on this day, he would get Qing Shui to take a liking to him. Judging by the situation, getting his protection was seemed very likely.

“Sir, feel free to say it, I will promise you anything,” Li Hong said hurriedly.

“In the future, after you become boss, I do not wish that you would cause any commotions nearby. And also, if you obtain any information, you can tell me. Of course, I will reward you to a certain extent.”

“You do not need to reward me. I will definitely do as you say,” Li Hong nodded while answering definitely.

“Sir, other than refining the poisonous drug, Wu Yitian has also accidentally obtained another pellet known as the “Divine Marionette pellet”. It is capable of completely controlling people or demonic beasts that swallowed it as long as their strength was below that of Martial Saints.”

As he heard Li Hong’s words, Qing Shui was shocked. There indeed was nothing much that one can do about these things. However, Qing Shui still looked at Li Hong with doubt. “Then why hasn’t he used this “Divine Marionette pellet” on that person or the demonic beasts?”

Li Hong, on the other hand, replied unhurriedly, “All along, he always hated to use the “Divine Marionette pellet”. At first, he wanted to look for demonic beasts. Even though he may have found a few, they were all failures. Furthermore, quite a number of people also died. That was why he set his sights on others. However, he was unable to find suitable candidates within a short period of time. As for those famous experts, he also did not stand a chance.”

Qing Shui thought for a while and felt that it also made sense. How can a pellet be delivered so easily into the mouth of an expert?

“Oh, then this time, how has Wu Yitian decided on letting me take in the medication?” Qing Shui asked in uncertainty.

“Recently, he refined a poisonous drug, an especially powerful one. It did not have any color or taste. He wanted to first poison you with it, then make you take in the Divine Marionette Pellet and the antidote for the poison after that.”

Li Hong’s words made Qing Shui feel a bit nervous. But then, he thought about his own valiant body and expansive vital energy as well as the Five Dragon Pellets that he still had in reserve. Nevertheless, there was still a bit of lingering fear because if by any chance there was a mistake, the consequences would be unimaginable.

“The purpose of you coming today was not just to tell me all of these, was it?” Qing Shui smiled as he looked at Li Hong.

“Actually, the reason I came today was to invite you there.” When Li Hong said this, he felt a bit uneasy.

After all, Wu Yitian was also like a brother to him. It was just that ever since the Crimson Gang became powerful, he stopped listening to his opinions. If he had listened last time, the deaths of around four thousand and five hundred disciples could have been avoided.

Li Hong knew that if he brought Qing Shui there this time, Wu Yitian’s life would be no more. As he thought about it, he helplessly let out a sigh. “Letting a few thousands of disciples die for nothing more than his own desires... This time, it’s considered as giving an explanation for them.”

Even though his voice was soft, Qing Shui was still able to hear it and once again knitted his brows.

Qing Shui looked at the sky; it was still noon. Seeing that there was still time, he nodded at Li Hong.

After getting on the beast cart that Li Hong specially prepared, they immediately proceeded towards Parallel Mountain.

“When I first came, how did Wu Yitian make you approach me?” Qing Shui asked with a smile as he looked at Li Hong driving the cart. Originally, there was a cart driver, but Li Hong insisted on driving it himself.

“Actually, he did not say anything to me. Normally, I am the one who thinks about these kinds of incidents. But usually, he will tell me about the things following up so that I will be able to deal with them better.”

“Then, if your motive is only to let me go up the mountain, what method will you use?” Qing Shui asked, still smiling brightly.

Li Hong was already sweating.

“I will say that I have some business to do with you. I might also deceive you to the mountain because of the problems regarding Parallel Mountain……”

Looking at Li Hong who was already humming and hawing, Qing Shui said softly, “However, those methods are not as efficient, safe, reliable or beneficial compared to those that you used, are they? This way, I can let you off as you wish. Your desire will also be achieved. It did not only help you fight for an opportunity to live, but it gives you the position to manage the household. However, if I get poisoned by Wu Yitian and turn into a puppet, your mission will also be accomplished perfectly, putting you in the position of attacking or retreating as the opportunity offers, am I right?”

Suddenly, Li Hong limped on the shaft. He looked at the young man who was smiling slightly. From beginning to end, Qing Shui had given him a peaceful feeling, even after the tricks he played. Or maybe, he did not actually play any tricks because they were not actually obvious. It was just that he did not think that it would be exposed by a person right to his face.

“Sir, I did not……” Li Hong at the moment felt extremely scared. He was fully aware that Qing Shui could kill him in an instant.

“Do you believe that I will kill you now?”

Even though Qing Shui’s said these words softly, that peaceful voice was like an explosive mine beside Li Hong’s ears. His body trembled as it crawled towards Qing Shui at the shaft.

“Do you know which kind of person I hate the most?”

“Sir, I am sorry……”

“For someone like you, I would have actually chopped you off immediately. But why did you want to deny it just now but then admit it again? This time, I won’t kill you. Cut off a finger yourself.”

“Thank you Sir……”

After snorting depressingly, Li Hong cut off the thumb on his left hand.

Li Hong lowered his head. His face was deathly pale. His eyes were filled with resentment. However, at that moment when he lifted his head, only a face with of forceful smile remained. The ten fingers were connected to our heart, even a warrior would find it really painful.