Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 666 – Fight of the Ultimate Life and Death (4)

The loud thump from below was a clear indication that this Grade Ten Martial Saint from the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect had died. If the previous deaths of the two Grade Eight Peak Martial Saint were surprising, then this was even more shocking – to the point of distress.

Around the same time, the other weakened Grade Ten Martial Saint had also met his fate by Old Madam Mo’s Diamond Scepter. He had loss his concentration and was distracted by Qianxi Yong’s death. He was barely struggling to survive the fight, but it all ended when his head was cracked open by Old Madam Mo.

Under the influence of Qing Shui’s weakening effect, the other two Grade Ten Martial Saints were left with only their consciousness intact. Their bodies had already lost their connections to their minds, which resulted in their inability to react accordingly to their consciousness.

The remaining Grade Nine Martial Saint – one could say he had become a Grade Eight Martial Saint after being weakened – had lost his will to fight completely after witnessing the deaths of the his two Grade Ten Martial Saint comrades. Di Xuan took the opportunity and swiftly locked in for a finishing blow at the dejected man.

The battle only lasted for the time it took to finish a cup of tea.

Two Grade Ten Martial Saints, one Grade Nine Martial Saint, and two Grade Eight Martial Saints were lost in a mere few seconds. Qing Shui and his team were unharmed, which was the opposite outcome of what the spectators had initially predicted – they strongly felt that Qing Shui and the others should have lost.

Qing Shui calmly stood in mid-air. Everything had happened as he had expected. After all, the Grade Ten Martial Saints he had fought with were essentially Grade Eight Martial Saints after they had been weakened by Qing Shui’s Emperor Qi and Fiery Golden Eyes. It was normal for the outcome of the battle to be favorable to them.

Despite the positive outcome, Old Madam Mo and Di Xuan were still shocked about Qing Shui’s capabilities. Only during a battle would they be able to feel the impressive power of his weakening techniques. But to what extent his techniques could weaken his opponents was still a mystery to them.

On the other hand, there was the emotions from the spectators. To them, Qing Shui was now the absolute force of the battle. It was to the extent that the crowd felt their opinions about this young man had changed. They were hopeful and had a good feeling about Qing Shui, so they cheered loudly and chanted his name. This caught Qing Shui by surprise.

Up until now, Qing Shui still hadn’t realized that a lot of people had knew his full name. Nevertheless, it was with expectations that people would remember his name easily from an incident like this. Besides that, the words ‘future son-in-law of Di Clan’ was also quite a dazzling title for Qing Shui to bear. However, this ultimately led a lot of people to wrongly extrapolate that Qing Shui was going to be the husband of Di Qing, instead of her elder sister Di Chen.

Lady Duanmu also looked at Qing Shui from afar with perplexed eyes. She knew that he was a young man with miraculous capabilities and that he would fare well wherever he went in the future. Despite this, she had never expected that he could improve his capabilities at such an ungodly speed to become as powerful as he was now.

Qing Shui truly had all sorts of miraculous techniques and capabilities up his sleeves. He also had countless peerless beauty by his side. Lady Duanmu kept staring blankly at Qing Shui until she finally realized how mature this young man had become after spending all this time with him.

After a while, she dispersed her nonsensical thoughts and continued to stare at Qing Shui. Lady Duanmu was genuinely happy to see how much Qing Shui had grown. As these happy thoughts lingered in her mind, she began to feel like she could put her mind at rest. Should there be another incident like today, she wouldn’t need to worry anymore and she wouldn’t need to tag along anymore……

She felt something indescribable in her heart as she remembered why she wasn’t allowed to join the battle.

“Is he trying to prove that he can surpass any danger even without me by his side? Or is he trying to prove that as long as he exists, it is possible for a Grade Eight Martial Saint to kill a Grade Ten Martial Saint….?” Lady Duanmu continued to look at Qing Shui with eyes filled with a mystified gaze.

“Elder sister, he is really powerful.” Di Qing giggled. She was more happy for Qing Shui than anyone else.

“He is a man full of wonders. You should expect nothing but surprises when it comes to Qing Shui.” Di Chen was happy for Qing Shui as well.

“Elder sister, how did you two ended up with each other? Long ago, he didn’t seem to show any guts in pursuing you. He was just like a little sheep in your presence. But now, why do I feel like you are becoming a little sheep in front of him?” Di Qing giggled even more.

“Qing ‘er, why are you so interested in him now?” Di Chen slyly smiled at Di Qing.

Di Qing, on the other hand, quickly turned her head away in an unnatural manner and said, “I’m not interested in him. He’s a big meanie. A big perverted meanie.”

Di Chen smiled again when she turned to look at Qing Shui who stood in mid-air. When she looked at him, her heart was instantly filled with a feeling of sweetness like the gushing waters from the spring. He was a man of affection and faith, and a man who would take responsibility for his own actions. He was also a man who would face everything. Ultimately, he was a man who would love his women with everything he had.

The whole audience fell into a short silence before they quickly resumed their bustling rowdiness. The potent excitement could burst through the roof.

“This is funny, really funny. Hey, do you guys still remember what that Qianxi Yong from the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect said before on the Seven Stars Arena?” someone from the audience laughed in a mocking manner.

“Was it the one who mocked the three representatives from Di Clan when he saw them and said, ‘Could it be that there’s no one else left in the Di Clan, or are you looking down on our Ten Thousand Poisons Sect’?” another person mimicked the late Qianxi Yong’s words.

“But of course, it wasn’t because Di Clan had no one else, it’s because Di Clan was really looking down on the five of them. Haha, they were quickly eliminated like a bunch of smashed rotten wood. This is really too funny!”

“What he said was funny too. If Qianxi Yong was still alive, his expression would be priceless. He even said this to Qing Shui: ‘This young man really doesn’t know any better. To be honest, I’m surprised that you’re able to stand here and say this today. It must not be easy for you to be able to survive till now.”

“Those men from Ten Thousand Poisons Sect were scornful and egotistic in the beginning but in the end, they are the ones falling into despair. This turn of events really has me hooked. It’s a good thing I came today.” a strong looking old man laughed out heartily.

“Look how steady that young man is. Nobody knew it would turn out like this. He looks like a man who can achieve great things in life.”

“Yeah, he is also a man of his words. He did say that the five of them were not worthy to be his opponents. Who knew he was telling the truth.”

………

The audience began to make a loud clamor as they all talked about the battle profusely. As expected, every words of praise would always be directed to the winners. If Qing Shui was the one who lost and ended up dead, the audience would definitely scorn Qing Shui about his arrogance, ignorance, lack of self-knowledge, and how big of a meathead he was….

“Sect Master, what should we do next?” an old man asked the man clad in black clothes.

“Send Qianxi Lang, Sima Ye, and Guan Jiu to the arena.” the man commanded in a calm tone.

“Yes, sir!”

“Sect Master, if you send out the only two Grade Ten Martial Saints from Sima Clan and Guan Clan respectively, and they happen to die in the next battle, then isn’t this……” said another old man beside the Sect Master as he frowned.

“Second brother, it will be a good thing if they die. Those clans have become more insolent as the years passed by, thinking that they are invincible just by having a bit of capital. Do you really think Qianxi Clan is stronger than the other two? I will leave fate to decide whether they get to live or die. But it will make everything better if they all die, especially that Guan Jiu. His future is very promising, but this kind of man is not worth keeping around. Otherwise, he will most definitely become Qianxi Clan’s greatest enemy in the future.” the man calmly explained to his little brother. His voice was emotionless yet leveled.

“But Qianxi Lang is the heart and soul of Qianxi Clan. Are you going to sacrifice him just like that?”

“Battling in honor of the family is a normal thing to do. If he dies a horrible death, then his family will avenge him. Moreover, Qianxi Lang currently has 6500 countries of strength, and the other two have about 6000 countries of strength respectively. This is a bit more than Qianxi Yong’s strength. They might even win this battle, who knows.” said the third brother of the Sect Master.

Swiftly, the three representatives from Qianxi Clan, Sima Clan, and Guan Clan flew up into the air. The leader of the three was an elderly man clad in black garment. He had a cold expression on his face and his gaze was as ferocious as lightning.

The black garment was the official clan uniform of the Ten Thousand Poisons Sect. One of the other two old men was the one Qing Shui and Di Chen saw in the mansion given by Di Clan. This old man who stood right next to the Qianxi elder was Sima Ye from Sima Clan.

Guan Jiu, on the other hand, seemed like the youngest among the three old fellows. He had a clean look and was dressed nicely. The fine clothes that he wore made him look a few year younger, which gave an impression that he was a vigorous and energetic man.

Qing Shui quickly sensed his opponents’ powers, but laughed when he realized their approximate strength. He only needed to be cautious about his opponents’ poison techniques. Qing Shui also didn’t feel threatened by Qianxi Lang, who had 6500 countries of strength, despite only possessing barely 4000 countries of strength himself.

“Young man, I have underestimated you.” Sima Ye frowned as he spoke to Qing Shui.

“You know what they say, ‘Those with bad intentions will always get their retributions’.” Qing Shui smiled at Sima Ye.

“I don’t believe in that, I only believe in power. Power will decide everything. As long as I have the power, I can kill you easily. I don’t care about bad intentions or retributions.” Sima Ye shook his head.

At that moment, the old man clad in black garments took out his weapon.

Psychotic Demon Scythe!

Qing Shui then noticed a set of armor beneath the black garments he wore, the armor was dark and black as well. The old man abruptly howled, revealing two 3 meter long green snakes the thickness of a baby’s arm on both on his arms.

Poisonous Jade Green Snakes!

Qing Shui frowned when he saw those snakes because he knew from his knowledge of the [Poison Scripture] that these snakes were more venomous than any other ordinary poisonous beings.

These snakes specialized in instantaneous attacks while being extremely agile within a short distance. Its teeth may be tiny, but they were sharp and were the most dangerous part of its body. The dangerous aspect lied in its poison – the poison from its teeth could corrode anything it touched. Besides harboring an extremely toxic poison in its teeth, the snake could also attack its opponent by spitting out a pool of poisonous substance. As mentioned before, the snake possessed a speed as fast as lightning, which was why it was considered one of the most dangerous and agile poisonous beast in the world. Although it possessed strength that reached the border of Martial King, it could become a bigger threat by attaching itself to a more powerful being, thus achieving the effect akin to giving a tiger wings.

Qianxi Lang wasn’t done yet as he let out another howl. A small blood-red colored wolf instantly appeared at his side. The wolf was about a meter in size and its fur seemed like a set of blood-red armor attached to its body. Its gloomy green eyes which contrasted with its blood-red fur were terrifying as well. It was quite small, yet possessed an aura that screamed danger and power.

It was a Phantom Fire Wolf!

This was another poison beast he had seen in the [Poison Scripture]. Despite its small physique, the wolf possessed the strength of a Peak Martial King. It has a noteworthy speed and specialized in poisonous fire attack.

The wolf would attack using its phantom fire, which was also known as the ‘Green Fire’ or the ‘Poisonous Fire’. The flame had a strong corrosive ability that could dissolve anything in its way. The one meter long Phantom Fire Wolf wasn’t to be underestimated. Even other Grade One or Grade Two Martial Saint demonic beasts wouldn’t dare to provoke this Peak Martial King demonic beast at any cost.

This Phantom Fire Wolf was a terrifying enemy to those less agile Martial Saints. A lot of poisonous beings in the World of the Nine Continents depended on their speed and poison to remain invincible, thus having a speed at a certain level would sometimes be more important than having a powerful strength. It was also the hardest to improve one’s agility the same way one would improve their strength or defense.

Qianxi Lang’s poison beast’s main ability was the ever dangerous corrosive poison!

Qing Shui took out an Agility-Enhancing Fruit, which he had already given to the others beforehand, including Old Madam Mo and Di Xuan. Even though the effect of boosting one’s agility was a temporary one, he would be able to increase his speed by 50% for a span of 15 minutes, which was ample time to finish the next battle.