Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 1153 – Inner City’s Bai Clan, Don’t Look Down On A Poor Youth

“Xiantian? Mister, you’re saying that I can reach Xiantian level?” Stone looked at Qing Shui in astonishment, his expression that of great agitation.

“Are you not satisfied with Xiantian?” Qing Shui smiled and asked.

“No, no… I’ve never ever thought that I’d be able to reach Xiantian even in my dreams. It’s just that I don’t dare to believe it,” Stone quickly said.

In Western Oxhe Continent, the land was vast and the population was much greater in number. No matter how prosperous a city was, it would still be mostly inhabited by ordinary people and Xiantian cultivators would still be notable existences.

The population in this world was very large and the people tended to have good physical attributes and qualities. If an ordinary young man were to train diligently, he would be able to lift something that weighed 500 Jin. However, this was the limit for ordinary people.

When old man Wang was young, he could lift things that weighed 800 Jin but as he grew older, his strength had been reduced by more than half. As the density for good weapons tended to be very high, their weight was no longer something old man Wang could handle and forge.

“Train well and I can guarantee that you’ll be able to reach Xiantian,” Qing Shui smiled and patted Stone on the shoulder.

“Mister, this old man doesn’t know how to thank you… Our Wang Clan is indebted to you…”

“Old Wang, it’s fate that we met, so don’t stand on ceremony. I only know the two of you here and you guys made me feel very at ease.” Qing Shui smiled. It was easy for him to reach out a helping hand to change old man Wang’s fate. Moreover, he liked these two.

“Old Wang, take this. It can increase some of your strength. Stone can take it in another few days. We’ll let him train up his body first.” Qing Shui handed old man Wang a porcelain bottle with a Tiger Vitality Pill.

“Mister, this…”

“Why? Are you scared that it’d be poison?” Qing Shui laughed.

“I wouldn’t be scared even if Mister were to give me poison. Isn’t this too valuable?” Old man Wang said seriously.

“Since I’ve already given it to you, just take it. These two days, you can stay and take care of Stone. Come back in another two days.” Qing Shui stuffed the Tiger Vitality Pill into old man Wang’s hands.

…

Qing Shui suddenly seemed to have nothing to do in the blacksmith store. The items he sold were more practical for low level cultivators but there weren’t many who could afford them. It might also be due to this reason that the reputation of Firecloud Blacksmith Store spread out even faster.

Even people who were very far away now knew that there was a young and handsome blacksmith in the Divine Weapon Street who forged weapons and sold them at sky high prices. Rumors tended to be more exaggerated than the truth.

This wasn’t all. There were also rumors that Miss Yan had purchased a lot of items from this blacksmith store and even invited the blacksmith to Yan Clan but was rejected. How bold was this guy?

The reputation of the young blacksmith grew even stronger and there was even a period of time when it was bragged to be the only one of its kind in the world. Due to this reason, more and more people came to the Firecloud Blacksmith Store, although most of them were only there to see Qing Shui in person.

The ones that sold the fastest were the accessories. Qing Shui would be able to sell a few pieces each day. And with there being more people coming in, he was able to sell some weapons and other stuff as well. There were also many customers who weren’t short of money.

Of course, there were also quite a number of clans who wished to recruit Qing Shui, but they were all rejected. However, the clans didn’t take it too hard as either. After all, rumors had it that even Miss Yan’s invitation was rejected. They only casually brought it up to make it seem as if they were very close to Qing Shui.

…

Old man Wang’s strength increased by 1,000 Jin. Qing Shui still had some fruit and other stuff, which further increased old man Wang’s lifespan, which originally had only a few decades left. His strength now was a lot greater as compared to when he was younger. The transformations his body went through got him very excited. He could now forge weapons like he did when he was younger.

Stone also took the Tiger Vitality Pill and had started to practice the Thousand Hammer Technique. Learning things like these required one to have intelligence to go through careful calculations. Qing Shui only taught him the first 100 hammers and told him that it was very important. As long as he could master these 100 hammers, he would be able to benefit greatly. If he could comprehend the hammer techniques at the back from there, he would gain a qualitative improvement.

Qing Shui gradually changed their predicament but didn’t do so drastically. It was like if you were to give a poor man a few thousand dollars to solve the predicament he was currently in before he looked for a job. If you were to give the person five million at one go, it wouldn’t be helping him but rather, harming him.

Rice must be eaten one mouthful at a time; wells must be dug a little deeper one shovel at a time!

Qing Shui didn’t plan on completely changing the lifestyles old man Wang and his grandson had. They weren’t suitable to handle the action and competition out there. Moreover, Stone’s talent wasn’t exactly good. In terms of both cultivation and forging, he wouldn’t be able to reach great heights. However, compared to how he was before, he was able to do much better in these two areas now.

Qing Shui was sipping tea in the blacksmith store. There were still quite a number of customers around but many small explosive sounds rang out outside. Qing Shui’s spiritual sense was very sharp now and he could sense that those auras were headed in his direction.

“People in the Firecloud Blacksmith Store listen up! Leave within the time it takes for three breaths! Otherwise, if you were to get hurt when the blacksmith store collapses, don’t blame it on us!”

A loud voice rang out. When the people in the Firecloud Blacksmith Store heard the voice, they quickly ran outside. Qing Shui signaled old man Wang and his grandson to head out as well.

Qing Shui shook his head and walked out. He didn’t find this strange. It was hard to make a living in an entirely unfamiliar place, especially after being in the spotlight. Many people would definitely not be able to accept him and would hate him.

After Qing Shui walked out, he lifted his head to look into the skies. He wanted to see who was doing this to him. He felt that there could only be three possibilities: Bai Clan, the factions supporting those blacksmith stores or Miss Yan.

Qing Shui went up to the sky and faced the several tens of people. Most of them were middle-aged men but there were also a number of old men. Right now, their gazes were all locked on Qing Shui.

The ones in the lead were those old men. They wore pale blue colored clothes, appearing to command a lot of influence. Qing Shui looked at them but couldn’t identify any familiar faces.

“Who are you? Why did you say that you’re going to bring down my blacksmith store?” Qing Shui asked the people opposite him. He felt really calm. After all, even if the blacksmith store was gone, it would be very easy for him to build another. As for the things inside, they wouldn’t spoil. Even if they would, he wouldn’t feel much about it.

“Young man, there’s no need for you to care who we are. We know that you don’t like to work for others. We hope that you can move out of Divine Weapon Street.” An old man in the middle stood upright. If one were to see his back view alone, one wouldn’t think that this was an old man.

“Which blacksmith clan are you guys from? Are you really afraid that I’ll steal your businesses?” Qing Shui smiled and looked at them.

“Young man, you’re too ignorant. Do you really think that you’re a topnotch blacksmith master just with those few pieces of weapons and armor?” The old man wasn’t angry and his tone was very gentle as well.

“Since that’s the case, why do you have to force me to leave Divine Weapon Street?”

“The people here don’t like you.” The old man continued to speak in a gentle tone.

Qing Shui was stunned. This reason was so powerful. He looked at the old man, “You’re saying that people you guys don’t like will all have to leave.”

The old man didn’t say anything but looked at Qing Shui. “Young man, what do you think of what we said earlier? The Divine Weapon Street isn’t a place where someone like you can be arrogant. Putting aside the fact that you’re not a State Master level cultivator; even if you are one, you can’t afford to be arrogant here either.”

Qing Shui didn’t say anything. What the old man said was absolutely right. The clans behind the Divine Weapon Street were definitely not to be underestimated. A low grade State Master really didn’t have the right to be arrogant here, let alone himself, who was still a far cry from attaining the level of a low grade State Master.

“Old man, I wonder if you’ve heard of a saying before.”

“What saying?” The old man continued to look at Qing Shui calmly.

“Don’t look down on a poor youth [1]!”

Qing Shui looked at the old man but there was no fluctuations in his tone at all.

A low grade State Master wouldn’t even be able to cause the old man to panic but Qing Shui’s words caused his face to change a little. The old man’s face glared at Qing Shui, as if wanting to see through him.

“Are you forcing me to kill you?” The old man stared at Qing Shui and said in a cold voice.

“No matter who it is, as long as someone tries to attack me, if I’m still alive, I’ll definitely wipe them out completely. You may think that I’m bragging but I’ll only say one thing. If you can’t call the shots on behalf of the people behind you, then don’t take any reckless actions. Otherwise, even if I don’t do anything to you, the people behind you will get rid of you.” Qing Shui continued to speak very calmly, wearing a confident smile.

Qing Shui knew people who had reached the old man’s level of cultivation and age tended to think more into things. Moreover, he hadn’t expected himself to scare the other party with just one word. After all, the other party still had one method, which was to kill Qing Shui.

“Insolence! Do you think that you’ll be able to scare us just by saying a few vicious words? Don’t you find it funny?” The old man’s expression returned to normal.

“It seems that you guys are going to take action today. Do you dare to say who you are? Actually, even if you don’t say, I’ll still be able to find out,” Qing Shui smiled and said.

It was because the crowd on the ground were already in discussion!

“They are from Bai Clan! The people from inner city’s Bai Clan of Yan City!”

“There’s also a Bai Clan Blacksmith Hall in Divine Weapon Street which belongs to inner city’s Bai Clan. They are also considered one of the top few powerful blacksmith clans in the Divine Weapon Street.”

…

The Bai Clan in this area which Bai Riyi and Bai Rilong belonged to was only considered a branch of Bai Clan. It was a far cry compared to the Bai Clan in the inner city and these people belonged to those under the inner city’s Bai Clan.

There were many cities in Great Yu Dynasty and they were further segregated into inner cities and outer cities. The inner cities tended to be much smaller in size but were more luxurious and more of the powerful factions were gathered there.

Of course, this wasn’t something absolute. There would also be a number of powerful factions in the outer cities. It was just that there were more of them in the inner cities!

The reason the inner cities were powerful was because of the existence of the city lords and the powerful clans. As for the capital, there was also the royal family. This was why most with power would tend to head to the inner cities.

The Divine Weapon Street was one exception. This place was not under the inner city but the blacksmith clans here all had the caliber to enter and reside in the inner city. However, the Divine Weapon Street was considered to be a holy place and had its share of glory here. This was a place left behind from very long ago and most of its glory was already gone.

We’re people from the inner city’s Bai Clan. If you were to join our Bai Clan, we’ll forget the things that has happened today. You can continue to run your blacksmith store and Bai Clan will take care of you as well. The old man looked at Qing Shui but his mind was thinking rapidly.

“Bai Clan? Excellent. There’s also a Bai Clan who has tried to smash my store twice. I didn’t expect yet another Bai Clan from the inner city to smash my store. This is such a coincidence,” Qing Shui smiled and replied.

[1] A Chinese saying. Don’t look down on a poor youth because youngsters have boundless prospects. As long as they are willing to work hard, they’ll soar to great heights one day and not always be in poverty.