Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 2351 - The Water Emperor and The Divinity Scattering Powder.

Nalan Qing and Qing Shui walked to the door. She saw the cold, unforgiving look in Beiyuan Maji’s eyes. There were no emotions at all, as if he was looking at a stone in the road. 

“What great courage. You really brought a man to stay in your house overnight; all this while everyone thought you were as clear as ice and as pure as jade. But I guess you’ve always been this dissolute.” Beiyuan Maji’s eyes shone with anger and a hint of lust.

He regretted not making a move earlier. He had just been defeated by an outsider. This was a huge cause of depression for him. He had always thought that there was still time, and that no one would dare hit on a woman from the Beiyuan Clan. He believed he was not in a hurry. He thought that since she was always in close proximity, she would not be able to run away. 

Qing Shui saw that Nalan Qing slowly started to pale. Although she wasn’t weak mentally, she was still a woman. A dignified woman. Having such harsh words said to her, she would definitely feel very uncomfortable. This discomfort was not because of Beiyuan Maji. Even Qing Shui himself did not know who the reason behind it was.  

“Young man, you really are very brave, daring to stay the night with her. When I previously called you a fool, I didn’t think that you were actually one. Did you really find it worthwhile to die for a peony?” Beiyuan Maji glared at Qing Shui, his heart feeling like he just ate a bunch of insects, gloomy and depressed. 

“This kind of creature, I can’t count how many times I’ve encountered it on my journey. One more silly than the other, but still thinking that they were very smart. Really, such foolish creatures. I see that you won’t be satisfied since I did not punch you the other day. Now I’ll just beat you down this time.”

Right after Qing Shui finished, he summoned a huge handprint. 

A giant golden handprint began forming in the air, glittering and shining. The incomparable giant, golden, and glowing hand, was suddenly smashed down.

Bam!

The sky was filled with dust. Fortunately, they were at the door so the handprint had only created a large hole in the ground. Upon being struck, everyone spat out mouthfuls of blood, as Qing Shui’s strength caught them off guard...

Upon first glance, Qing Shui looked very young, so these people didn’t regard Qing Shui as a threat and thought he was just some sort of love con. They didn’t expect him to have such strong cultivation. Beiyuan Maji himself was nothing, but there were experts around to protect him.

Although this attack was especially strong, it didn’t completely wipe out the group but still caused some casualties and all of the men were injured.

“Scram while you can. Else I can’t say whether you’ll continue living or not.”

Beiyuan Maji obviously did not dare to continue his business here. He gathered his men and hurriedly ran away.

Nalan Qing’s gaze was complex as she stared at Qing Shui. The path ahead was no longer under her control. She faced Qing Shui, “Let’s go. I’ll bring you to meet my father.”

Qing Shui beamed and nodded.

The Royal Palace was located directly North of the Crystal Palace. The closer they got to the palace, the more pressured he felt. The pressure was so high that it caused fear. The pressure was due to the Crystal Dragon, a national Guardian Beast.

The Royal Palace covered an enormous area of land. It was magnificent beyond compare, as if a huge ancient beast was residing in it. The whole structure had a mysterious layout and possessed some sort of strange power. It hid the power of formations and mysterious Eight Trigrams.

With all of these structures, it would be difficult for even strong individuals to break into the palace. Such a mysterious formation would reflect a portion of the enemy assault back onto the assailants. Of course, experts with extraordinarily profound enlightenment could still destroy the formation.

“The Royal Princess has arrived!”

The moment Nalan Qing walked into the doors of the palace, the guards all bowed down respectfully.

Nalan Qing nodded at them and walked into the palace with Qing Shui. The whole way was smooth and undisrupted. From time to time, some people would greet Nalan Qing.

Every hundred meters, the wide stone steps would rise by ten meters. On both sides, there stood buildings. Right at the front was the main hall which had some sort of heavenly feeling, as if it was sitting on top of a mountain. The whole palace was bathed in a hint of the Heavenly Daos’ glory.

The palace extended wide in all four directions. The lakes, hills, gardens, and such were all massive beyond measure. There were some beasts living in the lake with precious herbs that could be over ten thousand years old.

Nalan Qing and Qing Shui did not enter the main hall. After walking some distance, they began to head northwest. The corridors here were zig-zagging in every direction and it was possible to lose one’s way during a first visit there. It was like a maze and they walked into a place that seemed like it belonged in an ordinary palace.

After entering, he realized that the palace was very huge but the interior atmosphere was still luxurious, tall and wide. There was a red carpet made from animal skin in the middle of the floor. The hall was quite empty and spacious, but with one glance, Qing Shui already saw the man in the middle of the hall.

He could tell that this man was the Water Emperor.

The man looked middle-aged; he was extremely handsome, and had a strong and rich aura around him. His body was well-proportioned, neither fat nor thin, but standing there, he looked like a giant mountain. His bright eyes held wisdom, majesty, and dominance.

“Little lass, this is?” The man looked happy to see Nalan Qing.

“Father, this is my friend. He is able to help the Nalan Clan.” Nalan Qing said without beating around the bush.

“...Daughter, these few years I have wronged you. I will inform the Beiyuan Clan that you no longer have anything to do with them,” the Water Emperor said as he surveyed Qing Shui.

“Dad!” Nalan Qing lightly exclaimed.

“Listen to me. Our Nalan Clan is still able to resist them and so we shall. They will not make a move on us. Young man, I can see you are very talented. Take my daughter and leave this place, please take good care of her.” the Water Emperor said while looking at Qing Shui.

“Dad! I’m not going anywhere!” Nalan Qing said resolutely.

“You’ve grown up. I’ve put you through enough in these few years. Go! I can still protect you two leaving.” the Water Emperor said steely.

“Hm. Seems like you still are a good father. You deserve some help.” Qing Shui grinned.

The Water Emperor frowned, confusion apparent on his face as he stared at Qing Shui.

“You are also poisoned by the Divinity Scattering Powder. This type of poisoning has no cure, being very rare and precious. Using it on your body is not a waste,” Qing Shui said while looking at the Water Emperor. 

The Water Emperor jolted, as his eyes sharply focused on Qing Shui. There were a number of people who knew about his poisoning, but only a rare few knew what exactly  he was poisoned by. However, this young man knew, causing the emperor to suspect his true identity.

The Water Emperor himself didn’t know who had poisoned him, but he did know the power that the culprit belonged to. He wanted Qing Shui to take Nalan Qing away because he saw the boy’s youth and came to the conclusion that he couldn’t have been that culprit behind the poisoning.

“Are you suspecting that I’m the one who poisoned you?” Qing Shui chuckled.

“Dad, it isn’t him. That I am sure of. He’s here to cure you and the whole clan of the poison,” Nalan Qing quickly persuaded.

“Well, I trust my daughter,” the Water Emperor laughed out.

Qing Shui knew that he truly didn’t buy it, but it was irrelevant. Whether dealing with the Beiyuan Clan or other powers, once the Nalan Clan’s strength was restored, they could deal with these people themselves.