Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 2402 - Forsaken Heaven City, Bei Clan, Old Woman

Three months passed by unknowingly and quite a number of things happened during this period of time. Qing Shui had gone to the Su Clan several times and they had visited him a number of times as well.

Su Chun passed the test and thus Qing Shui gave his approval. Qing Shui had actually approved of this from the beginning and the wedding was held as well. It was just that there was only Qing Shui and the few of them around. The other members of the Qing Clan didn't come since it was too far. Moreover, they weren't that particular and Qing Shui himself had gone back to hold a wedding in the Qing Clan on a few occasions.

The wedding and wedding banquet proceeded very smoothly and Luan Luan was wedded without any troubles. Her future path would definitely be very smooth in the future as well.

The things here were settled and Qing Shui's group left. After all, they had been here for three months. Their next stop was to head to the Forsaken Heaven Region's capital—the Forsaken Heaven City. 

This was one of the three great cities in the Forsaken Heaven City, and was also the biggest one. It was even more powerful and chaotic compared to Zhongyuan City. The biggest reason as to why Qing Shui wanted to head there was because there was presence of the Demon Gate and Divine Palace there.

This time around, Qing Shui used a teleportation array directly. There was one in Zhongyuan City and the one in the Su Clan could bring them to the Forsaken Heaven City directly.

If they were to walk there, they would need to take a very long time and Qing Shui decided not to do that. They'd walked all this way and had experienced quite a lot. It would be meaningless for them to walk more in the Forsaken Heaven Region.

Forsaken Heaven City!

Qing Shui's group walked out from the Forsaken Heaven City. There were people guarding the teleportation array, and people who came out would all have to handover some unique materials as the usage fee. After all, the teleportation array was subject to attrition and the teleportation process required crystal stones.

Crystal stones were also known as crystal nuclei. They were a piece of strange crystallization in the brains of demonic beasts.

They came out after making the proper payment. Those who could own a teleportation array in the Forsaken Heaven City wouldn't be just an ordinary influence. Earlier on, the Su Clan had told him which influences this place belonged to. They were sent to the Bei Clan, one of the top notch influences in the Forsaken Heaven City.

Beihuang Fan and Shen Huang wore face veils so that they wouldn't get into unnecessary trouble. Great beauties could bring about misfortunes and troubles. With their beauty, they would definitely attract a lot of troubles.

"There are some small stalls in front. Let's go and have some food. Roadside stalls serve the best food. They are also the unique traits of a place." Qing Shui walked out and saw that there was a street filled with stalls on both sides, with long tables and benches that connected to each other as far as the eye could see.

Great fragrances came from everywhere. There were many people and it was a little noisy, but the feeling was great. Heat was coming from those small stalls and many people kept passing by, stopping every now and then to have some food.

The others didn't object and Qing Shui took the lead, entering the street.

The food was really not bad. Even though Qing Shui possessed the greatest spices and culinary skills, some things just couldn't be compared. If it was in his previous life, it would be like comparing a five-star food with local delicacies.

Jade Tofu!

When Qing Shui saw the Jade Tofu, he was stunned. He had Jade Steamed Buns, but hadn't expected that there would be Jade Tofu here. They glistened like jade and emitted a light aroma with a hint of bean fragrance.

Many people crowded around the place and would generally leave after eating one piece. No matter how good it tasted, they wouldn't fill themselves just with this. People with experience knew that there were many delicacies to be had, and they should eat a few more different dishes.

After waiting for a while, Qing Shui's group each paid some money and got to enjoy the Jade Tofu.

It was really not bad. However, they had all tasted Qing Shui's Jade Steamed Buns before and the taste of the Jade Tofu was still far off from the Jade Steamed Bun. They mustn't compare things with what Qing Shui could offer, otherwise, it'd be meaningless. Therefore, the Jade Tofu was already considered to be quite good.

After walking for a distance, they ate quite a lot of good food. When they passed by one stall, they noticed that there weren't many people there. An old woman and a thin and weak boy stood behind the stall. The boy had a huge head, but it wasn't that his head was big. It was just that he was too thin and weak.

The boy was about eight to nine years old and they were selling some boiled and fried food, as well as seafood. The taste wasn't bad, but no one bought from them. Occasionally, some people would take a few bites and spit out, claiming that the food was horrible. There were also people who would just walk off. There were even people who requested to have their money refunded.

"Madam, give me a serving." Qing Shui smiled and said.

The old lady didn't seem to be young and had a weak body. She looked at Qing Shui, "The food I make isn't nice."

"Oh? In what way is it not nice? It smells alright to me," Qing Shui asked, puzzled.

"The smell isn't bad, but it's a pity that I'm short of a seasoning for this, so it will taste a little weird," The old lady said frankly.

"Then why are you still selling it here?" Qing Shui couldn't understand.

"I don't have a way out. I'm doing this to make a living so that we can get some food and survive." the old lady looked at the little boy.

The food was served very quickly. It looked a little bit like loach, but had the head of a fish. Qing Shui took one bit. At the beginning, it tasted very fragrant, but soon, there was a bitter taste and then a sour stench. It tasted even worse than the stench that came from this fish itself.

With Qing Shui's skills, he knew the reason behind this immediately. The old woman had said earlier as well that this dish was lacking in one seasoning.

When some things were short of a seasoning, it wouldn't be easy to make up for the taste. However, Qing Shui had some insight in this. He could complete this dish but he just wasn't sure if it would taste the same as it should have been.

Qing Shui's expression was very calm as he looked at the old woman and said, "Madam, you can add some nettle seeds to this seasoning."

When the old woman heard this, she was stunned for a moment. After some thought, she looked at Qing Shui and said, "When should they be added?"

"Add them in three parts at the eighth addition of ingredients. Add in a third each time, and wait for three breaths' time before the next addition."

The old woman looked around, brought some nettle seeds and came back. She then got to work immediately.

A nice fragrance soon came out. It seemed to be even thicker than the previous fragrance and was a thick, light one that would make one feel refreshed.

After it was made this time around, the old woman still let Qing Shui try it first. He didn't stand on ceremony and tried it. This time around, the food tasted fresh and tender, very delicious. It wouldn't lose out to the Jade Tofu at all.

The old woman was very agitated. She tried it as well. Qing Shui had done her a great favor. Otherwise, they would have problems with keeping on with their lives. Now that they had this skill, they wouldn’t have to be afraid anymore.

"Mister, you've done this old woman a great favor. How can I thank you?" The old woman was very agitated.

"You're too kind. I just happened to pass by. There's no need to be too concerned about it." Qing Shui was happy that he could help someone.

When he saw the old woman and the child, he felt that they were very pitiful. If he could help them, he wouldn't be selfish about it. This was the greatest help he could give them. Giving them some "skill" would be much better than giving them money or some other thing.

The old woman saw Qing Shui's sincere look and smiled, saying, "You're a nice person. Wait a minute. I have something to give you. It's something that my ancestors had left behind. I don't know if you'll take a liking to it, but I have nothing else to give."

"There's no need for this. I didn't help you just to ask for something in return. Everyone will have times they feel troubled and we should help each other." Qing Shui quickly stopped her.

"It's not anything precious. I have no use for it. Take it as a sentiment from me. Just take it." The old woman took out a piece of rustic and simple stone that was just like an egg. It had a red dot coming from the center that emitted a faint glow. It felt warm to the touch.

Qing Shui was slightly stunned when he saw the stone the old woman stuffed into his hands.