Ancient Strengthening Technique (Portraits of Beauty) Ancient Strengthening Technique Chapter 868-869

AST 868 – Violent Blood Bear, Finding another Deity Statue again

Actually, when had he not been blessed by the heavens? Merely, Qing Shui was feeling slightly envious at the moment. He was truly only a little envious, but that was it.

However, the others did not have such a feeling. Currently, he was already aware of the reason as to why this lady would lead members of Mu Family to the Sky Penetrating Mountains. It was not only due to her being strong and having exceptional talent, it was also because she had more than ten Treasure Hunting Pigs.

Owing to the Treasure Hunting Pigs, their harvest was many times greater than if they didn't have them. The reason she had not let them out earlier was perhaps because there were still other people in the vicinity.

Now that they had travelled over 2000 li into the mountain range, basically no one else could be seen. It would be hard to locate them even if there were others around. The Sky Penetrating Mountains was very large and akin to a maze.

Just like that, everyone split up. Each pair followed a Treasure Hunting Pig. It was agreed that whistles would be used for communication. In addition, the Treasure Hunting Pigs could communicate with one another. Therefore, they weren't afraid of getting lost, only worried that they would be too far away and unable to a.s.sist one another in times of danger.

Over twenty people and more than ten Treasure Hunting Pigs. It was almost exactly two people per pig. Due to some carelessness, only Qing Shui and the Mu Family girl remained, as well as a Treasure Hunting Pig.

"Let's go, we'll follow it!" said the girl with a faint smile.

"Okay!" replied Qing Shui.

Squeak Squeak!

The cry of the Treasure Hunting Pig was shrill and resounding. It appeared to be sending a message to its comrades, telling them that this particular route was already occupied and for them to head towards other places to hunt.

Originally, it still felt quite lively with over twenty people being together. All of a sudden, only the two of them were left. This made the atmosphere feel a little cold and lonely. It was quiet all around, with only the sound of wind blowing and the occasional roars from beasts. If a person without cultivation was to be here, they would be frightened till their knees went soft.

As time pa.s.sed by, Qing Shui and the woman followed after the Treasure Hunting Pig as it unceasingly travelled back and forth. All of a sudden, a three metre long demonic beast lunged towards the Treasure Hunting Pig. The Treasure Hunting Pig did not have the slightest reaction however.

Xiu!

The stone that Qing Shui had prepared in his hand shot out, directly piercing the demonic beast's skull. The stone had drawn a bright line of light in the air. This was the result of its speed reaching the limits.

Pu!

The demonic beast had met with a violent death without making a single cry.

The woman looked at Qing Shui as her eyes twitched. With her formidable strength, she was naturally able to see the might of that strike. This long-ranged shooting was an ability that every cultivator knew. However, it was like the disparity between a child and a giant when compared with him.

Exactly how much did he know? If he were to specialize, would he have already achieved the peak now?

"Thank you. Actually, the vitality of the Treasure Hunting Pig is very strong. Biting the Treasure Hunting Pig would only result in the destruction of the demonic beast's teeth." the girl smiled as she spoke.

Qing Shui smiled. He was also aware of it. However, after seeing the little foot-long pig and a demonic beast being a giant wolf that could almost eat it with a single bite, he had unknowingly used a hidden weapon to kill the giant wolf.

The giant wolf was only an Early Martial Saint demonic beast. However, Qing Shui had displayed his hidden weapon techniques. There was nothing wrong with that though, since there was no need to hide it from people.

Although the Treasure Hunting Pig did not have any strength of its own, even Early Martial Saint demonic beasts were unable to harm it. This was the reason why they continued to exist till this day.

Squeak Squeak!

Qing Shui looked at the dense forest halfway up the mountain, from where the cries of a Treasure Hunting Pig were ringing. Qing Shui and the woman rushed over to the location of the sounds, since these sounds generally indicated that it had discovered items of a spiritual nature.

Upon reaching their destination, the two of them were astonished for a while. It was a hidden mountain cave. An excitement that was hard to suppress flashed across his face as they arrived at it's entrance.

This was because the aura within was too familiar to him. The pressure was much stronger than the outside. Looking at each other, the woman took the lead and entered with Qing Shui following behind her.

A large hall, this was a large hall that gave Qing Shui a familiar feeling. However, there was a lot of dust in here, with even more traces left behind by demonic beasts. With a single look, they found a few flying beasts and three giant bears currently snoring loudly in their sleep.

Although there was a pressure here, it was only present within the great hall. Strong demonic beasts would still be able to live here as they like. These three giant bears were over ten meters long, their gigantic bodies resembled a small mountain.

The body shapes of demonic beasts were unlike that of birds. The wings of birds spanned over half of their body, and they would look very big when they extended their wings. Demonic beasts did not have any wings, but their gigantic bodies shocked people. The terrifying power they had and their immense roars made people feel uneasy.

Perhaps because they smelled the odor of humans, the three giant bears suddenly stood up. Their gigantic eyes flashed red as they looked towards Qing Shui and the woman. The Treasure Hunting Pig had already run off to some unknown place.

Violent Blood Bear!

Their entire body was brown and had blood red eyes. This kind of bear easily became berserk. Once they entered berserk mode, their entire body would turn blood red and their strength would become twofold. Upon being injured or seeing blood, their strength would increase even further.

The Violent Blood Bear had a strength of one to three stars. Within the Sky Penetrating Mountains, everything was abnormal, yet it was also considered normal. Therefore, one should not be shocked to meet with any strong demonic beasts. Just like the Cheng Family, they could only blame themselves for being unlucky

If the three Violent Blood Bears before them were to turn berserk, their strength would multiply, and they would be much more powerful. Although Qing Shui and the woman did not feel threatened, they didn't dare to be careless. At this point, the three giant bears lunged towards them.

Qing Shui held the Violet Gold Divine s.h.i.+eld in his left hand and the Thunder G.o.d in his right.

Presently, Qing Shui's base strength was one star, with his defense being slightly more than one and a half stars.

Diamond Qi, Diamond Protection and Diamond Crossing Rivers allowed Qing Shui's strength, defense and speed to double.

The Nature Energy increased his base strength by 60%, Mental State Aakin Tto Tthat Oof Iimmovable Mmountains increased his base strength by 50%, Frenzied Bull’s Strength increased his base strength by 30%, the Heavenly Thunder Slash increased his strength by 30%, the s.h.i.+eld Attack increased his strength by 20%, the Heavenly Talisman increased his strength and defense by 50%, the Combination Sword Technique increase his strength by 40%, and the Thunder G.o.d doubled his entire strength.

Qing Shui was also holding the Violet Gold Divine s.h.i.+eld, which increased his base strength by an additional 100%. He jumped with a rush and the Violet Gold Divine s.h.i.+eld in his hand suddenly smashed down on the Violent Blood Bear.

(Prady's Note: (((((1.0+0.6+0.5+0.3)*(1.30))*(1.20))*(1.50))*(1.40))*(2.0)) = 14.41x base strength&h.e.l.lip;.)

Bang!

Qing Shui wasn't sure why the mountain cave could endure such strong energy fluctuations. Was it due to the Deity Statue? Perhaps due to the mountain being very large while this cave being very small? It was just like using a needle to poke a small hole in a rock, very hard for this small hole to cave in.

The gigantic Violent Blood Bear was smashed by such an overbearing attack. The Thunder G.o.d in his right hand immediately unleashed Heaven Falls and the Earth Rends, aiming towards the gigantic skull of the giant bear who was currently dizzy.

Bang!

Roar!

As the hammer struck down, the gigantic bear was smashed. Blood directly spurted from its head, reaching tens of meters in height. The giant bear roared savagely, but that was merely a fierce final roar.

Its entire brain was already jolted till it shattered, it would've been weird if it weren't dead.

Compared to Qing Shui, the lady wielded her Spiritual Link Divine Sword skillfully. Every stab would reach the bone. The bear had already entered berserk mode. It appeared even more fierce and savage with blood covering its entire body.

Under the stimulation of blood, the other Violent Blood Bear had already started to berserk, lunging towards the woman. The Violent Blood Bear was a kind of demonic beast that never cowers regardless of the situation. Therefore, if one were to met a large pack of Violent Blood Bears, there were only two options, either to kill them all or flee.

Qing Shui had basically killed a Violent Blood Bear in a single move. She had previously sensed the huge energy fluctuations within Qin Shui's body. This made her very shocked. She only had her current achievements due to obtaining a saint ranked item, could he possibly be the same?

The woman discovered that ever since she had met this man, the frequency in which she felt shocked was much higher than before. So much so that she had the urge in wanting to understand him, wanting to know how he achieved it. However, she knew that she could not ask, as he definitely had his own treasures. Asking would only lead to suspicion. Furthermore, he definitely wouldn't say it.

Qing Shui had stopped one, while another was killed by the woman. The remaining bear was easily dispatched by the two of them.

Afterwards, the lady took out a medicine bottle and skillfully picked apart the Violent Blood Bears. After retrieving their cores and gall bladders, she poured a bit of the powder on them. Very quickly, the three bears dissolved.

Corpse Dissolving Powder!

Corpse Dissolving Powder was an item that was only effective towards corpses of people and demonic beasts. As long as one still had any signs of life, it would be of no use. This medicinal powder was very strange, and it was refined from the bones and blood of a certain demonic beast. It was relatively valuable as it could not only dissolve corpses, but also able to purify the surroundings.

The Corpse Dissolving Powder was especially important in such a place. Presently for example, they would have to remove the corpses and stench of blood if they wanted to stay in this place for a while. It would easily attract the attention of nearby demonic beasts otherwise. If they weren't careful, that would be truly unfortunate.

At first, Qing Shui was prepared to use his primordial flames to burn the corpses. However, he knew that the woman would definitely have her ways, since she had come here quite a few times.

After cleaning up this place, they went out to take a look. After discovering that there were no problems, Qing Shui headed back. The woman was standing there, appearing to be waiting for him.

"Qing ShuiDeity Statue, do you know about the Deity Statue?" the woman asked Qing Shui with a smile.

"I've seen it before." replied Qing Shui affirmatively. Qing Shui felt relieved for a moment. Looks like this wasn't the first time the lady had seen the Deity Statue. She also had her own stroke of luck. Furthermore, it was most likely related to the Deity Statue.

"These are yours" said the woman as she handed the Violent Blood Bear's core and gall bladder to him.

"We've already agreed that all the items are yours. I'm only here to search for the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s." Qing Shui shook his head as he refused.

The lady paused for a moment, she then smiled and said, "What about this Deity Statue? Is it mine?"

"Naturally!" replied Qing Shui with a smile.

The lady gently sighed and said, "If there is the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s that you need inside the cave and I also want it, would you take action against me?"

He replied after hesitating, "No!".

"Really?"

"I won't!" Qing Shui replied with more certainty this time.

"We'll split it evenly. If you don't agree, we'll leave right now." The girl said as she smiled towards Qing Shui.

Qing Shui did not know what was on her mind at the moment. After hesitating for a while, he nodded his head and replied, "Let's open it first and take a look. If you still insist at that time, I'll split with you."

"You have that much distrust in me? Do I look like that sort of greedy woman?" the lady replied, appearing to be extremely angry.

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AST 869 – Grade Eight Sunstone, The eighth Portrait of Beauty (teaser)

This was the first time that Qing Shui had seen this third kind of expression from this lady. A faint smile, a worried expression, and the previous slight anger. Of these three expressions, the first one was for everyone, while the second and third were for himself.

She was very beautiful regardless of her expression, beautiful to the utmost degree. Qing Shui did not dare to look more and only laughed while turning his head to the side.

"You're not greedy, but I'm greedy." Qing Shui said as he shook his head.

"Okay, let's go and see what’s inside. What a coincidence that we're actually able to come across a Deity Statue. In so many years, I've only come across one before, and that was a long time ago. That occasion changed my life." said the lady. While she talked, she seemed to have realized something. She had been acting slightly unusually today. She was talking more than usual and did some things that were slightly abnormal. Her mind also seemed to be slightly confused.

He did not know what exactly was happening to her, however, she knew that it was related to the man before her.

Qing Shui smiled and nodded his head and the two of them walked into the inner temple.

The deeper they entered, the greater the pressure!

The two of them could be considered as people who had received great benefits from the Deity Statue. Therefore, both of them had a considerable amount of antic.i.p.ation about the good things that this Deity Statue would bring to them. Qing Shui truly hoped that this Deity Statue would be able to bring him two stalks of Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s.

At that time, he would use the other items to exchange with this lady. Since she was able to say those words previously, that meant that he still had hope. He would not let her suffer a loss.

As the two slowly headed towards the inner hall, the pressure gradually grew stronger and stronger. When Qing Shui saw the familiar gigantic Deity Statue, he had some complicated feelings.

If they did not have the Treasure Hunting Pigs, perhaps it would have been very hard to discover this place. This area was extremely well concealed and was covered in dense vegetation. In the vast and expansive Sky Penetrating Mountains, even if people walked by, it would still be very hard to discover this place. This was because it was impossible to search every inch of land.

Therefore, even though they had not gone very deep into the Sky Penetrating Mountains, those who entered the mountains would most likely search within 1,000 li from the entrance. There were many places to search as there were mountain peaks everywhere. Therefore, the search sites were not only on the ground but also halfway up the mountain, on the mountain peaks, caves as well as underground.

"Will you do it, or should I?" asked the lady as she smiled towards Qing Shui.

"You go for it!" Qing Shui did not wish to fight with her over it. Furthermore, he wished to see how this lady was going to get the box from underneath the Deity Statue.

"Okay!" the lady replied straightforwardly.

Resisting the pressure, the lady slowly walked towards the Deity Statue. Qing Shui looked at her, knowing that it was impossible for her to use her hand to directly take that box. Therefore, the method she would employ should be similar to his.

The lady resisted the pressure and walked approximately half the distance, then she drew out her Spiritual Link Divine Sword and proceeded to control it, sending it flying towards the box.

Humm Humm!

There was a sharp resounding hum, and he saw the Spiritual Link Divine Sword enter a crevice in the box. A swaying moment then followed. However, a change happened at this very moment.

This was followed by an intensification of the humming noise. The Spiritual Link Divine Sword vibrated even more intensely, however, the box only vibrated gently yet did not seem to have the slightest movement.

Controlling an object!

The lady's Spiritual Link Divine Sword could leave her body and be controlled with her mind, just like Qing Shui's hidden weapons. However, at present, the results were unclear. Despite this, he could tell that her sword was very strong, otherwise, it would have been destroyed by the pressure.

Qing Shui did not know if she had used this method to retrieve the her previous box. However, this time he had felt that it would be difficult for her to obtain it. Mental strength was very mysterious and its strength was very weak, similar to Qing Shui's Hidden Weapons. Qing Shui mainly used his hand to unleash his hidden attacks and only used his mental strength to change their directions.

The lady had similarly used her hand to launch the Spiritual Link Divine Sword and then she tried to use her mental strength to drag it back. This wasn't impossible, but the difficulty was high. The Spiritual Link Divine Sword could be considered a treasure, but he still didn't know if she could achieve it.

After trying to pull it out twice and being met with failure both times, she did not continue trying. Instead, she sent out an extremely sweet sounding clear whistle and the Treasure Hunting Pig quickly came running over. What happened in the next moment left Qing Shui dumbfounded.

This golden colored Treasure Hunting Pig was actually able to ignore the pressure&h.e.l.lip;

Its plump little body ran straight for the Deity Statue and it used its head to lift the box up. At this moment, the lady used her mental strength to control the Spiritual Link Divine Sword, which in turn controlled the path of the box. Just like that, the box slowly arrived by the lady's side.

Don't look down on this Treasure Hunting Pig for being only a foot long. Its entire body was tough like diamonds. Although it wasn't powerful, its defensive capabilities were shocking. Furthermore, it had great strength and an even more astonis.h.i.+ng stamina and its survival capabilities were extremely impressive.

Just like that, the lady walked over to him with the box in one hand. With a faint smile on her face, she looked at Qing Shui who stood somewhat close. The lady gently sashayed as she walked. Her golden phoenix dress was unspeakably moving and her beautiful eyes were akin to the limpid autumn waters. Her exquisite nose was akin to jade.

"Let's see what's inside this box. It could be the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s that you want." said the lady towards Qing Shui with a light smile.

Qing Shui smiled but did not say anything.

Walking out of the great hall, the girl used her Spiritual Link Divine Sword to pry the box open. The box was not large, and there were only a few things within it. A book, a painting and a blood red gemstone that looked extremely powerful. Standing by the side, Qing Shui could clearly feel the spiritual energy fluctuations on the gem's surface. The gem seemed to hold some kind of berserk power.

Other than those items, there was also foot long stalk of a mysterious medicinal plant.

With a single look, he could tell that it was the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s. Its entire stalk was translucent like jade and rainbow colors swirled on its surface. The gra.s.s radiated a power Spiritual Qi. From its Spiritual Qi, Qing Shui was able to confirm that it was definitely over 5,000 years old. Although this gra.s.s was only a foot long, it gave people the sensation that it was especially tall and straight. At the tip of its stalk were a few star-like specks of snow white silver grains that looked extremely splendid and magnificent.

Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s, this was the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s!

The lady first picked up the painting. Qing Shui knew that it was a Portrait of Beauty, and it was the eighth one he has seen.

The lady slowly opened it before gawking. Immediately, she looked oddly at Qing Shui, before pa.s.sing it over to him and asking, "Why is there a painting of your wife here?"

Qing Shui gawked and took a look. This was too coincidental&h.e.l.lip;

The woman in the painting had her hair bunned up and her black brows painted a certain gentleness. Her countenance was as radiant as snow reflected on clouds of sunset. Despite lacking makeup, she was as beautiful as the G.o.ddess of Mount Ba and her beautiful eyes looked like ice on a winter day.

Wasn't this the lady in the crystal coffin? This was too coincidental. He had just drawn her in the Azure Cloud Pavilion and now the genuine painting had appeared&h.e.l.lip; It had to be said that in regards to drawing skills, Qing Shui was far too inferior in comparison. In a single painting, the artist was able to make it difficult for people to s.h.i.+ft their gaze. Qing Shui looked at the painting of this woman and stared at those bone-chillingly cold matching beautiful pupils. They were beautiful, akin to ice and snow, pure but cold to the bone.

When Qing Shui thought about the matter that happened between them, he felt a burst of bitterness. It was an indescribable feeling. Looking at the painting again, a complicated expression hung on his face.

The Mu Family girl stood at the side and looked at the absentminded Qing Shui. She felt that this man had become more and more mysterious. Why would the box of the Deity Statue have a painting of his wife?

Although the one he had painted was incomparable to this, the copy he had painted would also be able to fetch an astronomical price. All of this made her feel bewildered.

How does one explain this? Could it be that this man had hidden this painting here?

Only Qing Shui knew the reason. This was a Portrait of Beauty. That woman being one of the Portraits of Beauty was not a strange at all. However, it just so happened that this was too coincidental. Casually, he placed the painting into the Realm of Violet Jade Immortal. Since this lady had misunderstood, he would let her continue to misunderstand.

"Grade Eight Sunstone, increases one's base strength by 200%." The lady took out the high purity blood red stone.

"For you!" said the lady as she threw the stone at Qing Shui.

Qing Shui did not understand why he was giving this stone to her so he looked at her perplexedly.

"It looks like this Deity Statue and you are brought together by fate. First, it has a painting of your wife. This stone is the same as the one I've brought. Since I can only use one, this one is for you. The one you're currently carrying should be the Black Divine Stone(black treasured stone). In the future, I'll find a top-notch forging master to forge it into a weapon for you. Or you can just wear it. My weapon can't be inlaid." The lady's pleasant voice rang out.

Qing Shui looked at the divine stone that looked like a sunstone to him. The red agate in this world might not have the same effect, and it might not even be called a red agate.

"Earth grade peak combat technique 'Raging Blow', suitable for hammers&h.e.l.lip; this is also for you, take it!" the girl exclaimed again as she tossed the book towards him. At this moment, she was actually really depressed. The items within this Deity Statue box seemed unexpectedly be tailored for this man.

Actually, she had been stunned from the start by that painting. This Deity Statue gave her a feeling that these were left for him by his woman&h.e.l.lip;

Especially the last item, the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s.

He had come here specifically to find the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s&h.e.l.lip;

"For you!" Standing up, the girl handed the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s to Qing Shui. Coming to the Sky Penetrating Mountains to search for treasures and finding the Deity Statue, she had felt that she had not come here for naught. Thinking back on the previous time she had been here, not only did she obtained martial arts manuals, she had also obtained the Spiritual Link Divine Sword, the sacred item 'Holy Bracelet' and some mysterious medical pills and a grade eight sunstone&h.e.l.lip;

This time around, if she were to obtain the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s, it would be considered a huge harvest, and an absolutely huge one at that. This kind of heavenly treasure was truly too hard to come across. She honestly wished to keep it for herself and perhaps this gra.s.s was originally hers since she found it first. However, despite this she still handed to Qing Shui for some curious reason.

The Deity Statue this time was comparatively inferior. Why would it contain a painting of a woman? The martial arts manual were also inferior, they were not even at the heaven grade. Only the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s was a good item. However, this man had come here just for the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s. She had felt all along that they should divide the spoils equally and the man came here just for the gra.s.s. In the end, the one who drew the short end of the stick was her. Furthermore, this man seemed to be very mysterious to her. Perhaps this could be considered a gigantic opportunity for her!

Feeling more and more depressed, when she compared this feeling to her previous excitement, the disparity made her feel like vomiting blood.

Qing Shui truly had never thought that this lady would hand over all these items to him. Other than the Eighth Portrait of Beauty, he placed the other four items into the Realm of Violet Jade Immortal. These items were the Grade Eight Sunstone in his hand, the earth grade peak combat technique and the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s that the girl was currently handing over to him.

"Take it. Your luck today is truly good." Although the lady was depressed, she still happily handed the gra.s.s to Qing Shui. Regarding this man, there wasn't any like or dislike, only an intense curiosity.

"I can't obtain such huge benefits for free. These few things are priceless. I'll make an exchange." Qing Shui did not immediately take the Sky Penetrating Gra.s.s offered to him, as he did not like to owe others.

"As long as you agree not to go to the deeper regions of the Sky Penetrating Mountains, all of these will be the reward for your agreement, is that okay?" thinking about it, the girl replied him with a smile.

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