Ancient Strengthening Technique (Web Novel)
chapter-1603

AST 1603 - Arduous Battle, Terrifying Spike and Scissors

The ferocious and furious attacks pressed towards Qing Shui, like the pressure from dark clouds overhead. At that moment, Qing Shui was like a tiny boat in the vast ocean with the waves around him attempting to swallow the boat whole at any moment...

Violent Bull’s Strength Slash!

A trail of smoldering fire swept towards Qing Shui along with the lit baton. The old man had his mind set on eliminating Qing Shui, otherwise, they would be thrown aside by the young man. Not to mention, this young man had declared his intentions of having the members of the Niu Clan rebuild the Imperial Cuisine Hall.

Niu Clan couldn’t afford to lose their pride in this. In addition, their destiny had dictated that they remained adversaries, hence, the best way to go about this was to destroy the root of them all and eliminate the opponent at the bud. The old man knew that if he didn’t kill Qing Shui now, there would only be fewer people who could subdue him in the future. This would be a huge threat to the Demon King’s Inheritance.

Even if it was for the situation that had recently unfolded, he needed to get rid of Qing Shui either way. Thinking this, his attack increased by thrice the vigor. No matter the method, he was bent of killing Qing Shui today.

Bang!

A huge blast resounded and amidst the red glow that covered the sky, Qing Shui's figure evaded once more. Although it looked as though the tiny boat could capsize at any moment or be submerged in the storm, he escaped danger every time.

Demonic Ox King!

All of a sudden, a gigantic wild ox appeared beside the old man. Or rather, it looked similar to an ox but carried an even more domineering presence. It was strong, tall, mighty, domineering, covered by a pelage that looked akin to Fire Scaled Battle Armor. It was more imposing in comparison to Kirins or Fire Lions; it would not be inferior even alongside beasts of the dragon class.

This was the old man's battle beast and his mount—a Demonic Ox King, It was only about fifty meters in size but this could be easily overlooked by the aura it exuded. It was much larger than humans but petite when placed against stronger beasts.

Qing Shui unleashed his Art of Pursuing and Emperor’s Qi the moment the Demonic Ox King appeared. This beast was tamed by the old man and considering the moment he had chosen to summon in; it appears that not everything would be as it seemed.

Roar!

Its roar seemed to tear the sky apart. Qing Shui had never heard such a cry from an ox. It hardly sounded like an ox at all and instead, sounded more like a brutal beast.

The old man was indeed really worthy of being the successor of the Titan Ox Demon King Inheritance; even the beast he tamed was related to an ox. The old man rushed towards Qing Shui right after summoning the Demonic Ox King. But not before the Demonic Ox King did.

Qing Shui called up the Nine Continents Mountain in haste to block and change its trajectory.

Bang!

The Demonic Ox King knocked the Nine Continents Mountain away, then turned nimbly before rushing at Qing Shui again. Its vigor increased by another 30%.

At this time, the old man’s silhouette appeared above Qing Shui, cornering him along with the Demonic Ox King.

It was too late to defend with the Nine Continents Mountain. Qing Shui held his Golden Battle Halberd and abruptly charged towards the Demonic Ox King, exposing his back.

The Dragon Slaying Beast and Qing Shui pushed ahead together while his Hell Nightmare Beast lagged behind. The old man rushed towards Qing Shui with his lit baton.

Bull King Shift!

Qing Shui felt the great threat behind him but disregarded it at this point. The Golden Battle Halberd in his hand went straight for the Demonic Ox King.

Seal of Phoenix!

The Golden Battle Halberd shot a golden Phoenix from its tip. With a flash of a movement, it penetrated into the body of Demonic Ox King.

The Seal of Phoenix was the last combat skill that Qing Shui learned of the Phoenix Form. This combat technique doubles the damage inflicted by attacks, locks its target and interferes with the soul. After its success, it would cause its target to lose focus for an indefinite amount of time.

At its worst, it was still able to cause disturbance to the soul and act as a distraction—just like diverting attention. Such situation could prove to be dangerous in battle and would even be fatal.

Ungh!

A sharp cry sounded upon the tackle. Suddenly, the Demonic Ox King seemed to have fallen into a strange state, acting as though it had forgotten about the battle at hand. Qing Shui saw the struggle in its eyes. At this moment, the Dragon Slaying Beast seized the opportunity and lunged towards their opponent, piercing through its pair of huge eyes.

Boom!

At the same time, the lit baton behind him smashed against Qing Shui. In the midst of the reddened sky, there was a streak of golden light.

Paragon Golden Armor!

Like a cannonball, Qing Shui's body was shot aside but his body didn’t sustain any damage. The streak of golden light had likewise healed his previous injuries. He turned to watch the struggling Demonic Ox King, a glint of compassion flickered in his eyes.

It was a pity that the Demonic Ox King had to die. If it didn’t, he would surely be the one to suffer instead. It was why one couldn’t be soft-hearted at times; those who were soft-hearted would most likely be at a disadvantage. The Dragon Slaying Beast invaded the brain of the Demonic Ox King. Even if the Demonic Ox King had an exceptional ability, it could only await destruction in resignation.

For the first time, the old man's face was filled with sadness and anger. This was the second life of a Beast Tamer; the powerful Demonic Ox King had followed the old man for two thousand years. This time, it died before it had even utilized its full strength.

Qing Shui’s heart ached. In his previous life, he had grown upset by the death of a pet dog which he had raised for a couple of years. For the Demonic Ox King to be with the old man for two thousand years, it must have been considered as kin to the latter; perhaps it had an even closer relationship compared to the younger generation of his family. The kinship had long thinned.

Qing Shui exhaled a sigh of relief after killing the Demonic Ox King, but he still couldn’t let his guard down. He wanted to dawdle; as long as he could drag this out, he would be able to attain victory without question.

He wanted to drag it out but the old man had different plans. The fire baton-like weapon in his hand was gone. It was instead replaced by a thick spike, as well as a pair of enormous golden scissors.

When Qing Shui felt the keen murderous intention from above, the old man had already rushed towards the Hell Nightmare Beast. The spike in his hands pierced with ease into the Hell Nightmare Beast's body.

Roar!

The old man didn’t stop there. The pair of scissors in his hand penetrated as well and at the point of contact, a horrifying sound reverberated. The skin of the Hell Nightmare Beast was torn open, leaving Qing Shui astonished. In his fear, he rushed towards the old man with the Dragon Slaying Beast in tow.

Nine Continents Mountain!

Before he had even reached the old man, his Nine Continents Mountain was already smashing towards the latter. At the same time, Qing Shui summoned the Thunderous Beast. Now, Qing Shui realized just how many great weapons the old freak had up his sleeves. It was terrifying to witness the spike; it must be a Divine Artifact.

Fortunately, Qing Shui had the Thunderous Beast sacrifice a Violet Lightning Strike in exchange to send the Hell Nightmare Beast back to the Realm of the Violet Jade Immortal. The injury wasn’t critical but if it had dragged on any longer, it would be life-threatening. The old man would definitely destroy the Hell Nightmare Beast.

Qing Shui had always thought that the Hell Nightmare Beast's current strength could definitely overcome those below the Divine stage, and it might still have been able to. Unfortunately, there were magical treasures such as the scissors and the spike on this Earth. It was rumored to be made of the legendary Divine Stone of Five Elements Metal, forged by real Phoenix blood. The level of incision was horrifying beyond compare.

He retracted the Thunderous Beast as well but kept the Dragon Slaying Beast. Even with the old man’s golden scissors, the Dragon Slaying Beast couldn't be pierced through easily. It was a metamorphosis from a treasure beast, and inherited this ability.

Qing Shui watched as the old man lunged towards him with the pair of scissors and spike and froze momentarily. With his subconscious, he controlled Nine Continents Mountain as his defense and held out the Gold Needles before dipping them into his own body.

Evoking the bloodline in the body!

Qing Shui had practically not used this before, but today was different. An oversight could mean the end of a life. Fortunately, the speed of the old man had been reduced greatly.

The blood flow in his body was streaming faster. Qing Shui could feel his strength getting stronger than ever before. He clenched the Golden Battle Halberd in his hand as he lunged towards the old man.

Clink, clink!

Qing Shui still retreated. Occasionally Qing Shui could land a hit or two upon the old man and his position each time remained unique, but it wasn’t deadly nor did it land on an acupoint.

Meridians Tapping!

The old man seemed to have detected that Qing Shui didn’t have an intention on tackling his acupoint or vital points, and so he wasn’t too worried either. He had thought that Qing Shui was only hitting him in all the other places because he didn’t have the ability to hit him where it would threaten his life.

Qing Shui had already paralyzed the other before, so the old man wasn’t surprised. Deep in his heart though, he knew that he had to be wary. An accidental stumble would make this his doomsday.

After once, then twice, Qing Shui slowly gathered his own vital energy. During this time, Qing Shui had also been beaten up to the point of sustaining internal injuries, but he could still hold on. Even if he had been injured, it was fortunately not fatal.

The atmosphere below was a deadly stillness. This battle had surpassed everyone's expectations. Qin Qing watched on intently and nervously. Each time Qing Shui got a beating or incurred injury by the other's weapon, her heart ached. She was worried that the very scenario she dreaded would unfold before her eyes...

The atmosphere within the Imperial Cuisine Hall was tense as well. The same applied for the Niu Clan; even Lei Ming had calmed down. With such a battle between Qing Shui and the Niu Clan’s ancestor, his loss wasn’t unjust either. He was caught in a dilemma—as much as he wanted the Niu Clan ancestor to win, he didn’t want them to beat Qing Shui that easily. Regardless, his heart seemed to have a sensation of revival.

Puu!

Qing Shui regurgitated another mouthful of blood. The old man's spike pierced through Qing Shui’s left shoulder and the severe pain caused Qing Shui's eyebrows to squeeze together.

Everyone in the Imperial Cuisine Hall was unnerved. Qin Qing's eyes glistened, her hands clasped tightly together without her realizing it, and she stepped forward before she could stop herself.

“Go to Hell!”

The old man's scissors grew in size without warning and sliced at Qing Shui's neck. The sharp spike in his hands aimed towards Qing Shui’s heart.

Qing Shui widened suddenly. There was a slight movement in his stature before he retreated back a distance, evading out of his opponent's range of attack. On the other hand, the old man suddenly realized that his body was spasming out of his own control, his limbs grew stiff suddenly…

Meridians Tapping!

The attacks that Qing Shui had previously landed, suddenly emerged. As the old man fell into a trance, Qing Shui’s body emitted a stream of light and the old man watched as it entered his forehead. A searing pain started from the point of contact. Reaching out his hand stiffly, he felt the small hole in his head, followed by an unbearable pain in his mind, as though his brain was being torn apart.

The old man could no longer maintain his calm composure; his hands gripped his head.

First, the Dragon Slaying Beast had done in his Demonic Ox King by the brain, and now, something peculiar had penetrated his own. He felt as though he was dying, but he was still indignant. It was almost dazzling when he looked at the young man in front of him, with critical wounds littering his body, drenched in blood.