The Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 1441 - Miraculous Golden Battle Halberd, Battle God Inheritance, Battle God's Wish

One death was just the beginning. The next few victims were quickly killed off in an instant. Two people from the Wild Ghost Valley had died as well. Before half the time to burn a stick of incense passed, they were forced to retreat due to the ineffectiveness of their attacks against the stone giants...

The remaining others were shocked and angry at the same time when they realized many of their comrades had either died or been severely injured. But they couldn't do anything about it, as many had been sacrificed in vain. All they could do at that moment was to look at the members of the Demon Lord Palace helplessly.

"How about it? Do you still want to try?" Qing Shui gazed at both the Divine Beast Sect and Wild Ghost Valley. He didn't sound like he was mocking their efforts or being contemptuous - it was just a simple question.

The Lu Brothers from the Divine Beast Sect were still alive, but they had lost one of their demonic beasts. They looked at Qing Shui with hearts filled with anger, only to be ignored completely. The Four Great Evil Powers would probably fight each other one day, and both the Divine Beast Sect and Wild Ghost Valley already havd ample information of each other should that day come.

"We don't want any part of this anymore." The old man named Chi said calmly.

"Since you don't want to be part of it, then shouldn't you leave now?" Qing Shui smiled at the old man.

"I wonder if we can take a look at how you drove back these stone giants." Old Man Chi pondered for a while before he asked Qing Shui in a serious tone.

"That's right; we will not intervene. If you can knock back these stone giants and get the stone coffin, we will not take any action against you. Besides, we Four Great Powers are considered to be on the same boat." The leader of the Wild Ghost Valley said.

"Alright! If you like observing so much, then observe carefully. However, I want you to understand that if anyone has any funny ideas, I will not show mercy." Qing Shui then rushed towards one of the stone giants as soon as he was done talking.

In the end, after passing the stone coffin around, the coffin would still land in Qing Shui's hands. Even though he knew that this would be the result, he didn't think that the Joyous Sage was quite intelligent. He had actually taken the initiative to give up on the stone coffin.

The Demon Lord rushed into the battle as well. Hua Rumei, on the other hand, did not move at all. She was quite uncertain because she noticed that Qing Shui and Demon Lord's powers had increased significantly. Nevertheless, she was still happy for them.

Qing Shui did not hold back as he performed all sorts of debuffing skills against the stone giant and buffed his ally.

Shluck!

The Demon Lord's Supreme Devil Equipment Bloodsword swiftly pierced through the head of a stone giant. Before the stone giant could retaliate, she quickly distanced herself and sought another opportunity to inflict damage. With the combination of the Nine Stances of Ancient Divine Battle Technique and her Supreme Devil Equipment, it was much easier to deal with those stone giants now. As long as they were able to break through their defenses, it would be like child's play. Qing Shui pinned down the other stone giant with just his Nine Continents Mountain and the Dragon Slaying Beast.

Qing Shui didn't call out his Golden Scaled Dragon Elephant and his Hellfire Phoenix, which was why he had been struggling with the stone giant for a while. Demon Lord had already eliminated one stone giant, and immediately after that, her second, and then her third…

When four stone giants had tumbled to the ground, the others were stunned. She was actually quite fast and strong. The Divine Beast Sect and Wild Ghost Valley were well-aware of the stone giants' power, yet these giants had been easily defeated at the hands of these people. What kind of power was this?

Some of them were able to sense the enhancement to Demon Lord's power, which wasn't just as simple as doubling her power. None of them could even catch up to her strength and it was certainly terrifying. With that, their little schemes were promptly shattered to the ground.

"You should all retreat now, right?" Qing Shui grinned at them.

The members of the Divine Beast Sect sighed and subsequently went outside with the members of the Wild Ghost Valley together. The Divine Sound Sect also followed suit, and before they went outside, they gestured to Qing Shui and the others in courtesy. Shen Ling's gaze, on the other hand, was filled with hidden bitterness and begrudgement. Qing Shui could only flash an awkward smile to them as they left.

In the end, Qing Shui would still be the one to open the coffin. He offered the two ladies to the chance to open it first, but Demon Lord instantly refused his offer while Hua Rumei expressed her fear of opening it.

After all, this matter was of high importance and this stemmed from the respect they had for Battle God. Qing Shui bowed and paid his respects to the stone coffin before he extended his arm to push open the cover of the coffin slowly.

Qing Shui was being extremely cautious just to prevent any unforeseen circumstances from occurring. In any case, he still had to be careful as he slowly opened the cover from one side. When the coffin was fully open, besides a three-meter long Golden Battle Halberd sitting inside, Qing Shui could see nothing else.

Golden Battle Halberd!

Qing Shui was dubious. Were these powerful stone giants placed here just to protect the Golden Battle Halberd?

He thought that there might be at least a stone figure or some sort of other thing inside the stone coffin. However, there wasn't even a real person inside, let alone a fake one. The only thing inside was this Golden Battle Halberd. Qing Shui then reached out slowly to take the halberd.

The battle halberd was the most violent weapon with the highest lethality to exist. Suddenly, Qing Shui had a feeling that this weapon might actually exist because of the Nine Stances of Ancient Divine Battle Technique.

At the exact moment when Qing Shui held the Golden Battle Halberd in his hand, a wave of violent thoughts rushed into Qing Shui's consciousness and corroded his mind with high intensity.

Possession?

Qing Shui panicked. This Golden Battle Halberd actually harbored a powerful Divine Sense inside it. All the steps he took had led to a trap. Everything had been set up so that he could be possessed and reborn as another person.

The formidable Divine Sense was corroding Qing Shui's sea of consciousness while at the same time dispersing memories that did not belong to Qing Shui into it. However, these memories weren't important. What's most important now was to kill this Divine Sense, otherwise his body would switch ownership. If that happened, his body would still remain the same, but his consciousness would not be his own - he would be an entirely different person.

"Young man, there's no need to resist. I'm not trying to take over your body. This is my inheritance." A frail old voice rang out.

"How can I trust you?" Qing Shui said coldly.

"You have the Yin-Yang Image and Golden Star protecting your body. I won't be able to possess you. In fact, if you sense my memory for a bit, there are only a few memories involving battle techniques. If I possess you, I will become an idiot. Do you think I want to be an idiot? When you receive my inheritance, I hope you can help me fulfill my wish." The frail voice rang out once more.

Qing Shui sensed those memories and found out that most of them contained the Nine Stances Ancient Divine Battle Technique and a mass of unyielding Battle God's Qi. He realized that this voice was telling the truth. In reality, Qing Shui wasn't scared at all because he still had his Marrow Nibbling Golden Dragon Silkworm inside his body. If he couldn't hold on any longer, he would let this silkworm kill his consciousness instead.

"What is it?"

Qing Shui wanted to obtain this Battle God Inheritance, too. He was hoping that this voice would give him a task that wasn't difficult to handle.

"The Ancient Battle Gods have fallen and the Demon Gods are now in power. I hope that you get in contact with the descendants of the Ancient Battle Gods in the near future and stride toward a glorious victory against those Demon Gods. Of course, this is my own injustice. It doesn't matter if you are willing to do it or whether you are able to achieve it." The old man said softly.

"I promise to do my best. However, I can't guarantee you how completely I will be able to fulfill that wish." Qing Shui considered his request carefully before he gave his reply.

"I am already satisfied. Once you take my inheritance, you will learn a little information about the Ancient Battle Gods. Release your spiritual sense and accept my Battle God's Qi!"

Qing Shui released his spiritual sense and instantaneously a ray of golden light appeared on his body. A golden halo enveloped Qing Shui, making him seem like a giant golden cocoon.

"Is he alright?" Hua Rumei asked softly. There was a sign of worry plastered between her brows.

"This form of energy is pure. He might have encountered an opportunity." Demon Lord gently replied. However, there were lines slightly wrinkled between her eyebrows too. Clearly, she was a bit worried as well.

Qing Shui felt his entire body itch. Only his brain remained clear and bright. Should he sense an inevitable danger to his body, he would immediately issue an order to the Marrow Nibbling Golden Dragon Silkworm situated at the Central Palace Blood Essence Pool.

He was still fine. Everything went smoothly from the beginning to the end. However, his power had received a huge boost. No wonder those with inheritances would always be powerful without regards to their age.

Within this span of time, Qing Shui's power had improved significantly. As for how much it had improved, no one had a clue, but it had probably reached about the same level of Demon Lord's power, due to the ability of this Golden Battle Halberd to increase one's power. Moreover, this weapon would not clash with the paragon vessel's weapon. Most importantly, there was Battle God's Qi inside Qing Shui's Qi of Ancient Strengthening Technique.

On the other hand, he had already mastered the Nine Stances of Divine Battle Technique as he had absorbed its knowledge completely. This was the inheritance the Battle God had bequeathed to him. However, this technique wasn't as powerful as it was during the time period where the Battle God had been at its peak. But to Qing Shui right now, this technique was certainly terrifying.

Demon Lord only cultivated one move - which was barely considered to be at the level of introduction - and it was already quite impressive. Qing Shui had now mastered the Nine Stances and could be considered to be in the large success stage. The distance to the Small Perfection Stage was just a step away.

Qing Shui didn't know when he had regained his consciousnes, but when he did, he was already wielding the Golden Battle Halberd in his hand. He had already gained the understanding of this Ancient Divine Artifact.

Golden Battle Halberd!

Invincible against barrier: As long as one's power had reached the stage where one could penetrate extremely robust defenses and protective armor, the penetrating ability would be raised by six fold.

This was easily understandable. For example, the power of ten thousand sun could generally penetrate a defense or armor of fifty thousand sun.

Absolute penetration: There would be a 1% chance to activate absolute penetration. This weapon could penetrate anything disregarding other factors.

When he saw this attribute, Qing Shui felt that this weapon was too fearsome. If the Dragon Slaying Beast were to be hit with this chance, it would be penetrated without a doubt.

When using the Nine Stances of Ancient Divine Battle Technique, the chances of absolute penetration would be tripled, increasing its chance to 3%.

Qing Shui was more elated when he saw this ability. No wonder the Battle God was able to become extremely formidable with just the Nine Stances of Ancient Divine Battle Technique and the Golden Battle Halberd. Of course, this wasn't without reason either. If this 3% chance were to appear, he could at least cripple all the aspects of an incoming attack. Even the initial weapon used to attack him could be destroyed as well. If his opponent were to be hit by his attack, he would be at the very least severely injured.

This technique would increase the user's physical strength by six times. It would only increase physical attacks and not the attacks using spiritual energy. Furthermore, this technique would not affect anything else.

Qing Shui's mouth was wide agape. All this time, he had felt that he was not physically strong enough or lethal enough. But now it was all good - too good, to be honest. He had been solely depending on the Phoenix Finger in the past, but now, not only was he in possession of the Phoenix Finger, but also he possessed the almighty Nine Stances of Ancient Divine Battle Technique.

After doing a careful analysis of his strength, he realized that had finally reached 2000 sun of power, which was the result of gaining 700 sun. Even though the inheritance of 700 sun from the Battle God Inheritance wasn't much, this inheritance was all Battle God's Qi. The result of this increase had to do with his own condition. If it were other people, he had no idea how much power they would be able to inherit from the Battle God Inheritance.

Qing Shui was extremely satisfied. His physical strength had reached about ten million sun. However, he needed to also consider the additional stats from the Golden Battle Halberd now, which meant that his strength had actually sextupled, reaching the total of sixty million sun.

Qing Shui's heart leapt. He used the Nine Continents Mountain but found out that it was still at the power of 3000 sun. It seemed like the Golden Battle Halberd was the reason that he had only gained physical strength instead. Thirty million sun was already considered as a huge amount. It was nimble and could be used as a shield - it had a wide range of uses. Moreover, it could be combined with the Nine Continents Mountain to make an attack. With this combination, the amount of power unleashed would be more than thirty million sun.

Qing Shui's attack using spiritual energy was able to reach eight million sun of power. Even though he couldn't compare this to Demon Lord's power, he felt that there wasn't much difference. Besides, he still had other strong techniques in his arsenal that he could use in a battle.

This stone coffin was truly the greatest treasure he had ever received. It really had given Qing Shui a big surprise as he had unexpectedly received the Battle God Inheritance.