The Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 2383 - Arrival at the Forsaken Earth Region, Dark Fatty

The returns were still substantial this time around. Qing Shui received one hundred and eighty billion dao force, reaching four hundred and eighty billion Dao in might.

Qing Shui's might was now at four hundred and eighty billion Dao and 4.8 trillion Dao of defense.

The Heavenly Fate Treasure Pagoda of Defense increased it by about 20%, and so he reached 5.86 trillion Dao.

The Heavenly Fate Treasure Pagoda of Violence and the Parry Heavenly Fate Treasure Pagoda added another four hundred and eighty billion Dao of resistance. Qing Shui ended up with 6.34 trillion Dao of defense.

Qing Shui's Divine Weapon, Flying Swords could additionally reduce damage by 5.4 billion Dao, which contributed to his defense, increasing it to approximately 6.3454 trillion Dao.

In addition, the attributes of the Battle God Halo, his formations, Area Dominance, and battle techniques allowed Qing Shui to take his defense to another level.

This was his defense, the terrifying factor of Qing Shui's Stellar Transposition's might. The ability was the scariest in that it could bypass defense and cause damage. Moreover, with his Emperor's Might Brilliant Dao and Royal's Qi pellet, it would be almost impossible for him to be suppressed by someone's aura. Hence, his Stellar Transposition would be a huge threat even for people who were stronger than Qing Shui.

Apart from that, there was also the Berserk Dragon Fist. Its might had also developed with its attack surpassing 9 trillion Dao. This was all thanks to the Heavenly Fate Treasure Pagoda of Violence and the Vitality Treasure Pagoda. The others didn't have an effect as they were already an add-on.

Qing Shui improved and so had the others, especially Massacre Battle God and Co. Massacre Battle God progressed the fastest and treated Qing Shui like his master. What he had now was all given by Qing Shui.

Not just Massacre Battle God, there was still Frail Battle God and the others who achieved what they had because of him.

It was no wonder that Massacre Battle God was one of the strongest battle gods, though his abilities were still a far cry from Qing Shui's at this moment. After all, Qing Shui had just made a drastic progress, but he would soon catch up to Qing Shui.

Besides Massacre Battle God, the others were making great progress as well. Qing Shui had some pellets which they could use when the time came. He also taught them some of the fist techniques without reservation.

For example, Massacre Battle God picked up Windwhisk Willow and improved his battle abilities by leaps and bounds.

Their group was growing stronger. With the combination of Qing Shui's supplementary abilities, they weren't all that far behind anymore.

This was also the reason for Qing Shui's decision to leave. Crystal City was like a dream. It was incomparably beautiful, but it wasn't a reason for him to stop either. However, he might make a trip back here someday or even relocate the Qing Clan to this area.

Qing Shui didn't encounter any great demons at the Demon King Domain; even they were avoiding Qing Shui. He speculated that this generation of gifted demons weren't at the Demon King Domain anymore, either. They might have advanced towards the Forsaken Earth Region, the Forsaken Heaven Region, or maybe even the Upper Three Regions.

Qing Shui bid his farewell to the Water Emperor. He was now the son-in-law of the Water Emperor, and the Water Nation was well-fortified now. Nobody within the Water Nation would be able to shake the Nalan Clan's position. It was a pity that Qing Shui had yet to meet the Water Nation's Guardian Beast, the Crystal Dragon.

Forsaken Earth Region!

He returned home for a few days after his departure. With the convenience, Qing Shui had been returning frequently during this period as well.

Hence, right after he returned to the Demon King Domain, Qing Shui advanced towards the Forsaken Earth Region.

Qing Shui wished to head straight to the Forsaken Heaven Region. However, he was thinking of exploring a bit while he still had the stamina to do so.

Chaos City wasn't anywhere near the Forsaken Earth Region. However, as it was near the North, it wasn't long before he left the Demon King Domain and entered that area between the two.

This time, Qing Shui brought everyone from the Divine Palace. Nalan Qing had left but if she had stayed, Qing Shui would have brought her along, too. Unless Nalan Qing didn't want to, of course.

The area between the two domains was extremely dangerous, but it was nothing to Qing Shui and his companions. The demonic beasts in this area were powerful, but they were still drastically lacking against those found within the divine area. The demonic beasts were swept aside by them.

Now, Primordial Dragon Elephant, Dragon Spider, and Beihuang Fan's Ancient Blue Topaz Leopard had practically dominated the place. Even a beast tide would be exterminated to a flat land by them. This wouldn't have been possible in the past. After all, the sheer number of beasts in a beast tide would have swallowed them.

Two months had passed when they, at last, spotted the hazy silhouette of the Forsaken Earth Region.

This was obviously only achievable with the effort of the Nine Continents Steps, all relying on Qing Shui's ability. The rest of the time was spent on cultivating. Actually, some of the stronger warriors had treasures like Qing Shui's Nine Continents Steps Boots, such as a deluxe version of the Shrinking Ruler.

The Shrinking Ruler was a common Divine Artifact in the Main Continent, used to hasten the journey of cultivators. The lower grade ones could advance by a thousand miles with each use, once every hour. Those of higher grade could cover tens to hundreds of miles with a variety of cooldown periods between uses. They could only be used to hasten journeys, and the cooldown between each use would usually be about a minute or so.

Apart from that, there was also the assistance of teleportation formations. Actually, there was one between the Demon King Domain and the Forsaken Earth Region, but Qing Shui didn't use it. With his current strength, he should have been able to do it. However, he had the Nine Continents Steps, and there was no harm in delaying their journey. The extra time could be used to train, to teach those around him new knowledge. Who knows, maybe they would stumble upon something good on their way, too.

Unfortunately, they didn't stumble upon luck on their way and could already spot a city by the edge of the Forsaken Earth Region from afar. It was huge and magnificent. Even though it was at the edge, it didn't affect its grandeur.

Places at the edge usually belonged to two extremes; they either flourished or were sunk in poverty. The mountains were too high, and their rulers were too far away. Hence, it was beyond their means to help. Which was why its progress was dependent on their resident's effort.

Boulder City!

That was the city's name, and it looked just as dignified and extravagant. They used boulders, a type of extremely sturdy rock, to build it up. This was especially the case for boulders in the Nine Continents, and architecture was likewise its greatest usage.

Boulder City was a flourishing city. Qing Shui could feel its profound aura the moment they stepped into it. It was an aura of history and culture. Even though they were at the outer edge, the city was bustling and he could even feel that they all had some form of cultivation.

It was common to witness such a scene in cities on the fringe. Those who stayed here would usually have cultivation. People would usually leave after some time, along with some cases of casualties. Hence, the number of people without cultivation would slowly dwindle with time.

If that was the case, then the number of people should have likewise decreased. In actuality, the reason for such a bustling crowd was the transient population among them. There was a never-ending crowd of people heading in and out of the city: merchants, warriors, adventurers, hunters, those studying away from home, and so on.

Qing Shui and his company didn't stick out like a sore thumb in Boulder City. The two women had already donned something akin to bamboo hats. Shielding their beauty could save them some trouble as well. Not that Qing Shui was afraid of it, but neither did he wish to deal with unnecessary troubles.

"Members of Demon Gate?" Qing Shui observed a middle-aged fatty from afar, a Dark Fatty. He didn't expect to find a Demon King Inheritor in Boulder City.

Qing Shui didn't know if this was a good thing yet. They were at the Forsaken Earth Region, so he had nothing to worry about. However, since he bumped into one, he decided he would still check if there was a Demon Gate here, or if they had merged with the local Divine Palace.