Ancient Strengthening Technique

449 Condition, The Return of Mingyue Gelou

“Old Tan, what do we do?” The slightly younger elderly man asked anxiously.

“Save Yang’er at all cost!”

“Roger!”

……..

Qing Shui was patiently trying to hit the Iron Spine Falcon that was soaring in the air with stones. Nothing was impossible for a willing heart. He eventually managed to hit the eyes of the Iron Spine Falcon, and it was then slapped to the ground by the Fire Bird’s enormous wings.

The Demonic Diamond Boar immediately dashed towards it like a gust of wind and started wrecking it. Anguished screeches rang out but were soon enough silenced.

The remaining Iron Spin Falcon didn’t last long either as it was quickly roasted to a crisp by the Fire Bird’s Violet flames. Fire Bird let out a reverberating cry, as if it was declaring its victory.

Qing Shui beckoned forth his Demonic Diamond Boar which was now twice its previous size with a smile. It was approaching Tan Yang, who couldn’t stand up in the distance.

“Don’t kill me…” Tan Yang trembled when he saw the Diamond Demonic Boar already sprinting towards him.

Tan Yang had lost count of how many times he had sent this Demonic Diamond Boar flying earlier and made it shriek miserably in pain. So now, even without Qing Shui’s order, it would immediately sprint towards him. It opened its jaw wide and bit onto Tan Yang’s hand as it was exposed!

Ka-cha!

“AAHHHH!”

“Good sir, please have mercy…..” A yell rang out urgently from below the arena. Unfortunately, Tan Yang’s hand was already badly mangled beyond recognition.

Qing Shui summoned his Diamond Demonic Boar back with a smile and gave a look of suspicion to the elderly man below. The elderly man’s hair was gray. He had a pair of deep eyes and looked wise.

“Sir, there’s a rule in the arena too. Why don’t you tell us on what condition you are willing to spare Tan Yang’s life?” The elderly man spoke in a neutral tone. His voice was very comfortable to listen to.

“Condition?” Qing Shui stared at the elderly man without batting an eyelid.

“Yes, though on the arena you have every right to kill him right now. However, we can negotiate. If you are willing to spare his life, we will fulfil some of your conditions. What do you think?” The elderly man calmly pointed out at Qing Shui.

Qing Shui was going to outright reject the offer. Since wiping out the Sword Tower was part of his future plan, there was no reason to spare this Tan Yang. Furthermore, it would be difficult to dispel the hatred in his heart if he didn’t kill him.

Then he suddenly remembered Mingyue Gelou!

He wasn’t capable enough to save her back then. For him to wipe out the Sword Tower, he’d at least need a few years or even longer. So when the elderly man allowed him to set his conditions, his heart raced.

“I only have one condition!” Qing Shui looked at the elder.

“What is it, good sir? As long as it is within our capability, we will agree,” the elder smiled at Qing Shui and secretly felt relieved.

“Sever his ties with Mingyue Gelou. From now on, he has nothing to do with Mingyue Gelou and Little Yuchang,” Qing Shui softly said.

“T-This… can it be something else?” The elderly man instantly looked troubled.

This was because this kind of thing was a great humiliation in the World of the Nine Continents.

Qing Shui summoned the Demonic Diamond Boar!

It immediately went off and chewed on Tan Yang’s other hand until it was beyond recognition!

“Ahhh, I will agree. I will agree to your terms……”

“15 minutes. If I still don’t see them, I shall kill him,” Qing Shui asserted.

“Hurry, Uncle Yao. Hurry…”

The elder named Uncle Yao quickly left!

“Who is Mingyue Gelou?”

“Who is Little Yuchang?”

“You guys didn’t know about this, right?” a middle-aged shorty sneered.

“And you do?”

……...

Many instantly crowded over with questions.

“Keep quiet everyone, let us listen to this man first!” A tall and powerful looking man reprimanded in his deep voice.

“Mingyue Gelou is officially the wife of Tan Yang, and Little Yuchang is his daughter!” The middle-aged shorty blurted out. Perhaps he was intimidated by the sight of the towering man.

“His wife and child?”

“Isn’t he with that woman from Hai Clan?”

“Why would Qing Shui want his wife and child?”

……..

“Shiya, you should have given up by now,” Hai Long gently said to a girl standing on his right.

The girl had a height that wouldn’t lose to an ordinary man and a full body figure. She had shapely eyebrows and almond eyes. She could waver any heart every time she blinked those large eyes with those long and dark lashes.

Her skin was soft and delicate. Her lovely nose was sharp and straight, as if carved out from white jade. She pursed up her little red lips as she watched Tan Yang who was on the arena. Her delicate body was quivering.

“I know about it, but I still like him. Brother, am I foolish?” The girl murmured while looking towards the arena, her big eyes were filled with tears.

“There’s no such thing as right or wrong in love, or foolish or not foolish. No matter what you do for the sake of the person you like, as long as you are willing, then it’s okay. This is also why your brother supports you. I didn’t even stop you though I knew he is a cold and ruthless man. I want you to realise and see for yourself what kind of a man he is.” Hai Long told the girl with a smile.

“Thank you, brother!” Her beautiful smiling face was unable to conceal that trace of loneliness behind it.

“Shiya, even you deceive yourself when it comes love. Seems like love is indeed a hurtful thing!” Hai Long looked up at the arena with a frown.

“Brother, you will understand when you meet someone who would make you deceive yourself someday. Even though it could be difficult to bear, I still feel very blessed.” Hai Shiya absent-mindedly said.

Fifteen minutes quickly passed. The cry of a flying beast that looked like an eagle filled the sky. Then a woman and a little girl appeared.

The woman was shabbily dressed, yet this was unable to conceal her beauty, especially her holy and dignified aura. It was a pity that there were some bloody scars on her face. She was dressed in old and shabby garments, her face was also covered in dirt.

Mingyue Gelou!

The little girl holding her hand wasn’t any better. Her small face was filthy. No words could describe the heartache from seeing her little pitiful appearance!

Qing Shui’s heart ached. The pain in his heart was enough to make his whole body tremble. He had already expected this to happen because the Tan Clan was an influential clan. For all the young master of Tan Clan’s woman had done, nothing good would come out of being brought back. Even if she was an unwanted woman of the Tan Clan, they would make sure no other man would touch her.

Mingyue Gelou was clueless as to why she was brought here all of a sudden. This place was crowded. Even if she was a Xiantian cultivator, being here still made her a little uncomfortable.

Little Yuchang huddled within Mingyue Gelou’s arms tightly as she observed the crowd around her with frightened eyes.

Qing Shui watched Mingyue Gelou as she walked over. He was guessing that they didn’t have enough time to allow her and the little lass to change their clothes due to the tight schedule. This had clearly shown Qing Shui how Mingyue Gelou had been living and how much she had suffered.

“Mother, will that bad guy beat us again? I miss daddy,” Little Yuchang’s tender voice was very soft, yet it resonated far and wide.

“Yuchang is a big girl, be strong and obedient. Mother will stay by your side always.”

The gentle voice resonated within the heart of many.

“Who the f*ck could be this heartless enough to torture this pair of mother and daughter? Are they even human?” Someone yelled in a loud voice.

This voice was like a stone that was thrown into the calm waters. Although it didn’t generate violent waves, it was enough to generate ripples that could gently spread to every single corner.

“It could be Tan Yang’s wife!”

“What? This beast could actually bring himself to do this?”

“This is too inhumane! The child is innocent! How could they even do this to their own flesh and blood? The Tan Clan is lower than an animal!”

……...

“Shiya, do you still like Tan Yang now?” Hai Long gently asked the question again.

“I don’t know. I feel so conflicted,” Hai Shiya replied in agony.

“It’s normal to feel conflicted. For you to say that you don’t know how you feel means Tan Yang’s position in your heart has changed. Remember, if our Hai Clan lost the influence we have today, you will end up like that girl.” Hai Long chuckled. No one knew if he was rejoicing or laughing wryly.

Hai Shiya understood what he meant. However, sometimes one would still want to persist even when they knew it was a mistake. It was like dying horribly with no regrets.

The whole arena and its surroundings were in a chaotic situation. Animated discussion could be heard everywhere!

The face of that elderly man of Tan Clan from Sword Tower darkened. It was uncertain if he would still want to rescue Yang’er at all cost if he had known that Qing Shui would come up with such a condition.

“Daddy! Mother, look it’s daddy! It’s Daddy!” Little Yuchang exclaimed cheerfully as soon as she lifted her head and saw Qing Shui who was on the arena.

Her exclamation instantly caused an uproar!

“Whoa, damn this guy is admirable! He actually cuckolded the Tan Clan!”

“All hail this guy. He has not only cuckolded him but also actually fought him today to openly take them away.”

“I’m feeling extremely sorry for this Tan Yang guy right now……”

………

“Did you bring the stuff?!” Qing Shui asked the elderly man who walked up.

“Please have a look!” The elderly man handed over a small box to Qing Shui!

Qing Shui opened it slowly and saw Tan Yang and Mingyue Gelou’s wedding documents along with some other things in it. He immediately applied a little force with his hands!

Bang!

The small box was immediately crushed!

“From now on, Mingyue Gelou and Yuchang are no longer related to the Tan Clan!” Qing Shui softly announced. But he didn’t say anything else. He had only liberated Mingyue Gelou in front of all these people.

“Yes, yes. She is no longer related to me.”

Trying not to pass out, he promptly responded to Qing Shui. Tan Yang had suffered excessive blood loss and sustained critical injuries that disintegrated his dantian and meridians. There was probably no one who could heal him in this World of the Nine Continents.

Mingyue Gelou stayed below the arena and didn’t go up from there. Tears were streaming down her cheeks while the little lass kept shouting for her daddy.

She had never thought that this day would come so soon. She watched the man on the arena, his upper torso was completely drenched in fresh blood while his face was already drained of all colour.

“Sir, can we leave now?” The elderly man asked Qing Shui.

Qing Shui nodded. It no longer mattered to him whether Tan Yang could survive, because even if he did, he would only be a useless cripple. However, he was still very certain that the Sword Tower and the Tan Clan would never let him get away with this.

The elderly man had Tan Yang in his arms and quickly carried him off the arena. Tan Yang had a very complicated look in his eyes when he passed by Mingyue Gelou. There was bitter resentment, unwillingness, and humiliation.

However, the look in his eyes unexpectedly softened when he saw Little Yuchang who held onto Mingyue Gelou’s arm. As if being able to sense it, the elderly man slowed down his footsteps.

Tan Yang didn’t say anything. He just silently watched her for awhile before softly saying, “Let us be off.”

……...

“Haha, Qing Shui is really too powerful. He is indeed the pride of our Starmoon Hall!”

“Qing Shui is the bane of Sword Tower. He has greatly humiliated the Sword Tower.”

“Showing off one’s ability may not necessarily be a good thing to do. Haven’t you heard that the tallest tree in a forest is always the first to be blown down by the wind [1]?” An elderly man shook his head with a sigh.

“I don’t think so, grandfather. Do you think the Heavenly Palace would allow anything happen to Qing Shui after this?” A refined youth grinned.

“Stupid brat, don’t you know that there is no such thing as an absolute defense?” The elderly man scolded.

“True, true. Since grandfather is old, you are always right!”

……….

Canghai Mingyue and Huoyun Liu-Li were already standing by Mingyue Gelou’s side. They had quite a strong and favourable opinion of this woman whom they’ve previously spent some time with before. This was because she had almost no flaws, or at least they hadn’t seen any yet.

Only Qing Shui could understand Mingyue Gelou. However, her emotional support was not him but rather the little lass in her arms. She was her flesh and bones. As long as the little lass was around, she would be strong. She was able to live strongly because her pillar of support was the little lass.

“Let’s go. We should return first.” Canghai Mingyue told Mingyue Gelou with a smile.

“Alright, thank you!”

Qing Shui slowly climbed down the arena. He felt extremely exhausted right at this moment, yet it was as if some burden was lifted off his shoulders. Both the Demonic Diamond Boar and Fire Bird had been put away back into the Realm of Violet Jade Immortal.

No one stopped Qing Shui, and he wasn’t challenged again. No one wanted to be the second Zuo Shandiao. Qing Shui sighed in relief as soon as he had gotten off the stage.

He was well aware of his current condition. If another Martial Grade 10 cultivator challenged him, he was going to suffer a defeat. After all, his body was not made of steel and he was a little dizzy from the excessive blood loss.

When walked away from the arena, he was showered by applause and cheers. They were not only from the Starmoon Hall but almost the entire Heavenly Palace. Even the other sects seemed to be showering him in accolades too.

……...

Qing Shui returned to Cang Wuya’s residence because he knew that the two ladies had brought Mingyue Gelou there. As expected, he could see the three ladies and Little Yuchang from a distance.

After getting the dirt washed off them, Mingyue Gelou and Little Yuchang looked like different people compared to earlier! But there were still some faint scars and bruises on their faces.

“Daddy!”

Little Yuchang flung herself into Qing Shui’s arms!

Qing Shui could only hold the little lass in his arms because he didn’t want her to touch the bloodstains on his body. He smilingly tossed her into the air two times. The little lass had so much fun that she couldn’t stop giggling.

“Play with your mother first, lass. I will play with you after I get changed.”

Although Cang Wuya’s residence had only three floors, there were quite a lot of rooms. Even with Qing Shui and the two ladies having each a room for themselves, there were still quite a number of empty rooms.

The moment he saw Mingyue Gelou, who was watching him with a smile, Qing Shui felt extremely serene in his heart. He wanted to so badly pull her into a tender embrace.

------------------------

Translator Note:

[1] A metaphor that an outstanding person is a target of jealousy and criticism.