Ancient Strengthening Technique - Chapter 2338

Chapter 2338

AST 2338 – Water Nation, Water Emperor, Duke Palace, Heishui City

Clatter, clatter…

It was then when a clatter of hasty beast hooves sounded . Dust lifted and filled the air a distance away, as a big group of demonic beast riders headed towards them .

Qing Shui didn’t manage to adapt to the situation momentarily . He didn’t know what was going on, but all was answered with a look at the villager’s expression . Could it be that these were bandits?

“What are these ruthless devils doing here? Young lad, you better leave . Go to the back . These people are merciless in their murders . ” The old village chief told Qing Shui in haste .

“Elder, who are these people? What are they doing here?” Qing Shui didn’t leave and had instead asked calmly .

“They are the Black Armored Army . We’ve only heard about them before . They are the army of the Water Nation on the surface but are just bandits at the core . They burn, murder and plunder, there’s nothing evil they wouldn’t do . Countless of secluded villages have been annihilated by them . They robbed them of their women and riches and killed the old and weak . Whereas the young and strong were sold to the labor market,” The old man sighed and said .

As the stomping sound gradually slowed down, these people stopped moving forward, and the dust around them began to settle .

“Sirs, I wonder what business you have at my village?” the village chief asked as he approached slowly .

“Old thing, hand over all the beast skins, bones, money, and your young women . Otherwise, don’t blame us for not being courteous,” The leader, a black-faced man, who had donned a full-body black armor, said coldly .

The old village chief was startled as though he wanted to say something but couldn’t let it out .

Piak!

The man landed his whip on the elder’s face . “Old thing, don’t spout nonsense . If you make me lose my patience, I’ll kill you all . ”

“How dare you hit my Father! You have a death wish!” With that, a man holding an iron rod lunged towards the black-armored man .

These people were all riding on Wind Pursuing Beasts, a type of black beast which looked like horses, except a few times bigger . They were strong and fast, able to cover thousands of miles when traversing in day time . The man’s iron rod created an arc towards the black-armored man .

A howling of wind sounded as it cut through the air . The attack was child’s play to the black-armored man though . Without a blink of an eye, disdain slipped through his demeanor when he looked at the aggressor as though the latter was an ant .

Thereafter, the whip in his hand filled the sky with its traces, wailing as it slashed toward the man .

“Since you are so ignorant about life and death, then let me fulfill your wish!”

“Hu Zi, step back . Don’t make any moves . ” The village chief knew that these people were ruthless killers .

Once they angered these people, they would not show mercy to any of them . In the worst case scenario, this would be the absolute end to their village .

The blood-curdling scream he imagined didn’t happen though . On the contrary, the iron rod landed its hit on the black-armored man’s nose, splattering it like raindrops .

It was then when everyone saw Qing Shui holding the other’s whip . However, nobody knew how Hu Zi’s iron rod had managed to land a hit .

“Ah, you have a death wish . Who are you?” The black-armored man glared furiously at Hu Zi before roaring at Qing Shui .

“You’re the Water Nation’s army?” Qing Shui smiled .

“Who are you? It’s best not to seek trouble for yourself . ” The black-armored man’s sinister gaze was fixated on Qing Shui .

Piak!

Qing Shui didn’t move much . Without hesitance, he slapped the black-armored man as the latter tumbled along with the Wind Pursuing Beast underneath him . If Qing Shui wanted, he could have popped his skull with it .

The intruders were ready to attack at first but had now inhaled a cold breath at the sight . Their leader was the strongest among them but couldn’t even retaliate . They had definitely kicked an iron board now .

“Yes, yes . We’re the Water Nation’s army . ” The expression of the black-armored man changed immediately . Though there was still a trail of blood at the corner of his lips, he couldn’t help but act politely right now .

“The Water Nation allowed you all to burn, murder, and plunder,” Qing Shui spoke up again .

“No, no…!”

“If not, that means you did this on your own . ” Qing Shui’s voice grew cold .

“It’s not our fault either . We were just following orders…” The black-armored man was close to tearing up now .

“You all seemed well-practiced earlier . The feeling was right too . It seems you’ve done this for quite a lot of time . ” Qing Shui’s intention to kill was growing thicker by the second . He wasn’t a savior, but he would still rage when witnessing such incidents .

“We were just following the Duke’s orders . Please spare us . ”

Qing Shui wouldn’t be merciful to people like that; he annihilated them in a matter of seconds . An apology wouldn’t be enough to atone for all the crimes they had committed for the past few years .

“Thank you, Sir, for saving our village . ” The village chief led the villagers to bow to Qing Shui .

“I can’t accept this bow! I’ve stayed and eaten here for the past few days . It’s only right that I do things that are within my powers in reciprocation . Elder, let them train the techniques I’ve taught them . I think those might be able to help you guys around . There are also a few of them with great aptitudes; they would be able to protect your village . ”

“They will, they will . Don’t worry about it,” replied the Village Elder in haste .

“I will go check out the Duke Palace . I swear there will be peace here from now on . ” Qing Shui knew that these people didn’t feel at peace and reassured them .

They tried to persuade Qing Shui to stay, but he left anyway, rushing toward the area’s strongest power .

The Duke’s Palace!

This was the Water Nation . There was a Water Emperor here and lords beneath it . As lords, they had reached the highest official position and had the ability to pursue the position of King . The position of King wasn’t by succession but through the proof of power .

The governing ministers were under lords in hierarchy, followed by dukes and such . Everything was based on power and abilities .

The place Qing Shui was heading to was a Duke Palace, a palace at the edge of the Water Nation . They were the local tyrants in the area, the dictators . It was unlikely that the Water Emperor would know about the existence of such a duke . After all, their region was way too vast to keep tabs . The Water Emperor just needed to manage the lords, while dukes were managed by them .

The village was a mountain village on the secluded end of the region . Qing Shui encountered many villages and towns on his way and found out about the cruelty of the Black Armored Army . They were the personal army of the Duke Hei’s palace . According to what he had seen, it was easy to instigate frustration in this city . After all, there were many who were eyeing at the people from Duke palace, and many clans weren’t inferior to the Hei Clan . Incurring the wrath of their residents would cause them to strike when the opportunity allowed .

Hence, some of the crimes which shouldn’t see the light were done at places further away from here .

The duke’s spiritual land was decent, but such area at the edge was usually the poorest and most secluded in an empire . While it wasn’t small, its population was scarce and the same applied here . The area of the city was only one-hundredth of the entire land and gathered at the most northern part of the empire . The rest of the land was filled with villages and towns, which located in an even more deserted location . In order to protect the city, there were many who did things that they wouldn’t do in broad daylight .

Heishui City!

This was the biggest and busiest city in this area . Great clans and powers, as well as wealthy merchants, all gathered here . There was safety and a higher quality of life here, which directly related to better handiwork . Everything was of optimal quality, resulting in a bustling city . However, in the shadow of this glory hid infinite unspoken misery .

Qing Shui used only a day’s time to arrive at Heishui City .