Ancient Strengthening Technique

AST 1925 - Make The Imperial Cuisine Hall Vanish?

Seeing that Qing Shui had not spoken for some time, there was no change in the Second Young Master Hua’s face. Even the Barbarian Emperor seemed to be calming down. The remaining three old men appeared as calm as they were in the beginning.

After a few minutes, Qing Shui withdrew his hands slowly.

“Mr. Qing, how is it?” Second Young Master Hua spoke.

Qing Shui was curious about the Second Young Master Hua’s identity since he was the one who started talking here. He seemed to be close to the Barbarian Emperor, but their exact relationship was unknown.

Qing Shui did not answer immediately and looked at the Barbarian Emperor.

At that moment, Barbarian Emperor smiled, “Never mind, I know it's hard to cure, or else I would have recovered much earlier. Mr. Qing, feel free to tell the truth.”

“How well do you know about your own condition?” Qing Shui asked after a brief thought.

“I have frequent headaches, very painful ones, so terrible that it's killing me and I could hardly stand it. Every time when it comes, my mind is getting sharper. On normal days, I'm muddle-headed and unable to differentiate dreams from the reality. Besides, I tend to forget things I've seen quickly, the memories are also fuzzy.” Barbarian Emperor pondered and said.

At this moment, Qing Shui thought that the Barbarian Emperor was in a good condition. Hence, Qing Shui told him directly without hiding, “There’s something inside your head eating up almost one-third of your brain. In about ten years and not exceeding twenty years, you will either die or become a living dead.”

Qing Shui’s words made the Second Young Master Hua and three old men shocked. Surprisingly, the Barbarian Emperor appeared very clear-headed. Perhaps, he was only indistinctive of dreams and reality. He was a little bit muddle-headed but not a fool, thus, he could understand the statements even in his dreams.

Barbarian Emperor laughed, “Unexpectedly, there are at least ten years of torment. You won’t even let me go when you’re dead and still want to control me. Eventually, you still want me to work for you as a living dead.”

Barbarian Emperor’s words startled Qing Shui, his prediction seemed to be right. However, Qing Shui kept quiet and waited for the Barbarian Emperor to calm down.

“Mr. Qing, I don’t know if it’s curable. Don’t worry, I won’t make things difficult for you. It’s not the first time I seek for treatment,” Barbarian Emperor calmed down and watched Qing Shui seriously.

Qing Shui saw the sincerity in his eyes, his words were quite convincing. Smiling, Qing Shui replied, “Curable, though a bit troublesome, it was curable.”

Qing Shui’s words made the Barbarian Emperor bewildered and he laughed casually, “I don’t know why but I have such feelings the moment I met you, Younger Brother. Oh, do you mind if I call you ‘Younger Brother’?"

The way the Barbarian Emperor rubbed his head, his simple and honest look lightened up Qing Shui’s mood, “It’s my honor, Elder Brother Barbarian Emperor, I’ll benefit from your fortune then.”

“It’s my honor. I always feel that you are my savior. Come, I’ll buy you a drink today. Treatment can wait,” said the Barbarian Emperor, sounded free and easy.

“Elder Brother, we would have plenty of time after I’ve cured you. It's the Imperial Cuisine Hall here and we have scrumptious food here. We can drink here too if you want to drink,” Qing Shui stopped the Barbarian Emperor hastily.

Qing Shui had his own plans. Since he found his own way, he had to follow his chosen path. A truly powerful doctor would be guarded by forces everywhere. He didn’t need to kill someone by himself. Even if he had to, he would kill without getting noticed.

On the first day, Qing Shui only used the Five Elements Formation to seal the archs in the Barbarian Emperor’s brain. Qing Shui was unsure if they called them the archs in this world, but he would call them the archs now. Then, he used his Force of Rebirth and magical Acupuncture to treat the Barbarian Emperor’s brain.

This was a relatively time-consuming process. Qing Shui did not want to take the risk. Otherwise, he could begin the treatment at once, but he was afraid of accidents. Hence, he started off with stabilizing and observing in the meantime.

Sealing the archs could at least stop the erosion of the Barbarian Emperor’s brain, it could then recover gradually with Qing Shui’s treatment.

Just a single procedure consumed half a day of Qing Shui’s time. Some things were easier said than done.

“Elder Brother, your condition requires some time. I assure you that you won't suffer anymore from the torment that was hurting you like before. I have started to slowly heal your damaged essence spirit, but I still need some preparations to remove the archs,” Qing Shui said while keeping his needles.

“That's awesome, Younger Brother. You don't know how painful that kind of suffering was,” The Barbarian Emperor said excitedly after knowing that he would no longer endure the pain like before.

Qing Shui smiled, he knew that pain and experienced it before. It was really tough, he would rather die at that time than to continue living in such a torment. It hurt so much into the bones and soul.

It was late, the Second Young Master Hua and three old men waited outside all the time. Now that things were settled, they prepared some food and the Plum Blossom Wine. After all, the wine would benefit the Barbarian Emperor. Second Young Master Hua tasted the wine before, but he felt like paradise every time he drank it.

“Younger Brother, you're so unpredictable. I thought the dishes and the wine I had were good, but now I know that our lives are vastly different,” said the Barbarian Emperor in satisfaction after filling his stomach.

“There's no limit in the universe, perhaps you'll have something even better someday,” replied Qing Shui with a smile.

“Haha, you made a point but I know it's very difficult, way too difficult. It seems like I have to fast for a while. Otherwise, it will be too hard to eat my previous dishes,” The Barbarian Emperor smiled casually.

“Elder Brother, you can eat as much as you want, I can guarantee this,” Qing Shui was not boasting, there were really too many herbs stored in the Realm of Violet Jade Immortal.

The Barbarian Emperor shook his head, “No matter how good it is, I can't keep tasting and enjoying your food. I think it would be my greatest pleasure to come here for a feast when I'm free.”

Qing Shui was quite impressed by this big bold guy. His words were simple but very meaningful.

……

……

In a luxurious mansion of the Great Confucian Empire, a handsome and charismatic middle-aged man appeared extremely uneasy and said, “Did you say the Barbarian Emperor went to the Imperial Cuisine Hall?”

If Qing Shui were here, he would be surprised to see that the middle-aged man was no other than Cheng Yuan of the three Masters of Confucian.

“Yes, Little Prince!” Cheng Yuan said seriously.

“Elder Cheng, you've been to the Imperial Cuisine Hall and met Mr. Qing. Do you think he could cure the Barbarian Emperor?”

The man was the Little Prince, matured and good-looking. Wearing a golden gown, he was absolutely elegant. He had bright and deep eyes while giving out a domineering aura with every single move.

“Little Prince, that young man was not simple. If he really cured him, then the Great Emperor’s effort would be in vain. By that time, the recovered Barbarian Emperor would definitely take revenge on the royal family,” Cheng Yuan frowned.

If Qing Shui were here, he would be surprised and confused. The Master of Confucian’s level would be degraded again in Qing Shui’s heart. Doubtlessly, it was normal for a follower to serve his own master in an antagonistic relationship. However, the key question was who released the archs. If Qing Shui’s prediction was correct, then the royals of the Great Confucian Empire would be greatly downgraded in his heart.

“Cheng Yuan, let teacher take care of this. We will make the Imperial Cuisine Hall vanish!” said the Little Prince slowly after a long ponder.