## AST 2292 - Hao Tian’s Astonishment

Qing Shui recalled what Nie Wu had said before. That fella was also a player, but he was a believer in mutual love. Qing Shui had no right to criticize him since he himself had that many women…

Nie Wu was constantly talking about this Bu Clan’s young mistress, and perhaps it wasn’t just a joke. For the Wu Clan’s young master to want to wed this woman, it seemed that the Bu Clan was truly fortunate.

Most importantly, this young woman’s strength was comparable to Nie Wu’s, though it was much more concealed and hard to probe. Not many could see through it, and it wasn’t known how many in the Bu Clan itself knew of her power.

“This Bu Clan’s young mistress is really beautiful,” Hao Tian said and sighed amorously.

“She is gorgeous, pity that she’s already the fiancee of the Wu Clan’s young master,” Zi Ye said.

“Fiancee means they ain’t married yet, even if she were his wife, she could still divorce,” Hao Tian said righteously.

“Right, this time you removed that kid’s restrictions, was it because you like his sister?” Hao Tian looked cautiously at Qing Shui.

Qing Shui looked at Hao Tian. “Do I look like such a playboy?”

Hao Tian took a serious glance at Qing Shui before saying solemnly, “Yes, definitely. If there were a ranking, you’d be an indisputable first place.”

“Indeed, boss’ women are all transcendent specimens. Having just one would be a fortune bred through many lives, yet your luck seems to be able to flood an entire continent.” Zi Ye chuckled.

Everyone broke into uproarious laughter hearing this.

Qing Shui smiled, “Alright, I did it because that woman’s strength is at 800 billion Dao, wouldn’t you suspect that she has an alternate identity?”

“What? That strong?” Hao Tian was stunned.

Beihuang Fan and Shen Huang were also surprised. This woman was actually ludicrously powerful. Though they were not bad themselves, there was still a small gap between them, even after their recent, explosive growth.

“Qing Shui, how strong are you now?” Hao Tian asked curiously.

“Slightly above 110 billion Dao.” Qing Shui smiled.

“Liar, don’t lie so obviously,” Hao Tian was simply unable to accept this blatant lie.

“It’s true, though some of my abilities are more mysterious, resulting in my defense being a tad better, at over one trillion Dao.” Qing Shui brought out a conservative number as his actual defense had exceeded 1,4 trillion Dao.

“You’re insane! Also, you have some abilities to increase strength right.” Hao Tian was curious as he knew little of Qing Shui’s capabilities.

Qing Shui nodded his head. “This curiosity about me, I’ll just let you experience it yourself.”

Qing Shui used the Battle God Halo and Formation, Area Dominance, etc. They directly caused Hao Tian’s already formidable strength, at slightly less than 800 billion Dao, to shoot up to over one trillion Dao.

Feeling the massive power-up, Hao Tian just hugged Qing Shui, he shouted, “I’ll never leave you even if you chase me away. This is just too amazing, I can definitely make others cry with this.”

The others saw this and didn’t know whether to cry or laugh, but they could see where he was coming from. When they first found out they also thought this way, albeit with less exaggeration.

Qing Shui rescinded his abilities, causing Hao Tian’s strength to return to normal. Hao Tian just said moodily, “This is really uncomfortable, just now was way better.”

“Really, then I can make your current strength a lot better.” Qing Shui grinned.

Area Dominance, Nine Palace Laws, Emperor’s Qi, Seal of Xuantian…

Hao Tian’s strength and speed instantly dropped, making him feel like vomiting blood. His whole body was heavy as he looked disbelievingly at Qing Shui. This was his abilities, and including the buffs from earlier, if these two effects were to overlap, he would practically be invincible.

Qing Shui hadn’t even shown him the Divine Weapon, the Flying Sword’s power, or else his reaction would be even more exaggerated. This was one of Qing Shui’s trump cards, an absolute game-changer.

After the weakening effects were rescinded, Hao Tian was once again accustomed to his strength. Truly, Qing Shui’s opponents would be unlucky facing such a massive upheaval.

This meeting had also let Qing Shui understand that the rumors he had heard were not absolute, especially regarding the strongest in the Hua Clan. Every area had its own hidden powers.

For one, the surface was only a smokescreen for the hidden strength, especially for clans and sects. Clan heads and elders were simply the strength on the surface, while the strongest would always have strange titles, such as esteemed elder, esteemed protector or great protector.

For another, the estimates of the strongest in the lower regions were probably off the mark, but Qing Shui believed that he could suppress anyone. The only issue was that Chi Yang’s strength was insufficient to allow the Chi Clan to survive. Even if Qing Shui provided aid, he wouldn’t be able to restore the Chi Clan.

Hence, Chi Yang had begun gathering the former members of the Chi Clan at Qing Shui’s behest, though it would take some time for them to gather.

The Chi Yang couple’s injuries had completely healed in the last three months. Their strength was at 1,2 trillion Dao, an absolutely horrifying number. Some of the Chi Clan had already convened, including two of Chi Yang’s direct relatives, his third uncle and sixth brother.

Roughly numbering thirty, the rests were all protectors and elders. They were part of the main strength of the Chi Clan back then.

There was naturally no issues with housing as they and Qing Shui’s party began fraternizing.

Everyone called Chi Yang’s third uncle, Third Uncle Chi. He was extremely powerful at 900 billion Daos, while Chi Yang’s sixth brother Chi Lu was roughly on par with Hao Tian. The rest were between 200 to 500 billion Daos.

This wasn’t a particularly powerful force, unable to hold up to the Chi Clan of the past. But the Qing Shui’s party still waited, holding out hope for more people to return before officially rebuilding the Chi Clan.

Qing Shui also began to analyze the matter. There were many matters that were beyond what met the eyes. Moreover, he still needed to give some thought about battle tactics. Although Qing Shui indeed didn’t need to fear anything, the ones around him would possibly be in grave danger if the enemies just gave up on attacking him. At that point, he might face experts stronger than Chi Yang, and in that case, they could definitely kill Qing Shui’s companions.

He had to deeply consider his options. Matters like this called for greater numbers; numbers were an indication. At the same level, one could not overcome many, so the greater the numbers the better.

Qing Shui originally wanted to bring a small party, but this thinking was too simplistic. He had to bolster the Chi Clan in order to allow their inheritance to truly flourish.

The Chi Clan of the past didn’t have massive numbers, but it wasn’t a tiny clan by any means. Chi Yang’s generation and the generation above him had plenty of descendants, but only two had returned, with the fate of the rest still unknown.