The Sky-Obstructing Crow didn’t tell him how much he had to be tempered. He merely told him to return whenever he felt ready, so Qing Shui just continued.

  This was a little abstract, but Qing Shui knew that there were definitely reasons for it. This tempering was mainly for himself, so he didn’t summon his Demonic Beasts.

  This battle had caused him to be truly exhausted. After leaving the forest far behind, he came across a massive, clear lake with countless willows along the lakeside. There were even other trees, such as the Japanese pagoda tree much like the ones in his previous life, though there was no comparison in terms of size.

  Things similar in appearance between the two worlds would usually have massive size differences.

  Qing Shui saw the fish swimming in shoals and schools with many wild, flying beasts and demonic beasts gathering at the lakeside. It was a massive lake, with the end not in sight, as if it were a small sea. Qing Shui didn’t even set down a tent but directly entered the Realm of the Violet Jade Immortal.

  Qing Shui would always rest in the Realm of the Violet Jade Immortal so when he entered, he just went through the motions, refining his treasures.

  Ding!

  The crisp bell sound surprised Qing Shui. The Heaven Shaking Drum had reached the Ninth Grade Grand Completion. Previously when the Spirit Gathering Lamp had reached Nine Grade Grand Completion, Qing Shui was ecstatic, eagerly awaiting the follow-up from the Heaven Shaking Drum in a few days. Days had turned into months until half a year had passed.

  Qing Shui gave up on his optimism as it was too tiring. He simply continued refining it, regardless of whether there would be a breakthrough.

  Heaven Shaking Drum!

  Ninth Grade Grand Completion Stage.

  Permanently doubled the attacking power of the owner’s demonic beasts, usable on demonic beasts of any level. Passive, zero consumption.

  Qing Shui was elated. He immediately decided to take out the Rainbow Stone for some analysis.

  Rainbow Stone!

  A broken fragment of the Heaven-repairing Divine Stone, able to increase strength at designated areas where the Heavenly Dao rules suppress strength.

  Can be used as a weapon crafting material and used to raise the grade of certain treasures. Exact effects were dependent on the quality and current grade of the treasure.

  As Qing Shui took out the Rainbow Stone, he felt his strength dramatically increase, but decided to not rely on it for the sake of tempering himself. He would only take it out when absolutely necessary. This thing could even be used to increase the grade of certain treasures.

  Qing Shui would consider this wasteful, as this item had its uses and could be considered a treasure in its own right. This world was chock-full of Heavenly Dao restrictions. This item could be held and used by anyone. It could even recognize its owner, and usable solely by its owner barring the owner’s death or the disappearance of his mark, which would cause it to revert to an ownerless state.

  The Demon Patriarch who had just been killed had been the owner of the stone, so it became an ownerless item once more.

  Qing Shui didn’t do it, as it would increase his strength even from the Realm of the Violet Jade Immortal.

  He decided to leave it alone because using it to increase a weapon’s grade, like the Divine Soldier Soaring Blade, would be decadent and wasteful. This was an item surpassing the Divine Grade. It certainly had its own uses.

  Leaving the Rainbow Stone for now, Qing Shui inspected his own strength. He had two golden Caves and recently just opened the Eighth Cave.

  Qing Shui’s attack force was 66 billion Daos. His defense had reached a total of 660 billion Daos.

  With the Heavenly Fate Treasure Pagoda of Defence adding twenty percent more to his defense, it became 792 billion Daos.

  Moreover, the Heavenly Fate Treasure Pagoda of Violence and the Parry Heavenly Fate Treasure Pagoda also added 66 billion Daos of blocking strength. His defense was now practically 860 billion Daos.

  This was the Realm of the Violet Jade Immortal where he was unfettered. Now that there were no pressing matters, he could peacefully refine the Origin Essence Pill for the Diamond White Tiger King, the Golden Scaled Dragon Elephant, the Dragon Slaying Beast, the Dark Phoenix, the Dragon Spider, the Thunderous Beast, and the Black Ice Divine Worm.

  With the power of the Heaven Shaking Drum, Qing Shui’s demonic beasts had all received a massive boost in strength.

  This Primordial Gold Grizzy’s Origin Essence Pill, combined with countless medicines, had a frightening effect, allowing the Diamond White Tiger King’s strength to leap to 210 billion Daos. The increase was more than a third. With the Heaven Shaking Drum in play, it shot up to 420 billion Daos.

  The Golden Scaled Dragon Elephant’s strength likewise rose to 90 billion Daos, having a greater increase with reference to its original strength compared to the Diamond White Tiger King, probably due to its Primordial Bloodline. With the Heaven Shaking Drum in play, its strength became 180 billion Daos.

  Qing Shui was a little skeptical, as this tempering journey had been going too well.

  The Dark Phoenix was originally stronger than the Golden Scaled Dragon Elephant, yet it had been surpassed. It had reached 60 billion Daos in strength, doubling to 120 billion with the Spirit Gathering Lamp. Its powerful attack techniques allowed its strongest attack to which doubled it even further, reaching 240 billion Daos.

  The Dragon Spider had exceeded Qing Shui’s expectations. It was already pretty strong, and it had a major leap to 150 billion Daos. Under the influence of the Heaven Shaking Drum, its strength reached 300 billion Daos. However, it was still incomparable to the Diamond White Tiger King.

  The Thunderous Beast had undergone many tribulations, and since the lightning in the sky had been gathering for a while, it took a tribulation Evasion Pill, growing to become an adult.

  The Thunderous Beast’s strength had reached 10 billion Daos, 20 billion with the Spirit Gathering Lamp, which still excited Qing Shui. He knew when to be satisfied, and as the Thunderous Beast had entered a growth spurt, its strength would only increase from here.

  The Dragon Slaying Beast was unfathomable, but its speed had increased by half. Other than that, there didn’t seem to be many changes. He couldn’t see through this fella, but it didn’t rely on pure strength to be effective anyway.

  Qing Shui didn’t forget about the Hell Nightmare Beast either. Having eaten the Origin Essence Pill born from the Primordial Gold Grizzly, it was basically a strong rock. Its cognitive abilities didn’t approve however, as it seemingly peaked.

  Qing Shui was satisfied, storing away the remaining Origin Essence Pills. Their effectiveness was truly astonishing, and the harvests of this tempering experience were truly far too bountiful.

  A month had passed.

  Qing Shui had remained by the lake for a month, though he would quickly return through the Nine Continents Steps if he had left the area. The Spiritual Qi here was exceedingly abundant, so he would carelessly practice boxing and meditating. He observed the lives of the fish as part of his life of serenity training, quietly experiencing a calm lifestyle. He still occasionally took off to battle with powerful demonic beasts.

  Qing Shui had gradually felt a sense of satisfaction and fulfillment as the harmonization of Yin and Yang previously thought impossible prior to his bout with the Demon Patriarch, had been completed.

  Bathing in the sunlight, Qing Shui sat at the lakeside. Watching the tiny fish swimming around, his heart became calm. He had constantly been on a knife’s edge, and this was a rare opportunity for him to relax.