Daily Intelligence: From Water Snake to Jinghe Dragon King

Chapter 163 The Legend of Hong Gu, Donghai Daozang, Liu Qing Learns from Taigong's Investiture of the Gods

After Liu Qing split his soul into a god, he did not immediately send the clone to the snake pool, but left it in his body for the time being. This was because the time he had been planning for a long time to study the Daoist classics had finally come.

Under the pavilion built from the rubble, Hong Gu and Liu Qing sat facing each other.

The 'Liu Qing' in front of Hong Gu was actually an incarnation of the Incense God. The real body had altered its aura using the Face-Changing Insect to conceal the power of the Incense God. Hong Gu, always carefree, never expected that this was not the real body.

The Calamity Stone possesses the aura of killing and can block and shield the secrets of heaven. The Face-Changing Worm has the ability to alter the flow of energy. If Hong Gu were to impart the Daoist magic and supernatural powers of the Dragon Palace to Liu Qing...
It shouldn't be noticed by the Heavenly Dao or the Heavenly Court. Even if they are, they can only punish the clone Liu Qing, and it has nothing to do with the original body whose aura is completely different.

Based on what the Black Cloud Mountain God saw after his fall from grace, the Heavenly Court and the Heavenly Dao should be unaware of this. Liu Qing's preparations this time are merely a matter of caution.

Even if it's just a clone, Liu Qing is unwilling to lose it.

"My East Sea Dragon Palace has shamans, healers, diviners, spirit mediums, astrology, feng shui, formations, elixirs, weapon crafting, and energy cultivation. We have three thousand minor arts and eight hundred supernatural powers. Xiao Qing, which one do you want to learn?"

Liu Qing rolled her eyes, and Hong Gu chuckled: "Just telling a joke to ease the tension. I'll pick out some good stuff for you, magic spells, Taoist scriptures, supernatural powers, formations, weapon crafting, alchemy, and so on. I'll give you the best of everything."

Having said that, Hong Gu pointed.

Liu Qing, who was hiding in the distance, looked up at the sky and saw that the white clouds were floating by and the black and red calamity energy below was still the same as before, without any change. Only then did he feel relieved.

Hong Gu selected the best treasures from the East Sea and passed them on to her clone, Liu Qing. Since the clone and the original were one, the original also received everything the clone received without missing a single word.

[The Dragon and Snake Qi-Eating Technique: Detailed Explanation of the Spells, General Principles of Formations, Essentials of Weapon Forging, and Nine-Rank Elixir Method.]

There are five collections in total, covering almost everything: breathing exercises, supernatural powers and spells, alchemy, weapon crafting, and formations.
Moreover, aside from the Dragon-Snake Devouring Qi Technique being unique, it also includes detailed explanations of other spells, general principles of formations, as well as essential techniques for weapon crafting and ninth-grade pill refining methods.
It lists in detail the various spells, supernatural powers, techniques for refining elixirs and magical artifacts, incantations, and spells collected by the Dragon Palace of the East Sea.

In summary, the individuals selected by Hong Gu can compensate for Liu Qing's shortcomings due to his unfavorable background and monotonous cultivation methods.

With diligent practice, Liu Qing was able to develop extraordinary skills, just like the direct descendants of other major cultivation sects.

Like Liu Qing himself, Hong Gu had been keeping an eye on the heavens, and now that she saw no change in the heavens, she was finally relieved.

"You can learn these first. When I have some free time, I will go to the East Sea to find some profound ancient Taoist techniques and then teach them to you."

"It's a pity that the East Sea Dragon Palace is not a top-tier power in the world. The collection of ancient Taoist techniques is just ordinary. If it had the Nine Revolutions Profound Technique from Guanjiang Estuary, or the Law of Heaven and Earth, or the Heavenly Gang and Earthly Fiends from other powers, that would be great."

"Xiao Qing, you need to cultivate quickly, so that one day we can come knocking on your door and rob you all."

Liu Qing was speechless. This Sister Hong Gu was really arrogant. The several Daoist techniques she mentioned were all renowned in the Three Realms, the signature skills of each powerful force, and backed by a great expert. How could they be easily obtained?
Hong Gu looked down on the Daoist scriptures in her Dragon Palace, but Liu Qing cherished them greatly. Previously, he always relied on his bloodline talent or a few supernatural abilities.
These methods might work in small rivers and streams, but if they were used in the Three Realms, they probably wouldn't even cause a ripple.

After Hong Gu taught him the Taoist magic, she went to play mahjong, mainly because they were short one player and the White Snake and the others were urging her to play.

After Hong Gu left, Liu Qing began to study the Dragon-Snake Devouring Qi Technique, the highest-level cultivation method among all dragons in the world.

It's called "Dragon and Snake," but it's not only dragons and snakes that can cultivate it. Other aquatic creatures like eels, loaches, carp, and alligators can also cultivate it. Even Hong Gu practices this technique.

Liu Qing quickly memorized the details and tips, and after trying to practice the technique a few times according to the instructions, he successfully entered the beginner level.

[Heaven and Earth Source Qi +1]

[Heaven and Earth Source Qi +1]

[Heaven and Earth Source Qi +1].
Each cycle of this technique allows it to absorb and transform the spiritual energy circulating in the outside world into the primordial energy of heaven and earth.

Whether it's day or night, or whether the moon is full or waning, one can cultivate, unlike before, when demons like Liu Qing could only absorb moonlight to accumulate cultivation.

With this Dragon and Snake Qi-Eating Method, Liu Qing's cultivation will no longer be restricted. He can simply meditate and breathe in the air to generate a continuous stream of primordial energy from heaven and earth.

There are no restrictions; as long as you are diligent and energetic, you can continue cultivating this Dragon-Snake Qi-Eating Technique.
Although Hong Gu disliked him, Liu Qing valued him. This kind of skill is enough to lay the foundation for the rise of a great power.

I asked Hong Gu if the Dragon-Snake Qi-Eating Technique could be passed on to outsiders. Hong Gu replied that it would naturally be passed on to Liu Qing, as it would be Liu Qing's possession.

You can pass it on to whomever you want, since they are all river demons and belong to the East Sea in name, so it's not considered taboo.

With Hong Gu's approval, Liu Qing decided that when he had time, he would pass on the Dragon-Snake Qi-Eating Technique to Crab Left Hand.

As the most hardworking and dedicated servant under Liu Qing's command, it deserves Liu Qing's reward of cultivation techniques.

As for the other river demons, we'll see how they behave. Without the constraints of the Heavenly Dao and the Heavenly Court, the river demons and spirits of Great Bay Lake will experience a significant leap in their cultivation levels.

It is estimated that not only the Great Bay Lake, but also other forces in the Three Realms will sense the impending calamity in the human world, the pervasive aura of slaughter, and the obscuring of heavenly secrets.
They will also pass on the cultivation techniques they previously collected to their subordinates. The great calamity will befall the human world, and the forces of the three realms will prosper as a result.

After practicing the Dragon-Snake Devouring Qi Technique for two hours, Liu Qing paused and focused his energy on magical spells and supernatural abilities.
Most of the Eastern Sea magic taught by Hong Gu was water-based, and since Liu Qing was a creature of the water, he naturally learned water magic extremely quickly.
The river monsters' awakened talents—water arrows and water blades—as well as Liu Qing's authority and supernatural powers of water manipulation and water puppetry, are all showcased here.

Techniques such as Water Arrow, Water Puppet, Water Ball, Water Splitting, Fog Generation, and Water Condensation exist, and some are quite powerful.

Examples include water-walking, water control, cloud and rain manipulation, and wind summoning. Of course, the East Sea, having collected countless techniques over millions of years, possesses not only water-based magic but also various other spells and supernatural abilities such as lightning, wind, earth, and wood magic.
Of course, being primarily water-based, they possess very few fire magic abilities, only a dozen or so. Liu Qing pondered for a moment, realizing that other river demons or dragons couldn't learn fire magic.

Since I have awakened the Fire Wing talent, can I use the Yang energy of the Fire Wing to cultivate fire magic?
Thinking of this, he couldn't resist his curiosity and tried to learn it. Sure enough, just as Liu Qing had guessed, the fireball spell, fire crow spell, fire dragon spell, firework rain, etc., were all very simple and he could probably get the hang of them quickly.

Thus, when facing water monsters again, there are more ways to restrain them.

There are many more spells in the collection, but Liu Qing only scratched the surface to get a general understanding before studying them one by one in the future.

After mastering the magical arts, Liu Qing eagerly opened the collections of formations, alchemy techniques, and weapon crafting, just like before, to get a rough understanding first and then find time to study them later.

Faced with such an immense blessing bestowed upon him by Hong Gu, Liu Qing dared not be perfunctory. He was determined to study it carefully and cultivate diligently in order not to disappoint Hong Gu's expectations.

As a water snake born in a pond, having gone through countless hardships to get to where I am now, how could I let go of an opportunity to improve my foundation?

Liu Qing decided that, starting tomorrow, unless there was something urgent, he would stay in Yangxin Garden and diligently practice his various skills.
You must thoroughly understand and master each of the following: Qi cultivation, magic, formations, alchemy, and weapon crafting.

In the following two weeks, he first sent the Incense God's clone to the Snake Pool to hide behind the scenes and keep order for Crab Left Hand, thus removing a major worry from his mind.
Meanwhile, the original self remained in the Yangxin Garden, refusing the request from Bai She'er, Xiao Ya, Shui'er, and the others to switch players for mahjong, and began to bury himself in arduous cultivation.

On this day, Steward Shad came to report that Little Alligator and Eel, the guards and inspectors of Da Wan Lake, had come to request an audience.

Liu Qing had just woken up from his cultivation.

Inside the main hall of the manor, the master and his ministers took their seats. After exchanging pleasantries, the river demons, including Xia Kexing, explained their purpose.

It turned out that a month had passed, and it was time to distribute the salt goods again.

This time, it's not a 50/50 split like before, nor a 40/60 split, but an 80/20 split. The reason is simple: Liu Qing now controls Dawan Lake, and his status and position surpass theirs.

Without Liu Qing having to ask, they voluntarily reduced their share, giving the lion's share to the Lord of the Manor.

Liu Qing readily accepted this offer.

Each waterway garrison and the four-way patrols were required to hand over 80% of the incense money earned from the sale or smuggling of salt in the past month.

And just then, the Eight Incense Messengers returned from all directions of the waterways, bringing with them the incense money produced by the people along the riverbanks during their sacrifices during this period.

Adding the two together, it amounted to more than ten thousand taels of silver for incense offerings.

After the banquet, Xia Kexing and his group left, while Liu Qing took the incense money to Yangxin Garden.

The incense money of more than 10,000 taels was enough to promote a ninth-rank deity to an eighth-rank deity. Liu Qing secretly summoned the incense god's avatar, preparing to manifest a deity later and then be promoted to the eighth rank.

Just as he was about to absorb the divine essence of the incense contained in the silver incense, a line of words appeared before his eyes.

[Note 1: Once the incense offering's divinity reaches 100% for the first time and evolves into a ninth-rank divine office, further absorption of divinity can lead to two development directions: first, further advancement to a high-ranking river god; second, evolution into a new ninth-rank divine office.]

[Note 2: After continuing to absorb the divine essence of incense offerings, regardless of the direction of development, the ability to cultivate supernatural powers at the previous 10% node will disappear.]

Liu Qing looked at the two explanations and fell into thought.

According to Instruction 1, having over ten thousand taels of silver for incense offerings can help a ninth-rank deity advance to the eighth rank.

Alternatively, instead of being promoted to the eighth rank, ten new ninth-rank divine positions could be created.

The key lies in these ten newly evolved ninth-rank divine positions. Liu Qing alone cannot assume the positions of ten river gods.
So, can these newly evolved ninth-rank divine positions be bestowed upon others?
If it's feasible, then that would be a huge move, meaning Liu Qing could be deified!

The divine office that evolved from itself is not under the jurisdiction of the Heavenly Court. If others are enfeoffed as gods, wouldn't I be just like Jiang Ziya?
(End of this chapter)