Daily Intelligence: From Water Snake to Jinghe Dragon King

Chapter 173 General Tuo is conferred the title of God, and Master Liu is worshipped as a deity.
After dismissing the incense clone, Liu Qing tossed the top-grade magic artifact array plate it had brought to the Yang God for nurturing and refining.

After fully refining it, Liu Qing then comprehended the formation, giving him another powerful means of fighting enemies in the future.

At this moment, the four spiritual treasures, including the Yin Jade Spirit Banner, trembled, and their spiritual essence transmitted a joyful consciousness. Liu Qing knew that these four spiritual treasures had been completely repaired and restored to their peak.

Having regained their former glory, the four spiritual treasures each shone with an even stronger aura than before, exuding a terrifying pressure with every movement.

Liu Qing was overjoyed. With the four spiritual treasures fully restored, his combat power increased significantly once again. If he were to encounter those three evil gods again, he would be able to win without needing to unleash his full power.

Of the 380,000 taels of silver collected from the sacrificial ceremony, Liu Qing still had a little over 1,000 taels left, which he didn't waste.

He immediately left behind a thousand taels of silver and absorbed the divine essence of the incense offerings.

"Evolve into a ninth-rank divine office!"

Liu Qing silently prayed that this time, the incense and divine essence he absorbed did not accumulate above the seventh rank, but instead evolved into a new divine office on its own.

'Nine-grade incense offerings come from the gods, and the river god of the chaotic rock pool.'

A new divine authority token appeared. Liu Qing looked at it and was overjoyed. It could indeed evolve into a new divine authority.
Now, all we need to do is try to transfer the seal to someone else.

Liu Qing also considered candidates, namely General Tuo. However, General Tuo's soul was still a Yin spirit, although it had been placed into the divine token by the incense offering avatar.

With the help of the divine power of incense, it can be nurtured from yin to yang, but this nurturing will not last long and will require more time.

However, Liu Qing suddenly thought that since the incense clone had just advanced from the ninth rank to the seventh rank, and the divine path had given back, could General Tuo have also benefited from some of the good fortune?
The thought immediately made Liu Qing restless, and he hurriedly asked through his mind, "Clone, how is General Tuo now?"

"Reporting to the Venerable One, when General Tuo was promoted to a higher divine rank just now, he was also fed back and absorbed some high-level divine power. He has now transformed from a Yin God into a Yang God."

Liu Qing's eyes lit up immediately: "Bring General Tuo back again."

Soon after, the incense offering's clone arrived in haste.

Liu Qing summoned General Tuo: "General Tuo, congratulations on your transformation from Yin to Yang. I have another opportunity to bestow upon you. Please wait a moment."

General Tuo sacrificed his own path to immortality and was willing to die to protect his son, Little Tuolong. Liu Qing had always admired this act.

Furthermore, General Tuo had repeatedly led Yin gods and demons to assist in battle within the Yin Jade Spirit Banner, rendering great service and merit. Therefore, Liu Qing decided to bestow upon it the title of a deity.

Furthermore, the newly evolved divine position is 'Nine-Rank Incense Offering Deity, River God of the Chaotic Stone Pool', and in some mysterious way, this opportunity is most suitable for it.
General Tuo knelt on one knee and said gratefully, "Lord of the Prefecture has saved my life and taken great care of my child. I am deeply grateful and have long sworn to serve Lord of the Prefecture to the death."

"I have not yet repaid the great kindness shown to me today, and now the Lord of the Prefecture has given me another opportunity. How can I, Old Tuolong, ever repay the Lord of the Prefecture's great kindness?"

Liu Qing smiled and waved his hand: "No need for that. Although we are master and subject, we are brothers. There is no need for thanks. Just do your best in your work in the future."

After saying that, Liu Qing summoned the ninth-rank divine token of the Chaotic Stone Pool and hung it above General Tuo's head: "Don't be nervous, relax your guard, and wait for the changes to happen."

General Tuo followed orders without reacting, allowing the divine light emanating from the divine token to alter his soul.

With the growth of the divine power of incense, General Tuo's soul quickly transformed into a body of incense.

A light blue divine robe appeared outside General Tuo's body.

Liu Qing pointed at the divine token, and the token flew to General Tuo's waist and hung there.

[Note: General Tuo is a ninth-rank river god of the Chaotic Rock Pool. Since you have bestowed this title upon him, he should worship you as his divine master and become your subordinate god. From now on, his life, death, promotion, and demotion will all be decided by you and will not be subject to the constraints of the Heavenly Court.]

After carefully contemplating the meaning, General Tuo was filled with gratitude and choked with emotion as he said, "Your subordinate, the Ninth-Rank River God of the Chaotic Rock Pool, Old Tuolong, pays respects to the Divine Lord."

It couldn't help but be excited. The immortality it had sought throughout its life through the divine path had been obtained so easily. Originally, after its death, it had thought that the path to divinity was hopeless and that it would mingle among the ghosts.

Unexpectedly, the lord of the gods simply pointed, and he was appointed river god, without having to spend hundreds of years accumulating incense money and begging for a title from heaven, as the old lord had done.

The fact that he had been granted godhood so easily made General Tuo feel grateful, yet it also felt somewhat unreal.

Liu Qing was also delighted, not because of General Tuo, but because his attempt had succeeded, just as he had guessed.

The newly evolved clergy can be sub-conferred to others, and after sub-conferring, these individuals will become his subordinates.

This kind of follower is not the nominal follower of the ninth or eighth rank, but a follower who is strictly subordinate to Liu Qing, regards Liu Qing as his master, and whose life and death are decided by Liu Qing.

In fact, it would be more appropriate to say that God's servants are worse than God.

Furthermore, the last sentence of the 'explanation', 'not bound by the Heavenly Court,' shocked Liu Qing even more, and secretly delighted him.

Being free from the constraints of the Heavenly Court means that General Tuo, and the deities to be bestowed upon him in the future, are only subject to their own control and command, and do not belong to the Heavenly Court.
In other words, Liu Qing became the God Lord, with subordinate gods under his command, forming a separate force independent of the Heavenly Court.
In terms of independence, he is far stronger than Erlang Shen of Guankou. Erlang Shen at most obeys orders but not summons, which stems from his divine authority and formidable fighting power.

Liu Qing's independence, on the other hand, meant that he was a small court outside of the Heavenly Court, a country within a country.

Liu Qing looked up at the sky, his eyes filled with uncertainty. From this moment on, the God Lord and the Jade Emperor were equal in rank.

First, they live as parasites in the Heavenly Court, surviving and gaining benefits. Then, when chaos erupts in the human world, they seize opportunities and fortunes. When they become powerful, they look back at the Heavenly Court and find it to be nothing more than that.

"General Tuo, remember this: do not tell anyone about my affairs, or I will not forgive you."

"Don't worry, my Lord, I, Old Tulong, am tight-lipped and know what's important."

Liu Qing nodded slowly and waved his hand, saying, "Now that things are settled here, you should go to the Chaotic Stone Pool. Remember, you should harmonize the wind and rain, help those in need, and refrain from doing evil. Also, do not interfere in the affairs of the Little Alligator Dragon at the Chaotic Stone Pool. Gods and demons are different!"

General Tuo nodded repeatedly, indicating he would remember, and then departed for the Chaotic Rock Pool. After General Tuo left, Liu Qing could no longer contain his joy and hurriedly used his Divine Splitting Technique to divide his Yang Spirit in two.
The Yang God's size shrank, but it remained a Yang God and didn't revert to a Yin God. Seeing this, Liu Qing split into four again. This time, their sizes shrank once more, resembling those of a ten-year-old boy.

After this, Liu Qing noticed a faint tendency for his Yang spirit to decline into a Yin spirit. To avoid the trouble of recovery, he stopped being distracted.

Looking at the four Yang Spirits, each the size of a teenager, lined up inside his body, Liu Qing chuckled. Once they've been nurtured and grown...
If a new divine office is established, one can use one's own divided spirit to merge with the Tao.

If the river demons under his command live up to his expectations and reach the level of Refining Emptiness and Merging with the Dao, transforming Yin spirit into Yang, Liu Qing will not hesitate to bestow upon them the title of gods.

Unfortunately, among the river demons under his command, the most powerful, Eel Lord Shan Yu, is only at the Refining Spirit to Return to Emptiness stage, having just given birth to a Yin Spirit. Most of the others are at the Refining Qi to Transform Spirit or Refining Essence to Transform Qi stage, still far from reaching the Refining Emptiness and Merging with the Dao stage of Yang Spirit.
The reason was that they lacked cultivation techniques and relied solely on instinct to absorb moonlight, resulting in slow progress in their cultivation. Liu Qing decided that after some time, he would teach the breathing and qi-absorbing techniques to Xia Kexing and Xie Zuoshou.

Among the East Sea cultivation techniques taught by Hong Gu, the Dragon-Snake Qi-Eating Method was specifically chosen for Liu Qing, a treatment bestowed upon all the dragon princes and princesses of the East Sea.

There are also ordinary breathing exercises for absorbing Qi. When the time comes, these ordinary exercises will be passed on to Xia Kexing and Xie Zuoshou.

When the world outside becomes even more chaotic, and the atmosphere of bloodshed intensifies.

After practicing the breathing and absorbing Qi technique, the river demons under his command will inevitably make rapid progress in their cultivation. This is because they lacked the technique before and simply absorbed the moonlight for decades or even hundreds of years, which was too profound. Once they have the technique, their cultivation level will naturally soar.

Even a hero needs three helpers. Liu Qing was motivated by loyalty and also needed capable subordinates, such as those who could provide resources for cultivation, or help in case of mountain demons causing trouble, or evil demons eating people and disrupting incense offerings.

I can't always handle things myself; I can send them to deal with things so that I can have enough time to cultivate.

Playing with Hong Gu and Bai She'er is fine, but you can't just become busier the more you cultivate and the higher your cultivation level becomes, right?

Cultivation is for longevity, and longevity is for freedom, not for being as tired as an ox pulling a cart. If that's the case, what's the point of transmigrating? Weren't we already oxen and horses in our previous lives?
[Name: Liu Qing]

[Race: Horned Viper]

[Realm Level: Refining Emptiness and Integrating with the Dao 30%]

[Rank: Divine Lord]

[From the gods: Seventh-rank incense god (1), Ninth-rank incense god (1)]

[Divinity: Authority 0.1%, Incense 24.1%]

[Techniques: Dragon and Snake Qi Absorption Method (Beginner), Water and Fire Refining Method (Beginner)]

【血脉天赋：1吞象（大成）；2尾鞭（大成）；3厚甲（大成）；4口囊（大成）；5沸血（大成），6獠剑（大成），7火翼（大成），8妖言（大成）】

【神通：1御水（大成）；2水傀（大成）；3寄香（大成）；4力士（大成），5化冰（大成）；6水雷（大成）；7洞阴（大成）；8点金（大成）；9分魂（大成）；10托梦（大成）；11阴风（大成）；12通幽（大成）；13拘灵（大成）；14神降（大成）】

[Heaven and Earth Source Qi: 2 points]

On the panel, under the "Race" section, the section of dragon bone obtained from the God-Sealing Tribulation Stone has been fully refined and absorbed.

This allows Liu Qing's original form, the Horned Serpent, to completely evolve into a serpentine skeleton, and its body length to increase to forty-eight feet. With the addition of serpentine tendons and blood, it can evolve into a serpentine snake.

In terms of cultivation level, the incense avatar sent over many sparrow demon corpses a few days ago, which Liu Qing devoured. Combined with his cultivation of the Dragon-Snake Devouring Qi Technique and the accumulation of moonlight, his cultivation level has skyrocketed from 23% of the Refining Void and Harmonizing Dao stage to the current 30%.

Don't underestimate the small increase; you should know that after refining the void and merging with the Dao, every 80 points of Heaven and Earth Origin Qi can only increase one's Dao cultivation level by 1%.

In terms of rank, he changed from the original 'Ninth-Rank Snake Pool River God' to 'God Lord', and a 'Subordinate God' column appeared below him.
There are two gods, both of whom are incense gods. One is a ninth-rank river god of the Chaotic Stone Pool, and the other is a seventh-rank river god, who is actually Liu Qing's own incense god clone.

Regarding the divinity of incense offerings, in order to maintain the continuous existence of the incense offering supernatural power and to meet the required quantity of the warrior talismans, the divinity of incense offerings must not be less than 24.1%.

Another change is the addition of a 'Techniques' section, which contains two techniques: one is the Dragon-Snake Qi-Eating Technique, passed down from the Dragon Palace of the East Sea.

As Liu Qing studied and comprehended this technique, he had already mastered the basics, which is why it manifested itself. Another reason was after Liu Qing killed the grass-headed water buffalo demon.

Within its stomach pouch, a method for refining the body was found. This method was simple and brutal to practice, perfectly suited to the water buffalo demon's personality.

As the name suggests, it's a technique that uses water and fire to refine the physical body. Liu Qing was originally a river demon, so he naturally had no shortage of water-based techniques, and he also possessed innate fire wings, so he could be considered to have some fire-based techniques as well.

This technique is simple and straightforward, and easy to practice. It only requires mastering the water and fire techniques to quickly begin.
Liu Qing simply followed the cultivation method, circulating his qi through his body a few times, and then used water techniques and fire wings to refine his physical body with the power of water and fire. In just a few days, he quickly mastered the basics, requiring far less time than the Dragon-Snake Qi-Eating Technique.

A short learning time for the basics doesn't mean the technique is weak. It's just that the Water Buffalo Sacrifice Technique takes a simple and direct approach. As long as you possess the power of water and fire, you can quickly master it.
Furthermore, with further refinement, the physical body will rapidly become stronger. Upon successful refinement, one can physically withstand even the lowest-grade spiritual treasures of the lower realms.
Just by looking at how the Grass-Headed Water Buffalo Demon was able to withstand Hong Gu's repeated attacks from spiritual treasures with its bare body that day, one can tell how powerful this technique is.

Of course, Liu Qing has not yet reached the level of the water buffalo demon. He has only cultivated for a few days, and his physical body has been slightly enhanced. Specifically, his defense and strength have both increased by about 10%.

At this moment, Liu Qing recited the key points of the Water and Fire Refining Technique in his mind, channeling the demonic energy according to the techniques.

At the same time, waves of water condensed on one side of his body, crashing against his flesh, while on the other side, fiery wings took flight, flapping and sending flames crashing down.
Using water magic on one side and fire magic on the other, the power of water and fire raged across Liu Qing's manifested 48-foot-tall horned serpent body, slowly seeping in from the outside in, gradually increasing the strength of Liu Qing's body.

The forces of water and fire are mutually antagonistic, flowing through the scales, muscles, and bones of the body. On one hand, the power of fire wings tears apart the old muscles, burning away impurities and retaining the essence, while on the other hand, the power of water forces generates the essence to replace the old muscles. This process repeats itself, and the intense pain makes Liu Qing tremble all over and clench his teeth.

This water and fire refining method is indeed very brutal. It's easy to cultivate and quick to show results, but the process is just too painful.

Liu Qing only stopped refining his technique when the pain became unbearable.

Several more days passed in this way. Liu Qing devoted himself to cultivation each day. During the day, he would first spend two hours practicing the Dragon-Snake Devouring Qi Technique to accumulate the source qi of heaven and earth, and then he would practice the Water-Fire Refining Technique to strengthen his physical body.

The remaining time was devoted to studying formations and practicing Eastern Sea magic. In addition, he also began to dabble in alchemy and weapon crafting.
After all, with a magical treasure like the Ruyi Double-Eared Furnace, which is of the acquired level, one can use it for alchemy when not for throwing things at people.

Finally, night falls. When there is a moon, they inhale and exhale its light; when there is a waning moon, they play mahjong or visit the shrimp merchants to drink and eat meat.
Life went on like this, fulfilling and carefree.

(End of this chapter)