Against the Gods - Volume 01 - Red-Colored Calamity

by Mars Gravity

  Xiao Che opened a small bottle and carefully dipped the silver needle inside: “Whether or not I know how to perform acupuncture, you’ll immediately find out. Of course, if you feel that there’s something wrong, or feel that I’m playing around, you can have me stop whenever you want.”

  “What’s inside that bottle?” Xia Qingyue’s gaze fell upon that small bottle.

  “Ordinary juice from the scarlet sunflower.” Xiao Che responded without thinking, his gaze falling upon Xia Qingyue’s snowy arms. The left hand holding the silver needle flickered slightly.

  Xiao Che’s movement was exceedingly fast, so fast that Xia Qingyue couldn’t react. When Xiao Che’s left hand withdrew, the silver needle between his fingers could no longer be seen. Instead, on her right wrist, a silver needle was inserted vertically… accurately landing on the Yang Chi acupuncture point.

  (TL: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Acupuncture)

  There was no pain, it could be better described as no feeling at all. If it weren’t for the fact that she could was staring blankly at this silver needle, she wouldn’t have known that there was a silver needle piercing her wrist at all. Xia Qingyue was moved… So quick? No, this was quick! But rather skillful! A kind of skill that had reached an astonishing level, to the point where it could be said to be at its peak!

  The second silver needle was picked up by Xiao Che and dipped in the scarlet sunflower juice. As he leaned towards Xia Qingyue’s right wrist, his wrist shook slightly and the second silver needle accurately pierced the Yang Gu acupuncture point. The third and fourth needle were pierced into the Zhong Zhu and He Gu points respectively.

  After the right hand, another four silver needles pierced the left hand’s Yang Chi, Yang Gu, Zhong Zhu, and He Gu four points. Each time, his movements were so quick that Xia Qingyue could only see a faint shadow pass by. The astonishment in her heart also accordingly rose with each silver needle’s pierce.

  (TL: RAW said her astonishment overlapped with the needles or something)

  She didn’t know if Xiao Che’s “treatment” would have any effect, but Xia Qingyue fundamentally couldn’t believe that this technique, skillful to the point of bewitchment, was performed by a sixteen year old boy.

  “Relax your hands and breathe steadily. Under no circumstances are you to use profound strength.”

  Xiao Che’s voice echoed next to her ear. She cooperated with him, her hands loosened and her breath calmed. At this moment, she suddenly felt ice cold air condense within both hands. Then, as if finding a drain, it quickly rushing towards the four Yang Chi, Yang Gu, Zhong Zhu, and He Gu points that had been pierced by silver needles…

  Suddenly, wisps of white mist slowly rose above the eight silver needles, the cold air stored within quickly lowering the surrounding temperature. Upon feeling the cold air fleeing from her meridians and the quickly rising white fog, Xia Qingyue’s snowy face violently twitched.

  It took a few minutes for the white fog to completely stop rising. At this time, Xiao Che suddenly reached out and flicked both his hands, his fingers moving like a mirage. In a split second, all eight of the silver needles that had been pierced into Xia Qingyue’s hands had been returned into his and then placed in a different case.

  “This cold air was even heavier than I thought. It’s good that you met me.” Xiao Che muttered in a small voice, then closed the silver needle case and said: “Qingyue my wife, how do your hands feel now?”

  Xia Qingyue raised both of her hands, her eyes wavering. Light, cozy, warm… that was how her hands felt right now. As if she was suddenly freed from some kind of heavy restraint. It was the first time since she started cultivating the Frozen Cloud Sacred Arts that she had felt this kind of warmth in her palm and arms. She lifted her eyes to look at Xiao Che, asking in astonishment: “What exactly is this?”

  “It’s actually really simple. I just released the cold air inside your hands and the meridians in your hands. At the same time, I unblocked the clogged meridians. That’s all.” Xiao Che humbly said: “Your Frozen Cloud Asgard’s profound technique can allow profound qi to become ice cold and thus greatly increase your power. The reason the ice cold profound qi is more powerful is because cold air is very harmful to people… Your enemies are people, but you are also a person. Before harming someone else, you inevitably harm yourself first. This is a very obvious principle.”

  (TL: Qi is natural energy. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Qi)

  “This morning, when I touched your palm, I found that your palm’s temperature was much colder than that of a normal person. Perhaps the members of your Frozen Cloud Asgard really believe that this is the expected result of cultivating the Frozen Cloud Secret Arts, but from a medical standpoint, it would be weird if this kind of body temperature was considered normal!! Normally, when you don’t use your profound strength, the profound strength collects in your profound veins and won’t influence your body. However, as soon as it’s used, the Frozen Cloud profound qi links with your entire body, injuring it when it’s released. When it’s circulating, it will also harm you! You should not have been cultivating the Frozen Cloud Secret Arts for more than a few years but a large amount of cold air has already permeated your five viscera, six bowels, blood, bone marrow, and dantian, and it is still accumulating. Over time, it will continually cause severe harm to your internal organs, it would be strange if it didn’t shorten your life! These negative effects really are things you would never come across normally.”

  (TL: plz google these medical things yourself)

  Xia Qingyue: “…”

  “In addition, under the cold air, the body’s many meridians will frequently spasm and then close up, greatly affecting your ability to use profound qi. You can try to transfer profound strength to your hands and see how it compares to before.” Xiao Che spoke with a stern face.

  Xiao Che’s confident opinion was stated reasonably from start to finish and was presented with cause and effect. Not only that but the reasoning was so easy to understand that even an idiot listening could understand. Once Xiao Che’s earnest reactions were added, it was basically impossible to question or refute him.

  (TL: Author wrote about Xia Qingyue having the earnest reactions, but she didn’t do anything this entire chapter.. author might have typo’d Xiao Che’s name.. he does that a lot with the empire/continent’s names)

  As Xiao Che was speaking with that stern face, his heart was actually grimacing… because while everything that he had just said was actually true, but it was both true… and yet also nonsense!

  That cold air amassing within would harm the body was true. The fact that it would close the meridians was also true… but if the Frozen Cloud Secret Arts were as unbearable as he stated, how would Frozen Cloud Asgard be worth anything? Not to mention being at the peak of the Blue Wind Empire, it wouldn’t even be able to last another eight hundred years. After cultivating the Frozen Cloud Secret Arts for a while, the body will have completely gotten used to it. Then, the cold air in the body, while it used to be harmful, would not only stop harming them, but also provide assistance. The congested meridians would also naturally clear.

  However, Xia Qingyue has only been cultivating the Frozen Cloud Secret Arts for three or four years. She naturally couldn’t be at the “completely adapted” phase. With his words combining with her own experiences up to now, in addition to the feeling after the “treatment”, Xiao Che’s arguments sounded fundamentally flawless to her.

  “Treatment”, was only an excuse. The Frozen Cloud Secret Arts’ “flaw” similarly is only an excuse. What he wanted to accomplish, only he knew.

  Chapter 19: Opening the Profound

  After hearing Xiao Che’s words, Xia Qingyue tried to concentrate her profound strength into her hands. Immediately, her heart once again skipped a beat. That was because compared to before, the profound strength flowing into her hands was unobstructed by a large margin. Its speed was also faster by twenty or thirty percent.

  Seeing Xia Qingyue’s
reaction, Xiao Che nodded in satisfaction: “Don’t you feel that it’s much less congested and faster than before? If we release the rest of the cold air in your body and clear your meridians, you’ll have the same body temperature as a normal person’s when not practicing the Frozen Cloud Secret Arts. None of the negative side effects will manifest and the speed at which you can use your profound strength will increase by at least half. Not only that, from now on, the speed at which you cultivate the Frozen Cloud Secret Arts will increase by at least thirty percent. Oh, I’m only just casually speaking. If you just listened casually too, then that would be fine, because you would never allow me to do these things.”

  As Xiao Che spoke, he already started cleaning up the things that he had brought from the infirmary.

  “Did you just say… that the speed at which I cultivate the Frozen Cloud Secret Arts will increase by thirty percent?” Xia Qingyue suddenly turned her head. Xiao Che’s statement absolutely shocked her, so much so that she wanted to believe him, yet couldn’t bring herself to do so.

  A pill that would allow a person to, for one or two years, advance ten or twenty percent faster would be, without contest, classified as a rare treasure; so much that it would cause a huge scramble that would give rise to a battlefield drenched in bloody rain. Yet the meaning of Xiao Che’s words… was actually a permanent increase of thirty percent!!

  This sentence was far more than astonishing! If there was something, or some condition, that allowed a person’s cultivation speed to permanently increase as much as thirty percent, Xia Qingyue believed without a doubt that all of the world’s heroes would flock out to obtain it with all their power.

  “Yes.” Xiao Che nodded. “It’s up to you whether you believe me or not.”

  On the contrary, Xiao Che’s “believe it or not” attitude caused Xia Qingyue to believe in him some more. That, coupled with the effects of his treatment that she had personally experienced, meant that she was unable to question much when faced with the astonishing things that he humbly said afterwards. This feeling surprised even herself. The huge Frozen Cloud Asgard had been in existence on Blue Wind Empire for thousands of years, but had never heard of the existence of a method with this kind of shocking result. In this small Floating Cloud City, a youth of only sixteen years age with a deformed profound vein unexpected could say this confidently… and also had her unable to stop herself from faintly believing in him.

  “If it really has the effect that you claim… then why would you say that I wouldn’t agree to have you do it?” Xia Qingyue asked.

  “Well…” Xiao Che lifted the corner of his mouth and deadpanned: “It’s really simple. If you think about it, you’ll understand. To extract the cold air from your entire body and clear the meridians, then you definitely need to have needles all over your body. Since you need to have needles on your body, then of course you’d have to undress. At the very least you would have to show me your entire back… You won’t even let me touch your hand, are you willing to undress in front of me?”

  Xia Qingyue: “…”

  “Alright, the silver needles have been used. I should take these back to the infirmary.” Xiao Che gave Xia Qingyue a faint smile: “No need to thank me. After all, you are my wife. Yesterday, in the dead of night, you ran out to bring me a blanket, so whatever I do for you is only to be expected.”

  Watching Xiao Che’s back as he packed everything, Xia Qingyue’s expression continuously changed. Finally, she once again voluntarily spoke: “I’ve always known about the accumulation of cold air in my body. I also know that the early stages of the Frozen Cloud Secret Arts will congest my meridians. If scattering the cold air and clearing the meridians really can relieve the body’s discomfort, and will also definitely improve the use of profound strength… what does it have to do with increasing the speed at which I cultivate profound strength?”

  “This touches on very complex medical knowledge. En, very complex, so I don’t really want to talk about it. Also, I bet that even if I did explain, you wouldn’t be able to understand,” Xiao Che vaguely replied. His forehead almost breaking out into cold sweat… He originally believed that the earlier words coupled with the acupuncture treatment had already succeeded in convincing Xia Qingyue. He didn’t expect that she would suspiciously ask about it, and straight about the crux of the matter to boot… That was because there wasn’t the slightest bit of relationship between the the speed of cultivation, and the cold air and meridians.

  Fortunately, Xia Qingyue didn’t continue her line of questioning. Right when Xiao Che finished wrapping everything up, she spoke again: “ These things, where did you learn them from? From your acupuncture technique just now, you definitely have the qualifications to join those huge medical schools! If you really have the ability to do what you just said, then not to mention this small Floating Cloud City, all of Blue Wind Empire would know your name. How could you remain unknown, and instead have this reputation as a cripple?”

  Join those medical schools? Xiao Che curled his lips in disdain. He then turned around and serenely stated: “These things were all taught to me by my master.”

  “Your… master?” Xiao Qingyue’s moon like brows twitched. She had never heard of Xiao Che having any kind of master.

  “My master was a great medical saint. His entire life was spent using his knowledge to help people, and he saved countless dying and injured people. I met him when I was very young. He taught me the four ways of medical diagnosis, how to use the needle, and the principles of pharmacology and toxicology. He taught me that under heaven, there was a countless number of medicines and poisons, pests and herbs. I am his only successor. His kindness to me was as heavy as a mountain, impossible to replay in this lifetime… That is why I know some medical techniques. As for the rest, you shouldn’t ask too much. Also, don’t tell any outsiders that I practice medicine. Even my grandfather and little aunt are unaware. Aside from myself, you’re the only other person who knows.”

  (TL: four ways of medical diagnosis = look, smell, ask, and cut)

  As he thought about his dead master, Xiao Che could not stop his face from showing a sad and nostalgic expression. This was his most sincere emotion, without a shred of falsehood or artifice. This sincere emotion also affected Xia Qingyue, who, with complete conviction in Xiao Che’s words, gently said: “For you to be this young and yet have such shocking skill in acupuncture, it seems that your master definitely is a great doctor.”

  “He was the world’s greatest doctor, without peer!” Xiao Che firmly said.

  Xiao Che’s appearance caused Xia Qingyue’s inner doubt to unconsciously lessen by a bit. After hesitating for a bit, she finally made her up mind: “… Then, you are sure that what you said about letting me permanently cultivate thirty percent faster… is true?”

  “Since I said it, then I wouldn’t disgrace my master’s name as a doctor. En? You wouldn’t be… thinking about trying it?” Xiao Che turned around and looked at her with a face full of astonishment.

  Xia Qingyue let out a small sigh of relief, glancing over: “You’re sure you only need to see the back.”

  Xiao Che’s eyes lit up and his face moved closer. He smilingly said: “If you really want to show everything, then that’s okay too…”

  Xia Qingyue’s eyebrows drooped and her red sleeves unfurled. A sudden gust of cold wind assaulted Xiao Che’s entire body, causing him to shiver. She walked towards the bed, faintly saying: “Let’s start. Let me see if your medical techniques are as miraculous as you say… However, if you get any ideas, I definitely won’t forgive you.”

  Xiao Che gave a wily smile: “You could kill me with a slap. Even if I had ideas I wouldn’t dare try.”

  The box of silver needles and jar of crimson sunflower juice that had just been put away were once again brought out. Afterwards, he walked to the bedside and said with a solemn face to the Xia Qingyue already sitting on top the bed: “Undress!”

  It was a pure word but when shouted by Xiao Che, it
gave an impression of an evil tyrant forcing himself upon an innocent woman.

  When thinking about this, the inner heart of even the incorruptible, and world defiant pure lotus that was Xia Qingyue, upon hearing this word, had some kind of reaction… However, the temptation of a permanent thirty percent increase to her cultivation speed was too much to bear. So much that it’s safe to say that no profound practitioners would be able to resist! This was because if it really succeeded, it’s the same as saying that with the same talent and comprehension, the same profound arts and profound skills, and the same environment and resources, the advancement from cultivating three years would be equivalent to the opposition’s cultivation of four years! After a century, you would exceed the opposition’s advancement by thirty years!

  Xiao Che also was certain that even though Xia Qingyue had to undress, she still wouldn’t refuse. That was because Xia Qingyue clearly was girl seeking to climb to higher heights of profound strength, if not, she wouldn’t have joined Frozen Cloud Asgard without care about the consequences of abstaining from both emotion and passion.

  If everything were to happen as he said, then this kind of price would be absolutely worth it… To say nothing of the fact that it was only the back. Xia Qingyue thought of it like this and turned her back to Xiao Che. She gently laid down on her stomach, her heart as still as a mirror. She closed her eyes and unbuttoned her dress. Her crimson dress slowly slid along the lines of her fragrant shoulders and jade like arms. The dazzling white back of a beautiful girl, without a stitch to cover it, appeared in front of Xiao Che’s eyes.

  She pulled over the quilt, holding it at her bosom. The red dress continued to slide down, revealing an ample and alluring bottom, exposing the liquid curve of her jadelike back. Her back was slender, yet not scrawny, clear and lustrous without peer. The skin of her neck and shoulder were flawlessly soft and seemingly pink, as if it had been lubricated. Xiao Che’s rapt gaze widened, as if he was in a trance.