On the Right Path

The wind continued to blow. Lu Xun did not move after setting down his brush.

He was not trying to look cool. His mental energy had been drained too heavily, leaving him somewhat dazed, and he needed time to adjust.

More precisely, if he had not been supporting himself against the table with his left hand, his legs might have gone weak.

He could still continue leveling up, and he had plenty of Experience Points left. Unfortunately, while leveling up would fully restore his health and spiritual power, it could not make up for his mental exhaustion, so he decided not to level up yet.

Besides, he was already as weak as a limp noodle. Breaking through under such circumstances would look far too strange.

A man had nothing to be ashamed of if he was occasionally weak!

As the leading figure among the Outer Sect Elders, Elder Qiu Shui was a careful person. She saw that Lu Xun was not in good condition and led him aside to rest.

Seeing how exhausted their Little Martial Grand-Aunt looked, the Outer Sect Disciples immediately understood the standard for this trial—one had to draw until one was completely spent, just like their Little Martial Grand-Aunt!

Lu Xun did not know that because he had set an example, this trial seemed to have gone down the wrong path.

Originally, everyone could stop once they had drawn enough. But their Little Martial Grand-Aunt had pushed himself so far—if they, his juniors, did not draw until they fainted, would that not seem unreasonable?

Next, it was time to see Ji Li perform.

Lu Xun found an open spot and sat on the ground. If he were not trying to maintain his image, he might have collapsed onto the floor like a puddle of mud.

He took out two dates Mao Nanbei had picked from his Storage Ring. After eating them, his whole body felt cool and refreshed, and the dizziness eased somewhat.

He watched Ji Li walk over and pick up the brush. He watched her dip it in ink... and her hand did not even tremble!

As expected of a super-strong girl. She really was strong!

This little girl was strong and had great stamina. It would be such a waste if she did not become a "perpetual motion machine."

Just as Lu Xun had expected, Ji Li possessed natural divine strength, giving her a certain advantage in this trial. At the very least, when she first picked up the brush and dipped it in ink, she did not feel much burden.

Now, it depended on how she would draw.

Holding the brush, Ji Li walked up to the enormous Talisman Paper. Without a moment's hesitation, she chose a spot right beside what Lu Xun had drawn.

She wanted to claim the place closest to Lu Xun's drawing first. Better yet, she wanted to draw a circle and enclose it.

The instant the brush tip touched the Talisman Paper, Ji Li's body trembled slightly.

Only after experiencing it firsthand did she understand how difficult it was to draw with this brush.

She began to draw. Her movements were simple, but the strokes came in fits and starts, and she could not even make a continuous line.

Only then did the Outer Sect Disciples realize that this trial might be even more difficult than they had imagined!

After all, Ji Li was a cultivation genius with eight ripples. Even she found it this difficult, so the challenge was self-evident.

Everyone could not help glancing at Lu Xun again. Their Little Martial Grand-Aunt had been drawing with sweeping, fluid strokes on the Talisman Paper until the very end!

Their admiration surged forth once more.

As Lu Xun rested while watching Ji Li, he was surprised to discover that his Reputation Points had begun to rise again in small increments!

"What's going on? I've already stepped down to rest, so how can my Reputation Points still be increasing?" Lu Xun was somewhat confused.

Second by second, time passed. Ji Li had to exert tremendous effort just to draw one continuous line. Then, imitating Lu Xun, she tried drawing a straight line first, but the line she drew was twisted, like an earthworm.

She was, after all, a miraculous girl who had sacrificed her brain for the sake of growing up. Foolishly, she stopped caring whether the line was straight. She only wanted to make it as long as possible, then use it to encircle everything Lu Xun had drawn!

That damned possessiveness!

Watching her movements, Lu Xun gradually understood what was happening. The corner of his mouth twitched, and he felt speechless.

By the time Ji Li reached the end, her entire body was swaying unsteadily. At last, she drew a distorted shape that enclosed what Lu Xun had drawn.

She grinned foolishly, even a little smug, extremely satisfied with her work. Then her vision went dark, and she fell backward.

With a slight wave of Elder Qiu Shui's sleeve, Ji Li's body floated backward through the air and landed beside Lu Xun.

Lu Xun hurriedly took out two dates and stuffed them into Ji Li's mouth, puffing out her cheeks.

She looked exactly like a little hamster.

Fortunately, she had only overdrawn her mental energy and spiritual power. A super-strong girl would not exhaust her physical strength. She still had the energy to chew carefully, then softly thought to herself:

So sweet.

A cool sensation swept through her entire body, and her vitality gradually recovered. Yet, too foolishly absorbed in the sweetness, she did not notice any of it.

She only felt that it was sweet.

Ji Li had drawn for just over twenty minutes, a very good performance. If this had been a task, she would have been just short of a 100% completion rate.

The remaining Outer Sect Disciples watched as Ji Li nearly fainted. Before going up, each of them took a deep breath as though heading to the execution ground.

Lu Xun had made a strong start, and Ji Li had followed by setting an example. The remaining Outer Sect Disciples now understood the standard: as long as they did not draw themselves to death, they had to draw like they were trying to!

—No fainting, no stopping!

A perfectly normal Outer Sect Trial had been forcibly led astray by Lu Xun. The Outer Sect Disciples challenged the limits of their bodies as if they were torturing themselves. Elder Qiu Shui caught one collapsing body after another, and she was starting to feel bewildered.

Shen Yan and the various Peak Lords on Evergreen Peak were also somewhat dumbfounded. This trial was only meant to let the disciples understand what Micro Control was. How had it suddenly become so "tragic"?

Xu Zhongcheng, who also had eight ripples, did not want to lose to Ji Li.

Unfortunately, his talent in Micro Control was about on par with Ji Li's. On top of that, Ji Li was a super-strong girl and held a slight advantage. So although he endured and endured, he still did not last as long as Ji Li. By the end, foam was spilling from his mouth!

Elder Qiu Shui: "..."

These Outer Sect Disciples were not all going to break, were they...

Meanwhile, Lu Xun, who sat in the back watching the spectacle, maintained a smile on his face. His smile was gentle, and his eyes were full of encouragement. He looked exactly like a handsome, mild-tempered, perfect elder, completely unaware that this was all his fault.

Even when some Outer Sect Disciples did not perform very well, he would offer them a few words of encouragement. His voice was magnetic, but his tone was so gentle that it felt like a spring breeze, making them immediately sense his concern.

Little Martial Grand-Aunt was obviously so good himself, while I was this awful... Little Martial Grand-Aunt was such a good person!

—Their admiration was about to explode!

Wasn't it just Reputation Points? Take them! Take them!

Looking at the Tool People before him, Lu Xun only felt that they were really on the right track.

Wasn't it just flashing a smile? Wasn't it just saying a few encouraging words? It was like holding a signing event. What was so difficult about that?

A steady increase in Reputation Points was the true path!

When the entire Demon Sect became my diehard fans one day, my Reputation Points would probably overflow!

Besides, this was not bad for the Outer Sect Disciples either. They truly needed encouragement.

Mm! Although I flashed smiles, spouted empty encouragement, and attracted fans with my looks, I knew I was a good ancestor.

"I feel like I'm on the right path." The smile on Lu Xun's face became even gentler.

(PS: A new week has begun. I still want to remain first on the signed rankings, so please send recommendation votes and tips, the two main ranking metrics, to help me climb the rankings!)