Twenty-Seven Girl's Armor Breaks, One Painting Stuns Half of Lin'an

A golden incense stick burned, its smoke gathering into a painting, recalling past glorious years.

Like a stone dropped into a mirror lake, the scene rippled with ups and downs.

An Le felt a flicker of curiosity. What past could this stream of Golden Years Essence, drawn from the young girl, reveal? What kind of Years Dao Fruit could it condense?

The girl who stood behind him in the mountain spring rain, holding an umbrella, who had lightly and effortlessly followed him up the three hundred steps of the green mountain, was Ye Wenxi of the Ye family… rumored to be a holder of the Minor Sacred Token, An Le's competitor.

Thus, An Le's curiosity was piqued.

It was only reasonable to grow stronger by "shearing the wool" of one's competitors.

Twilight clouds gathered, and white, feather-like snow fell from the sky.

It carried the cold, wrapped in a chilling frost.

Landing on the vast earth, it absorbed fresh blood, turning blood-red, more dazzling than the bright moon, more piercing than the scorching sun.

"Wenxi, are you afraid?"

"No."

"Where are the soldiers? Their blades dulled, the people are in disarray, filling the ditches. Sigh, the land remains as it was, but villages are desolate. As a descendant of the Ye family, it is your lifelong aspiration to cross the river, to cross that Canglang River, and gallop on our ancestral land, reclaiming our Central Plains."

"Wenxi understands!"

"Go, go kill, go fight, go become stronger. When you are strong enough, I will ascend the Sacred Mountain for you and ask for a Minor Sacred Token. You can ask the Sacred Master if the swords and spears of my Ye family can restore the Central Plains."

"Okay!"

The calm conversation, carrying a surge of Blood Essence, shattered the falling snow.

A man clad in armor, holding a long spear, stood diagonally, gazing down at the still-young girl. He was like a fierce tiger watching its cub's first battle.

The girl, Ye Wenxi, her childishness not yet faded, dragged a green longsword. Her gaze was firm as she stepped onto the snow stained red, her small body shouting loudly, dragging her sword as she ran towards the front.

Solitary and petite.

She charged.

A small military squad of twenty to thirty cultivators approached on foot, their Blood Essence intertwined like a curtain. Their gazes were fierce, their killing intent rolling, as if to push away the twilight clouds. The aura of war, of clashing metal and horses, was suffocating.

The girl, after initial fear, felt her Blood Essence surge beneath her skin, her spirit erupting from her Niwan Palace.

The sword in her hand bloomed with a thousand sword lights, piercing the bodies of the leading cultivators. A head flew off, hot blood splashing on the snow, melting the cold.

The remaining cultivators rushed forward, engulfing Ye Wenxi.

Fighting, killing, constantly growing stronger.

Ye Wenxi seemed to enter a state of self-forgetting, her eyes becoming increasingly ruthless, with only slaughter remaining.

She had to become stronger, strong enough to inherit the will of the Ye family, to carry the spears and swords of the Ye family, to make the hooves of the Ye family's warhorses tread across the former Central Plains!

The man in armor watched quietly. The spear in his hand darted out at the opportune moment, piercing enemy experts who dared to intervene, their screams and roars met with blood staining the flying snow and yellow sand.

A quarter of an hour, another quarter of an hour.

Ye Wenxi, panting, leaned on her sword, standing in the snow.

Around her lay twenty-seven corpses.

She tilted her head back, looking towards the armored man.

The scene dispersed, the past unrecoverable, time ultimately unrepeatable.

An Le, using the Years Essence to glimpse the girl's glorious moments in time, was deeply shaken.

This scene within the Years Essence was different from any he had witnessed before.

Gone were the partings and reunions, the moments of joy. Instead, there was a sense of tragic heroism and responsibility.

Through the scene, standing on the battlefield, he could feel the girl's stubbornness and the armored man's expectations.

An Le slowly opened his eyes. The night was deep, the chill biting. The spring frost that had risen in the middle of the night seemed to have condensed into morning dew on his robes.

His mind was in turmoil. Witnessing Ye Wenxi draw her sword and kill felt as if he were there, profoundly impacting his spirit.

But what surprised An Le even more was that Ye Wenxi, such a soft and gentle girl, had taken twenty-seven lives in just two quarters of an hour.

This contrast made An Le feel even more vigilant about Ye Wenxi's strength and her outstanding talent.

Madam Hua had said Ye Wenxi was the true prodigy of the Ye family in this generation, and it was indeed fitting. Her resolve was absolutely incomparable to Luo Qingchen's "tofu heart."

This woman would be his opponent on the Minor Saint Ranking...

As the late-night spring chill swept in, An Le felt a sense of pressure.

[Obtained Years Dao Fruit: Self-forgetting]

[Note: Self-forgetting (Dao Fruit): During battle, one forgets oneself, disregarding life and death, with only the fight in mind. Combat methods, techniques, and fighting spirit all receive great improvements, greatly boosting combat power.]

A wisp of golden flowing years essence, condensing a Dao fruit of self-forgetting.

It's somewhat similar to the Dao fruit [Fearless Heart], both being Dao fruits that cannot be blessed by years essence, but their effects are quite potent.

Fearless Heart allows An Le to possess fearlessness, to face pressure, to face hardships and obstacles without any apprehension, to forge ahead through difficulties, and even to receive feedback from the Dao fruit.

As for the [Self-forgetting] Dao fruit, it is used in combat. When in battle, activating self-forgetting greatly enhances combat power.

It's a marvelous state. An Le recalled the scene in the years essence where Ye Wenxi charged alone, fighting in a state of self-forgetting, killing twenty-seven enemy soldiers.

It was an unexpected gain. Such a Dao fruit might not be useful on a daily basis, but it could have extraordinary effects.

The night was deep, and before he knew it, it was past midnight, with the sky beginning to show the pale white of dawn.

An Le didn't choose to cultivate further. He got up, went inside, took out some books, lit a lamp, and began to read.

Another condition to meet the Sacred Master was to achieve the top rank in the imperial examinations!

Therefore, with the Spring Imperial Examination approaching, he had to read every day.

Prime Minister Qin's Manor.

Through winding corridors and around flowing streams, though the night was deep, people were still seated and conversing in the waterside pavilions.

Young Master Qin Qianqiu sat in a pavilion, with not tea but the highly sought-after wine "Penglai Spring" from Lin'an Prefecture before him. It was a wine brewed with spiritual fruits from heaven and earth, which could absorb spiritual energy into the body and slightly enhance cultivation.

Across from Qin Qianqiu, Luo Qingchen sat quietly, a full cup of wine before him, not a drop having been drunk.

The atmosphere in the pavilion was somewhat stiff.

This was because Qin Qianqiu was constantly drinking, his attitude indifferent, and he hadn't said much.

He had initially held great expectations for Luo Qingchen becoming a Mountain Guardian on the Sixth Mountain, but when those expectations were shattered, all that remained was annoyance and disappointment.

Luo Qingchen could naturally feel the atmosphere, and he didn't say much either. He was also not in a position to explain anything.

"Master Luo, that An Le... he came from Chongzhou, and his cultivation enlightenment was only a few days ago, yet he was able to suppress you, ascend to the Sixth Mountain, obtain the Minor Sacred Token, and even cause your Dao heart to be clouded again."

"Master, talents emerge in every generation. Your past brilliance has faded, and you are now like a frost-bitten chrysanthemum, showing signs of decay."

Qin Qianqiu sighed, "Thinking back to those years, when you came from Qingzhou, you were as dazzling as gold cleansed of dust. With just one person and one sword, you won both battles in Lin'an, how glorious you were."

"This An Le is so much like you were back then."

"But he has an even brighter future than you. He obtained the Minor Sacred Token, his paintings are even circulated and praised within the Academy of Literature, and he independently opened a new school of ink bamboo."

"It's truly a pity and a shame that such talent does not fall into my grasp."

Qin Qianqiu seemed troubled and took a sudden gulp of wine.

Luo Qingchen turned to look at the prosperous and flourishing waterside pavilions of Prime Minister Qin's Manor, his expression becoming much calmer.

Even though Qin Qianqiu's words were filled with discouragement, he received them calmly. Perhaps he had been struck by too many blows and had become accustomed to it.

"Qingchen is ashamed of Prime Minister Qin's many years of cultivation and resources,"

Luo Qingchen finally raised his cup, took a sip, and said softly.

Qin Qianqiu's gaze fell upon Luo Qingchen, his pupils reflecting the moonlight, appearing somewhat cold. "Master Luo, this newcomer to the Minor Saint Ranking has deep ties with the Lin Manor, and the Qin Manor and the Lin Manor are locked in an irreconcilable feud. It would be best if he could join the Qin Manor, but if he cannot..."

A killing intent suddenly surged through the waterside pavilions.

Qin Qianqiu's attitude had shifted from initial indifference, where he thought An Le was just an eighteen-year-old bumpkin who had just started cultivating, to seeing the young man emerge and seize the Minor Sacred Token, and now he regarded him with great importance.

This transformation had occurred within just a few days.

Luo Qingchen calmly drank his wine.

"If he cannot join the Qin Manor, then please kill him," Qin Qianqiu looked at Luo Qingchen, finally showing eagerness again.

Luo Qingchen looked at Qin Qianqiu.

To kill someone who had just obtained the Minor Sacred Token, whom Hua Jiebing favored, and who was gifted a sword by the Sixth Mountain Lord – was this asking him, Luo Qingchen, to sacrifice his own life, to exchange his life for An Le's?

"Young Master, Qingchen's Dao heart is clouded and needs rest and cleansing. Please find someone else for this matter."

Luo Qingchen stood up, shook his head, stood up, bowed, and took his leave, turning to depart.

Qin Qianqiu sat in the pavilion, staring at Luo Qingchen's retreating back, "Master, not to mention that East Sea Heart Cleansing Pearl, just the prosperity and cultivation resources that the Qin Manor has provided you over the years, you should at least show some willingness to reciprocate."

Luo Qingchen's back paused slightly, then he shattered the cold night air and left the Qin Manor.

After drinking a cup of Penglai Spring wine that reflected the moonlight, Qin Qianqiu suddenly let out a soft scoff.

The warmth of the dawn dispelled the slight chill of spring.

However, the entire Lin'an Prefecture began to stir with unease.

Yesterday, at the foot of the Sixth Mountain, a white-clothed youth ascended the mountain with a single sword. Those cultivators who observed the youth obtaining the sword under the peach tree, picking up an ink pool, all sent people to gather all information about the youth.

Eighteen years old for cultivation enlightenment, only a few days of cultivation until now, yet he had already reached Spirit Refinement Fetal Respiration and Body Forging Spirit Bone. A late bloomer!

He was now a Juren scholar, heading to Lin'an to participate in the Spring Imperial Examination.

What was even more shocking was his youthful artwork. A peculiar Sketch Portrait gained the attention of the Lin Manor, leading to his appointment as a painter for the manor. Later, his Ink Wash Bamboo and Stone Painting circulated within the Academy of Literature.

The ink bamboo painting was admired and praised by two masters from the Academy of Literature, who even personally shared and analyzed it.

They declared that he could establish a new school of ink bamboo painting, calling him a Great Master!

One painting, one sword, one youth – it astonished half of Lin'an.

On this day, the ink bamboo painting depicted in the Academy of Literature became highly sought after in Lin'an, circulating widely. All the scholars and artists in Lin'an were stirred.

On this day, the name Great Master An swept through like a hurricane!

On this day, An Le woke up early. As usual, he read while heading towards West Lake to observe the Flower Queen.

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