A Youth Splashes Ink to Paint a Wild Horse, Washing Away All Mundane Horses Since Time Immemorial

Fourth Master Lin's words carried a measure of expectation as his bright gaze fell upon An Le.

In truth, such words were rather discourteous, even somewhat provocative, yet Fourth Master Lin had asked with utmost sincerity.

Xi Xiang stood quietly to one side, not daring to say much. She had not expected Fourth Master Lin to be so direct from the very first words.

An Le was startled at first, then grasped the meaning behind Fourth Master Lin's words. His gaze shifted to the black steed basking in the warm spring sunlight on the distant pasture.

The Daoli Horse was pitch-black from head to tail, its long, narrow mane spilling loose. Its sturdy neck was raised high; merely strolling through the grass, it seemed to surge with blood and vitality. Its eyes shone brightly, and the muscles beneath its stretched frame knotted together, concealing explosive strength.

Sunlight poured over its black coat, making it gleam. It truly was a divine steed.

"Fine horse." An Le admired the Daoli Horse and praised it from the heart.

The black Daoli Horse in the distant pasture seemed to have heard An Le's praise. It snorted out a puff of hot breath from its great nostrils, raised its sturdy neck, and trotted back and forth a few steps. Its mane flew wildly, displaying all its divine vigor.

"Fourth Master, aside from painting bamboo, I know a little bit about other things as well."

After praising the steed, he turned to Fourth Master Lin and cupped his hands in salute.

Fourth Master Lin's eyes grew even brighter. In a few quick steps, he reached An Le's Side, took An Le by the hand, and led him to the table.

"Come, come, come. Could Great Master An show Lin something of his skill?"

"Paint my Daoli Horse from beyond the pass."

Fourth Master Lin performed a scholar's salute and made the request of An Le with solemn earnestness.

"Why is Fourth Master so set on painting a horse?"

An Le did not refuse, merely asking out of curiosity.

Fourth Master Lin raised his head. A trace of sorrow clouded his brow as he looked at the horse in the distant pasture. "I love raising horses and training horses. This Daoli Horse returned with me from beyond the pass, and it is my favorite horse. But in Lin'an, it cannot run freely and often falls ill. After much thought, I decided to send it away."

"This painting will be both a keepsake and a farewell."

"I love horses, but in Lin'an, a man cannot act as he wishes. I am shackled all over. If it follows me, it will only suffer restraints for nothing, never having the chance to gallop across a battlefield."

Fourth Master Lin spoke at length, his voice thick with loneliness and reluctance.

An Le could keenly feel Fourth Master Lin's reluctance, as well as the pain in his heart as though it were being carved by knives.

Fourth Master Lin sending away the Daoli Horse was much like Lin Manor sending away those young masters who were about to march to war.

An Le sighed.

He suddenly understood why Madam Hua had asked him to seek out Fourth Master Lin to learn about the Minor Saint Ranking. Perhaps Madam Hua had also hoped that, if he could paint horses, he would paint a fine steed for Fourth Master Lin.

Of course, the choice was still his. If he was unwilling or unable, he could simply refuse.

An Le considered it, then smiled. "Since that is so, then this student shall make a fool of himself."

As soon as the words fell, Fourth Master Lin, whose brows still bore traces of desolation, could not help turning to look at him. His eyes were full of delight. Since An Le was willing to paint, he naturally had some confidence in his ability.

"I shall grind ink for Great Master An!"

Fourth Master Lin was brimming with anticipation. He removed the half-finished painting he had made himself from the table and spread out fresh sized Xuan paper.

In the distance, Xi Xiang's heart surged. Fourth Master Lin was personally grinding ink and changing paper—if word of this got out, it would surely cause a tremendous uproar.

"Fourth Master, no need for sized Xuan paper. Change it to raw Xuan paper."

An Le said.

Raw Xuan paper for painting a horse?

Fourth Master Lin froze for a moment. He had also admired An Le's ink bamboo painting at Madam Hua's residence. Painted in the freehand ink-wash style, the bamboo was indeed unique, possessing a special charm.

But could horses be painted with freehand brushwork too?!

Only Gongbi horse paintings could outline a horse's form and bearing. Compared with painting people, Gongbi painting held even greater advantages for painting horses. Only by using fine brushes to trace every strand of mane and hair could one render it in exquisite detail, lifelike in every respect.

Yet he did not question it. An Le's ink bamboo had formed its own school; painting horses in a freehand style was not necessarily impossible!

He immediately replaced the sized Xuan paper with raw Xuan paper and began grinding the ink with focused attention.

The rubbing sound was like waves rolling through a sea of bamboo, and the fragrance of ink swiftly wafted through the courtyard.

An Le pondered for a long while without painting at once. Instead, he walked over to the Daoli Horse pacing through the pasture.

Perhaps because of the Quenching Demon Ancient Jade, the Daoli Horse showed no arrogance at An Le's approach. Instead, it gently came over and nuzzled against him.

An Le rubbed the Daoli Horse's head, then removed its bridle and saddle. He patted its belly lightly before turning and returning to the table.

Fourth Master Lin, who was grinding ink, watched quietly.

"The great Dao of painting lies in seeking nature. Since Fourth Master wishes to remember the Daoli Horse, then we should paint its most unruly, most unfettered moment."

On the pasture.

Freed of its saddle, the Daoli Horse raised its neck high and suddenly shook its head. Its mane scattered through the air, dazzling and unrestrained!

At that moment, An Le lifted his brush, letting it drink deeply of ink as the power of his mind surged within his Niwan Palace.

Then he set brush to the raw Xuan paper.

Quiet Street, the luxurious estate Qin Manor had prepared for Luo Qingchen.

Within the estate was a tranquil pavilion.

Winding streams carried floating cups, and covered corridors twisted through nine bends.

Water boiled atop a charcoal stove. Steam rose in clouds, while the stove's mouth shrieked without pause.

Luo Qingchen sat quietly, gazing at the artificial mountain and pond in the placid waterside pavilion. His eyes were blank, as though he were lost in thought.

Young Master Qin's words to him yesterday had been exceedingly impolite, but they were understandable. The greater the hope, the deeper the disappointment; a loss of balance in one's state of mind was inevitable.

Moreover, Young Master Qin had never been easy to speak with. Among the young masters of Qin Manor, Young Master Qin was the most domineering in his conduct, but he had the confidence to be so.

Ever since Qin Qianqiu's second brother had been beaten to death by Lin Family's Seventh Son in the Civil and Martial Arena, Prime Minister Qin had been devastated. Only afterward did he have Qin Qianqiu, transferring the favor he had once shown Second Young Master Qin onto Qin Qianqiu.

Thus, Qin Qianqiu was the treasure held in Prime Minister Qin's palm.

Beyond that, Qin Qianqiu's own cultivation talent, along with the towering authority he had gained from accompanying the prince, were all boundless sources of confidence.

Experts gathered like clouds behind him. The only thing Luo Qingchen had that was worth valuing was his dual breakthrough into the fifth realm. The fifth realm was a threshold on the path of cultivation; there were plenty who had broken through it in one path, but only those who achieved a dual breakthrough were truly worthy of praise.

Yet no matter how praiseworthy one was, if one's Dao heart was easily clouded by dust and one disappointed others again and again, one would still lose their favor.

Luo Qingchen's value in Qin Qianqiu's heart had already greatly diminished. That was why there had been that impolite conversation yesterday.

"Kill An Le?"

Luo Qingchen stood, clasped his hands behind his back, and walked down from the pavilion to the pond's edge. Watching the ornamental koi and goldfish drift leisurely through the water, he could not help losing himself in thought.

"But the youth now is no longer the obscure nobody I saw on Quiet Street. He holds the Minor Sacred Token, has Hua Jiebing protecting his Dao, and one ink masterpiece shook Lin'an... Even if I kill such a person, I fear I would have to throw away this life of mine as well."

"But I am unwilling."

Luo Qingchen closed his eyes.

The figure of the Legendary Scholar in the Flying Snow Cottage surfaced in his mind.

Though the East Sea Heart Cleansing Pearl had washed away the dust upon his Dao heart, he still could not forget the crushing battle of that day.

The shadow had always remained, carved deep into his soul. He needed to cleanse it himself.

The shadow Hua Jiebing's heart sword had left behind was nothing by comparison.

Opening his eyes, Luo Qingchen's gaze was filled with deep exhaustion. He had left Qingzhou filled with ambition, arriving in Lin'an, wishing to soar straight into the blue clouds.

Yet after one defeat, without realizing it, he had already squandered long years.

He no longer had the years to turn back.

"Perhaps Lin'an and I have grown mutually weary. It is time to return to Qingzhou."

Luo Qingchen let out a breath.

He planned to find an opportunity to pay Prime Minister Qin a visit and thank him for the grace of gifting him the East Sea Heart Cleansing Pearl. Although he had joined Prime Minister Qin's Manor for so many years and could be said to have repaid that kindness, Prime Minister Qin's willingness to extend a hand when he had been at the end of his road naturally carried a different meaning.

"Zhushan, prepare the carriage. I am going to pay Prime Minister Qin a visit."

Returning to the pavilion, Luo Qingchen lifted the tea that had long since gone cold and called softly.

Yet his voice echoed down the corridor, and there came no response from the burly coachman who had left Qingzhou with him, accompanied him in glory, and accompanied him in failure.

Before the tea reached his lips, Luo Qingchen froze.

When it came to painting horses, countless images flashed through An Le's mind.

Among paintings of famous horses was the "Five Horses," but "Five Horses" followed the line-drawing approach, using Gongbi techniques to meticulously depict every detail and bearing of the horses.

Yet besides horses, "Five Horses" also contained people. The horses bore saddles, and people led them by the reins; it did not suit Fourth Master Lin's state of mind.

A free horse, an unruly horse... it still had to be that household-name master of horse painting, whose work "washed away all mundane horses since time immemorial."

The power of his mind surged forth, and An Le's thoughts became clear. It was as if painting after painting flashed through his mind.

After cultivating, the Niwan Palace contained the power of his mind. An Le felt that his painting skills had improved greatly, gaining more depth than in his previous life.

He was not copying paintings from his previous life. Instead, he was using their methods while adding his own understanding to create a painting.

The soft wolf-hair brush drank its fill of thick ink before falling upon the pale Xuan paper. With one stroke of dense ink, he painted the horse's neck, the lines heavy and forceful; then he painted the belly, curving strokes outlining it with seamless naturalness!

As brush and ink fell upon the paper, An Le's mind surged mightily, like fireflies in the night gathering within it.

Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy stirred with it, carrying the spring breeze along.

Fourth Master Lin's pupils constricted at the side. With only a few strokes, An Le had roughly sketched the horse's form. Thick ink painted the neck, and curved lines outlined its belly. An Le seemed extraordinarily familiar with a horse's bodily structure!

Once the structure of the neck, belly, haunches, legs, and other parts had been outlined, the painting became large in front and small behind, giving it a sense of perspective. An Le then used another brush to wet and splash the ink, balancing dark and light shades. In but an instant, he rendered the horse's form and muscular lines so vividly that they seemed ready to leap from the paper.

Then he swept dry ink with the brush to create the mane and tail. Dark and light, dry and wet, all blended with flawless naturalness; movement and stillness flowed with agile life!

With one stroke, he painted the horse's legs, like steel blades. Their force pierced through the paper, as if the horse had already begun to gallop!

Buzz, buzz, buzz...

Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy converged, while the power of his mind gathered into the painting!

An Le's expression was solemn. His mind continuously merged into the painting as he raised his brush and used thick ink to outline the hooves with great precision. Once the hooves were complete, they seemed to condense the essence of the entire painting!

In that instant, it seemed as though a fine steed's hooves struck the earth, like peals of thunder rolling behind clouds!

Fourth Master Lin and Xi Xiang watched in shock from the side.

The horse in the painting seemed wild and arrogant, racing across the grasslands like wind and lightning!

In the distance, the Daoli Horse on the pasture seemed to sense one of its kind galloping. It let out a neigh, reared up on its forelegs, and began racing across the pasture as well.

Fourth Master Lin stared in shock at the Ink Horse leaping from the xuan paper. The light and shadow, lines, perspective, and other ink-wash techniques that had been woven in with sketching seemed to let him see the Daoli Horse of old—unrestrained, wild, and exceptionally proud!

At that moment, Fourth Master Lin felt a freedom like breaking loose from the reins, a boldness that shattered all shackles!

A sudden wind rose between Heaven and Earth; grass flew and horses raced!

Heaven and Earth Spiritual Energy and the power of his mind both converged upon the painting!

A youth splashed ink to paint a wild horse; when the painting was complete, it became an Eighth-grade Spirit Refining Portrait!

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