Youth Splashes Ink, Painting Wild Horses, Washing Away All Ancient Mundane Steeds

Fourth Master Lin's words held a hint of anticipation as his gaze, bright and piercing, fell upon An Le.

While such a question was rather impolite, even bordering on provocative, Fourth Master Lin asked it with genuine sincerity.

Xi Xiang stood quietly to the side, not daring to utter a word. She hadn't expected Fourth Master to speak so directly.

An Le was stunned for a moment. Then, understanding the implication behind Fourth Master Lin's words, his gaze shifted to the black steed basking in the spring sunlight on the grassy field in the distance.

The Daoli Horse was entirely black, its mane long and flowing, its thick neck held high. Merely by strolling through the grass, it seemed as if Blood Essence surged within it. Its eyes were bright, and its muscular body, stretched out, was coiled with latent power.

The sunlight cascaded onto its black coat, making it gleam. It was indeed a magnificent steed.

"A fine horse," An Le praised, admiring the Daoli Horse with genuine admiration.

The Daoli Horse on the distant field seemed to hear An Le's praise. It snorted hot air from its large nostrils, raised its thick neck, and trotted a few steps back and forth, its mane flying, revealing its majestic beauty.

"Fourth Master, besides painting bamboo, I'm only slightly familiar with other things."

After praising the steed, he turned to Fourth Master Lin and cupped his fists in a respectful bow.

Fourth Master Lin's eyes brightened further. He strode to An Le's side, took his hand, and led him to the table.

"Come, come, Master An, would you grace me with a demonstration?"

"Paint my Daoli Horse from beyond the pass."

Fourth Master Lin bowed in the manner of a scholar, earnestly requesting of An Le.

"Why are you so fixated on painting horses, Fourth Master?"

An Le didn't refuse, merely asking out of curiosity.

Fourth Master Lin looked up, a hint of melancholy clouding his brow. He gazed at the horse on the distant field. "I love raising and training horses. This Daoli Horse returned with me from beyond the pass. It's my favorite. But here in Lin'an, it can't run freely and often falls ill. After much thought, I've decided to send it away."

"This painting is a memento, and also a farewell."

"I love horses, but here in Lin'an, I am bound by my circumstances, shackled. If it stays with me, it will only be restrained and will have no opportunity to gallop on the battlefield."

Fourth Master Lin spoke at length, his tone filled with a deep sense of melancholy and reluctance.

An Le could truly feel Fourth Master Lin's reluctance and the heartache he was experiencing.

Fourth Master Lin sending away the Daoli Horse was akin to the Lin Manor sending off the young masters who were about to go to war.

An Le sighed.

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

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

An Le thought for a moment and then smiled, "Since that is the case, I shall offer my humble skills."

As he spoke, Fourth Master Lin, whose brow still held a trace of melancholy, turned his head. His eyes were filled with joy. He knew that since An Le was willing to paint, he must have some confidence in his ability.

"I shall grind ink for Master An!"

Fourth Master Lin was filled with anticipation. He removed the half-finished painting from the table and laid out a fresh sheet of Xuan paper.

In the distance, Xi Xiang watched, her heart stirred. If Fourth Master personally ground ink and changed the paper, it would surely cause a stir if it were to spread.

"Fourth Master, we don't need seasoned Xuan paper, please use raw Xuan paper," An Le said.

Painting horses on raw Xuan paper?

Fourth Master Lin was taken aback. He had also admired An Le's ink bamboo paintings at Madam Hua's residence. The freehand ink wash style used for bamboo was indeed unique and possessed a special charm.

But could horses also be painted with a freehand brushstroke?!

Painting horses with meticulous detail was the way to capture their form and spirit. Compared to painting people, meticulous brushwork was more advantageous for painting horses. Only by using fine strokes to depict the mane and hair could the horse be rendered with lifelike detail.

However, he did not question it. An Le's ink bamboo paintings were in a class of their own, so painting horses with a freehand style might not be impossible!

He immediately replaced the seasoned Xuan paper with raw Xuan paper and began to focus on grinding the ink.

The sound of grinding was like waves rising in a bamboo sea, and the scent of ink immediately wafted through the courtyard.

An Le pondered for a long time, not immediately starting to paint. Instead, he walked on foot to the Daoli Horse pacing in the field.

Perhaps due to the Quenching Demon Ancient Jade, the Daoli Horse did not display any wildness upon An Le's approach. Instead, it very gently nudged against An Le.

An Le stroked the Daoli Horse's head, then removed its reins and saddle. He patted its belly and turned back to the table.

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

"The great path of painting lies in pursuing nature. Since you wish to remember the Daoli Horse, Fourth Master, you should paint its most untamed, most free moment."

On the field.

The Daoli Horse, freed from its saddle, raised its neck high and shook it violently, its mane flying, resplendent and wild!

An Le picked up his brush at the opportune moment, dipped it in ink, and felt his spirit surge from the center of his Niwan Palace.

Then, he laid his brush upon the raw Xuan paper.

This was Quiet Street, the luxurious mansion prepared for Luo Qingchen by the Qin Manor.

Within the manor, a pavilion.

Flowing streams and winding corridors.

Water boiled on a charcoal stove, steam rising, the opening whistling incessantly.

Luo Qingchen sat quietly, gazing at the rock garden and pond in the tranquil waterside pavilion, his eyes vacant, lost in thought.

The words Young Master Qin had spoken to him yesterday were quite blunt, but understandable. Great hope often led to great disappointment, and an unbalanced state of mind was inevitable.

Moreover, Young Master Qin was not an easy person to deal with. Among the Qin Manor's young masters, Young Master Qin was the most overbearing in his actions, but he had the backing to be so.

Ever since Qin Qianqiu's second elder brother was killed by the Lin family's Seventh Young Master on the martial arts stage, Prime Minister Qin had been overcome with grief. It was only afterward that Qin Qianqiu was born, and the second young master's favor was transferred to Qin Qianqiu.

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

In addition to this, Qin Qianqiu's own cultivation talent and the immense power he gained from accompanying the prince were his boundless confidence.

He had countless powerful experts behind him. The only thing Luo Qingchen valued was breaking through the Five Realms twice. The path of cultivation had a bottleneck at the Five Realms; those who broke through it once were not few, but breaking through twice was truly commendable.

However, no matter how commendable, if one's Dao heart was easily stained and they disappointed others repeatedly, they would lose favor.

Luo Qingchen's value in Qin Qianqiu's eyes had already greatly diminished, which was why he had that blunt conversation yesterday.

"Kill An Le?"

Luo Qingchen stood up, walked out of the pavilion with his hands behind his back, and approached the pond. He gazed at the koi and goldfish swimming leisurely in the pond, lost in thought.

"But the youth of today is no longer the unknown nobody I saw on Quiet Street. He holds the Minor Sacred Token, has Hua Jiebing to protect him, and his calligraphy amazed Lin'an… If I were to kill such a person, I fear I would have to give up my own life."

"But I am unwilling."

Luo Qingchen closed his eyes.

The image of the legendary top scholar from the Flying Snow Grass Hall appeared in his mind.

Even though the East Sea Heart Cleansing Pearl had cleansed the dust from his Dao heart, he still couldn't forget the overwhelming battle that day.

The shadow had always existed, etched deep within his soul, requiring him to cleanse it himself.

The shadow left by Hua Jiebing's Heart Sword was nothing compared to it.

Opening his eyes, Luo Qingchen's gaze held a deep weariness. He had set out from Qingzhou with ambition, arrived in Lin'an, and intended to soar to the heavens.

But after one setback, without realizing it, he had wasted many long years.

He had no more years to turn back.

"Perhaps, Lin'an and I are tired of each other. I should return to Qingzhou."

Luo Qingchen exhaled.

He planned to find an opportunity to visit Prime Minister Qin and thank him for the gift of the East Sea Heart Cleansing Pearl. Although he had joined Prime Minister Qin's manor for so many years, which could be considered repayment, at that time, when he was at his lowest ebb, Prime Minister Qin's willingness to extend a hand held a different significance.

"Zhushan, prepare the carriage. I need to visit Prime Minister Qin."

Returning to the pavilion, Luo Qingchen picked up the long-cooled tea and called out softly.

However, his voice echoed through the corridor, but there was no response from the burly coachman who had accompanied him from Qingzhou, sharing his triumphs and his setbacks.

Luo Qingchen paused, his tea unsipped.

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

There was the "Five Horses Painting," but the Five Horses Painting adopted a minimalist style, meticulously outlining every detail and demeanor of the horses with fine brushwork.

However, the Five Horses Painting included people besides horses; the horses were saddled and led by people, which did not suit Fourth Master Lin's mood.

Free horses, untamed horses... he needed the work of that universally acclaimed master painter who "washed away all common horses from ancient times."

As his thoughts surged, An Le's mind cleared, as if scrolls were flashing before his eyes.

After cultivation, his Niwan Palace contained his spirit and mind, and An Le felt his painting skills had improved significantly, possessing more depth than in his previous life.

He was not merely copying works from his previous life but was painting with his own understanding of the techniques.

A soft wolf-hair brush, saturated with thick ink, touched the white Xuan paper. With a single stroke, thick ink formed the horse's neck, the lines bold and heavy. Then, the horse's belly was drawn, its curves outlined, creating a natural, unforced beauty!

As the ink fell onto the paper, An Le's spirit surged powerfully, like fireflies in the night, converging within.

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth stirred with it, carrying the gentle breeze of spring.

Fourth Master Lin, standing beside him, narrowed his eyes. With just a few strokes, An Le had roughly sketched the horse's form. Thick ink depicted the horse's neck, curved its belly; An Le seemed to possess an extremely thorough understanding of equine anatomy!

After outlining the structures of the neck, belly, hindquarters, and legs, the painting gained a sense of perspective with the front appearing larger than the back. An Le then used another brush to splash diluted ink, achieving a perfect balance of thickness and thinness. In an instant, the horse's form and muscle lines were brought to life on the paper.

He then used a dry brush to sweep ink for the mane and tail, creating a natural blend of thick and thin, wet and dry, capturing both movement and stillness!

A single stroke depicted the horse's legs, like steel blades, the power penetrating the paper, as if the horse had already begun to gallop!

Hummm...

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth converged, and his spirit focused on the painting!

An Le's expression grew solemn as his mind continuously merged with the painting. He picked up his brush and used thick ink to outline the horse's hooves, rendering them with extreme detail. Once the hooves were complete, it was as if the essence of the entire painting had been condensed into them!

Instantly, it was as if a steed had landed its hooves, with rumbling thunder echoing like clouds!

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

The horse in the painting seemed unrestrained and wild, galloping across the grassland at lightning speed!

In the distance, the Daoli Horses on the grassy plains seemed to sense a kindred spirit galloping, and with a neigh, they reared up on their forelegs, also charging across the plains.

Fourth Master Lin gazed in awe at the ink horse leaping to life on the Xuan paper. The way light and shadow, lines, perspective, and other techniques of ink painting were integrated into the sketch made him feel as if he were seeing the once unrestrained and rebellious Daoli Horse!

In that moment, Fourth Master Lin felt a sense of unbridled freedom, a heroism that broke through shackles!

The wind suddenly rose, grass flew, and horses galloped!

The spiritual energy of heaven and earth, along with the mind, converged into the scroll!

The young man splashed ink to paint a wild horse. Upon completion, he obtained the Eighth-grade Spirit Refining Portrait!

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