Nan Feng and Ziling found Li Fan painting before them.
It was a cloudy day, with no sunset to be seen, but Li Fan's inspiration hadn't faded. He was painting the vast, rugged landscape before him.
As he practiced the Way of Painting and many other arts, he had long since cultivated a calm, ordinary heart. He could paint beneath a sky thick with clouds, or beneath the rosy dawn of spring.
Everything could be painted. Everything could lead to the Dao.
Under his brush, mountain ranges already covered the wilderness, soon to converge at the center.
Most of the painting was finished.
Beside his rice paper, Bai Xiaoqing lay sprawled lazily, glancing at the painting from time to time. Every time she did, she let out several meows.
It was too profound. One look took her a long, long time to digest.
There were too many Dao principles within it!
On the other side of the mountain peak, Nan Feng and Ziling were utterly stunned.
They seemed completely captivated by the sight of him painting.
"...Now this is a true Painting Saint! He has fused with the Great Dao itself. Wherever he stands is an endless scroll, and every stroke of his brush is a vessel for the laws of heaven and earth!"
Ziling murmured, her big eyes wide. The sight of him painting had shaken her to her very core.
At the same time, the cultivation art within her body began to circulate faster and faster.
Countless insights came to her in a flash of inspiration.
She could clearly feel her understanding of the Way of Painting rapidly deepening, as one bottleneck after another opened in an instant.
It was like having enlightenment poured straight into her!
She was entranced!
"What kind of person is he? Even the scenes of the Old Ancestor painting that our sect preserved weren't this awe-inspiring..."
Even Nan Feng, who didn't cultivate the Way of Painting, could sense that there was something extraordinary about him.
Much, much later,
Li Fan finally finished his painting.
On the rice paper, he inscribed its title: Myriad Mountains Gather Dragon Diagram.
The mountains lay hidden, gathering together like a dragon.
He let out a soft breath. Every time he finished a painting, he gained something within his heart.
"You lazy cat. You really are hopelessly vulgar."
He stroked Little White's head and turned around, only to discover that two women had appeared on the mountain peak at some point.
Two great beauties!
Seeing their dazed expressions, Li Fan felt a little puzzled.
Who were they? Had they been captivated by his handsome looks?
"May I ask who you are?" he asked.
At his words, both women stirred slightly and came back to their senses.
The countless Dao principles and Dao Rhyme on the surrounding peaks had vanished with Li Fan's final stroke. Now, he looked utterly ordinary.
But both women wore grave expressions.
"Senior, I am Nan Feng, and this is my junior sister, Ziling. We were passing through and couldn't resist coming to watch you paint. We were truly presumptuous. Please forgive us, Senior!"
Nan Feng spoke respectfully.
She understood that although the young man before her looked young, with cultivation like his, he must have lived for countless years. He was an old monster, no doubt.
Li Fan smiled at her words. So they were painting enthusiasts? Ziling seemed to have a painting board strapped to her back, so that had to be it.
And Li Fan was quite confident in his painting. Across the entire Fire Kingdom, there probably weren't many who could compare with him. In that regard, it was only right for them to call him Senior.
"I see. So you're both fellow practitioners of this art? Then it must be fate that brought us together."
Li Fan smiled.
Seeing that Li Fan wasn't the least bit arrogant and was so easygoing, Nan Feng breathed a sigh of relief.
An existence like him was terrifying. Best not to offend him.
Ziling, however, was itching with anticipation, excitement written all over her face. Her big eyes fixed on Li Fan as she asked nervously, "S-Senior... may I have a look at your painting?"
She was so eager, so curious. The sight of him painting had completely won her over.
She was even more curious to see what a Senior like him would create.
"Ziling!"
Nan Feng's expression shifted slightly. She lowered her voice and said, "How dare you make such a request..."
Ziling was so thoughtless. This was an unfathomable powerhouse, and his painting surely contained Dao principles. It was a treasure beyond compare. How could he casually show it to others?
Li Fan, however, was completely nonchalant. He picked up the painting and handed it over. "Go ahead and look."
Ziling was so excited that her heart pounded. She hurried forward, accepted the scroll with both hands, took a deep breath, and only then unfurled it!
The painting showed:
Mountain ranges rose and fell without end, stretching like one coiling dragon after another. A hundred dragons gathered together and converged into a river. Amid its grandeur, the scene seemed to hold the force of mountains about to transform into dragons and soar into the sky!
In this painting, the entire Cangli Mountain Range lay before the eye!
In this painting, every depth and detail was revealed!
The ordered simplicity, the concise, decisive lines.
The casual strokes, each capturing the very spirit of its subject.
His skill was divine!
Ziling was deeply immersed in it, utterly entranced!
Seeing this, Li Fan felt a little smug.
After all, gaining another little fangirl was a good thing.
"Rumble—"
At the same time, as Ziling studied the painting, her cultivation began to surge!
Nascent Soul Fifth Layer!
Nascent Soul Sixth Layer!
Nascent Soul Seventh Layer!
Nascent Soul Ninth Heaven...
Perfection!
She was only one step away from entering the Nascent Soul Realm.
Nan Feng sensed all of this and was so shocked she went completely blank.
Heavens!
This... this was an opportunity and a blessing beyond compare!
Just then, Ziling began to feel dizzy. She hurriedly closed her eyes.
She needed time to absorb it all.
After a long while,
"Elder Sister Nan Feng, come and look..."
Ziling called to Nan Feng.
Nan Feng cautiously stepped forward and glanced at the painting. Her mind was shaken.
With just a few strokes, the entire Cangli Mountain Range was captured in the painting.
The layout of the mountains, the hidden momentum of the Dao, all converging into the form of a dragon!
It was so clear!
With this painting, the Cangli Mountain Range was completely laid bare.
Earlier, they had gazed out from their spirit-grade Imperial Sky Ship and sensed only the vast wilderness. They couldn't make out anything else.
But this painting had laid out the Cangli Mountain Range simply and neatly, like a butcher taking apart an ox.
"Heavens, unless he'd entered the Cangli Mountain Range himself, how could he have painted it so clearly? Could this Senior have come out of the Cangli Mountain Range alive?!"
Her heart pounded with alarm.
The Three Absolutes Holy Land had been founded by the Three Absolutes Immortal of old, so it knew many ancient secrets.
It was said that the Cangli Mountain Range concealed an Ascension Platform.
From the Ascension Platform, one could enter the Immortal Realm directly.
Since ancient times, those who entered the Cangli Mountain Range had either made it into the Immortal Realm or died.
The Ascension Platform had stood for countless ages. There was no turning back!
That was the truth.
But this man before them...
If Li Fan didn't look completely different from the portraits preserved by her sect, she would have almost suspected that only the Three Absolutes Immortal himself could possess such ability.
Nan Feng's thoughts churned like a storm-tossed sea. After pondering for a long while, she took the scroll, drew a deep breath, and respectfully returned it to Li Fan. "Thank you for letting us view it, Senior!"
"Meeting is fate, so there's no need for such formalities."
Li Fan smiled and said, "It'll soon be dark. It could be dangerous for you two to stay here. There's nowhere else nearby, so if you don't mind, you can come back to the village with me."
The two girls looked as if they'd come out to sketch with their painting boards on their backs. It was getting late, and Li Fan couldn't bear the thought of them spending the night in the open.
At his invitation, Ziling and Nan Feng were both surprised and excited!
"S-Senior, can we really come back with you?" Ziling asked, hardly daring to believe it.
Before you continue