A Stroke Brings Enlightenment, a Voice from the Paper

"Hey, you three over there, do you know what happened here? Why are we all lying down, but you three are all unharmed?"

The man's tone was unfriendly and his words were irritable. This was understandable; one moment he was in a tender embrace, and the next he was in the middle of nowhere. Anyone in his position would be in turmoil, and it was remarkable that he did not show any panic.

Bite!

Suddenly, there was a soft thud underfoot. The big man looked down, jumped up, and picked up the broadsword from the grass. He held it in his hand and twirled it.

A cold light flashed, a biting wind howled, and the skill and spirit were perfectly aligned, demonstrating extraordinary swordsmanship.

This knife was originally the burly man's personal weapon. Because the inn and tables and chairs had disappeared, it had fallen into the bushes. Now, gripping the knife again, he used its gleam to enhance his aura, and when he spoke, it carried a hint of dominance. "I suddenly fainted. Could it be that I fell into your trap? Were you abducted here? What is your purpose? You even dare to covet my Shaanxi Ghost Head Knife Xiong Ling!"

As he spoke, he walked towards Qiu Yan and the others.

"Hmm?" Dai Guo frowned, not knowing Qiu Yan's plans, and remained silent, only staring coldly at the other party.

"Why would I kidnap a tough guy like you?"

Upon seeing this, Qiu Yan uttered these words. The other party, upon hearing this, revealed his anger and was about to rebuke him when Qiu Yan, without moving his feet, raised his hand and flicked it. His sleeves made a crackling sound, and True Qi surged out, roaring and surging. The big man didn't even have time to react before he was enveloped by the oppressive energy wave, his muscles and bones trembled, and he was pressed to the ground!

"What! He can actually press people down from mid-air with a flick of his sleeve! What kind of technique is this? Could this scholar be a master of the Innate Realm cultivation?"

Innate Realm masters refer to Life Cultivation who have broken through the bottleneck of the Foundation Establishment Realm, no longer confined to flesh and blood, and instead temper their Seven Souls. Due to the relationship of inheritance and Karma, Life Cultivation masters are not ostentatious in the martial arts world, and few have become famous. They are regarded by some as martial arts legends.

The burly man with the bushy beard, Xiong Ling, had never seen a cultivator at the Soul Soul-Refining Realm before and couldn't discern Qiu Yan's voice drifted into his ears—

"I don't have time to play these games of hiding your cultivation levels. Just think it over yourself, and the reason will become clear. Don't ask me."

As soon as he finished speaking, Qiu Yan flicked his sleeves again, and his True Qi swirled in the air, enveloping the long-haired swordsman and the two men in tight-fitting clothes.

Before the energy could reach them, the three of them suddenly sprang into action. They had clearly regained consciousness long ago and were secretly lying in wait with their eyes closed, but they could not escape Qiu Yan's perception. They were directly exposed and a heavy pressure descended upon them.

At this moment, the three suddenly sprang up. One thrust his long sword forward with a cold, water-like glint, while the other two unleashed powerful punches and kicks, their strength surging and crisscrossing. But in an instant, they were all crushed and suppressed, falling to the ground with a speed faster than they could jump!

Boom!

The ground shook, and the shockwaves spread, waking the remaining unconscious people.

The middle-aged scholar scrambled to his feet with a start, only to stumble and fall again in a panic. The man in brocade robes and his pageboy, Xiao Yu, also woke up and began to shout.

The tall, thin scholar, however, let out a long sigh of relief, then slowly rose and bowed to Qiu Yan and the others in thanks.

Not long after, the middle-aged scholar calmed down, shook his head, and muttered, "I let my guard down for no reason, entered that inn, and then inexplicably fell into a coma. When I woke up, it was as if the world had changed drastically. Could it be an encounter with a demon as recorded in the Book of Strange Tales? This is quite a rare experience, and I should record it."

Then, disregarding everything else, he pulled out paper and pen from his sleeve, licked the pen, and began to write down his personal experience.

"These people are really strange." Dai Guo couldn't help but remark, observing their odd behavior.

Qiu Yan shook his head and said, "Just because something is unfamiliar doesn't mean it's strange. As long as someone does it, there's a reason behind it." He glanced at the middle-aged scholar, released his control over his True Qi, and let the long-haired swordsman and the others stand up again.

These people were considered skilled in the Lin Zhong. Being pressed down from mid-air, their emotions shifted between anger and shock, mixed with deep fear. Recalling everything, they finally realized what had happened to them and calmed down.

"Are you Immortal?" The burly man with the bushy beard stood up again, but dared not act rashly.

The two men in tight-fitting clothes looked surprised and uncertain, but they didn't say anything. Instead, they hurriedly returned to the man in brocade clothes, becoming alert and guarded, looking very well-trained.

The scene immediately fell silent.

"Was that inn inhabited by a monster?" The burly man with the bushy beard asked Qiu Yan tremblingly in a low voice.

"Thank you for saving me, Zhang Yue. I will remember this forever. Please tell me your name, my benefactor." The long-haired swordsman sheathed his sword and walked over.

Qiu Yan replied, "My arrival here was also by fortuitous opportunity, so there's no need for further words. If you are grateful, you should keep an eye out for similar situations in the future and lend a helping hand."

"Cultivator! Cultivator! You must be a cultivator!" At this moment, the young man in brocade robes seemed to wake from a dream, suddenly ran over, and knelt down on the ground. "I, Zhao Dayou, am willing to offer half of my family fortune, begging you, esteemed cultivator, to accept me as your disciple and pass on the method of immortality!"

Qiu Yan shook his head, ignoring him, bent down, grabbed the little dog by the neck, and lifted it up. Then he said, "It's fate that we met. Farewell, everyone."

As he finished speaking, he was about to turn and leave when he was stopped by shouts mixed with crying.

"Young master, please save my young master!" Accompanying the voice was a figure rushing over, who knelt down with a thud—it was the pageboy, Xiao Yu.

"I was blind and didn't recognize your greatness. I have offended you, and I beg you to forgive my rudeness. However, my young master is always happy to help others, but this time he has been caught in a demonic calamity and has no pulse. Please save him!"

"Huh?" Qiu Yan was taken aback upon hearing this, only then realizing that when he had shaken Human Soul to awaken them, he had overlooked You Zui. The scholar had not woken up with him. "You Zui is still not awake? No pulse?"

He neither liked nor disliked the scholar, but since he had encountered him, he couldn't just ignore him, so he walked over.

Upon seeing this, the pageboy, without even wiping away his tears, quickly followed after them.

Approaching You Zui, Qiu Yan frowned, squatted down, and pinched You Zui's body. He then scanned You Zui with his Divine Sense and noticed that You Zui's soul had returned to its place.

"As expected, his breath was barely a whisper, his pulse extremely weak, and he had fallen into Tortoise-Breath State. Although the screen had previously withdrawn its light, and You Zui's soul had wavered, I had managed to stabilize it. Logically, he shouldn't have been unable to wake up. What could be the reason?"

Thinking this, he probed with his senses again, enveloping the other person's entire body, and finally discovered something unusual.

"This You Zui soul was lifeless, almost devoid of any thought; it seemed that all his thoughts were concentrated on..."

As Qiu Yan pondered, her gaze shifted and fell upon the painting beside her.

The scroll was originally held by the woman in white, but that woman was merely a fleeting desire in You Zui's heart, manipulated by Wisdom Soul to be projected and manifested. She was never a real person, and now she has vanished without a trace.

The scroll that the woman was holding fell to the ground and rolled into the grass after the inn disappeared.

However, Qiu Yan could now sense a flicker of thought within the painting, connected to You Zui's flesh and Fleshly Body.

"Painting and calligraphy express longing; when You Zui and creating art, you become so engrossed that you pour your heart and soul into it?"

He reached out and unrolled the scroll, revealing the woman in white on the paper once more.

"So this scholar really did paint such a picture. I thought I was dreaming." The voice of Xiong Ling, came from behind. The others followed, but kept a safe distance from Qiu Yan, remaining silent as if trembling with fear.

"This painting is technically superb and possesses a certain charm, but it has a somewhat obscure quality that is rather incongruous," the middle-aged scholar remarked, examining the painting with an air of expertise.

The gaunt scholar took two steps forward, glanced at it, and said, "This painting was probably created by this person on a whim, but he exhausted his energy and may not be able to produce such a work again."

The long-haired swordsman Zhang Yue, the brocade-clad youth Zhao Dayou, and others followed in silence, but their gazes toward Qiu Yan held a certain something, as if they had something in mind.

At this moment, the middle-aged scholar's panic vanished, replaced by a hint of excitement. He grabbed a pen and hurriedly scribbled in his book, muttering, "Tonight's experiences have truly been eye-opening. If I were to write them all down... alas?"

Before he could finish speaking, he exclaimed in surprise. The pen in his hand had flown out of his hand on its own. Having just experienced a demonic ordeal, he was still shaken. This scene immediately startled everyone around him. They only relaxed after Qiu Yan spoke.

"May I borrow your pen?"

It turned out that Qiu Yan had made a feint, snatched the pen from the air, held it in his hand, and pointed it downwards!

The surging Qi and Blood flowed down the paper with this stroke, drawing a dot on the woman's forehead, infusing it with Qi and Blood and thought, causing it to vibrate.

Snap!

Immediately, a torrent of thoughts surged from the painting, returning to You Zui's body through the connection. You Zui groaned, flicked his fingers, and slowly opened his eyes, which were filled with confusion.

"Young master, you're finally awake!" The pageboy, Xiao Yu, cried tears of joy.

"Xiao Yu, what's wrong with me?" You Zui stood up, thought for a moment, and suddenly sighed, "So that's it, I understand now. This whole thing was for nothing again. It was already a blessing to be able to see the fairy from that immortal mountain even once. How could we have any other expectations, which allowed the evil spirits to take advantage of our weakness..."

He was speaking when he was interrupted by a cold, indifferent voice.

"Young Master You..."

Upon hearing this, a chill instantly filled the air Xiong Ling and the others instinctively shivered, and Qiu Yan's expression also changed drastically. He turned his gaze to the three-foot-long scroll.

The sound was coming from the painting! (To be continued. Please search for the novel for better and faster updates!)