Purple Item: Painting

"Is this the ancient painting?"

"That's right."

Sister Ye nodded. "I have no idea why this painting is worth so much. No matter how I look at it, I can't see what is so remarkable about it."

Chen Xun said nothing. His eyes were fixed unblinkingly on the painting.

They were practically glowing green.

The reason for his reaction was naturally that this painting was an item—and an exceptional one at that.

[Painting Skill: Painting (Purple)]

[Attribute: Painting Skill Training Bonus (Blue)]

[Attribute: Grandmaster Painting Skill (Purple)]

[Attribute: Calm Mind (Blue)]

[Attribute: Focused Spirit (Purple)]

[A masterpiece painstakingly created by a grandmaster painter a hundred years ago, passed down through the ages]

"Good stuff. Truly good stuff," Chen Xun murmured.

Chen Xun directly skipped over the max-level Painting Skill.

What he cared about were the other two attributes: [Calm Mind] and [Focused Spirit].

[Calm Mind]: Could soothe one's emotions, cast aside distracting thoughts, and allow one to focus wholeheartedly on every task.

[Focused Spirit]: Could gather one's thoughts, sharpen one's senses, and enhance comprehension and spiritual strength.

With the help of the [Calm Mind] attribute, Chen Xun could quickly enter a cultivation state and improve his cultivation efficiency.

The [Focused Spirit] attribute could further improve Chen Xun's comprehension and strengthen his spirit.

This attribute was exceptionally suited for cultivating the Mountain Lord Acupoint-Finding Secret Art.

The two combined were like adding wings to a tiger.

"Sister Ye, could you lend me this painting for a while? I have a great use for it."

Chen Xun withdrew his gaze from the painting and looked at Ye Ying beside him.

Ye Ying was Sister Ye's name. Chen Xun had only learned it today.

"If you want it, then take it."

Ye Ying did not think much of it and answered directly.

"Anyway, it is useless sitting with me."

"And if it weren't for this thing, Yun Zhen wouldn't have died."

At that, Ye Ying's expression darkened.

Chen Xun could not help comforting her. "Sister Ye, my condolences."

Ye Ying's husband was named Yun Zhen. He was a scholar who usually enjoyed browsing bookstores and attending various literary gatherings.

Once, Yun Zhen bought a painting at a bookstore. He liked it greatly, so he brought it to a literary gathering to display it.

Someone at the gathering was highly knowledgeable about paintings and immediately saw that it was worth a great deal. After the gathering ended, that person found Yun Zhen and wanted to buy it.

But Yun Zhen refused, and the two parted on bad terms.

Unexpectedly, a few days later, Yun Zhen was robbed and murdered by a band of highwaymen on his way back to his hometown.

Ye Ying lost her husband and became a widow from then on.

While the funeral was being held, a group of people came to Ye Ying, claiming that Yun Zhen had borrowed a painting from them and that they wanted it back.

Ye Ying asked what the painting looked like.

That group hemmed and hawed, speaking vaguely and incoherently. This made Ye Ying suspicious, so she refused their request to enter Yun Zhen's study.

Then that very night, thieves paid her home a visit. Yun Zhen's study was turned upside down, while the rest of the house was left untouched. Their purpose could not have been clearer.

Fortunately, those people did not find the painting.

As it turned out, the painting had never been in Yun Zhen's home. Yun Zhen had kept it at the place where he worked, since he served as an accountant for a rice shop.

He had told only Ye Ying about this.

And the succession of incidents made Ye Ying certain that this group's target was the painting.

So, using the excuse of sorting through her late husband's belongings, she went to the rice shop's accounting room and quietly retrieved the painting.

After that, she had kept it hidden in a secret compartment beneath the floorboards of her home, only taking it out today.

The thing was of no use to Ye Ying. Instead, it kept her on edge, and seeing it only made her think of her husband.

Thus, when Chen Xun took it away, she actually felt relieved.

"Sister Ye, I'm taking the item. You should come with me too."

"We have offended people from the Gale Gang. They definitely won't let this go. If you keep living here, they will surely retaliate. After all, this is Gale Gang territory."

Chen Xun urged.

Ye Ying looked troubled. She had lived here for a long time, so naturally she was reluctant to leave so suddenly.

But when she thought of the Gale Gang's usual conduct, Ye Ying hardened her heart and made up her mind. "Alright. Let's go. We'll leave this place."

"However, I need to pack some things first."

"Alright, I'll wait for you."

"Don't worry. I'll be quick."

Sure enough, in less than ten minutes, Ye Ying had slung a bundle over her back, locked the door, and followed Chen Xun out of Green Bamboo Alley.

"Madam Ye, are you going to visit relatives?"

They ran into an acquaintance on the road, who asked curiously.

"Yes. Something happened at a relative's home, so I'm going to take a look."

Ye Ying greeted the person with a smile, as though she were not fleeing at all but truly going to visit relatives.

It had to be said, women were born actresses.

Soon, the two left Green Bamboo Alley. Yet before they could leave Bamboo-Wood Ward, a group of people blocked their path.

"Brother-in-law, it was him. He was the one who beat me."

Of the two men at the front, one was Captain Sun, whom Chen Xun had knocked unconscious. The other was a burly man a head taller than him.

"You dared to beat my brother-in-law? All of you, stay right where you are."

"Get them. Capture them."

At the burly man's command, a group of lackeys around them immediately raised their weapons and charged over.

Chen Xun's expression darkened. He grabbed the terrified Ye Ying and turned to run.

He did not think much of these people, but he could not reveal his true strength. Otherwise, it would be difficult to explain how he had broken through to the Qi-Blood Second Transformation in such a short time, or where he had obtained the Acupoint-Finding Secret Art.

"Stop! Don't run!"

What a joke. Why would I wait around for you to catch me?

Chen Xun mocked them inwardly, then hoisted the panting Ye Ying onto his back and ran even faster.

Since it was broad daylight, the Gale Gang did not dare openly seize people on a grand scale.

Once Chen Xun and Ye Ying ran into a street packed with people, the Gale Gang could only temporarily lower their banners and still their drums.

"Hmph. A monk may run, but the temple cannot. I refuse to believe you will never come back."

"Someone, send men to watch that widow's house. Tonight, have someone sneak in and see whether you can find anything useful. Remember, look for the painting first."

"Understood, Branch Master."

After the burly man, the Gale Gang's branch master, gave his orders, he slapped his brother-in-law across the head again.

"You brat, trying to keep it all to yourself? They were originally asking for me, but you went and cut me off."

"If you dare act on your own again, then even if your sister begs me in person, I will not spare you. Do you understand?"

The burly man's voice was vicious.

"I understand, Brother-in-law. I won't dare do it again."

Captain Sun immediately put on an obedient expression, making the burly man nod in satisfaction.

Meanwhile, Chen Xun carried Ye Ying to the house he had rented.

"Sister Ye, you can stay here for now."

"In a couple of days, Qingqing will also move here from the martial arts school. The two of you can look after each other."

Chen Xun spoke as he helped Ye Ying remove the bundle from her back.

At his words, Ye Ying looked at Chen Xun with a complicated expression, then shook her head and began inspecting the house before her.

Once she became familiar with the layout, she started cleaning.

Chen Xun was a man, so when it came to cleanliness, good enough was good enough. He was not so meticulous.

But after Ye Ying tidied the place up, it finally looked somewhat like a home.

"Sister Ye, thanks for the effort."

"It was nothing. Consider it the rent I'm paying."

Ye Ying wiped the sweat from her forehead and smiled.

Chen Xun's rented house had two bedrooms and one living room.

That night, Ye Ying and Chen Xun each took a bedroom.

Ye Ying tossed and turned in bed, unable to sleep. What she had experienced today was simply too thrilling for her.

Chen Xun was not asleep either. He was cultivating.

"Equipping that purple painting item really has made my cultivation efficiency higher."

Chen Xun nodded in satisfaction.

When cultivating before, he could not enter the state of forgetting both self and the world every time, and he was easily disturbed.

But with the assistance of the [Calm Mind] attribute, Chen Xun entered that state in a second and remained exceedingly stable, completely unaffected by surrounding noises.

His cultivation efficiency soared in a straight line.

Beyond that, [Focused Spirit] was also immensely useful. When Chen Xun cultivated the Mountain Lord Acupoint-Finding Secret Art, he found that his progress was more than twice as fast as before.

At this rate, it would probably take less than half a month for him to cultivate this secret art to the Minor Accomplishment realm.