Chapter 236: Lin Ruling Stirs Trouble
“Fine, you pass,” Xi Zhi forced out the words through gritted teeth, letting Jiang Li through the trial.
“Why so reluctant?” Jiang Li muttered. Putting aside the content, he thought his drawing was actually pretty good.
“I’m done,” Song Ying raised her hand sweetly. Aside from Jiang Li, she had actually finished first, but didn’t want to steal Qin Luan’s thunder, so she waited a bit before speaking up.
Her piece met Xi Zhi’s standards—an old ox lounging contentedly beneath a tree, slowly grazing, its thick tail swaying back and forth.
Plus, Song Ying had solid drawing skills. The old ox was vivid and lifelike.
She often drew in her free time, mostly scenes fantasizing about married life with Qin Luan.
After witnessing a parade of freakish drawings, Xi Zhi finally saw something normal.
She even had the urge to materialize and hug Song Ying, declaring her the true successor of the Painter Immortal.
“Pass.”
The Little White Fox yipped, signaling Xi Zhi to come over.
It looked smug, swaying its tail proudly—the tip stained black. It had used its tail as a brush, dipped in ink to paint.
“Not bad. Pass.”
Although it hadn’t observed the ox’s tail while eating, it had imagined the joyful feeling of regaining its strength and shaking its tail with glee.
So it put itself in the ox’s place and drew an ox wagging its tail.
“Incorrect. Eliminated.”
“Incorrect. Eliminated.”
“Incorrect. Eliminated.”
One by one, others announced they were finished, but their works didn’t meet Xi Zhi’s criteria and were ruthlessly eliminated.
Lin Ruling, who had spent a hefty sum to promote himself, actually had genuine skill and passed the first trial.
Outside the Cloudwater Secret Realm, Yuan Wuxing waited for ages and still didn’t see his beloved disciple.
“That’s strange. With Qin Luan’s level of skill, he actually passed the first trial?”
Yuan Wuxing felt he’d acted impulsively—he shouldn’t have turned down Mr. Jiang’s offer. Otherwise, he could’ve made it through the first round too.
…
“The first trial is over. Prepare for the second trial.” As the words fell, the ink-painted backdrop blurred like it had fallen into water, the lines spreading into liquid ink.
Once the ink reformed and turned back into lines, everyone found themselves in another black-and-white ink world.
This one was a lush, resource-rich mountain filled with spirit melons, fruits, herbs, and beasts—like longevity-enhancing peaches, soul-calming Soul-Nurturing Fruits, and the water-element-boosting Six-Turn Bichloris Grass…
“The Second Realm of Painting: seeing a mountain not as a mountain, seeing water not as water. As cultivators of the Painting Path, the most important thing is the ability to see through illusions and grasp what is real. Most of the spiritual treasures here are painted, but a small portion are real—disguised by ink-painting illusion techniques.”
“For the second trial: find one real spiritual treasure. But you only get one chance.”
Still, only Xi Zhi’s voice could be heard—her form remained unseen.
No sooner had she finished speaking than a water-element cultivator spotted the rare Six-Turn Bichloris Grass and couldn’t resist his greed. He yanked one up.
If it were real, he could skip sixty years of bitter cultivation and break through to the Nascent Soul stage in one leap!
The black-and-white Bichloris Grass stayed black-and-white.
Fake.
“Failure.”
Seeing someone fail so quickly made the remaining participants tense up. The joy of passing the first trial vanished instantly.
Cultivators showed off all kinds of techniques. One opened their Heavenly Eye to discern real from fake. Another splashed water around, hoping to wash off the ink. Yet another pulled out a Spiritual Herb Compendium and crouched down to compare details.
The last one, crouching, was suddenly rammed into the air by a wild boar that appeared out of nowhere.
“Oh right—forgot to mention. The spirit beasts here are all fake, but their strength is real. Be careful.”
That unfortunate cultivator became the best warning example. The wild boar was peak Golden Core stage.
No joke. The problem was that Golden Core wild boars looked totally ordinary—exactly like regular wild boars.
Fortunately, Xi Zhi wasn’t too cruel. She kept the beasts’ strength capped at Golden Core level. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be about eyesight but combat power.
“So, which one are you picking?” Jiang Li asked Li Er.
For the two of them, this trial was zero difficulty. The only thing to consider was when to pick and what treasure to choose.
“I think that Dragon-Morph Old Coiled Tree over there is nice. It could give my precious daughter a better chance at becoming a True Dragon.”
“Li Nian’er is only Nascent Soul stage. Transforming into a True Dragon is something you think about after reaching Fusion stage. Aren’t you planning a little too far ahead?” Jiang Li said dryly. “Your Dharma Body Sect and the Western Sea Dragon Palace are filthy rich. Don’t tell me you don’t already have treasures like that? Why are you here fighting the juniors for resources?”
“And more importantly—you asked Xi Zhi to help you with painting, and then the first thing you do is yank up her rarest tree? Is that how you treat someone you’re asking for a favor?”
“So you’re saying…”
“Pick the cheapest-looking thing. As long as it gets you through, it’s fine.”
“Got it.”
Jiang Li shook his head. Li Er’s brain was just barely better than Zhang Konghu’s—and not by much.
Qin Luan was traveling with two beauties and a vixen, which drew a lot of attention—especially from Lin Ruling, who loved being in the spotlight.
If he could defeat Qin Luan, he’d definitely make a name for himself.
Lin Ruling thought it and immediately acted, jumping out to challenge Qin Luan.
“Qin Luan, right? I’ve disliked you for a long time…”
“That’s pitiful. Running around with bad eyesight? I’ve got eye drops that can fix that—one drop and you’re cured.” Qin Luan handed Lin Ruling a small vial with genuine sympathy.
“‘Dislike’ doesn’t mean I have eye problems!” Lin Ruling’s veins bulged, then he forcibly launched into his lines: “Beauties belong only to the strong. The unworthy don’t deserve the admiration of fair maidens…”
Qin Luan glanced at Song Ying, then at Aguna—yep, both beauties. But they didn’t show him any special favor. So Lin Ruling clearly wasn’t talking about him.
Still, he earnestly corrected Lin Ruling’s flawed logic.
“How can you say beauties belong only to the strong? Are they just prizes to be seized by power? What you’re describing isn’t a strong person, it’s a bandit. And there’s no actual evidence that being admired by beauties has any inherent or direct connection to being capable.”
“Lin Ruling, I heard you’re a cultivation prodigy destined to surpass Jiang the Human Sovereign. How could someone like you have such shallow views? I’m really disappointed. Your words are imprecise and stir resentment. Lucky for you, I’m patient enough to reason with you…”
“I challenge you!” Lin Ruling finally dropped all pretense.
“You should’ve said so sooner. Five Thunders Orthodox Art,” Qin Luan replied lazily.
Thunder rumbled through the skies. Lin Ruling was blasted skyward by a single move from Qin Luan, turning pitch-black and coughing smoke.
The Supreme Elder of the Five Thunder Orthodox Sect had died in the Tianyuan Imperial City chaos. Without their pillar, the sect was targeted by other factions and forced to disband.
One true disciple encountered Song Ying while fleeing and developed sinister intentions toward her. Qin Luan killed him and obtained the Five Thunder Orthodox Art, which happened to suit his Lightning Root perfectly.
Though Lin Ruling was a noble heir with solid foundations and managed to recover enough to fight again, he was promptly trampled by a herd of peak Golden Core wild boars from the woods, sustaining serious injuries and being forced to withdraw.
Lin Ruling forgot—Xi Zhi was a woman too. How could she not mess with him after such comments?
Plus, Qin Luan’s earlier words had completely changed Xi Zhi’s opinion of him.
His art might be lacking, but his character was solid.