Chapter 1188: Beauty Bathing

Old Man Wu Bei observed and drew meticulously. The location where the illusion of Master Kong appeared was remarkably clear; however, it wasn't a precise point but rather an area.

They soon arrived before it.

It was a massive crevice, filled with mottled white stones.

This type of stone was extremely rare, unlike anything he had ever seen before.

As Zhang Xuan was about to enter the crevice to pinpoint the exact location, the ethereal image of Master Kong in the air flickered and then vanished with a silent 'whoosh'.

"This is bad..."

His expression darkened.

He had thought it would persist for a longer time, but it seemed he had been too optimistic.

Normally, the illusion from such a painting should have endured indefinitely. However, the original artwork had been drastically thinned, causing its semi-real, semi-illusory quality to deteriorate rapidly.

Considering the erosion of over two millennia, its persistence for this long was already quite remarkable.

"Never mind. At least I know it's in this crevice. I just don't know what mountain this is!"

Knowing that the illusion of Master Kong appeared in this crevice means he could search for it whenever he encountered this particular mountain in the future.

Of course, that's assuming he could identify the mountain and its location.

So far, none of the mountain ranges he had encountered resembled it.

"That person with the bronze mask is determined to break the seal, even at the cost of destroying an eighth-realm painting. Could it be that he already knows there's an illusion of Master Kong beneath the white clouds?"

Just as he was about to fully activate the painting's sentience and exit this spiritual realm, a thought suddenly struck Zhang Xuan.

The fact that this bronze-masked individual dared not reveal his true face was peculiar enough, but his willingness to ruin such a valuable artwork just to uncover what lay beneath the seal…

Could he have known something beforehand?

"Regardless of whether he knows or not, if he opens the seal and finds Master Kong's illusion missing, he'll definitely become suspicious!"

He mused.

Although he couldn't discern the exact extent of the bronze-masked man's power, anyone who dared to be so disrespectful to President Mu and the others must be exceptionally formidable.

If this individual found out that Master Kong's illusion had vanished because Zhang Xuan had viewed it, would he, in a fit of rage, seize Zhang Xuan and cause trouble?

"It's best if as few people as possible know about Master Kong's matters..."

Involvement with Master Kong could easily lead to a fate like that of Old Man Wu Bei, dying without ever knowing why.

"Alright, I'll make a few alterations..."

He paused, then with a flicker of thought, Zhang Xuan materialized a brush. His body swayed as he rose into the air and began to paint mid-air.

This was the only way to avoid trouble.

Soon, the painting was complete. Zhang Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, gently pushing it to imprint it on the spot where Master Kong's illusion had just appeared. Only then did he return to his original position, and with a thought, he fully illuminated the surroundings.

*Rumble!*

After a tremor, knowing the painting's sentience was activated, Zhang Xuan didn't linger. His consciousness exited the spiritual gateway and returned to his physical body.

He exhaled a long breath and opened his eyes.

"Well?"

Seeing him awaken, the bronze-masked individual eagerly looked over.

Zhang Xuan's face paled, and his voice was weak. "I succeeded, fortunately... but it was extremely taxing. If you have any high-grade essence spirit stones, a hundred or two hundred should help me recover somewhat..."

"A hundred? Two hundred?"

The bronze-masked man's mouth twitched. "I don't have those, but if the seal is successfully broken, I assure you, you won't be poorly compensated..."

High-grade essence spirit stones were rare even within the Empire Alliance. For this fellow to casually ask for a hundred or two hundred... what audacity!

Seeing that the other party didn't possess such valuable items, Zhang Xuan shook his head. He then stood up and gently tapped the scroll.

"Awaken!"

As he spoke, the scroll suddenly stood upright and stretched, much like a lazy person just waking from a deep sleep.

"He... he activated the sentience of the entire painting?"

Everyone's mouths twitched.

After stretching, the scroll seemed to register its surroundings, then suddenly darted straight outwards.

"Hmph!"

With a raised eyebrow, the bronze-masked man made a grabbing motion in the air, and the surrounding space instantly became sealed.

"A Half-Ethereal Spirit realm expert!"

With a single move, Zhang Xuan immediately recognized his strength: he was a Half-Ethereal Spirit realm expert.

No wonder he dared to be so assertive and disregard the many guild masters and hall chiefs.

Trapped by the seal, the scroll couldn't escape and retreated reluctantly, looking very aggrieved.

"Let me discuss it with him!"

Nodding, Zhang Xuan approached and extended a finger.

Since he had awakened its sentience, there was a special affinity between them. Seeing his finger approach, the scroll didn't dodge.

Breathing a sigh of relief, Zhang Xuan transmitted a thought to it.

As if understanding his intent, the scroll swayed, and the white clouds depicted floating above the mountain peak began to tremble violently, as if caught in a fierce gale, appearing as though they could dissipate at any moment.

"It truly works..."

Witnessing this, the bronze-masked man, along with the various guild masters and hall chiefs, all had their eyes light up, their fists clenching in excitement.

This was the first time they had ever heard of such a seal on an eighth-realm painting. To witness such a miracle firsthand filled them all with profound excitement.

*Crackle! Crackle!*

As the scroll continued to shake, the white clouds trembled with increasing intensity. Soon, they could bear it no longer and, with a *thump*, peeled away like a piece of old parchment, falling to the ground.

"Hmm?"

Seeing the seal drop to the ground, everyone uniformly turned their gaze towards it.

Even Master Wu couldn't help but look towards the center of the mountain peak, curious to see what was concealed beneath that could make the bronze-masked man so anxious.

Green mountains and clear waters. The scenery of this place seemed not much different from before.

"What is that?"

Someone cried out, and then everyone focused their gaze.

Within a crevice in the middle of the mountain peak, a natural hot spring, constructed from countless strange stones, was revealed. Several graceful figures were bathing within it.

Although the figures appeared blurry, their exquisite forms were clearly discernible, indicating they were rare beauties.

"This..."

They had expected the seal to conceal something strange, or perhaps a treasure, but to see bathing beauties instead... everyone was dumbfounded.

It was utterly unexpected.

"I get it now! Old Man Wu Bei must have been observing the mountain when he saw a group of maidens bathing. He drew them, but later felt it was inappropriate to depict someone else's bathing, so he deliberately covered it up!"

"Exactly! I kept wondering why such a large patch was placed there, ruining the painting's artistic charm... So this was the reason!"

"Haha! To be able to depict bathing beauties so vividly, Old Man Wu Bei truly was a passionate individual..."

Everyone suddenly understood and burst into laughter.

They had assumed Old Man Wu Bei had expended such great effort to seal a profound secret, but it turned out he was merely concealing his embarrassment.

"This... this can't be! Impossible!"

The bronze-masked man stood rooted to the spot, his face filled with disbelief.

He had poured countless efforts into this painting, all to uncover the secret beneath the seal. The result—bathing beauties—was such a massive letdown that it almost drove him mad.

"There must be another seal beneath this, right? There has to be..."

He rushed to the painting, and his powerful primordial spirit force surged into it, desperate to see what was truly going on.

Sensing the oppressive primordial spirit, the scroll flinched, quickly shrunk, and cowered behind Zhang Xuan, trembling continuously.

"Tell me, is there still a seal...?"

His eyes reddened, and the bronze-masked man, overcome with agitation, emitted intense waves of soul power.

"Alright, look how you've scared the painting!"

Shaking his head, Zhang Xuan gently soothed the scroll. "Everyone saw it; beneath the seal were bathing beauties. It seems Old Man Wu Bei, after secretly observing someone bathing, had no outlet for his emotions and ultimately expressed it through his painting... While it might be immoral, it's also typical behavior for certain scholars and poets. No harm done! You should calm down."

Seeing the significant change in the other party's demeanor, clearly indicating his awareness of what was under the seal, Zhang Xuan secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Fortunately, he had reacted quickly and created a temporary painting; otherwise, his deception would surely have been exposed.

"I was too impulsive..."

Hearing this, the bronze-masked man shed his previous impulsiveness, his rationality returning. He cupped his fist and chuckled. "After I acquired this painting, I discovered this seal and kept wondering what it might conceal. Now that I know, my curiosity is satisfied. Thank you all for your trouble!"

With that, he made a grabbing motion in the air.

Before them appeared a pile of high-grade spirit stones, easily over ten thousand in number.

"These spirit stones are your compensation for your efforts. I hope you won't find them insufficient!"

Having said that, the bronze-masked man turned to Zhang Xuan. "Since Master Zhang possesses such profound knowledge in calligraphy and painting, I have a copy of 'Ten Interpretations of Painting Methods' left by Old Man Wu Bei. It details his painting techniques. I hope it will be of use to you..."

He then shook his head, grabbed the now-sentient scroll into his palm with an aerial grab, and cupped his fist. "Gentlemen, I bid you farewell!"

His body flickered, then shot straight out, disappearing from their sight in the blink of an eye.

Clearly, carrying such a 'great treasure,' he feared attracting trouble and promptly departed.

Zhang Xuan was momentarily speechless as he looked at the book in his hand.

The man had solemnly promised him a valuable reward, speaking of its immense preciousness... only to give him *this*!

He felt utterly dismayed.

"'Ten Interpretations of Painting Methods'... Master Zhang, would you be willing to sell this item?"

Unlike Zhang Xuan's speechlessness, President Meng Chong, standing nearby, had his eyes gleaming.

Old Man Wu Bei was the most formidable Grandmaster of Calligraphy and Painting to emerge from the Qingyuan Empire. Although he lived for only a mere three hundred years, he made immense contributions to the entire Painter Guild.

In particular, his 'Ten Interpretations of Painting Methods' was incomplete when he disappeared in his later years, so few knew of it. They had long believed it to be lost, but unexpectedly, it had been in the bronze-masked man's possession and was now gifted to Master Zhang.

"Sell it?"

Zhang Xuan glanced at the book in his palm, immediately absorbed its contents into his Library of Heaven's Path, and then magnanimously tossed the book over. "It's yours!"

"Thank you, Master Zhang..."

President Meng Chong's fingers trembled with excitement. "This is a unique copy worth at least fifty high-grade essence spirit stones... are you really giving it to me?"

"What did you say? Fifty high-grade essence spirit stones?" Zhang Xuan swayed, startled.

"Yes!" replied President Meng Chong.

"Then I'm not giving it away. I'll sell it to you..." Zhang Xuan quickly said. "Pay up!"

"..." Meng Chong.

"..." Everyone else.