Chapter 119: Illusory Joy Ascends to Immortality

She nodded cautiously.

Having received a definitive answer, the Holy Master of Lingji turned to the people present and said, "A senior is a senior; they are the force that can shake everything in our Southern Barbarian lands. Haven't you all witnessed it today?"

Was there anything left to question?

...

In the World of Heavenly Martial Arts, within a small mountain village in the Nanling mountain range, Zhu Xiaoyuan was leisurely listening to Ruofeng playing a tune in the courtyard.

His head bobbed slightly, as if he were keeping time.

The young girl’s talent was truly impressive; in such a short time, her lute-playing technique had improved significantly.

Ruofeng soon finished the piece, a faint smile gracing her lips. Over these past few days, she had opened the gates to the Immortal Path, waiting only to consolidate her foundations before ascending to immortality.

On the other side of the courtyard, Huanyue was meticulously painting eggs.

She had already completed one thousand nine hundred and eighty-eight of them. In the past, her brushstrokes had been fluid and inspired, but today, she hesitated. She had not made a move for a long time. In truth, although she painted eggs every day, her speed had gradually slowed down, especially lately. It now took her several days to successfully complete a single egg.

Today was no different; she hadn't let her brush touch the paper all morning. Doubts had even begun to creep into her mind. Had she existed all these days just to paint eggs? And were these eggs even real eggs? They were clearly lives in their own right, each containing the flow of the Dao. She wanted to capture all of that, but as she lifted her brush, she hesitated again. Was she painting the Great Dao, or just an egg? Was it an egg, or a life?

Huanyue could not figure it out, yet she yearned to understand.

Zhu Xiaoyuan reached out, took the tea Ruofeng had served him, and sipped it gently. He glanced at Huanyue, who was frowning on the side, and felt a sense of satisfaction.

After painting eggs for so long, the young girl was finally getting the hang of it!

"Remember, you must follow your heart. In everything—whether playing music, farming, listening to songs, or feeding fish—painting is no different..." Zhu Xiaoyuan said, appearing nonchalant. "What you see with your eyes is not the most important thing. The most important thing is what you think, and what you perceive it to be!"

He had been tortured by the system for months just to learn how to paint, so he felt he was quite qualified in this regard.

"Follow my heart? What I observe is what it is?" Huanyue seemed to be inspired. She felt the swirling distractions around her come to a halt. Everything, even the beating of her own heart, grew quiet. No sound could affect her painting anymore.

...

All the complexity and chaos vanished from before her eyes. At this moment, in Huanyue’s sight, an egg was just an egg. She slowly picked up her brush and began to paint with a single stroke.

A trail of ink appeared on the paper, and the rhythms of the Dao surged forth from it. Ignoring this, Huanyue continued to move her brush. Within a few breaths, an egg seemed to leap off the paper! Every stroke was the essence; every line was the core!

Huanyue took a deep breath, feeling a lightness she hadn't experienced in a long time. The spiritual power within her began to circulate spontaneously, and the immortal energy seemed alive, weaving in and out of her body.

Ruofeng stood up abruptly, her expression one of astonishment. "Huanyue has attained immortality!"

Who could have imagined that a young girl like Huanyue would leap straight from the Supreme Realm to become an Immortal in one go?

Hearing Ruofeng's words, Huanyue was also shocked. Sensing the transformation of the spiritual power within her, the young girl was overjoyed. "I’ve become an Immortal! I’m an Immortal!" She jumped three feet into the air with delight.

Ruofeng was equally happy. "Congratulations, Huanyue!"

Huanyue’s face was glowing, and, in her excitement, she picked up her masterpiece and walked over to Zhu Xiaoyuan. "Master! Thank you! This is my painting of immortality; please take a look."

Ruofeng’s expression was complex. Last time, when she had nearly lost herself while playing the lute, Master had guided her just a little, and she had pushed open the gates to the Immortal Path. Now, the same had happened to Huanyue, who had become an Immortal after just a few words from Master.

A sense of heartfelt reverence grew within Ruofeng.

Zhu Xiaoyuan smiled. He didn't take the painting from her hands, only offered a faint smile. "Not bad. You don't have to paint eggs tomorrow."

Huanyue nodded.

As the master and his disciples were rejoicing, a few knocks sounded at the door. "Is Senior here?"

Zhu Xiaoyuan recognized the voice as Leng Qianxue’s. He couldn't help but wonder if they had finished their battle. "Come in!" he said.

The courtyard gate opened, and An Yue’er, Leng Qianxue, Lu Ran, and Long Ruxuan walked in together. Zhu Xiaoyuan’s eyes fell on Long Ruxuan and Lu Ran, scanning them, but he saw nothing amiss. He sighed in relief. Before they left, seeing his two disciples’ states, he had been truly worried they would act like reckless youths and charge to the front. What if they had just thrown their lives away? He had let them choose weapons, and the rascals had grabbed a chopstick and a fire-poker! He thought they were going to make fools of themselves, let alone fight!

"Senior Zhu, we are here to thank you. With the help of your two brilliant disciples, we have resolved everything!" An Yue’er said happily.

Zhu Xiaoyuan laughed. "No need for thanks; it was a small matter."

He then looked at Long Ruxuan and Lu Ran, saying with satisfaction, "You two were quite clever."

Long Ruxuan and Lu Ran immediately stepped forward respectfully, returning the items they had taken from the courtyard earlier—the same chopstick and the same fire-poker.

"Master, we have fulfilled our mission and brought both items back safely."

They were extremely cautious as they spoke. In their hands were the treasures that had slain a True Immortal and split the Holy Mountain of the Extreme Movement Holy Land in half!

Zhu Xiaoyuan waved his hand. "Throw the fire-poker back where it belongs, and toss the chopstick into the pile for firewood. Why bring them back after using them for a fight? Should I keep them to eat with?"

Zhu Xiaoyuan's words left everyone present with complex expressions. If these words were to spread, the entire World of Heavenly Martial Arts would be left in disbelief! Two treasures—one discarded in the kitchen and the other used as firewood!

Sigh...

An Yue’er even felt like staying in Zhu Xiaoyuan’s courtyard just to scavenge for trash.