Translator: Lordbluefire

  “Change to another piece of drawing paper!”

  Sun Mo instructed. “It has to be at least 18 feet long and 1.5 feet wide!”

  “Ah?”

  The Qi Emperor first started but then grew agitated. Sun Mo wanted to paint something huge. If not, why would he need such a large piece of paper?

  “Go quickly!”

  The Qi Emperor urged.

  “Sun Mo, it’s fine just to paint something normal!”

  Li Xiu felt heartache and persuaded him. Such a famous painting ought to belong to the Great Tang. Now, the Qi Empire was going to benefit.

  “It’s just a painting!”

  Sun Mo didn’t mind it. He was giving a plum in return for a peach.

  In society, one naturally had to interact with others. Sun Mo himself didn’t need the friendship of the Qi Emperor, but his students did.

  What if there came a day where they committed an offense in the Great Qi or they needed to seek protection? Sun Mo hoped that when such a time came, the Qi Emperor could give him some face and take care of his students.

  Very soon, all the brush, paper, and ink were prepared. Sun Mo stood before the desk and closed his eyes as he ‘brewed’ his emotions.

  Speaking of which, the most famous traditional painting of China was undoubtedly ‘Along the River During the Qingming Festival’ by Great God Zhang Zeduan. He had simply imprinted all the passionate and glorious scenes of the Great Song onto paper.

  Sun Mo had seen that painting before, but he wouldn’t copy it. He used his own thinking and prepared to paint a brand new painting named [Jinling Wind and Moon Painting].

  This was a city he had the most feelings for and was the most familiar with.

  Sun Mo exhaled a breath of turbid air. He then dipped his brush into the ink and started to paint!

  He started painting a swallow with a mouthful of mud, the end of autumn, and the coming of spring, The bird was building its new nest under the roof of a farmer’s house.

  The door opened and a child carrying a fish basket ran out. There was a river not far away and there were wives of farmers taking water and washing clothes on both shores!

  As one gazed in the direction of the water, more and more humans appeared. The sound of peddlers, the rebuke of constables, and the buzz of a crowded marketplace seemed to emit forth from the paper, clearly resounding in the ears of everyone.

  This was because each expression of every character within was different. Each detail was exquisitely drawn.

  Sun Mo’s grandmaster-level traditional painting technique included characters, flowers, birds, bugs, fishes, mountains, and rivers. So, he could depend on every little detail to fully transmit the feelings of the characters outward.

  Sun Mo gradually entered a magical state.

  On the platform, everyone no longer spoke as they were admiring Sun Mo’s painting skill. They had no idea why, but they felt very comfortable when they saw the characters taking vivid form as they appeared under Sun Mo’s brush.

  This had something to do with psychology. It was like when some people watched stress-relieving videos. They didn’t know why but they would feel very relaxed after that.

  Sun Mo had originally wanted to paint the life of Jinling’s citizens, with the artistic concept of national peace and security in a flourishing county. After all, this was a gift and he naturally wanted things to be more auspicious.

  However, when he started painting the brothels and the courtesans coming out to welcome guests, Sun Mo suddenly felt an urge to add more details to the figures and faces of the famed courtesans.

  Before he came to Jinling, Yui Hatano had retired. But luckily, there was Eimi Fukada. It was said that she did cosmetic surgery before, but since Sun Mo had no practical experience, he didn’t know if this was true or not.

  In any case, even if Eimi had new videos now, he wouldn’t be able to watch them.

  Jinling had many temples, a total of 480 of them. But comparatively, the number of brothels was not to be outdone.

  Sun Mo drew all the brothels on the shores of Qinhuai River in detail, including the boats floating on the water and the bustling city…

  Other than this, there were also some farmers doing small businesses, nodding and acknowledging their customers.

  Sun Mo drew the images of all female celebrities he had seen before, and he even included the details exquisitely, to the point of the movements of their fingers, their clothing, and their decorative assortments.

  Actually, when these female celebrities were clad in the clothing styles of the Great Tang, they exuded another type of charm.

  “Ai, I don’t want to paint their clothes!”

  Sun Mo felt regret. All of a sudden, he felt a burst of inspiration. On the second floor of the building, he drew the silhouette of a woman bathing that could be seen through the window.

  She seemed to have forgotten to close the windows before this.

  An extremely ambiguous intention leaped out from the paper.

  At this stage, Sun Mo was already high from painting and started to draw more freely, giving full rein to the inspiration that was akin to a gushing spring in his head.

  Since this was the case, he also decided to paint Pan Jinlian from [Water Margin]. Naturally, Wu Song killing Ximen Qing inside an inn had to be added too. However, this was a peaceful era and he couldn’t make the scene too bloody. He had to draw it in a more concealed manner.

  Oh right, there were also scholars. So, he couldn’t neglect scenes from the [Romance of the Western Chamber].

  Inside a gigantic courtyard, the maids were taking a break, the young miss was sneaking out to meet with someone, and a cheater was jumping over the walls!

  Maybe it was because he was too focused, the Wondrous Blossom Realm was invoked.

  But at this moment, no one paid attention to it because all their gazes were attracted by the women in the painting.

  (A……aren’t they too nice to look at?)

  (Wrong, it was incorrect to say that they are nice to look at. There’s an indescribable demeanor that they exuded.)

  There were so many women, over tens of them, and yet there wasn’t a single one who had similar features. They were all at least 70% dissimilar.

  “Beautiful, I want them!”

  The Qi Emperor was preparing to ask Sun Mo what was going on with these girls after he finished painting.

  One couldn’t help but say that this person truly did have the aptitude to become a ‘foolish emperor’.

  When others were viewing the painting, they would only innocently feel that these characters were very beautiful. At most, they would use the painting as mast*rbation material. But the Qi Emperor actually wanted these women to come to life.

  Sun Mo had spent three hours painting. Because the sky had darkened, the Qi Emperor instructed his officials to light up oil lamps so the entire stage would be as bright as day.

  Not everyone loved to watch someone paint. For example, Xia Taikang left under the pretext that his body was unwell.

  Just when he returned to his hotel and entered his room, he saw a black-robed man standing before the windows with his hands behind his back. This black-robed man was staring in the direction of the Victory Public Square.

  “Teacher!”

  Xia Taikang quickly bowed while feeling some suspicions in his heart. His teacher’s movements had always been mysterious. Once he appeared, his teacher surely had tasks he needed him to do.

  “Help me obtain Li Ziqi’s painting!”

  The black-robed teacher instructed.

  “Mn?”

  Xia Taikang frowned. His teacher had seen too many things and always had no desires. But why did he want Li Ziqi’s painting this time around?

  Could it be that she could paint even better than his teacher?

  That’s right, Xia Taikang had cheated. When he painted halfway, he wasn’t able to create a famous painting. Hence, through the usage of a certain spiritual control technique, his teacher’s consciousness possessed his body and drew the painting for him.

  Hence, the sentence of the black-robed teacher also meant that he was inferior to Li Ziqi.

  “Li Ziqi’s painting has surpassed this era. It’s very normal that you guys cannot understand it!”

  The black-robed teacher explained.

  Xia Taikang’s countenance grew unsightly. He knew that the standard of his teacher could suppress all the great teachers on the scene today. This also meant that in his teacher’s eyes, Li Ziqi was undoubtedly extremely outstanding.

  “The endpoint of parents is the beginning of their children. I don’t blame you for losing to Li Ziqi. Her teacher stands at a peak that’s truly far too high!”

  The black-robed teacher sighed.

  “Are you inferior to Sun Mo too?”

  Xia Taikang’s lips twitched.

  “If you are speaking of vision, I’m indeed inferior to him!”

  The words of this black-robed teacher directly stunned Xia Taikang. He knew how proud this teacher of his was. In his eyes, beings below the Saint Realm were like dogs and pigs, unworthy of a single mention!

  “Enough. Remember to get Li Ziqi’s painting no matter the cost!”

  After the black-robed great teacher finished instructing, he didn’t make any movements, but he suddenly vanished before the windows. It was like he had never appeared before.

  Xia Taikang didn’t dare to defy his teacher’s orders. Hence, he could only hurry and return to the Victory Public Square to look for the Qi Emperor.

  Although the Qi Emperor wasn’t very old, due to him working overly hard every night and not knowing restraint, his body couldn’t take it anymore. He persisted for two hours and had to return to his temporary tent on the public square for a break.

  When Xia Taikang begged for an audience, he discovered that the vice headmaster of the Black-White Academy, Wan Kangcheng, was here as well.

  “Great Teacher Wan, how about we discuss this matter another time?”

  The Qi Emperor originally wasn’t interested in Li Ziqi’s painting. But now that Wan Kangcheng wanted it, he changed his mind.

  “Your majesty, Li Ziqi’s painting has no significance to you guys. It can only receive splendor if we place it in the Black-White Academy!”

  Wan Kangcheng patiently explained.

  “What do you mean?”

  The Qi Emperor didn’t understand.

  “You basically won’t understand if you have not experienced the Black-White Games before!”

  Wan Kangcheng bitterly smiled. This was like playing zither to an ox; it was useless no matter how much he played.

  “Taikang, do you need help?”

  The Qi Emperor changed the topic.

  “Your Majesty, I wish to use my own painting to exchange for Her Highness Ziqi’s painting!”

  Although he only heard a bit of their conversation, Xia Taikang understood that Wan Kangcheng wanted Li Ziqi’s painting too.

  “Why?”

  The Qi Emperor felt curious.

  “I wish to use her painting to spur myself to work harder!”

  Xia Taikang found an excuse. He naturally couldn’t say that it was his teacher who wanted it.

  The Qi Emperor almost rejected this request, but then he noticed his butler of internal affairs hurriedly rushing over.

  “Your Majesty, the Sect Lord of the Saint Gate has arrived!”

  “What?”

  The Qi Emperor hurriedly stood up and went to welcome him.

  “Your Majesty, it has been a long time since we last met!”

  Su Taiqing was clad in an ordinary white robe. However, his entire body exuded a celestial demeanor!

  “Sect Lord Su, what sort of wind blew your esteemed self over here?”

  The Qi Emperor used honorifics, executing the etiquette of a disciple.

  There was no solution as the power of the Saint Gate was simply too vast. Moreover, Su Taiqing himself was at the very least at the secondary saint realm. However, rumors stated that he had long since ascended into sainthood; it was just that he intentionally masked his realm.

  However, even if he was just a secondary saint, he wasn’t someone the Qi Emperor wanted to offend.

  “I heard that Li Ziqi produced an ocean of stars painting. The concept within is very lofty, so I decided to be shameless and come here to see if I can obtain it!”

  Su Taiqing spoke bluntly.

  The Five Empires War Discussion was a major event in the Nine Provinces. As the Sect Lord of the Saint Gate, Su Taiqing naturally had to pay attention to it. Hence, he had sent assistants over.

  Those who could be highly regarded by Su Taiqing and become his assistants naturally had visions and talents that couldn’t be doubted. After he saw Li Ziqi’s painting, he understood that the meaning of the painting was extraordinary. Hence, he immediately sent a letter to Su Taiqing with an image-recording stone.

  After Su Taiqing saw it, he immediately rushed over.

  “Ah?”

  The Qi Emperor was shocked. He had originally thought that Su Taiqing came here for Sun Mo’s painting. After all, it was a rare masterpiece that had its own great teacher halo effect. He didn’t expect that Su Taiqing would come here for Li Ziqi’s painting.

  Xia Taikang’s gaze turned over.

  The sect lord’s taste was the same as his teacher’s!

  “Sect Lord Su, I was here first.”

  Wan Kangcheng was unhappy now.

  “Haha, the order of our arrival isn’t as important as who is the one fated with it!”

  Su Taiqing laughed. “How about we leave it to the painter to decide?”

  “You…”

  Wan Kangcheng felt vexed. What did he mean by fate? This was a clear case of bullying. Although the position of a Black-White Academy’s vice headmaster was very high, it was clearly inferior to the Sect Lord of the Saint Gate.

  As long as one wasn’t retarded, they would definitely give the painting to Su Taiqing.

  The Qi Emperor knew that he wouldn’t be able to keep this painting no matter what. Hence, rather than getting Li Ziqi to decide, he might as well do someone a free favor. “For a famous painting like this that contains so much ‘philosophy’, I think it’s better to let Sect Lord Su handle it.”

  Xia Taikang tactfully didn’t speak because he knew he couldn’t win no matter what.

  …

  “Have you guys heard it? Sect Lord Su came!”

  “Ah? The painting battle is already over, so what is he doing here?”

  “Could it be that he wants to see how Great Teacher Sun paints?”

  Ordinary people didn’t know the situation, but this news spread crazily among the nobility. Some people racked their brains, wanting to appear before Su Taiqing so he would at least remember their faces.

  But they weren’t qualified.

  Very soon, the reason for his visit spread as well.

  “Sect Lord Su came here not because of Sun Mo’s paintings. Instead, it’s for the one Li Ziqi painted!”

  “Ah? Is Li Ziqi’s painting that good?”

  “A famous painting that Sect Lord Su likes will definitely not be something ordinary!”

  Many people didn’t believe this news. After all, that painting from Sun Mo had a great teacher halo effect. In the entire famous painting world, there were only a total of ten, including that one.

  However, several people were confident that this news was true because it was circulated from the internal affairs butler of the Qi Emperor. It was very credible.

  If this was truly the case, it would mean that Xia Taikang’s win over Li Ziqi was something he didn’t deserve.

  The sky was already dark, but Sun Mo was still painting.

  In the past, Western Jing would have long since hit the curfew. But today, they made an exception. Many people didn’t return as they wanted to wait for the birth of a new famous painting.

  When Su Taiqing appeared, a commotion arose in the surroundings. Many people wanted to crowd forward for a better look.

  Su Taiqing smiled gently. He gazed at the surroundings and an instant later, the emotions of everyone calmed down. They couldn’t say anything and could only watch in silence.

  “My heavens, he cast a halo without speaking!”

  Qin Yaoguang was stunned. “Isn’t this a little too impressive?”

  Being able to cast a great teacher halo with just a thought. This magical technique was something that only those who were at least at the secondary saint realm could achieve.

  “Fa… Sir Sect Lord is definitely very impressive!”

  Lu Zhiruo felt glorious.

  “Eh? There’s nothing for you to be proud of even if he is impressive. Why are you so proud?”

  Qin Yaoguang didn’t understand.

  “Eh!”

  “Zhiruo is a great teacher, hence, she definitely reveres Sect Lord Su!”

  Helian Beifang helped her to speak.

  “Correct!”

  Lu Zhiruo nodded.

  “But I worship our teacher even more!”

  Xianyu Wei heaved a sigh of relief. When she saw the crowd, she thought that the mental state of her teacher would be disrupted. She didn’t expect that Su Taiqing could use a single glance to make them stay quiet.

  Su Taiqing stood beside Sun Mo. His brows furrowed when he looked at the Jinling Wind and Moon Painting.

  This painting was pretty well painted. However, wasn’t the number of females a little too many?

  Oh right, Sun Mo was a virgin. It was very normal for him to think of girls.

  Sun Mo had used close to eight hours to paint this. Honestly speaking, he was somewhat tired. Although he was still inspired, his passion had calmed down.

  “Let’s end it like this…”

  Sun Mo stopped his brush. In any case, this famous painting had invoked the Wondrous Blossom Realm. It was enough to give it away.

  “Mn?”

  Su Taiqing was shocked as he asked, “Teacher Sun, why did you stop painting?”


  Chapter 1212: Obtaining the Title ‘Saint Artist Sun’, Due to an Absolute Masterpiece!

  Translator: Lordbluefire

  “It’s done!”

  Sun Mo kept his brush. After that, he greeted, “Sect Lord Su, good evening to you!”

  Upon hearing that the painting was finished, everyone immediately crowded forward. But because Su Taiqing was present, they didn’t dare to get too near.

  “It’s done?”

  Su Taiqing frowned. He glanced at the painting again before he shook his head and smiled. He then tapped Sun Mo with his finger as though he was saying that Sun Mo was really a rascal!

  For other artists, if they invoked the Wondrous Blossom Realm, they would surely do their best to maximize the beauty of the painting so they could leave behind a work that lasted through the generations. But Sun Mo completely didn’t care.

  What a waste!

  The others didn’t have Su Taiqing’s appraising ability. Besides, they were completely immersed the moment they saw the Jinling Wind and Moon Painting.

  This painting was completely exquisite everywhere one looked. Even the wild dog at the roadside exuded a sense of realism and charm. That ferocious aura of guarding its food seemingly leaped out from the painting.

  In fact, even the mules that defecated while passing through the small alleys looked exquisite. Their feces seemed to be piping hot.

  Tea shops, liquor stores, banks, clothing stores, and even a great institution made from green roof tiles and bricks—these buildings appeared row upon row and constituted the style of Jinling.

  Not only so, but the demeanor of both the lower class people and high officials was also displayed in the painting.

  “Excellent, very excellent!”

  The Qi Emperor praised loudly. He took two steps forward and lowered his head as though he wanted to press his face against the painting. It felt like if he didn’t do this, he wouldn’t be able to fully feel the charm exuded by this famous painting!

  The tiny stores on the pathway, the street artists selling performances, the rich guests in inns enjoying wine…be it their expressions or their attires, they were extremely fine down, to the very detail.

  Although the Qi Emperor had mingled with the people incognito quite a few times before, it was all done in the capital for the sake of his safety. Hence, he simply yearned too much for life in the outside world.

  Right now, the itchy feeling of being unable to obtain something sprang up in his heart.

  As the Qi Emperor admired the painting, he felt himself being pulled into it. He could see a middle-aged tycoon dressed in luxurious drops. Why did he appear alone in a small alley?

  The Qi Emperor suddenly felt interested and glanced in the direction the tycoon was walking. After his eyes passed a crossroads, he saw a small residence not far away.

  Right now, the door to the residence was open and in there, a woman with a voluptuous figure was gazing outward.

  “I…is she sneaking out to meet with a lover outside?”

  The Qi Emperor glanced at that young married woman as many scenes suddenly appeared in his mind.

  “Interesting! Interesting!”

  The Qi Emperor revealed a child-like smile like he had discovered a great secret that no one knew about.

  Could it be that Sun Mo had done this intentionally?

  After having this thought, the Qi Emperor started to observe these characters in greater detail. After that, he discovered that each of them indeed had their own stories.

  For example, another woman on the second floor was speaking and cupping her face with one hand while speaking with a young man in a cotton shirt below.

  The young man touched his forehead and there was a wooden stick on the ground beside him. Clearly, this wooden stick that was propping the window up had fallen and hit him.

  However, why did the expression of the woman seem a little wrong?

  It felt like she was seducing him!

  The Qi Emperor didn’t know that this was the first meeting between Pan Jinlian and Ximen Qing*.

  The others admired the painting and gradually discovered some interesting parts.

  “Quickly look at this woman. Her body is tied up in ropes and she looks like she was kidnapped. However, why is the way she was tied up so strange?”

  Xiang Zhao was stunned.

  He didn’t know that this thing was called bondage.

  “Haha, you guys look over here quickly. There’s a scholar climbing over the walls. Clearly, he is going to secretly go and meet a young miss from a rich clan!”

  “This part is very interesting. This man should be a thief. He’s currently acting as a peddler and searching for targets!”

  “There’s also a fortune teller that steps on dogshit. There’s no need to ask, he’s clearly a swindler!”

  Everyone had their own minor discoveries.

  They suddenly discovered that each character in the painting had their own stories.

  This was truly impressive!

  “Damn, you guys quickly look over here!”

  A prince pointed to a part of the painting as he screamed.

  Everyone glanced in the direction where his finger pointed and discovered that there was an underground sewer. There was nothing at the entrance but a green dress with a black hand imprint on it.

  This dress was small, only the size of a yellow bean. In a painting like this, this was something easily neglected by everyone. But after everyone saw it, they suddenly felt cold sweat running down their backs from shock.

  This was because the material of this clothing wasn’t common, it came from a female. In addition to that handprint, everyone could easily deduce that the female must have been out shopping and knocked unconscious before a strong human trafficker pulled her into the underground sewer.

  Things were over for that girl!

  Everyone felt tightness in their chests. It was very unbearable.

  “Great Teacher Sun, is this a case of a young girl being abducted?”

  The queen asked in shock. Between her brows, there was a furrow that made it seem like she wanted to hear the answer but was afraid that she might not be able to endure the terrifying truth.

  “For famous paintings, one has to gain their perspectives by themselves!”

  Sun Mo smiled and didn’t make any explanations!

  For a time, everyone was completely immersed in the painting. They would occasionally see some interesting places and discover some small secrets.

  However, all men gradually didn’t care for these. They turned their attention to the women in the brothels that lined up on both shores of the Qinhuai River.

  Weren’t these women painted too beautifully?

  The Qi Emperor admired them for a while and lowered his voice as he silently tugged on Sun Mo’s sleeves. “Beloved Subject Sun, I wonder if you can paint a few characters for this emperor?”

  “Paint who?”

  Sun Mo didn’t mind. In any case, his painting techniques were at the grandmaster level. He could paint anything with ease.

  “These few!”

  The Qi Emperor chose over ten women and gave a secretive smile. “You should understand, don’t make them wear too much!”

  “.……”

  Sun Mo was speechless. (I didn’t expect that an emperor of a nation like you would be into older-type females! It seems that you must lack motherly love severely!)

  “Say…everyone, should we turn off the lights to admire this painting, so the artistic concept would be stronger?”

  Grand Tutor Su finally regained his senses.

  “Right, off the lights!”

  The Qi Emperor instructed.

  Famous paintings glowed with their own colors, so everyone could admire them in the darkness as well.

  The officials immediately went to the oil lamps and snuffed them out. After that, a total of six staff from the department of internal affairs cautiously lifted the painting, causing the entire place to burst out in a huge clamor. However, the clamor was silenced immediately. The atmosphere became so quiet that it was scary.

  Under the moonlight, the Jinling Wind and Moon Painting was perfectly portrayed. These characters seemed to come alive, and everyone could even hear the sounds of children playing, scholars studying, and women whispering and chatting with each other…

  The entire painting was radiantly colored and appeared like an absolutely gorgeous pearl at night. Its brilliance illuminated everything and it seemingly had transcended the mortal world!

  “Teacher Sun!”

  When Su Taiqing spoke, the Qi Emperor interrupted him.

  “No way. This painting belongs to me. I won’t give it to whoever!”

  The Qi Emperor stared at Su Taiqing and decided to offend the Sect Lord for the sake of obtaining this painting. This was because something like this painting truly could be considered an heirloom-level treasure that could be passed down through generations.

  The location, scenes, and characters in this painting could be said to contain a profound meaning and possess an exceptionally immense collection value.

  “…”

  Su Taiqing was dumbstruck. After that, he smiled helplessly. “I was trying to say that it would be a regret if such a beautiful painting didn’t have a poem to accompany it!”

  “True!”

  The Qi Emperor nodded furiously. After that, he stared at Sun Mo. “Beloved Subject Sun, how about producing a poem too?”

  Sun Mo knew that he couldn’t reject this. However, he was prepared.

  “Lifting the brush, dipping it in the ink, gracefully drawing on the paper!”

  “On top of the Phoenix Terrace, phoenixes used to roam. Now gone are phoenixes, a desolate lookout remains as the river continues to flow.”

  “Flowers and verdure of the Wu Palace are now buried under isolated trails. The upper ranks and decorated officers of Jin are now mounds topped with growth.”

  “The barely discernible Trident Peaks range beyond the blue skies. The river waters part into two waterways that around the Egret Islet roll. Floating clouds eventually conceal the sun.”

  “Being so far away from Changan has me worried in the shadows.*”

  A graceful flourish completed the thin gold body script. The Qi Emperor and everyone else immediately cheered. Being able to see this painting and the words being written was truly a fortunate event in their lives.

  “Great Teacher Sun’s words are written very beautifully!”

  The queen sighed ruefully and felt awed. (I really want him to write a famous poem on my body!)

  If Sun Mo knew that the Qi Queen had such thoughts, he would absolutely not reject it. However, he wouldn’t be writing a poem but the word ‘正’ instead.

  “What a pity, why is it Jinling and not Western Jing?”

  Jiang Yuzhen, who didn’t speak from earlier up until now, sighed.

  “Yes!”

  The Qi Emperor also felt very regretful.

  After tonight, the fame of this painting would surely spread through the Nine Provinces. At that time, Jinling’s popularity would surge to another level and might even become the number one famous city of the Nine Provinces, attracting countless rich merchants and travelers to visit. They might even decide to relocate there.

  How much tax could the city earn from this?

  “Your Highness, don’t ask for the impossible. After all, Teacher Sun has never lived in Western Jing before!”

  Grand Tutor Su spoke a word of justice.

  “Our teacher is too awesome!”

  Xianyu Wei’s face was flushed as she tugged on Ying Baiwu’s arm excitedly.

  “From tonight onward, our teacher will be known as a true Saint Artist, right?” Tantai Yutang’s eyeballs spun. “We have to make this real!”

  “Our teacher doesn’t care for such glory!”

  Ying Baiwu’s lips twitched.

  On the stage, Li Ziqi who had always remained silent glanced toward Zeng Gongnian and the other two.

  “Artist Zeng, Artist Zou, and Artist Wang, what do you guys feel about these two famous paintings my teacher produced?”

  Li Ziqi asked.

  “A true masterpiece!” Wang Zan praised without hesitation. “I’m truly inferior to him!”

  Zou Yin and Zeng Gongnian fell silent. Honestly speaking, they didn’t want to praise Sun Mo, but in such a setting, if they didn’t say anything, wouldn’t that make them seem narrow-minded and jealous of Sun Mo’s talent?

  Besides, even a retard knew that these paintings were extremely valuable treasures that would be handed down for generations.

  “An heirloom-level masterpiece!” Zeng Gongnian praised as well.

  “Mn!” Zou Yin nodded.

  “What about the calligraphy skills of my teacher?” Li Ziqi asked again.

  “His writing is relaxed and graceful yet revealing sharpness. It contains the aura of a proud hero with enough force to break jade and cut gold. It also has a certain charm to it. I heard that this style is known as the thin gold body?”

  Wang Zan stroked his beard and had admiration in his eyes. “It isn’t too much to give Great Teacher Sun the title: Great Calligrapher!”

  Both Zeng Gongnian and Zou Yin nodded.

  “What about the literary works produced by my teacher?”

  Li Ziqi continued to ask. “Oh, I mean Journey to the West and A Dream of Red Mansions!”

  “A good read!”

  “When will the next half be published?”

  “He actually cut off all updates and refused to continue writing, what a rascal!”

  Everyone scolded.

  Many of the rich were culture snobs, and they only supported a piece of art because of its popularity. They had no idea how to admire the charm of calligraphy and famous paintings, but they still knew how to understand good books. Hence, the praises from the high officials and nobles were much more solid.

  After all, these people were successful candidates in imperial examinations and had a high literacy level.

  “In that case, is my teacher worthy of the title: Dual-Sage in Calligraphy and Painting?”

  Li Ziqi asked with a smile. (Since my teacher won’t vie for these things, I will do it for him.)

  Everyone fell silent.

  After all, this title sounded too impressive and no one dared to speak recklessly.

  Usually speaking, the titles of Calligraphy Sage and Saint Artist were bestowed upon the creator’s death, or their works possessed a high enough quality to suppress all other works in their same era.

  Even the Qi Emperor didn’t dare to speak recklessly on this. Although his status was very high, he had no status or influence in the calligraphy or painting world.

  It also meant that he was an outsider and his words had no weight.

  “In terms of calligraphy, Teacher Sun’s gold thin body is at the grandmaster level. Moreover, this calligraphy style is something he invented, creating a whole new style. It isn’t too much to refer to him as a Calligraphy Sage!”

  Su Taiqing spoke.

  Everyone immediately lowered their heads and listened attentively.

  This was the Sect Lord of Saint Gate. Based on status, reputation, level of literature, and standard of knowledge, it wouldn’t be too over the top to say that he was the number one in the great teacher world of the Nine Provinces.

  His words were absolute authority!

  “As for painting, everyone has seen it. Leaving aside the previous eight famous paintings he painted, just the one he created this morning can rank within the top three in the history of the Nine Provinces. What’s even rarer is that Sun Mo used this painting to conduct a lesson for all the princes, princesses, generals, high officers, and the emperor!”

  “All of you, please remember this. The country you are governing doesn’t represent land or wealth. If you guys don’t love your citizens, you guys will be dethroned by them sooner or later!”

  Bzz~

  Priceless Advice activated and circulated through this entire area.

  The high officials and the Qi Emperor hurriedly lowered their heads to indicate that they understood the teachings.

  “Moreover, for this Jinling Wind and Moon Painting. Teacher Sun’s thinking is very profound, and the artistic concept within would open one’s eyes. When you gaze at each character, a story about them will somehow magically appear in your mind.”

  Su Taiqing laughed. “Your Majesty, you have benefitted. If it wasn’t for the fact that a gentleman wouldn’t seize something someone loved, I would definitely fight for it!”

  “Yeah, we won’t be able to see it in the future!”

  Xiang Zhao sighed. “Teacher Sun, can you tell me what story this guy has? Why is he standing at the roof of a tall building?”

  “His name is Ximen Chuixue*. He stands there because he is waiting for his fated enemy named Ye Gucheng*!”

  Sun Mo shrugged.

  Xiang Zhao’s eyes brightened. The moment he heard their names, he knew they were experts. Hence, he impatiently asked, “Can you speak more in detail?”

  Sun Mo smiled and shook his head.

  “So, Great Teacher Sun is truly worthy of the title Dual-Sage in Calligraphy and Painting!”

  Su Taiqing looked at Sun Mo. “Truly skilled in both fields!”

  Why didn’t he speak about literary works?

  Because in the eyes of Su Taiqing, [Journey to the West] and [A Dream of Red Mansions] might be classics, but they weren’t enough to be considered heirloom-level treasures that would be passed down throughout the generations.

  Wow!

  The gazes of everyone were now filled with envy as they stared at Sun Mo.

  This was a praise from the Sect Lord of the Saint Gate!

  Zeng Gongnian and Zou Yin were so jealous that they wanted to vomit blood. They had been painting for several decades but weren’t even Saint Artists.

  But after thinking that the number of famous paintings produced by Sun Mo had reached 10 in number, they felt at ease.

  Incomparable!

  Li Ziqi’s wish had been realized, and she was grinning happily.

  “Everyone, for something like admiring paintings, it can be done any time. Should we go and rest for now?”

  Sun Mo felt somewhat tired now.

  “Right, you should rest!”

  The Qi Emperor nodded hurriedly. “Men, come and escort Beloved Subject Sun back to the royal palace for a good rest!”

  [1] Poem’s translation taken from: https://28utscprojects.wordpress.com/2011/01/01/175/

  [2] Pan Jinlian and Ximen Qing are characters in a novel – Jin Pin Mei

  [3] Ximen Chuixue and Ye Gucheng are characters in a martial novel – Tales of Lu Xiaofeng.