The Sorrowless Old Man had taken a close look at the painting, and so had his painting. The location where Kong Shi's silhouette would appear was extremely clear, but it wasn't a specific location. Rather, it was a range.
Soon, it was right before the painting.
It was a massive crevice filled with white rocks.
These rocks were extremely rare, and Zhang Xuan had never seen them before.
Just as Zhang Xuan was about to enter the crevice to find the exact location, the silhouette of Kong Shi suddenly flickered before disappearing without a trace.
"This is bad …"
Zhang Xuan's face darkened.
He had thought that the painting would be able to last for a little longer, but from the looks of it, he had underestimated it.
Under normal circumstances, the silhouette of the painting should have been able to appear for a long time, but the original painting had been forcefully sliced off, and the illusory conception would not be able to last for too long.
On top of that, two thousand years had passed. It was already an incredible feat for the painting to last for so long.
"Forget it. It's good that he knows that it's in this crevice. Just that … I wonder what this mountain is!"
If he knew that Kong Shi's silhouette would appear in this crevice, he could just head over to look for it if he were to encounter this mountain in the future.
But of course, the prerequisite was that he had to recognize what this mountain was and where it was located.
At the very least, he had never seen anything like this mountain before.
"That copper-masked figure is so determined to break the seal that he even went to the extent of destroying a painting of the eighth level. Could it be that he knows that Kong Shi's silhouette is beneath the clouds?"
Just as Zhang Xuan was about to activate his spirit and leave the area, a thought suddenly struck him.
Putting aside the fact that the copper-masked figure dared not show his true appearance to others, he even went to the extent of destroying such a valuable painting just to see what was beneath the seal …
Could it be that he already knows something?
"Regardless of whether he knows or not, if he were to open the seal and find that Kong Shi's silhouette is nowhere to be seen, he'll surely grow suspicious!"
Zhang Xuan thought.
Even though he could not tell how powerful the copper-masked figure was, given how he dared to be so disrespectful to Guild Leader Mu and the others, he was bound to be extraordinary.
If the copper-masked figure were to find out that he had caused Kong Shi's silhouette to disappear just because he was looking at the painting, would he capture him in a fit of rage?
"It's best that fewer people know about Kong Shi," Zhang Xuan muttered to himself.
If they were to implicate Kong shi in this matter, the slightest mistake could very well result in their deaths, just like the Sorrowless Old Man.
"How about this, I'll make some changes …"
Pausing for a moment, Zhang Xuan formed a brush with his will. With a sway of his body, he flew into the air and started drawing in the air.
This was the only way to avoid trouble.
Soon, the painting was completed. Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief. With a gentle push of his palm, he imprinted it on the place where Kong Shi's virtual image had appeared. Only then did he return to his original spot. With a thought, he lit up the surroundings completely.
Rumble!
Knowing that the spirit had been awakened, Zhang Xuan's consciousness withdrew from the door and returned to his physical body.
Hu!
He exhaled a mouthful of turbid air and opened his eyes.
"How is it?"
Upon seeing that Zhang Xuan had woken up, the copper-masked figure quickly turned to look at him.
Zhang Xuan's face paled upon hearing those words, and his voice was extremely feeble. "It's fortunate that I didn't fail you … However, I've expended a lot of my energy as well. If you have any concentrated high-tier spirit stones or something like that, I should be able to recover a little …"
"One hundred, two hundred?"
The lips of the copper-masked figure twitched. "I don't have such a thing on me, but if you manage to decipher the seal, I'll surely reward you handsomely!"
Even the Empire Alliance did not have many concentrated high-tier spirit stones, and yet, this fellow actually dared to ask for a hundred or two hundred?
Seeing that the copper-masked figure did not have any of those valuable items, Zhang Xuan stood up and tapped his finger lightly on the painting.
"Awaken!"
Hu!
Following which, the scroll abruptly stood up and stretched her back lazily, as if a lazy person who had just woken up from a nap.
"Did he … enchant the entire painting?"
The mouths of the crowd twitched.
After stretching her back lazily, the scroll seemed to have taken a look at the surroundings, and she abruptly dashed out of the room.
"Humph!"
With a frown, the copper-masked figure raised his hand, and the surrounding space was sealed.
"Half-Leaving Aperture realm!"
As soon as the other party made a move, Zhang Xuan was able to discern the other party's cultivation. The other party was actually a Half-Leaving Aperture realm expert!
It was no wonder the other party dared to disregard the other guild leaders and pavilion masters.
Since it was sealed, the painting could not escape. It could only retreat, feeling wronged.
"Allow me to discuss the matter with him."
Nodding, Zhang Xuan walked up to the scroll and stretched his finger forward.
He was the one who had enchanted the painting, so he felt a unique sense of intimacy with it. Thus, the scroll did not dodge his finger.
Heaving a sigh of relief, Zhang Xuan sent a telepathic message over.
Weng!
Seemingly understanding Zhang Xuan's intentions, the scroll trembled a little, and the white cloud floating above the mountain trembled uncontrollably, as if it would dissipate at any moment.
"It's indeed possible!"
Upon seeing this sight, the eyes of the copper-masked figure, the guild leaders, and the pavilion masters lit up, and they clenched their fists tightly.
This was the first time they had heard of a seal on an eighth level painting, and seeing it with their own eyes, they couldn't help but feel agitated.
Geji! Geji!
As the scroll trembled, the white cloud also trembled more and more intensely. Soon, it reached its limit, and as if a psoriasis had been torn off, it fell to the ground.
"Hmm?"
Seeing that the seal had fallen to the ground, everyone immediately turned their gazes over.
Even Wu Shi couldn't help but turn his gaze toward the center of the mountain, curious to see what was hidden beneath for the copper-masked figure to be so anxious.
Lush mountains and clear waters, the scenery seemed no different from before.
"What's that?"
Someone shouted, and the crowd immediately turned their gazes over.
In a crevice at the center of the mountain, there was a natural hot spring constructed out of innumerable bizarre rocks, and several beautiful figures were currently soaking in it.
Even though the figures were blurry, it was clear that they had excellent figures. With just a look, it was clear that they were beauties.
"This …"
Everyone had thought that there would be some sort of treasure sealed within, but to think that it would be a bathing beauty … Everyone was stunned.
This was simply too unexpected.
"I get it now. Back then, when the Sorrowless Old Man visited the mountain, he saw a group of young ladies bathing, so he drew them down. Later on, he felt that it would be beneath his dignity to look at them bathing, so he intentionally covered it up!"
"Indeed. I was wondering why the Sorrowless Old Man would add such a huge patch to the painting, ruining the charm of the entire painting … So this is the reason!"
"Hahaha, to be able to draw a bathing beauty so vividly, the Sorrowless Old Man sure is a sentimental person …"
…
Realization dawned upon the crowd, and they burst into laughter.
They had thought that the Sorrowless Old Man had gone to such great lengths to seal the painting to seal up some sort of secret, but who could have thought that he was just trying to conceal it out of shame?
"This … This is impossible! This is impossible!"
The copper-masked figure stood rooted to the spot with a look of disbelief on his face.
He had put in a lot of effort in order to uncover the secret beneath the seal, but in the end … it was actually a bathing beauty … This huge contrast left him on the verge of insanity.
"There must be another seal beneath the painting, right? There must be another one … "
He hurriedly walked up to the painting and infused his powerful Primordial Spirit into it, hoping to see what was going on.
Hu!
Feeling the immense pressure from his Primordial Spirit, the painting leaped in fright. It hurriedly hid behind Zhang Xuan as it trembled uncontrollably.
"Tell me, is there another seal?"
The copper-masked figure's eyes reddened in agitation, and his soul energy rippled intensely from his body.
"Enough. Look at how frightened Painting is!"
Zhang Xuan shook his head as he consoled the painting. "Everyone should have seen it as well. It's a bathing beauty beneath the seal. It's likely that the Sorrowless Old Man peeped on a bathing beauty, and with nowhere to vent his anger, he decided to use ink to vent his anger. While it's immoral, it's still the behavior of a scholar. Don't get too agitated. "
Seeing the drastic change in the copper-masked figure's attitude, Zhang Xuan heaved a sigh of relief.
It was fortunate that he had reacted quickly enough to create a painting on the spot, or else he would have given himself away.
"I was too rash …"
Hearing those words, the copper-masked figure regained his composure. He clasped his fist and chuckled. "After obtaining this painting, I discovered the seal, and I have been wondering what it is hiding. Since you know what it is, I guess I'll have fulfilled my wish. Thank you for your trouble!"
After saying those words, he raised his hand and grabbed the air.
A pile of high-tier spirit stones appeared before him. There were more than ten thousand of them.
"These high-tier spirit stones are my compensation for the trouble I have caused you all. I hope that you will accept them!"
After saying those words, the copper-masked figure turned to Zhang Xuan and said, "Zhang Shi, since you have such a deep understanding of painting, I have a 'Ten Deciphered Painting' left behind by the Sorrowless Old Man here. I hope that it will be of some use to you …"
After saying those words, the copper-masked figure raised his hand and grabbed the enchanted painting before clasping his fist. "Farewell!"
With that, he dashed away, disappearing from everyone's sight in the blink of an eye.
Clearly, fearing that he would get into trouble, he turned around and left the area.
"…"
Looking at the book in his hand, Zhang Xuan was rendered speechless.
The copper-masked figure had confidently said that he would reward him with something valuable, and yet, this was all he got?
Just the thought of it left him feeling stifled.
"Ten Deciphered Painting … Zhang Shi, are you willing to sell this to me?"
In contrast to Zhang Xuan's speechlessness, Guild Leader Meng Chong's eyes lit up in excitement.
The Sorrowless Old Man was the most formidable grandmaster painter to have ever walked out of the Qingyuan Empire. Even though he had only lived for three hundred years, he had contributed greatly to the Painter Guild.
This was especially so for the Ten Deciphered Painting he had created in his later years. Before he could complete it, he had gone missing. As such, not many people knew of it. Everyone had thought that it had been lost to history, but who could have thought that it would end up in the hands of the copper-masked figure, and he would even give it to Zhang Shi?
"Sell it?"
Zhang Xuan glanced at the book in his hand before swiftly storing its contents into the Library of Heaven's Path. Then, he tossed the book over and said generously, "I'll give it to you as a gift!"
"Thank you, Zhang Shi!"
Guild Leader Meng Chong's fingers trembled in agitation. "That is a unique book worth at least fifty concentrated high-tier spirit stones … Are you really going to give it to me?"
"What did you say? Fifty concentrated high-tier spirit stones? "Zhang Xuan's body swayed weakly.
"Indeed!" Guild Leader Meng Chong nodded.
"I won't give it to you then. I'll sell it to you instead," Zhang Xuan said. "Pay up!"
"…" Meng Chong.
"…" The crowd.
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