Chapter 161: Dragons Wandering Left and Right

Rustle, rustle!

Zhang Xuan stopped.

Although Master Lu Chen's collection of books was vast, it could not withstand his speed of flipping through them. In about an hour, he finally finished flipping through all of them, forming tens of thousands of identical books in his mind.

"Elementary Calligraphy and Painting Insights," "Complete Guide to Calligraphy and Painting Techniques," "How to Enter the Second Realm of Calligraphy and Painting," "Rare Copy of Sunset's Afterglow"...

As expected of a master, he had almost collected all the books on calligraphy and painting in the entire Tianxuan Kingdom. In total, there were tens of thousands of them, including hundreds of so-called rare copies that were hard to find on the market.

If he were to collect them, even a master of calligraphy and painting would probably be unable to do so. It must have been that Emperor Shen Zhui, to repay the favor of his enlightenment, sent people to collect them one by one and deliver them.

"With these books, it should be enough!"

After copying the books, Zhang Xuan stopped. His mind stirred, and he whispered in his mind: "Correct!"

Whoosh!

All the correct sentences from the countless books were extracted and re-formed into a new book.

Opening the book, Zhang Xuan looked at it.

"Calligraphy and painting consist of calligraphy and painting, which can cultivate one's character and calm one's mind..."

The opening was an explanation of calligraphy and painting, followed by how to hold the brush, how to write, and how to polish.

Everything has its techniques, and calligraphy and painting are no exception. Although they require hard work to achieve, having a good teacher and a good path can speed up learning considerably.

This correct book, which gathered the techniques and works from tens of thousands of books on calligraphy and painting, was a broad road leading to the peak, with no detours. Following it, Zhang Xuan's understanding of calligraphy and painting grew more and more, and deeper and deeper.

Standing still in place, he finished reading the book page by page.

After an unknown amount of time, he opened his eyes and saw a pair of black eyeballs right in front of him.

"Ah..."

Just as he was wondering, the owner of the eyeballs was startled, shouted loudly, and quickly stepped back.

"Master Lu Chen?"

Zhang Xuan then saw clearly who it was—none other than Master Lu.

At this moment, the master looked at him with a wary expression, as if he were a prehistoric beast.

"What's wrong with you?"

Seeing him like this, Zhang Xuan looked puzzled.

I'm not going to kill anyone; what does this attitude mean?

"You... didn't break through this time, did you?"

Master Lu asked cautiously.

"Break through? No!" Zhang Xuan was taken aback.

"That's good..." Relieved, Master Lu Chen sighed, still shaken: "I saw you hadn't come out for so long, so I thought I'd check on you..."

He had thought this young friend Zhang Xuan would be out in ten minutes or so after reading, but unexpectedly, nearly two hours had passed since he entered, and he couldn't wait any longer, so he came over.

Upon entering, he saw the other with eyes closed, standing before the bookshelf, as if asleep.

Suddenly he remembered... it seemed the last time was like this too: after reading for a while, he closed his eyes in a daze, and then his study was in chaos, and he himself was thrown around until he was half dead, and then... there was no then...

This time... it wouldn't happen again, would it...

Just as he was agonizing over what to do, he saw the other open his eyes. Not fleeing the study in fright was already a sign of considerable courage.

"Breaking through isn't that easy..."

Seeing his wary expression, Zhang Xuan understood and shook his head with a wry smile.

Had he not heard that, it would have been fine, but upon hearing it, Master Lu Chen felt a tightness in his chest and twitched his mouth.

Not that easy?

Wasn't it that easy for you last time?

And because you broke through too much at once, you couldn't adapt to the power... If I hadn't had some strength, I might have died right then...

The more he thought about it, the more depressed he became. Forget it, luckily he didn't break through here this time, otherwise... I really would consider not letting you into the study anymore...

"So, have you adjusted your state of mind?" Lu Chen shifted to a less heavy topic.

"Almost. Let's go out!" Zhang Xuan nodded.

The two returned to the hall, only to see Huang Yu, Bai Xun, and the others already waiting with eager eyes. Reading to adjust one's state of mind, and then taking two or three hours—just thinking about it was exasperating.

"How is it?"

Master Yuan Yu's expression was also unpleasant.

He had originally planned to visit the renowned teacher Yang Xuan in the afternoon, but this fellow had gone and adjusted his state of mind until the sun was almost setting. Coupled with his earlier private judgment, it was already good that he hadn't left in a huff.

"Uh... it's fine!"

Seeing everyone's expressions, Zhang Xuan felt a bit embarrassed, knowing he was in the wrong.

"Let's start painting!" Master Lu Chen, afraid the situation might become awkward, waved his hand.

"Mm!" Quickly reviewing the painting methods he had seen in the Heavenly Dao books in his mind, Zhang Xuan strode to the table and casually picked up a brush.

Seeing that he was really going to paint, Huang Yu and Bai Xun immediately focused their attention, showing excitement.

After adjusting for so long, what kind of masterpiece could this Master Zhang produce?

Even Master Yuan Yu couldn't help but look over—if he was really faking it and putting on an act, he would teach him a lesson...

Just as everyone was watching, Zhang Xuan hesitated for a moment: "Master Lu, do you have any more paper? Can I try the brush first?"

Calligraphy and painting are not like cultivation techniques, where true qi circulates once in the body; even if one knows a lot, practice and exploration are needed.

He had never painted before and had rarely used a brush; he needed to first test the softness and hardness, understand the weight and color of ink and watercolor on paper, before he could paint.

This was also why, despite having studied so many alchemy books, he couldn't become a true alchemist in a short time.

Alchemy required a lot of practice, while painting emphasized artistic conception; even if the brushwork was a bit weak, understanding the conception could still produce good work.

"Go ahead and try!" Master Yuan Yu's expression turned even more unpleasant.

If he were truly a master of calligraphy and painting, why would he need to test the brush?

He was clearly trying to stall for time.

Hmph, let him stall; in a moment, we'll see what excuse he has.

Ignoring his strange look, Zhang Xuan picked up the brush, dipped it in watercolor and ink, and casually drew a few strokes on the paper, then took another brush, dipped it in water, and smeared it randomly.

"That's the most basic color separation? Even that needs testing... Master Zhang, is this your first time holding a brush?"

Seeing his movements, Huang Yu couldn't help saying.

Color separation is a technique in painting where one brush is dipped in color and another in water, dragging the color to create a gradient from thick to thin—it's like the long fist in martial arts; anyone who can paint knows it...

Others test the brush by trying the softness and hardness, the weight of ink, but this guy tests every technique, like a curious baby who has never touched anything...

Seeing this, everyone felt constipated.

Brother, we've been waiting for you for hours; can you hurry up?

If this goes on, I might die of old age before seeing your painting...

"When I first held a brush, I was like that too, wanting to try everything, but actually knowing nothing..." Bai Xun was also full of doubt; even he could see something was wrong.

Look at Master Lu and Master Yuan—when they hold a brush, their whole aura changes, like a swordsman gripping his sword... What the hell is this?

The Master Zhang he admired, though his grip on the brush was not wrong, his movements were stiff and not at all relaxed or free, no different from someone touching a brush for the first time.

Don't tell me that looking for a state by reading books earlier was actually learning how to paint?

Master Lu Chen was also full of confusion, unable to figure out what Zhang Xuan was up to.

"Alright!"

After adapting for a moment, he finally fully integrated the knowledge in his mind with the movements of his hands. Zhang Xuan breathed a sigh of relief.

"Then... let's begin!"

Seeing him stop, Master Lu Chen tentatively asked, afraid that this fellow might pull some new trick.

Fortunately, Zhang Xuan said nothing else. He acknowledged with a sound, walked up to the clean white paper, flicked his finger, and a brush flew up, dipping into the ink. At the same time, his other hand gently grabbed another brush, holding it in his palm.

Swish, swish!

The two brushes seemed to come alive, dancing incessantly in his hands. On the originally blank white paper, a painting slowly appeared.

"Is this... 'Left-Right Swimming Dragons'?"

Master Yuan Yu, who had intended to expose his trickery, saw this and immediately widened his eyes, nearly popping them out of their sockets.

Even Master Lu Chen swayed, almost fainting on the spot.

"What is 'Left-Right Swimming Dragons'?"

Seeing the two masters looking as if they had seen a ghost, Bai Xun couldn't help but ask.

"Normally, when we paint, we use one brush, first sketching the general outline, then filling in the details," Lu Chen explained.

Huang Yu and Bai Xun nodded simultaneously.

They had also dabbled in painting and calligraphy and knew the steps: outline the big picture, then fill in the details bit by bit with ink and touch-ups until finished.

"It's like building a house: first set up the frame, then tamp it down bit by bit. Though the foundation is solid, the speed of painting is somewhat unsatisfactory, not fast enough."

Master Lu Chen continued: "To increase painting speed, some accomplished calligraphers and painters created this method of 'Left-Right Swimming Dragons.' As the name implies, it divides the mind in two, drawing from both sides simultaneously. Using two brushes, starting from left and right ends at the same time, without needing to conceive a framework or any embellishment or touch-ups, the entire picture exists in the mind, advancing inward... When the two brushes meet, the painting is complete!"

"This method doubles the painting time and efficiency, but it is extremely difficult!"

"First, one must have a clear understanding of the painting's dimensions; second, the mind must be divided in two without any errors; finally, the colors and tones must be fully grasped to ensure no problems when the two sides meet..."

"To be honest, this is an extremely advanced technique. Even Brother Yuan and I cannot do it..."

At this point, Master Lu Chen shook his head, his aged face still full of disbelief.

This method of painting with both hands required absolute confidence in the painting to complete, and without decades of practice, it was hard to achieve. Zhang Xuan did it casually...

Wasn't that too exaggerated?

"Don't be too shocked yet. The left and right parts must perfectly connect for it to be truly successful. If they don't connect, it's all fake!"

Master Yuan Yu on the side had calmed down and couldn't help snorting.

Left-Right Swimming Dragons, drawing from both sides, was impressive, but no matter how well the two sides were painted, if they didn't connect, it was all nonsense.

It was still like building a house: both sides used superb techniques, solid beyond compare, indestructible even by a Martial Artist of the sixth rank, but in the end... if they didn't connect and were uneven, it was still a failure!