Chapter 205: Does That Count as My Win?

"You painted this?"

The room fell silent.

Then a clamor erupted.

"You say this fifth-realm painting is yours? Zhang Xuan, you're killing me! Even if you can't appreciate it, just admit defeat—no need to put on such an act!"

"What a big face! There's a limit to showing off. You painted it? Why not say you're Master Yun Shaoqing himself?"

"Ignorant fool! Do you even know what a fifth-realm painting signifies? And you claim it's yours? What a joke!"

Tian Long, Lu Xun, and Wang Chao all sneered, looking at Zhang Xuan as if he were an idiot.

A fifth-realm painting—what did that mean?

In the entire Tianxuan Kingdom, not a single person could paint one. Even Lu Xun's father, Imperial Tutor Lu Chen, could not. A college teacher, a youth under twenty, claiming he could produce such a work—if that wasn't a joke, what was?

"Liu Ling, this is the one you fancy and plan to take as an apprentice? Ignorant and boastful—does such a person deserve to be a teacher?"

Old Tian flicked his sleeve, his face darkening.

Teacher Liu had given him this painting as a birthday gift. He hung it in his room every day, studying it meticulously, marveling at it, always believing it was the work of some great calligraphy or painting master, and he admired it deeply. And this fellow claimed it was his?

It was an insult to the masterpiece.

"Teacher Tian, this painting..."

Hearing his teacher's rebuke, Liu Ling's face was full of conflict: "...it really was painted by Teacher Zhang Xuan."

"What, you also admit he's arrogant... Huh? What did you say?" Old Tian didn't catch it, muttered to himself, then suddenly realized, nearly fainting, his lips trembling: "He... he painted it?"

"Yes, this painting... was painted by Teacher Zhang a few days ago..."

Liu Ling said with a wry smile.

When Huang Yu had brought it over and given it to him as a congratulatory gift, to be honest, he too had been stunned.

A fifth-realm painting, even in a second-rank kingdom like Beiwu, was a treasure hard to come by—and it came from Hongtian College, from a teacher under twenty...

Even hearing it with his own ears, he felt dizzy and found it hard to believe.

"This... this..."

Old Tian's pupils contracted, his old face flushing crimson, wishing he could find a crack in the ground to crawl into.

As a renowned teacher, Liu Ling wouldn't lie, which meant... this painting really was painted by Teacher Zhang.

He had been praising it endlessly, hoping to see the creator in his lifetime, and now that he had, he was questioning him...

"I don't believe it... Even if he started learning calligraphy and painting from the womb, he couldn't produce such a masterpiece..." Hearing Teacher Liu admit it, Lu Xun gritted his teeth and glared.

He had just praised the painter to the skies—this technique, that brushwork, this master, that grandmaster—ready to grovel, only to find it was the very person he had been trying to provoke. He refused to believe it.

"I don't believe it either. Teacher Liu, don't be fooled by him..."

Wang Chao also roared.

But before their shouts ended, they saw Zhang Xuan approach the painting and gently touch it with his palm.

Hum!

A clear ring sounded, and the wild deer in the painting instantly came to life, turned, and charged toward him before dissipating into the air.

"This is... origin manifestation? Only the creator of a painting can achieve origin manifestation?"

"A painting contains all the creator's effort and perfectly resonates with his spirit. For a fifth-realm painting, when the creator touches it, it automatically manifests..."

"It... really is his painting..."

For a painting that had reached the manifestation realm, it was easy to tell who painted it: when the creator touched it, the painting would automatically display its manifestation effect.

Seeing the wild deer run, the aura in the painting flow, and resonate with Teacher Zhang Xuan not far away... even a fool would know the painter was him.

"This... how is this possible?"

Lu Xun staggered and fell to the ground, on the verge of tears.

Just moments ago, he had confidently declared that the painter must be Master Yun Shaoqing, using the double-hook brush technique—and reality had slapped him hard.

Brother, if I had known you were a painting grandmaster, why would I have bothered competing?

Wasn't that asking for humiliation?

Beside him, Wang Chao and Tian Long felt their bodies convulse, about to faint.

Especially Tian Long—he finally understood why Master Yuan Yu was so respectful to this guy, even wanting to learn from him...

A grandmaster-level painter who could produce a fifth-realm painting deserved such respect.

"Grandmaster Zhang Xuan, I was blind. Please forgive me..."

Old Tian also rose with a grim face, cupping his fists, seeming to have aged a dozen years in an instant.

A lifetime of teaching, enjoying great renown, and he had stumbled here.

Making Lu Xun compete in calligraphy and painting with a grandmaster?

Could there be anything more shocking?

He had wanted to help him find a teacher, but instead, he had set him up—badly.

No wonder Liu Ling and the others had bent over backward to take him as an apprentice, disregarding their status as renowned teachers. So that was it.

A painting grandmaster who could produce fifth-realm works—once he became an apprentice, he would immediately qualify to take the renowned teacher exam. If he succeeded, his teacher would become famous throughout the kingdom!

Without answering Old Tian, Zhang Xuan stood quietly before the painting, looking at it: "This painting was done a few days ago at Imperial Tutor Lu Chen's residence. I didn't stand on a grassland, nor did I use the double-hook brush technique. Instead, I used the left-right swimming dragon method. It took forty-seven breaths to complete, not the so-called two or three days."

"Left-right swimming dragon?"

"Forty-seven breaths?"

Lu Xun's mouth twitched again.

He had just sworn that even a grandmaster would take at least two or three days to paint this, and that it must have been inspired by being on a grassland. He never dreamed it was painted right in his own home, and in such a short time...

Even more absurd, it used the technique of street artisans printing paintings to create a fifth-realm masterpiece...

This was too outrageous!

Hearing this, Tian Long was nearly in tears.

Just now, when the other had mentioned this technique, he had been scolded mercilessly, and now it was confirmed in an instant—it was true!

Left-right swimming dragon, a speed-painting method, could produce such an amazing work?

Teacher Zhang, what level have you reached?

Ignoring their reactions, Zhang Xuan flicked his finger on the painting: "Is there brush and ink here?"

"Yes, yes!"

Old Tian waved his hand, and Tian Gang hurried out, returning shortly with brush and ink. In his excitement, he nearly tripped entering the room.

Anyone with sense knew that Teacher Zhang was about to sign the painting.

A painting with or without a signature differed greatly in value, often jumping tenfold.

Especially since Teacher Zhang was so young and already a painting grandmaster. In a few years, once he became a renowned teacher and his fame spread to neighboring kingdoms, a signed painting would skyrocket in value.

Of course, value was secondary. The main thing was the honor of witnessing a painting grandmaster wield his brush!

"This painting lacks the momentum of bold strokes, nor does it have the lofty意境 Teacher Lu mentioned. The name 'Sweeping the Azure Sky' is certainly undeserved!" Picking up the brush and dipping it in ink, Zhang Xuan stood before the painting without hesitation and swept the brush across.

Swish, swish, swish!

Two large characters appeared at the top of the painting.

"Wild Deer?"

Seeing the name he wrote, everyone was taken aback.

They had expected a grand name, but 'Wild Deer' seemed far too casual.

"Direct expression of the heart—this is the true realm of a painting grandmaster."

After a moment of silence, Old Tian spoke.

"Indeed. The main subject of this painting is the wild deer; everything else is just accompaniment. The so-called aura and意境 all come from it. Calling it 'Wild Deer' sounds simple and lacks momentum, but it fully presents the painting's core content, elevating the entire work to a new height."

Liu Ling sighed.

As expected of Teacher Zhang, a painting grandmaster at such a young age. Even a simple name directly enhanced the painting's quality.

"Not only that. If this painting were called 'Sweeping the Azure Sky,' viewers would be influenced by its momentum and unable to grasp other nuances. But calling it 'Wild Deer,' though simple, imposes no mental constraints. Each viewer will let their imagination run wild, enriching the painting's flavor and broadening its意境."

Zhuang Xian added.

"Yes, a stroke of genius, a stroke of genius..." Zheng Fei nodded, about to offer his own insight, when he suddenly froze and pointed forward: "Look!"

Everyone looked and saw the wild deer in the painting leap out again, gazing at Zhang Xuan with attachment, nuzzling his arm a few times before slowly dissipating.

"This is... intelligence?"

"A sixth-realm painting? No, not quite. If it were, the deer would have lasted longer outside."

"Though not there, it's close. Adding the name has elevated the painting nearly a full level, approaching the sixth realm..."

Seeing the deer's behavior, everyone was shaken, their faces flushed with excitement.

The realms of calligraphy and painting: the first four were Recording Reality, Animation, Intent Preservation, and Startling Swan.

The fifth realm was Manifestation.

Above Manifestation was the sixth realm, which they had just mentioned: Intelligence.

It was said that paintings reaching this realm had animals with their own intelligence, able to absorb spiritual energy to maintain form for a short time and emerge from the painting—truly miraculous.

They had thought it was legend, never dreaming they would witness it.

In this painting, the wild deer couldn't absorb spiritual energy to linger long in the air, but its attachment to the creator showed it was close to possessing intelligence.

If placed in a place rich in spiritual energy and nurtured for a hundred years, it might indeed become a true sixth-realm painting!

A single name had forcibly elevated the entire painting by nearly a level. The two characters 'Wild Deer' were worth a thousand gold each!

Everyone now looked at the young man before them, their eyes burning.

Especially Huang Yu and Bai Xun, who trembled with excitement.

Unmoved by their excitement, Zhang Xuan put down the brush and looked around.

"I've finished my appraisal. Does this test... count as my win?"