Chapter 257: The First in the World in Zither, Chess, Calligraphy, and Painting
Chu Feng picked up the brush and began writing a line of small characters in the blank space on the paper.
"Seven years of Dao inquiry, I wandered the Void and once crossed the Luo River. The ancients once said, the deity of this water is named Fu Fei. Inspired by Song Yu's tale of the divine maiden and King Chu, I compose this rhapsody."
...
"I said to him: Her form is like a startled swan, graceful like a swimming dragon..."
By midnight, several hundred characters later, the paper radiated the light of Dao literature reaching nine zhang high, directly overshadowing the literary Dao light of Great Sage Lei Shu.
This sudden scene nearly damaged Great Sage Lei Shu's Dao heart. He instinctively turned to look at Chu Feng.
He saw that the characters on the painting, each about the size of a fingernail, were enveloped in Dao light, but he couldn't clearly read what Chu Feng had written.
What shocked him more was Chu Feng's fluid and effortless movement.
Because each of those characters contained the truth of the Great Dao.
Hadn't this young man only become a Half-Saint for less than ten years?
How could he write so swiftly?
Was this the difference between a heaven's prodigy and an ordinary person?
This scene also stunned Bai Yu, who was watching from outside. He murmured, "Just how many truths of the Great Dao has Chu Half-Saint comprehended, to be able to write in one unbroken flow?"
Heh.
Great Sage Jinchi laughed inwardly. If they knew that his elder brother could become a Saint at any time, wouldn't they kneel down and beg forgiveness?
Naturally, Chu Feng was unaware of what everyone else was thinking. At this moment, he was fully immersed in zither, chess, and calligraphy.
Though using all three disciplines simultaneously consumed immense spiritual power and divine sense, his cultivation of over three thousand years was no illusion. Even without taking pills, he could battle these four great sages for three days and nights.
Moreover, against these four, he wouldn't even need that long.
He continued writing on the paper:
"You are amidst all spirits, mingling in groups and calling to companions. Some play in clear streams, some soar over divine islets, some gather luminous pearls, others pick emerald plumes. From the two consorts of Nanxiang, to the maidens who roam along the Han shores."
...
"And so, descending the hills and climbing the heights, I stepped onto divine ground. Leaving behind feelings and images, looking back with sorrow. Hoping the spirit's form might reappear, I rode a light boat upstream. Drifting along the great river, I forgot to return. My yearning grew deeper and deeper. Sleepless under the bright stars, I was soaked in frost until dawn. I ordered my servant to ready the carriage. I planned to return north. Grasping the reins and lifting the whip, I hesitated with regret, unable to leave."
As the final line was completed, a beam of literary Dao light thirty-nine zhang high radiated from the scroll, adding another glow to the sky that was just beginning to brighten.
Plop!
Great Sage Lei Shu saw this and dropped his brush to the ground, murmuring, "I admit defeat."
Chu Feng said nothing. His divine sense once again transformed into a piece and landed on the chessboard.
As that piece fell, all the lifeforms conjured by Mo Qi's chess pieces vanished instantly from the chessboard's miniature world.
Mo Qi saw this and weakly closed his eyes. "I concede."
Chu Feng then placed his right hand on the zither strings and began to pluck them with both hands.
Huan Qin, who had already been on the verge of collapse, broke out in a cold sweat the moment he saw this. His fingers trembled as he played.
Clang!
The strings on Huan Qin's instrument snapped, and the illusions he had created vanished with them.
Chu Feng continued to play. He was a man who saw things through to the end. He intended to finish this piece, "High Mountains and Flowing Waters."
The vision formed by the zither's melody merged with the literary Dao light. Above Qingqiu Royal City, a mountain appeared in the sky, with a trickling spring cascading from its peak and forming a long river.
At this moment, the sun had just risen into the sky. Sunlight shone down on the vision, allowing everyone in the royal city to see it clearly.
"An immortal mountain!"
"An immortal mountain has appeared in the royal city!"
"Could this be a divine sign from the ancestral land?"
Countless cultivators in Qingqiu Royal City looked up at the scene in astonishment.
The experts within the royal city also arrived one after another, watching the battle between the five great sages from afar.
Just as everyone was mesmerized by the vision, a figure appeared in the river—a goddess holding a longsword, her face hidden.
She looked like a celestial maiden descending from the heavens, standing apart from the world. Just standing there, she evoked reverence in all who saw her.
Clang!
The woman swung her sword, and in the sky appeared a Taiji diagram of yin and yang.
Upon seeing this strike, Great Sage Fahua looked at Chu Feng's painting, then at his own, and immediately waved his hand, burning his painting to ashes.
"This is the Great Dao truth of yin and yang. Fellow Daoist Chu's painting technique is simply divine!"
Bai Yu couldn't help but exclaim.
As the sword fell, the divine maiden vanished, as though her appearance had been solely to deliver this one sword to the world.
At the same time, the zither's music ceased, and the mountain and river in the sky disappeared along with it.
Silence!
The entire Qingqiu Royal City fell into an intense silence. That scene just now had been far too shocking.
Countless people were still lost in the moment of that sword, completely forgetting the lingering melodies that had echoed in their ears.
The most astonished of all were the four elders of the fox clan. Their mouths hung open, each staring at the young man before them with disbelief.
"Half-Saint Chu truly lives up to his name as the Head of the Miscellaneous Dao Institute at Wendao Academy—unsurpassed in zither, chess, calligraphy, and painting. I, Mo Qi, am wholeheartedly convinced."
Mo Qi was the first to break the silence within the courtyard.
The other three great sages quickly came back to their senses and cupped their hands toward Chu Feng, speaking in unison:
"Half-Saint Chu, we were greatly disrespectful yesterday. We ask for your forgiveness, fellow Daoist."
Chu Feng smiled and said, "Seniors, your words are too kind. It's only because I rarely act, which led the world to mistakenly think I was solely a sword cultivator. That caused a small misunderstanding between us."
Seeing Chu Feng remain so courteous even after his victory, the four great sages instantly felt much more favorable toward him.
Mo Qi said, "To have witnessed Half-Saint Chu's mastery of the four arts today—this visit to the mortal world has not been in vain. Truly delightful!"
Great Sage Fahua added, "I've guarded this gate for many years, and never have I seen someone as extraordinary as Half-Saint Chu. Today calls for a grand toast!"
"Indeed, a grand toast!"
Great Sage Lei Shu echoed in agreement.
Chu Feng smiled and said, "As it happens, I do enjoy good wine. If the seniors don't mind, allow me to offer a few cups of sacred wine."
At these words, the four great sages' eyes lit up instantly. Any dissatisfaction they had earlier had completely vanished.
Great Sage Huan Qin gave Chu Feng a thumbs-up. "Kid, you've got it. If you didn't already have a Dao companion, I'd be offering you my granddaughter's hand in marriage."
"Pah!"
Great Sage Fahua retorted, "You shameless old thing. Can't beat Fellow Daoist Chu, so now you want him to call you grandfather? You're truly a rotten old fox!"
"Hahaha…"
The gathered cultivators all broke into joyous laughter.
Chu Feng packed away his belongings and finally set his gaze on the scroll.
Without much thought, he gifted the scroll to Bing Yan.
"Yan'er, I used you as the subject without asking. Please accept this painting as a gift."
"Thank you, young master."
Bing Yan replied in a voice as soft as a mosquito, blushing as she accepted the painting. No one noticed that her cheeks were red to the tips of her ears.
Standing nearby, Chen Qianqian watched and muttered under her breath, "So jealous of master's wife. I wonder who'll ever give me a painting like that."
Hearing this, Chu Feng tugged her little braid. "You've been acting crazy all day. Go back to sleep already. Who taught you to say such tea-dripping words?"
"Oh…"
Chen Qianqian pouted with a face full of grievance, thinking to herself: Wasn't I just telling the truth?
The cultivators nearby burst into laughter at her expression.
In that moment, cheerful laughter echoed throughout the ancestral temple...
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