The Mysterious Elder and a Peculiar Portrait

Chi Qiu received the scroll. It depicted a gaunt, white-haired elder clad in a black robe. Unfamiliar with the man, Chi Qiu turned and handed the scroll to Su Hanxing.

Su Hanxing took the scroll, his brows furrowing. He looked up at Chai Niang, asking gravely, “Someone from the Heart God Sect?”

Chai Niang’s eyes lit up. “You know him?” she asked.

Su Hanxing shook his head, then put away the scroll. “No, I don’t, but the robe he’s wearing is a Heart God Sect Daoist robe.”

“What a shame…” Chai Niang slumped back into her wooden chair, a hint of disappointment in her voice.

“Why are you looking for this man?” Chi Qiu inquired, unwilling to offend a major sect purely for the sake of the Dao of Ink Wash Painting.

Chai Niang shook her head, refusing to answer. “It has nothing to do with you. You only need to ascertain his cultivation realm and current location.”

Chi Qiu hesitated, glancing at Su Hanxing with a silent plea for help. After a moment of thought, Su Hanxing gave Chi Qiu a slight nod, indicating that the matter was feasible.

“Alright, I accept.” Seeing Su Hanxing’s nod, Chi Qiu immediately felt relieved and agreed to Chai Niang’s terms.

“Excellent! If you uncover any information, you can find me here in the first ten days of each month.” Chai Niang beamed, nodding in satisfaction. Then, as if remembering something, she added:

“Do you still want your portraits? If not, the Pavilion Master will fine me.”

Su Hanxing’s lips curved slightly. “Of course we do. Please paint a portrait for the two of us.”

“Thank you for your patronage. That will be fifteen liang of gold,” Chai Niang said slyly, extending a hand for payment.

“That expensive?” Chi Qiu was startled, thinking she had misheard the price.

“Money is no object. Just make sure the painting is good,” Su Hanxing said casually, pulling out a gold ingot and tossing it to Chai Niang.

“Rest assured,” Chai Niang replied, pocketing the gold. She stood up, drawing closer to Chi Qiu and Su Hanxing, and began to scrutinize them carefully.

Afterward, Chi Qiu and Su Hanxing were ushered out of the room by Chai Niang, who instructed them to return in a few hours to collect their painting.

“I thought we’d have to wait ten days or half a month. I can’t believe it’ll be ready in just a few hours,” Chi Qiu remarked as they left the Spirit Painting Pavilion, preparing to stroll around some more.

“She is a Heart Scripture Realm cultivator, after all. Naturally, she’s much faster than mortals,” Su Hanxing replied, unsurprised.

“Next, we need to find this elder. Su Hanxing, since you nodded, do you have a method to locate him?” Chi Qiu asked, recalling Chai Niang’s request.

Su Hanxing did not immediately reveal his method. Instead, he began to introduce the Heart God Sect. “The Heart God Sect is extremely mysterious. Its main sect is located in Wufeng Commandery, Huangzhou, a great distance from the Imperial City.”

“The cultivation methods passed down by the Heart God Sect are exceptionally peculiar. They do not cultivate true qi or comprehend the Grand Dao. Instead, they focus entirely on tempering their divine souls.”

Su Hanxing extended a hand, and a wisp of divine soul power materialized above it. “This unconventional cultivation method makes their combat style quite extraordinary. They are not adept at direct combat, but they excel in assassination and controlling people’s minds. Therefore, one must be extremely cautious when making an enemy of them.”

“So, how do we find the elder in the painting?” Chi Qiu asked, nodding quietly after listening.

“It would be extremely difficult to search for him in Wufeng Commandery. However, the preliminary rounds of the grand competition are set to begin soon, and Heart God Sect cultivators will undoubtedly come to the Imperial City then.”

Su Hanxing slowly voiced his thoughts. “This elder appears to be an outer sect deacon, often running errands for the Heart God Sect, so he might also come to the Imperial City.”

“At that time, we can investigate. If we can find the elder, that would be ideal. If not, it won’t be too late to make other plans.”

“A good idea. We’ll do as you say.” Chi Qiu’s eyes brightened, fully agreeing with Su Hanxing’s proposal.

“What do you think Chai Niang wants with this elder?” Chi Qiu suddenly asked.

It’s certainly nothing good, Su Hanxing mused, stroking his chin. I observed her gaze when she saw the elder in the painting… it was quite malicious.

“Never mind,” Chi Qiu said, waving a hand dismissively. “We only need to inform her of the elder’s cultivation and location. What she does is none of our concern.”

This painting contains a wisp of the Dao of Ink Wash Painting that I condensed. Consider it a deposit, Chai Niang thought.

Several hours later, Chi Qiu and Su Hanxing returned to the Spirit Painting Pavilion and received the scroll from Chai Niang. Before Chi Qiu even unrolled the scroll, she sensed the profound and mysterious Dao of Ink Wash Painting contained within. Her face lit up with joy, and she bowed towards Chai Niang, clasping her hands. “Thank you so much,” she said.

“No need for thanks. Just don’t forget my request,” Chai Niang reminded them, blinking her purple eyes.

“Rest assured,” Su Hanxing replied with a smile. Chai Niang nodded, then turned and re-entered the Spirit Painting Pavilion.

“Let’s head back too. I want to properly comprehend this Dao of Ink Wash Painting,” Chi Qiu urged, tugging at Su Hanxing’s sleeve as she watched Chai Niang disappear into the pavilion. She was eager to begin her contemplation.

“Alright, we’ll go back now.” Su Hanxing’s lips curved upward as he saw Chi Qiu tugging his sleeve. He took the opportunity to grasp her small hand, then continued, “Let’s use my divine ability, ‘Starfall Step,’ to travel.”

Chi Qiu instinctively tried to pull her hand back, but found it difficult to escape his grasp. Hearing Su Hanxing mention using a divine ability to travel, she ceased struggling, allowing him to hold her hand. With Su Hanxing activating his full true qi to unleash ‘Starfall Step,’ they returned to the front of their residence in mere moments.

“I’m going back to my room, Hanxing. Please make yourself at home,” Chi Qiu said upon reaching the mansion’s entrance. Her fingers subtly moved, and an intent of flowing water gently emanated. In that instant, Su Hanxing felt as if he had been holding a spring of clear water. Something slippery quietly slipped away from his grasp.

Chi Qiu finally retrieved her hand. With a swift movement of her feet, she drifted into the backyard like a falling, withered leaf.

“…She actually used a ‘Dao’ to break free from me, how truly…” Su Hanxing raised his hand, feeling a faint lingering pull, and muttered to himself with amusement.

Chi Qiu returned to her bedroom, eager to take out the scroll. She slowly unrolled the scroll, and just as she was about to ponder the Dao of Ink Wash Painting depicted on it, she froze. Immediately, a blush crept onto her cheeks, and her earlobes grew hot.

The painting depicted rivers and mountains, shrouded in a hazy, misty rain. A small, flat boat drifted on the river, with ripples spreading out behind it. On this small boat, a man and a woman nestled together. The man was tall and handsome, the woman delicate and charming. Anyone who saw them would call them a divine couple.

The man in the painting was none other than Su Hanxing. And the shy woman nestled in Su Hanxing’s embrace? Who else could it be but Chi Qiu?

Chi Qiu’s hand trembled slightly as she held the scroll, the blush on her face refusing to fade. She distinctly remembered telling Chai Niang that she and Su Hanxing were not Dao companions. Yet, Chai Niang had still painted such a picture.

If she wanted to comprehend the Dao of Ink Wash Painting in the future, she would need to observe and study the painting daily. But with such content, how could she calm her mind to do so?

Chi Qiu cradled the scroll, staring blankly at the intimately depicted couple. A ripple of ‘Dao’ emanated from her. In a daze, Chi Qiu felt as if she herself was within the painting, sensing warmth from behind her and soft breaths against her neck.

A shiver ran down her spine—

Chi Qiu suddenly shivered, snapping back to reality. She reached to touch her back, but found nothing there. For some reason, her heart felt strangely empty.

Is this the Dao of Ink Wash Painting…?

Chi Qiu looked at the scroll again, this time with a hint of caution in her eyes.