Shen Suanzi began his preparations with a solemn expression. Even though he was a Wisdom Elite and Gu Yuan was at the Chaos Daluo Golden Immortal realm, he treated him with extreme caution. He knew a powerful person was supporting Gu Yuan in the dark.
This was the seventh dimension of Wisdom. Since Gu Yuan was related to the ultimate existence in all of the dimensions, not even his master was daring enough to face it directly. This kind of existence concealed cause and effect and could not be seen with one’s bare eyes. That was why Shen Suanzi took all the effort to prepare the formation. With it, he could understand more about the person supporting Gu Yuan, to cause said person to fall eternally.
“Imperial wood, dream flower, aged grass, enchanting jade…” Shen Suanzi mumbled all kinds of different materials. In the meantime, his mana started to build up around him and attracted countless laws. There was even a sense of Wisdom surrounding them that pressurized the area.
The terrifying power left Lei Teng and Ye Qingshan stunned for a while. They looked at the sky that was full of abnormal visions in awe. At the same time, they became more confused.
“What’s the real reason Shen Suanzi’s performing the formation with such formality?”
“I’m afraid there must be a big hidden secret in the seventh dimension that’s beyond our imagination.”
They looked at each other as their eyes gleamed. As time passed, the weird formation was already engraved in the hall with Gu Yuan at the center. Heavy streams of lights surrounded Gu Yuan as if they were about to swallow him whole.
The space around him was distorted, causing everything to seem unreal. Ye Qingshan suddenly thought of something. His eyes widened as he said in amazement, “This… This is the sense of time?”
Lei Teng was also shocked. “Retracing back to the original source. Is Shen Suanzi ready to go back in time to find out more information?”
“That’s right!” Shen Suanzi smiled slightly. His body was surrounded by a warm light that made him look sinister and unpredictable.
Shen Suanzi continued to say, “I’ll use a secret method to enter the River of Time so I can go back in time and see his past! This is much more stable than peeking through his soul.”
They had guessed correctly! Ye Qingshan and Lei Teng could not help but tremble. Heaven Mystery Pavilion was really extraordinary to have access to such a secret method. Even those fighters in the Heavenly Realm would not be confident enough to control the sense of time. It was a heaven-defying technique that should not be used by anyone powerful. If one were to make any mistakes while performing this method, they would end up being grounded by Wisdom. Although Shen Suanzi was only going to look into the past with help of the River of Time, it was still extremely terrifying.
Gu Yuan’s heart was flustered and his face flushed red. He struggled desperately as he roared with all his might, “Just kill me! I won’t let you obtain any information from me!”
“Haha, this isn’t up to you. I’m going to start now.” Shen Suanzi smiled contemptuously and pressed both hands on Gu Yuan’s head. He said calmly, “It’s time to witness the miracle. I’ll dive into the River of Time. Don’t let anyone disturb me!”
As Shen Suanzi finished his sentence, the majestic atmosphere of Wisdom suddenly arrived like a tide, converging from all directions. The terrifying coercion left Ye Qingshan and Lei Teng with no doubt that once it got out of control, it would easily annihilate both of them.
In the void, there was a sudden sound of river water. The water was rushing and slapping against the reed as if it was eternal, filled with the sense of time. In the center of the formation, a colorful rainbow light covered Shen Suanzi and Gu Yuan. There seemed to be a river looming between them vaguely.
Shen Suanzi’s figure gradually manifested in the River of Time. Standing on the surface of the water, he looked at the flowing river. His face could not hide his obsession.
“Is this the power of time? What a desirable power!”
He raised his hand and tried to touch time but it was blocked by an invisible barrier. He returned to his senses and narrowed his eyes. He gazed upstream to look at Gu Yuan’s past. “Let me see what kind of secrets are hidden in the four-part architecture and the master behind it!”
At the four-part architecture, Li Nianfan sat in the middle of the courtyard with a picture frame in front of him. He was painting with a brush in his hand. Shi Tuqin stood behind him, watching quietly.
“In order to master the accurate shapes and express the characteristics of the human being, it’s necessary to understand and study the basic figures, proportions, structures of the human body, as well as the routine changes that follow each movement.”
Li Nianfan gave pointers as he painted casually, “I’m now teaching you to draw the head of a character. First of all, you have to pay attention to the outline of the character. The hardest part is filling in the facial features. There’s no camera here, but if you practice hard with my method, it’ll be more realistic than a camera.”
Shi Tuqin could sense with her eyes that the powerful Wisdom had become as docile as a puppy under Li Nianfan’s hand. Wisdom followed everywhere the brush went and each stroke was imbued with unimaginable power. She would not dare to look directly at the painting if it was not for the fact that she had broken through to the level of a Wisdom Elite.
The most important thing was… Li Nianfan was being too casual, too free and easy. Each stroke was extremely natural as if it had integrated with the world, giving people a pleasing feeling.
Shi Tuqin had tried to paint, but she could not draw the charm. She often felt the immeasurable pressure that suppressed her brush which made her lines imperfect. In simpler terms, the mind had learned but not the hand.
Stroke by stroke, the painting was finished. The person in the painting was Gu Yuan. The portrait was like a black and white photo that was printed on paper. Li Nianfan had specially painted it for Gu Yuan. Although no one had clearly stated the outcome of Gu Yuan’s capture, he was most likely done for. So, Li Nianfan painted a portrait of him. When Yang Jing passed away, Li Nianfan was prepared to draw another one for him, too. He regarded it as a farewell between friends.
Shi Tuqin could not help but say, “Master, you painted it so fast and so natural. You don’t seem to suffer from any pressure at all.”
“Practice makes perfect.” Li Nianfan looked at Gu Yuan’s portrait and said casually, “Don’t rush success. Don’t try to paint anything complicated. I suggest you start with an egg first.”
It was the method of the famous artist, Leonardo da Vinci, from Li Nianfan’s previous life. He painted tens of thousands of eggs and finally became a well-known artist.
Shi Tuqin was taken aback for a moment. “Paint…paint eggs?”
“Why? Do you think it’s too simple?” Li Nianfan shook his head and said, “This is a compulsory course! You can gain proficient techniques and brushwork skills by learning how to paint eggs. Only then can you lay a solid foundation. Remember that it isn’t easy to paint eggs. You need to observe it carefully and learn to paint it from different angles.”
Shi Tuqin seemed to have comprehended what Li Nianfan said. “I understand, Master. I’m going to paint eggs now.”
“By the way, take some time to send this portrait to the Heavenly Palace,” instructed Li Nianfan. He looked at Gu Yuan’s portrait as if Gu Yuan was still sitting in front of him. He suddenly felt sad.
“Tomorrow and death, who knows which one will come first.” Li Nianfan sighed and turned around to head toward the back garden. He planned to fish for a bit to wash away his sorrow.
Li Nianfan sat on the edge of the lake and flicked the fishing rod gently. The hook shimmered in the sun and fell into the water, causing the surface of the water to ripple. Under the lake, all kinds of fish were swimming happily. However, they all stopped suddenly and looked at the hook without moving.
The hook was here again. The expert was fishing again. No one knew who he was trying to catch but hopefully, it was not any of them. ‘Someone, please, block it from me! I’m only responsible to prey on others, not to be preyed on.’
On the other side of the River of Time, Shen Suanzi was like a bystander. He watched Gu Yuan’s past through his years. Even though he was mentally prepared, his face could not hide the shock he felt.
“It turns out that the Area of the Gods was called the Prehistoric era and it was incredibly weak but terrifying.
“Turning the norm into Wisdom and turning the decay into a miracle. Yet, viewing all spiritual items as normal items. This kind of power’s really terrifying.
“It’s incredibly powerful being able to turn the Prehistoric era into the Area of the Gods, to create countless divine items without any trouble. It’s something even the master couldn’t achieve.
“Huh? It turns out that Eldritchs had already been to the seventh dimension but one of their Wisdom Elites was killed.
“River of Time? The Eldritchs were so powerful that they could manipulate the River of Times. But in the end, they were still caught by the expert.”
Seeing this scene, Shen Suanzi’s heart inexplicably jumped rapidly. It was somewhat familiar. He started to feel uneasy but still continued to watch. At a glance, he saw a person fishing with a fishing rod in his hand. The man was sitting by the lake indifferently. His breathing was nothing special and he looked ordinary. However, Shen Suanzi took a deep breath and all of the hair on his body suddenly stood up, because that man was the expert. The image froze and moved no more!
“This isn’t Gu Yuan’s past. This image definitely doesn’t belong to Gu Yuan’s past!”
Shen Suanzi felt chills and goosebumps breaking out all over his body. He was extremely terrified. “Where did this image come from? Is this image in progress? The expert’s fishing?”
Shen Suanzi’s heart trembled violently. His facial expression changed drastically and his body retreated quickly without hesitation, away from the River of Time. However, at this time, the space suddenly trembled slightly. A fish hook cut through time with the will of heaven and earth, containing an irresistible force as it rushed toward Shen Suanzi!
Shen Suanzi’s body trembled, his face distorting with horror as he screamed wildly. He wanted to escape but realized that everything was suppressed. He could not even move as he watched the hook rush toward him. It was the strongest power among heaven and earth. Everything was destined and resistance was futile.
The fish hook hooked onto Shen Suanzi’s mouth without any resistance. Then, a strange force revolved around him, squeezing him. At the same time, it yanked him away.
Shen Suanzi had turned into a fish. He got pulled out of the water and fell into the bucket that Li Nianfan had prepared. In the backyard, all the animals suddenly sensed the arrival of a Wisdom Elite and they all looked at the fish. What kind of mistake did this Wisdom Elite make to be caught by the expert himself?
“It’s quite a big fish. Nice catch today.” Li Nianfan smiled slightly as he brought the wooden bucket to the inner court. He was thinking if he should cook some boiled fish with pickled mustard greens.
In the hall of the fourth dimension, Ye Qingshan and Lei Teng looked at Shen Suanzi. Their faces showed expressions of yearning.
‘The Wisdom Elite was definitely powerful. When would I become a Wisdom Elite?’ Both of them were thinking the same thing.
Ye Qingshan could not help but worry and say, “Sigh. My old ancestor left too abruptly. If he can’t find any luck in the seventh dimension, his status will plummet.”
Lei Teng said, “It’s the same for the Lightning Sect. Regardless of everything, if we could retrieve the missing Origins of Wisdom from the Murong Clan in the third realm, we’d definitely advance further. From the looks of it, the Origins of Wisdom in the seventh dimension are far greater than those in the third dimension.”
Ye Qingshan’s eyes flashed slightly. Then, he said, “Well, it’s all up to Shen Suanzi now. But let’s be clear, if he does gain any fortune, we should distribute it fairly. Otherwise, it’d just be bad karma.”
Lei Teng said coldly, “Definitely!”
Just as the two of them chatted, the aura of Wisdom started to swirl. Shen Suanzi’s aura was extremely unstable and his body started to tremble. After that, his power was pulled away from his body at an unimaginable speed. A popping sound was heard and his body was suddenly split down the middle before turning into a small mountain of yellow dust. Ashes to ashes, dust to dust. Ye Qingshan and Lei Teng were left with astonishment as they stood there, extremely shocked.
“Senior Shen Suanzi!” they exclaimed at the same time and rushed over. They picked up the yellow dust and blew it gently into the wind.
Gu Yuan was also dumbfounded as he lay on the ground. He was in the middle of hating himself and tears were all over his face. Suddenly, his despair turned into ecstasy and his body trembled with excitement.
‘The expert must’ve helped me! Haha, what a dumb*ss trying to show off. He should be dead by now. The expert’s awesome!’ Gu Yuan thought.
Ye Qingshan was a little confused and unable to accept the fact. He said in disbelief, “He…he…he’s gone?”
Lei Teng was not much better than Ye Qingshan. He said dazedly, “After all the preparation he did and this is how he ended up?”
Seemingly, they could still hear how Shen Suanzi had told them to prepare themselves to witness the miracle. Well, they did see the miracle but Shen Suanzi paid a hefty price for it.
Ye Qingshan said, “I thought my ancestors passed away abruptly, but who knew that’d be nothing as compared to the way Shen Suanzi passed away.”
“What happened?
Lei Teng’s brows knitted tightly as fear appeared in the depths of his pupils. “Shen Suanzi must’ve hidden something from us. There must be unimaginable horror in the seventh dimension!”
“It’s no wonder that he, as a Wisdom Elite, didn’t dare to peek into the soul of the Chaos Daluo Golden Immortal. After much preparation, he still ended up so pitifully. Tsk, tsk, tsk.”
As Ye Qingshan spoke, he could not help but look at Gu Yuan as a trace of fear flashed in his heart.
