Fellow Daoist! That scoundrel has written a new book again.

Chapter 459 Landscape Painting

Elder Qian intended to lure Zhu Wu to the secret realm, but he also needed to protect the interests of the Qingyun Sect disciples to avoid letting a wolf into the house and harming his own disciples.

That's why this reminder exists.

This will make the disciples of Qingyun Sect wary of "Zhu Wuji".

Seeing everyone around her step back, leaving her exposed, a sense of being ostracized and lost welled up inside her.

Just because I might be a spy, are you going to ostracize me?

Although Zhu Wuyao is indeed true.

Regardless of what everyone was thinking, Elder Qian had no intention of asking "Zhu Wuji" to leave the group.

Zhu Wuyao could probably guess the reason for this.

It's likely that the Qingyun Sect opened this secret realm a long time ago and sent people in to explore it, knowing that the secret realm was missing a crucial item.

Only by having Zhu Wuyao, who took the key item, personally enter the secret realm can the changes within it be triggered.

But the key is——

Elder Qian seemed to have guessed that Zhu Wuyao was not the original body, but had been "possessed" by someone else.

He didn't know if Zhu Wuyao was hiding his strength, and he was afraid that if he pushed Zhu Wuyao too far, they would fight to the death and the opportunity in the secret realm would be destroyed.

If Zhu doesn't come without an invitation, this secret realm will be of no use.

Therefore, Zhu Wuji's trip to Tongzhou came about.

They will lure Zhu Wuyao to the Qingyun Sect to explore the secret realm together. Who will seize the opportunity will depend on their own abilities.

Qingyun Sect clearly has this confidence.

Otherwise, they wouldn't have made such a big show of it all the way, as if afraid others wouldn't know, trying to stir up the waters even more.

"The rest of you go in first. Zhu Wuji, you wait a moment."

"Yes."

Even after things had come to this point, Zhu Wuyao still didn't directly break off relations.

We shouldn't say anything definitively, since only Elder Qian can confirm her identity right now. Who knows, she might even be able to fool others once we get to the secret realm.

When she first arrived at Qingyun Sect, she did not notice anything amiss.

It wasn't until later that she gradually realized Elder Qian's intentions. Elder Qian had no intention of taking her life, but accepting the "cooperation" was still like playing with fire.

The "fellow disciples" in the team entered the secret realm one by one.

The sound of the wind echoed in the empty cave, where only Zhu Wuyao and Elder Qian remained.

It was obvious that Elder Qian intended to see her off as she entered the secret realm.

"Afraid I'll run away?"

Zhu Wuyao smiled and took the initiative to ask.

Elder Qian gave an irrelevant answer:

"I am a wise young friend. Although I do not know who you are, I do know that you have a close relationship with this secret realm."

"Why don't you take your leave first, young friend?"

At his age, he's long past acting impulsively.

Yesterday they could scheme to get rid of Zhu Wuyao, and today they can pretend that past grudges don't exist because there are benefits to be had. But tomorrow they might turn their backs on you and discard you like a used tool.

Zhu Wuyao was able to guess Elder Qian's intentions with remarkable accuracy.

It's easy to guess that many people hoped she would be able to participate in this trip to the secret realm.

For example, Granny Feng of Chunhuitang.

For example, Master Fang of the Star-Picking Tower.

For example, in this secret realm, the nameless creator, who has already perished, is also waiting for her to arrive.

The chess pieces among the players are intertwined and complex, and the pieces themselves are equally curious about the answer.

After returning Ji Yuezhang to the world, many adventurous, curious, and daring things can now be done without any worries.

I hope you'll come without being invited.

Moreover, on that moonlit street, she, this tiny insect in the world, had already vaguely guessed the answer to the riddle.

She looked up at Elder Qian and said:

"I've always wanted to know, what was your reason for targeting me?"

After speaking, without waiting for Elder Qian's reply, she clasped her hands in farewell and took the lead into the secret realm.

Sigrún has taught at the Iceland University of the Arts as a part-time lecturer since and was Dean of the Department of Fine Art from -. In – she held a research position at Reykjavík Art Museum focusing on the role of women in Icelandic art. She studied fine art at the Icelandic College of Arts and Crafts and at Pratt Institute, New York, and holds BA and MA degrees in art history and philosophy from the University of Iceland. Sigrún lives and works in Iceland.

Zhu Wuyao seemed to have stumbled into a traditional Chinese ink painting.

She first found an inconspicuous mountain hollow to hide in, and then thoughtfully took out the magic pen. This magic pen was made of black and white intertwined, with a white jade-like tip and a dot of ink at the top.

If used in real life, it can perform the same function as an ordinary writing brush.

"Could this... have been drawn by you?"

"I can rewrite the landscape here, but my power is currently limited, so you'd better not draw anything recklessly."

The pen's voice carried a hint of lightness.

In other words, the creation of this secret realm may have also borrowed the power of the magic brush.

It seems we underestimated this thing.

The magic pen, in the hands of others, has the power to change the world; but when it falls into your own hands, you'll sleep for three days and five nights, and eight out of ten times it's offline. Unless you encounter a life-or-death crisis, you simply can't summon it.

This differential treatment left Zhu Wuyao somewhat frustrated, but then she thought of that saying—

You only want to use me, but you don't want to support me.

Feeling a little embarrassed, I decided to skip that and ask about the more important matter first:

"How can we discover the true secrets of this place?"

Lingbi remained silent for a long time, then said thoughtfully:

"I guess you need to finish the painting."

That's a really insightful suggestion...

You are a black and white ink brush, and this is a landscape painting. Anyone can think of something to paint.

Zhu Wuyao looked up at this grotto.

The stones, rivers, and mountains here are all solid entities, but the harmonious colors of these things make them look like a traditional Chinese ink painting. It doesn't mean that everything has become two-dimensional.

When I entered this place, I was wearing the clothes of the Qingyun Sect, which were still blue with a bluish tint. The color had not been changed and I had not blended into the same layer.

Zhu Wuyao looked down at her clothes.

It seems a bit abrupt.

She immediately took out a set of black clothes from her storage bag and began to change her clothes to make it easier to hide.

I had just changed my clothes when the bell that was placed to the side made a slight sound.

People from the Qingyun Sect are approaching!

Zhu Wuyao picked up the bell. If she kept this item with her, she could use it to determine the location of others, but others could also use the bell to determine their own location.

It has both advantages and disadvantages.

After a moment's thought, she squeezed the bell so hard it shattered into pieces.

Since Elder Qian has already guessed my identity, he might tamper with the bell. Perhaps the sound of the bell when I approach will be different from the sound when others approach.

To be on the safe side, she'd better snatch someone else's bell.

There are plants and trees here.

However, it was mostly withered branches and fallen leaves, and even the grass was extremely dark in color, as if covered with a layer of white frost.

Zhu Wuyao used her fingernail to scrape away the white frost on the grass leaves. The original color of the leaves was bluish-green, an extremely cold hue.

Placed in this predominantly black and white world, it doesn't seem out of place, and therefore, it doesn't add any vitality.

Everything around was too quiet.

Zhu Wuyao tried her best to minimize her presence, carefully observing her surroundings and trying to suppress her breathing. But just then, her vision blurred and something seemed to flash by.

The exclamations around me grew louder and louder, and then faded into the distance, creating a kind of stereo effect.

"Ah ah ah ah ah ah ah--!"

With a "whoosh," it passed right in front of me.

Zhu Wuyao paused, seemingly asking the spirit pen in his hand:

Did someone just walk by?