Chapter 191: Chapter 14 Repaying the Li Family’s First Act of Kindness (7K Double Chapter)_2
“Dinner is served!”
Once everything was ready, Li Hao called for Feng to join them at the table.
Now that Feng had revealed himself and had been noticed by Li Hongzhuang, there was no need for him to hide his presence on a daily basis, as long as his identity remained concealed.
The few of them gathered around the firewood, leisurely eating and drinking.
Feng busied himself with eating and drinking, savoring grilled meat and wine.
Li Hao passed him a flatbread, stuffed with grilled meat.
Feng found it refreshingly new, took a couple of bites, and couldn’t help but praise it.
As Feng was enjoying his meal, Li Hao casually took back his wine bottle and took a couple of sips himself, feeling a sense of contentment.
Realizing what happened, Feng shot him a glare and snatched the wine bottle back, his wine running low.
Seeing Li Hao interact so casually and intimately with this elder, Li Hongzhuang and Li He found the young man even more enigmatic.
After they finished eating and drinking, Feng Boping patted his buttocks and marched out of the courtyard, disappearing without a trace, looking utterly carefree.
Watching Feng leave, Li Hao let out a quiet sigh, knowing that the old man feared staying in the courtyard for too long, afraid that his identity would be recognized by Li Hongzhuang and others, and affect him, hence he chose to sit alone among the mountain peaks and branches, companioned by the natural wind.
Feeling a twinge of guilt, Li Hao stood up to take care of the demon corpses.
He planned to brew a good jar of wine for the old man.
After sorting through, Li Hao cut several good pieces from the corpses of a few Immortal Great Demons, then returned to the courtyard to start brewing.
Song Qiumo was sleeping in a side room in the courtyard, yawning and looking utterly bored.
Occasionally, her gaze would fall on the figure bustling about with daily chores in the courtyard, her lips curving up slightly, amused by the sight.
She had come today to deliver swordsmanship scrolls, the Peerless Technique of Tan Palace, which the young man had casually tucked away into his embrace. She had observed that since he got the scrolls, Li Hao hadn’t looked at them a second time.
The world’s supreme cultivation techniques and the splendor of Divine General Mansion seemed less important to the young man than the mortal world’s simple joys found by the stove.
Truly an intriguing lad…
It wasn’t until the evening that Li Hao finished setting all the wine jars properly, burying them in the cellar behind the little courtyard to ferment.
Bathed in the rosy glow of the sunset, Li Hao finally found the leisure to sit down on a wooden armchair he had made himself in the fenced courtyard. Swaying gently, he took out the cultivation technique from his bosom and slowly began to read it.
Taiji Qiankun Sword.
Yin and Yang joining.
Li Hao flipped through the pages. When he finished the last one, a prompt appeared before his eyes: he had grasped the basics.
Immediately, Li Hao put away the scrolls and leaned back in his chair, closing his eyes to ponder.
As the swordsmanship entered his mind, a flood of information came pouring in. The Sword Intent and core essence of the technique unfolded as he speculated and understood, like unraveling a silk cocoon.
What is Taiji?
It is greater than great by just a bit.
What is great?
Heaven and earth!
“All things under heaven follow a Tao, the states of mind and Tao I’ve comprehended aren’t yet profound enough. These sword techniques and cultivation techniques seem to share something in common. If they could be integrated, perhaps a technique that encompasses everything could be created!”
Li Hao had a moment of enlightenment.
Now in the Heavenly Human Realm, by integrating into the gateway of heaven, his spirit and form had become one, placing him a half-step beyond the ordinary.
His thoughts were no longer confined to the techniques themselves. He could glimpse the mysteries of all worldly techniques without following their strict forms.
His Grandmaster journey was about embracing all things, but now, Li Hao felt as though he was only taking initial steps on this path. If he could truly reach the end, his Grandmaster journey would be at its peak.
What kind of sights would he see at that time?
Li Hao’s thoughts drifted for a moment, then he smiled lightly.
Letting things take their natural course was best.
Just like his Grandmaster’s heart, achieving perfection naturally.
The world’s myriad things do not require deliberate pursuit, just as the sun shining over the earth isn’t intentional, but a cycle of nature.
To covet that bit of light and chase after the sun is like Kuafu chasing the sun, ending only in exhaustion and death.
The sun’s warmth is inviting, but it cannot be stared at directly.
The cold moon, however, can illuminate through the ages.
No need to cling to just one aspect of nature, the world is full of charm and grace.
As with heaven and earth, this is true of humans and techniques.
Li Hao felt his state of mind had improved a touch more, the cultivation techniques in his mind subtly changing, yet far from that ultimate Grandmaster peak.
With a slight smile, he didn’t dwell on it, but summoned his drawing board and brush. Then, his Divine Soul ascended, looking at the pile of demon corpses in the distance.
He sketched casually, his strokes capturing the essence.
Though these demons were dead, portraying their corpses still offered valuable Painting Experience.
As Li Hao casually sketched one drawing after another, his Painting Experience points rapidly increased, getting closer to the Sixth Stage.
Two days flew by.
In these past two days, the quietude outside the fenced courtyard was exceptional, and no demons appeared.
The young man inside happily enjoyed the tranquility, creating over a thousand drawings. He depicted each demon’s corpse more than ten times, nearly exhausting the available experience. His Art of Painting advanced smoothly to the Sixth Stage, earning him a Skill Point.
The experience needed to advance from the Sixth to the Seventh Stage was a hundred thousand points.
He needed to accumulate one hundred thousand more to reach the bottleneck at the Sixth Stage. Only with a Spiritual Awakening in Painting could he upgrade to the Seventh Stage.
“Spiritual Awakening, when will I achieve that…” mumbled Li Hao, feeling that the clues were still elusive.
He stopped drawing and continued to compile the cultivation techniques.
He methodically recorded those Cultivation Techniques which he had extrapolated and improved.
At noon, smoke curled up from the kitchen in the fenced courtyard, and a line of riders swiftly approached the camp outside.
Feng Boping seemed to sense something, his eyes shifting slightly, and with a flicker, he disappeared from beside the fire where the meat was almost ready.