Chapter 132
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Chapter 132: Grandmaster-Level Painting, Trait: The Finishing Touch (Please Subscribe)
Indeed, the skill Mu Lin advanced in was painting.
Before his closed-door training, his painting had nearly reached perfection.
Though he’d focused entirely on magical cultivation during his isolation—causing some delay—his prior proximity to mastery allowed quick advancement with minimal effort.
The reason crafting the Vajra Strength talisman formation led to painting advancement? Talisman formations were fundamentally a branch of painting.
“Hmm…”
As with past skills, Mu Lin entered enlightenment upon advancement. But this time, the state lasted unusually long.
The first phase involved observation.
Memories of paintings from his past life flooded his sea of consciousness—images from films, books, galleries, Eastern ink works, Western oils. Impressionist strokes, Fauvist colors, Surrealist visions, Abstract forms…
Countless styles and masterpieces streamed through his mind like sand through fingers. Normally, this would overwhelm him. Now, it ignited inspiration.
Next came integration. He distilled each style’s strengths, fusing them with the Beauty of the Art to forge his own path. In his old world, this would’ve crowned him a grandmaster. Here, it merely began the journey.
For in this realm, mind and spirit held tangible power. Peak painting sought to channel such forces—to express essence and stir souls. This overlap propelled Mu Lin’s enlightenment into its third stage.
“CRACK!”
Painting insights merged with spiritual infusion, willpower resonating through his being. Understanding dawned.
Guided by instinct, Mu Lin grabbed paper and talisman brush. Swift strokes birthed a rampaging flood dragon—ferocious, domineering, vivid enough to suffocate viewers with its Oppressive Aura. Yet the beast remained static, lifeless.
“Missing… something.”
A flash of insight. Mu Lin slashed his wrist, dipped the brush in blood, and touched it to the dragon’s blank eyes.
“ROAR!”
The blood ignited a thunderous cry—primal majesty shaking the room. Outside Mu Lin’s door, Dongfang Ya froze mid-step, delivery in hand.
“Powerful presence,” she murmured. “Though hearing such grandeur from such a tiny creature… odd.”
The dragon roar naturally didn’t intimidate Dongfang Ya. Even though Mu Lin had consumed mature dragon blood and encountered the evil dragon during his cultivation method’s evolution, allowing him to mimic its aura, Dongfang Ya still thought the sound came from him.
The contrast between Mu Lin’s shrunken body and that domineering voice nearly made her laugh—until she pushed open his courtyard gate.
Her amusement vanished.
The passionate roar hadn’t come from Mu Lin, but from a sheet of paper before him. There he stood, talisman brush in hand, focused on the drawing.
‘A True Meaning Diagram… He’s become a True Meaning Artist!’
The sight stunned Dongfang Ya.
Advancing to Spring Fountain, breaching the Tower of Illusions’ Fifth Floor, touching mage-exclusive domains, mastering formations in a day, reaching Level 3 Mastery… Mu Lin’s recent feats already proved his brilliance. Yet this surpassed all expectations.
“Monstrous talent…”
……
Unaware of her shock, Mu Lin focused entirely on the True Meaning Diagram. After the dragon’s cry, the painted serpent shifted from static image to living entity—not metaphorically. The paper’s dragon now swam across its surface.
This was The Finishing Touch, gained upon reaching 5th Level Grandmaster in painting:
【Painting: 5th Level Grandmaster (1/810000). Traits: Grandmaster’s Work, Vividly Alive, Soul Resonance, The Finishing Touch】
【The Finishing Touch: Your discerning eye perceives an artwork’s spiritual essence. By investing immense mental strength through decisive strokes, you temporarily awaken its latent spirit.】
This technique separated True Meaning Artists from ordinary painters. The “dragon” symbolized perfection—only artworks achieving Grandmaster’s Work status, brimming with spiritual power, could be animated thus. Each activation drained colossal mental strength.
This session consumed most of Mu Lin’s reserves. Normally, he’d need rest. But in his enlightened state, mental and spiritual recovery came swiftly. Refreshed, he pivoted from diagram creation to experimentation—merging The Finishing Touch with the Vajra Strength talisman formation.
“Vajra Strength exists as talisman, formation, and graphic art. Can painting techniques enhance it?”
Trials proved yes. Better yet, his old theory held: while painting skills influenced the Vajra Strength talisman formation, their differing natures created partial synergy. Previously, 4th Level Master painting accelerated the formation’s growth to Level 3 Mastery. Now, with 5th Level Grandmaster skills…
After some attempts, Mu Lin was thrilled to find he could layer the Vajra Strength talisman formation nine times, reaching Master Level.
“Haha! I made it!”
With painting skills reaching Grandmaster-level and the Vajra Strength talisman formation advancing to Master Level through insights from other fields, Mu Lin had gained much from this breakthrough.
Yet his enlightenment wasn’t over yet.
With lingering inspiration, Mu Lin pushed further into analyzing the Vajra Strength talisman formation.
Not aiming for twenty-seven layers this time.
Sudden inspiration drove him to blend the dragon’s phantom from past visualizations, calligraphy techniques, and The Finishing Touch into one…
“Talismans are words, but words themselves are paintings…”
Great calligraphers crafted characters said to “drift like clouds” or “twist like startled dragons,” praised for their “dragon-serpent forms locked in combat, mist-like swirls, thunderous strokes moving with divine grace.”
In masters’ hands, every brushstroke carried unique beauty.
Now, building upon his Grandmaster-level painting skills and the dominance of the dragon’s phantom felt during his advancement, Mu Lin wrote the Vajra Strength talisman formation.
He painted each talisman character like creating artwork.
“Swish, swish, swish…”
His talisman brush shaped the Vajra Strength formation into what resembled a coiled dragon.
“Swish…”
As the final stroke landed, Mu Lin sliced his wrist again, letting vital blood drip onto the formation’s core for The Finishing Touch.
“Boom!”
The blood merging with the dragon image made his Vajra Strength talisman formation breathe with life.
Not metaphorically—staring at the paper, Mu Lin saw the formation shift between written characters and a writhing dragon.
Focusing deeper, he sensed resonance, a dragon roaring in his spirit, churning rivers and seas.
“Done…”
Mu Lin slumped onto the table as he spoke.
His enlightenment faded, leaving him drained from creating two diagrams that consumed both immense mental energy and drops of vital blood.
The massive expenditure left him shaky, yet he cared only about his creation’s rank and power.
“Shouldn’t be weak—I poured the dragon’s full might and essence into it…”
“Brother Mu Lin!”
Before checking his work, a worried cry sounded behind him.
Turning, he saw Dongfang Ya, Yan Yunyu, Chu Lingluo, and Ji Xue entering his small courtyard.
‘Drawn by the dragon’s roar?’
Chu Lingluo rushed to him when she saw his weakened state, casting vitality-infused techniques repeatedly.
“Hmm…”
The surge of vitality eased his fatigue slightly.
As he recovered, Yan Yunyu and Dongfang Ya stepped closer, their eyes snagged by his talisman despite their concern.
“Nine layers… a master-level Vajra Strength charm… No, more complex…”
“Looks like talisman script at first, but there’s a living dragon coiled within… Mu Lin, did you truly make this?”
