Chapter 80: Li Fan Poses a Question 1
Southern Territory of Xuan Tian Realm.
Outside the Cangli Mountain Range, a small mountain village.
In the little courtyard, Li Fan listened to Nan Feng’s music, his lips curling into a smile.
This girl indeed had some talent in music, even better than the last time.
After Nan Feng finished playing the zither, she too revealed a hint of a smile— after this period, she had pushed open that door, and if she wanted, she could become immortal at any moment.
Meanwhile, Zi Ling continued to paint earth chickens’ eggs as always.
This was the one thousand nine hundred and seventy-second earth chicken egg she had painted.
This time, however, she hesitated, unable to make a stroke.
Actually, as she kept painting the egg before her, she became increasingly slower. The last few times, it even took several days to complete one egg.
It was unimaginable.
With a brush in hand, she had already spent a whole morning.
Her eyebrows were faintly furrowed, seemingly deep in thought.
Was the earth chicken egg before her eyes, really just an egg?
Why did she clearly see the shell forming, watch a life being nurtured inside?
Why did she clearly see the principles coursing within the shell, the natural order thriving secretly?
She wanted to paint, but she found she couldn’t move her brush.
What she wanted to paint, was it an egg, or was it the Greater Way?
Was it a life, or was it eternity?
She pondered, she meditated.
Li Fan sipped the tea Nan Feng had brought over, glancing her way; he knew, this girl had finally grasped the threshold.
"To drink tea, you must followyour heart; to toil the land, you must follow your heart; to feed the fish, you must followyour heart; to play music, you must followyour heart; similarly, painting too must followyour heart.”
"What you see is not important, what matters is what you think it is.”
Li Fan spoke leisurely.
In the arts, music, and other fields, his insights were very profound; after all, he had been tormented by the System for so long.
At these words, Zi Ling, who was holding her brush, suddenly had a gleam in her eyes!
"Followyour heart!”
"What is observed doesn’t matter, what’s important is what I think it is!”
She murmured to herself.
Suddenly, the flowing principles came to a halt and then vanished.
The pulsation of life stopped, no longer disturbing the mind.
All the complex aspects disappeared.
In her eyes, the chicken egg remained a chicken egg.
Just quietly placed there.
She dipped her brush, and began to paint.
With each stroke, a melody of the Way was born!
One line after another, seamlessly continuing, until the last drop of ink fell, and on the rice paper, an egg was completed.
That egg, plain and simple, seemed as though it now possessed a life!
She let out a long breath, and in that moment, an unparalleled sense of relief welled up inside her!
Her spiritual power flowed involuntarily, strands of Immortal Qi coursing and erupting throughout her body!
Nan Feng, by her side, was immediately shocked, looking at Zi Ling in utter astonishment,
“Zi Ling...became an immortal?!”
Fire Spirit even thought that if possible, one could dominate the heavens just by picking up trash in Senior Li’s courtyard!
Long Zixuan and Lu Rang exchanged looks, both feeling a sense of loss!
Dammit, such treasures...
But, since their master had given the order, they did not dare to disobey and immediately went to the kitchen.
"By the way, Senior Li,”
Fire Spirit continued,
“This battle was brilliantly fought; the outside world should all know that you’re here... and they also know you’re taking disciples here. Next, I fear countless people will come to seek apprenticeship...”
There was a hint of trepidation in her face as she said,
“I’m afraid this might affect your peaceful cultivation, Senior. Please punish me!”
She knew that Senior Li liked tranquility.
Although he wanted to take disciples, he didn’t favor making a big fuss about it but rather preferred to keep it low-key.
Now that all the major powers know, one can imagine how crazy they will be...
When the time comes, it will definitely disturb Senior Li’s peaceful cultivation, and if Senior Li gets angry because of that...
It’s simply unimaginable!
Mu Qianning also said with self-reproach,
“It’s all Qian Ning’s fault for not thinking things through and causing trouble for you, Senior.”
Hearing this, Li Fan was also stunned for a moment.
Fight a battle and become famous from it? People from the outside coming to seek apprenticeship?
Li Fan suddenly began to suspect, what exactly had happened during this fight?
Lu Rang and Long Zixuan looked like they hadn’t participated much, and yet they still won and became famous outside?
This is bad!
Li Fan immediately thought that the people outside must have been conned by Lu Rang and Long Zixuan!
Perhaps, during the fight, they bragged about having a powerful master, just like street hoodlums boast about having a big brother backing them...
And the people outside believed it, so they admitted defeat.
That must be it!
"They, did they find out about me and want to seek apprenticeship because they met Long Zixuan and Lu Rang?”
Li Fan needed to make sure whether these two disciples had spread nonsense outside.
Mu Qianning and Fire Spirit nodded like pecking hens.
Of course! After seeing the unparalleled talents of Long Zixuan and Lu Rang, those people naturally learned about Senior Li’s existence and naturally wanted to seek apprenticeship.
Li Fan immediately placed a hand on his forehead, realizing it was indeed Long Zixuan and Lu Rang causing trouble outside!
Though he was short a few disciples, he wouldn’t just settle for anybody; a bunch of people who would let fools like Lu Rang and Long Zixuan protect them definitely didn’t pass the intelligence test!
No, he had to screen them!
Li Fan immediately turned back, writing furiously. After finishing, he instructed,
“Nan Feng, place this at the village entrance.”
"This will let those who should not come know to back off.”
Nan Feng respectfully took it and glanced at it, only to see written on the calligraphy:
"Only those who can solve this problem may enter to seek apprenticeship.”
Following this sentence, three lines connected together to form a triangle, with the corners labeled with the numbers 1, 2, and 3. The problem was:
Given angle 1 is 450, and angle 2 is 30°, find the degree of angle 3.
After seeing this problem, everyone in the courtyard was baffled...