Follow the path of Dao from infancy

Chapter 33: Chapter 30 Two Sages and the Little Mouse

As soon as he thought of it, he acted on it.

Li Hao asked Zhao to prepare the paints, as well as brushes, ink, paper, and inkstone for him, and after fishing with the old master each day, he would ask to return to his Mountain and River Courtyard to rest.

Li Muxiu didn’t say much about this; his principle in nurturing Li Hao was to let him grow freely.

Although Li Hao showed exceptional talent in Body Refinement, Li Muxiu didn’t force him to train arduously every day. If Li Hao wanted to seek his guidance, he would earnestly provide it; if not, he would take the child to wander the mountains and waters, fishing in the wild every day.

In the Mountain and River Courtyard, within the spacious courtyard.

Li Hao had someone bring over two stools, one tall, one short, and started to draw on the easel like an art student.

Zhao earnestly advised him, but Li Hao turned a deaf ear. Zhao was completely helpless in the face of this young master who was fond of indulging in pleasures and neglecting his duties, leaving no choice but to hand him over to Li Fu.

Li Hao had long since figured out how to deal with Li Fu, impressing him by demonstrating the second level of the Jiao Dragon Body.

Li Fu watched, dumbstruck, suspecting he was seeing things, and asked Li Hao to perform it again. Upon seeing it clearly the second time, the man was so moved that his eyes welled up with tears.

He simply attributed it to his second uncle’s cultivation and teaching that allowed Li Hao to master the second level of this peerless Body Refinement technique in less than a month. While grateful to the second uncle, he was also surprised and excited about Li Hao’s talent in Body Refinement.

Such talent was even more impressive than mastering the Great Accomplishment of the Bull Strength in three months, truly a first-rate Body Refinement genius.

Seeing his wildly excited demeanor, Li Hao was secretly glad he didn’t directly demonstrate the third level Hundred Jiao Body in front of him, after all, not everyone possessed the old master’s vision and capacity to handle such things.

As a trade-off, Li Hao promised Li Fu that he would seriously cultivate with his second uncle, but only under the condition that when he was doing something else, Li Fu wouldn’t intervene.

While this delighted Li Fu, it also caused him some consternation. Li Hao’s talent in Body Refinement was so high, he now wished Li Hao would spend all day cultivating outside of eating and sleeping, so he could catch up to the prodigies with ninth-grade battle bodies. Yet, Li Hao’s temperament was particularly laid-back, which left Li Fu feeling quite helpless.

After much back and forth, Li Fu finally relented to Li Hao’s persistence.

So, Li Hao began to paint openly in the courtyard.

With each stroke of the brush, words soon appeared before his eyes.

[Art of Painting: Level 0 (1/100)]

It really worked.

Li Hao smiled knowingly and then began to paint with great flourish.

Having experience with Chess Tao and Fishing Tao, Li Hao guessed that the better he painted, the more Painting Experience he would gain.

So, he didn’t treat it too casually, but instead began to paint quite earnestly.

However, in his previous life, he was a businessman who had spent decades immersed in commerce; what did he know about painting?

He did have a bit of understanding of girls who could paint…

For his first attempt at painting, Li Hao chose to do a portrait sketch and picked out the most beautiful maid in the courtyard to stand before the easel.

Then, with confidence, he picked up the brush; for a person, draw a circle first, then a line, a slant and a flick, followed by another slant and flick.

Hmm, it needs some hair.

Done!

[Painting Experience +1]

Hisss… painting is indeed difficult.

Li Hao smiled wryly to himself.

Next to him, Zhao sneaked a glance at the easel and asked hesitantly, “Young master, what is this you’ve drawn?”

“Can’t you see? It’s a person!” Li Hao replied indignantly.

“That doesn’t look like…” Zhao was a bit puzzled.

Huffing, Li Hao said, “You’re saying it doesn’t look like it on the outside, right? That’s because you don’t understand the deeper meaning of my art. Look at this circle; you think it’s a head, but it’s not. It represents being slick. Look at this line; you think it’s a body, but it’s not. It signifies that to stand tall, one must be slick. Zhao, you still have a lot to learn; don’t be so straightforward and impulsive!”

“Uh, but isn’t that a bunch of scribbles on the circle supposed to be hair?”

“Not exactly, and yet it is. It’s both hair and dreams!”

“Dreams?”

Li Hao said nonchalantly, “Dreams belong at the top of your head, seems logical, right? This lush hair represents many people’s dreams, also logical, right?”

Zhao was bewildered.

Having finished his rambling, Li Hao continued to paint.

Zhao and Li Fu exchanged looks, both baffled as Li Hao kept painting dozens of almost identical drawings, while the beautiful maid remained standing in front of the easel, seemingly just for background decoration; what was the point?

Clearly, this young master had no talent in the Art of Painting, unlike his skill in chess.

But since it was all just frivolous pursuits that squandered his Martial Arts potential, they were too indolent to probe any further.

Li Hao painted quickly, and soon there was a pile of discarded paper on the ground. Before long, his experience had accumulated to one hundred.

All of it was accumulated bit by bit.

Li Hao felt quite exhausted.

[Art of Painting has been raised to Level One]

[Skill Points+1]

As the text prompt emerged, a surge of insights into the Art of Painting flooded his mind. Li Hao closed his eyes for a moment and soon digested the information completely. In an instant, he realized how much of a novice he had been previously.

When he resumed his brushwork, his strokes carried a divine charm. Quickly, the graceful figure of a woman emerged on the paper, full of life and poise.

Li Fu and Zhao, who were idly looking around, caught a glimpse unintentionally and were momentarily stunned, their eyes widening in astonishment.

It wasn’t long before Li Hao added finishing touches with deft strokes of his brush to the lips, dipped in rouge to apply the colors, and in no time, the image on the canvas stood out vividly and elegantly.

[Painting Experience+13]

Li Hao couldn’t help but feel elated. Indeed, the more meticulously and beautifully he painted, the more his Painting Experience increased.

And he had finally become someone who could paint.

“Young master, this is…” Zhao stared at the canvas, dumbfounded. Just earlier, he was drawing crude stick figures, and now he had reached this level of skill?

Could the young master be a genius who learned to paint in merely a short moment?

Or was he pretending before?

Or perhaps… those stick figures, as the young master claimed, really depicted “inner meaning”?

His preconceived notions were strongly challenged.

“Basics, don’t overthink,” Li Hao said indifferently.

Zhao didn’t understand, but that didn’t stop him from being profoundly shaken.

After painting a few more pictures and feeling increasingly adept, Li Hao had Li Fu and Zhao stand before the canvas. He painted a portrait for each of them, capturing a dynamic gaze, one showing a time-worn kindness while the other a sternness that betrayed a hint of awkwardness, looking away, both strikingly realistic.

Seeing the completed paintings in their hands, both men showed diverse expressions, their emotions complex.

The young master’s talent was rarely seen in the world; had he been born into a family of literati, he would have been treasured.

What a pity that this was the Divine General Mansion where one was born to defend the legacy of Dayu.

Once the paint on the canvas dried, both men unconsciously rolled their paintings carefully and cherished them, a sign of their earnestness.

They would remember, in the year they turned seven, the young master painted a portrait for them.

This was the first time in their lives they had received a painting of themselves.

Time flies, and half a year later.

On the calm shores of Blackwater Demon Lake, three figures were fishing at a distance of over ten meters apart: two elders and one child.

Needless to say, the child was Li Hao. Among the elders, besides Li Muxiu, there was another person, a fishing companion of Li Muxiu. Li Hao had heard the old man introduce him as Feng Boping, a ‘Thief Saint’ with an interesting name.

According to the Thief Saint, he had chosen the name himself. It did not mean he only acted when things were calm but that after he made his move, everything would remain undisturbed.

In their leisure time while fishing, Li Muxiu even lightheartedly shared stories of the Thief Saint’s exploits with Li Hao, revealing he truly lived up to his name.

Many of the forces that had been stolen from by the Thief Saint only discovered their treasures missing months or even years later.

Oftentimes they were initially clueless about the theft, rendering them unable to track down who had stolen the treasures or when the theft had occurred, or even to discern whether it was an inside job…

Reputation well-concealed, treasures seek their owners, this was the Thief Saint Feng Boping.

On the shore, Li Hao expertly set up a large pot, simultaneously cleaning the fish demon he had just fished up, gutting and cutting it up while occasionally glancing at his swim bladder.

The fishing rod at the other end was fastened to the shore with a rope threaded through a hole and tied to a large stone; should there be any activity, he’d be able to react promptly.

At this moment, Li Hao deftly handled the fish demon’s innards with his sword, his movements skilled.

Both Li Muxiu and the Thief Saint had grown accustomed to this sight. Although it was only fish being prepared, they had long recognized Li Hao’s remarkable talent in the art of the sword. When Li Muxiu first saw Li Hao wield a sword, he even ridiculed him, thinking that Jian Wudao lacked insight for missing out on a real treasure.

The Thief Saint, Feng Boping, also held a fondness for this lively lad who enjoyed Fishing Tao and showed no qualms about his sensitive identity. He had earnestly promised that he would search far and wide for a precious medicine capable of opening Li Hao’s meridians.

Soon, snow-white fish meat hit the pot.

Li Hao also kneaded some fresh coriander and chili peppers into the mix, and the fragrant spicy aroma immediately spread, drawing the elders’ gazes again and again.

Their lines were cast far out into deep waters, using their bodies as the pole, with the line invisible and no float visible; they could sense any ripple through the line alone.

“Both of you, the food will be ready in three minutes,” Li Hao said with a smile.

Having spent a lot of time together, Li Hao’s address for Li Muxiu had become ‘Second Elder’ and Feng Boping as ‘Old Feng,’ while the two elders had come up with a nickname they thought fitting and vivid for Li Hao:

Little Hao.