Chapter 114: Half-Saint Sacred Intent Paintings
Entering the Divine Power Hall, all students maintained complete silence, without any noise or mutual conversation. With only one hour available, everyone cherished the time and did not want to waste a single second.
On the walls of the first floor of the Divine Power Hall hung twelve gold foil paintings, positioned in twelve different directions.
Xue Ling, Yuchi Tiancong, Hua Lian, and Ju Hailan entered the Divine Power Hall, each chose a gold foil painting, sat cross-legged beneath their chosen scroll, and began cultivating.
They were all senior students who had entered the Divine Power Hall more than once, already familiar with the process and well aware of the cultivation rules within the hall.
"Twelve Half-Saint Sacred Intent Paintings."
Zhang Ruochen looked at the twelve gold foil paintings hanging on the wall, slightly surprised. He thought to himself, the Martial Market Academy was truly wealthy—just an outer courtyard alone had produced twelve Half-Saint Sacred Intent Paintings for students to contemplate.
Zhang Ruochen stepped closer and noticed something unusual.
Those twelve Half-Saint Sacred Intent Paintings did not seem to be originals but rather copied scrolls.
That was correct—they were copied scrolls.
Each Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting represented a Half-Saint's martial arts and Half-Saint spiritual will.
By visualizing the Half-Saint Sacred Intent Paintings, students could use the Half-Saint's spiritual will to temper their own spiritual power, making it increasingly stronger.
Of course, students also had the opportunity to comprehend the Half-Saint's martial arts, and even gain insights into some special Half-Saint secret techniques.
The twelve Half-Saint Sacred Intent Paintings hanging on the wall were not originals but copied scrolls. They could only simulate the Half-Saint's spiritual will, not the Half-Saint's martial arts.
The formations within the Divine Power Hall could inject spiritual energy into the copied scrolls, causing them to generate the Half-Saint's spiritual will, which was used to temper the students' spiritual power.
Opening the Divine Power Hall for one hour required consuming five thousand spirit crystals to maintain the Half-Saint spiritual will within the copied scrolls.
Five thousand spirit crystals equaled five million silver coins.
Because of the enormous consumption, the Divine Power Hall was only opened once per month.
Zi Qian selected one of the twelve Half-Saint Sacred Intent Paintings, sat cross-legged beneath it, and began to contemplate. In the lower left corner of that painting was engraved a line of small characters: "Blood Disciple Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting."
On the wall beside the scroll was engraved an introduction to Blood Disciple Half-Saint's life, and it also clearly informed the students entering the Divine Power Hall that the Blood Disciple Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting was suitable for female martial artists and those who pursued speed and slaughter.
Zi Qian pursued speed and slaughter. She had probably seen that passage and thus chose to use the Blood Disciple Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting to temper her spiritual power.
Prince Huo Xing and Yao Qingtong also each selected a Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting.
Luo Shuihan, Tuo Muzi, Huang Yanchen, and Duanmu Xingling walked toward the second floor of the Divine Power Hall. On the stairs, Duanmu Xingling gave Zhang Ruochen a meaningful look, seemingly signaling him to follow.
Zhang Ruochen understood and followed.
Duanmu Xingling said in a low voice, "All students with spiritual power below the twentieth level cultivate on the first floor. Those above the twentieth level go to the second floor to cultivate."
"Also Half-Saint Sacred Intent Paintings?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Duanmu Xingling said, "The Half-Saint Sacred Intent Paintings in the Divine Power Hall of the Western Courtyard are all copied scrolls, not originals. The strength of the Half-Saint spiritual will in the Sacred Intent Paintings is proportional to the spiritual energy injected into them."
"Although they are all copied scrolls of Half-Saint Sacred Intent Paintings, the twelve paintings on the first floor can only raise a student's spiritual power to the twentieth level. However, the six paintings on the second floor can raise a student's spiritual power to the thirtieth level. It is said that on the third floor of the Divine Power Hall, there is a copied scroll of a Saint Sacred Intent Painting, but only Luo Shuihan can go to the third floor."
Zhang Ruochen nodded and did not ask further.
Arriving at the second floor of the Divine Power Hall, Tuo Muzi sat cross-legged beneath the Nine True Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting, beginning to cultivate without wasting a moment.
Huang Yanchen cultivated beneath the Heavenly Wind Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting; Duanmu Xingling sat cross-legged beneath the Ice River Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting to cultivate.
Zhang Ruochen also chose a Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting. The painting depicted ten stars arranged in a line, like a ten-star alignment.
It was a very ordinary scroll. If it had not been placed in the Divine Power Hall, one would never have guessed it was a Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting.
"Half-Saint Xue Wanjian, leaves behind true intent painting." In the lower left corner of the scroll were engraved ten small characters.
Each character was full of force, as if written with an iron sword.
Zhang Ruochen sat cross-legged beneath the Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting, calmed his mind, and fixed his gaze on the scroll.
About a minute later, a roar sounded in Zhang Ruochen's mind, and his vision went black.
When Zhang Ruochen regained his sight, he found himself on a pitch-black land. The air was cold, the ground overgrown with weeds, and above his head hung ten stars. The ten stars were arranged in a line, identical to the arrangement in the Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting.
"This is the world within the Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting?"
A smile appeared on Zhang Ruochen's face, without any panic. He had entered Sacred Intent Paintings before to cultivate his spiritual power, so he knew very well that he had not truly entered the painting—only his spiritual power had entered it.
"Boom!"
The ten stars suspended in the sky emitted dazzling light, transforming into ten beams of light that simultaneously fell from above, shining upon Zhang Ruochen.
Each time a beam of light landed on Zhang Ruochen, he felt the weight on his shoulders double. When all ten beams fell at once, it was like ten great mountains pressing down on his head.
"Such a strong spiritual will!"
Zhang Ruochen's legs pressed into the ground, his center of gravity sinking. He adopted a horse stance to bear the heavy pressure on his body. His feet had already sunk into the earth, showing just how immense the force he was enduring was.
Just as he stabilized his body, a white-robed man carrying a war sword descended from the sky and swung his sword at him.
"Swish!"
The war sword swung out, condensing into tens of thousands of sword shadows.
The sword shadows converged together, forming a white light sword that stabbed toward Zhang Ruochen's heart.
"Break!"
Zhang Ruochen mobilized his own spiritual power, condensing a sword in his hand, and thrust it out fiercely, shattering the white light sword into wisps of white smoke.
The white-robed man revealed a knowing smile and said, "Under the pressure of tenfold star power, you can still break my attack with a sword strike. Your spiritual power has at least reached the thirtieth level. This copied scroll can no longer help you. You may leave."
"Whoosh!"
A flash of white light.
Zhang Ruochen's spiritual power withdrew from the scroll.
"Your spiritual power has reached the thirtieth level!" A very pleasant female voice came from behind him.
Zhang Ruochen was slightly startled and looked behind him. He saw a woman in white standing three steps away.
She had a tall figure, beautiful eyebrows and eyes, standing gracefully behind Zhang Ruochen, her starry eyes fixed on the Ten Star Half-Saint True Intent Painting, as if lost in thought.
"Greetings, Senior Sister Luo." Zhang Ruochen stood up.
Luo Shuihan stared into Zhang Ruochen's eyes and said, "When you took the second spiritual power test, I knew you still hadn't shown your full strength. I'm really curious—what level has your spiritual power reached?"
Zhang Ruochen smiled and said, "I can't hide it from Senior Sister Luo."
"Come with me to the third floor of the Divine Power Hall."
Luo Shuihan's voice was calm as she walked toward the third floor of the Divine Power Hall. Her back was flawless, her black hair swaying, and a faint fragrance seemed to linger in the air, intoxicating.
Zhang Ruochen followed, walking up the stairs, and asked, "Senior Sister Luo, I heard that only you can go to the third floor. Outsiders are not allowed."
Luo Shuihan said, "Do you know why?"
"Why?" Zhang Ruochen asked.
Luo Shuihan said, "Because on the third floor of the Divine Power Hall, there is an original Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting, and that original was brought to the Western Courtyard by me from the Luo family."
Zhang Ruochen stopped in his tracks, remaining calm, and said, "Since that Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting original is Senior Sister Luo's personal treasure brought from your family, I should not go."
Luo Shuihan turned around, staring into Zhang Ruochen's eyes, and said, "Zhang Ruochen, you need to understand one thing: since it is my personal treasure, I can naturally invite you to cultivate together. Because in the entire Western Courtyard, only you are qualified."
"Senior Sister Luo has a broad mind. I, your junior brother, admire that." Zhang Ruochen said.
Luo Shuihan and Zhang Ruochen arrived at the third floor of the Divine Power Hall. At a glance, they saw the Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting hanging in the center of the wall.
It was still a gold foil painting, but it was fundamentally different from those copied scrolls. Even just standing beside the scroll, one could feel a tremendous pressure emanating from it, making it difficult to breathe.
Zhang Ruochen walked beneath the Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting and looked up. The scroll depicted countless streams of water—small streams connecting to small rivers, small rivers connecting to large rivers, large rivers connecting to mighty rivers, and mighty rivers converging into the sea.
On the scroll, there were at least a thousand small streams. The number of small rivers was in the hundreds, large rivers numbered dozens, and mighty rivers numbered nine.
Ultimately, the nine mighty rivers converged into the sea.
"This is the Half-Saint Sacred Intent Painting left by my ancestor, Luo Xu, when he was at the Half-Saint realm. It is said that the painting contains not only the ancestor's spiritual will but also a powerful martial art. Unfortunately, over two hundred years, the Luo family has produced many geniuses, but none have been able to comprehend that martial art from it." Luo Shuihan said with some regret.
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