Reverse Painting of Mountains and Seas: The Living Figurines of Chang'an 8: Chapter 8
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墨書 Inktalez
Chaos! Utter chaos! 0
On the Desolation Slope, it had become a hell on earth! 0
Mole darted like a black lightning bolt among the howling living puppets and the shadowy figures wielding weapons. Each swing of the short blade in his hand struck precisely at the vulnerable joints of the puppets or deflected the deadly attacks of the shadows. He was no longer fighting merely for money; a fierce, almost desperate rage burned in his sharp eyes. With his body and pain, he drew almost all attention to himself, creating a small, gasping opening for me in this frenzied land of death. 0
I crouched behind a toppled sacrificial stone tablet, trembling like a leaf in the wind. Fear, anger, and the frenzied sensation brought by the demonic essence surged within me like three torrents, nearly tearing me apart. I watched as new wounds appeared on Mole's body, as the living sacrifices on the high platform were consumed by dark tumors, and as Master Xuan Mo's face twisted with fanaticism... 0
"No..." I let out a sound that was a mix between a whimper and a roar. 0
This couldn't go on! 0
The creed of "better to avoid trouble" had long been shattered. The thought of "just surviving" had become laughable. All I, Wu Daozi, ever sought was a peaceful life, to depict the myriad forms of humanity with my brush; yet now I had to witness such inhumane sorcery poisoning lives. This peace, this tranquility, was nothing but an illusion! I saw it! I saw this hellish scene, saw Xuan Mo's madness, saw the ugly faces of those hiding in the shadows who thought they could gain power from this! 0
A mad thought took shape in my mind, accompanied by the stinging pain and hallucinations brought by the demonic essence. 0
Reverse Drawing Technique... they could use brushes to turn living beings into monsters... but could it be reversed? Could I use a brush... to destroy all of this?! 0
I didn't know! I damn well didn't know! This was just the ramblings of someone on the brink of death! 0
But now, it was all I had! 0
I bit down hard on my tongue, and the metallic taste of blood filled my mouth. The sharp pain brought a moment of clarity to my chaotic mind. I pulled out an old sketchbook from my pocket, tore out a page, and took out an almost worn-down brush. No ink... 0
I looked at my bleeding fingers—the wound from earlier still oozing blood. That would do! 0
I dipped my finger in my own blood and mixed it with some viscous liquid that had splattered on the ground—whoever it belonged to didn't matter anymore! Blood for ink, ground for paper! 0
I recalled the first time I restored the Beast Illustration in that secret mansion, remembered the strange carvings on the pillars of the Hundred Ghosts Garden, remembered the flowing, evil patterns on the living puppets... The demonic essence within me resonated, forcibly piecing together fragmented information into something distorted and magnified! 0
My hand stopped trembling; an unusual focus seized me. The instinct of an artist was driven by the cold power of the demonic essence to reach an unprecedented and morbid peak. 0
I was no longer depicting beauty; I was no longer recording truth. 0
I was depicting chaos! 0
The tip of my brush—or rather, my fingertip—swiftly danced across the rough sacrificial altar stone mixed with blood and filth. Not those vital evil lines that formed living puppets but rather their antithesis—twisted, broken, conflicting! I drew collapsing runes, depicted devouring beasts, sketched whirlpools of energy flowing backward! 0
This was blasphemy! A mad counterattack against the Reverse Drawing Technique itself! 0
"Buzz—!" 0
As chaotic patterns formed under my brush, it felt as if the entire altar trembled! 0
The living puppets surrounding the high platform suddenly became even more agitated! They no longer merely howled but began attacking and tearing at each other! Several nearby shadowy figures were caught off guard and were instantly torn to shreds by the frenzied puppets! 0
 
 
Effective! It truly is effective! 0
 
"How dare you?!" Master Xuan Mo roared from the high platform, his voice a mix of shock and fury. His usually calm eyes were now filled with incredulous rage and a hint of... fear! He clearly hadn't anticipated that a mere painter, someone he regarded as insignificant, could disrupt his "great ritual" in such a manner! 0
 
No longer paying attention to the "divine vessel" that was taking shape, he moved like a dark cloud descending from the platform, charging straight at me! 0
 
The speed was astonishing! 0
 
"Be careful!" Mole's hoarse shout reached my ears. This usually silent Kunlun servant responded to the faint spark of resistance in my heart with direct action. 0
 
Master Xuan Mo snorted coldly, his bony hand seemingly carelessly swiping forward. 0
 
That was no ordinary hand! Beneath the dark sleeves of his robe, I clearly saw countless black, vein-like patterns erupting and writhing beneath his skin! A surge of overwhelming power, thick with a demonic essence, burst forth! 0
 
"Thud!" 0
 
Mole was sent flying like a leaf caught in a storm, crashing against a distant stone wall with a dull thud before sliding limply to the ground. The unknown beads around his neck scattered everywhere. 0
 
"Mole!" My vision blurred with rage; it felt as if a piece of my heart had been violently ripped away! 0
 
He struggled to rise, opened his mouth as if to say something, but only coughed up a mouthful of blood before his head drooped and he lay still. 0
 
Dead? 0
 
No!!! 0
 
A wave of immense sorrow and anger engulfed me! The strand of demonic essence within me seemed ignited by this intense emotion, burning away my reason! The whispers in my ears transformed into deafening laughter! 0
 
"You dare to pry into true laws and desecrate divine power!" Master Xuan Mo advanced step by step, his cold and sinister aura nearly suffocating me. As he walked, he habitually stroked his long beard, his gaze icy and cruel. "However, your trivial tricks have surprised me. Perhaps... you could become some fine 'material.'" 0
 
He extended his hand, fingers splayed wide, the dark red stains beneath his nails glaring under the firelight. 0
 
Stains... weaknesses... costs... 0
 
A thought flashed through my chaotic mind like lightning! 0
 
I suddenly lifted my head and fixed my gaze on those tainted hands! Ignoring the chaos around me, my fingertips frantically smeared across the fabric. This time, I was not drawing anything else— 0
 
But a close-up of his hands! Especially those nails, stained with dark red—an unclean mix of vermilion and ink that symbolized the cost of countless lives! 0
 
I poured every last ounce of strength in my body into this final stroke, infusing all my hatred, anger, and grief over Mole's death into it! 0
 
"You dare speak of 'true laws'?! You dare call it 'the Way'?! Using innocent lives and bloody flesh to barter for your so-called 'transcendence' and 'greatness'? Look at your hands! See what they are smeared with!" I screamed with all my might, my voice hoarse and unrecognizable. 0
 
Master Xuan Mo's expression changed drastically! He seemed taken aback that I would draw this! It was not merely dirt; it represented the cost of his source of power—the impurity and sins he tried to conceal deep within himself! It was the blood and tears of all those he had slaughtered! 0
 
 
In that fleeting moment of distraction, I suddenly hurled the piece of cloth, stained with my blood and filth, depicting the evidence of his crimes, towards him—or rather, towards the pulsating, dark tumor behind him that was on the verge of fully forming—the so-called "Divine Vessel." With the last ounce of my strength, I threw it fiercely! 0
 
That small "canvas," carrying all my despair and resistance as a mere pawn, was like a stone cast into an abyss, creating the final ripples of defiance. 0
 
Time seemed to freeze at that instant. 0
 
I saw a flicker of genuine panic flash across Master Xuan Mo's face. 0
 
I watched as the "canvas" flew toward the throbbing core of darkness. 0
 
I noticed Mole lying motionless on the ground, his neck seemingly... broken? 0
 
Then... 0
 
Everything went black. 0
 
Endless darkness and coldness enveloped me, accompanied by an increasingly loud and frenzied whisper that completely consumed me. 0
 
 
 
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Reverse Painting of Mountains and Seas: The Living Figurines of Chang'an
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  • Amy
  • Mary
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  • Smith
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Reverse Painting of Mountains and Seas: The Living Figurines of Chang'an

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  • Amy
  • Mary
  • John
  • Smith
  • Edward