Chapter 149
Li Mo helplessly restored his expression to normal and said earnestly:
"It seems it's time for me, the King of Jokes, to make my entrance!"
"Today, I will definitely make you laugh!"
The Autumn Water Pavilion's Comedy Challenge begins!
First up is our beautiful master, the contestant Shang Wu.
With a serious face and ambitious spirit, she vowed to make the ice block laugh!
She started off looking very serious.
"There was a little butterfly, and as she flew, she suddenly got so hungry that she couldn't fly anymore... Hahaha... and then... then..."
The joke was far from finished.
She was already laughing so hard she could barely catch her breath.
"And then... she fell into the mud and drowned in it, hahaha..."
Shang Wu clutched her stomach, laughing so hard she could hardly breathe.
"?"
Li Mo and Ying Bing exchanged glances.
Was this funny?
Where was the humor in that?
"So, Master, where's the punchline in your joke?" Li Mo asked.
"She starved to death in the mud," Shang Wu wiped her tears and said.
Li Mo: "...."
What a terrible pun.
Due to Shang Wu's use of a pun, the judges, Xiao Li and Bing, unanimously decided to disqualify her from the competition.
Well, fine.
Mainly, it was that Master’s terrible punchline; if her joke had been even a little longer, she would have laughed herself to death before finishing it.
Next up, contestant number two, Xiao Li!
Li Mo decided to pull out his secret weapon:
"There was a guy whose fart was really loud. Can you guess why?"
"Why?"
Shang Wu shook her head.
Li Mo: "Because he was wearing bell-bottoms."
"Hahahaha......."
"Mm?"
Ying Bing tilted her head, glancing at the doubled-over Shang Wu, not quite understanding.
Was this really funny?
"You're not laughing at that?"
Xiao Li's competitive spirit kicked in.
He couldn't believe it!
...
Half an hour later.
Xiao Li wore a face full of existential doubt.
The beautiful master was laughing so hard her abs were about to burst, exclaiming she couldn't take it anymore.
But the little question marks on Bing's head only multiplied.
Li Mo's mouth was dry, and he was losing confidence.
He seriously doubted that Bing had any sense of humor at all.
"I'm really stupid, I really am."
"Sigh, just give up. Little Bing might just be born without the ability to laugh. My precious disciple, your jokes are really impressive," Shang Wu said, finally catching her breath and shaking her head.
"Sigh, how can I make her laugh?"
Li Mo racked his brain, poking at the corners of his mouth with a brush.
Maybe he was taking the jokes too seriously.
He didn't even notice that he was holding the brush upside down, the ink-covered end leaving a few streaks on his handsome face.
"Poof....."
"Master, please stop laughing at me."
Li Mo irritably wiped the corner of his mouth, only to smudge the ink further, making his face look like a black cat.
"Huh?"
Shang Wu turned her head.
Seeing his current appearance, the laughter she had just managed to suppress burst forth again, her cheeks puffing up as she struggled to contain it.
"Goose, goose, goose, goose...."
Clearly, the sound of her laughter was different from before.
"Mm?"
Li Mo was taken aback and turned to look.
The sunset still clung to the horizon, refusing to sink.
The last rays of sunlight fell perfectly on the girl, casting a mix of light and shadow in her ice-like eyes.
The gentle evening breeze tousled her hair, blurring her features and the slight upturn of her lips.
But the reflection of the budding artist in her eyes was crystal clear.
Li Mo suddenly felt as if time had stopped, as if the world had come to a standstill.
A masterpiece was right before him.
"What are you staring at? Get to painting," Shang Wu said, patting his shoulder.
"Ah!"
Li Mo quickly snapped back to reality.
Focusing intently, he picked up his brush and began to add a touch of vibrant smile to the blank canvas of the girl.
For some reason, as he made those few strokes, he felt a wave of emptiness wash over him, a sense of fatigue creeping in.
"Is it done? Is it done?" Shang Wu leaned in closer.
"This... is me?" Ying Bing stared at the painting.
The girl in the painting seemed both familiar and strange to her.
Because even she couldn't remember what she looked like when she smiled.
Yet, under Li Mo's brush, with just a few strokes, the essence was captured perfectly.
The coolness and brightness were seamlessly blended together.
That smile seemed eternal, vivid and lifelike, as if another version of her stood quietly before him.
She gazed at it under the moonlight, an inexplicable emotion spreading in her heart.
Rustle—
The evening breeze stirred, and the leaves rustled softly in the wind.
---
Chapter 151: Li Mo's First Observational Cultivation
Looking at the strange yet familiar girl in the painting, Ying Bing felt a slight daze.
What was she doing in her past life at this moment?
Enduring the torment of extreme cold every day, wandering in the dark Qingyuan Mountains, searching for the Xiapho that called out to her from the void.
One by one, the scheming people and starving beasts fell under her sword.
That memory was filled with darkness, coldness, and uncertainty.
But tonight, the moonlight was truly beautiful.
Looking at the softly smiling version of herself in the painting.
The moonlight flowed like a gentle stream.
A seed, planted in the solid ice who knows when, seemed to be quietly taking root and sprouting...
"Wow, I'm really amazing."
Li Mo couldn't help but puff out his chest, a slight smile curling at the corners of his mouth, almost striking a pose.
Who says a painter has to be dead to become famous?
Once this painting is hung on Ruyi Peak, it will instantly become a timeless masterpiece!
He even thought of a name—Mona Bing Sha!
"Eh?"
Shang Wu scrutinized the painting closely, suddenly blinking her almond-shaped eyes in surprise:
"This painting seems to have a hint of the Observational God style?"
"Really?"
Li Mo took a closer look and indeed found that it had a peculiar charm.
Though it was rather faint.
Perhaps it was because he had unintentionally poured his spirit into those last few strokes?
No wonder it felt so empty after finishing the painting...
"Can't really call it an Observational God painting; that would be too forced. It can only be said to have used similar techniques."
Shang Wu smacked her lips, a bit regretful.
She could see that even the lower form was barely done.
"Can portraits also be used for Observational God?"
Li Mo couldn't help but ask.
Shang Wu replied, "Of course! What do you think the Da Yu royal family observes?"
"The sun..."
Li Mo recalled that the two suns were once incarnations of the former Da Yu emperors.
"There are two types of divine essence to observe."
"One is to observe the saints who embody the 'Dao,' and the other is the evil magic of the Demon Summoning Cult. This painting doesn't fit either category and can't be used for observation."
Shang Wu had a pretty deep understanding of the Observational God concept.
Who knows if it had anything to do with her breaking a bunch of statues back then.
"What a pity."
Li Mo took down the painting and sighed:
"This was just a flash of inspiration; who knows when I'll have such favorable conditions again."
"It will come."
"Mm?"
Li Mo was taken aback.
But he saw Ying Bing had already turned and ascended the pavilion, leaving only her silhouette behind.
...
The night grew deeper.
After soaking in the hot spring, Li Mo returned to his room.
He couldn't skip his daily training session.
Now that the "Fiery Red Lotus Wonderful Method" had condensed a Xuan Dan, he still needed to accumulate Yuan Qi, and he didn't plan to stop at just one Xuan Dan.
"The ice block's room doesn't seem as chilly anymore."
As he passed by the door next door, Li Mo felt something.
At this time, Ying Bing should be observing the Taiyin.
Perhaps it was because she had already embarked on the path of Observational God?
Li Mo shook his head and walked into his room.
He casually placed the earlier painting beside him and took out the Jin Wu Hua Ri Observational God painting from the system space.
Staring at the Jin Wu Hua Ri painting for a long time, there was still no reaction.
"My celestial body can't use ordinary internal breathing martial arts; could it be that the Observational God painting is the same?"
"Wait a minute...."
Li Mo unfolded the 'Mona Bing Sha' again.
This time, the feeling of his spirit being drawn back surged once more.
The painting of the ice block, even though it could barely be called a lower form, surprisingly resonated with his consciousness.
Yet the supreme form, the Jin Wu Hua Ri painting, did not.
Xiao Li pondered thoughtfully.
Was it unrelated to the grade of the Observational God painting?
What a pity.
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