Chapter 631 - 631: Another Artistic Treasure

With all eyes on him, Zhao Yuan's brush, fully loaded with Ink, touched down on the pristine white paper.

His brush moved like a swimming dragon, his posture the very picture of elegance.

GASP!

A series of sharp gasps escaped from Yan Heyun and the few others standing closest to Zhao Yuan.

They could clearly see every character Zhao Yuan wrote. Each one was a true combination of elegance, freshness, magnificence, and subtlety! They were, without a doubt, masterfully written characters, captivating and uplifting the spirit of anyone who laid eyes on them!

And most importantly, what Zhao Yuan was writing was also the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Collection. And every single character was an exact match for the artistic treasure they had seen before!

"My heavens!"

"He really did write that last piece!"

"To call this calligraphy 'brilliant' would be a massive understatement! I've dedicated myself to the art for over fifty years and thought I'd achieved something, but compared to this young man, I am leagues behind!"

"This calligraphy... I'm afraid it's not far off from the Calligraphy Saint Wang Xizhi himself, is it? How in the world did this kid train? Damn, he's just too much of a prodigy!"

Yan Heyun and the others broke into a flurry of astonished cries.

What shocked them wasn't just the brilliance of the calligraphy Zhao Yuan was producing, but the fact that this piece was in no way inferior to the last!

After all, calligraphy demands not only foundational skill but also a specific Mental Realm and state of being.

With the right Mental Realm and in peak condition, one could produce breathtaking work. But without the right "feel" for it, you could write a thousand pages and not a single masterpiece would emerge. Originally, Yan Heyun and the others believed that if Zhao Yuan's current work was just seventy or eighty percent as good as the previous masterpiece, it would be enough. That alone would prove he had written the first piece and that his mastery of Running Script was indeed extraordinary.

But Zhao Yuan had given them a huge surprise... No, that wasn't right. This wasn't a surprise—it was a shock!

'One artistic treasure is already incredible enough, but you just had to casually whip up another one!'

'Do you have to be this good? Do you have to be so freakishly talented?'

'You're making us old-timers die of shame here!'

Meanwhile, the people stuck in the outer ring couldn't see what Zhao Yuan was writing. They could only hear the gasps of the inner circle, which made them burn with curiosity. They strained on their tiptoes, all clamoring at once:

"What's happening? What is it?"

"Is his calligraphy really that good? Can't you make a little room? Let me see!"

"That's right! Hey, you guys on the inside, if you've had your fill, back out and let us get a look!"

Unfortunately, their wishes were destined to go unfulfilled.

The people squeezed on the inside, occupying the prime viewing spots, had already entered a state of complete absorption. Every pair of eyes was glued to the paper, fixed on each character Zhao Yuan wrote. Some couldn't even stop their hands from unconsciously tracing the strokes in the air.

Witnessing the birth of such peerless calligraphy was not only a distinct honor but also a once-in-a-lifetime learning opportunity. Why would they ever give up their spots? They wouldn't move an inch, not even for a thousand pieces of gold!

Frustrated, the people on the outside could only turn their attention back to Zhao Yuan himself.

But one look left them stunned, and soon they too erupted in cries of astonishment.

"Does it feel like he's become a completely different person?"

"I get that feeling too! It's like he transformed into a dashing, unrestrained scholar from the Wei and Jin Dynasties!"

"It's normal to get into the right mindset for calligraphy, but to completely change your own aura like this... this is a first for me! He becomes a dashing Wei and Jin scholar to write the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Collection. What will you turn into if you write Seal Script or Cursive Script?"

Before long, that person's question would be answered.

In the blink of an eye, Zhao Yuan had finished writing the Preface to the Orchid Pavilion Collection.

The Ink on the page was not yet dry when he lifted the sheet and tossed it aside, as if it weren't a stunning masterpiece but a worthless piece of scrap paper.

This move from Zhao Yuan horrified the surrounding calligraphy masters.

They scrambled to catch the paper, their movements exquisitely careful, as if they were cradling not a piece of calligraphy but a fragile, priceless treasure!

If they hadn't witnessed Zhao Yuan write it with their own eyes, they would have already started berating him!

But now, they were so thoroughly won over by his skill that they couldn't—and wouldn't dare—say a word against him.

But just because they held their tongues didn't mean they weren't angry.

Every single one of them was now glaring at Zhao Yuan, unable to understand why he would toss aside a work that could be called an artistic treasure, discarding it as if it were worthless.

But they would soon find out why.

Zhao Yuan put down his brush, reached over to grab a new sheet of paper, placed it on the desk, and smoothed it flat with a paperweight.

Seeing this, the crowd was stunned for a moment, then overjoyed.

Was Zhao Yuan about to take up his brush and write a new piece?

Wonderful! This was truly wonderful! Zhao Yuan had written the last piece far too quickly, completing it in a single, fluid motion. They barely had time to study it before it was over. It left them feeling like Zhu Bajie eating the Ginseng Fruit—utterly unsatisfying! Or rather, it was finished before they even had a chance to savor it.

So now, as they watched Zhao Yuan lay out a fresh sheet of paper, they all grew excited.

In that moment, the looks they gave Zhao Yuan no longer held any scrutiny, doubt, or disdain. All that remained was deep, reverent admiration.

How could one not revere someone who could produce Running Script on par with the Calligraphy Saint?

As Zhao Yuan finished laying out the paper and picked up his brush, everyone held their breath, their anticipation and nervousness reaching a fever pitch.

"Huh?"

Suddenly, someone let out a cry of surprise, an act that immediately drew the angry glares of the crowd. But the person was completely oblivious, simply pointing at Zhao Yuan and shouting, "His aura—it's changed again!"

Everyone whipped their heads around to look at Zhao Yuan.

What they saw left them all thunderstruck.

Just a moment ago, Zhao Yuan had possessed the dashing, unrestrained air of a Wei and Jin scholar. But now, he projected an aura of solemn gravity and serene stability—the complete opposite of before!

And at that very moment, Zhao Yuan's brush descended.

Characters—symmetrical and balanced, elegantly slender, with lines as strong and rounded as iron, simple in appearance yet intricate in design—leaped onto the page, a style utterly different from the previous, flowing Running Script.

"It's Seal Script!"

"The strokes are so fluid and graceful... This is the most authentic, most beautiful Qin Seal Script!"

"'Supreme among the Five Mountains?' GASP... This is the text from the Taishan Inscription, carved on Taishan by the Prime Minister of Qin, Li Si!"