Chapter 468: Painting the Face

"Do you think the little junior brother will succeed?"

In the audience, the Mo role looked at the red-robed figure on stage with his back to them and couldn't help but ask.

"I don't know," Luan Mei shook her head. "I've only heard of this secret technique from Master; no one has ever actually practiced it."

"If Master says this technique can be practiced, then it must be. Besides, the little junior brother is gifted. If even he can't practice it, then no one in the world probably can," Ning Ruyu said slowly.

"That's true..."

After Master tapped Chen Ling’s brow with the brush, the latter sat motionless on the stage as if he had fallen into a deep sleep.

Seeing this, Master didn't stay on stage either, but walked straight to the audience area and sat down slowly. The five of them sat together, their eyes fixed on the red-robed figure on stage.

"Next, it's up to the sixth one himself."

……

In a world of pure white, Chen Ling slowly opened his eyes.

At this moment, he was floating in mid-air like a plankton. Everything around him was empty; apart from the endless white, there was nothing.

Chen Ling kept his eyes open, staying in this empty, white world for a long time before a glimmer of spirit returned to his eyes... His memories surged like a tide, and he felt as if he had just woken from a dream.

Chen Ling hadn't fully recovered from that strange state. Just a moment ago, he had felt as if he had forgotten everything, entering a state similar to "spacing out," where he couldn't even perceive the passage of time.

"Is this what Master called 'no form, no self'?" Chen Ling muttered to himself.

According to Master, he was actually in a dormant state right now, with only this sliver of wisdom awake. In other words, he, currently in this white space, was incomplete.

Chen Ling looked around, trying to control his body to explore this white space, but no matter which direction he moved, it was all a vast expanse of white. There was no matter here; it was a part of his spiritual world.

"Is this the blank face makeup..."

Chen Ling recalled Master’s words and remembered the mysterious lyrics he had just learned. Fortunately, there were no omissions, and he remembered them clearly.

He took a deep breath, his lips parted slightly, and the cryptic, complex lyrics began to echo in the vast white world:

"Heaven and earth are illusory, the self is no-self, Fan Ling acts as a support, sketching my holy image..."

As Chen Ling’s lyrics echoed in the space, everything around began to surge, as if a misty fog were being stirred by an invisible hand, and chaotic light and shadow began to be sketched out from within...

Chen Ling could feel that as the lyrics echoed, something was about to emerge from this empty world.

Hum——!

A low hum sounded, the void around Chen Ling twisted out of thin air, and the environment changed abruptly!

Pitch-black killing intent spread in the air. In the distant sky, a massive black sword towering into the heavens stood firm. At this moment, he was standing among corpses covering the ground, blood staining the earth...

Seeing this scene, Chen Ling was stunned.

This is... the Weapon Path Ancient Treasury?

"The three of you, come at me together," a familiar voice came from afar. Chen Ling turned to look.

On the opposite hillside, "Chen Ling" was looking down at the injured Lu Xuanming, Jian Changsheng, and Pu Wen below, his eyes full of sharpness and mockery.

The next moment, he fought the three of them. A pitch-black pistol pressed against Pu Wen’s brow, and with a "bang," he killed one person instantly. Blood mixed with brain matter splattered onto the ground. Then, he turned his body, holding a dagger to fight two against one, battling Lu Xuanming and Jian Changsheng!

His movements were like a ghost, his killing intent bone-chilling. Relying on the dance of slaughter and terrifying combat instincts, he killed them one after another, becoming the final winner of the Weapon Path Ancient Treasury.

Among the corpses covering the mountains and plains, "Chen Ling" held a dripping dagger, turned slowly, and locked eyes with the other Chen Ling.

——[Sheng].

In the gaze of the God of Slaughter "Chen Ling," the surrounding environment gradually dissipated. Blood-red lines extended from the scene, beginning to sketch out in the vast white world, as if something was slowly taking shape.

"Is this... Painting the Crimson Face?" Chen Ling muttered to himself. "So, my category is [Sheng]?"

Before he could finish, the scene before him changed abruptly!

Goose-feather snow drifted in the air. Inside a fairly luxuriously decorated mansion, a figure wearing a bright red opera robe walked slowly out of the room...

It was a "Dan" role with makeup like apricot blossoms and eyebrows like hooks, looking like Chen Yan. He walked slowly out of the room filled with corpses, like the only crimson in a pale world.

He stared straight at Qian Fan and the others, his lips parted slightly, and then a melodious and highly penetrating singing voice echoed in the sky!

"The little nun is twenty-eight, in the prime of her youth, her hair shaved by her master..."

"Chen Ling... Chen Ling! I know I was wrong!! Let me go... I'll give you all my money! I'll never again..."

Puff——!

The wide sleeves fluttered like butterfly wings, the cold glint of the dagger traced an arc, and the next moment, two heads were tossed high into the snowy ground...

——[Dan].

As the scene before him gradually dissipated, a second face began to be sketched onto Chen Ling’s skin, gradually overlapping with [Sheng], weaving into another complex and mysterious pattern.

"Red Dust, someone come welcome me."

Behind Chen Ling, another low voice sounded.

He turned to look and saw a figure wearing a golden mask and a black trench coat standing above the Red Dust Main City!

The Golden Society envoy, dragging a golden mountain that looked like the sun, like an emperor in the dark night, looked down at the city beneath his feet... Countless figures ran out in a hurry, scrambling to bow at his feet...

——[Jing].

"Chen Ling, what do you plan to do after graduation?"

Two figures appeared to Chen Ling’s left. It was the rooftop of the Shangjing Theater Academy building, an inconspicuous corner in his memory... At this moment, two young men full of confusion about the future were standing together, looking into the distance.

"I submitted my resume to the Shangjing City Grand Theater, applying to be their intern director. I should have results in the next two days."

"Shangjing City Grand Theater? That's not bad... But I heard it's hard to survive there. Out of ten intern directors, I think only one gets to stay."

"If I can get in, that would be great. We'll see about the rest."

"Do you know Chen Nan from the next class? His dad is the chairman of Longhua Entertainment. I heard he recently secured investment and started filming his own movie! That director Zhang Mou, who wins awards until his hands are soft, is his supervisor. They say he came specifically to guide him... If nothing goes wrong, he'll be a famous director soon."

"Tsk... People, why is the gap between them so big..."

"Some people are born to be the protagonists enjoying this world. As for us, we're at most NPCs."

"So what? Life goes on... Work hard, maybe hard work can change everything." The young man looked up at the setting sun in the distance and muttered to himself,

"I will work hard... Sooner or later, I will rely on my own strength to become a great director."

"If you become rich and noble, don't forget me!"

——[Mo]