Chapter 290 The Path to Ultimate Sainthood
"Just now, I saw a Sacred Clan member who seemed to be looking for trouble with you. Do you find that interesting?" Ying Xiaoxiao said with a light laugh.
Li Hao raised an eyebrow slightly. He had sensed the disturbances that had disappeared from the small teahouse and the two auras that appeared outside the city, chasing each other. He naturally noticed the commotion.
Ancient Sacred Clan? Li Hao's eyes flickered as he thought of the Ji family and other Sacred Clans from the Great Wilderness. His mind raced as he asked, "Did you scare them off?"
"In a way," Ying Xiaoxiao smiled. "Aren't you going to invite us to sit? We haven't had a meal yet."
As she spoke, she glanced at the grilled fish over the fire.
"Please, have a seat," Li Hao said, seeing that they had no ill intentions. He invited them to sit down. "Was that Sacred Clan member here to trouble you or me?"
"Naturally, he was here for you," Ying Xiaoxiao replied, smiling mischievously. "He wouldn't dare mess with us."
"Are you two also from the Ancient Sacred Clan?"
"You guessed right," Ying Xiaoxiao said, somewhat surprised but then resigning herself.
Li Hao glanced at her, feeling that her acting was a bit over the top.
However, aside from the Ancient Sacred Clan, he couldn't think of any other possibilities.
Their auras were deeply concealed, and he couldn't probe their true strength. But the fact that he couldn't sense their depth was itself a clue—they were undoubtedly powerful, likely at the Enlightenment level.
"How about I paint a picture for you two?" Li Hao suddenly suggested.
Ying Xiaoxiao glanced at the drawing board beside him, intrigued. "Can you really paint? If it's too ugly, I might have to tear it up."
"I guarantee it will be beautiful," Li Hao assured her.
The old man from the tea stall spoke up, "Start with me."
Cautious as ever… Li Hao thought to himself, but he readily agreed.
The old man was clearly on guard. He had heard of minor demons using painting to summon souls or other such sorceries. Although such tricks would be ineffective against someone at their level, one could never be too careful.
Once the old man was seated, Li Hao adjusted his ink and quickly began to paint.
In no time, he had completed a lifelike portrait.
Painting Experience +18,790.
Li Hao was momentarily stunned, then secretly drew in a breath.
Wow, just wow! Nearly twenty thousand experience points for a single painting!
His current Painting Path attribute:
Painting Path, Level 7: (38,279/500,000)
He needed half a million experience points to reach Level 8.
Although accumulating experience through constant practice was faster than regular cultivation, gathering fifty thousand points would still take at least six months.
Even though painting ordinary landscapes, no matter how artistically exceptional, only granted a symbolic few experience points, creating a painting imbued with the essence of the Dao or depicting powerful beings yielded significant experience.
"Is it done?" the old man asked.
Li Hao snapped back to reality and handed the painting to him, eyeing the pair as if they were walking bags of experience.
"Oh, this is quite good," Ying Xiaoxiao remarked after glancing at the painting. She was surprised; it wasn't just a simple replica but possessed a certain divine charm.
The old man examined the painting, satisfied. He also discreetly checked himself to confirm that he hadn't been subjected to any curses, summoning, or other strange attacks hidden within the painting's rules. Finally, he relaxed.
"Would you like one as well?" Li Hao asked the girl.
Seeing that the old man did not object, Ying Xiaoxiao nodded happily.
Li Hao quickly focused and began painting again.
Painting Experience +15,832.
Interesting! Li Hao thought, realizing just how extraordinary this girl was. Fifteen thousand experience points—if he painted her ten times, even accounting for diminishing returns, he could easily earn around one hundred thousand experience points.
If he really pushed it, painting dozens of portraits could net him over two hundred thousand experience points.
Between the two of them, he could almost reach the fifty thousand experience points needed for the next level!
The emperor had left earlier, and Li Hao hadn't had the chance to milk him for experience. Next time, he would seek out the emperor and the Enlightened Realms in the Daoist Palace to get their portraits. That could yield another forty to fifty thousand experience points, enough to get him halfway to Level 9.
Oh, this is getting exciting! Li Hao thought, but then he remembered the Sacred Clan member they had just driven away. Had he just lost an experience bundle?
"Is it done?" Ying Xiaoxiao asked when she saw Li Hao pause.
Li Hao nodded, handing her the painting.
In the painting, the girl was depicted in flowing blue robes, a golden bell on her wrist seemingly swaying in the breeze, her dark hair cascading like a waterfall, her bright eyes and white teeth radiating a beauty that seemed otherworldly.
Ying Xiaoxiao's eyes sparkled as she examined the painting closely. Then she looked at Li Hao and asked, "Can I keep this?"
"Of course."
Ying Xiaoxiao's face lit up with joy. "I'll treasure it."
Li Hao smiled. "If you like, I can paint more for you, in different poses… like walking or picking flowers."
"Sure!" Ying Xiaoxiao readily agreed.
Li Hao chuckled inwardly and immediately began working on a second painting.
From the experience points he received, Li Hao could roughly gauge that these two were likely at the Enlightenment level. After all, when he painted the Candle Flame God, he didn't earn nearly as much experience.
Yet, two Enlightenment Realm individuals had shown up here, claiming to be from the Ancient Sacred Clan… Who were they trying to fool?
He had visited the Ji family, and though the Ji family wasn't the most powerful among the Sacred Clans, it still had a couple of Enlightened ones who were considered battle gods within the clan. Even if other Sacred Clans had twice that number, they wouldn't waste time following him around.
But if they weren't from the Ancient Sacred Clan, who were they? Li Hao was curious. Maybe he would need to ask the emperor to learn more. His current knowledge was limited to what the Divine General's Residence could access, and didn't include the secret information only a family's true dragon would know.
"Master, the fish is almost ready. Should we eat first and continue painting afterward?" Ren Qianqian asked as she walked over.
Li Hao nodded, finishing the current painting, and then invited the pair to join them for the meal.
Ying Xiaoxiao eagerly agreed, while the old man tried to stop her but was too late. He could only send a silent message, "Miss, we don't know them well."
"Don't worry. I have an iron stomach—I can digest anything, even poison."
Ying Xiaoxiao's reply almost made the old man spit blood. He could only smile bitterly and give in to her wishes.
However, when the meal started, the old man was the first to take a bite, quickly swallowing the piece of fish Li Hao handed him.
After confirming it was safe, he was about to tell his young mistress it was okay to eat, only to see that she was already devouring the food, her mouth full of grease. It wasn't that she lacked any ladylike qualities; rather, there was just enough to show, but not much.
The old man smiled wryly, seeing that Li Hao was eating heartily too. He realized he had been overly cautious.
Without his young mistress around, he might have been less concerned, but her presence made him overly tense.
As they ate the grilled fish, the conversation turned to cultivation.
The discussion was actually sparked by Jiang Lichen, who soon began discussing the path to sainthood with Ying Xiaoxiao.
Having witnessed the Buddha Lord's attempt to leap from the Peaceful Path directly to sainthood, Jiang Lichen had also started considering this possibility.
"There are three paths to sainthood: the Incense Path, the Sacrificial Path, and the Ultimate Path," Ying Xiaoxiao explained, assuming Jiang Lichen was one of Li Hao's people. "The Sacrificial Path is the hardest and requires the most insight."
Jiang Lichen hummed as he ate, "I love a challenge. When I perfect my Sword Path, I'll use it to attain sainthood and will surely be able to slay all under heaven!"
Ying Xiaoxiao exchanged a few more words with him, but soon realized the old man was a bit of a madman. She stopped talking to him and turned to Li Hao instead.
"So, which path do you plan to take?"
As they spoke, Li Hao had already understood the differences between the three paths.
The Incense Path to Sainthood was the most mainstream, with about 99% of saints choosing this path.
The second, most difficult path was the Sacrificial Path, the one Jiang Lichen was referring to.
This path involved cultivating the Dao to its absolute peak and using it as a sacrificial offering to attain sainthood. It allowed one to transcend through the Dao alone.
This path required no incense, but it did require surviving the Three Calamities of a saint!
This path demanded an incredibly high level of insight—so high it was almost unimaginable. After all, what kind of insight could match the power of countless incense offerings? It was the most challenging path, one almost no one chose. Those who did were merely wasting their time.
Thus, the Incense Path became the primary avenue to sainthood. After all, anyone at the Enlightenment level was already a genius. No one wanted to think their insight was lacking, but the Sacrificial Path had crushed countless hopefuls.
Gradually, it fell out of favor, though occasionally a stubborn individual would try it, only to fail and waste their life.
Hence, the Incense Path gradually became the main road. After all, anyone at the Enlightenment level had connections to gather incense. If they fell short, they could always borrow or spend time gathering more.
Incense was scarce, much like money, but with effort and determination, there was hope.
Besides these two, the third path, the Ultimate Path, was a somewhat sinister way to sainthood.
Similar to the Incense Path, but instead of gathering the power of incense, one collected resentment, slaughter, and other negative forces.
It was easier to make people fear you than to make them praise you, especially if you had power.
This path seemed more suitable for the ruthless Jiang Lichen, but he was too stubbornly focused on the Sword Path.
However, as Ying Xiaoxiao mentioned, this secret technique was exclusive to their clan. It was not shared with outsiders, and even if someone learned it, they wouldn't be able to use it without the necessary physical traits.
"As for me… I'll see when the time comes," Li Hao replied after some thought.
Given the options, he could choose between the Incense Path and the Sacrificial Path.
Since he hadn't yet reached the Enlightenment level, he couldn't say for certain. He suspected that with the system's power, he might be inclined toward the Sacrificial Path.
Attain sainthood through the body!
As they continued chatting, their relationship grew closer. Although Jiang Lichen seemed a bit eccentric, he privately warned Li Hao.
"They might be from the Demon Clan. Be careful."
"The Demon Clan?"
"Yes. The Ultimate Path is an ancient, forbidden method—the most wicked way to sainthood. If a saint discovers it, it would bring great disaster."
Li Hao was surprised, not expecting Jiang the Madman to know so much. His royal background clearly wasn't for show.
"But whether they're demons or gods, it doesn't make much difference to us as long as they mean us no harm," Li Hao replied telepathically.
Jiang Lichen thought for a moment and replied, "That's true."
Then he returned to instructing Ren Qianqian in swordplay.
Having eaten his fill, Li Hao continued painting for Ying Xiaoxiao and the old man, his experience points steadily climbing.
Time passed quickly, and the small courtyard soon became home to the old man and the girl as well.
Though the courtyard was small, everyone seemed to have their own hobbies.
Two days later, Li Hao received news from the capital—the Wang family had found information about Feng Lao's missing soul!
Reading the message, Li Hao felt a surge of excitement. Feng Lao's missing soul had indeed been found in the River of the Dead.
"Qianqian, keep practicing your swordsmanship in the courtyard. Ninth Prince, I'm heading to the Wang family. Will you be coming?"
"The Wang family? No thanks," Jiang Lichen waved dismissively. "Go quickly and come back. I'll take care of your little disciple."
"She's not my disciple."
"What's the difference? Just go."
"…"
Li Hao then looked at Ying Xiaoxiao and the old man. By now, he knew the old man's name, although he wasn't sure if it was real—it was given as Ying Liyin.
"Are you two planning to follow me?"
The old man looked at the eager Ying Xiaoxiao and shook his head. "Miss, the Wang family is surrounded by the River of the Dead. Let's not get involved."
Ying Xiaoxiao thought for a moment and agreed, "Alright, we'll wait here for you."
"Alright, I'll leave Feng Lao in your care, along with the Ninth Prince."
Li Hao nodded. Although they had just met, friendship sometimes needed no lengthy prelude.