Mythical Scroll Artist: Starting with the God of Wealth, Zhao Gongming

Chapter 7 The Chicken King and the Divine Tiger

"You mean, that strange spirit painting killed a second-tier mutated monster in just two moves?" Liang Ping was increasingly alarmed as he listened. "What level of spiritual energy did that person have?"

"Level 2".

"A lightning-type, humanoid spirit riding a black tiger," Liang Ping pondered to himself, "Is it definitely from another training team?"

"Uh, I'm not too sure about that. That guy seemed pretty aloof," the male student said.

Liang Ping nodded thoughtfully and said nothing more.

At such a young age, wielding an unfamiliar spirit painting, possessing formidable combat power, and remaining so calm and composed, he is clearly no ordinary spirit tamer.

He looks more like a student of scroll painting at the art studio. "Could he be a new student at Dengfeng Art Studio this year?"

At that moment, a gust of cold wind howled, alerting the three of them.

Looking up, they saw a mahogany coffin suspended in mid-air, with a sinister young woman standing on it, curiously observing them.

"I am Liang Ping, the instructor leading the team from Xuantian Academy. May I ask what brings you here?"

Xue Lingling was slightly surprised. "I noticed something was off here and came over out of curiosity. I didn't expect it to be people from Xuantian Academy. Tsk tsk~ A four-star golden dragon scroll, what a treasure."

"You are... the person in charge of the [Dead Mountain Town] outpost?" Liang Ping didn't quite understand what Xue Lingling was trying to say.

Xue Lingling remained noncommittal, "Brother Liang has come from afar. If you have any trouble, you can come to me. I'm always happy to help Xuantian Academy."

"Thank you very much then," Liang Ping replied politely. "If the detachment is in trouble, I would be happy to lend a hand."

The training lasted for more than a month, and afterwards, it was inevitable that we would have to deal with the people in charge of the outposts.

However, we don't know much about this girl's background yet.

……

Meanwhile, Wu Xian had already returned to the Sanzaigang North District.

After comparing prices, I sold the common materials that were highly repetitive, and received 10857 spirit coins.

"Isn't this much better than scavenging?"

Earning 10,000 a day, without a single day off for a month, that's 300,000 in income. Just thinking about it is exciting.

I turned and walked into the painting supplies store.

"Hello, how much are the drawing paper and paints?"

"What brand are you looking for? Our store partners with popular brands across different price ranges," the salesperson greeted us warmly.

"Uh," Wu Xian smiled awkwardly but politely, "As long as it's cost-effective, that's fine."

The shop assistant understood and immediately led Wu Xian to the counter, saying, "I recommend you buy our local products from Yaoyang City. They are definitely the first choice for those who value cost-effectiveness. The manufacturer behind them has been cooperating with our store for many years, so the quality is guaranteed."

Finally, on the recommendation of the shop assistant, I splurged on ten sheets of practice drawing paper (85/sheet) and one sheet of good quality drawing paper (536/sheet).

In addition, there are two boxes of comprehensive paints, which not only offer a wide range of colors but also emphasize comprehensiveness, containing all kinds of common spiritual characteristics. They are undoubtedly the first choice for aspiring scroll painters to practice daily.

Of course, comprehensive features also mean an attractive price.

Each box cost 6180 spirit coins, and the total cost was 13746 spirit coins, which made Wu Xian very distressed.

But as the saying goes, there's no return without investment.
Back in my home in the shantytown, I saw my grandfather still sorting through recyclables and felt a sense of helplessness.

After having dinner together, he locked himself in his little room and began to study.

The spiritual characteristics in the paint box are numerous, but they are mixed and not refined. The quality and grade of the spiritual substances inside are also low, so it cannot be used to paint anything too sophisticated.

"It can't be too high-end, it has to be easy to use, and it's suitable for making prints and selling. This really stumped me."

With so many awesome myths and legends from past lives, it's really not easy to find a low-end yet useful one.

It's like having a great hand of cards; you need to figure out how to play it.

“Yaoyang City is backed by three dimensional gates: the mechanical, the insectoid, and the bizarre. We can filter from these three directions.”

There's a saying that goes, "We'll do whatever the people need."

As for the mechanical engineering department, the manufacturing method is quite unique, so it will not be considered for the time being.

That leaves only the Zerg and the Unseen factions as the two major "disasters".

As for the Bug type, the natural choice is [Pleiades Star Official], the Bug type nemesis. However, Wu Xian wants to keep this powerful figure for himself and there's no need to bring out this great power for the time being.

In the past, a large rooster pasted on the door during the Qingming Festival was enough; it was commonly known as the "Rooster King House-Protecting Picture".

In addition to roosters, people also paste tigers on paper during the Qingming Festival. The former is used to ward off snakes, insects, rats, and ants, while the latter is used to drive away evil spirits and avoid misfortune.

Goodness, isn't this exactly what I need right now?
"You know what, it feels like Yaoyang City has a special connection with the Qingming Festival from my previous life."

The only embarrassing thing was that he had never actually drawn this thing in his previous life. He only remembered that every year during the Qingming Festival, his father would paste a pair of roosters and tigers on the front door and then seal the door with a line made of stove ash.

I was quite impressed by the images of the Chicken King and the Tiger Guardian.

The images of both are actually very simple, even rudimentary, basically following the composition and style of paper-cutting art.

With his skill level, replicating it wouldn't be difficult for him.

Without further ado, let's start trying it out.

Take out a practice drawing paper, infuse the brush with spiritual energy, dip it in spiritual paint, and start drawing directly. At that moment, the mind begins to recall and construct the image and setting of the Chicken King to protect the house.

Unlike the previous drawing of the God of Wealth, this is a true scroll painting. It not only requires spiritual energy to hold the brush, but also spiritual power to condense the concept of the scroll and achieve a special "communication" with the laws of the world.

The material of the practice drawing paper is generally unsuitable, which significantly limits the range of brushstrokes.

In my mind, the image of the rooster king guarding the house seemed to be in some kind of energy connection with the pattern on the drawing paper, emitting waves of unstable spiritual fluctuations.

Soon, the drawing paper was locked and enveloped by the laws of the world, emitting a soft glow.

Unfortunately, the next second, the entire sheet of paper shattered with a bang, turning into countless fragments. "..."

Wu Xian's lips twitched slightly, feeling a pang of heartache.

As mentioned before, the concept of a picture scroll is equivalent to its "soul".

Judging from the drawing process just now, the body of the scroll seems to be somewhat strained to bear the soul.

One reason is the limited capacity of practice paper, and the other is the poor compatibility of the pigments.

The more powerful the concept, the more demanding the requirements are on the spirituality of the pigments.

"It looks like a lot of money will have to be poured in."

Take your time and take your time.

He then began to conceive and establish the images of the Rooster King and the Guardian Tiger on ordinary drawing paper using ordinary paints.

Early the next morning, I prepared to go to the material store to find some suitable materials to supplement my supplies, such as key materials for birds and tiger-type otherworldly monsters.

But then he received another call from Tang Tiaotiao, "Hey~ Xiaoxianzi, where in the shantytown do you live again?"

"Tang is here?" Wu Xian was taken aback.

"Okay, I'll bring my dad and my brother to make it up to you."

Wu Xian's eyes lit up, and he immediately gave the detailed address and remotely directed the route.

A short while later, Tang Tiaotiao and his family appeared at their doorstep.

"It's okay, you'll be able to move to a bigger house soon," Tang Tiaotiao looked around at Wu Xian's living environment, feeling very sympathetic to her little brother's situation. "I'll have my brother help you find a good house later."

Tang Zhenghong and Tang Beng focused their attention entirely on Wu Xian.

Last night, the father and son were shocked to learn that their daughter's (younger sister's) painting actually came from a high school classmate.

Especially Tang Beng, it's unimaginable that the little sister's painting ideas and concepts actually came from that poor "Aquarius" boy.

"Hello, Wu Xian. My name is Tang Zhenghong, and this is my son, Tang Beng."

Tang Zhenghong shook hands with Wu Xian in a rather formal manner.

"Hello, please come in."

Wu Xian quickly invited the three of them into the house.

Grandpa Wu Changming came out to check when he heard the commotion. He could tell from Tang Zhenghong's clothes and demeanor that he was an important person, so he quickly prepared tea to entertain him.

"Grandpa, there's no need to be nervous. My daughter and Wu Xian are high school classmates. We're here specifically to thank Brother Wu Xian," Tang Zhenghong said with a smile, reassuring Wu Changming.

Grandpa Wu Changming was finally relieved and settled down to be a background figure.

After some pleasantries, Tang Zhenghong finally got to the point.

"We only found out last night about my daughter plagiarizing your painting concept," Tang Zhenghong glanced at Tang Tiaotiao with a hint of reproach. "According to the rules, you should provide reasonable compensation to your son."

“You’re too kind. It was originally sold to Tang’s graduation project, so it can’t be considered plagiarism,” Wu Xian shook his head and smiled. “I just didn’t expect that graduation project would have the potential to become a complete set.”

“Exactly!” Tang Tiaotiao chimed in, “What do you mean by plagiarism? I paid for it, okay?”

"Alright, that's enough." Tang Beng said irritably from the side. "Don't worry, brother, my Tang family won't take your painting concept for nothing. You'll definitely get the compensation you deserve."

This situation is not uncommon in the world of illustrated scrolls.

Everyone has creativity; even ordinary people at the bottom of society can come up with ideas for painting scrolls. However, very few of these ideas actually become paintings scrolls.

Many scroll painters' ideas for their scrolls come partly from ordinary people at the bottom of society.

The difference is that what ordinary people provide is just a feasible idea and creativity, which still needs to be properly improved and supplemented by the scroll artist.

What Wu Xian provided to Tang Tiaotiao was more than just "creativity".

In general, when this happens, the artist will reward and compensate the creative provider, but there are also cases where "forced plagiarism" goes unpunished.

After all, ordinary people have no power to resist in front of scroll painters, so if they are robbed, so be it.

The fact that the Tang family offered to compensate him shows they are at least decent people with a conscience.

"Don't be afraid~ Go ahead and ask for it, Sister Tiao is here to back you up." Tang Tiaotiao's attitude of siding with outsiders left Tang Zhenghong and his son speechless.

Wu Xian hesitated, wanting to speak but holding back.

Tang Zhenghong couldn't help but wonder, "Young friend, do you have any concerns?"

“I heard from Tang that your Tang family has a background in mechanical engineering,” Wu Xian took a deep breath, “If possible, I would like to make contact with them.”

Upon hearing this, the three members of the Tang family were stunned and speechless.

"You want to access the mechanical scroll inheritance?" Tang Beng shouted, his expression strange.

"No, no, no, it doesn't need to involve your Tang family's mechanical scroll inheritance. It's just about getting to know the production principles of mechanical scrolls and learning some experience and insights into mechanical scroll production."

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the Tang father and son softened somewhat.

Simply accessing these materials isn't anything special; it's something you can learn in a normal art studio.

"Brother, are you still not giving up and want to figure out how to become a scroll painter on your own?" Tang Beng asked with surprise.

"That's it."

“Don’t blame me for being blunt, but becoming a scroll painter is not easy,” Tang Beng said meaningfully. “Take Tiao Tiao’s painting, ‘The Moon Rabbit Pounding Medicine,’ for example. It cost at least 50 million to create it.”

Wu Xian smiled calmly, indicating that he knew, "If all else fails, we can also study pigment mixing."

Seeing Wu Xian's stubbornness, the Tang father and son didn't say much.

(End of this chapter)