“One… two… three…” The meat jelly began to count, starting with the violet-robed man and the proceeding onto the Second and Third Brothers. When its eyes fell upon the Fourth Brother, it suddenly stared in shock. “One… two?” It flapped its wings as it reached the yellow-robed man. Suddenly, an angry, humiliated expression appeared on its face. It spun and glared at Meng Hao. “Liar!!”
Meng Hao gaped at the meat jelly.
“Look!” roared the meat jelly furiously. “One, two, three, one, two!! You’ve brought me two bullies, and I asked for three! I wanted three bullies!!” It clearly believed itself to have been swindled.
Meng Hao stared with wide eyes. Suddenly, everything became clear. This damned meat jelly really could only count the numbers one, two and three?
Without hesitation, Meng Hao quickly swept up the yellow-robed man as well as the Fourth Brother. Instantly, they disappeared.
“That was just a little mistake,” said Meng Hao quickly. “Why don’t you count again?”
The meat jelly carefully began to count again. “One, two, three… Haha! There are three! Three bullies. Excellent, excellent.” Excited once again, it beat its wings and flew around in a few more circles. Suddenly, a glow like lightning shot out from it toward Meng Hao.
Meng Hao didn’t evade. The lightning glow slammed into him, melding with his Spiritual Sense.
“This is my will of lightning,” said the meat jelly, which had already landed on the shoulder of the violet-robed man. “You can use it to change forms one time. Make sure to bring back some more bullies!” It looked at the violet-robed man with a friendly expression. “Hey. Hello. My name is Ultimate Vexation. What’s your name?”
The large, violet-robed man stared in shock. Not waiting for him to reply, Meng Hao quickly left the blood-colored mask. He could only imagine what would happen after the man responded. A sea of suffering awaited him….
Back in the Immortal’s Cave, Meng Hao sat there, a thoughtful expression on his face.
“The meat jelly can only count from one to three…. Very useful.” After a moment, he looked over at the old painter, who sat there with a dull expression on his face.
“Senior,” he said softly, “what village are you from? I can take you back home.”
The man looked scared. He hesitated for a moment, then said in a trembling voice, “But… my painting isn’t finished yet. Do you mind if I paint you?” His eyes shined with anticipation.
Meng Hao was shocked for a moment. Then his eyes narrowed, and he looked closely at the old man. No matter which way he looked at him, the man seemed mortal. After a while, Meng Hao nodded. “Thank you so much, sir,” he said, continuing to sit there on the crystal throne.
The old man took a deep breath, and then lifted the paintbrush, hand trembling. Looking at Meng Hao, he began to paint.
Time passed slowly. It took about four hours, during which time Meng Hao waited patiently. The man painted earnestly, and Meng Hao sat without moving.
After a while, the old man put down his paintbrush. He eyed the painting in front of him, and a satisfied expression filled his eyes. He looked up at Meng Hao and smiled.
“Finished,” he said. “Why don’t you take a look? Does it look like you?” His face was filled with anticipation.
Meng Hao smiled. He stood up and walked over to stand next to the old man. What he saw on the canvas was a young man sitting upright in a chair, surrounded by mountains. You couldn’t say that the painting wasn’t good, but there was something about it that just didn’t seem right. It only bore a thirty percent resemblance to Meng Hao.
“Very good,” said Meng Hao, smiling and nodding his head. “What are these two marks here?” He lifted his hand to point at the painting, where two long, thick marks could be seen. Meng Hao wasn’t sure what they meant.
“What’s above all of us?” asked the old man, smiling.
Meng Hao looked at him in surprise. Then, he smiled. “The sky,” he said quietly.
“Think about it for a moment,” said the old man, gazing at Meng Hao. His smile seems to contain some sort of hidden meaning. He looked completely different than he had just moments ago. Meng Hao thought for a moment, and then looked up. His eyes glittered as his vision passed through the Immortal’s Cave to look up at the sky outside.
After some time passed, Meng Hao lowered his head. The instant he did, his pupils constricted. The old man… was nowhere to be seen!
An archaic voiced suddenly filled the Immortal’s Cave, causing Meng Hao’s body to quiver. His Spiritual Sense suddenly scattered. “Because of the ten thousand year old will of the World Tree, my residual self is here today. It is fate that I came here today to paint for you. I have sealed the true form of the Resurrection Lily, refined its nature talent and fused it with your spirit. While it is sealed, it cannot harm you. Furthermore, you will be able to draw upon the Resurrection Lily’s nature talent of plants and vegetation. When enough time passes, you can cast away my residu