[{"data":1,"prerenderedAt":-1},["ShallowReactive",2],{"origin-the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou":3,"chapter-the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-14":6},{"origin":4,"title":5},"chinese","The Ink Saint of Great Zhou",{"chapter":7,"nextChapterSlug":19,"prevChapterSlug":20,"totalChapters":21,"novelImage":22},{"id":8,"novel_id":9,"title":10,"slug":11,"index":12,"content":13,"wordcount":14,"created_at":15,"updated_at":15,"volume":16,"translator":17,"content_hash":18},2291977,4481,"Chapter 14: Those Who Violate the Great Zhou Shall Be Destroyed!","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-14",14,"\u003Cp>Wind blew away dark clouds, rain fell; far away, he called for the brush, but no shadow appeared.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The storm still rained down; the Yellow River’s waters still flowed on the ground; Lu Fang called for the brush, yet not a single change stirred.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Ah!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yu sighed in disappointment, shook her head, then let out a bitter laugh.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If a fifth-rank Confucian scholar couldn’t accomplish this, why demand it of a ninth-rank Confucian student, who should master the power within dreams?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Faking sorcery!” Ying Li glared coldly at Lu Fang; no matter what, he wouldn’t delay further—he must eliminate this human.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ll slice you into a thousand pieces!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The demonic markings on Ying Li’s face and neck blazed with radiant light.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The rain above Lu Fang transformed into countless sharp, frost-cold blades, descending from the sky.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang stood unmoving, gazing calmly upward at the falling blades; only he could see the colossal brush standing vertically between heaven and earth, and with one sweep, all the blades froze midair.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The nearest blade hovered just a foot from his face.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Bing! Bing! Bing! Bing!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thousands of blades shattered as if crushed by an immense force, vanishing instantly into vapor.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Sounds of drumbeats and war cries erupted!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Before Lu Fang, an ancient war chariot materialized; he stepped forward and stood upon it, looking down at Ying Li, whose eyes bulged as if about to pop.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He didn’t fully understand how this dream world was structured, but he had already established contact with the realm spirit—the Great Brush—and that was enough.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ying Li used the imprint of the demonic sovereign “Dream King” to wield supernatural power within this dream realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This differed vastly from Lu Fang’s direct access to power from the realm spirit, the Great Brush.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This is…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yu’s exquisite eyes blinked rapidly; her mind went blank—this scene was too visually staggering; he had truly done it!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“In the Nightmare Realm, I am invincible!” Ying Li gritted his teeth and clenched his fists with all his strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The imagined scene of Lu Fang exploding under overwhelming force never materialized.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Whoever violates the Great Zhou shall be exterminated!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang waved his hand casually; Ying Li’s arm was severed by an unknown force.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Who dares oppress our human race shall pay a hundredfold!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ying Li’s other arm and both legs were severed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m not a good man, but I don’t enjoy taking life…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ying Li’s wings were ripped off bodily.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Why force me to this!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Ying Li’s head was severed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang let out a soft sigh; flames ignited and consumed Ying Li’s entire body, reducing it to ash within moments, scattered by the wind across the Nightmare Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After Ying Li’s death, the heavens trembled and the earth shook; at first faintly, then increasingly violently, until it shattered into countless fragments.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“… ”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang snapped open his eyes; before him lay a pitch-black cave, the sky outside dim, the storm still raging.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A cool breeze blew through the cave entrance against his skin; he instinctively tightened his arms around the person in his embrace, finding warmth in the contact.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The strange dream had not been a dream at all.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The book spirit Yan Chixia had indeed been summoned by Lu Fang into the Nightmare Realm, and the realm spirit, the Great Brush, had truly communicated with him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Mmm…” Li Yu, lying in Lu Fang’s arms, also awoke, her dark, gleaming eyes gazing up at his face, lost in thought.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re awake.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang lowered his head, meeting Li Yu’s gaze.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yu’s ears flushed red; she weakly struggled a few times and whispered, “I’m feeling much better now—please put me down.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Oh, oh… you were in terrible condition before, so I held you to keep you warm.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang reluctantly released his arms from the “beauty,” smiling wryly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“That dream was terrifying! I don’t even know if that bird-man died in the real world after I killed him in the dream.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“According to records, he should be dead.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yu rose, adjusted her robes, took a pill from a porcelain vial, then stared fixedly at Lu Fang: “How did you do it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Her question wasn’t specific, but Lu Fang understood exactly what she meant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>In that Nightmare Realm, Li Yu, a fifth-rank Confucian scholar, couldn’t even summon righteous qi; yet he, a ninth-rank Confucian student, had slain a bearer marked by the demonic sovereign “Dream King.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>That was a fifth-rank demonic prodigy, marked by the lingering will of a demonic sovereign—destined to become a transcendent demonic king.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It was a certain death sentence!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He had effortlessly broken through it—and turned the tables.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even Li Yu, who held great faith in him, found it unbelievable.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’ve always loved dreaming; the stories ‘Liaozhai’s Strange Tales: Nie Xiaoqian’ and ‘Dream of the Red Chamber’ were inspired by dreams—perhaps that’s why I could write them as elegant prose.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang chuckled softly, continuing: “My ability to create something from nothing in that dream likely stems from the same cause.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This explanation might seem forced.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But the dream world itself is inherently peculiar; ordinary people, even if skeptical, couldn’t pinpoint any flaw.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After experiencing this dream realm, Lu Fang now understood that the Ink Brush Book Realm exists at the boundary between dream and reality.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The realm spirit, the Great Brush, had told him so.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Who knows if Zhuangzi dreamed of being a butterfly, or if the butterfly dreamed of being Zhuangzi?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yu slowly recited the elegant prose from “Zhuangzi’s Dream of the Butterfly,” reasoning to herself: “Perhaps, as Master Zhuang said, dream and reality cannot be distinguished—perhaps what we call reality…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“My dear disciple! Hahaha… come out!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A strong, aged voice rang from outside the cave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Master!” Li Yu recognized the voice and cried out joyfully, hurrying out of the cave.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>[Finally, reinforcements have arrived—I can finally rest.] Lu Fang followed her out.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>There, not far from the cave entrance, stood the Grand Confucian Wang Fu, smiling warmly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your aura is chaotic—you’re injured?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Fu, seeing Li Yu, frowned with concern and immediately pulled a porcelain vial from his waist pouch, handing it to her.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Thank you, Master.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After swallowing the pill from the vial, Li Yu’s complexion visibly brightened.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>She then recounted everything: encountering Ying Li, forcibly activating the Grand Confucian’s ink treasure, entering the Nightmare Realm, and how Lu Fang had turned the tables and slain him.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Fu furrowed his brow upon hearing of the demonic sovereign “Dream King’s” imprint; his face filled with astonishment upon hearing Lu Fang had slain Ying Li within the Nightmare Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’re quite the lad! All that effort with my three Righteous Qi Pills wasn’t wasted—excellent work!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Fu nodded approvingly at Lu Fang repeatedly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Just luck—I only succeeded because Li the Confucian startled the demon with the Four-Sided Inkstone, forcing him to hesitate in the real world and letting me exploit the dream to strike.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang smiled lightly.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Regardless, you did well this time—I will certainly report this to His Majesty.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Wang Fu nodded with a smile.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Li Yu asked anxiously: “Master, since you’ve come, why hasn’t my father come? Has he been injured?”\u003C\u002Fp>",1193,"2026-06-20T03:56:21.568Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","a857b99bf23ea411265f0af4a47711a28afa97b2d8a0eb64f38603b10a2ada3f","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-15","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-13",289,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-cover.jpg"]