[{"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-44":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},2292007,4481,"Chapter 44: Not a Single Bit of Psychological Pressure","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-44",44,"\u003Cp>The powerful strike fused with seven souls—the Azure Dragon’s Crescent Slash—appeared slow but was in fact lightning-fast, cleaving into the Black Lotus barrier.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Crack!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A deafening crash.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A crack appeared in the floating Black Lotus platform, then rapidly spread like a spiderweb until every surface was riddled with fissures, finally halting.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Plop!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The Black Lotus platform lost its color and crashed onto the sandy ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Puff! Lian Yi spat out a mouthful of blood, staring at the shattered Black Lotus platform littered with cracks, his molars grinding so hard they felt ready to break.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>How could this happen?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This man is merely a Seventh Rank, First Tier. Even if his momentum is exceptionally refined, he shouldn’t possess such destructive power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He Zixuan’s jaw nearly dropped to the ground.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>When he entered the Black Lotus barrier, even standing required immense pressure, preventing him from unleashing his full strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang’s Martial Soul—Azure Dragon’s Crescent Slash—shattered the Black Lotus platform, clearly a supreme treasure, into fragments!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Snow Luo Sha blinked her large eyes, glancing between Lu Fang and the nearly shattered Black Lotus platform, then back at Lu Fang—her eyes sparkled.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Why do I feel he’s so majestic?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Uuuu… I can’t summon even a trace of revulsion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thinking carefully, he hasn’t done anything wrong—have I been too rude?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Cross the river on a single reed!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lian Yi flashed forward, snatched up the Black Lotus platform, shot Lu Fang a venomous glare, and appeared motionless—yet it was only an afterimage; his true body had already fled swiftly eastward.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Trying to run?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang grinned, summoning the Black Armor to cling to his body, then swiftly chased after Lian Yi.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Cut the grass but leave the roots, and the spring wind will bring it back!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Strike while the iron is hot!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>This Lian Yi’s strength is unnaturally high. Killing him will surely grant great fortune—he came to me willingly, a wicked man; I owe him no mercy!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>…\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Tian Feng Year 29.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>November 4th.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Three days have passed since entering the Lesser Upper Realm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yunru, after slaying a stone golem, absorbed a thumb-sized unclaimed aura, and muttered listlessly:\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I wonder if that wicked monk has killed Lu Fang and the others!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Maybe I should go check—if the wicked monk hasn’t killed Lu Fang, I can strike and claim his aura.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yunru’s eyes gleamed with greed.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang is several years younger than me, yet he’s been enfeoffed as the Marquis of Civil Crown, taken as a disciple by the Half-Sage Xu Han Yi, composed two Manifest-Level poems, and written three Elegant Essays.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He’s practically a household name in the Imperial Capital—his aura is bound to be immense!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>If I miss this chance, I won’t know how long I’ll have to wait for another.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Even if Lu Fang was killed by the wicked monk, I can confirm it, stop obsessing over him, and focus on seizing other auras.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yunru pondered briefly, then made his decision.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He sped off in the direction indicated by the incense-worm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Along the way, after casually exterminating a ghost clan member, Xiao Yunru pushed forward at full speed for half a day, arriving at a rocky wasteland.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A stone mountain rose sheer into the sky; though not tall, it stood out starkly against the endless desert.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Jagged rocks jutted like canine teeth, barren of even a blade of grass—utterly treacherous.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>What halted Xiao Yunru was a horrifying fissure on the towering stone mountain, as if cleaved by a deliberate blow.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Someone fought here!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yunru observed carefully, reached a conclusion, and without lingering, sprinted toward a distant point.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Closer!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The incense-worm thrashed its tail repeatedly—Lu Fang was nearby.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After another hour of travel, Xiao Yunru spotted Lu Fang at an oasis in the desert.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But something seemed off.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang, standing across the oasis from him, looked relaxed, gazing at his opponent—Lian Yi!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The wicked monk’s expression was listless, his chest heaving violently, beads of sweat glistening on his forehead.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The black Buddhist rosary around his neck was gone; a large bloodstain stained his cassock.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“This…”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yunru’s heart lurched—he instantly hid in a sand pit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>After calming his turbulent emotions, he cautiously peered out again, wanting to confirm whether what he’d seen was an illusion.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The wicked monk!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>It wasn’t an illusion!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>But why was the wicked monk half-dead, while Lu Fang radiated vigor?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Keep running, then!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang sneered.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lian Yi gasped for breath, wiped sweat from his eyes, and lowered his eyelids.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“You’ve chased me for two days—why? You can’t kill me. If you let me go, I’ll give you a great opportunity. How about it?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang shrugged. “Not interested.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Being this ruthless won’t benefit you!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lian Yi swallowed, his throat dry and aching.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang’s gaze grew colder. He stepped toward the opposite shore. “Ruthless? If my strength were weaker, you’d have killed me long ago—I recall you saying exactly that.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Don’t lecture me on morality.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“I’m no saint. Killing you gives me zero guilt—especially since you’re a thoroughgoing wicked monk!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Your desperate struggle only proves you have no cards left.”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>With that,\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Petals of peach blossom reappeared around Lian Yi. His face twisted in fury—this damned transcendent power reduced him to half his strength.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Without hesitation, he turned and fled again.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang’s Black Armor flared, shooting a golden light to land directly in Lian Yi’s escape path. He clasped his hands, gathering power.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Since entering Seventh Rank, the speed of fusing powerful souls had increased dramatically—in mere breaths, he’d already gathered the power of three souls.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His current “momentum” could fuse ten souls’ power—evidently, entering Seventh Rank had transformed his strength fundamentally.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>A strike fused with six souls’ power would be enough to end Lian Yi now.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Martial Soul—Azure Dragon’s Crescent Slash!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>The blade aura crept slowly into Lian Yi’s pupils, yet he could not move to evade.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He was a reincarnated monk!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>His future path was meant to be brilliant and radiant.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>To be slain here, in this Seventh Rank Lesser Upper Realm, by a Confucian scholar of only Seventh Rank, First Tier?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Thud!\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lian Yi’s head, eyes wide with disbelief, rolled across the sand, filled with unyielding resentment.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“Finally dead!”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang’s expression was calm.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>He pulled out an aura stone, absorbed the basketball-sized unclaimed aura rising from Lian Yi’s corpse, retrieved his storage pouch, then walked to the oasis’s clear water to wash the blood from his face and hands.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>“The wicked monk is dead?”\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Xiao Yunru shrank back into the sand pit.\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>Lu Fang fought for so long—could he be exhausted? Would now be a good moment to ambush him?\u003C\u002Fp>\n\u003Cp>As Xiao Yunru weighed his options, peach petals drifted down before his eyes.\u003C\u002Fp>",1118,"2026-06-20T03:56:21.568Z",1,"Qwen3-Next 80B","30f33e43ce9fe96e99042c2f4f1f778d97b7a5be70848151c53ab1ce92ac2f46","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-45","the-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-chapter-43",289,"https:\u002F\u002Fnovelzhen.com\u002Fimages\u002Fcovers\u002Fthe-ink-saint-of-great-zhou-cover.jpg"]