Chapter 1055: Breakthrough

“Why are you so sure that I am not your husband? Was it because you saw me die for yourself?” Zu An asked with a calm smile. It was almost as if the tremendous ocean waves right in front of him didn’t exist.

“You just refuse to acknowledge your wrongs!” Yu Yanluo’s pretty brow furrowed. Her hand brushed out, and the endless ocean waves came crashing down on Zu An.

But after a bit of hesitation, her brush moved around again. The endless waters disappeared in the end. Despite that, the first part of the terrifying tsunami had already rushed past. She didn’t see any sign of the other party anymore, only a great, surging sea.

Yu Yanluo was stunned when she saw that, wondering, “Did he die?”

She hadn’t dared to be too lenient when she saw him fight against that creature, as his cultivation didn’t seem low at all. Now, it seemed that because the other party was of the fire element, he had ended up being countered by the water element.

That was why she created that huge ocean. But with how strong the other party was, even though those ocean waves were terrifying, they would only be able to seriously injure him and strip him of his fighting prowess. They shouldn’t have taken his life! Why was there no sign of him left?

She thought to herself for a bit. Then, she picked up her pen and drew a few strokes. The great sea was immediately divided in half, gradually revealing the bottom of the sea.

Zu An was at the ocean bottom, raising his head toward the sky in puzzlement. He hadn’t expected the other party to be able to part the great sea so easily. That was an ability only characters in fairy tales had!

The projection of Yu Yanluo’s face looked shocked. She had imagined many possibilities, and what she had been the most worried about was that the ocean waves would kill him, or that he might be seriously injured or unconscious, and thus unable to answer her questions anymore. Never had she expected him to be sitting at the ocean bottom leisurely, and furthermore without a single injury!

There was a blue transparent bubble around him. Was that the water element? But how could that be? Wasn’t he a fire element cultivator? Yu Yanluo was stupefied. She felt as if what she had assumed to be common knowledge for so many years had been shattered.

“Is that a skill or a magical artifact? There is no way you are both a water and fire dual element cultivator, right?” Yu Yanluo couldn't help but ask.

Zu An obviously wouldn’t tell her that he was using Blue Mallard’s water element affinity. He looked at the projection, then remarked, “I should be inside your painting right now, correct?”

Yu Yanluo was even more shocked. She exclaimed, “You were even able to guess that?”

There were many enemies who had been trapped in her painting before, and they had been unable to guess that they were in a painting even as they lived out the rest of their lives. They hadn’t even realized what had happened upon their deaths, only assuming that they had been sent to some mysterious dungeon or a dangerous land.

This was the first person who had been able to tell that he was trapped in a painting while inside the painting.

But for Zu An, it wasn’t hard for him to make that association at all. For example, ‘Investiture of the Gods’ had Nuwa’s World Scroll. He hadn’t thought of it at first either. However, after seeing that Yu Yanluo’s abilities in this world had become more and more ridiculous, he finally realized the truth.

Zu An said, “Even though I am trapped here, it is limited by your own cultivation. It will be hard for you to do anything too threatening to me.”

Yu Yanluo fell silent. A while later, she said, “Indeed, even though I can draw some things, with the strength you showed, I would not be able to do much to you. But regardless, unless I permit it, you cannot leave this world and you will be trapped here forever. That is why you should tell me your identity and motives as soon as possible. Then, I can consider whether or not I should let you out.”

Zu An frowned. There was no way he would beg her for that. He had come to investigate where Yu Yanluo’s confidence lay. If he didn’t find out anything, and the other party instead learned about his secrets, what kind of dignity would he have left? More importantly, even though his relationship with her was decent, now that he knew her greatest secret, she might not let him off so easily.

“Your painting is likely not as ridiculous as you are making it out to be. There is definitely a way out. Otherwise, would you not be completely invincible in this world?” Zu An’s mind moved quickly. He immediately realized that point.

“Correct. There are many formidable individuals who can forcefully break out of my painting. The world in this painting cannot contain their power.” Yu Yanluo frankly admitted it. But she immediately shot back, “Even so, you have clearly not reached that level yet.”

Zu An was speechless. Girl, do you have to be that straightforward?

“In that case, call for me when you have finally thought things through.” Yu Yanluo knew he wouldn’t immediately accept his fate when she saw his expression. She believed that he would give in after he suffered a bit more. She left the desk and returned to her bed. Then, she couldn't help but yawn.

Who wouldn’t be a bit annoyed if they were sleeping soundly, but were forced awake by a disturbance? She thought to herself that she was going to keep that person there for a few more days even if he begged her later.

She removed her clothes when she got in bed, then returned to her covers. The heat coming from underground warmed the bed. She released a groan of comfort, stretched her body lazily, then changed into a more comfortable position.

…

Yu Yanluo might have been comfortable, but Zu An was definitely not. As he saw Yu Yanluo’s figure disappear from the horizon, the force parting the sea seemed to have disappeared as well. The water gathered together again.

Zu An kicked off the ground and burst out of the ocean’s surface. He moved across the water, quickly traveling dozens of li in an effort to find the edge of the world. How big could a painting be anyway?

But he soon realized that he was greatly mistaken. Regardless of which direction he went in, there was only an endless sea. There was no limit to the horizon. It was as if the world would extend along with him as he moved.

Then, Zu An took out the Tai’e Sword. He released all sorts of powerful attacks at the sky above and the sea below. But no matter how ferocious his attacks were, the skies and sea were too great. His power quickly disappeared.

“Looks like my cultivation hasn’t reached the limits of what this world can tolerate after all.” Zu An’s brow furrowed.

Things would indeed be a bit troublesome if this continued. Even though his Brilliant Glass Bead had plenty of assorted goods, there was a limit to that as well. Even if it could last him for a year and a half, he couldn't stay inside for that long. There were still so many people waiting for him outside.

But he didn’t continue to wantonly waste his strength either. As the ocean waves rose and fell, his thoughts moved quickly.

Suddenly, his eyes lit up. He remembered that back then, when Eunuch Wei Dan had tried to capture Old Mi, he had used a strange kind of footwork when they fought: ‘Steps of Rising Lotus’. Back then, he had claimed that it could break through sealed space.

Later on, after Wei Dan had died and Old Mi had failed to possess him, instead becoming a part of him, Zu An had naturally obtained the technique as well. While he had been interested in that method back then, his cultivation had been too low, so he couldn't use it.

By the time his cultivation was high enough, he already had enough techniques. He hadn’t thought he needed it anymore.

He was currently trapped inside a painting, though. Wasn’t the ‘Steps of Rising Lotus’ the best skill for getting out?

Details of the technique began to reappear in his mind. With his current knowledge and experience, he already had a much deeper and more profound understanding of the technique’s domain.

An hour later, Zu An opened his eyes and looked toward the sky. There wasn’t even a single trace of restlessness left in his expression; instead, it was replaced with a confident smile of success.

He slowly lifted his feet, then walked toward the sky step by step. Each step left a lotus flower imprint behind. Meanwhile, the surrounding space was different from before, when it hadn’t responded at all no matter what he did. Now, gradually, traces of primal chaos and emptiness began to appear.

Zu An knew those were the signs of spatial collapse. He continued his steps. A powerful force gradually began to concentrate around him. It seemed to be the painting’s world doing its utmost to try and restrain him.

His expression remained calm as he continued to step forward. When he reached the sixth step, he sensed that there seemed to be a membrane-like object blocking his path. It was probably Yu Yanluo’s final layer of defense in the painting’s world.

With the seventh step, he instantly broke through the barrier!

Zu An felt his entire body become lighter. The next moment, he reappeared in the room he had been in previously.

There was a painting on the table, but it looked as if someone had poked a hole in that painting and left it strewn on the table. It turned out to be the painting that had trapped Zu An for so long.

Zu An was glad he had the Steps of Rising Lotus. Otherwise, he really might have gambled too much this time. His eyes landed on the bed to the side. He saw that Yu Yanluo was sound asleep. All of his pent-up annoyances surged at that moment. This woman really is sleeping well!

He walked over to the bedside. Yu Yanluo seemed to have sensed something and opened her eyes in a daze. However, she immediately felt her shoulder go numb. Her acupoints had been sealed.

Zu An pulled back his fingers and took the chance to sit down by the bed. He exclaimed, “Huh? You even took off your clothes already? Are you really that relaxed?”

Because Yu Yanluo had been about to get up, her covers slid off, exposing a lot of her skin. It was so fair that it was a bit blinding. The undergarments underneath were black silk, soft and supple. Zu An could tell how comfortable they had to feel even without touching them. There were no decorations or embroidery on them, only some openwork patterns around the edges.

𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺

Zu An thought to himself that this woman looked so pure on the outside, and yet she dressed so… passionately? I have to say, the clothes you wear during the day are pretty reserved. I didn’t expect your clothes underneath to be so bold.

Yu Yanluo clearly sensed his gaze. A flash of rage appeared in her eyes as she asked, “How did you get out?”

You have successfully trolled Yu Yanluo for +444 +444 +444…

“Big… Ahem.” Zu An was alarmed and almost said something he shouldn’t have. “The madam’s painting is not omnipotent. I told you I could get out, so I did.”

Yu Yanluo was a bit confused. Why had this person almost called her ‘big madam’? Her surname was clearly Yu.

But that wasn’t what was important right now. The other man was sitting right by the side of the bed, so close to her. Her expression began to gradually change colors, and her hair began to move around even though there was no wind.

Zu An noticed that a fine layer of goosebumps had begun to appear on Yu Yanluo’s skin due to the cold. He reached out and covered her up again.

When she saw his movement, Yu Yanluo thought he was going to treat her with disrespect and the killing intent in her eyes grew stronger. But when she realized that he was only covering her up better, she was stunned. The color in her eyes also gradually faded as she asked, “Who exactly are you?”

Zu An didn’t notice those fine changes. He replied, “Madam, you are mistaken about something. I am the one questioning you, and not the other way around. You and Jian Taiding worked together to harm me in the past; do you not feel even a bit of guilt?”

Yu Yanluo harrumphed. “Stop pretending already. I know that you are not Jian Yanyou.”

Zu An sighed and gave up on his final test. He replied, “I thought my disguise was seamless. Where exactly did it fail?”

Face of a Thousand Identities and Kawaii Waifu Voice Changer together had actually failed! He had to find out why, and only then could he make the proper changes in the future.