Chapter 26: Time to Return to the Painting World
Tang Mu didn't waste time on the road and quickly returned to the hostel.
"Tang Mu!" Aunt Hu Wanjing, the caretaker of the hostel who was sweeping, called out after seeing him enter the gate. "Why are you back early? Have you finished the assessment?"
"Yes, I have finished," Tang Mu replied, beaming.
"Nice!" Aunt Hu Wanjing gave him a thumbs-up. "How was it?"
"I did my best. I have most likely obtained the qualifications to join a good university on a scholarship."
"Congrats. I'm really proud of you." A soft smile bloomed on Aunt Wanjing's face.
"Thanks," Tang Mu said and glanced around. He saw some of his younger hostel mates lounging on the chairs around the compound. But he didn't spot any high school finalists in the same year as him.
"What about Ning'er and the rest?" He asked Aunt Wanjing. "Are they not back yet?"
"Nope! You're the first to return. Your friends should still be going through the assessment." Aunt Wanjing eyed the archery bag on his back and asked, "What is that on your back?"
"It's a gift from my former principal."
"Is it a weapon?"
"Yes, it's a runic longbow."
Aunt Wanjing creased her brows. "Since it's a gift from your principal, I won't say anything. But keep it well and ensure you don't hurt the innocent with it."
"Okay, I promise."
"Good. That puts my heart at ease."
"Let me leave you to your work," Tang Mu said. He then began walking toward the hostel entrance but stopped after taking a few steps. "By the way, I'm at a critical point in my training. Please help me tell Ning'er and the rest not to disturb me tonight."
Tang Mu planned to enter the Star God Pagoda and the painting world that night. He didn't want others to come to his room and discover that he had abruptly vanished.
Aunt Wanjing looked at him with unconcealed surprise after hearing his request. "Shouldn't you take a day off and rest after finishing the Psionic Society's assessment?"
"I would also have loved to do that," Tang Mu answered after organizing his thoughts. "But as I said, I'm at a critical point in my training. I feel like I'm at a threshold of achieving incredible progress in my psionic powers. That's why I plan to use tonight to meditate and go past this threshold."
"Then, I guess you should focus on your training," Aunt Wanjing said with a smile. "You can lock your door from inside while training. I will make sure that no one disturbs you tonight."
"Thank you," Tang Mu gave the caretaker a deep bow.
"You don't need to thank me. It is my duty," Aunt Wanjing said. "Go ahead and start your training."
Tang Mu nodded and quickly entered the hostel. He took the lift to the top floor and entered his residence after swiping his card and inputting his pin.
Since he would be entering the painting world at night, he decided to rest during the day. He readily took a shower and enjoyed a light meal before jumping into bed and sinking into slumber.
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He slept from midday until evening when the sun had almost sunk below the horizon in the west. After waking up, he enjoyed a home-cooked meal before starting his preparations to enter the painting world.
Over the past few days, Tang Mu had spent a sizeable fraction of his meager savings in the X-Global virtual markets to purchase a few pieces of affordable gear in preparation for his return to the painting world. These included combat pants, a camouflage T-shirt, a military-style cap, a combat jacket, fingerless tactical gloves, and second-hand combat boots.
The pieces of gear were all of low quality and without any runes inscribed on them. But Tang Mu was confident they would serve just fine during his second expedition in the painting world.
He readily put on the pieces of the gear, one after another. Then, after stepping into his boots and tying the shoelaces, he picked up his new bow and quiver of arrows and settled on the floor in a cross-legged position.
After placing his weapon and quiver of arrows on his lap, he swallowed his last crystal of the red-tier origin essence from the painting world and then regulated his breathing. He soon forgot the passage of time and sank into a deep meditative state while practicing the Star God Celestial Diagram.
As usual, he effortlessly perceived the cognitive image of his Galactic Chakra three feet above his head and continued undergoing the psionic energy baptism. He persisted in training, taking firm steps toward fully unlocking his chakra until Little Green's voice suddenly sounded in his mind.
"Tang Mu! Three hours of meditation are up. The star orb has also finally absorbed the required energy to transport you to the painting world. Do you wish to enter the Star God Pagoda to undergo the transfer now?"
Tang Mu's eyes flashed open as he replied, "I'm ready. I will enter now."
"Alright," Little Green answered simply.
The next moment, a mysterious force emerged from Tang Mu's body before enveloping him in a warm, starry glow. His silhouette started flickering in and out of existence, making him appear like a blurred image of a defective holographic projector. Then, just as abruptly, all signs of his presence faded, and he vanished from his room.
He experienced the familiar dizziness before he materialized on the first-level platform of the Star God Pagoda's Celestial Gallery. Taking a deep breath, he rose from the ground and glanced around.
Hovering all around him were the glowing starry crystals illuminating the area, while below his feet was the almost-incorporeal and broad diaphanous platform.
Tang Mu then took in the ethereal-like stairs connecting to the place before finally pivoting his gaze onto the eye-catching mural painted on the tall arched stone slab rising from the middle of the platform.
All the particulars of the painting were like he remembered. Its focus was the expansive savanna grassland with a towering and magnificent mountain in the background. And like the previous time, Tang Mu could also make out details of various animals going about their own things in the jungle.
Just then, the space before Tang Mu shimmered and twisted. An overly pretty and tiny feminine humanoid with green hair, glowing pale white skin, and adorable green wings quickly materialized into being. It was Little Green appearing in the flesh.
Her tiny body exuded a sacred majesty as she floated there like a fairy untainted by the world. The seams of her exquisite princess gown swayed in the non-existent breeze, and her dazzling green eyes glistened like the most luminous of night pearls.
She beamed at Tang Mu and said, "We meet again."
Chapter 26: Time to Return to the Painting World
"Yes, we meet again." Tang Mu returned her smile and decided to compliment her. "Little Green! Your beauty and majesty almost blind my mortal eyes. How can a being such as you exist in this world?"
The corners of Little Green's adorable little mouth curled up. She shook her head and sighed. "You're lucky that I'm currently suppressing my gorgeousness. Otherwise, you might have already gotten a heart attack or, at the very least, gone mad. That's how lethal my cuteness can be."
"Ohh!" Tang Mu's mind blanked out as he realized how shamelessly self-satisfied the little fairy could be. He shook his head and said, "I'll enter the painting world immediately. Can I count on you to transfer me out of there when I meet danger?"
"Yes, you can count on me," Little Green said. "But before you head in, I must inform you about a few things."
Tang Mu nodded and motioned for Little Green to continue.
"First and foremost," Little Green said, "time flows at a different rate in the painting world. For instance, the ratio of the passage of time within the Celestial Gallery's first-level painting dimension and the outside world is 1 to 5."
"That implies that if you spend five days in the dimension, only one day will have passed in the real world. And if you spend two and a half days inside, only half a day will have elapsed outside. This is the most crucial attribute of all the painting worlds."