Legend of the Great Sage (Chapter 301-Chapter 400)

And, he had to ensure that the pictures depicted everything. Little children had very limited vocabulary. With some further thought, he realised that what he was doing right now was no longer a so-called novel. Instead, it was a picture book or cartoon.

However, novelists in the beginning were based on rumors and gossip. They were not bound by words. Regardless of the methods he took, all that mattered were people understanding it and believing in it. He wanted to use the methods of the school of Painting to defeat the school of Painting.

He remained in the Cloudwisp association until night time. Finally, he decided on the painting style. However, no matter how he tried to simplify it, the works from the two painters were still much more detailed than the picture book in his memories.

Afterwards, he immediately gathered all the painters skilled in meticulous, realistic painting techniques and got them to copy the style. The story was extremely simple, less than a hundred pages in total.

In the end, Li Qingshan added naively simple narration at the bottom of the illustrations, and it was complete as a picture book.

Li Qingshan weighed it in his hand. This original draft was critical for summoning the characters in the book, as well as his trump card for defeating Chu Danqing.

……

Thirty kilometers away from Clear River city, in a small town.

Thump, thump, thump. Thump, thump, thump. A travelling pedlar swung a rattle-drum around with a carrying pole over his shoulders, walking along the small alleyway paved from stone.

A door opened within the alleyway, and a tiny head stuck out. “Pedlar uncle, is there candy?”

“There is. There’s sesame candy, barley candy, and crunchy candy. There’s each and every kind!” The pedlar cleared his throat and sang out a list of what he sold.

A group of children emerged like small monkeys, gathering around the pedlar. They all held a few copper coins.

“What’s this?” A child spotted a stack of colourful picture books on top of the goods. There were four words on there, but he only recognised the word “horse” or “Ma”.

The pedlar said, “Now you have some pretty sharp eyes. Take it.”

The children each received a book and flipped through it. Perhaps they still did not understand the contents too well, but the beautiful pictures alone had managed to enrapture them. They immediately began to hesitate. To buy candy or to buy the book?

“How much is the book? I’ll buy it!” said a little fatty. He was in possession of much more copper coins than his little friends.

“I’ll buy it too!” said the eldest child there. He had learned how to read from a private tutor, so he understood what the words were saying. He had been drawn in by the story immediately. Even if he had to go without candy, he would still buy it.

The pedlar said, “It’s free. It’s a gift. One for each person. Don’t take anymore than that!”

The children cheered.

“Can I take one too?” asked a child nervously. Compared to his companions’ cotton clothes, he wore patchy clothes, which made him seem particularly small. He did not have a single copper coin at all. He had only come to see what was going on.

“Take it!” The pedlar casually shoved two pieces of candy into the child’s mouth. The money he would make from giving out these books would be even more than clearing all the stock on him. He too was extremely happy over how he could have a prosperous year.

The pedlar travelled away, and the children gathered together.

“How pretty.” “What is this picture showing?”

The eldest child copied his tutor by clearing his throat. “Come, I’ll read it for you!”

……



Sun Shuping received a new draft from Sun Fubai. He planned on going back and familiarising himself with it first, thinking about how he would tell the story before teaching it to the other storytellers.

Although he felt like the novel had lost part of its charm after being edited, there were fortunately not any particularly major changes overall. As a matter of fact, if he could tell some of the turning points properly, it would be even more fascinating. Splitting open the Bright peak in a single stroke was much more interesting.

This youngest owner was not particularly old, but his writing ability was truly impressive. He was far better than that second owner, the Master of Wind and Moon.

PS: I’ve passed Singles day like it doesn’t exist. Yep, all I need to do is ignore it. Women and whatever are unimportant. Just monthly tickets are enough. Hehehehe, sobs.





Chapter 333: Renowned Throughout the Land | Legend of the Great Sage




Although time was rather tight, Sun Shuping still walked at an unhurried pace. He had a healthy glow about him, and he had switched his cloth robes for a fur coat. He was brimming with vigour, differing greatly from the impoverished old storyteller of the past.

His job right now was to train young storytellers for the Cloudwisp association. He made quite a pretty penny.

Although there was no longer any need for him to take the stage, he frequently could not help himself but to go up and tell a part, leading to rounds of applause. He did this to scratch his itch of demonstrating his ability, but it was also because the money he earned on stage would all be his. The Cloudwisp association would not touch it at all.

Sun Shuping often felt embarrassed because of this. He tried persuading his bosses to accept some silver taels in consideration of the long-term situation. He had already begun to treat the Cloudwisp association like half a home, so he obviously hoped the association could carry forward and prosper for a very long time so that humble actors and artists like him could hold their heads high.

Returning to his room, he discovered that his disciple, Li’l Rock, was lying on the ground, utterly absorbed by a picture book. He frowned. “Li’l Rock, why aren’t you familiarising yourself with the material and preparing to go on stage? Why are you reading this instead?” Sun Shuping was originally against his disciple continuing along this line of profession, but after joining the Cloudwisp association, he changed his mind. He wanted to give him some proper training.

Li’l Rock raised his head. “Master, I want to tell this story!”

In the past, Sun Shuping had looked through the picture book Li Qingshan had released too. It was interesting, but it was just a story for children. There were basically no words, and it was too short, making it unsuitable for storytelling or singing out. As a result, he did not take it too seriously.

But now that Li’l Rock had mentioned it, turning a story into a smaller, brief performance was quite a good idea too. It was perfect for Li’l Rock to go on stage and get some practice.

Liu Chuanfeng and Sun Fubai knew about the picture book too. It was all thanks to Sun Fubai’s connections that it could disseminate and propagate so rapidly. However, they also felt like it was just an insignificant picture book that did not suit the standard of the school of Novels, unable to contend against the school of Painting’s Chu Danqing. Before they knew it, they had already forgotten about it, focusing most of their attention on editing Li Qingshan’s novel instead.

Once a chapter was completed, they would immediately spread it throughout the land using the storytellers. It was extremely effective too. Even the Cloudwisp association gained great renown, which filled the two of them with confidence. Over two weeks had already passed by now.

Li Qingshan meditated in his room. He peered inside his body, and the twinkling power of belief gathered in his Divine Talisman of Great Creation, making it shine.