Chapter 840: Terrible Dancing

The old rascal Lu Yang was deeply engrossed in pondering a certain question.

As a transmigrator armed with modern knowledge, he had not only become a disciple of the world’s greatest sect upon crossing over, but also the junior brother to the grandest figure under heaven, with an ancient immortal taking up residence inside his very body, and the most prestigious young noble as his close companion; his own talent for cultivation was the absolute pinnacle of the contemporary era, with barely a soul throughout history capable of rivaling him.

How was it that when the time came to show off, his turn never seemed to arrive?

...

"Will Fellow Daoist Lu Yang please come inside for a conversation?"

From behind the cyan curtain, the voice of Ye Mengyin drifted out once more.

The crowd felt no surprise; if even this lyric poem by Lu Yang failed to satisfy Ye Mengyin, then it would not be their shortcoming, but rather a deliberate choice by the Lotus Pavilion to refuse them hospitality.

Beneath the envious and adoring gazes of the onlookers, the Immortal Fairy parted the cyan curtain and finally beheld Ye Mengyin, who had not shown her face for several days.

The Immortal Fairy retained a slight impression of Ye Mengyin, given that she was the one who had hosted the hundred-and-twenty-thousand-year grand celebration of the Dao Seeking Sect.

The Imperial Capital whispered of how Ye Mengyin was born with thousands of charms and a captivating grace that could steal a heart at first sight, and indeed, she was as exquisitely beautiful as the rumors proclaimed; furthermore, because she possessed a natural allure in her very bones, every single movement carried a distinctive elegance, surpassing even Tao Yaoye and Lan Ting in terms of sheer temptation.

Yet the Immortal Fairy felt absolutely nothing of the sort; Ye Mengyin simply was not as good-looking as herself.

Ye Mengyin met the Immortal Fairy's clear, untroubled gaze and was greatly astonished; the innate allure of her bones affected even her senior and junior sisters of the same sect, and Meng Jingzhou had relied entirely on sheer willpower to defeat her during that previous encounter.

To be looked upon with eyes as clear as Lu Yang's was a first for her.

"Fellow Daoist Lu Yang, it has been a long time since we last met; why not step into the side chamber for a talk?" Ye Mengyin blushed, inviting a male cultivator into her private boudoir for the very first time.

Separated from the crowd by only a single layer of cyan curtain, their voices and movements would be plainly discerned by everyone, leaving them unable to speak or act freely.

"Sure thing," the Immortal Fairy replied without thinking too much, agreeing readily.

Inside the boudoir, vermilion makeup adorned the space between Ye Mengyin's brows, and she wore a flowing gown of radiant, shimmering colors; the hem of her skirt was embroidered with intricate, delicate patterns of flying deities and auspicious clouds, ablaze with color. As she danced, the edges of her skirt lifted gently and her hair fluttered in the breeze, lending her an added touch of ethereal grace.

To witness this dance would be of immense benefit to the cultivation of one’s state of mind.

"Your dancing really isn't up to par," the Immortal Fairy grumbled, unable to watch any longer; this level of dancing was far too poor, lagging leagues behind Zhu Tian.

"Dance requires the body to move in unison with the heart; look at your movements, you are dancing entirely by the book, completely lacking in spiritual vitality."

"Come, learn from me."

The Immortal Fairy personally stepped forward to demonstrate; her movements were as light as air, resembling an exquisitely beautiful fairy stepping right out of an ancient painting, where every frown and smile carried an inexplicable charm, far beyond what could be matched by Ye Mengyin’s dance, which relied heavily on the enhancement of her innate allure.

Ye Mengyin stood dumbfounded; Senior Brother Lu Yang actually knew how to dance?

She had entered the Dao through dance and possessed the highest natural talent for the path of dance within the Charm Sect; otherwise, she would never have been qualified to represent the Charm Sect in the Grand Dao Seeking Tournament.

Ye Mengyin had originally believed that among her peers, no one could best her in the art of dance.

To her surprise, while there was indeed no one among the female cultivators, there was one among the males.

"Could it be that Master Buyu is also skilled in dancing?" Ye Mengyin recalled the rumors surrounding Master Buyu, yet she had never heard of such a thing.

Although the Immortal Fairy's dancing was elegant and moving, she was currently utilizing Lu Yang's body, which made the spectacle appear rather awkward to an outsider.

Fortunately, Ye Mengyin truly loved dance and did not care about Lu Yang's bizarre sense of incongruity, dedicating herself to learning earnestly from the Immortal Fairy.

"Ah, just like that, that's right; you must fathom the meaning behind the dance, you cannot simply mimic it blindly."

In truth, the Immortal Fairy was even more adept at dancing than Zhu Tian; both Ao Ling and Jiang Lianyi had learned from her, though she held herself with the dignity of her status. During the gathering of immortals in the ancient era, she would let Zhu Tian take the stage to perform while she simply watched.

Though Ao Ling and Jiang Lianyi had learned the art, their natural talent for the path of dance still could not compare to Zhu Tian's.

Within the spiritual space, the Immortal Fairy wore pearl and jade ornaments with gold filigree, her hair piled high in an elegant chignon, her eyelids brushed with vermilion eyeshadow, and she was dressed in a bright yellow robe, dancing gracefully within the grand hall; from the tips of her dark hair down to her perfectly rounded toes, every inch of her skin manifested an abundant, overflowing vitality.

The Immortal Fairy had not danced in a long time, so she had to synchronize her movements in the spiritual space with reality in order to reclaim the feeling.

Lu Yang stared blankly at the dancing Immortal Fairy, seriously pondering which minister in history had ever possessed the right to watch the Emperor dance.

After the dance concluded, Ye Mengyin was panting heavily from exhaustion, yet she smiled with immense joy.

She could feel her own progress in the path of dance, and it was a monumental leap forward.

"Thank you for your guidance, Senior Brother Lu Yang!" She bowed deeply in earnest, not daring to show the slightest negligence.

This bit of pointer had spared her ten years of bitter cultivation; calling him "Master" would not be an overstatement.

Yet there was still one matter she could not fathom: what exactly did Lu Yang mean by that final line, "That person is there, where the lantern lights are few and dim"? Was it truly written for her? If it was meant for her, his demeanor upon entering the boudoir did not quite seem like it.

Could it be that Senior Brother Lu Yang saw how poor her talent for dance was and felt disappointed in her?

The more Ye Mengyin thought about it, the more she felt this was highly probable.

...

The lyric poem composed by the Immortal Fairy at the Lotus Pavilion spread rapidly through the Imperial Capital in an incredibly short span of time, leaving even the great scholars of the Hanlin Academy profoundly shocked.

Excellent poetry and lyrics could not only pass down renown through a thousand generations, but more importantly, they could also serve as a means of cultivation for Confucian practitioners.

"This is several degrees better than the lyrics composed by that old rogue Buyu; I fear Lu Yang’s learning does not rely solely on that old rogue Buyu, for his own natural talent regarding Confucian cultivation is astonishing!"

"Magical arts and divine abilities, the way of the sword, the way of Confucianism... this talent stands even above that old rogue Buyu. The outside world rumors that he possesses the potential to become an immortal, and those rumors speak no lie."

"Pay attention to this line in the second stanza: 'Having searched for him hundreds and thousands of times in the crowd, suddenly turning back, that person is there, where the lantern lights are few and dim.' The outside world claims this was written for a young girl of the Charm Sect, but this old man holds a different view."

"Would Brother Zeng care to elaborate?"

"You all must have heard plenty of rumors regarding Lu Yang; among those rumors, have you ever heard a single one concerning matters between men and women? Not even once. This indicates that Lu Yang likely cares nothing for the affairs of passion, and this lyric poem is by no means as superficial as the common folk claim."

"Under this grand premise, look at this line: 'That person is there, where the lantern lights are few and dim.' Who does 'that person' refer to? It is highly likely that it refers to himself!"

"Then the meaning of this line is that Lu Yang has undergone untold hardships in his cultivation, seeking something yet always failing to find it, until finally he attains a sudden realization, discovering that what he sought all along was his own original heart!"

"I have seen far too many cultivators lose their original hearts after stepping onto the path of cultivation; though their cultivation achieves success, they give off a muddled and lost impression, leading to a lack of momentum in their subsequent breakthroughs."

"To know others is wisdom, to know oneself is enlightenment. Lu Yang wrote his insights on cultivation into this lyric poem to awaken the myriad cultivators, allowing them to examine themselves and break through their mental barriers!"

"Hiss, it truly does seem to be the case; this youth possesses magnificent talent."

...

The residence of the Second Prince.

The Second Prince stared intently at the intelligence report in his hands, his eyes burning bright.

"Striving for the imperial throne cannot be achieved without the assistance of Lu Yang; it is time to make contact with him."