You're Not Falling for Me, Are You?

At the entrance to Moonlight Pavilion, two rather handsome young men in green robes watched Dugu Chen enter without stopping him.

Dugu Chen was somewhat disappointed. It seemed he did not get the protagonist treatment after all.

As he entered the first floor of Moonlight Pavilion, a faint fragrance greeted him.

The screen wall was carved from fine boxwood, giving off a subtle woody scent. Before it stood two exotic orchids over three meters tall, their delicate fragrance lingering in the air.

Though he had merely taken one step into Moonlight Pavilion, it seemed enough to shut out the noise and chaos of the outside world. Beyond the screen wall lay a spacious hall.

The floor was paved with one-meter-square gray tiles, while the surroundings were filled with furnishings made from all manner of expensive woods. Behind a broad desk at the front stood several plainly dressed yet delicate-looking young women.

On either side of the desk stood an exquisitely crafted wooden staircase. It had to be said that anyone who reached the pinnacle of a field possessed their own unique strengths.

After arriving at Moonlight Pavilion, Dugu Chen felt exceptionally relaxed. Cultivation, becoming a god—none of it seemed to have anything to do with him anymore.

Seeing Dugu Chen, two young women came forward and asked, "May I ask who you are?"

Dugu Chen looked at the young woman before him and said calmly, "I am Dugu Chen, disciple of Jade Python Douluo. I wish to meet Madam Yuehua."

The young woman was startled. He was actually a disciple of Poison Douluo. Even in Moonlight Pavilion, where everyone was a noble, he was a pyramid-level honored guest. She nodded.

"Please wait a moment." With that, she quickly went upstairs via the nearby staircase.

Before long, the even, rhythmic sound of footsteps came from above.

A middle-aged man in a long purple robe descended from upstairs with the maid from before. His gaze settled on Dugu Chen, and upon seeing how impeccably dressed he was, the middle-aged man nodded to himself.

Moonlight Pavilion only received refined guests, and Dugu Chen was clearly one such guest with a powerful background. Arriving before Dugu Chen, the middle-aged man said courteously, "Madam is already waiting for Young Master Dugu upstairs."

Dugu Chen nodded and followed the middle-aged man up the stairs. Many elegant decorative displays had been arranged along the way.

The second floor of Moonlight Pavilion was an enormous hall, decorated even more elegantly than the first floor. Every furnishing here was made of eaglewood, filling the entire level with a faint fragrance.

Eaglewood was a premium timber even more valuable than gold. The furniture placed here, taken together, was likely worth an astronomical sum.

If Moonlight Pavilion did not have the Clear Sky Sect backing it, Dugu Chen would eat all this furniture on the spot. Since the Clear Sky Sect had sealed off its mountain, Moonlight Pavilion was probably responsible for procuring its usual supplies.

Just then, a cool voice rang out. "Young Master Dugu's arrival brings great honor to Moonlight Pavilion."

Dugu Chen looked toward the source of the voice and saw a graceful, noble beauty in a pale blue palace dress slowly descending the stairs from the third floor, followed by two beautiful young women.

Looking at the fully matured woman before him, she appeared to be only twenty-seven or twenty-eight at first glance. Yet Dugu Chen knew that this woman, whose eyes seemed to see through all things in the world, was likely nearing forty.

The blue palace dress fit her perfectly. In terms of temperament alone, she was the finest woman Dugu Chen had ever seen.

Hearing Tang Yuehua's flattering words, Dugu Chen cupped his hands and said, "I dare not accept such praise from Madam Yuehua. I came today because I wish to learn from you."

Tang Yuehua looked at Dugu Chen somewhat strangely. In this world, Soul Masters with good talent rarely wasted their time learning such things. As a disciple of Poison Douluo with Innate Full Soul Power, she had assumed Dugu Chen was like Tang Hao and looked down on these matters.

Still, as Dugu Bo's disciple, befriending Dugu Chen was hardly a difficult choice.

"Very well. From now on, you will study etiquette and vocal music with me, just like the other students."

Dugu Chen naturally had no objections. In the days that followed, he went to Moonlight Pavilion every day to learn all kinds of knowledge. It made him feel as though he had returned to the time when he had first taken a master, studying all manner of Soul Beast knowledge with Dugu Bo. His days were immensely fulfilling.

Dugu Chen also witnessed Tang Yuehua's domain: Noble Ring.

To be honest, Dugu Chen could not tell what use this domain had in battle. Whenever Tang Yuehua released it, he only felt a gentle, elegant, and natural ripple, as though it could soothe every sorrow in the world.

Dugu Chen could only marvel at how vast the world was and how it contained all manner of strange things. Perhaps Tang Yuehua had not brought out her martial soul's true power. The power to manipulate emotions—wasn't that the same sort of thing as Huo Gua?

Perhaps Tang Yuehua's domain had been exchanged for her cultivation talent, or perhaps she simply had not found the right way to use it. In any case, it had nothing to do with Dugu Chen.

Every day, he traveled back and forth between Moonlight Pavilion and the Dugu Clan. Whenever they noticed that he returned smelling fragrant, they had nearly called Dugu Bo over to slap him into the wall.

Fortunately, after much explaining, he managed to dispel their strange suspicions.

A year passed in the blink of an eye.

The nightscape of Heaven Dou City was gentle and delicate, unlike the grandeur and majesty of Star Luo City. Each had its own merits.

Elegant, tranquil light streamed from Moonlight Pavilion's several-story building as an endless stream of people entered with invitations in hand.

Moonlight Pavilion held an important position in Heaven Dou City. As the Heaven Dou Empire's academy of etiquette, many nobles came here for further study.

Although Dugu Chen disliked the noble class, every social stratum had its own elites. They were not all useless playboys who only ate and waited to die.

Tonight was the annual graduation ceremony.

Another batch of students was about to graduate. Those invited were the students' parents and elders, undoubtedly influential figures in the capital of the Heaven Dou Empire.

Moonlight Pavilion only admitted one hundred students each year. For those hundred slots, nobles from across the Heaven Dou Empire practically fought tooth and nail. Everyone knew that graduating successfully from Moonlight Pavilion was equivalent to being gilded.

The graduation ceremony was being held on the third floor. Many influential figures had already taken their seats in the venue, hoping to see their children.

As the master of Moonlight Pavilion, Tang Yuehua wore a silver palace dress today. With a smile on her face, she stood to one side of the hall, preparing for the ceremony to begin.

Looking at Tang Yuehua's outfit today, Dugu Chen could not help nodding. It had to be said that Tang Yuehua was truly stunning. She was the most captivating woman Dugu Chen had ever seen; compared to her, Dugu Yan was still far too immature.

"No wonder Brother Chen never gives Moonlight Pavilion's female students a second glance. So you like Madam Yuehua's type! Tell me, if one of your senior sisters found out, how heartbroken would she be?"

Hearing the words beside him, Dugu Chen looked speechlessly at the man next to him. He wore a fitted white brocade robe and carried himself with gentle elegance, but his words were rather barbed.

The man was Xue Qinghe. Over the past year, seeing Dugu Chen studying at Moonlight Pavilion, he had often come to meet him there as a senior. Given their relationship, such casual teasing had become quite common.

Today was Dugu Chen's graduation day. Dugu Bo and Dugu Yan had not come. Sitting with Xue Qinghe in a corner of the venue, Dugu Chen was not a poor student whose abilities were too embarrassing to show—he had simply refused to perform on stage.

Now that he had heard Xue Qinghe's words, Dugu Chen felt he might as well have gone up and performed!

However, Dugu Chen was not the sort to take a beating without fighting back. His nose twitched slightly.

Xue Qinghe asked with a puzzled expression, "What's wrong?" As he spoke, he even sniffed himself. There was no strange smell!

Dugu Chen said meaningfully, "I don't know whether Senior Sister would be angry, but as for Brother Xue... I smell something sour on you."

Xue Qinghe froze slightly at those words, then his heart began racing uncontrollably.

"Brother Xue is already of marriageable age, yet there isn't a single woman by your side. Instead, you spend all your time hanging around with a big man like me. Don't tell me you don't like women?"

Dugu Chen continued pouring on the fire, even shifting slightly to the side as though he were afraid of catching it from him.

Xue Qinghe's face reddened slightly. Then he rebuked him in a low voice, "I-I don't like men. It's just... it's just that Father Emperor hasn't been well these past few years, and state affairs have been keeping me busy. I simply haven't had the time."

Seeing Xue Qinghe's flustered expression, Dugu Chen did not continue teasing her. Busy with state affairs, yet she came every day to chat nonsense with him? He merely stopped talking because he feared she would fly into a rage from embarrassment.

"Alright, alright, I misspoke. The show is about to begin. After it's over, I'll treat you to drinks as an apology, Brother Xue."

Xue Qinghe secretly let out a sigh of relief and shot Dugu Chen an embarrassed, annoyed glare. Yet the flush on her face and her racing heart did not subside.

Seeing Xue Qinghe's embarrassed glare and reddened cheeks, Dugu Chen sucked in a breath. Mainly because he knew she was a beautiful little angel, he had been somewhat affected. He hurriedly began silently reciting Dugu Yan's name in his heart.

Dugu Chen felt that an entire year of cultivation had gone to waste.

After that, neither of the two guilty parties spoke again, instead focusing on the performance on stage. It had to be said that Moonlight Pavilion's graduates were truly exceptional.

A group of young men and women dressed in silver began entering through the doors on both sides. Though there were as many as a hundred of them, they brought no noise into the hall.

The same elegant smile appeared on every face. Their steps were so harmonious, and the faint nobility in their every gesture was neither arrogant nor easily ignored.

As they listened to the ensemble, refined and pure notes flowed forth, crystalline as pearls and jade, clear as morning dew. The hall immediately fell silent, and the exquisite music left all who heard it refreshed and at peace.

It was like the wondrous beauty of a fountain bubbling beneath moonlight, suffused with a poetic atmosphere.

Listening to the wonderful music, Dugu Chen and Xue Qinghe's hearts gradually settled.

The graduation ceremony concluded smoothly. Every student received their graduation certificate from Pavilion Master Tang Yuehua, then joyfully threw themselves into the arms of their loved ones.

Dugu Chen also quietly left the venue with Xue Qinghe, carrying his graduation certificate.

When a maid reported that Dugu Chen and Xue Qinghe had left together, Tang Yuehua found it somewhat strange. Was the Crown Prince of Heaven Dou paying Dugu Chen too much attention? However, she could not have guessed that Xue Qinghe was Qian Renxue in disguise, so she could only make a mental note of it.

After Dugu Chen and Xue Qinghe left Moonlight Pavilion, neither spoke. They exchanged a glance, then went their separate ways. Neither mentioned the drinks they had just agreed to share.