On the other side of the banquet hall, Na'er has pulled Xu Xiaoyan to the dessert area.
The long table is covered with a white linen tablecloth, and there are three rows of desserts on it, from strawberry mousse to matcha mille-feuille, from chocolate fountain to freshly baked egg tarts, each of which is served on a silver plate and neatly stacked.
Na'er put four macarons of different colors on his plate, then reached for the caramel pudding in the distance, with a small piece of cream stuck to the corner of his mouth.
Xu Xiaoyan was holding a plate next to him, and he ate in a much more polite manner than Na'er.
Gu Yue stood one step behind them, holding a glass of orange juice in his right hand.
She did not go to get snacks, but quietly watched the two girls shuttle back and forth in front of the dessert table, occasionally reaching out to help Na'er on her shoulder when she almost bumped into the waiter.
The dark purple dress made her look a little softer than usual, but her calm and controlling aura remained unchanged.
Suddenly, the lights in the banquet hall dimmed once, and a beam of chasing light hit the stage directly in front of the dance floor.
Host Sima Lanxiao stood there, dressed in a white suit, with just the right smile, and his voice spread throughout the hall through Amplifying Soul Tool.
"Dear guests, tonight is the first dinner for the two mainland missions. It can be seen that everyone is relatively reserved." He paused and glanced at the few couples of dancers on the dance floor, knowing his mission, "But young people do not need to suppress their enthusiasm. Later we will select multiple awards such as best dress and best dance partner. We hope to see more figures appearing in the center of the dance floor."
The music started again, a slow-paced waltz. There were gradually more people on the dance floor. A few pairs of the Star Luo Empire and Federation students tentatively slid onto the dance floor, with their hems and skirts spinning under the light. But most people still stood on the edge of the dance floor, holding wine glasses and keeping a polite distance.
Xu Xiaoyan thrust the empty plate into Na'er's hand, walked through the crowd, and walked to Xiao Mu.
The starry sky skirt shone with layers of light as she walked, like a moving galaxy. She stretched out her hand towards Xiao Mu.
"Come on, let's have the first dance."
"Okay."
Xiao Mu put down the wine glass and held her hand.
The moment the two people walked onto the dance floor, the people around them took a step back unconsciously. Xiao Mu's palm was firmly supported on her waist, and the other hand held her hand. The fingertips were slightly cold but the force was precise.
Xu Xiaoyan put his hand on his shoulder, looked up at him, and his smile became brighter.
"Follow my beat."
"Got it."
The movements of the two people were completely synchronized. They turned, slid, and spun. The moon-white skirt bloomed and closed in his hands, like a flower that bloomed repeatedly in the night wind.
His black dress and her starry sky skirt overlapped each other in the rotation, and the black and white were clear and Entanglement. The chatter on the dance floor gradually became quieter, some people stopped drinking and looked at them, and some people poked their companions with their elbows to indicate to look into the dance floor.
The violinist of the band improvised a few decorative notes, pushing the tempo of the waltz faster, but the two people's dance steps were still as smooth as if they had been rehearsed countless times.
Xu Xiaoyan raised his head, a thin layer of sweat appeared on his forehead, and his eyes were as bright as broken stars reflected in the crystal lamp.
"You haven't learned anything, haven't you?"
"But I know a thing or two."
Xu Xiaoyan couldn't help but laugh, leaned on his shoulder and whispered "liar". On the edge of the dance floor, Na'er was eating angrily, taking a bite of chocolate cake in his mouth.
Gu Yue stood next to her, already drinking half of the orange juice. Looking at the pair of spinning figures on the dance floor, the corner of his mouth moved slightly.
The last note fell. Xiao Mu held Xu Xiaoyan's waist, and the two stopped in the middle of the dance floor. The light followed them for a moment, and then slowly dispersed.
There was applause all around, like thunder.
Xiao Mu let go of his hand, and Xu Xiaoyan withdrew from his arms. His cheeks were slightly red, his breathing was not completely steady, and he could not suppress the smile on his lips. The two walked out of the dance floor side by side.
Na'er was the first to rush over. She had finished eating the chocolate cake in her hand, and threw the plate somewhere. The hem of her silver-white short skirt jumped with her steps.
"Brother, you danced so well!" She ran to the two of them and stopped in front of them. Her eyes were bright and she could not hide her pride in her voice.
Gu Yue came from behind, still holding the glass of orange juice in her hand. She walked up to the two of them, her eyes first fell on Xu Xiaoyan's reddish face, and then moved to Xiao Mu.
Her tone was as calm as ever, but every word was clear. "Dancing well."
"Thank you Gu Yue." Xu Xiaoyan said with a smile.
Gu Yue nodded, took a sip of orange juice, and then added to Xiao Mu, "You look pretty good."
"Really? Beautiful lady, do you also want to dance?" Xiao Mu teased.
"Okay. Xu Xiaoyan, do you have any objection?" Gu Yue also asked for Xu Xiaoyan's consent.
Xu Xiaoyan nodded, knowing that Gu Yue had no idea about Xiao Mu.
Just be on the lookout for Na'er.
The band changed to a slow jazz song, and the saxophone trailed lazily. Xiao Mu and Gu Yue walked onto the dance floor, keeping a polite distance from the other couples.
He held her waist, she put her hands on his shoulders, and the two of them assumed a standard ballroom dance posture.
Gu Yue's palms were dry and stable, and her knuckles did not tremble slightly like Xu Xiaoyan's. She regarded this dance as an experiment, and the angle and strength of each step were extremely precise.
"You secretly cultivated Artificial Soul Spirit in the laboratory." Gu Yue said directly.
Xiao Mu kept walking and turned her around in a half-arc. "When did you find out?"
"Last week." Gu Yue stepped on his racket without any confusion, "When you went to eat, I looked through the records on your experimental bench."
Xiao Mu took her in a circle and was silent for a moment. "Why, do you want to find justice for Spirit Pagoda?"
"No, just do it if you want to, I won't stop you."
Gu Yue continued to get down to business, "If Artificial Soul Spirit can break through the stability bottleneck, it will mean more to Soul Guidance Technology than First Gundam. But if you take this path, Spirit Pagoda will not sit idly by. Soul Spirit is their lifeblood."
"So I haven't made it public." Xiao Mu said, "Currently only the two of us know."
"Really?"
"After the first stable version is produced." Xiao Mu took her around a corner, "I already have some clues about the stability issue. I already have a direction for artificial synthesis, and I will soon be able to break Spirit Pagoda's monopoly."
"You want to overthrow Spirit Pagoda?" Gu Yue asked in confusion.
"Of course not, what I want to do is bigger than you think. And Spirit Ascension Platform." Xiao Mu smiled lightly, "As long as something can be reproduced many times, it can be produced sooner or later."