At that moment, his state of mind suddenly opened into clarity. The invisible shackles that had long bound his spirit snapped apart with a crack. Amid the surge of emotion, even the bottleneck of his cultivation began to loosen, showing signs of a breakthrough!
Boldness rose in Yun Qing's heart, mingled with a tide of tenderness. Unable to contain himself, he threw back his head and let out a long cry that shook the heavens, startling flocks of immortal birds into flight.
Before his cry had faded, he had become a swift streak of Dark Xuan light, sweeping over the flower fields wreathed in spiritual mist below and landing lightly beneath an immense, jade-like immortal flowering tree.
Drawn by his aura, petals gleaming like jade drifted down in a breathtaking shower.
Amid the falling blossoms, Yun Qing flicked his wrist, and the spear he had just impulsively renamed "Wordless" appeared in his hand.
The spear followed his will; his heart became one with it. With a gentle turn of his wrist, he traced steady, seamless arcs through the air, without edge or sharpness, yet seemingly capable of bearing all things. A spear art born from the true meaning of chaos and nirvana, now infused with his newfound clarity of mind, unfolded freely in this immortal paradise.
Spear shadows moved like dragons, stirring wind and cloud and sweeping up fallen blossoms like snow. Resonating with the spiritual grace of the surrounding world, they displayed a breathtaking elegance.
What Yun Qing did not know was that atop the highest, most secluded Immortal Mountains in Langhuan Clear Void...
On a white-jade pavilion half-hidden within a drifting sea of clouds, Yun Huang stood alone at the railing.
The mountain breeze stirred his white-and-gold brocade robes. His pale-gold eyes quietly watched the Dark Xuan figure beneath the flowering tree, moving with effortless freedom as though united with heaven and earth.
The resentment stirred by that pile of Boudoir Grievance Poems and a certain someone's crybaby behavior had inexplicably dissipated by more than half the moment Yun Qing stepped out of the Immortal-Sealing Tower and voiced his feelings in that long cry. All that remained was a helplessness caught between laughter and tears.
Now, watching Yun Qing break free of his gloomy inner knots, his spear art unrestrained and exhilarating, brimming with vitality and the joy of comprehending the Dao, Yun Huang's expression-cold for days-unconsciously softened amid the summit's clouds, where no one could see.
Deep within his eyes, the fracture left by deception and suspicion was finally filled and healed by the vivid sincerity, even clumsiness, of the scene before him.
He watched in a slight daze. His gaze grew distant, as though touching indistinct fragments of light and shadow sealed deep within the Immortal Emperor's memories.
He remained silent for a long while.
The mountain breeze brushed past, carrying the faint fragrance of flowers below and the sound of a spear cutting through the air...
Yun Huang slowly turned and walked back into the pavilion. At some unknown point, an ancient zither had appeared on the table carved from a single block of jade chalcedony patterned with exquisite flowers.
Its body seemed neither wood nor jade, a gentle, subdued glow flowing over it as though it held the sediment of endless ages. Its seven strings looked like condensed moonlight, with faint Great Dao Patterns of the primordial Great Dao flowing naturally along them.
This zither was called "Xi Huang." It had been among his most cherished possessions in his previous life and had accompanied his true spirit into reincarnation. Long sealed away, it had not sounded again.
Yun Huang settled calmly before it, cleansed his hands, and quieted his breathing. The oppressive imperial might surrounding him withdrew, becoming an aloof, expansive grace untouched by the mortal world.
His slender, jade-like fingertips gently rested upon the cool strings.
"Zheng-!"
A clear, lofty note suddenly cleaved through Langhuan Clear Void!
Then the melody flowed forth like a murmuring stream. At first, it was a clear spring in high mountains, washing away worldly cares; then it became the bright moon among the pines, illuminating Qian-Kun. It changed again into waves rising through a sea of clouds, boundless and vast, embracing all creation...
The music was neither impassioned nor piercing, yet it possessed a magnificent resonance of the Dao. Every note accorded with the deepest truths of heaven and earth, stirring the spiritual workings of Langhuan Clear Void's origin.
It did not disrupt Yun Qing's spear movements. Instead, like a silent kindred soul in perfect accord with him, it quietly smoothed the imperfect Dao resonance within his spear art, helping him comprehend heaven and earth.
Spear shadows danced with falling blossoms; Dao resonance soared with spiritual mist. Man and spear, intent and surroundings, strength and rhythm achieved an unprecedented, pristine naturalness.
"Crack..."
Within that perfect resonance, the barrier of the early Immortal King stage fractured with a faint sound, and then-
Boom!
The middle Immortal King stage came as naturally as water flowing into its channel!
The piece ended, its final note drifting away into the sea of clouds and mountain mist.
Yun Qing lowered his spear and stood still, his aura surging with abundant power. He had firmly entered the middle stage of the Immortal King Realm! Brilliant light shone in his eyes, rich with newfound understanding, and his profound double pupils seemed to reflect still greater truths of heaven and earth.
He raised his head toward the cloud-wreathed pavilion atop the Immortal Mountains, his chest swelling with indescribable gratitude and closeness.
He knew who had played the zither.
He had also felt, with utter clarity, the protection and guidance within the music.
With his spirit stirred, he drew a breath and called out, his voice ringing clear as jade chimes striking together. It carried an unprecedented, open familiarity and... a tendency to take a mile when given an inch, reaching straight to the summit:
"Little Brother Huang-!"
"Your music helped me tremendously. I cannot thank you enough! Might I ask Little Brother Huang for further instruction and a little sparring?"
Atop the Immortal Mountains, within the pavilion.
Yun Huang, who had still been immersed in the lingering harmony of heaven and earth, froze at the fingertips.
An incredulous flash of astonishment swept across his incomparably handsome face, swiftly replaced by profound irritation!
Yun Qing, you mood-ruining brute!
I played Xi Huang to aid your comprehension of the Dao-a chance hard to find even across ten thousand ages! Its lingering resonance still suffuses heaven and earth, nourishing all things. Instead of quietly contemplating the Dao's true meaning, instead of seizing this opportunity to consolidate and elevate your state of mind... even a word about the wonders of zither playing would have done! Yet all you can think about is fighting?!
"Instruction"?
The Immortal Emperor's fingertips trembled with anger. He nearly overturned the precious Xi Huang before him.
Still... that "Little Brother Huang" had rolled off the tongue remarkably smoothly, and a certain someone had half-reluctantly accepted it without protest.
He drew a deep breath, forcibly suppressing the urge to throw that mood-ruining creature below straight out of the grotto-heaven. His golden eyes narrowed dangerously as he "glared" through layer upon layer of clouds at the expectant figure below.
Very good. When we spar, I will make certain you learn the price of "stabilizing your cultivation."
"...Come up."
His voice was icy, the words seemingly forced through gritted teeth.
Below, Yun Qing's eyes lit up like stars. He became a streak of Dark Xuan light, crossed the mountains in an instant, and landed properly outside the pavilion, cupping his hands in greeting.
His face brimmed with an irrepressible smile and vigorous fighting spirit. "Little Brother Huang!"
Yun Huang surveyed him expressionlessly. His gaze lingered briefly on the spear in his hand before he suddenly spoke. "Didn't you rename that spear 'Wordless'?"
The smile on Yun Qing's face instantly stiffened, a clear trace of embarrassment and awkwardness flashing across it. He said quietly, "Ahem... I lost my head for a moment and spouted nonsense. Don't take it seriously. Silent Abyss still rolls off the tongue better."
"I find 'Wordless' rather affected." Yun Huang's tone was level. His fingertips unconsciously brushed the strings, drawing out a succession of clear notes. "Of all things in this world, the weightiest and most difficult are not 'breaking' and 'destroying,' but 'bearing' and 'supporting.' Bear the clear and the turbid to divide heaven from earth; support mountains and rivers to secure the four directions; receive All Beings' Willpower to keep civilization's flame alight... and bear, too, the faint ripples within your boundless heart."
As his words fell, he effortlessly drew a strand of rich, pure mystic yellow origin from the depths of Langhuan Clear Void's origin. Symbolizing the foundation of the earth and the mother essence of all things, it slowly drifted into the spear in Yun Qing's hand.
The instant the spear touched the Dark Yellow energy, all its radiance abruptly withdrew. Its dark shaft, once marked with ferocious beast patterns, seemed baptized by the gentle, weighty earth. All its cold, hard killing intent faded away, transforming into a warm, profound dark yellow hue.
Upon the shaft, faint visions appeared of undulating mountains and rivers and all things flourishing. A vast, unrivaled, weighty resonance of the Dao naturally spread from it.
Yun Huang spoke slowly, his voice resonating with the sea of clouds and the Heavenly Wind. "This spear has been reborn. Let it be called 'Bear All Things.'"
He wrote in midair, Dark Yellow Dao resonance flowing around his fingertips. Two ancient divine characters formed, simple and powerful, and the words "Bear All Things" merged completely into the spear.
The Book of Changes said: "The earth's nature is Kun; thus the noble person bears all things with profound virtue."
Without earth, heaven's fierce strength would lose all restraint, scorching all things; without heaven, earth would fall into deathly silence and nether darkness, its vitality severed.
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