The Foremost Guzheng Immortal

"The old rabbit and cold toad weep at heaven's hue; cloud towers half open, their walls slanting white..."

With a single line, a grand vision unfolded.

Song Tan, who had still worn a trace of arrogance, suddenly changed expression.

Qing Dai's eyes shone with wonder. This line was unlike anything before it-the Huainanzi recorded that "a toad dwells in the moon," while the Han Yuefu spoke of "the white rabbit pounding medicine." The old rabbit and cold toad referred to the spirits within the moon.

The verse began with myth, instantly conjuring a cold, hazy realm whose quiet, solitary beauty slowly unfolded!

The attendant who had guided them in was no ordinary man either. His eyes immediately widened, and he even held his breath.

Then he recovered and hurriedly signaled a maid beside him. She nodded and swiftly headed up to the third floor.

Lu Changfeng held his brush and wrote.

Studying medicine was difficult, and the pressure of treating illnesses and saving lives was immense. Writing large characters and copying calligraphy from stone inscriptions and model books had been one of his ways to unwind. Over the years, he had explored Flying White, Slender Gold, regular script, clerical script, and running script. With his intelligence and keen understanding, his work might not rival the great masters of this era, but it was certainly presentable.

Lu Changfeng raised his elbow, his brush dancing gracefully. "The jade wheel rolls through dew, its rounded radiance wet; jade pendants meet along lanes fragrant with cassia..."

At once, the fragrance of ink suffused the air, and an immortal aura seemed to drift through the room.

Song Tan's expression grew uglier still. He stared blankly at the poem, then abruptly looked up at Lu Changfeng. His lips moved, but not a single word emerged.

Footsteps sounded.

Two figures appeared at the third-floor stairway, one in white and one in black, as though a moon-palace immortal and a rakshasa of shadowed fragrance had descended together.

The woman in front was Luo Qingge. She wore a plain white gown that trailed along the floor, her dark hair loosely pinned with a single jade hairpin. She wore no other ornaments. Her face was exquisitely fair, her skin whiter than snow, her brows and eyes as lovely as a painting. Every glance carried a distant, lofty air, untouched by the smoke and dust of mortal life.

Half a step behind her stood Yan Mingxiao. Utterly unlike Luo Qingge's ethereal grace, she wore fitted black martial attire that outlined her vigorous, spirited figure. Her features were striking and heroic, her eyes bright and sharp as an unsheathed blade. She openly swept her gaze over the people below, with a hint of scrutiny and amusement.

Their appearance instantly stole all the splendor in the room.

Qing Dai, who had stayed close behind Lu Changfeng, felt her heart abruptly tighten.

Almost instinctively, she clenched the short blade inside her sleeve as an unprecedented sense of danger seized her.

The woman in white possessed a cold, aloof beauty, unsullied by dust, while the woman in black had a restrained yet dangerous presence. The feeling she gave Qing Dai was no less formidable than that of the Twenty-Four Floral Periods in the residence!

Watching her master's carefree figure as he wielded his brush and spilled ink, she felt torn to the utmost. She wanted him to display his talent and win recognition, yet she wanted him to have nothing to do with those two women.

Oblivious to everyone around him, Lu Changfeng's brush raced like dragons and serpents as he continued writing. "Yellow dust and clear waters lie beneath the three mountains; a thousand years of change gallop past like horses. From afar, the nine lands are nine wisps of smoke; the vast sea pours from a single cup."

The final two lines shattered stone and startled heaven, fitting the painting perfectly.

They even elevated the painting's unique perspective of gazing down upon the mortal world, and its sense of boundless time and space, to the utmost!

Lu Changfeng looked at the poem and nodded in satisfaction.

Li He was known as the "Ghost of Poetry," and this poem, "Dreaming of Heaven," was one of his masterpieces-strange and soaring, sorrowfully gorgeous, romantic and beautiful.

With this to hold the floor, surely he could trade it for a tune.

The poem was finished, and the brush was laid down.

The entire hall fell silent.

Qing Dai instinctively held her breath. Though she knew little of poetry, the vastness of its imagery and the reactions of everyone present told her how extraordinary it was.

The attendant was already dumbstruck. Having welcomed and seen off countless guests at the Moon-Gathering Tower, he fancied himself acquainted with many brilliant scholars and gifted men, yet he had never seen a poem of such magnificent scope and astonishing imagination!

This was no longer merely a verse composed to complement a painting. Its artistic vision blended with the tower mistress's work, even carrying the painting's meaning into a more distant sky!

As for Song Tan, his face had long since gone deathly pale. The fine lines he could not find despite racking his brains had come effortlessly to the other man. Especially that majestic sweep of looking down upon the nine provinces and seeing the vast sea as a mere cup of water—it far exceeded his imagination. Where had this man sprung from? There was no one like him in Wenxiu Academy!

At the stairway, Yan Mingxiao stood with her arms folded, her eyes likewise filled with undisguised admiration.

She tilted her head slightly and transmitted her voice to Luo Qingge beside her, a trace of amusement in her tone. "Well? This certainly opened our eyes today. He... really does seem to have come to hear music."

Luo Qingge did not answer immediately.

She stood quietly, like a sculpture of jade. Only her cool eyes moved, fixed unwaveringly upon the poem that seemed to gather moonlight and starlight within it. After a moment, she smiled softly. "What a pity my master has yet to return from wandering. Otherwise, upon seeing this poem, my master would surely regard its author as a kindred soul for life."

Her voice was clear and pure, like ice striking a jade chime, breaking the silence that filled the room.

Those words were addressed not only to Yan Mingxiao, but also to everyone below, especially Lu Changfeng.

With light, graceful steps, Luo Qingge descended the last few stairs and came before Lu Changfeng. Gathering her skirts, she bowed with exquisite elegance. "Your talent is extraordinary, young master. Qingge is humbled. This poem not only matches the painting's vision, but also captures the mysteries of heaven and earth. Please come up to the Cloud-Deep Pavilion. I shall personally play a piece for you, in gratitude to a kindred soul."

Lu Changfeng looked at the "Zither Immortal" whose name resounded throughout Chang'an. Seeing her clear gaze and sincere manner, with no trace of empty courtesy, he felt thoroughly pleased.

He clasped his hands in return and smiled. "It is my good fortune to hear you play in person, Miss Qingge. Please lead the way."

Under Song Tan's jealous, resentful gaze, Qing Dai's anxious eyes, and the envy of everyone else, Lu Changfeng calmly followed Luo Qingge and Yan Mingxiao up the stairs to the third floor.

Inside the Cloud-Deep Pavilion, incense curled through the air amid elegant furnishings. Luo Qingge sat before the instrument stand, her slender fingers lightly brushing the strings.

"What piece would you like to hear, young master?"

Lu Changfeng sat down at ease. His gaze swept over the pavilion's tasteful furnishings before settling on Luo Qingge. He said frankly, "A guest follows the host's wishes. I have long heard the name 'Zither Immortal,' and it is a great honor to enter this pavilion today. Please play whatever you wish."

A trace of surprise flashed through Luo Qingge's eyes at his words, then softened into a faint smile.

She said nothing more. Her fingertips moved, and clear, pure music flowed from the strings.

At first, it was like a clear spring washing over stones, ethereal and limpid; then it became wind passing through a pine forest, distant and lingering. Within the music lay an immortal grace transcending the mortal world, yet also a faint thread of loneliness and searching.

Lu Changfeng closed his eyes to listen and could not help marveling.

The moment a true expert made a move, their mastery showed. She truly deserved the name Zither Immortal. He felt as though he were watching a live traditional-music performance on National Treasures, his entire mind immersed in the melody.

It was then that Luo Qingge quietly began circulating her sect's secret inheritance, the Heavenly Music Secret Canon.

A strand of pure, gentle true qi spread with the melody. It was not an attack, but a guide. Lu Changfeng felt his mind grow ever clearer, as though freed from the confines of his body, roaming between heaven and earth with the music-sometimes soaring straight upward to gaze down upon a boundless sea of clouds, sometimes drifting alone, feeling the endless expanse of heaven and earth.

This was Luo Qingge's original composition, "Lonely Heart in Cloud Ravines."

For the first time, she played it in full before an outsider. It held many of the insights and feelings she had gained since beginning her cultivation of the Heavenly Music Secret Canon.

As she played, she also quietly observed Lu Changfeng's reactions.

The piece ended, its lingering notes curling through the air, and silence filled the pavilion.

Lu Changfeng slowly opened his eyes and praised her sincerely. "This is the very essence of Chang'an's elegance. Today's visit was truly worthwhile. Your Heavenly Music Secret Canon has reached the realm of captivating the heart, and this piece possesses a lofty vision beyond the reach of ordinary people. Only..."

Luo Qingge was not surprised that he knew of the Heavenly Music Secret Canon.

She had already concluded that the man before her came from a family with a deep scholarly tradition, surely a great clan, very possibly one of the Five Surnames and Seven Houses. The first half of his praise left her unmoved; if she did not hear such compliments a thousand times a day, she heard them eight hundred. But at the latter half, she abruptly raised her head. "Only what? Please speak frankly."

Lu Changfeng smiled. "Only... the loftier the melody, the fewer who can harmonize with it; the loftier the heart, the more easily it becomes lonely. Using the Heavenly Music Secret Canon to portray such a transcendent realm is like serving guests nectar and jade wine. Unfortunately, most of those seated before you are... well, Ox Chewing Peonies. How could your heart remain content if this continues? When your feelings cannot flow freely and become knotted within your heart, I fear the root of illness takes hold."

"...The root of... illness?"

Luo Qingge had finally heard the words of understanding she had hoped for. Lu Changfeng had indeed discerned the loneliness within her music-a world so vast, yet a kindred soul so hard to find. But she had never imagined that the conversation would suddenly turn to "illness."

Surprised and intrigued, Luo Qingge asked, "Do you also understand the healing arts, young master?"

"A little."

Now this is my actual profession, Lu Changfeng thought. He had known at a glance that Luo Qingge was ill, and naturally would not let an opportunity to earn a reward slip away. He smiled gently. "Do you often feel a slight warmth over your cheekbones in the afternoon, as though they are flushed? At night, though you can fall asleep, do you dream frequently and wake easily, sometimes even suffering night sweats? And does your throat often feel dry, itchy, and uncomfortable, requiring plain tea to soothe it?"

With every sentence, the astonishment in Luo Qingge's eyes deepened.

"You..."

She had assumed these minor discomforts came from mental strain and had never mentioned them to anyone. Yet now he had identified every one of them without the slightest error.

She instinctively touched her cheek, then lightly touched her throat. The way she looked at Lu Changfeng had completely changed-and the scene before her was beginning to turn rather peculiar.

Luo Qingge could barely suppress a smile. A moment ago, they had been in an elegant realm of exchanged poetry and musical discourse. In the blink of an eye, this gifted scholar had transformed into... a physician examining her through observation, listening, questioning, and pulse-taking?

The turn was decidedly abrupt, yet carried a curious humor of its own.

"These are signs of yin deficiency in the lungs and kidneys, with deficiency fire flaring upward."

Lu Changfeng explained, "You devote yourself to music, and playing and singing consume lung yin most heavily. Excessive thought and sleepless nights, meanwhile, quietly deplete kidney water. When the metal of the lungs and the water of the kidneys cannot nourish one another, deficiency fire rises, scorching the throat above and disturbing the mind within. Its source is indeed inseparable from your lofty solitude, and from the failure of your state of mind and cultivation method to blend in perfect harmony."

[Noble Physician's Canon activated.]

[Target: Luo Qingge. Identity: successor of the reclusive, renowned Heavenly Music Sect, young sect master, Chang'an's Number One Zither Immortal. Overall value: three stars.]

[Condition: internal heat from deficiency fire (active phase).]

[Success reward: Six Methods of the Guzheng.]

[Failure penalty: none.]

Six Methods of the Guzheng?

Lu Changfeng froze for a moment. Could it be the Six Methods of the Guzheng from "One tune rends liver and bowels; where beneath the heavens can a kindred soul be found"?

This trip to the Moon-Gathering Tower really wasn't wasted!

While he was rejoicing over the canon's reward, Luo Qingge saw his suddenly thoughtful expression, which made him look all the more "unfathomable." Coupled with his rapid shift from refined artistry to medical theory, it finally proved too much, and she burst into laughter.

Her smile was like ice and snow beginning to melt, like spring flowers suddenly blooming. It washed away much of her cold distance and lent her a fresh, lively warmth.

"Young master."

Her brows and eyes curved with her smile. "You truly are a most interesting man. One moment, you were discussing poetry and listening to music; the next, you became a skilled physician bringing healing to the world. Such a... distinctive kindred soul is a first for me, Qingge."