Preliminary Cooperation

He bound the completed manuscripts into a volume and wrote the title "Star Dou Night Tales" on the cover with a brush. He signed it "Wen Yansheng"-a name that used a homophone of the "Yan" in his own name and also hinted at the meaning "using literature as an inkstone to write of Star Dou."

"Wen Yansheng..." Xiao Wu read the name aloud, then suddenly smiled. "That sounds lovely! What about me? I want to help too!"

"You're in charge of being the first test reader." Yan Zu pushed a freshly completed story, "The Spirit Fox Cleverly Tricks Three Wolves," in front of her. "See if anything needs changing."

Xiao Wu immediately picked up the draft and began reading attentively. Before long, she was rocking back and forth with laughter. "Hahaha, this fox is so clever! Little Brother A-Zu, what you wrote is even more fun than when you told it!"

Seeing how happy Xiao Wu was, Yan Zu felt a little warmth in his heart.

He looked into his spiritual world. The phantom of the Xuanyuan Sword floated there quietly, the golden patterns on its blade about one percent brighter than they had been three months ago. That was the faint Vow Power gathered from questioning in class and the spread of knowledge. Though sparse, it was genuine growth.

"The path of culture... really is viable."

Dusk deepened, and the lanterns of Nuoding Academy lit up one after another, casting a warm glow over the bluestone paths. Yan Zu put away his manuscripts and winked at Xiao Wu. "Sister Xiao Wu, let me take you somewhere."

"Where are we going?" Xiao Wu immediately sprang to her feet and followed him curiously out of the dormitory to a secluded spot on the hill behind the academy.

The grass and trees grew lush here. Moonlight filtered through the treetops, scattering patches of light like flecks of silver. Insects chirped all around, and the evening breeze carried the fresh scent of grass, dispelling the heat of the day.

Yan Zu took a harp out of his Storage Soul Tool.

In the moonlight, the harp had a soft, milky-white sheen. Its body flowed in graceful lines, as though carved from a cloud, and its few crystal-clear strings gave off a faint glow.

It was a harp called "Flowing Clouds," which he had obtained from a monthly check-in several months earlier.

The system's description mentioned that the harp was made from a special spirit wood and that its strings contained the power of moonlight. When played, it could soothe the nerves, calm the mind, and gradually nourish listeners' spirits.

Yan Zu had discovered that his Check-in System mostly gave him everyday odds and ends and snacks, such as spicy strips, from daily check-ins;

Monthly check-ins produced somewhat more unusual or practical items and cultivation resources;

And the annual check-in on his birthday was the real highlight. It often triggered a critical hit, granting major rewards such as Martial Souls, cultivation techniques, and mediums for spreading civilization.

He sat cross-legged on a flat bluestone, placed the harp on his lap, and lightly brushed his fingertips over the strings.

Under the influence of his Exquisite Literary Heart talent, every harp-playing technique and principle of music theory had been engraved on his mind like instinct.

Xiao Wu leaned over and gently touched a string. It felt cool against her fingertip, and as it vibrated, it gave a clear, light note that seemed to soften even the chirping of the insects around them.

"What a beautiful harp! Little Brother A-Zu, are you going to play for me?"

After a brief pause, a simple yet incomparably melodious and pure tune from Blue Star flowed from his fingertips-"Flying Insects."

There were no intricate techniques or stirring melodies, only notes as clear as water to the bottom, like a mountain spring bubbling and splashing as they slowly spread through the silent night.

The harp music seemed to merge with the moonlight, carrying a faint longing and a tranquil power that soothed the heart. Yan Zu quietly infused a faint trace of auspicious Qilin Soul Power into the music, lending it an indescribable warmth and serenity.

At first, Xiao Wu blinked curiously, but as the music reached her ears, she gradually grew quiet. She sat beside Yan Zu with her arms around her knees and her chin resting on them, her gaze growing dreamy and soft.

The music seemed to ring directly against her heart, washing away the fatigue of the day's cultivation and smoothing away a trace of unease buried deep within her because of her transformation and her past. It was as though she had returned to the Star Dou Forest, to her mother's embrace.

The students cultivating in their dormitories stopped circulating their Soul Power one after another. Their frustrations over cultivation bottlenecks quietly dissolved beneath the gentle music, and the Soul Power around them grew smooth and steady; the younger students leaned against their windows, their eyes growing clear. They stopped making noise and simply listened, as though they were on a moonlit meadow with fireflies dancing around them, their hearts full of warmth;

Even the patrolling teachers slowed their steps, their faces relaxing for the first time in a long while. Much of their fatigue from teaching that day was washed away by the clear melody. Some wanted to seek out the source of the music, but the peaceful feeling soothed them, and they were unwilling to step forward and break the silence.

It was a tune they had never heard before. It had neither the passion nor the obscurity of the soul music of Douluo Continent, yet with the simplest of melodies, it touched the softest place in people's hearts. This was the unique power of Blue Star's culture to move people across regions and worlds.

On the hill behind the academy, Xiao Wu sat obediently beside Yan Zu, her chin resting on her knees as she watched him without blinking.

Moonlight fell on the boy's refined profile as his fingertips danced nimbly over the strings. The harp music intertwined with the insects' chirping and the evening breeze, forming a gentle night scene. She felt more at peace than ever before, even her breathing slowing with the melody, as though all her unease and fatigue had been soothed away by the music.

When the song ended, its lingering notes seemed to hover in the night sky. It was a long time before Xiao Wu came back to herself. She suddenly threw herself forward and hugged Yan Zu's arm, her little face flushed red with excitement. "Little Brother A-Zu! This... what song was that? It was so beautiful! I've never heard anything like it! It's like... my heart's been washed completely clean!"

"It's called 'Flying Insects,'" Yan Zu said with a smile, gently stroking the body of the Flowing Clouds Harp.

(Click on the comment above for a surprise.)

"From now on! Will you play it for me often from now on? Especially when I'm tired from cultivating!" Xiao Wu looked up, her eyes full of longing.

"All right, whenever you want to hear it," Yan Zu promised.

From then on, whenever the moon shone brightly, Xiao Wu would pester Yan Zu to go to the hill behind the academy in their spare time between cultivation sessions.

The melody of the Flowing Clouds Harp became a hidden feature of the hill behind Nuoding Academy, as well as another warm secret between Yan Zu and Xiao Wu. These simple notes from Blue Star were like the first pebble tossed into a lake. Though light, they had already sent ripples of a new understanding of "beauty" through the hearts of some of Nuoding Academy's students.

Three days later, in the rear courtyard of Rongbao Studio.

The shopkeeper was a lean middle-aged man surnamed Chen. His Soul Power was not particularly strong, but his eyes were shrewd. He carefully read through the ten story manuscripts Yan Zu had brought, his expression growing more serious the further he read.

"Mr. Wen Yansheng... truly a gifted young man." Shopkeeper Chen put down the manuscripts and looked at the "author's representative" before him, whose hood concealed his face.

It was naturally Yan Zu in disguise. "Though these stories are simple, they're full of interest and contain lessons about how to conduct oneself in the world. May I ask how you would like to work with us, sir?"

Yan Zu lowered his voice, imitating an adult's steady tone. "There are two options. First, Rongbao Studio buys the copyright outright and pays the full manuscript fee in one lump sum.

"Second, we share the proceeds. The first printing will be one hundred copies, priced at one Silver Soul Coin each. For every copy sold, I receive forty percent and your studio receives sixty percent. The terms remain the same for subsequent printings."

Shopkeeper Chen quickly ran the numbers in his head. One Silver Soul Coin was a very low price, affordable even for commoners.

The cost of one hundred copies would be no more than a dozen or so Silver Soul Coins. Even if they lost it all, it would hardly matter. But if these stories really could attract readers...

"May I ask, sir, will there be more of these stories?"

"I can provide ten every month for at least a year," Yan Zu said. "If sales are good, we can also release an illustrated hardcover edition."

Shopkeeper Chen's eyes lit up. He had run Rongbao Studio for many years and understood the value that could be derived from cultural products.

If they really could make it into a series, it would bring not only financial returns, but also a reputation and influence-and influence was one of the resources the Seven Treasure Glazed Tile Sect valued most.

"Good! We'll share the proceeds, just as you propose!" Shopkeeper Chen made the decision. "The first printing will be one hundred copies, on sale in three days. As for settling the manuscript payments... how about the fifteenth of every month?"

"That's fine." Yan Zu nodded. "But I have one condition-all transactions must remain confidential. Behind the pen name, no questions about the author's true identity."

"Naturally!" Shopkeeper Chen said with a smile. "Rongbao Studio's rule is that client privacy comes before all else."