The young lady was dressed in a light blue dress which shaped her elegant figure perfectly. A yellow silk belt was wrapped around her waist, accentuating the curves between her waist and her bottom. From afar, she looked like a bewitching succubus who would steal one’s soul away at any time.
The person wasn’t anyone else other than the head of the Bewitching Devil Faction, Hu Yaoyao.
The Bewitching Devil Faction was dissolved shortly after Zhang Xuan became the principal of the Hongyuan Master Teacher Academy, and Hu Yaoyao officially joined the Xuanxuan Faction right afterward, becoming one of the strongest cultivators in its ranks.
“You want to tag along with me? That’s fine.” Seeing that it was Hu Yaoyao, Zhang Xuan nodded in agreement.
Hu Yaoyao’s main supporting occupation in the Master Teacher Academy was terpsichorean arts, and she was even the direct disciple of School Head Wei Ranxue. Since he was heading to the Terpsichore Guild, it would be good to bring her along as well.
“We want to go too!”
Shortly after Zhang Xuan accepted her request, another voice sounded not too far away. Turning his head over, he saw Yu Fei-er and Luo Qiqi standing not too far away, staring at him intently.
Looking at the curiosity in the eyes of the duo, Zhang Xuan shook his head and advised, “It would be best for the both of you to stay out of this matter. It isn’t appropriate for the both of you to visit such a place!”
“It isn’t appropriate? Why can Hu Yaoyao tag along with you but not us?” Yu Fei-er frowned in displeasure.
It was one thing if the other party refused to bring all of them with him, but he had agreed to bring Hu Yaoyao along! This blatant discrimination left her feeling deeply indignant within, and her explosive temper flared up in an instant.
Was Hu Yaoyao that important to him?
On the other hand, while Luo Qiqi didn’t say a word, the unhappy gaze she shot him spoke the very same words too.
“I’m heading to the Spring Pavilion, which happens to be a courtesan house too! As ladies, it won’t be appropriate for you two to tag along.” Zhang Xuan explained.
“You are heading to a courtesan house?”
“With Hu Yaoyao at that?”
The duo exchanged gazes for a brief instant, and with uncanny harmony, they stretched their hands forward simultaneously to block Zhang Xuan’s path. “No way, not over my dead body!”
“Stop fooling around, I’m heading there because I have important matters to attend to.” Zhang Xuan frowned upon seeing their actions.
It was in view of their relatively mature characters that he treated the both of them well, patiently guiding them along whenever they faced any problem. Why were they suddenly throwing a tantrum at this moment?
Seeing that Zhang Xuan was starting to get a little annoyed by their actions, Yu Fei-er bit her lips and continued on, “Zhang shi, you are a master teacher, so how can you go to such a place? If you really… need to… I can help you..”
“Help me?” Zhang Xuan shook his head.
Help me? How do you intend to help me?
Can you give me a 7-star terpsichore emblem or a 7-star master teacher emblem?
To offer your help despite not knowing what is going on, aren’t you worried that I might sell you out?
Sighing deeply, Zhang Xuan said, “I appreciate your good intentions, but I’m afraid that you aren’t sufficient to help me on this matter…”
“You say that I am insufficient? How am I insufficient? I am very sufficient, alright?” Yu Fei-er immediately lashed out as she stuck out her chest indignantly.
Is he scorning me for being not up to par with Hu Yaoyao?
This is too much. Isn’t hers just a little bigger?
Mine is not too bad either, alright!
Besides… insufficient? How do you know that I would be insufficient?
Just as she was feeling deeply stifled within, the young man continued speaking.
“Spring Pavilion is the branch of the local Terpsichore Guild, and I intend to head there to take the 7-star terpsichore examination so as to rake up the required supporting occupations for a promotion to 7-star master teacher. Hu Yaoyao’s main supporting occupation is terpsichore, so it would be beneficial for her to head there too. On the other hand, your main supporting occupation is formation master, so it might not be appropriate for you to tag along too.”
Zhang Xuan was speechless.
You don’t even know the slightest thing about terpsichorean arts, and you still want to help me? This naivety is truly…
“Terpsichore Guild branch? 7-star terpsichore?” Yu Fei-er froze upon hearing those words, and in the next moment, her face flushed crimson.
Clearly, she was unaware of the matter too.
When she heard the words ‘courtesan house’, her thoughts immediately turned carnal… It was fortunate that the other party didn’t seem to understand what she was driving at, or else she would be too embarrassed to meet anyone.
“Why would the branch of the Terpsichore Guild be a courtesan house?”
The one who had asked this time around was Hu Yaoyao. It seemed like despite being a terpsichore herself, she wasn’t too aware of its history either.
In truth, just like Yu Fei-er and Luo Qiqi, she honestly thought that Zhang shi was going to bring her to that kind of place! She was still feeling conflicted as to how she should respond should the other party raise some kind of unreasonable demand there, whether she should turn him down or accept him… But to think that the courtesan house would actually be the branch of a Terpsichore Guild instead!
“The history of the terpsichore occupation can be traced back to dance courtesans. Furthermore, only by frequently performing for others will one be able to advance her terpsichorean art swiftly and bring forth greater prowess in battle. As such, most of the Terpsichore Guilds, other than the branches set up within the Master Teacher Academies, are courtesan houses…” Having understood what was going on, Luo Qiqi swiftly explained slightly awkwardly.
On the other hand, Zhang Xuan was slightly surprised to see that Luo Qiqi even knew of this matter, and he nodded in agreement.
With this, Yu Fei-er finally understood what was going on, but that only served to make her face redder than ever. Nevertheless, she still bucked up her courage and stared at Zhang Xuan intently, “I still want to tag along with you!”
“Teacher, I wish to follow you too!” Luo Qiqi added.
“… Alright then, you can follow me there if you really want to.” Seeing that he was unable to talk the duo out of the matter, Zhang Xuan eventually conceded.
In any case, it was not like he was going there to do something that couldn’t be seen. He was only intending to take the terpsichore examination, so it mattered not whether he brought another person with him or not.
Soon, the group of four set forth from the Combat Master Hall, and after traveling roughly ten li, a massive building appeared before their eyes.
Even before coming close, they could already hear the excited voices within. There was a constant huge crowd walking to and fro the building, a truly bustling sight.
Almost the entirety of the crowd were young men, and judging from their extravagant dress up, they were likely to be from considerable backgrounds too.
“Too beautiful, she’s truly too beautiful!”
“Indeed! I would die just for an opportunity to share a night with a fairy like her!”
“Die? I would be willing to die ten times over for that!”
“Stop the talking and get moving. Fairy Zi Yan’s dance is about to begin…”
…
Such heated discussions could be heard all around the place. There was an excited gleam in the eyes of every single young man walking in or out of the building.
“It seems like terpsichore is a celebrated occupation in Qingyuan Empire!” Zhang Xuan noted.
He had been to many guilds over the past year, but it was truly rare to see one as lively as this.
“Who knows if it’s really the occupation that is celebrated…” Yu Fei-er harrumphed coldly.
“Alright, let’s head in!” With a smile, Zhang Xuan began making his way in as well.
Admittedly, the beauty of a dancing terpsichore was an allure hard for any young man to resist, but beyond that, the dance of terpsichores did help to temper one’s soul too. If it wasn’t for the latter, it was unlikely that so many cultivators would be so moved over just a few young ladies.
“This brother over here, are you… intending to enter the Spring Pavilion too?” Before Zhang Xuan could walk in, an astonished voice suddenly sounded. Turning around, he saw a young man staring at him with a flabbergasted look.
“What’s wrong?” Zhang Xuan asked with a frown.
The other party had an appearance reminiscent of a man in his thirties, and shockingly, his cultivation was higher than Zhang Xuan’s, reaching Saint 3-dan primary stage!
To possess such strength at such a young age, it was almost certain that the other party had a prominent background.
“It’s nothing, it’s just that I find it… weird…” Swiftly taking a glance at Hu Yaoyao and the others, the young man quickly shook his head.
To come to a courtesan house despite having three ravishing beauties by his side… he sure was adventurous!
And the most astonishing thing of all, those three ravishing beauties actually agreed to it, coming along with him even…
It wasn’t too hard for Zhang Xuan to fathom what the other party was thinking, but he couldn’t be bothered to explain himself. With the three ladies following behind him, he made his way over to the entrance.
A lanky attendant stood at the entrance, “Do you have any reservation?”
Zhang Xuan shook his head, “I have something important to do here. I’m not intending to…”
“Everyone that comes here says that he has something important to do. If you don’t have a reservation, I’ll have to ask you to turn around and leave. Our Spring Pavilion is already at max capacity, so even if you were to enter now, you won’t be able to meet Fairy Zi Yan!” said the attendant impatiently.
The attendant didn’t seem to care whom the other party was or what background he was from. From the looks of it, he must have encountered such situations often, and he knew very well that no one would dare to cause trouble right before the Terpsichore Guild too.
“We’re not here to meet…” Slightly displeased by the self-assuming attitude of the attendant, Zhang Xuan was just about to clarify the matter when the young man whom he had spoken to earlier suddenly appeared by his side.
“This person over here is a buddy of mine. Why? Does my buddy need a reservation to enter the Spring Pavilion too?”
“I-I dare not to! I didn’t know that he’s Chu gongzi’s friend!” the attendant quickly lowered his head respectfully.
“That better the case!” Chu gongzi nodded before turning to Zhang Xuan. “This friend over here, I have a reservation at one of the suites inside. Why don’t you join me?”
“This…” Zhang Xuan frowned.
“It’s impossible to enter without a reservation. If you can’t even enter the Spring Pavilion, you won’t be able to accomplish whatever you intend to do here.” Chu gongzi reminded with a smile.
“… I’ll humbly accept your kind gesture then.”
Judging from the huge rejected crowd loitering around the entrance of the Spring Pavilion, it was apparent that it would be impossible to enter without making any prior reservation. It would be unseemly for him to make a huge ruckus just to step through those doors, so he decisively chose to take the other party up on his offer.
Having thought things through, Zhang Xuan nodded, “Thanks.”
“There’s no need to stand on ceremony. With just a look, I can tell that you are one who pursues the same path as me. Naturally, it’s only right for us to help one another in times of need!” Chu gongzi blinked his eyes, gesturing with an ‘I understand’ look.
“I…” Seeing how Chu gongzi was acting, Zhang Xuan knew that the other party must be misunderstanding something here. He immediately tried to explain himself, but the other party simply shook off his words leisurely, “Don’t worry, I’m not so underhanded as go after the companions of a friend. Since I regard you as my friend, you can be certain that I’ll respect your women as well.”
Zhang Xuan placed his hand on his forehead.
What the heck was this?
Forget it.
At this point, it didn’t feel like there was any point for him to explain anymore. The other party seemed to be so convinced of the matter that anything he said would probably be regarded as a mere excuse out of embarrassment.
Following behind Chu gongzi, it didn’t take long for them to arrive at a suite on the second floor.
The room was spacious and clean. It was divided into several smaller rooms which would allow a large group to reside within this space comfortably, More importantly, its walls were made of glass panels, granting one a clear view of everything within the grand hall of the Spring Pavilion. With just a look, Zhang Xuan could tell that the cost of reserving this single room had to be absurdly high.
“Young Master!” As soon as Chu gongzi entered, several beautiful ladies immediately walked up to welcome him.
They paled in comparison to Hu Yaoyao and the others, but indubitably, they were still charming individuals in their own right.
“Un.” Chu gongzi nodded before turning to Zhang Xuan. “They are all my lovers, I told them to come here and wait for me in advance. Well, you also know how watching the dance of a terpsichore can leave a raging flame burning within one’s heart. If I don’t find an avenue to vent my heat, I might just explode inside…”
“Vent your heat?”
“Indeed. The terpsichores of the Spring Pavilion only sell their craft and not their bodies. Oh, their graceful moves, those slim waists, and that elegant demeanor… Just one look is sufficient to draw out one’s soul! Who in the world can bear to just watch and not do?” Chu gongzi shook his head. “Seeing how you have brought a few people of your own over as well, I can see that we are men treading on the same path…”
“Cough cough! Actually, I’m here for another matter.” Seeing how the other party was getting more and more ludicrous with everything he said, Zhang Xuan couldn’t help but interject. “Actually, I’m here to take the terpsichore e…”
“Don’t worry, we are all men. I understand, I understand. Who doesn’t want to take a terpsichore home? Ah, how could I forget my manners? My name is Chu Xiang, may I know how I can address you?” With a smile, Chu gongzi introduced himself.
“I am Zhang Xuan.” Zhang Xuan replied with a nod.
Previously, his attempts to conceal his name had ended up backfiring badly for him. With this trauma still vivid in his mind, he decided to just use his real name instead.
In any case, he wasn’t here to watch some fairy perform anyway. All he wanted was to take the terpsichore examination.
“So it’s Zhang gongzi! I have long heard of your name.” Chu Xiang said with a hearty laugh. Even though he had said that he had long heard of Zhang Xuan, from the looks on his face, it seemed to be just pleasantries.
But that was to be expected. While Zhang Xuan’s reputation resounded in the Hongyuan Empire, the same couldn’t be said about the Qingyuan Empire. After all, there were many outstanding individuals here.
