"You've awakened Zither Intent too?"
Lu Yun looked at Yang Cheng in shock.
"Awakening a bit of Zither Intent? It's no effort at all," Yang Cheng said calmly.
"But how can your Zither Intent be so powerful? Is it because of the Zither Heart's support?"
Lu Yun still felt something was wrong.
She tried with all her might to break free from Yang Cheng's suppression, but nothing worked.
In that moment, Lu Yun knew she'd lost.
Knowing there was no turning the tide, a thought rose in her heart.
She could lose—but she couldn't lose without knowing why. If she didn't figure this out, she'd be at a disadvantage next time.
She seized this chance to probe Yang Cheng's depths, so she could craft a countermeasure for future encounters.
With that, she extended her own will and charged into the depths of Yang Cheng's intent.
She had to figure out what made his Zither Intent so strong.
But the deeper she went, the more frightened she became.
Yang Cheng's Zither Intent was like an endless sea—vast, boundless.
Even that alone wouldn't have made her completely afraid. She could still summon the courage to fight back.
Until she reached the very core of Yang Cheng's Zither Intent.
Her fear exploded.
Every shred of bravery shattered.
What did she see?
In the depths of Yang Cheng's Zither Intent, it was as if a prism of void floated, reflecting layer upon layer of space.
Each of those spaces… was a sea of Zither Intent.
There were 10,000 layers.
Which meant Yang Cheng's Zither Intent wasn't just one vast sea—it was 10,000 vast seas.
Lu Yun was completely stunned.
It was terrifying.
One sea of intent—if she worked hard her whole life, she could still dream of catching up, maybe even surpassing it.
But 10,000 seas? How could she ever catch up?
In that moment, a phrase suddenly echoed in her mind—
'To those who don't understand my path, I am the moon seen from the bottom of a well. But to those who do, I am the sky seen by a mayfly.'
Now that she understood Yang Cheng's path, she truly felt like a mayfly gazing at the sky.
In her heart, Yang Cheng was no longer just the Crown Prince of Great Zhou or some zither genius.
He was the sky of the Zither Dao itself.
At the same time, a legendary tale from the world of zither cultivation came to her mind.
The Zither Heart was rare, yes—but across the Myriad Worlds, there were many who had it.
But above all Zither Hearts, there was one known as the "Myriad-Wonder Musical Heart."
Legend said that the founder of the Zither Dao, the Azure Emperor Taihao, possessed this "Myriad-Wonder Musical Heart." That's how he was able to create the entire Dao of the zither.
Bang!
Lu Yun stopped playing completely and fell to her knees before Yang Cheng. "This humble girl, Lu Yun, was blind to Your Highness's true intent in the Zither Dao. I foolishly challenged Your Highness, and I now kneel to beg forgiveness."
Bang bang bang…
Then she really kowtowed to Yang Cheng—nine times, hard.
Even Yang Cheng was a bit stunned. Once he recovered, he quickly said, "No need to go that far."
Only then did Lu Yun stop, making Yang Cheng suspect that if he hadn't said anything, she would've just kept going.
"Your Highness, Lu Yun has made mistakes, but I truly have a heart for the Dao. I beg Your Highness to show me mercy and allow me to follow you," Lu Yun pleaded. "If Your Highness gives me this chance, I swear I will remain loyal and never betray you. If I break this vow, may I suffer endless calamity and never be reborn!"
Even Cheng Junyi, who'd been watching from inside, couldn't stay calm anymore. She flew out of the house in a flash.
She looked at Lu Yun, confused and shocked. "Yun'er, what are you doing?"
Clearly, even Cheng Junyi couldn't make sense of Lu Yun's sudden change in behavior.
The shift was just too extreme.
If the Crown Prince weren't still just a child—and if she didn't know his character well—she might've suspected he'd put some kind of spell on Lu Yun.
"Aunt Cheng, you were right. I underestimated His Highness. I've truly been short-sighted," Lu Yun said sincerely.
Ding!
[The host actually made Lu Yun kneel in public and beg to be accepted. Absolutely mind-blowing.]
[To win the host's favor, Lu Yun even swore a deadly oath of eternal loyalty, leaving everyone utterly baffled.]
[Host's means shake heaven and earth, move gods and ghosts.]
[Congratulations to the host for completing the mission. The reward has been granted. The host may claim it at any time.]
Yang Cheng was secretly delighted.
"Crown Prince, if you've got guts, come at me! What kind of man bullies a weak girl like this?!"
A furious voice suddenly shouted.
At the entrance of Autumn Water Courtyard stood an eleven-year-old boy.
Seeing what was going on inside, his eyes were bloodshot, and his face burned with rage.
"Your Highness," Shen Muxue said, "this is Wu Cangming, heir of the Southern Guardian Prince. Lu Yun is his fiancée."
When Yang Cheng had said he wanted Shen Muxue to serve him as a maid, it wasn't just for show.
Lately, unless she had to return to Meng Academy for something important, she'd been with him, pouring tea and attending him.
"So this is him," Yang Cheng said mildly.
In truth, even without Shen Muxue's explanation, he recognized Wu Cangming.
Both Wu Cangming and the Southern Guardian Prince were not the obedient type.
In his past life, a hundred years later, the Southern Guardian Prince rebelled.
Unfortunately for him, he had bad timing—he ran into the Heaven's Mandate Emperor, Yang Xiu—and was crushed within just three years.
Lu Yun looked flustered. "Your Highness, I didn't summon the Young Lord Wu here."
She was still begging Yang Cheng to let her follow him.
Now with Wu Cangming showing up like this, if he ruined her chance, wouldn't that destroy everything she worked for?
Lu Yun had once felt a fair bit of affection for Wu Cangming, but today, all she felt was anger.
"I believe you," Yang Cheng said.
Lu Yun froze. She clearly hadn't expected him to trust her so easily.
"You're proud and stubborn, but when you say one, it's one. When you say two, it's two. You're not the kind to lie to get out of something," Yang Cheng added.
Just then, Wu Cangming had already stormed into the courtyard.
He glared at Yang Cheng. "Crown Prince, you've gone too far. You forced Yun'er to kneel and even made her bleed from kowtowing. I can't believe how cruel you are at such a young age. Where's your compassion?"
Yang Cheng just looked at him calmly.
"Shut up!" Lu Yun snapped. "Wu Cangming, what right do you have to speak so rudely to His Highness?"
Wu Cangming quickly said, "Yun'er, you don't have to be afraid of him. Get up now. As long as I'm here, I won't let him humiliate you!"
"Who do you think you are? Stop acting like you're some great protector."
Lu Yun was growing more furious. "I knelt to His Highness of my own will. I only begged for a place at his side. If you disrespect His Highness, you're insulting me."
"You... you..." Wu Cangming's eyes widened. He could hardly believe what he was hearing.
After a while, he barely managed to calm down. Breathing heavily, he said, "Yun'er, I get it. He must've threatened you with some despicable method, didn't he?"
"I told you to shut up!" Lu Yun barked. "If you keep speaking to His Highness like that, you're my enemy."
Wu Cangming looked like he'd been struck by lightning. "Yun'er, you're my fiancée! How can you turn on me for a stranger?"
"You never understood me. If you did, you wouldn't ask such a question."
Lu Yun looked at him, full of disappointment.
In her heart, the Zither Dao was supreme.
She respected Yang Cheng because she saw the true essence of Zither Dao in him.
If Wu Cangming really understood her, he would've known that without her needing to say anything.
The fact that he couldn't meant they weren't the same kind of person.
Those words hit Wu Cangming even harder.
His eyes turned bloodshot as he stared at Yang Cheng. "Crown Prince, what kind of sorcery did you use to turn Lu Yun into this?"
"Watch your mouth. Who gave you the right to speak to His Highness like that?" Shen Muxue shouted coldly.
At that moment, Lu Yun seemed to make a decision. Her voice was resolute. "Wu Cangming, from this day on, I will serve His Highness wholeheartedly, with no distractions. So from now on, I'm no longer your fiancée. Besides, our engagement was just a verbal promise between elders. It was never a formal agreement. From here on, our paths diverge."
Yang Cheng's expression was a bit odd.
A man with a powerful physique, abandoned by his fiancée?
Honestly, Wu Cangming really did have the look of a main character. No wonder he managed to start a rebellion in the past.
If not for Yang Xiu, the Heaven's Mandate Emperor, being even more of a protagonist, maybe the Wu family would've succeeded.
Come to think of it, didn't that make him—the Crown Prince—the villain?
"Hahahaha!"
Wu Cangming clearly couldn't take the blow. He let out a mad laugh.
Then he turned to Lu Yun, eyes full of hate. "Lu Yun, don't make it sound noble. Let's be real—you're just drawn to the fact that he's a Crown Prince and I'm just a prince's heir. To climb higher, you're even willing to toss aside your own fiancé."
Smack!
Lu Yun stood and slapped him across the face.
"Is your mind always this filthy?"
Shen Muxue frowned. "His Highness is only one and a half years old. Lu Yun is only ten. And yet you're making it sound so dirty. That just shows how dark your thoughts are."
Hearing that made Lu Yun feel even more disgusted with Wu Cangming.
"You vulgar women don't understand anything," Wu Cangming said coldly. "In this world, maybe only Shen Muxue, the so-called 'Goddess of the Snow Lotus,' could understand me. I used to think you were just as pure and noble, Lu Yun. Turns out, you're a massive disappointment."
Tang Xingyu blinked her big eyes and looked at Shen Muxue, puzzled. "Sister Muxue, how come he just called you a vulgar woman but then said you were pure as snow? Is he mentally unstable?"
Wu Cangming's face changed dramatically. He looked at Shen Muxue in disbelief.
But Shen Muxue remained calm. "I'm Shen Muxue. And yes, I now serve the Crown Prince as his maid."
Wu Cangming trembled with rage. He looked like he might cough up blood.
He just couldn't understand how the world had come to this.
Even the two women he thought were the most noble—Shen Muxue and Lu Yun—turned out to be nothing but shallow social climbers.
Were there no trustworthy women left in the world?
"Crown Prince, I gotta say, you're kind of crossing a line. Stealing someone's fiancée? That's low."
A voice rang out.
Yang Xiu strolled in slowly.
"What are you doing here?" Yang Cheng asked.
"Father heard Young Lord Wu arrived and sent me to greet him," Yang Xiu replied with a smile. "If you ask me, this is easy to settle. We're all cultivators—why not solve this with martial arts?"
"With martial arts?" Wu Cangming frowned. "You want me to fight that brat? A baby still reeking of milk?"
"Sorry, I'm not that shameless."
Yang Xiu cursed him inwardly for being dense. I'm giving you a chance and you're ruining it?
But on the surface, he kept smiling. "Of course it wouldn't be fair for you to fight His Highness at full strength. But if you suppress your cultivation to match his level, wouldn't that make it even?"
Wu Cangming hesitated.
Today had been too humiliating. He really did want to crush the Crown Prince just once to vent his anger.