Chapter 35

Ye Qing, with his mind focused, added another character: "bo" (wave).

"Whoosh!" A splash of water, then it disappeared, and a pure white mist gushed out, becoming denser and denser, gradually turning into a thick white fog that spread over the paper.

The pearl in his sleeve suddenly became scorching hot, and the Dragon Maiden's jade hand tightened instinctively, pressing it down, but she was shocked in her heart: "This is indeed the response to the aura of a dragon. Does Father know about this?"

She looked up at the Dragon Lord on the platform, who showed no emotion, and her eyes darkened. She felt that everything before her was becoming increasingly unfathomable, and she thought to herself: "Why did I choose this person? Is it all part of Father's calculations?"

"Hey, look at this... is it literary aura?" A scholar's exclamation drew the attention of everyone present.

The white mist spread, and the crowd gradually became shocked: "There is this literary aura? Before it has even been passed down, it already has this aura. What level of depth does this have?"

Yu Fan was stunned for a moment, then sighed after a long while. Beside him, a beautiful woman, similar to the Dragon Maiden, smiled gently: "Why do you sigh, my lord?"

"Because there are mountains beyond mountains, and people beyond people. This time, it will be hard to achieve my wish," Yu Fan replied honestly.

The beautiful woman's eyes flickered, and she smiled ambiguously: "Literary aura is not everything; character is more important. The outcome is still uncertain."

"Thank you for your encouragement, I will take it to heart."

At this moment, the hall was filled with music and dancing, and the guests and hosts were mostly distracted.

Although the most central area was filled with graceful dancing and pleasant music, the crowd勉强 focused on appreciating it, but their peripheral vision often fell on a corner of the hall.

The white mist spread, turning into a cloud of fog.

Everyone was stunned, and their hearts gradually turned cold: "What's going on? Could it be that a masterpiece is really being born today?"

They wanted to suspect a trick, but this pure literary aura could not be hidden... and it had evolved bit by bit under their watchful eyes.

"For scholars, there is no more painful hour than this!"

Even the Dragon Lord, sitting high on the light green throne, felt a chill in his heart.

"I set the topic on the spot; there should be no loophole."

"Even if there were a well-prepared masterpiece, it might not fit the topic, and at least half of it would be wasted!"

"And this, even if it is a famous piece, has only the depth before it is passed down, yet it can evoke a slight resonance from the Dragon Palace. There is only one possibility—its artistic conception aligns with the foundation of the spiritual realm."

"This is not an ordinary poem, but one that contains the aura of a dragon. How is this possible? Although the Great Cai is in decline, there is still some remaining glory, and there is no reason for a hidden dragon to emerge."

"However, this young man has a deep and far-reaching mind. First, he attracted me with the Yellow Dragon Tower and obtained an invitation to the banquet. Upon arriving at the hall, he sat in a corner, which I thought was a sign of knowing his place, but it turned out he was observing the internal struggles among the hall's elite and reaping the benefits."

"Later, he deliberately delayed writing the poem, gathering the aura of fortune, making the crowd in the hall tired, and now he has a threatening presence, forming a self-contained aura, truly the nature of a dragon."

"Strange, I can't quite understand this young man," the Dragon Lord mused, a hint of a cold smile on his face, waiting quietly for the poem to be completed: "No matter what, whether he rises with the tide or stands alone, it all comes down to strength. We'll see what his poem is like."

At this moment, the Dragon Maiden, thinking no one was paying attention, tiptoed and leaned over, her black hair falling onto Ye Qing's shoulder, and she whispered: "The autumn wind is bleak, and the waves surge. The sun and moon rise and set within it; the stars shine brightly, as if emerging from it..."

Her gaze slid over the blank space and landed on Ye Qing's focused face. The charm of a man when he is focused made her pause, and a blush gradually spread across her cheeks.

Suddenly aware, she looked up and met her sister's gaze, and she quickly pulled back, spitting out, "Annoying!"

"Fortunately, the poem is complete, and I can sing to express my aspirations."

The poem was finished, and Ye Qing found himself sweating. He didn't know why, but the pen felt heavier and heavier as he wrote, as if it were moving through water.

"Could it be that the delay has exhausted me so much that I can't even hold the pen?" Ye Qing didn't think much about it, turned his head, and found the Dragon Maiden gone.

Remembering her hurried departure and her reminder to apologize to the Dragon Lord, he quickly stood up and bowed deeply: "I am shallow in knowledge, and my writing is delayed. I beg your forgiveness, my lord."

From the high, light green throne, the Dragon Lord looked deeply at Ye Qing, his expression ambiguous, and said casually: "Hate Cloud, present this poem."

Ye Qing gathered his thoughts and smiled bitterly.

"If this were in the imperial examination, being twice as slow as others would definitely shock the world and be considered cheating, and I would be executed to appease public anger."

"This time, although it was a strategy to take advantage of the lack of time limit at the banquet to gain an advantage, this action has the suspicion of being disrespectful and taking advantage of the Dragon Lord. If the poem is not good, even if he loves scholars, he will be furious!"

"Although I have confidence in this poem, I need to be humble, as I am in a position of seeking help. I don't want to end up with new and old grievances together, which would be disastrous."

So he bowed deeply, not daring to raise his head.

But when the Dragon Lord spoke, a familiar female voice responded from behind the curtain.

The sound of jade pendants and a faint fragrance filled the air as a figure in a green silk robe and dragon-patterned transparent sleeves entered his field of vision. She pulled out the poem and the familiar voice whispered again: "Now you're afraid?"

Looking up, he saw the girl in a gossamer robe, with a golden pearl hanging from her forehead, her face extremely beautiful and serene, and her demeanor noble. He was moved: "You are...?"

"You don't recognize your sister... men are indeed fickle." Hate Cloud smiled, satisfied to see Ye Qing's shock, and she teased: "What if I tell Father everything that happened just now..."

"Ah... Sister, please spare me!" Ye Qing came to his senses, his face showing distress, without a hint of a flaw.

"Scaring you, who scared me just now." Hate Cloud, not suspecting anything, made a pitiful gesture, looking at him with a vulnerable expression: "But I took this risk for you..."

"I will repay you, Sister!" Ye Qing's smile faded, and he spoke with determination, without hesitation, confident in his promise as a reborn person.

Hate Cloud was taken aback. She had intended to joke, but at this moment, her spirit became clear, and a surge of joy filled her, and she could only say: "Alright!"

She turned gracefully, not daring to delay, and presented the poem.

Ye Qing squinted, watching the golden-yellow gossamer robe move to the front of the hall, where she handed the poem to the Dragon Lord and retreated without a word, and he let out a sigh of relief, his back drenched in cold sweat.

A last-minute plan, and he had passed this hurdle!

"The path of destiny, if one wants to advance quickly, is like a rapid promotion in the bureaucracy, each step as dangerous as walking on thin ice! Therefore, a barrier is necessary!"

"This seems to be fraught with danger, but by using the Dragon Maiden to split the backlash into two parts, it's no wonder that people on Earth vie to become a son-in-law of a dragon!"

Recalling the golden pearl hanging from her forehead, with a small dragon playing inside, he realized it was a dragon pearl.

Dragons have nine children, none of which are true dragons. Although there are thousands of dragon sons and daughters, true dragons are few. They merely have dragon blood. Dragons are known for their promiscuity, and those with dragon blood are countless, even some carp have a hint of dragon nature, otherwise they couldn't jump the dragon gate.

These dragon sons and daughters have a relatively low status, merely middle-level figures in the dragon clan. Dragon maidens are often used as marriage pawns, but if they can form a dragon pearl, they are immediately taken seriously.

With a dragon pearl, they have the foundation to transform, and becoming a true dragon is just a matter of time.

Combined with the golden-yellow gossamer robe, it was clear that she was a formally appointed dragon maiden. Ye Qing couldn't help but curse: "As a穿越者 (穿越者 means '穿越者' in Chinese, which can be translated as '穿越者' in English, but in this context, it means '穿越者' or '穿越者'), to be outsmarted by someone, if it weren't for my knowledge from the previous life and the sight of the dragon pearl in her sleeve, I would have fallen into a trap... a noble dragon maiden, what a bastard!"

On the surface, he showed a nervous and guilty expression.

The scholars stretched their necks and perked up their ears, but when they saw the Dragon Lord read a few lines and then put down the poem, saying, "Please continue with the banquet," they were speechless, looking at each other, and thought: "It seems this poem, though good, has touched a taboo and gone against the Dragon Lord... as long as the Dragon Lord hasn't made a decision, there is still a chance for the list of names to be adjusted."

At this moment, their gaze on Ye Qing was different, as if facing a formidable enemy.

Even the scholars with light green invitations were cautious. As renowned scholars and talents, if they were careless and let this young scholar turn the tables, the news of the Dragon Lord's banquet would become a laughingstock!

Yu Fan smiled, but his heart was cold: "Originally, with the guidance, the plan was set, but an unexpected variable has appeared. I regret not listening to Mr. Kou."

"This young man is just a child scholar. If he were killed at night, it would only accumulate a bit of sin. As long as no one in the mortal world discovers it, it can be gradually resolved in the future."

"If this young man gains the fortune of the Dragon Lord's banquet, it will be even harder to control him!"

Ye Qing, having lived two lives, saw the situation in the hall and smiled bitterly: "At this moment, I am undoubtedly the focus of the stage, the enemy of all, but to seize the fortune, this is a necessary process."

"But I didn't expect that this poem would have some special qualities, causing some unusual phenomena, making it even more noticeable."

Ye Qing thought quietly and had a sudden realization. This poem, while not the best in Earth's history, was originally written by Cao Cao, who rose to power, suppressed the Yellow Turban Rebellion, restored the Han dynasty, and swept away the barbarians, cutting off the dragon aura of the world with a single sword, imbued with a nearly heaven-defying spirit of generosity!

Even if he did not achieve his ultimate goal, sighing that an old horse in the stable still dreams of traveling a thousand miles, he did not betray the name of a great hero, and he had a heroic spirit in his heart.

Could it be that this dragon spirit in the poem caused the unusual phenomena?

Thinking about this, Ye Qing suddenly realized that choosing this poem was a mistake. In this world, poetry is used to judge a person, and his poem might cause other troubles.

Most importantly, Cao Cao rose to power by suppressing the Daoist sect, the Yellow Turban Army, which was a political and religious group. Compared to this world, there is no essential difference, just one failed and one succeeded.

Even if no one knows this reference, the poem is essentially a subversive one, and the hidden meaning is ominous—Ye Qing had no intention of making the world his enemy and overturning the Daoist sect.

But now that the poem has been presented, it cannot be taken back. Once it becomes famous, it will spread throughout the world, and countless people will recite it.

The more he thought about it, the more Ye Qing frowned, feeling that he had taken a wrong path. The clear path he once saw was now faint, and the confidence of a穿越者 (穿越者) and a reborn person in grasping the big picture was gone.

Is this the will of heaven, turning everything upside down and confusing everything to this extent?