Chapter 153: Preparing to Counterattack

At 8:30 in the morning, the peak of Mount Huangqiu was bathed in brilliant sunlight, offering fresh air, enchanting scenery, and a sea of rolling clouds.

The spacious summit was adorned with lush flowers and greenery, alongside the members of the Star Soul temporary orchestra who were currently in rehearsal.

The thirty-six musicians, plus the Heavenly Swallow Star God Ziwei, were divided into two groups: twenty-one female dancers and sixteen instrumentalists.

Yue Xiaotian was seated atop a blue outdoor speaker, surrounded by several handheld baskets filled with tennis balls.

Following the pre-dawn training sessions, Yue Xiaotian had now begun rehearsing a purely instrumental musical piece titled Fearless, focusing purely on dance steps.

At a nod from Yue Xiaotian, a cellist struck up the melody, laying down the rhythmic foundation.

Simultaneously, led by Ziwei, the twenty-one female dancers formed a triangular formation arranged in a one-two-three-four-five-six sequence. They clapped their hands in front of their midsections, stepping to the rhythm with their feet while executing orderly, rhythmic turns in sync with the clapping motion.

Amidst a nod, Yue Xiaotian hurled a tennis ball. "Your cello is the focal point. Nail the pauses in the middle and keep your wrists steady. Look at how well my Ziwei dances—don't you dare mess up the notes."

The rhythmic clapping of hands echoed across the clearing. Because Ziwei, positioned at the front, was truly a peerless water sprite, the twenty girls behind her appeared equally ethereal, beautiful, gentle, and imbued with a touch of liveliness.

Of course, Yue Xiaotian did not see it quite that way. Without a pause, he threw another tennis ball, targeting a girl in the third row on the left. "Your feet need to keep up with the rhythm, but stop dancing around haphazardly. Look at how well my Ziwei dances."

Moments later, Fool's piano joined in, adding a touch of ethereal grace to Fearless and instantly expanding the imaginative depth of the musical landscape, though the tempo remained unchanged.

However, Fool took a tennis ball straight to his left temple. "Why the such a rapturous expression? It's way too exaggerated. Look at how well my Ziwei dances."

While a few musicians chuckled quietly among themselves, Yue Xiaotian tossed a tennis ball toward a boy who was suffering from a nosebleed. "You need to listen and observe carefully before you even start playing. You are a single entity now; only total immersion will allow you to enter the flow naturally. But this isn't an excuse for you to gawk at pretty girls, even if they are indeed gorgeous, understand?"

Subjected to the collective gaze of the entire troupe, the nosebleeding boy looked somewhat embarrassed, quickly lowering his head to wipe away the blood.

After several violins swept through their passages, Yue Xiaotian could no longer resist stepping in personally.

As he patrolled the ranks, his instructions never ceased.

"You are a single entity. There can only be one voice, resonating in perfect harmony, understand? Look at how well my Ziwei dances."

"Are you from the undead tribe? When girls dance, you need to let go—relax your entire body, keep it light, keep it soft. Look at how well my Ziwei dances."

"Have your ears grown calluses or is something wrong with your eyes? Where is the momentum in your drumming? In the effect I want to achieve with Fearless, momentum is a crucial element. Don't be fooled by the soothing rhythm and melody, understand? Momentum! Look at how well my Ziwei dances."

"Little Lan, sway your body naturally. This is strength wrapped in gentleness—don't lose your vitality. Look at how well my Ziwei dances."

When the first rehearsal finally concluded, Yue Xiaotian looked thoroughly disappointed. "I have explained it extremely clearly: entering the divine realm means transcending the mortal plane. Five words—how much simpler can it get? An airplane requires a full pull of the control stick to take off; did you all give it everything you had? What does total immersion even mean? If you can't manage such simple dance steps and purely instrumental music, how can you even talk about dynamic singing? Don't you know how to look at the lead dancer, Ziwei?"

"Director, while that may be true, dynamic playing is extremely difficult. Ziwei is a transcendent dancer so of course she has no problem with it, but we are different."

"Yeah, Director, you don't have to hit us quite so hard."

"It's fine, Director, we'll learn it properly in a moment."

Swish, swish, swish! Several tennis balls flew out simultaneously as Yue Xiaotian roared, "Pricked prides again? You can't even keep up with Ziwei's movements, and you're talking about performing? Your opponents are Seven-Star transcendent dancers, have you forgotten? Instead of seriously examining your own flaws, you only know how to look for excuses and justifications. Is this your conviction? If so, get the hell back where you came from, and forget about performing!"

Watching the musicians hang their heads, their faces filled with shame and grievance, Ziwei hurried forward to grab Yue Xiaotian's left arm. She gave a gentle shake of her head, her blue eyes conveying a silent message.

Meeting Ziwei's gaze, Yue Xiaotian's tone softened immediately. "Ten-minute break. Afterward, I want every single one of you to write a self-reflection. Did you hear me clearly?"

"Crystal clear!"

Just then, a roaring sound in the distance caught Yue Xiaotian's attention. Looking up, he spotted a helicopter flying toward them.

Before long, a somewhat weathered helicopter landed at the site.

Once the engine settled, Li Wanyi stepped out accompanied by two staff members.

Since both Yue Xiaotian and Ziwei had been watching, Li Wanyi quickly located her primary targets.

As they shook hands in introduction, Li Wanyi mentally sympathized with her female friend, because Ziwei was simply too breathtaking, possessing a peerless temperament where every gesture carried an ethereal, divine charm. Experiencing it firsthand made the impression all the more vivid.

However, Li Wanyi knew the real purpose of her visit. Promptly, she sought Yue Xiaotian's consent: "When do we begin?"

The Li Wanyi before them possessed an intellectual beauty coupled with a vibrant energy, her heartbeat graceful and resonant.

Wearing subtle makeup, delicate facial features, a tailored suit, a slender figure, and a sweet smile, her voice sounded exceptionally pleasant to the ear.

Catching sight of the Crane Media press badge pinned to her chest, Yue Xiaotian broke into a slight sweat.

Crane Media possessed the scale of a standard small company—nothing impressive—yet its company name carried an overwhelmingly grandiose and poetic flair.

Glancing briefly at the two staff members who were busy setting up behind Li Wanyi, he said, "Start whenever you're ready."

At that moment, Li Wanyi's heart raced with excitement. Yue Xiaotian was genuinely extraordinary—he was absolute headline material.

Most importantly, he possessed a volatile temper and an intimidating aura, causing major media outlets to give him a wide berth.

Thanks to her good friend Liu Qingxin helping to bridge the connection, this presented the opportunity of a lifetime for her to soar—an exclusive scoop!

As an elite graduate from a world-renowned school of martial arts and dance, the excited Li Wanyi handled her work with meticulous organization.

Moments later, making use of her surroundings, Li Wanyi sat down opposite Yue Xiaotian and Ziwei, microphone in hand.

Turning serious, Li Wanyi asked, "Last night, Grandmaster Ziwei's performance encountered a slight mishap, which has drawn intense public concern. As the director of the water sprite princess Ziwei, what are your thoughts on this incident?"

Giving the hand of the slightly nervous Ziwei a reassuring squeeze, Yue Xiaotian spoke into the microphone, "Last night's mishap was entirely the fault of me, the director. Personally, I do not like encroaching upon any artist's performance space. By the same token, no one is allowed to encroach upon my Ziwei's performance space. Therefore, since the Xuan Dance Hall wasn't packed to capacity last night, I will personally win the audience back—every single one of them."

Li Wanyi pressed on, "Rumor has it that last night's five dance halls featured simultaneous performances by the Heavenly Queen Hongmei and her friends. All other musicians had to clear the path for them, resulting in delayed performance times. Why did Grandmaster Ziwei perform last night anyway? Did you perhaps fail to receive the relevant notifications?"

Yue Xiaotian replied evenly, "There were plenty of notifications. It's just that Hongmei simply doesn't qualify to make my musicians clear the way for her. Of course, since an accident occurred last night, I believe everyone has their doubts. But I will only say this: let strength do the talking. Six months from now, I will ensure the Xuan Dance Hall is packed to bursting."

Playing to the demands of the livestream audience, Li Wanyi adopted a look of astonishment and asked, "Does the esteemed internet celebrity director realize the extent of the Heavenly Queen Hongmei's power?"

With an indifferent expression, Yue Xiaotian said, "I didn't know before, and I don't know now. However, I did bother to look into her a bit. I must say, Hongmei is truly not worth mentioning in my eyes. To put it bluntly, I could crush her with a single finger. Of course, since she stole my Ziwei's audience, that debt is best settled slowly by my Ziwei herself. After all, if I were to go all out, it would simply be too much of a bully."

At that moment, having interacted with him in person, Li Wanyi finally understood just how confident, unbridled, and arrogant Yue Xiaotian truly was.

A mortal claiming he could crush a Seven-Star dancer with a single finger, his tone dripping with utter disdain. Li Wanyi felt as though her heart was about to leap out of her chest.

Imagining the impact of this livestream broadcast, Li Wanyi hastily wrapped up the interview and turned the focus back onto herself as the anchor of the frame. "Thank you both for taking this interview. If everyone wishes to follow the subsequent developments between Princess Ziwei and Heavenly Queen Hongmei, as well as more updates regarding Director Xiaotian, please continue following the exclusive coverage brought to you by Li Wanyi of Crane Media."