Dual Cultivation God Returns

Chapter 420 The starry pond, two people and a porcelain jar

He chuckled, and a figure came out from behind the corned, a confident smile on a beautiful face and green eyes that sparkled with interest and amusement in the moonlight.

"As I thought, there is no escaping your eyes, Daoist Wu"

"Haha, I have been meaning to tell you, but you can just call me Wu Long. That formal way of address does not suit you"

"Hmm~ perhaps I should take you up on that offer, but then again I do not know if that name is even real"

"Heh, it is real. Although I suppose I owe you more details than just that after I promised to talk later the last time. Care to join me for some tea?"

"Tea? Please, handsome, I am not a princess or noble lady. I just happen to have some fine wine made by our mutual friend"

"Oh? I would gladly take you up on that offer, and be greatly thankful for sharing such a precious possession"

He chuckled with a glint in his eyes, and the lady soon joined him in the gazebo. They did not sit in the center like with the noble ladies before, but at the far end of the gazebo, which did not have a railing, openly overlooking the pond in between two pillars.

Wu Long took a slightly relaxed pose leaning his back on the pillar while Liang Yuhan sat in women's sitting pose, her legs together slightly to the side, peeking from the deep cut in the cheongsam.

As she took out the wine cups and the porcelain wine jar, she let Wu Long who moved to help her remove the seals and open the stopper, allowing the bewitching sweet aroma of wine to fill the air, and prepare the wine cups while she cleaned her smoking pipe, and prepared a special medicinal pill that went well with the wine, placing it into the pipe and starting it.

"Before we speak about your identity, though, I want to ask about something I overheard earlier"

She said while puffing the first cloud of smoke.

"If I can answer it"

"I am sure you can, since it is something you 'care about', or so I heard"

"Hahaha, please go ahead, Madam Liang"

"You said something peculiar about the Dao of Dual Cultivation, that many practitioners mistake it for the Dao of Carnal Pleasure... but is pleasure then not a part of it?"

"Hmm, I may have been a little too vague.

There is no mistaking that carnal pleasure is part of it, as it is part of human nature and is therefore part of the Human Dao, but the problem happens when people misunderstand it as 'only' carnal pleasure"

Wu Long touched his chin in thought as he did not realize that the meaning behind his words was not getting across as he believed.

"So you are saying that Dual Cultivation is something encompassing it but is not solely about it?"

A cloud of smoke went up into the air, as the sound of wine poured into wine cups rang out. The precious liquid has breathed enough and was ready to be enjoyed. Liang Yuhan looked at the way Wu Long poured the wine and even that simple gesture seemed profound in its simplicity.

"Correct. I would never discard the component of pleasure entirely, as it is our instinct to seek it.

There is nothing vulgar or unnatural about our lustful desires, when they come from the right place, even if that right place is simple satisfaction of our human needs.

It is the standard of the society to treat it as something shameful, and hide it away, but that does not mean it is so"

Wu Long chuckled while giving the beauty the first cup.

"Haha, it is a bit arrogant to think the entire society wrong, is it not?"

"Perhaps it is. But then again, I do not claim to be right either. It is simply my way of viewing things. Besides, the way society views acts of carnal pleasure does have its merits"

Wu Long took in the aroma of the wine, closing his eyes to enjoy it a little longer.

"Merits?"

Liang Yuhan paused as she was about to take the first sip, raising her eyebrow.

"Hahaha, if it was not viewed as shameful and vulgar, there would be no fun in doing it somewhere one could be caught, and no thrill in the risk of being seen"

He chuckled as she smiled widely, shaking her head.

"Hahaha, it almost sounds like there is an upside to everything"

"Almost, nice things come in balance. And any extreme taken too far can lead to disaster. The Grand Dao is formless, soundless and incorporeal"

Wu Long mused as he took a sip of the wine, his tone becoming light and frivolous while the impression he gave became more profound and mysterious instead.

The two sat in silence for some time, slowly sipping the wine, looking at the water in the pond as a mirror to view the sky which was exceptionally clear that night, as the universe looked back at them with all of its stars, darkness and mysteries.

"... is that the view of the God of Pleasure?"

Liang Yuhan slightly hesitated but finally decided to ask, causing Wu Long to turn his head to look at her with a little surprise.

"I must admit... I did think you should have your doubts, but I never expected someone to know me by that title here"

Wu Long spoke truthfully, indirectly admitting it as Liang Yuhan forgot to breathe. Her green eyes sparkling in the moon widened as she saw him sitting in a relaxed pose as the pond reflected the night sky, his silhouette basked in the moonlight, while his presence suddenly became deep and profound. Something in his gaze and demeanor imperceptibly changed, as if he took off a thin veil that covered a celestial being, causing her to not even doubt his words.

"I did think you were connected... but..."

"Ah, I see. Well it is not surprising, since otherwise you would have to guess why someone like me was here, so thinking I was someone with a connection makes sense"

Wu Long nodded to the still frozen Liang Yuhan who suddenly realized she was before someone so unfathomable she could not even begin to comprehend his being.

But then that thought led her to the memories of her attempts to seduce him when they just met and her face flushed red as the turned her gaze away, her smoking pipe slowly emitting a thin line of smoke as she forgot about its existence.

"Still, I did not think that fame, heh, or rather infamy, of a titled God could reach here. Only a few people are given that much recognition and I never considered myself among them"

"Well, I used to deal with information even before this world closed off, so I happened to know more than the average.

Dual Cultivators regard your Three Paths of Pleasure as a sacred text, so your influence still lives through generations.

Besides, your name lives in the horror and dread of Lust Cultivators by the title of God of Slaughter as well"

"Hmm, by the sound of it, that practice did not die off after all"

"Well, it is not thriving either. It is mostly shunned and outlawed in most places. They can only live in shadows nowadays, much like the Corrupt Path.

It is only here in this isolation that they came out in the open and established a sect"

Liang Yuhan shook her head, still trying to process the revelation of his identity by keeping herself busy with giving out information.

"Don't speak so formally, Madam Liang. It might be hard to adjust, but if you think about it you never spoke with some persona or fake identity, you always spoke with me. You just know who I am now, but the person I was did not change. Why bother changing the way you interact when we have known each other for some time now?"

He chuckled as he saw her slightly fidget, and the restless look in her eyes.

"But still..."

"I rather enjoy speaking with you, besides my women know my identity as well, though not all of them know exactly what it entails since they do not know much of the outside world"

"But they are your women..."

"That is true, I will allow them more freedom in dealing with me than to most people, but then again I don't really like formalities that much in the first place.

In fact treating me like that old man treats that drunkard friend of mine is about just right"

Wu Long chuckled and Liang Yuhan gasped as she remembered the way Old Man Zhao talked about the Wine God.

He sipped another mouthful of wine, savoring its taste and the aroma while letting her come to terms with who he was as helooked back to the pond.