My Apocalypse System Arrives 10 Years Early

”This one will be called *Tide Sound Dao*.”

Jiang Cai’Er’s knowledge was profound, enough to be called the most learned person in the world. She pondered for a moment, and the poem flowed from her lips, her voice like celestial music.

”The tide recedes, revealing coral bright; stars fade, the pearl palace empty in the light. Where Heaven and Earth form their dual pact, why ask about the primordial act?”

It was a five-character quatrain.

”Another one,” Li Xiang encouraged, his eyes gleaming.

”Pervert!” Jiang Cai’Er spat playfully, but seeing Li Xiang’s eager expression, she composed another one, *Vast Ocean Moon Seal*:

”The Dipper hangs its sash from a jade cord’s height, the tide swallows dragon and tiger, its qi now clear and bright. The spirit-terrace allows no speck of dust to stay, now an ocean vast, reflecting the moon’s pale ray.”

The more Li Xiang savored it, the better he thought it was. ”Another five-character quatrain.”

Jiang Cai’Er had no choice but to come up with another one, *Purple Mansion Tide*.

”The sea stands as the jade armament turns, a tide is born in the Purple Mansion’s autumn yearns. The whispers of three thousand stardust motes, in a flash, into the flowing clouds it floats.”

”In ancient times, Cao Zijian could compose a poem in seven steps. Today, my Cai’Er can compose one in a single breath. How about I raise the difficulty? Write a Song-dynasty lyric. We’ll continue our Cultivation while you compose it—no, sing it. Song lyrics all have tune titles, so they can be sung. Hmm, let’s go with a *Linjiang Immortal*.”

A tune title dictates a fixed format and rhythm, like a piece of music. Writing such lyrics is also called ”filling in the words.”

*Linjiang Immortal* was a tune from the Tang Dynasty’s Imperial Music Bureau, also known as *Xie Xin’en*, *Yanhou Return*, *Spring on the Screen*, *Deep Courtyard*, *Picking Lotus Back*, *Xiang Pingting*, *Ruihe Immortal Order*, *Mandarin Duck Dream*, and *Jade Linked Rings*. The meter is a level-rhyme scheme, a two-stanza short lyric. The word count can vary between fifty-two, fifty-four, fifty-eight, fifty-nine, sixty, or sixty-two characters.

When sung, the syllables of this tune should be flowing and graceful, the emotion restrained and subtle.

”Oh my god.” Jiang Cai’Er could only think that Brother Xiang was the biggest pervert in the entire world. Still, amidst the crashing waves, she complied and filled in the lyrics. But Li Xiang’s ”attacks” were too fierce, greatly increasing the difficulty. It took her a long time to finish singing, her voice breaking off intermittently.

This was an extremely sensual and graceful *Linjiang Immortal: Star-Tide Covenant*.

”The Sea Soul Darkly Collects the Star Line; the Coconut Wind Secretly Passes the Simurgh Pattern. A clam’s pearl spits the moon, achieving both Fragmentation and Uniformity. Tide Marks are Invading the Jade Feet, Opening the Pearl Palace Gates. A Point of Spiritual Rhinoceros Communicates with the Purple Extreme; Three Thousand Weak Waters are at the Same Temperature. Heart Marks are left on the Coral Branches. Don’t speak of the vastness of the sea; A Square Inch is the Universe.”

The ”Simurgh Pattern” alluded to the spreading trajectory of the Dual Cultivation Technique’s Spirit Patterns; ”Pearl Palace” hinted at the blending of Spiritual Power; ”Heart on Coral” corresponded to the harmony of yin and yang. The final line used the ”vast sea” as a metaphor for the great path of Cultivation, while ”a square inch” (the spirit-terrace) echoed the enlightened state of mind after a breakthrough.

In truth, it wasn’t just this lyric that was sensual; the previous poems were also filled with decadent tones and all sorts of allusions. Li Xiang was a connoisseur and understood them well. Listening to them made his heart surge and his virility rise. The two of them simultaneously activated the ”Star Dome Concerto: Simurgh’s Nine Melodies” and lost themselves completely in their Cultivation.

After a full five times, even as a Tier Six Extraordinary, Jiang Cai’Er couldn’t withstand Li Xiang’s antics and fell into a deep sleep in his arms.

Li Xiang felt a pang of guilt. ’It was her first time, and I was so rough with her.’ However, his energy and stamina were unparalleled in this world. Although Jiang Cai’Er was powerful, she was still a delicate woman.