“Moreover, they have a fatal weakness.”
“Tell me.” Ingmar seemed interested.
“It’s true that the history department has enjoyed the limelight since the start of school because of that failure and Eastern kid. They’ve even entered the concertmaster group. But that doesn’t mean the department is any different from before. It’s the opposite. Because of Ye Qingxuan’s activeness, the department is in an even more dangerous and awkward position.
“Their advantages have always been reaction speed and tough tricks, but their weakness is just as obvious. It’s their actual strength. Their strength can’t even be compared to other schools,” Bart said. “Because of this, they prepared so many ways beforehand to offset the difference in numbers. Yes, their strategies were very successful and shook the School of Modifications, allowing them to completely control the rhythm. But these tricks can only be used once. If we prepare well, it’s only a matter of time before they’re defeated.”
Bart looked down at the illusion in the aether ball. A sliver of cold light flashed past his eyes. “And anyway, isn’t controlling the enemies’ situation what the School of Summoning is best at? The same tricks won’t work on us.”
Ingmar was silent for a while before chuckling lightly. “Very good, Bart. I am pleased. You didn’t allow your hatred and anger to make you hot-headed. Logic and knowledge are the best weapons for the School of Summoning. I anticipate the day you defeat that Eastern kid.”
–
“Did you all hear clearly?” In the other locker room, a leopard cat on the ground side-eyed the students sitting obediently on the benches. Beside the cat, a silver fly fluttered its wings. Ingmar and Bart’s voices traveled from the other room.
The sounds gradually stopped. The cat glanced at the fly and the fly disintegrated into a pile of dust. Only two “fly wings,” which were used as summoning mediums, floated down.
This was one type of phantom beasts developed by the School of Modifications—a certain type of byproduct of detection technology. They were not as sensitive as originally thought, but they were more secretive. If they were hidden and unmoved, they would not create many aether waves.
The leopard cat yawned lazily. Its beastly eyes were filled with humane brilliance. It was Ludwig’s incarnation. “Look at them and then look at you.” Ludwig exhaled loudly through his nose. “I’ll be much less worried if you all can have some brains! You don’t even care about strategy and just do everything forcefully. Don’t be like the unlucky team from Modifications and get toyed as soon as you enter the field.”
“Rest easy, Professor.” The lazy girl before the leopard cat whistled. “That won’t happen, even if we get the history department next.”
“Huh, James and those idiots thought the same thing.”
“But we have different strengths, and a game is still a game. Unless we’re allowed to kill people, Modifications will always be the most restricted team.” The girl scoffed and suddenly laughed. “After all, if we have an advantage in numbers, then we’ll have the biggest advantage.”
The large black cheetah in her arms woke and yawned lazily. It rubbed against its owner with its head, squirmed, and went back to sleep. Under the bench, beside her feet, in the lockers of the room, behind her, in the corner…nineteen black cheetahs yawned in unison, as if their yawns were contagious.
One seemed to have slept enough and stretched, scratching the ground. With a screech, a deep gash appeared in the smooth floor. Above the cheetah, a colorful parrot cawed. It flapped its wings and flew.
The locker room, large enough for thirty people, instantly became filled with flying and jumping animals. Shadow leopards, steel-back apes, six-eyed lava dogs, eight-limbed crawlers, silver-scaled snakes in clay pots, constantly-changing mist spirits sealed inside a glass flask…these strange creatures that had been raised inside musicians’ minds were now let loose in reality. They cried happily, making a flurry of sharp noises.
“Preparation is a must.” Ludwig gazed at the girl helplessly. “Elsa, have I spoiled you all too much? The Professor is talking. At least sit properly.”
“Professor, relax.” Elsa rubbed her hands in excitement. “Other than the School of Royalty, just wait for me to completely cream the rest…”
Ludwig sighed. The leopard cat blurred and disappeared. The last moment before vanishing, it looked back in a certain direction with a gloating smile. It seemed that some people were going to lose their temper.
–
The locker room of Modifications was in ruins now. After fiery winds and thunderous storms had swept through, all the students looked like refugees. Their faces were burnt black and they looked pathetic.
“You lost?! You actually lost!” The cracking of ice and crackles of flames mixed together, forming Egor’s roar. James and others hung their heads and stood obediently in the corner of the wall for punishment.
The other team had been dragged into this for no reason and was not far better.
“I can accept losing to Revelations, Summoning, or Royalty, but you lost to the department that is close to being scrapped? How humiliating is that? Tell me, how humiliating is this?!”
The students hung their heads obediently and did not dare to reply.
“Seems like your training is too light. After today, everyone will meditate in the thunder pool for three hours before you sleep! If you can’t make it, no one’s allowed to eat. James, did you hear me?!”
James nodded with a bitter expression. “Yes, Professor.”
“And you!” The frost and fire voice turned, landing on another student. “What are you still waiting for? Glenn, go pick the lot! If you get those b*stards from the history department, use your most powerful music score to wipe them out! Did all the formulas go to waste?!”
Glenn hurriedly stammered a reply and fled. He heard another boom come from the locker room and wiped cold sweat from his forehead. In all these years, no team had caused all four schools to become unlucky at the same time…
Now, the history department was a durian-like player. Spiky, inedible, and with a foul smell…Those *ssholes would drag their opponents to their lowly level and then use their rich experience to defeat the opponents. They were tricky as f*ck.
Apparently the East believed in star reincarnation. Was Concertmaster Ye the reincarnation of some baneful star? It seemed that no one related to him would have good results.
Thinking of this, Glenn could not help but sigh. “Hopefully I won’t get him again. Otherwise, everyone would have it bad.”
Thankfully, they might be able to win if they went all out…They could use strength, numbers or observe each and every of the opponents’ moves. Each school had their own solution. And if they could set down their determination, they could win a lot.
The history department probably had more than ten thousand points now, right?
A glimmer of cold light flashed past Glenn’s eyes. The risk was worth all those points. He began calculating carefully.
Similarly, at the high podium for the lot picking, everyone exchanged glances. After collecting all the information, they all glanced at the history department. It was such a rich lump of meat. It all came down to how it would be eaten.
Glenn, Bart, and Elsa glanced at each other’s expressions. After realizing that they all had the same idea, they instinctively grew cautious. Behind them all, Banner watched coolly from the side. Rather than joining their fight, he looked off into the distance. Beside him, the manticore’s eyes rolled, making it seem more menacing. Stared at by those beastly eyes made one feel like prey and was filled with fear.
This was today’s last event. The lots chosen would determine tomorrow’s competing teams. All team representatives were at the podium.
“Have all the representatives arrived?” Sydney took attendance and his brows furrowed. Why was it the history department again? No one had come! F*ck, it was always them who did not follow the rules? “History department? Have they arrived?” His expression darkened. “If not, then it’ll be seen as quitting the game and all points will be cleared…”
The crowd was silent. Someone coughed awkwardly. “Mr. Sydney, their representative has arrived.”
“Then why did no one answer when I took attendance?” Sydney roared. “Where? Come out! Where are your manners?”
The crowd moved and quickly separated. And out came…a dog.
Yes, it was that golden dog—that evil dog who was prouder than a king, more confident than a prime minister, and more disdainful than the principal!
It was him again! They met once again after all these months, but the disdainful gaze scarred Sydney again.
“What the f*ck is this?” Sydney’s face reddened in fury. “Do they look down on everyone else? Are they causing trouble on purpose?”
The dog glanced at him lazily and dropped the crumpled paper in his mouth at Sydney’s feet. It was written on the paper that Old Phil was an honorary member of the history department and had all the qualifications of a regular player! There was also a signature in the bottom right corner that Sydney was extremely familiar with.
“Maxwell?”
Sydney thought he was going crazy. He looked up at the stands and saw the principal whistling with an innocent expression.
“Just keep thinking of ways to mess with people! One day, you’ll get hit with karma!” Sydney thought. His face turned livid and he looked back, squeezing out from his teeth, “Begin choosing.”
In fact, it was not the Music History department purposely being the troublemaker. It was just that everyone was used to their bad luck. They always had a bad time. Each one was worse off than the one before.
Ye Qingxuan knew very well how unlucky he was. He could end up getting hunted just by being on the street. Bai Xi was worse, and Charles was the worst. He drew one of the strongest six teams in the first round, which almost destroyed their department. As foreign aid, Bench Guy said that he refused to draw on behalf of them and disappeared.
In such an extremely helpless situation, they could only let the boss Old Phil to do this draw. Since Old Phil used to find dozens of dollars from time to time, it must have better luck than anyone of them.
Soon, every group finished their draws. Every team held a nameplate and looked urgently at the arrangement of their next duel. Soon, the registration was over and all the arrangements were displayed on the list.
“09?” Glenn looked down at the nameplate in his hands, looked at the opponent on the list, and finally looked in the direction of the School of Royalty. Seeing Banner and those elite graduates by his side, Glenn’s face darkened considerably and he muttered a curse.
The others gloated immediately. It seemed that the two teams of Modifications would both fail in the first two days.
Elsa of the School of Summoning whistled and squinted at the other team of Revelations. Watched by Elsa, the leader’s complexion suddenly paled. Revelations were not good at face-to-face combat in the first place. Now they had to face a crowd of psychos from Summoning?
Musicians who raised monsters in their brains were more or less neurotic. As their leader, Elsa was the craziest. Apparently their opponents today quit the game because too many players were taken out…He already began to calculate how much time they could last facing this female lunatic.
After the game had been arranged, each team leader began to find their opponents according their number. Some were happy; others were complaining. In the end, the six big teams confirmed with each other, and unexpectedly found that…no team was going to fight with the music department in tomorrow’s game?!
Suddenly, everyone’s eyes fell on the golden-haired dog, their eyes full of hatred and jealousy. They wanted to know who had gotten the juicy morsel that was the history department.
Facing those troubled eyes, Old Phil huffed out its nostrils. Without even looking at the list, it threw the nameplate in its mouth under the podium.
Ye Qingxuan casually caught the card and took a look. His expression went slack on the spot. “No way, Old Phil…”
“Let me take a look!” Charles also came to join the fun, but after reading, he also fell into complete speechlessness. He had no idea whether to cry or laugh.
“What on earth is this?” Ye Qingxuan looked at him. Their complex expressions and troubled eyes reached a new level.
Seeing their expressions, the people on the podium instantly began to whisper. In the end, Elsa raised her eyebrows, growled at her players, “What do you mean you don’t know? Go and check! Who are their opponents…Who dares to take them from me? Do they want to die?!”
“No need to check,” Bart suddenly said. “The result is out.”
In just a few minutes, Bart had confirmed the result by calculating the numbers in his mind. By comparing the list of arrangements, he had reached the conclusion.
To be honest, Bart did have some talent for the School of Revelations, especially for information processing and summarization. In just a few minutes, he had already guessed the result through various clues.
Hearing his voice, everyone looked over at the tree diagram in his hands. At the end of the list was a lone number—035—it was an awkward odd number. It seemed impossible to pair and had no arranged opponents.
“Are you kidding?” Glenn’s face stiffened.
Elsa’s mouth twitched. “How can it be?”
“They drew nobody.” Bart clenched his teeth with a livid look. “They have no opponents.”
Hearing this, everyone looked to Elsa. It was this girl who had forced a team to retire its players until they could not even gather enough people, and finally gave up the game.
Yes, they were short one team. Therefore, there was bound to be a team who had no opponents and qualified directly for the next round…But how could they be so lucky? And it was a dog that had drawn!
Seeing that the juicy morsel had suddenly flown away, the leaders of the six strongest teams suddenly grew furious. They were so angry they could tear the quitters into pieces!
Old Phil coldly watched them sink into silence. It huffed from its nose again and turned away. Huh, a group of weaklings.
But Ye Qingxuan and the others did not know what to say. Even a dog’s luck was better than theirs. Old Phil was not a regular dog, but they still felt slight frustration, as if they had been defeated from all aspects!
“I’ve decided!” Ye Qingxuan patted his thigh. “From now on, let Old Phil do all the drawing!”
May the almighty Old Phil cheat you!
–
However, the good mood did not last long. Just as Ye Qingxuan was excited and the music history department cheered, a man in a postman’s uniform outside the crowd arrived on horseback.
After asking around, he looked into the direction of the youth and squeezed in from the crowd. Studying Ye Qingxuan, he asked quietly, “Are you Concertmaster Ye?”
“Yes.” Ye Qingxuan asked in confusion, “What’s the matter?”
“There’s an urgent letter for you.” The postman pulled out a sealed letter from his bag. Ye Qingxuan’s name and address were written on it in beautiful flowing handwriting. The pronunciation of the Eastern characters were even written in the lingua franca. Also on the envelope was the heraldry which Ye Qingxuan was very familiar with.
“Lola?”
Feeling the envious eyes on him and Bai Xi’s unhappy expression, Ye Qingxuan felt his scalp going numb. What had Lola planned this time?
–
It was late at night, at one of Avalon’s abandoned ports in downtown. After mixing with a large amount of industrial waste, the seawater had a disgusting stench. The lantern shone on the oil film and reflected a sickening rainbow.
In the sea breeze that smelled of dead fish, the waves crashed on the rotten stakes, echoing emptily. A hunched man with the scars on his face stood at the front of the dock with a cane and a lantern in his hand. The shadow of his hunchback left an ugly projection in the thick mist. From afar, it looked like a beast stooping to eat a corpse.
Illuminated by the lantern’s lights, his eyes under the shadow of hat flickered. He looked around with vigilance, waiting quietly. A chuckle seemed to sound in the distant mist.
Instantly, the hunchback spun around in shock and pulled out a crossbow, aiming in all directions. “Who’s there?”
“Me.” Behind him, someone bent over and whispered in his ear, “Don’t get so excited. Put that little toy away.”
Hearing that familiar voice, the man paused for a moment, and slowly put away his crossbow. He whispered indignantly, “Young Master Sherlock Holmes, why bother frightening a cripple like me?”
“Just wanted to say hello. After all, you were once the Pyramid King. There’s no reason for you to be so scared, right?” The newcomer chuckled. Leaning on his staff, he lifted the edge of his hat, revealing his eyes. It was Ye Qingxuan. He had come as invited.
At dusk, Lola’s letter made Ye Qingxuan the topic of gossip again and thoroughly proved the rumors of “seducing the professor”. But he did not expect that Lola would make such an effort in front of everyone to send this letter to him, just to ask him to run an errand for her.
“I haven’t been in a good mood and I don’t want to go out for my delivery. Go to Pier No. 19 tonight and get me something. That guy will show you the way.”
At the end of the letter, some extremely ambiguous words were written: Remember to be fast. I prepared a candlelit dinner.
And then there was a lip print.
What the f*ck was a candlelit dinner? The so-called candlelit dinner was just dinner for Lola. If she was hungry, she should have just said so…
Ye Qingxuan could already imagine him lying on a plate, all tied up. Lola would pick up a knife and fork, open the red lips that had left the lip print on that letter, and enjoy her dinner. He sighed and stopped thinking about those things. He would just wait for the ship to arrive.
Soon, on the sea, light reached out from the thick fog. It was the fog lamp necessary for sailing in such a heavy fog. Under the rhythmically flashing lights, the Pyramid King raised his lantern and skillfully responded to the code.
Soon, a ship’s shadow silently appeared in the mist.
“I didn’t think you still had people under you,” Ye Qingxuan exclaimed in amazement. “I thought the Shaman had already wiped the Pyramid Scheme clean.”
“I was the leader after all and there’s nothing strange with having some smuggling resources.” The Pyramid King glanced at Ye Qingxuan meaningfully, and said slightly, “Moreover, you should always leave an alternative for yourself. The cusp is not a good place to be.”
“Is it?” Ye Qingxuan sneered. “It seems that you didn’t do that for yourself.”
At the thought of being mercilessly betrayed by his employer, the Pyramid King’s expression grew serious and he stopped talking.
Soon, the ship docked.
Naked black-haired men carried a large box and stepped ashore. Behind them, the grizzled captain came ashore as well. He glanced at the Pyramid King and Ye Qingxuan, then drew back his sight.
“Erzi, put the things down and go back to the boat,” the old man commanded the sailor in the Eastern language, and put on a smile to greet the two men.
Ye Qingxuan was stunned. He did not expect that this smuggler was an Eastern man. The old man smiled and handed a list to the Pyramid King. Then he said in fluent Western language, “Everything the Professor asked for is here. Take a look?”
“You’re half a month late.” The Pyramid King looked at him. “A full half month.”
“The Professor’s request was too strict. Even scrapped waste is hard get,” the Eastern old man said in a low voice. “The workshops of Shaofu are under the management of the martial law. If we’re found to be smuggling these things, I won’t be the only one to be executed. You have to let me think of my family.”
“How’s the quality?”
“It was better than expected. One batch from the Tai Lok Department happened to come.”
“Very good.” The Pyramid King inspected the things in the iron box and nodded with satisfaction. He threw a leather sachet to the old man.
The old man used the fog lamp to opened the sachet and inspect it. Under the light, the blue gold sand in the bag shone intoxicatingly. It was no exaggeration to say that the sand in this bag was worth hundreds of thousands of pounds. The old man smiled and put it away.
“The Professor is always so generous. Never disappoints.”
Here, his expression grew curious. “Last time I came here, the fighting in Avalon was white-hot. How is it now? Many lines of the Pyramid Scheme are cut off. Now, not many in the East are willing to go to Avalon. If the Professor isn’t an old customer, I wouldn’t want to come either. Sam, do you know what’s going on?”
The Pyramid King’s face darkened and he did not respond.
“The Pyramid King no longer exists. You should change your partner now.” Ye Qingxuan said slightly.
The old man froze. “Who is the winner?”
“The Shaman.”
Hearing Ye’s response, the old man grew astonished. He obviously knew about the conflicts between the Shaman and the Professor. He instantly became a little hesitant. “Then the Professor …”
“Dead!” Ye Qingxuan coldly said. No matter what, the Professor was dead. Only Lola was alive. He could not let the Shaman know that the Professor was still alive.
Hearing the cold voice from the mysterious man, the old man froze and looked up at him. He had thought that this man was the Pyramid King’s man, but he did not expect that he was the real boss.
When he looked into the man’s eyes, he found that the man was looking at himself too. The eyes under the hat were hidden in the shadows. They reflected pale mist and the dim fog lamp, like a wisp in the abyss, emanating piercing cold. It was like an abyss with a limitless magnetic force.
“Now I’m the Professor’s replacement. If you want this business, just keep your mouth shut. Pay particular attention to…” Ye Qingxuan paused. His hoarse voice contained a murderous chill. “…to not ask around.”
The chill of the night was brought in the sea breeze’s blowing. It stung the old man’s eyes, making him look away and nod hurriedly. “Yes, I had crossed the line.” He lowered his head and stopped looking at the shadow in the mist that could not even be illuminated by light.
Now that the transaction had been completed, the ship would set sail again soon. The next stop was Birmingham, and there was a whole warehouse of silk to unload there.
In the end, the old man glanced carefully at the shadow, and drew a brocade name card from his pocket. “May I know your name?”
“Holmes. Call me Holmes,” the shadow responded to him with the Eastern language. His voice was soft, but it seemed to hide the darkness behind the whole city. “But some people like to call me the Vengeful Spirit.”
The drawing room of the old mansion was filled with gentle light and the fragrance of red tea. The high quality tea from India perfectly covered the bitter smell of the other medicine, but it could not change the painful flavor. There was nothing to critique about how Lola drank the tea though. She did not even wrinkle her brows and was pleasingly beautiful. She was like a true noble lady—elegant, graceful and impossibly perfect. Whenever Ye Qingxuan saw this, he would involuntarily wonder where the evil Professor that he knew had gone.
“You’ve taken another large portion of the Pyramid King’s resources.” Lola glanced at Ye. “Are you trying to take over the illegal trade market from the East?”
“Just helping you hide your tracks.” Ye Qingxuan glanced back at her and replied in annoyance, “Even if you’re using the Pyramid King’s channels, there’s no need to use your own name for orders, right?”
“I can’t help it. The name ‘Professor’ has some power amongst the smugglers. Some risk is worth it.” Lola patted the iron box between the two. “I used a lot of connections to get this stuff. I’m praising the Lord that it arrived safely.”
“What’s in it?”
Lola raised her teacup and glanced at him. “You don’t want to look for yourself?”
Ye Qingxuan curled his lips and flipped the lid off, but then he froze. The giant iron box had been filled to the brim. There was a pipa with broken strings, a broken guqin, a huqin bored through by termites, a cracked xiao, a flute covered in hairline cracks…This entire iron box was…filled with broken instruments.
“Yes, all these instruments are broken,” Lola stated. “They’re cheaper and have deeper resentment.”
“Resentment?” Ye Qingxuan asked. “Inanimate objects have resentment too?”
“Of course not. It’s just something placed upon them by humans. If it’s positive, it can be known as its ‘spirit,’‘spirituality’ or something else…But there are still debates over whether this thing actually exists. Otherwise, the School of Choir and Revelations wouldn’t keep arguing about the existence of a soul every year. But it doesn’t matter. Some things feed on it…”
“Feed on thoughts?”
Lola smiled. Lifting a broken pipa string with her finger, she studied it. The pipa had been used for many years and multiple places had been worn smooth. It was clear that it had not been treated well and was damaged under aether stress. Parts of the inner layer had cracked apart. Two words were carved into the bottom of the pipa: Green Willow. This was its name.
“This should have been handed down through generations and used by musicians for centuries. Its spirit was born naturally and grew with the music scores for decades. That’s why it has deep resentment after being abandoned.” Lola studied the instrument and suddenly tossed it at Ye Qingxuan. “Catch.”
Ye Qingxuan panicked and caught it clumsily. The pipa landed in his arms with a slap. The instrument’s neck vibrated and a crack appeared. Then an endless chain of cracks and pops sounded. The paint on the pipa cracked too and grew dull. In the end, an entire layer of the pipa had broken off and fell to the ground like snow. It smelled like the dirt from an ancient tomb, with an eerie dampness.
“Uh, that’s not my fault.” Ye Qingxuan panicked. “It’s all Jiu Xiao Huan Pei. I don’t know…”
“I know. No need to explain,” Lola explained. “I bought these to help develop Jiu Xiao Huan Pei’s spirit. After being damaged for so many years, its spirit is pretty much all gone. Since you can’t use music scores to nourish it, it can only steal other people’s things.”
“Its…spirit?”
“Instruments have spirits. A good instrument’s spirit can even resonate when in distress. Musicians need to use suitable music scores to nourish it, otherwise the spirit will disperse. I found all these abandoned instruments with deep resentment so Jiu Xiao Huan Pei can recover soon.” Lola paused and glanced at Ye Qingxuan. “If it recovers during Deva sensing, it might even let you see what it sees.”
“Really?” Ye Qingxuan strummed the instrument. Its sound spread out in all directions like a ripple and echoed within the old mansion. Everything in its path revealed a blurry silhouette, as if he was staring at them with his eyes.
Unlike the blurriness from before, Ye Qingxuan’s perception of the world had become clearer. He could even vaguely recognize the material of the objects.
“The recovery of its spirit will make Jiu Xiao Huan Pei more applicable. If it undergoes targeted absorption, it can improve its imitation of related instruments. Have you felt that it can’t do as much as you want when you use its modified versions? It’s not that easy to cross the chasm between Eastern and Western instruments.”
Ye Qingxuan nodded in agreement. He had felt its limits when he changed Jiu Xiao Huan Pei into other instruments.
“It’ll change for the better after its spirit’s recovery. But with that, the operational difficulty will rise too. If you can’t reach the Musician level quickly, Jiu Xiao Huan Pei will ignore your playing after it absorbs all these instruments.”
“…Then why would I still want it?”
“A millennium of the Ye family’s history is in this instrument. If you really don’t care, you can just let it die.” Lola’s words made Ye Qingxuan speechless.
“Okay, okay, let it absorb more. Come on baby, eat slowly…” Ye Qingxuan picked up the instruments one by one and gave it to Jiu Xiao Huan Pei to nourish its spirit. He could feel that there really was something inside the instrument that was slowly recovering, but he still could not touch it.
It was a strange and fleeting feeling. No matter how many times he tried, he still could not touch a shred of the spirit. After trying dozens of times, he was sad enough to cry.
After the resentment in the third instrument was ingested, Ye Qingxuan felt his vision go black and he almost passed out. The flute in his hand fell back into the iron box.
“You should slow down. It uses your energy to ingest the resentment. Be careful you don’t get sapped dry.”
“…Why didn’t you tell me something that important?!”
“It’s not too late yet.”
–
Interrupted by her, Ye Qingxuan almost forget his other reason for coming. After resting for a bit, he pulled out a folded piece of paper and handed it to Lola. “Here, look at this.”
“What is this?” Lola opened it and her brows quickly furrowed. “You want this?”
Ye Qingxuan nodded. “Do you have any scores that meet these requirements? It’s best if it’s easy so I can learn quickly.”
“You really want to learn this?” Lola’s lips curled into a smile. It was clear she knew about Ye Qingxuan’s situation. “Seems like your school’s trial has made you desperate.”
“I helped you so much and let you suck my blood every week like I’m a buffet. Can’t you pay me back?” Ye Qingxuan asked straightforwardly, “Do you have it or not?”
“Of course.” Ye Qingxuan’s eyes brightened at Lola’s answer, but his heart dropped at her next words. “I know a bunch of similar effects, but as for ones that you can learn there’s…not much.”
“Stop joking. I’m seriously desperate now,” Ye Qingxuan sighed.
“For the sublimation ritual and Heart Mark music score?” Lola looked at him with a smile. “If you really want it, you can ask me for it. Or do you think that I don’t have enough money, or can’t create a Heart Mark? If you ask, I might be able to give you the nirvana that Mind musicians can only experience once in a lifetime.”
Ye Qingxuan rolled his eyes. “Why don’t you just send two girls to warm my bed?”
“Are you being serious?” Lola leaned down and cocked her head at him with flirty eyes. She raised a pale finger and hooked her long hair behind her ears. Leaning over, she exhaled in his ears. Even her voice had become moist, with a charming yet lazy sweetness. “How can little girls be better than me? The moon spirits care much more about pleasure than humans…”
“I was wrong, I surrender. Stop playing.” Ye Qingxuan raised his hands in defeat. “Just say you don’t have any. It’s okay. It’s rare for me to want to work hard, so why do you have to beat me down?”
Lola smiled. The dignity and calmness returned to her surface and she sat back down in the chair. She uttered the name of a music score and Ye Qingxuan froze, a bit doubtful.
“Are you sure I can learn it?” he asked.
“That depends on how much you put in.” Lola toyed with the small conch in her hands and looked up at him. “Are you ready for nightmares?”
“Great.” Ye Qingxuan sighed, suddenly feeling a headache coming. “I can’t wait.”
–
Soon, Ye Qingxuan flipped through the extra resources in the library. Looking at the checklist, he realized something. “You’re still researching the parliament?”
“Yes. After the robin disappeared, the parliament went underground. Or rather, most of their businesses are still going on, but there’s not much that’s worth our attention.”
“So everything they do has become legal?” Ye Qingxuan nodded. “They move stuff.”
“That’s why they are dangerous. For centuries, they’ve become one with the city and can hide in the darkness whenever and wherever. We don’t even know where their true weaknesses are.” Lola sighed. “For a while, the entire city was controlled by the parliament, until the Shaman appeared and destroyed their monopoly. But now, they’ve retracted and become even more careful. It’s harder to find anything that can be used against them.”
“You’re still researching the robin?” Ye Qingxuan flipped to another book of information. “Did he really not die? You know how powerful the moonlight is. I don’t think Satan’s follower could withstand it.”
“I cast a curse on him. The Originator will tell me if he dies, but there’s still no news.”
Hearing this, Ye Qingxuan’s lips twitched. “Seems like getting lucky is the trend this year. But since I’m here, let me help. Get me some related accounts and information on import companies. Maybe we can do something with the equity.”
“Now?” Lola looked up at the clock and shook her head after seeing it was ten at night. “It’s rare for us to meet up. Don’t say those boring things after we finished discussing such a mentally exhausting topic.”
Ye Qingxuan froze, but she pulled the youth up with a smile and walked toward the candlelit dining room.
“Didn’t we say that we would eat together?” She gave an anticipating smile. “I made my special risotto with red wine. Teacher really liked it. You should try it.”
Ye Qingxuan let her pull him around, but seeing her rare happiness, he could not help but feel a bit dismal. “Lola, I’m not my father,” he said lightly. “Don’t get us mixed up.”
“I know.” Lola turned back. Seeing his shocked expression, she laughed and reached out to caress his cheeks. Her eyes softened. “We’re family, aren’t we?”
The next day, the game had reached an intense level on the field. Summoning’s leopard shadows had been ignited. They roared, tangled in the multiple destructive music scores from the School of Modifications. The entire field’s atmosphere had reached its peak. The spectators yelled the players’ names; their cheers were like a tsunami.
Compared to the unspeakable shamelessness of the first game, the following games had reignited the students’ confidence in soccer. Whether it was the teamwork, defense or offense, all were amenable. The power of music scores and aether were even more amazing, making the game much more interesting to watch.
Victory, defeat, and the advantages of each side had become ambiguous and widely different. No matter how large of an advantage one team had, they could still lose if they did not pay attention.
In the short half-hour time, all players on the field were sapped of their energy. In the end, they were practically carried off by Choir musicians and given emergency treatment.
On the field, the victor, Glenn, wiped at his sweat and enjoyed the cheers of victory. Even Egor’s gloomy face relaxed slightly, growing pleased as he nodded lightly. The negative stigma on the School of Modifications had been wiped away. They had once again proved their unbeatable place in face-to-face fighting. Next, they had to find that guy who had used despicable strategies—James—and teach him a lesson!
Glenn suddenly clenched his fist and the shadow of a fiery claw flew behind him. It dispersed in the air and exploded with blinding firelight. Shocked cries rippled through the spectators.
His expression grew more arrogant. Controlling the scalding heat, he scattered it. He blew away the cinders and ashes, solidifying the ground into hard rock again. He glared at the music history’s rest stand through the forceful aether waves.
“Do you see? This is the enemy you’ll face next. This is the furious fire burned just for you! This is…” He froze. Something felt wrong!
No one was looking at him. There was only a lazy dog sunbathing on the empty seat. Its head rested on the seat in the front row. Drool dripped from its mouth, landing on the bunny on the front row. The bunny trembled, but could not move from under the dog’s paws. Old Phil rubbed it like a toy and was indifferent about the field.
Charles, that *ss, was using binoculars to look at the hot girls in the stands on the other side. His expression grew more and more sleazy. Bench Guy had disappeared to somewhere. As for Ye Qingxuan…what was he doing?
Glenn glared with a livid expression before realizing that no one had seen his showy moment. That guy had actually fallen asleep while sunbathing right in the middle of the noisy stadium!
Ye Qingxuan was draped over a chair in the rest stand of the history department. He slept with his head back, mouth open and was thunderously snoring. It was as if he was in the late stages of tuberculosis. He was completely asleep, despite the noisy environment. He did not even wake when Bai Xi moved him into a strange meditating position with his hands put together as if praying.
Now, Bai Xi was focused on drawing a small turtle on his face. There was also a bunny, alpaca, and fox on his forehead. Sensing Glenn’s eyes, she turned back and looked at the pained student in confusion. She quickly understood and waved, motioning for Glenn to wait.
Then she bent down, messed with something and lifted Ye Qingxuan’s stiff arm. Four fingers had been bent down by her, while the middle finger stuck straight up.
“The f*ck you looking at?” Bai Xi shot a taunting glare at him. The aggressiveness and disdain on her small face was enough to make someone burst a lung.
Soon, she stopped looking at the pissed Glenn and looked down to continue pranking Ye Qingxuan. But for some reason, the drawing she had just finished quickly turned blurry from sweat. It looked extremely ugly and strange. Ye Qingxuan was covered in sweat within a few minutes.
Bai Xi furrowed her brows and wiped him with a tissue. Looking at Charles, she asked, “He’s sweating again? Should we wake him?”
“Oh, he’s probably just hot from the sun.” Charles glanced at him and shot a frost ray at Ye Qingxuan’s seat. When the sweat turned to frost and froze on his face, he nodded in satisfaction. “Look, he should be cooler now.”
–
Cooler? Ye Qingxuan was not just “cooler” now. He was practically frozen to the bone! Gusty wind blew over snowflakes the size of a thumb. They crashed against each other in the air and turned to powder. Landing in Ye Qingxuan’s eyes. They melted and flowed out as tears, freezing on his face again.
He looked up, but all was dark. Endless wind and snow flew against his face. In the icy snow beneath him, his feet had turned numb. Every step in the snow was like stepping on nails.
One would only feel life burning like a fire at times like this. But in this icy world, the fire was like a candle in the wind, flickering and sputtering. Every breath made the flames disperse from the mouth and nose, turning into steam and dissipating.
Slowly, slowly, he froze in this endless blizzard.
Ye Qingxuan could practically hear the sounds of ice forming. It was the sound of his eyes freezing. He looked up, through the heavy snow, at the sky.
There was no light in this dark world, only endless blizzard. But there were clearly three suns in the sky. They burned exuberantly and radiated with dazzling light. But the light did not reach Ye Qingxuan and had nothing to do with him. They stood in the distance and gazed coldly at the world invaded by ice and snow.
“That is not your sun.” A hoarse voice sounded in the whistling wind, like resentment that had paced in this blizzard for a millennium.
“Find…
“Find it…
“Find…the sun that belongs to you!”
Ye Qingxuan used the last of his strength to make a step. He felt his legs go out and the ground came into vision.
Thud. He fell into the snow and felt suffocation coming on, but before he suffocated, he turned into a frozen corpse.
He woke from the nightmare instantly and felt the warm firelight. The blizzard was outside the cave. The gentle firelight caressed him, waking him from the dream of freezing to death.
But there was no joy in his expression. He just stared at the dancing firelight before him. The nightmare had started again.
He climbed up with difficulty. It was time to leave.
–
The seemingly gentle firelight could only cause death. In a short while, the blizzard would grow and completely block his exit. The firelight would burn out too. In the end, he would be stuck in this cave and slowly freeze to death.
But now, Ye Qingxuan silently stared at the burning fire. After a long time, he gathered his courage and reached into the flames. He grasped something and pulled it out.
The flames trembled and dimmed instantly. Then it died out gradually, turning into a pile of ashes. A completely burned and disfigured corpse was in Ye Qingxuan’s hands. Yanked out from the flames, one could vaguely make out its original appearance. The height, bone structure, and the unburned white hair.
“Is this my frozen corpse from the last round?” It dawned on Ye Qingxuan, but he was not happy at all. “Burning my own corpse for warmth…has the nightmare gotten to this level?”
He took one last glance at the corpse and kicked it into the extinguished fire. Then he walked out the cave. The world was dark in the endless blizzard outside the cave.
“I saw three suns in the sky…” the hoarse voice sang in the sweeping wind. “I stared at them long and hard, and they stared at me too, as if unwilling to leave me. The phantom sun, the phantom sun…”
Ye Qingxuan walked barefoot in the snowy plain, facing the frosty wind. Sometimes, he would look behind him. There was still warm light there, as if calling him back.
He suddenly grew afraid. Turning around, he began sprinting, getting further and further away from the fire. Gradually, the illusionary firelight disappeared in the blizzard. The endless wind and snow swallowed him. A lonely sound resounded amongst the wailing wind.
This feeling seemed familiar. It was as if it had solidified into something tangible and melted into the frost and snow. It bore through Ye Qingxuan from the outside in. His steps suddenly halted because a memory had appeared in his mind, but the memory was covered with dust.
“It was snowing like this that day too, right?” a voice murmured in his ears. “You were this pathetic that day too, right?”
Ye Qingxuan was stunned. He did not dare to think back. He stepped forward, running forward in pain, as if fleeing for his life. He wanted to escape from here, escape to somewhere far—at least, get away from that d*mn voice.
But the voice followed closely. It followed his footprints like a shadow. It murmured gently, whispered hoarsely, asked angrily and roared furiously. In the end, the voice shook the wind and snow. The blizzard resonated with the icy voice.
It roared Ye Qingxuan’s name. Its voice was like burning fire and like cracking firewood. It was like a call from the past, calling for him to return from the darkness. And so the dark world was suddenly illuminated with firelight.
Ye Qingxuan’s steps stopped abruptly. He looked at the burning light. It was the glow from a dilapidated house on fire. The flames were so exuberant, as if it would never be extinguished. Within the flames, the wooden house collapsed, but a gentle call sounded from it.
“Shut up!” Ye Qingxuan gritted his teeth and lowered his head, not daring to look anymore, but the calls grew louder, as if wanting to rip him to shreds.
Within that icy frost and wind, the voice ruled over all. It shook the heavens and the earth. It called his name as if wanting to tear him apart.
The sky shook, the world quaked and the voice roared in his ears, “Ye Qingxuan!”
His eyes flew open with sweat rolling down his back. He practically jumped up from the seat. Now, he finally realized that Bai Xi was shaking his shoulder. It was already afternoon and she grasped Ye Qingxuan, shocking him from his nightmare.
“Cousin, wake up, wake up!”
“What happened?” He looked at the joyous atmosphere in confusion and sat back into his seat, panting heavily. He summoned clean water and frost. After wiping his sweat-covered face, he took a deep breath and looked at Bai Xi. “I hope it’s good news.”
“You’ll never guess what it is.” Bai Xi revealed a strange smile. She picked up the disdainful Old Phil from the ground and shook it. “We didn’t get chosen again!”
It was late at night in the music history department. As always, Abraham had locked himself in the library. It was at the critical point of the deciphering of the Voynich manuscript. A few days ago, he finally found the true deciphering method. He scrapped everything he had done and restarted. This time, his speed was shocking and he completed the last portion as smoothly as if he was writing it. Now was the critical ending point and he was entirely focused.
Ye Qingxuan did not want to bother him. He was deep in thought as well, pondering about that frosty nightmare. He had frozen to death time after time in that nightmare, and then woke from the dream after dream of fire. Fake suns hung in the sky and the earth was frost, still as death. In this lonely world, he walked alone, looking for that so-called sun.
–
According to Lola, she had implanted the “key element” of the music score into his memory through the Blood Path. The element would use his memory and turn into a dream. It could be a pleasant dream, a nightmare or…something totally unrelated. If he wanted to grasp the spirit of the music score, he must pass through the endless dream. If he could escape from the dilemma, then he would have undoubtedly grasped the element. He could then easily learn the music score.
It was just like how the backstroke and butterfly stroke was just a change of posture to a good swimmer, but this element was impossibly hard to grasp. It was the essence and core of the entire music score, the foundation of the music score’s realization and spirit born from it.
Wanting to pass it and grasp the element was highly difficult. Moreover, sometimes there was more than one element. The elements had different terms for the different schools. For example, it could be a ‘formula,’‘equilibrium,’‘beastliness,’ or ‘fulcrum.’ But without a doubt, it was the most important aspect.
So, Ye Qingxuan was still doubtful if he could grasp the element implanted into his memory. According to Lola, the element could only remain there for three days before dispersing. If he could not find it during that time, he could only give up. Ye Qingxuan’s head hurt at this thought.
In the living room, Charles was still excited over having no competitors. It was late at night, but he was still drinking and flipping through pictures of pretty girls. He was just having fun by himself. Even though this *ss of a senior made one want to kill him at times, Ye Qingxuan had never met someone more easily satisfied than Charles. Just give him a bottle of alcohol and the newest photobook of the season, and he would be happy. Ye Qingxuan wished he could live like Charles too. At least he would not have any frustrations.
He sighed and sat down beside Charles. Picking up a glass, he shook it before Charles. “Give me some?”
“Huh?” Charles looked away from the photobook. Realizing what Ye Qingxuan said, he froze. “You can drink?”
“Just a little.” Ye Qingxuan grabbed the bottle and poured himself half a glass. He shrugged. “I learned a bit of everything before.”
Charles was quiet for a long while before sighing. “Junior…”
“Yeah?”
“For people like you, I wouldn’t even be surprised if you learn how to give birth one day.”
The corner of Ye Qingxuan’s lips twitched. “Sorry. That’s the only thing I can’t learn.”
“Oh, what a pity.” Charles shrugged. He was already drunk and did not even know what he was feeling pitiful about.
Ye Qingxuan suddenly felt helpless. He sighed and emptied his glass. He leaned back into the chair as if he was jelly and stared at the moon, spacing out. After a long time, he looked back and asked quietly, “Senior, what would the world be like if there was no sun?” He looked into Charles’s eyes, but in his mind, he involuntarily saw an endless, endless expanse of ice and snow. It was an endless wilderness. It was a dead world.
“Huh?” The words startled Charles, but he quickly rubbed his chin and stated seriously, “Then wouldn’t we have to start fires? And it doesn’t sound like a bad thing.”
“Why not?”
Charles laughed. He said with animated features, “Look, we all say that we’ll drink ‘till the sun comes up. Now, the sun won’t come up, so that means we can drink our fill and…”
“No, then everyone would get alcohol poisoning and get sent to the hospital.”
“Ah, that makes sense too.” Charles immediately became depressed. “If only humans did not get alcohol poisoning. Then we’d have no shortcomings.”
Ye Qingxuan curled his lips and ignored Charles. After a long while, being affected by the alcohol, he could not help but open his mouth again and ask, “What if even fire disappeared?”
Charles pondered for a long time. Then he nodded gravely. “Then the sages would probably be happy, right?”
“Huh?” Ye Qingxuan suspected he had heard incorrectly.
Charles’s expression grew even more serious. He got close and stuck up a finger. “Did you know? In many ancient texts from the Dark Ages, at the beginning of the School of Modifications, there wasn’t any evidence backing up materialism. Instead, the four elements theory was the most popular.
“When the sages debated what exactly the world was, they were also confused about humanity. What am ‘I’? And so it led to a theory: elements are actually a reflection of human emotions.”
“Emotions?” Ye Qingxuan could not help but laugh. “That’s too conceited. They thought that the world was created by mankind’s thoughts?”
“It was really popular back then. Some people even thought that the world we live in is just some bored guy’s dream. When he wakes up, we disappear. Ha, but we’re getting off topic.
“Anyway, the sages compared our emotions and the elements. This created the foundation of the four elements theory. It was overturned by the elemental cycle theory later, but there’s still some logic to it.” Here, Charles finished his glass and set it down. “Do you know what fire represents?”
“What?”
“Pain.” Charles’s smile became mocking. “It’s ironic, isn’t it? Fire make you think of life, ascension and creation, but it’s actually the physical embodiment of pain. Fire and pain. It is this pain that brought about light and illuminated the world, allowing life to exist.” He poured himself liquor. Looking at the liquid toss inside his glass, he studied his reflection. He murmured drunkenly, “So if the sun disappears one day, then there wouldn’t be any pain in the world, right? Maybe it’ll be a good world. Yeah, maybe.” He paused and nodded. “At least there’ll be a peace of mind.”
Ye Qingxuan fell silent.
After Charles finished speaking, he seemed to have become drunk. He gulped down the liquor and hummed a strange song. After a while, he suddenly asked, “Yezi, why are you asking? Is it related to your dreams?”
“Dreams?” Ye Qingxuan glanced at him.
“Did you think that I couldn’t tell?” Charles chuckled. “Bai Xi was panicking so much she almost strangled you, but you still didn’t wake up. I thought you’d died and I even took you to the emergency room. But in the end, you woke up.”
Ye Qingxuan did not reply for a long time. Then he said in a muffled voice, “I’m just a heavy sleeper.”
“Do your eyes have to be so frightened when you wake up?”
Ye Qingxuan scratched his head. After a pregnant pause, he replied quietly, “I just dreamed of some things.”
“Unhappy things?”
The youth shook his head. “No.”
“Terrifying things?” The youth still did not reply. It suddenly dawned on Charles. “Oh, so it must be sad things, right?”
Ye Qingxuan did not reply. He just drank and did not set down his glass until his eyelids felt heavy. “It’s just some…some things from the past. That’s all.” He rose with difficulty and stumbled to the stairs. “Senior, don’t care about me. I just drank too much and I’m going to sleep now.”
Charles watched him go upstairs and disappear. Charles pursed his lips. “Psh, he just drank a little…” He picked up the bottle of liquor on the table, but it was not as heavy as he had expected—it was empty. Charles ended up picking it up with too much force and almost fell over. After a stumble, Charles regained his balance. His expression grew slightly bitter. “Huh, he drank an entire week’s worth of my supply without even letting me know. What’s he trying to do?”
With a sigh, he flipped the bottle over and shook forcefully. Two, three drops fell into his mouth. Charles tossed the bottle, closed his eyes and fell into deep sleep. He probably would not dream this time…
–
On the field, the game was still going on intensely. Off the field, at the music history department’s seat, Ye Qingxuan was still sleeping calmly. He did not seem to care how horribly he would be defeated soon.
“Is he okay?” Bench Guy looked at him in concern. “I feel like he’s not being normal.”
“He’s been staying up a lot lately and he’s just catching up on his sleep.” Charles patted his shoulder and dragged him aside. “It’s just sleeping during class. Don’t tell me you’ve never done it before.”
“Uh…” Bench Guy instantly grew troubled. “Sleeping in class isn’t good.”
Stunned, Charles stared at Bench Guy as if looking at a strange creature. “You don’t sleep during class?! What do you do usually?”
“…” Bench Guy could not reply. He realized that he thought differently from these weirdos. Many times, he could not even converse with common sense.
Helpless, he could only change the topic and ask straightforwardly, “I heard that the other teams have all prepared secretly to divide us…We’re the public enemy now. Tomorrow, it’s eight to four. Shouldn’t there be a strategy or game plan for the next round?”
“There’s no point in thinking so much. We’ll die no matter what…” Under the sun, Charles yawned. “Just relax. I looked at the stars and they say we have good luck these two days! And anyway, we’ve gotten lucky these past two days. Maybe we’ll draw empty for the next round too.”
“Friend, you look pretty and you have such pretty fantasies too,” Bench Guy thought. His shoulders trembled. If not for the mask on his face, he probably would have spat out blood.
At the same time, the locker room’s door was closed. Several team leaders sat on the chairs, looking at each other with gloomy and dark faces.
“What are we going to do now?” Glenn began. “Having been classmates so many years, we’re all familiar with each other. There’s no need to pretend. Our school has made the final order that we can’t keep the music history department in the next round. Don’t you feel a little bit of pressure?”
Hearing this, everyone was speechless. He felt the pressure, she felt the pressure, and so did everyone else. But what else could they do? Forcefully?
No one thought that the music history department would survive until now. Who would have imagined that the publicly accepted rubbish team would happen to have no opponent twice? Staying until now had gone beyond the school board’s tolerance.
The four branches alone could not tolerate such a department, as obscure and at the edge of abolition as it was, to stand above them. Otherwise they would be the laughing stock wherever they went. Look! Those guys were completely destroyed by a team in the graduation trial…Thinking of this scene, everyone here felt a hit to their dignity and face.
“Even if we have the determination, we can’t do anything if we don’t win.” Someone sighed. “It’s not that we don’t work hard, it’s just the music history department is too cunning.”
“Hasn’t the student council come up with some regulations?”
Glenn looked to Cullen, who attended in the place Banner. He was the henchman of Gavin, the student president. Gavin had mostly resigned by now, but his influence on the student council was still huge. What’s more, since the next president had not yet been elected, most decisions still depended mainly on Gavin.
From another perspective, the reason why the music history department could survive until now was mainly because of the student council. Unlike student councils in other schools, the student council of the Royal Academy of Music was part of the school management. In some cases, their control was even larger than some professors.
Including now, if the student council wanted to, they could even directly affect the arrangement of the game. They had so many ways to do that. The student council had been silent and low-key this entire time, as if they were transparent. Even the notorious executive office had more of a sense of existence than they did, which confused other concertmasters. What was Gavin’s plan?
Cullen was very clear about this. After being silent for a moment, he said quietly, “You do not have to feel stressful, just let them be. Even if they don’t follow the rules, they won’t keep at it for long.”
“Are those Gavin’s own words?”
“It’s just my guess.” Cullen said, “The president has his own plan for the music history department.”
In an instant, Glenn and others widened their eyes. When they exchanged glances, their expressions became somewhat complicated. Did that guy Gavin do all of this just to hand the history department over to his brother? It seemed like he was determined to make Banner his successor. He not only sent his most competent men to assistant Banner, but also gave him a shortcut. By that time, after having accumulated enough experience, Banner would naturally become the next president of the student council and have a stable status.
“What a good brother.” Another bad-tempered leader sneered, and took the lead in leaving the locker room. “The Royal Academy of Music is just the background for these two brothers!”
When everyone left and the locker room became empty, the smile on Cullen’s face faded away. His look became confused. What did the president mean? Even he himself could not figure out it.
–
“Is my brother going to give this department to me?” Below the drawing podium, Banner looked at Cullen. When he gazed at the guy snoring in the distance, his expression gradually changed from disgust at the beginning to cold. That was the coldness of completely neglecting and overlooking him. “Why didn’t he come and talk to me in person?”
Cullen paused, squeezing out a smile. “Perhaps the president has more important expectations for you.”
“Really?” Banner glanced at him and said lightly, “Well, since that group of failures is just there for the number, you can’t expect too much of them. Let me teach him what the world is like.”
But beside him, Cullen saw the hostility flash in Banner green eyes and sighed. Why were these brothers so different?
“What are you looking at?” Banner seemed to be sense his gaze and suddenly turned back.
Cullen hesitated, shaking his head. “Nothing.”
“Then let’s go. Since it’s arranged already, we shouldn’t waste time.” Banner took the lead to step on the platform. Cullen followed behind, but under his sleeves, his fists were clenched fists until his knuckles turned white. Like an illusion, he seemed to hear Banner scoff softly. In a place he could not see, Banner’s eyes grew cold. This time, Banner would not let that Eastern b*stard, who usurped his reputation, remain arrogant for too long.
–
“Is everybody here?” After two days of complicated matters, Sydney seemed numb. He looked at everyone here and that proud, disdainful dog, waving his hand feebly. “Then let’s begin to draw.” It was the last round before the semi-finals and hopefully there will not be any problems.”
“Wait!” An unsatisfied student looked at Old Phil and said, “The history department has sent a dog to draw for them several times. Are they unsatisfied with the school arrangements? Or do they look down on us? I think the music history department should give us an explanation, or else I refuse to continue to be insulted so…”
“If you don’t like it, you can go,” the dog suddenly said lazily.
Everyone was stunned and they looked at each other. What the h*ll is this? A talking dog? And it sounded like a little girl? Soon they found that it was a music note on the dog’s collar. Bai Xi stood in the stands, remotely controlling the collar. Her words were sharp as always.
“What do you mean?” The student’s face turned red. “Wanna fight?”
“I just don’t like people saying nonsense in public.” Bai Xi hummed. “The school approves, the principal approves, but you don’t? Who are you? Why don’t you just kick us out?”
Old Phil was abnormally cooperative. It looked at the student disdainfully, doubling the mockery. Excellent! The student visibly began to breathe heavier. He almost shot fire with his glare.
“Enough!” Sydney huffed coldly. He slapped the table heavily and glanced at all present with his gloomy eyes. Finally he looked at Old Phil. “This time, the board will supervise the whole drawing process with a fair and impartial attitude. I hope you do not try to pass with a fluke but go all out.” The words ‘go all out’ were squeezed out between his teeth. Anyone could tell how angry he was.
In the first two rounds, one simply reached his hand into the box and took out number. But this time, the three coaches from Modifications, Summoning and Revelations gathered around. The three people and six eyes stared at every hand that reached into the box. A dim light even shone in Egor’s eyes. He saw through the box with a modification formula and observed the whole process.
Surrounding by such onlookers, all the students who were going to draw felt very nervous. Under this situation, it seemed that once they made a subtle mistake, they would be killed.
Why were they so dramatic? It was just a soccer game, not a vote on the Parliament, which needed six musicians present to isolate all the aetheric influence for fairness…
The team leaders came forward to draw the lot under all the eyes. Every person who came to draw would be searched by the three coaches. Even the fat on the belly was not spared.
Finally, it was Old Phil’s turn. Facing three pairs of sharp eyes, Old Phil took it naturally and stepped forward as if nothing around him existed. Seeming to have sensed their scrutiny, Old Phil produced a disdainful snort from its nostrils. It raised its palm to flip over the box and bit the last board, then turned away. It did not even look at the three in the eye.
Both Egor and Ingmar’s faces darkened, but Ludwig, who was accustomed to animals, did not mind. Instead, he followed and began to look up and down at Old Phil with great interest. He mumbled Summoning terms as if he was analyzing Old Phil’s characteristics and body shape.
The more he looked, the more interested he became. He could not resist the urge to pet it. Old Phil looked back at him and opened its big mouth, revealing two rows of sharp teeth, as if saying, “Do you dare?”
Ludwig immediately withdrew his hand. Sensing the eyes of his colleagues, Ludwig felt a little embarrassed and smiled stiffly. “This dog is strange. It has a really bad temper.”
Sydney coughed twice, motioned Ludwig to pay attention to his actions and then grew emotionless. “The draw is finished. Now, please check your opponents according to the list. If you have questions, ask now. No more questions will be allowed after the fact.”
He lowered his head and coughed again. He hid his sneer at his mouth corner. Questions? What question could they have? With the three supervisors watching, all processes were fair and open. Even if he had secretly mobilized his authority as vice principal and influenced the result of the drawing through the Requiem enchantment…No matter what, the legendary luck of drawing empty two days in a row was ending for the history department. He had prepared the best enemies for them—the School of Royalty.
Soon the team leaders put their signs on the tree diagram. In the commotion, some people rejoiced, others wailed.
“No objections?” Sydney asked three times with a smile. Hearing no response, he slowly nodded. “Then the discussion is over. Everyone put your sign on the list and write it.”
Under his anticipating eyes, Banner looked coldly up. Soon the crowd fell silent and slowly parted. In the silence, Banner stepped forward and hung the sign of the School of Royalty onto the first position. Besides the sign, a place was prepared for its enemy. That’s right, the place for the enemy.
He slowly turned back and looked coldly at that evil dog that was sunbathing. The dog sensed his eyes and glanced back at him. It seemed to sense everyone’s anticipation and the gleeful gazes. Old Phil looked back disdainfully, picked up the sign in its mouth and came forward.
It passed through the crowd and went straight past Banner. Before the tree-shaped diagram, it stood like a human being and gazed at the empty spot next to the School of Royalty. Then, according to the number on the sign, it hung the sign at…the outermost place of the list. For a moment, everyone was stunned.
“Wait a minute!” Sydney’s complexion changed and shouted at Old Phil, who was about to turn away. “I’ve said before that you shouldn’t let a dog, which can’t even figure out what the number means, to draw. It doesn’t even know where it is, does it?”
He turned, abruptly picked the sign of the music history department down, and hung it to the side of the Royal School. “It should…should…should… ” He froze and his voice changed too. He looked down incredulously at the sign in his hand.
Should what? It should be hung beside the Royal School. But, how…how the h*ll did they come up empty again?!
“Empty.”
“Empty?”
“Empty…”
Everyone looked at each other with a strange and ugly look. Finally, Sydney stopped stiffly and opened his mouth but he did not know what to say. What could he say?
He had dug the hole for himself and jumped in…The time for objections were long overdue! He said that afterward, no matter who had an objection, no one was allowed to dwell on it any more. Should he go back on his words in front of the whole school?
With a livid face, he put the sign back to the most outer place with difficulty. He turned back and announced hoarsely, “The history department drew empty again.” For the fourth round, they had no opponent again…
The spectators were in an uproar. On the stands, Charles cheered while Bai Xi screamed. The Bench Guy was stunned. Ye Qingxuan…was still snoring.
It was late at night at the Royal Academy of Music. Two figures met in the main building without meaning to. When they discovered each other, they instantly felt awkward.
“Good evening, Mr. Egor.” Ludwig, who had descended the staircase first, uttered a greeting. Egor, who had just came through the door, returned the greeting.
After some small talk, the awkward atmosphere had almost disappeared, but the insubstantial conversation continued. Ludwig realized that Egor’s thoughts were elsewhere and he suddenly cut to the chase. “Are you here to investigate the results of the draw too?”
“No, no.” Egor chuckled as if he did not mind at all, but his eyes grew cautious. Ludwig was ten years older than him, but his actions were always faster. He was sensitive to every change and always got to things first. This time was not an exception either.
Egor had just entered, but Ludwig was already leaving. He did not know what the result was, but how could someone who liked saving face as much as Egor admit his reason for coming? He stated, “The drawing was done under our monitoring. How could anything happen?”
“Oh?” Ludwig glanced at him with a smile. “Then why are you here so late at night? Don’t give me the excuse that you forgot some documents. You never bring documents to meetings.”
Egor’s expression grew even more awkward, as well as humiliated and angered. “Ludwig, aren’t you the same?”
“To be honest…I just wanted to satisfy my curiosity.” Ludwig chuckled. Under the moonlight, his eyes became the vertical pupils of snakes. They fluttered and fluttered, making Egor slightly unsettled.
The musicians of the School of Summoning developed beastliness inside of them and controlled demons during battle. At the same time, their sanity would be even more powerful. But no matter what, they would be affected by it. Because of this, Summoning musicians would have strange fetishes. Ludwig was not an exception. For example, he was overly curious.
Egor scoffed. “I just wanted to ensure the fairness of the results.”
Hearing Egor’s refutation, Ludwig could not help but chuckle. “Egor, when humans start talking about fairness, it means that unfair things are going to happen. Did you sense something?”
“Don’t beat around the bush, Ludwig. Get to it.” Egor rolled his eyes. “I hate philosophy and theories.”
Ludwig shrugged. “I’m just saying that things like drawing lots are never fair.”
“Are you saying that the music department has problems? But all three of us monitored the drawing” Egor said.
“Don’t forget that this is under the Requiem enchantment. Even the results of the lots are controlled by the enchantment. We can only monitor the students, but can’t do anything to do the enchantment.”
“It’s impossible for the enchantment to have problems” Egor argued.
“Of course. It won’t have problems, but humans can,” Ludwig said lightly. “The results of my investigation confirmed what I felt during the day. I’m not the most familiar with the School of Abstinence, but I still felt this afternoon that the enchantment had been shifted three times.”
“Three times?” After pondering, Egor felt something wrong. “There’s no need to use one’s authority three times to change the results. Unless…”
“Yes, there were three authorities trying to change the result.”
Egor fell silent, finally sensing the complexity behind this event.
“Of the three authorities, the lowest one came from the student council. One came from the school board, which is obviously Sydney.”
“That’s not strange,” Egor said. “Sydney doesn’t want to the history department to draw empty again. And hasn’t Gavin been trying to help his brother inherit his position? The history department is the best stepping stone to becoming the head of the student council.”
Ludwig just snickered. “But it’s a pity because nothing they do will be successful. The third authority canceled out everything they did.”
“Canceled out?” Egor glanced at him, eyes suspicious. “Only one person can cancel out the school board’s authority.”
“Yes, it’s our principal.” Ludwig kind of wanted to laugh mockingly at how he and his colleagues had acted these days. “What are we so worried about? The principal had probably already dug a ditch for us to jump in. Egor, I’m afraid we’ve all been tricked by those guys.”
He patted Egor’s shoulder and saw a bitter smile on his old friend’s face. Egor sighed and gave up on the urge to continue asking. If he continued investigating, he would just increase the tension between the school board and the principal. But he did not understand why the principal would go against the school board for such a small thing.
“What is he trying to do?”
“How would I know?” Ludwig slowly filled his pipe with tobacco. Thinking of what had happened during the day, he could not help but mock himself. “I’ve lived so many years, but I don’t even know what a dog is thinking. How can I understand what’s hiding in someone’s heart?”
–
Ye Qingxuan had slept for twenty hours. He was sleeping so heavily that not even the sky falling down would wake him. It seemed that he could still continue sleeping…
After being carried back from the field, Ye Qingxuan was thrown onto the sofa. Traces of Bai Xi’s off-handed graffiti still remained on his face. He was still in his original posture, like a wax figure.
“Charles, is he okay?” Bai Xi poked Ye Qingxuan’s face as if she had found a giant toy and was playing happily.
Across from the sofa, Charles shrugged. “I don’t know either.”
Ye Qingxuan had sweated for the first few hours. Now, he had no movements other than his heart beating. His pupils had no reaction when shone with blinding light, but at least he was still breathing. There were no other strange conditions. He just looked like he was sleeping.
“Did he get some weird disease?”
“I don’t think so. His health was good during the physical examinations at the beginning of the school year, just a little thin.” Charles paused and shook his head. “He’s like a girl, ugh…Boys should be like me and have an eight-pack!”
“You talk like you have one!” Bai Xi rolled her eyes. “Should we take him to the hospital?”
“To be honest, I think that we should just let him sleep if it’s not an emergency.” Charles took a bottle of liquor from a cabinet. Opening it with expertise, he took a whiff and let out a satisfied breath. “As the saying goes, get drunk today if you have wine. There aren’t any other solutions, right?”
Bai Xi was stunned. “But we can’t just leave him like this.”
“Maybe he just wants some peace. Huh, don’t ask me who peace is. Anyway, just let him sleep a bit more. He’s played soccer for so long. He should get a halftime break, right?” Charles looked down and wiped his glass. His eyes filled with lamentation. “No matter how powerful or strong someone is, they still have a time where they want to escape from reality. Saints are like that, not to mention mundanes like us.
“Cheers.” Charles stuck a glass into the youth’s stiff hands and clinked glasses with him. He tilted his head back and downed the glass. When his gaze fell on Ye Qingxuan, it grew distant yet troubled. He seemed to look past Ye Qingxuan’s body to some unknown place.
“Hope you can escape, kid.”
–
A blizzard fell from the sky, falling into Ye Qingxuan’s eyes. The sky was still the empty whiteness from before. Numerous snowflakes fell from the sky.
He walked barefoot in the ice and snow. His soles had been pierced and his footprints were tinged with stark red. But later, the red disappeared gradually, freezing into the ice.
He panted and forged on. He tried to feel his lower body, but his legs were almost numb. Sometimes, he would look back at his long trail of footprints. They extended from deep within the field of ice. Slowly, the footprints were covered by snow and disappeared.
It was no longer like a search for something.
It was an endless escape.
The shattered snowflakes and crystals crashed against each other in the cold wind, producing tiny yet fine sounds. The countless sounds rose like rainwater, but in the “rainwater,” a hoarse voice sang an unnamed song. The voice was sometimes close, sometimes far; one could hear it clearly but could not grasp it. But in the end, the song disappeared as well. Only mocking laughter rang in the silence.
Mockery.
Ye Qingxuan lowered his eyes and looked at his cracked and frozen feet. His toenails were tipped up and his toes no longer had feeling. There was just a trail of frozen dark red blood.
It was familiar. So familiar.
Maybe these was his real feet. When he studied his feet for the first time, they were like this too. They were numb and deathly pale, but with a dull pain that reached his bone, reminding him that the long trip had not ended yet and that he was still alive.
It had been snowing then, too, but there had been the light of fire burning behind him.
Yes, the light of fire.
He held his forehead in pain, not daring to think further, but those memories had awoken and haunted him like a ghost. They tugged at him, telling him to turn around and look at his past. The forgotten past.
Ye Qingxuan saw shards of memories appear continuously on that pale, white, icy field. In the shards, he saw those scornful eyes, a dilapidated cabin, and a gentle voice. “Little Yezi…” she murmured in his ears. “Little Yezi, have you returned?”
“Shut up!” the youth growled hoarsely. He covered his ears, but a strand of dull blonde hair floated past his eyes. Like a hallucination, it disappeared in a flash, but left behind a whiff that made one want to remember.
“Don’t be afraid.” Her voice returned, sounding in his heart. “Little Yezi, don’t be afraid.”
Don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid…The voice echoed endlessly, overlapping and building on each other. It was as if the entire world was comforting him gently, but the voice only terrified him.
He roared in anger. And so the voice disappeared, as if nothing had happened. The only sound left was the whistling of the wind. He saw that the snow underfoot was red from the reflection of the firelight behind him.
Behind him, something was burning. Burning.
Ye Qingxuan froze. He stood stiffly in his spot, not daring to look back, but the smell of burning wood traveled over. Was it a cabin? The cabin lit on fire, the burning cabin, the collapsed cabin, the cabin…
He turned back blankly and saw the vaguely familiar cabin, and that apparition. The apparition stood amongst the flames and gazed at him quietly. Its eyes were compassionate and gentle. Just looking at those eyes made one feel sad.
“Little Yezi, don’t be afraid.”
The wind carried over the sad murmurs from his deepest memories. Ye Qingxuan lowered his head in silence. He gritted his teeth, trying to disperse it, but he was helpless.
Charles’s voice seemed to ring again in his ears. He said, “Fire and pain.”
Ye Qingxuan froze. He could not help but laugh at himself. He had been escaping for so long and had worked so hard just to go in a giant circle and return here.
“So this is how it is.” He looked up. Tears fell as he stared at the apparition in the fire. “I’ve almost forgotten this memory.”
Haven’t you been trying to find the sun? Ye Qingxuan, this is the sun.
This is the source of your pain.
This is where your mother died.
–
“It’s been so many years and you’re still waiting for me here…” In the long stretch of silence, the youth stared at the burning cabin. After a time, he stumbled into it. “Mom, I’m back,” he murmured as he stared at the flames that swallowed himself.
The burning pain spread, but it made him feel settled, as if the pain had found where it belonged. After all these years, he had become used to its existence. He would not even know how to live without the pain.
The youth studied the blurry apparition through the dancing red. The apparition studied him as well. Her eyes were gentle, just like before. But seeing those eyes, Ye Qingxuan smiled. He knelt in the ashes and flames.
It’s been so many years. How have you been? I’ve been well. Just like you told me to, I haven’t been afraid. I’m not afraid of anything after you left.
“I returned to Avalon and now I’m studying at the Royal Academy of Music. I’m looking for what father did back then…I haven’t gone to Grandfather yet.
“I’ve been obedient all these years and never did anything bad. I made some new friends—Victor, Charles and Bai Xi, and some other people. I really want to introduce them to you.”
“…” He lowered his head. Caressing the skeleton, he murmured, “I’m sorry. It’s been so long and I never came to see you.”
The fire burned and rose. It touched his cheek like a gentle hand, giving him pain and life. Ye Qingxuan closed his eyes. He took in the pain and let the flames of pain wipe away his tears with such gentleness.
He suddenly felt the urge to stay here. It was so nice and so quiet here. It made one feel calm. He would not have to think about the coldness and scary things of the outside world.
Stay here a bit more…just a bit more. Stay in this warm fire, even if there was nothing here but pain…
After a long, long time, the youth stood slowly and bid farewell. “Mom, I’m going.” He turned around and took one last look at the apparition in the fire. “I’ll miss you.”
The youth walked out from the burning cabin. The blizzard fell into his eyes and melted. Water vapor solidified in the wind and floated toward the sky. It was like a sigh resounding in the air.
He continued forward, welcoming the blizzard and frost, embracing every snowflake that flew toward him. His clumsy steps were branded into the snow and reached forward gradually.
Gradually, gradually, the youth’s figure turned into a black dot in the distance. It was covered by the wind and snow, swallowed, and then it disappeared.
As if seeing himself off, Ye Qingxuan watched as the silhouette grew more distant. He heard a faint melody in the wind. It was the sound of frost crystallizing, but it transformed into cool yet forlorn piano music. It sounded in his ears like a murmur. Someone’s hoarse singing was brought over by the wind.
“I saw three suns in the sky…I stared at them long and hard; they stare at me too, as if unwilling to leave. But you’re not my suns. Before, I had three suns too, but the two I loved most had disappeared…”
It was as if the long dream had finally ended.
Under the hoarse song, Ye Qingxuan felt himself dissipate, melt into the cold wind and transform into frost. He rose, rose and rose; he passed the wind, snow and icy clouds and gradually left the earth. The burning cabin in the snowy field disappeared too.
Ye Qingxuan closed his eyes and waited for this dreamscape to end. If living without pain was like this, then living in a world with some pain was better, right?
At least, you’re in that world.
At least I’ll still remember you.
Goodbye, Mom.
–
Ye Qingxuan woke from his dream at dawn. The morning light illuminated his eyes.
He sat up on the sofa and found that a glass had appeared in his hands. The liquor reflected an illusionary sun. He smiled and raised the glass, drinking the ‘fulcrum’ that he had been searching for in one shot.
The liquor slid down his throat like fire, bringing him the pain of living. He moaned in satisfaction.
The girl sleeping on his knee was startled awake. She rubbed her dazed eyes and looked up at him. “Cousin, you’re awake?”
“Yeah.” Ye Qingxuan petted her hair. “Sorry for waking you.”
Bai Xi looked at him. After a while, she asked softly, “Did you cry?”
“No.” Ye Qingxuan smiled. “Why would I cry? I just thought of some things.”
Bai Xi looked at him without a word. She did not worry anymore after seeing his smile. Putting her head back on his knee, she found a comfortable position, closed her eyes and fell asleep.
Her white hair had grown long and it spilled on the sofa like silk. Ye Qingxuan looked at her sleeping figure and smiled slightly. He could not help but squeeze her cheeks. She must be having a good dream.
At dawn, the dew on the branches of the garden froze. The petals fluttered to the ground, soundlessly sinking into the dirt. The fragrance of flowers and red tea floated in the air.
Lola’s eyes were slightly misty, as if she had just woken up, but they were indescribably enchanting. She studied the youth before her and smiled. “Did you come so early in the morning to give me good or bad news?”
“To be honest, I don’t know if it’s good or bad.” Ye Qingxuan sighed and scratched his head. “But you should probably know already, right?”
“Then it must be good,” Lola realized. She smiled gleefully.
“Why didn’t you tell me?” Ye Qingxuan asked helplessly.
Lola raised her eyes and asked in reply, “Didn’t tell you what?”
Ye Qingxuan could not answer. Lola had already warned him of the various difficulties and hardships. The only thing she did not reveal was the key element of the music score—that its fulcrum was pain. The pain brought about by life. It was also what Ye Qingxuan was worst at facing.
Moreover, even if she told Ye Qingxuan, it would probably only create the opposite effect, right? The key element was not something that could be used just by knowing it. One must experience the resonation with it. Ye Qingxuan was successful on this aspect, but it was also what multiplied his pain.
After a long silence, Ye Qingxuan lowered his head. “Thank you.”
Lola chuckled. “If you’re saying thanks now, what are you planning on saying when I give you this? That you’ll pledge your life to me?”
With that, she pushed a thin music score across the table. It was the score that Ye Qingxuan needed to learn. “After grasping its fulcrum, the music score will be as easy as drinking water. You’ve already learned the hardest part, so there’s nothing to worry about,” Lola said lightly. “But are you sure you can learn it in two days? Its music theory is easy, but it’s still a part of Winterreise. It’s not as easy as you think.”
Ye Qingxuan smiled. His interpretation method was made just for these sorts of problems. As the product of Abraham’s blood and sweat, the interpretation method was seen as a crooked method because it did not care about feelings or anything abstract.
It was just a music theory that was precise to the extreme and had no room for mistakes. It was like a fixed mathematical theory. It either was or was not. There was no room for anything ambiguous or emotional. It was difficult to learn, but once learned, its speed was incredible.
Just like solving a math problem, one only needed to find the correct formula and go through each step. There would be no errors. With it and the fulcrum, deciphering the score according to the music theory in the fulcrum was easy as could be.
“Your confidence is unexpected.” Lola’s lips curled as if she was disappointed and that a plan had been ruined.
A chill ran down Ye Qingxuan’s spine. He felt that he had just brushed shoulders with something dangerous. He really did not know what other traps Lola had laid out for him. It would not be worth it if he died.
He shook his head and changed the topic, asking, “What did you implant into my mind? How come it can create a nightmare with my memories?”
“It’s just a guide,” Lola stated. “In the east, it’s known as the ‘mind demon guide’ and is what Mind musicians are best at. They can put demonic thoughts into one’s mind. As time passes, it buries itself deep and can control the person like a puppet. Are you scared?”
Ye Qingxuan shuddered, but quickly calmed down and glared at her. Seeing his fright, Lola smiled even happier.
“Don’t worry. That’s a technique that Teacher modified by tying it into a secret technique of the Moon Spirits. You can refer to it as ‘intent inheritance.’ Instead of demonic thoughts, it’s the musician’s comprehension of the score that’s implanted. It guides your memories and dreamscape, allowing you to transform into the composer and directly experience the meaning within…Basically, there are a lot of benefits.” Done explaining, Lola glanced at him expectantly. “Winterreise is a suite. There are still twenty-three pieces you haven’t learned. Do you want to keep going?”
“I’ll pass.” Ye Qingxuan thought of his painful experiences over the past few days. If he was going to have twenty-three more difference experiences, he would probably go insane. He would rather get past this obstacle and then learn steadily…
“Tsk.” Seeing that she did not lure Ye Qingxuan in, Lola’s eyes were a bit regretful. “That’s a pity.”
“…”
–
It was noon at the Royal Academy of Music. The youth’s white hair shone with a metallic light under the blazing sun. He sat on the steps before the main building in the empty campus and flipped through the thin booklet. Hearing footsteps, he raised his head.
“Bench Guy, you’ve refreshed?” Ye Qingxuan asked.
Bench Guy, with a concrete brick on his head, was stunned. He had not expected Ye Qingxuan to be waiting for him here and panicked slightly. “Uh…”
“I have something I want to talk about.”
“Very important?”
“Of course.” Ye Qingxuan nodded seriously. “We’ve drawn empty for three days in a row. Tomorrow are the semifinals. I feel like the school won’t let us keep drawing empty anymore, so I need to discuss tactics with you.”
Hearing this, Bench Guy let out a breath of relief. For some reason, he felt both touched and wronged. For the past two days, Ye Qingxuan had always been sleeping. He went to find Charles, but Charles was unreliable. He went to find Bai Xi, but Bai Xi did not care. He went to find Old Phil but…what use would finding Old Phil have? It was as if the nation was in a crisis, but the emperor and officials were still playing and did not care, and only the servant was worried.
He was especially skilled at bragging, but faced with a group as weird as the history department, he had no clue what to do. But he never expected that Ye Qingxuan would wake up just as he was giving up and come find him to talk about the game plan! This made him want to cry. Finally, someone was reliable!
Deeply touched, Bench Guy nodded. “I’m happy you’re thinking about this. Do you have any ideas?”
“Yeah, I need your help for something.” For some reason, the youth smiled brightly, which gave Bench Guy a bad feeling. “You’ll help me, right?”
–
The game on the field was still intense and the audience still roared.
Amidst the cheers, Ye Qingxuan held a teacup and sipped slowly. He let out a breath. “It’s so lively.”
“Yup.” Beside him, Charles ate baked seeds and snacks. He also held a big glass of cold beer. “You don’t say. Drinking and watching the game, every day is like paradise!”
“Yeah, as long as we don’t have to play.”
“…Ah, Junior, it’s so nice out today. Don’t say these sad things.”
“Okay.” Ye Qingxuan nodded lightly. “I’ll go draw tonight. You don’t have to worry about these things. Just go onto the field when it’s time.”
“Wait! Are you sure you’re going to draw? You’re so unlucky…”
“You want to draw empty again and go directly to the finals?” Ye Qingxuan eyed him. “It’s already past my expectation that we’ve lasted until now. Senior, let’s just quit while we’re ahead. We just need to make sure we don’t lose. If we want to win, we need to win the third round. Are you ready?”
“Everything is under control!” Charles whistled. “This time, I’ll produce something so amazing and incredible and beat every graduation product! At that time, graduation will be a small matter. I might accidentally get famous, become known in Anglo, and enter the peak of my life!”
This let Ye Qingxuan know that it was entirely unreliable. If this were not his own business, he would really want to find some café, slam a fist down on the table and say, “The history department is done for!”
–
The eight-to-four round finally ended. Every player was exhausted and had used up the last of their energy. The history department just sat on the side the entire time, drinking tea and eating snacks as if they were just having fun… Seeing that Charles was cheering in the stands, the taunting multiplied instantly.
Every eye that looked over was bloodshot and shone with the cold message, “I’m going to end you!” They gave Ye Qingxuan goosebumps. It was as if someone had killed their fathers!
“You won’t be proud for too long…” someone muttered to him when they passed by after the game. Ye Qingxuan looked over, but could only see a mass of people and Banner’s cold eyes in the distance. Those emerald eyes had the vertical pupils of a beast.
–
“Is everyone ready?” Sydney asked weakly as he stood on the podium. After being messed with for three continuous days, he really did not want to do anything.
The team leaders facing him exchanged glances with troubled eyes. The semi-finals were tomorrow, but no one knew why there were five teams after the eight-to-four round. But since there were five teams, there would be one that was…the odd one out? At this thought, they exchanged glances with helpless eyes. It would probably be the history department again, right?
“If everyone’s ready, then let’s start drawing…” Sydney dragged out the last word weakly and cursed under his breath. But suddenly, he froze.
Wait, there was something wrong! Why didn’t he feel those familiar scornful eyes? Did that dog not come?
Sydney looked around and instantly smiled. It did not come! He also felt a little bit at a loss, but he still could not help but feel his fighting spirit reignite.
“Did the music history department not come?” He rubbed his hands together in excitement. “Then it counts as them giving up! Half their points will be deducted and they voluntarily…”
“Isn’t deducing half of our points a bit dramatic?” Someone behind him sighed and patted his shoulder. “Teacher, don’t overlook me. I’m standing right here. Can you not see?”
Sydney spun around. When he saw the white-haired youth, his eyes almost fell out of their sockets. “You?”
Glenn was stunned but then he scoffed. “You’re not going to hide in the back anymore? You might be able to get to the finals just by using that dog.”
“I thought it through,” Ye Qingxuan stated. “I don’t need any secret weapons to deal with you all. I can do it myself.”
The podium fell silent. Then everyone burst into laughter as if they heard an incredible joke. No one said anything, but someone patted his shoulder in ‘admiration,’ praising his amazing confidence.
“Then, good luck.” Glenn’s facial muscles twitched as he tried not to laugh. “I really anticipate meeting you all on the field.”
“Me too, me too!” Someone came over and shook his hand warmly. “And please give us advice so we can improve together.”
‘Welcomed’ so enthusiastically by them, Ye Qingxuan smiled sweetly. “Don’t worry,” he said. “No matter what the results are, I’m sure everyone will return in disappointment.”
Hearing his words, the coldness in their smiles grew.
Sydney was quiet for a moment. Then he shuddered and looked to the podium. He quickly looked away and his gaze toward Ye Qingxuan became extremely strange, with a tinge of mockery. “I just received a message that the school board had created a new rule. This time, you can’t draw empty.”
“That’s okay! Participation is the most important!” Ye Qingxuan laughed mysteriously, as if he was planning something, making everyone worried.
Huh, maybe he was just trying to mislead everyone.
Sydney sneered and raised his hands, announcing, “Let’s begin the draw.”
Below the podium, Charles paced back and forth. His expression was troubled and helpless. When he looked up at the podium, he felt a wave of nerves. He had no clue what the results would be.
“Is he actually reliable?” Charles scratched his head and glanced at Bai Xi. “Yezi went up so confidently. What if something happens?”
“How would I know?” Bai Xi was a bit annoyed. “This is the third time you asked since he went up…Didn’t the results come out? Look for yourself…”
She pointed at the list that had just been announced on the podium. Charles looked up in confusion and immediately felt his world go dark.
It was the worst draw, as expected.
No, it was worse than their expectations.
Amidst a wave of boos, the arrangement for the first game of the next day was announced.
The music history department against the School of Royalty!
–
Everyone let out a sigh of relief in the faculty section. Finally, no one had drawn empty and everything was back to normal. Everyone looked much happier. This included the sneering Ingmar.
Faced with a group of elites, and Banner who was already a musician, this guy was definitely dead…
As for Ludwig, he was completely focused on playing with the miniature version of the black leopard cat. It was curled into a ball and gently gnawed on his finger. The human and cat were immersed in the fun and did not even care about had happened. Nothing was more fun than playing with a cat, so he shouldn’t he play with cats?
Only Egor’s face was grave, with his brows knitted. In the wave of cheers, he was the only one with a dark expression and stood out from the crowd.
“What now?” Ludwig glanced at him.
Egor replied emotionlessly, “There’s something I don’t understand.”
“No one drew empty this time.”
“I know.” Egor eyed him. “But I think we neglected something.”
“What are you talking about?”
“They drew empty for three days. They might have gotten lucky the first day. If the principal wanted to help them for the third day, then…” Egor murmured, “What happened the second day?”
Ludwig immediately understood his question. After pondering, shock flashed past his eyes. “Are you saying…”
Egor nodded. “Yes.”
The two met eyes and their expressions changed in unison. “If that’s the case, then things are much more complicated.”
The next day at noon, they stood at the entrance of the field. Ye Qingxuan could hear the raucous spectators inside. The noise felt solid, like a tangible sound wave. Ye Qingxuan had never thought that such a big noise could be produced when so many people sat together.
It resounded in all directions and one could not describe it. It was like a cheer, but also like a growl. One could not tell if it was in anticipation or spite. It was just a declaration. It was as if the entire world was urging him onto the battlefield.
He sucked in a deep breath and looked behind himself. “Are you all ready?”
“Yes!” Charles pounded his chest with a serious expression, producing clangs.
Ye Qingxuan was suddenly felt out of character. “Uh…you really prepared well, huh.”
Behind him, Charles was covered in heavy football gear and pads, making him look stuffed. There was a knight’s helmet on his head and a mask on his face. The cheap, mass-produced instruments that filled his back stuck out messily. He looked like he was going onto the battlefield, rather than the soccer field.
“Can you even run with all that?” Ye Qingxuan was suspicious.
Charles smiled secretively. “I made this entire set. It’s really light and…it’s upgraded too.” He lifted up his sleeves to show Ye Qingxuan the steel auxiliary bones hidden underneath. This was the battle armor he had produced by staying up late. It was not as good as a musician’s robe, but with his creativity and weird techniques, it was pretty useful.
“What do you think?” Charles struck an impressive pose, but he clanged whenever he moved, like a peddler trying to run away from the police.
“Senior, I have the urge to hit you.” Ye Qingxuan sighed, then scanned his teammates. When he realized that only Bench Guy seemed reliable, he really wanted to cry. They would be hopeless without Bench Guy. “Let’s go.”
Ye Qingxuan felt powerless with these teammates, no matter how enthusiastically the spectators cheered. This time, their life and death would be up to fate! He gritted his teeth and walked out of the shadows into the light on the field.
“Let’s go!”
–
“This game uses the revised international rules released three years ago. I hope both teams have prepared well and won’t try to find any loopholes. Do you have any questions?” The referee grasped the special soccer ball and stood on the midline, gazing at both team leaders. “If yes, we can revise it now.”
“No need,” Ye Qingxuan replied first. It seemed that the school board had filled every loophole to stop him from doing anything weird. Thankfully, he did not put his hopes on that.
Across from him, Banner nodded slightly, showing that he had no objections either. But just as the referee was about to announce the start of the game, he opened his mouth. He shot a challenging look at Ye Qingxuan and said, “Mr. Referee, I request changing the game system!”
“Huh?” The referee was shocked. “What do you want to change?”
“To be honest, one thousand points per victorious game is no longer attractive,” Banner stated. “Why don’t we link the points to the goals? One thousand points per goal. I’m willing to bet half of my points on the winner. What does the history department think?”
Off-field in the stands, the drowsy principal opened his eyes wide. He straightened and smiled. “It’s getting interesting…”
The faculty and spectators’ stands were also quiet as everyone stared at each other, wondering if they had heard incorrectly. Ye Qingxuan furrowed his brows; he knew what Banner meant.
It was one of the tricks that the students liked when they bet on games in private. Other than official soccer games, the academy also allowed the students to form teams and play in private. But unlike the academy’s conservative style, the students were much more open minded.
No matter if it was the official game or players, no one would refuse playing in private. After all, everyone needed more points, so the stakes grew bigger and bigger. The strong preyed on the average, the average preyed on the weak, and the rankings changed dramatically. Many teams had already lost all their points and were forcefully eliminated. Some other teams had used their foresight and skill to move forward many places.
Compared to them, the history department was continuously passed over. Now, they had fallen to sixth place with fourteen-thousand points. Banner was different though. His team was the most powerful. After two days of chaotic battling, he had returned to first place with twenty-six thousand points.
If he bet half of his points, it would be practically half of the history department’s points. This was a difficult choice for Ye Qingxuan. If he won, he would have twenty-seven thousand points and would jump from sixth place to first. But if he lost, his points would be completely wiped out.
The winner would win all, the loser would be eliminated. It was a difficult choice.
“Banner, if you have this idea, you can talk about it privately, but our school will not recognize this type of bet,” the referee announced. He had seen enough of these suggestions throughout the past two days, but the academy’s attitude has always been neutral. They would not approve of, refuse, support, or forbid it. They just let the students do whatever they pleased.
Actually, without the school’s guarantee, the losers could renege on their bet, but if they did that, they would never be able to erase their shame.
Hearing the referee’s words, a smile appeared on Banner’s pale face. There was a ruminative shade in his eyes. “Don’t worry, Mr. Referee. He’ll agree.”
Ye Qingxuan was silent under everyone’s eyes. He was lost in thought, as if weighing his choices. But to everyone else, there was nothing to think about. Why would he bet on something that he would definitely lose?
The failures of the history department against the expert fighters of the school council… That was a joke! If they fought face to face, the history department would not even last three minutes.
Of Banner’s nine-member team, there were two Musician level students of the four graduate students. Banner was also a well-known genius. There were three musicians in total. The other six were specifically chosen by the student council from each school, including the School of Royalty’s cream of the crop.
Play against them? It was impossible!
It was already a miracle that the history department lasted until now. If they quit now, they could still squeeze into the top ten with their remaining points. This had been Ye Qingxuan’s goal this entire time—to break even and keep his accumulated points during this disadvantageous game without losing much.
From that perspective, he had already succeeded and had no need to take the risk, but then he would put the pressure on the third round of “graduation product demonstration” and lose the initiative. One side was breaking even. The other side was hitting jackpot. Which one should he choose?
“I’ll do it,” Ye Qingxuan suddenly raised his head and said, breaking the silence. The crowd booed and jeered.
Well, why not? The one who had nothing feared nothing, was that not right?
Ye Qingxuan smiled at Banner, who squeezed out a cold smile in reply. They seemed friendly. The referee looked at Ye Qingxuan as if he was a lunatic and revealed some pity.
The teammates that should have had the biggest reaction were actually calm. As foreign aid, Bench Guy had no opinion. Bai Xi did not care at all, and Charles…he had not expected to graduate anyway. He was just here to have fun and it was more interesting this way. The remaining player was a dog…and dogs did not care what stupid humans did. He was just responsible for protecting his three followers.
“Hope you won’t regret it,” the referee murmured. Then he raised his voice and said, “Shake hands. One minute countdown!” He set the ball down and exited.
Under everyone’s eyes, the two team leaders walked forward with smiles. They studied each other across the field’s midline. They both seemed confident and polite, but no one knew what they were thinking inside.
This was the first time they were so close. Ye Qingxuan finally realized that he had never even talked to this guy who had caused so much trouble for him. They had not even spoken to each other before and had become enemies. The world was so laughable.
Ye Qingxuan broke the silence and asked with a smile, “I heard that you don’t like me? Are you jealous?”
Banner could not help but laugh. The joke was so funny. He shook his head slightly. “You’re more powerful than I imagined, but it’s in terms of luck. You shouldn’t be so arrogant.”
“Really?” Ye Qingxuan arched an eyebrow. “But I’m still the concertmaster.”
“Does that title give you the illusion of being better than us?” Banner sneered. “It’s supposed to be mine, but you stole it while I was busy with Deva sensing. Now, this joke will end.”
“Really?” Ye Qingxuan shot back. “It must be difficult to be so confident, since you’ve never beat me before.”
Banner fell silent. His already-pale face turned even paler. It was white enough that it seemed to exude cold blood. As if he had been pierced by that sentence, his emerald eyes darkened. Even his voice grew hoarse. “It will happen today and I promise it’ll happen again in the future. Someday, you’ll get used to failure.”
“To be honest, I’m already used to it.” Ye Qingxuan reached out and grasped his hand with an enthusiastic smile. “Did you know? The day I came back to Avalon, I was already prepared to completely lose to someone one day. But unfortunately, that day is not today, and that someone is not you.”
Banner’s expression changed because Ye Qingxuan’s hand tightened like a vice and brought waves of pain. He did not even have time to become angry before he was thrown into shock.
The scrawny youth closed in, but he changed suddenly. He was still smiling warmly, but there seemed to be a burning mine in his eyes. They were as aggressively bright as fire.
“Shut up now,” he murmured in Banner’s ear. “Let’s start the game. I can’t wait.”
In the youth’s shadow, Banner clenched his jaw. His pupils constricted into a small black dot, radiating with heart-chilling coldness.
“Then, as you wish!”
The game was about to begin. Soon the two lowered their hands and returned to their original positions with smiles. They rotated their wrists and knees as they began to warm up.
“Banner, what happened?” Cullen could feel the faint coldness in Banner’s eyes when he returned and whispered, “What did he say?”
“Just some ridiculous joke,” Banner said slightly. “No need to care. Are you ready?”
“We’ve finished warmups.”
“Good.” Banner lowered his head and chuckled softly. “Tell everyone to get ready. No matter whether it’s him, his friend, the little girl, or the dog … I’m going to make them kneel outside and watch their own defeat!”
He clenched his still painful fists, with his eyes full of rage. The residual pain in his palms seemed to penetrate into his bones, making him feel the long-gone humiliation. It felt like a flame burning his heart.
He glanced across at the enemy. When he saw the last musician with his weird headgear, his expression became guarded. If there was anything in the music history department that deserved their caution, it would be this guy who did not show his face. From the beginning to now, the guy had not exposed himself to them. He hid his powers and dealt with matters easily, no matter what the situation was. An unknown enemy was the most worrisome.
“Countdown begins now,” the referee’s voice sounded. “Five, four, three, two…one!” In an instant, the whistle rang, and the game finally started.
Everyone’s body tensed, but then Banner saw Ye Qingxuan’s suddenly spring forward and steal the ball! At the beginning, all the musicians prepared to play, in favor of defense, but this guy gave up his defense and took the initiative.
Banner sneered. The musicians of the other departments might be intimidated by his trick, but the School of Summoning would not, let alone someone from the School of Royalty who studied both.
He closed his eyes. In the darkness, a pair of beastly eyes seemed to light up. It was the phantom beast that grew in his brain—the manticore.
“Marchosias!” he whispered its true name and suddenly opened his eyes. His pupils, quickly, elongating into the slender pupils of a beast.
With the swing of his hand, the ring on his finger lit up. He pressed his palm down, and crisp piano sounds burst into the air. The piano was sharp and grand, like a lion’s roar. Five shadows sprang from his body. They were the projections of the demons in his mind. But then, a sharp sound burst from the arms of the young man opposite him.
Jiu Xiao Huan Pei!
Bang! Countless strings were played at staggered times, but the sounds overlapped, becoming sharp and harsh, and piercing ones eardrums!
This was composite note playing, but at a more advanced level, because all the notes were played simultaneously. This was a complex technique that could only be done with multiple stringed instruments. The musician controlled the sound of all the strings according to the different order and level, and mixed the sounds into one chord with absolute control. The more strings, the harder the chord was.
After Jiu Xiao Huan Pei absorbed the large amount of spirituality, Ye Qingxuan managed to achieve the level of six chords, which meant…Six notes were released in an instant.
In a sudden, layers of mirrors proliferated behind the youth, forming a looming mirror matrix. Fierce light shone from it immediately after.
In a sudden, it seemed that everything dimmed. Pure light rushed forward like a canon and everything seemed dim in contrast. The sharp light stung everyone’s eyes. The light came like a tidal wave, causing Banner to freeze. His mind became blank for a few seconds due to the intense stimulation.
Just in an instant, the manticore, who was in the middle of projecting, screamed. The shadow trembled under the intense interference of the light. The strong light disappeared, but the world was still dark.
The soccer ball was already under the youth’s foot.
“Ye Qingxuan!” Banner roared while the beastly shadows around him paused. They screamed and the five shadows instantly turned into a consolidated blackness.
The five dark shadows quivered and suddenly rushed toward Ye Qingxuan’s direction. Although they were the manticore’s projections, they were all different. Some were like giant scorpions, some like pythons; others were silhouettes of dragons, or had the posture of a lion, the determination of eagles…These were the five animal characteristics that the manticore contained.
The five completely different kinds of beast fused together and formed the manticore’s strength. Now they split up and projected out, charging at the youth with five different forces. This was one of Banner’s special techniques.
In the previous games, Banner used this trick to defeat the other team’s offense right at the start. When he charged forward, his teammates also showed their abilities, pulling out instruments and alchemy equipment to play melodies surrounding the rest of Ye Qingxuan’s teammates.
In an instant, the whole frontline pushed forward like a boulder rolling from the top of the mountain. The history department’s situation became grave, but this was what most people had expected. With the music history department’s strength, it was taken for granted that they would be defeated at the opening. But this time they were destined to be shocked.
As the five shadows attacked, Ye Qingxuan leisurely advanced with the ball, going straight toward the shadows. His fingers played in the air. The next moment, a dark melody was produced unexpectedly.
Like sadness surging from the heart, it swept through the field, instantly chilling everyone’s hearts. The music sounded tortured and brought melancholy that was engraved in one’s mind. The five shadows froze abruptly. In the sound of the music, the beastly spirits became sluggish under the influence of the aether…
The stands were silent. Ludwig suddenly stood up with a startled expression. “Tragische Ouvertüre?” he mumbled blankly. “What’s going on? How can that kid play the Tragische Ouvertüre from the School of Summoning?”
Silence overcame the professors’ seats. Most of the professors who had identified the song were astonished. At the very front, Ingmar of Revelations seemed to think of something, and his face grew serious.
No way…
–
At the same time, a startled feeling overcame Banner. In the School of Summoning, Tragische Ouvertüre was practically a compulsory course, but its extreme difficulty was also a big problem for graduate students. As an auxiliary music score, it could greatly enhance the phantom beast’s nature so that it could transform and enter into an upper level. It also produced the same effect on enemies. But now, the effect had been reversed. It was degeneration…degenerating in sorrow!
In that cold and sad melody, the five shadow beasts suddenly shook and involuntarily began to tremble. In the end, the shadows gradually blurred under the influence of the melody. The originally strong beastly nature was consumed bit by bit until it was eaten away and could not be maintained anymore.
How could he…How was it possible?
Banner’s face changed and he subconsciously swore. His eyes grew cold and he slammed his hands down. It was the same melody, the same Tragische Ouvertüre, with the same sound. The two melodies overlapped each other, but Banner’s performance was more intense and sharp.
“Marchosias!” he roared the phantom beast’s true name in a low voice. The aetheric wave strongly fluctuated around him. In the midst of the wave, a fire was ignited.
The illusory silver firelight tossed violently, and a large figure emerged from it. It was the demon named Marchosias, which was the most powerful phantom beast bred and fed by the Adrian family through the generations—the manticore!
The lion suddenly roared. Ye Qingxua’s melodies in the roar’s path shook violently and then collapsed?!
In both the East and West, lions had their own unique status. The monks said that a lion’s roars could silence all heretics.
Then the manticore jumped out of the void. This time, Banner no longer used projection, but directly put the phantom beast‘s seed in the aether and gave it a physical shape. After centuries of inheritance, it seemed to have grown abnormally old, but there was still a fierce light in its eye was a fierce light. It was a burning fire.
When it trampled on the field, the grass withered. When it breathed, a lion’s fierce roar echoed in the wind. This was the monster created by combining the generation power of the Adrian family and deep research of Summoning music theories. People familiar with it knew that it was created by the musician for their enemies—it was a musician killer!
It was good at finding the living and it could disturb the enemy’s music. With sharp claws, it could easily tear shields. Its speed was swift as a shadow…It was best at jumping from the dark, tearing through shields, putting all strength into one blow, biting off the enemy’s throat and pulverizing his skull!
The moment the old manticore landed, coldness flashed in its eyes. Suddenly it blurred and disappeared. Banner looked at the enemy and sneered. When the manticore appeared once again, it would be the moment the enemy was killed!
But Ye Qingxuan was not panicking as he had expected. Instead, he seemed to be hesitating, but soon, his hands swung down again. This time, he performed a sharp sound.
The disorderly music echoed around his body. It was like countless swords rubbing with each other, a wire being pulled by a winch, and nails scratching the blackboard. It made one’s scalp prickle. There was no rule to it. It was neither a music score nor a melody—it was pure cacophony.
The noise influenced the aether disorderly so that the aether zone in his perception fluctuated suddenly. Countless faint silver points of light collided with each other, producing crackling sound.
No one could understand his performance. Was this guy going to blow himself up?
But in the irregular melodies, the disappeared manticore vaguely revealed its figure. The illusory figure quietly moved forward. In the extremely chaotic noise interference, the aether changed without pattern and revealed the manticore’s trace.
The youth raised his wrist and put two rings on the forefinger and middle finger of his left hand. He pointed the two fingers at the manticore. Then, the two separated fingers slowly closed like a pair of small scissors.
