Translator: Atlas Studios Editor: Atlas Studios
As for Miao Xiao Miao, she’d already become deeply entranced as each line of the poem was unravelled before her… Three hundred days and sixty make a year, and therein lurk; daggers of wind and swords of frost to do their cruel work… How long will last the fair fresh flower which bright and brighter glows? One morning its petals float away, but to where no-one knows…
But high in the air, what grave is there? No, give me an embroidered bag within to lay their charms. And Mother Earth, pure Mother Earth, shall hide them in her arms… Thus those sweet forms which spotless came shall spotless go again. Nor pass dirty with mud and filth along some filthy drain. Farewell, dear flowers, forever now, thus buried as was best. I have not yet divined when I with you shall sink to rest. I who can bury flowers like this a laughing-stock shall be; I cannot say in days to come what hands shall bury me. See how when spring begins to fail each opening flower fades; so too there is a time of age and death for beautiful maids; And when the fleeting spring is gone, and days of beauty over; flowers fall, and lovely maidens die, and both are known no more!
As she wrote, Miao Xiao Miao’s eyes grew wet uncontrollably. It was as if she could see that frail and sickly girl sweeping up the petals with great effort, gathering them together into a hand woven bag and burying them tenderly, finally passing away into a mere soul…
In that moment, Miao Xiao Miao even felt as if that girl was herself… Although I am not frail and sickly, my life in the Misty Illusory Manor is controlled and restricted. At any time, I could be sacrificed away like an item for the family, forced to marry to someone I don’t like, or even detest…
If that is my fate, it’s really no better than ‘No, give me an embroidered bag within to lay their charms. And Mother Earth, pure Mother Earth, shall hide them in her arms. Thus those sweet forms which spotless came shall spotless go again. Nor pass dirty with mud and filth along some filthy drain’…
Just as everyone was still immersed in the beauty of the poem, a faint xiao tune pierced through the silence, seemingly drifting down from the edges of the heavens, ringing out clearly…
Song of the Burial of Flowers!
A single Song of the Burial of Flowers, enrapturing the souls of hundreds!
The cry of the xiao was soft and mournful, as if weeping and complaining. Those innumerable flowers of purple and red, all manners of charm, the thousand different types of amorous feelings… all of it blossomed in the hearts of the crowd, before slowly disappearing and turning into nothingness and melancholy…
Even after the song was finished, no one spoke for a long, long time. It was as if that beautiful xiao tune was still reverberating through the hall, echoing in everyone’s hearts endlessly…
“Ai… this song…” A musical expert wiped his eyes with emotion. “It’s truly peerless, akin to a tune from the heavens in the mortal realm. To be able to hear it just once has already made this life worth living!”
“Yes…” Miao Xiao Miao had a dazed expression on her face as her mind still lingered in the music. Her voice was wispy and faint, as if her soul was reluctant to part with the beauty in her mind. Speaking slowly as if she weren’t aware of her reality, she nodded lightly. “This is the most touching xiao rendition I’ve ever heard in my life…”
“Reached the acme of perfection and beauty? No, compared to Brother Mo’s song, this is what it truly means to have reached the acme of perfection! Only now do I, Lin Qing Yin, know what is the true essence of music! And what is the true path of music! After listening to this song, I suddenly feel as if everything I’ve learnt before is truly not worth a mention at all… Haha, to think that I’ve imagined myself to be the best among all the young musicians in the Misty Illusory Manor. In reality, I actually haven’t even come into contact with real music yet… In fact, I hadn’t even touched upon its corners…” Lin Qing Yin said in a dumb manner.
Even Zhan Yu Shu could not help but nod his head lightly in spite of himself. He could also be considered to have studied music rather extensively, and in this moment, he was not willing to speak in contrast to his heart. But in a moment, he came to himself and realized the side on which he stood and instantly shook his head. But as if the shaking of his head had pricked his conscience, he actually switched to nodding again…
This Song of the Burial of Flowers was an excellent song with no flaws to attack! The melody was beautiful, and something never before heard in this world! That helplessness and sorrowful emotion embodied within the music had caused everyone to feel a wispy sense of loss. And that purity and pridefulness interwoven within the tunes… caused them to feel even more heartbroken…
After listening to this perfect rendition, everyone cried out together and gave their approval. Even the people on Zhan Qing Feng’s side couldn’t find any problems with it! Jun Mo Xie had obtained the victory in an overwhelming manner!
This time, nobody dared to mention Heartbreak Hymn anymore. Because the difference between them was like the heavens and the earth… with no way for comparison ah…
“Brother Mo, dare I ask, what is the name of that talented girl?” Lin Qing Yin’s voice was humble and he seemed to have a hint of anticipation in his voice. Although Jun Mo Xie had mentioned that the girl had already passed away several hundred years ago, but after he heard this Song of the Burial of Flowers, he felt as if he’d already met this frail and sickly girl…
He even felt an impulse to console this pitiful lady who had to live such a cruel life…
“This is quite a coincidental thing that you asked. Her surname is also Lin, which means that you are of the same line, Brother Lin.” Jun Mo Xie said with a faint smile. “Her name is Lin Dai Yu.” Jun Mo Xie said with a heartfelt sigh. In this moment, he finally understood one thing. The advantage of a transmigrator was simply too large!
Not mentioning the other stuff, as long as one had studied at a primary school on Earth, they would be able to bring at least a portion of thousands of years of history with them to the other world… Especially songs, poems, and other literary works of the ancient grandmasters… that stuff was completely invincible here…
“So she’s also surnamed Lin… what a peerless talent of pure spirit and beauty…” Lin Qing Yin sighed lightly and said in a wistful manner.
“Brother Mo, could you make a copy of musical notes of this Song of the Burial of Flowers’s xiao rendition for me?” Miao Xiao Miao asked in a soft voice.
“Of course! To be able to satisfy Miss Miao is a great honor of mine.” Jun Mo Xie agreed immediately.
“Xiao Miao is filled with gratitude for Brother Mo’s gift.” Miao Xiao Miao smiled shyly as a warm look flashed past her eyes.
In that instant, an intense look of jealousy blazed in Zhan Yu Shu and Zhan Qing Feng’s eyes! The way they looked at Jun Mo Xie became even more hostile.
With Young Master Jun’s abilities, he had naturally detected those two extremely hostile gazes, and he swiveled his eyes to look in a casual manner. As he met their eyes, he felt a shock in his heart. From the surface, it seemed as if Zhan Yu Shu was pursuing Miao Xiao Miao and Zhan Qing Feng was only helping his little brother. But why was there such an expression on Zhan Qing Feng’s face as well?
Could it be that Zhan Qing Feng also had wild intentions for Miao Xiao Miao? The reason he’d approached her previously was not purely for the sake of his brother?
If that’s really the case, Zhan Yu Shu might actually still be kept in the dark about the whole matter! Perhaps only Zhan Qing Feng was truly cognizant of the whole matter… In that case, could I possibly use this knowledge to my advantage?
If he could leverage this point well, he might be able to turn these two brothers against each other! There were two things that a man can never endure. One was being betrayed by their own brothers, The second was that their woman was being coveted by another!
As for Zhan Qing Feng, he seemed to have fulfilled both criteria!
If he exposed this little secret… the results would be very interesting to see. Perhaps, it could even be more interesting than today’s farce!
Jun Mo Xie sneered internally and instantly began making plans in his heart. However, the expression on his face was still completely unchanged.
The results of the first match were very obvious. It was a complete victory for the Free and Natural Physique Young Prodigy Mo!
There were no more voices of contention, and no one could oppose the result. If they continued to seek trouble at this point, whoever spoke out would instantly be cursed to death by the others!
Although the first match had ended, it was merely the start in the context of this challenge. Immediately following it was the second match. The original plan was to chain all the matches up, not giving Mo Jun Ye a chance at a breather. But because of a single Song of the Burial of Flowers, the entire crowd had become lost in the music, not recovering for a long time… Nobody came out for the second match, resulting in an empty stage!
Humans were like this. They would always be filled with jealousy and refuse to recognize others who were simply a little bit better than them. But if the other person was much better than them, they would suddenly be filled with respect and even worship. It was like a household with an annual income of 10,000 yuan compared with a household with 100,000 yuan annual income. The person with 10,000 yuan income will only scoff bitterly, and curse that the other person’s luck was simply a bit better than them. If it was them who had the same opportunities, they could also achieve the same thing… But if they were asked to compare themselves with Bill Gates, all of them would bow in respect… Because the person they were comparing themselves to was simply a legend! Who would be so dumb as to think they could match up to such a legendary character?
And right now, it was the same for Jun Mo Xie! Before the first match, the great prodigy Mo was only the “so-called” legendary prodigy. But now, he’d proven himself to be a legitimate legendary prodigy! Thus, everyone’s attitude of him had changed!
In truth, most of these people had only come here today because they’d received some advantages and promises from the Zhan Family. As for people like Lin Qing Yin, they had even been directly coerced to come…
But before this, these similarly talented youngsters were truly also somewhat unconvinced in their hearts! All of them had come great achievements in various fields, and although they could not be said to have reached the peak of their fields, their reputations had still spread quite widely in the Misty Illusory Manor…
Achieving great results in their youth, who would not be arrogant?
But the appearance of this Free and Natural Physique youth had directly snatched away the attention of all the Seniors and Elders of the Misty Illusory Manor! No matter how much greater their achievements was, it was not worth a mention in front of this legendary Free and Natural Physique!
The main thing was also that this physique was something that was gained at birth. It had nothing to do with Mo Jun Ye’s own hard work. This point made everyone feel even more unconvinced.
But after today, after witnessing his Song of the Burial of Flowers, everyone immediately reined in their arrogance! These youths were undoubtedly proud, and they’d also looked forward to getting some benefits out of participating in this event. However, that did not mean that they would go against their conscience…
For the other party’s musical attainments to reach such a high level… just this point alone was enough to cause the crowd to look at him differently. Moreover, he was the owner of the Free and Natural Physique?
Disregarding natural talent, this was still an extraordinary person!
“Shall I face Brother Mo in the second match?” A person finally walked out after some time. The newcomer was a youth with a skinny figure. He looked ordinary and steady, with confidence on his face. It was as if he had everything calmly in his grasp, an absolute self confidence…”
His two eyes shone brightly, but this kind of light was not the clarity that came from cultivation. It was instead a natural quick wittedness and concentration.
Although this youth did not seem old, his bearings were steady and firm. With a single look, Jun Mo Xie could tell that this youth was probably more steadfast and determined than some of those old fellows with a wealth of experience behind them.
“May I know who this Young Master is?” Jun Mo Xie looked at him and asked.
“Brother Mo, this is the Youth Chess King of our Misty Illusory Manor, Qi Wan Jie!” Miao Xiao Miao introduced. “Qi Wan Jie learned the way of chess at a very young age. He made his name at the age of nine, and when he was 13, he was already unmatched in the Misty Illusory Manor! Right now, he’s not even needed to be present in the yearly chess competition. Because everyone else can only fight for the second place! The title of Chess King is something that Qi Wan Jie has held for 12 consecutive years without anyone being able to snatch it away!”
