Silent Crown

Chapter 261: Holy

When Ye Qingxuan woke, he discovered that he was sleeping on a soft bed. The emptiness and fatigue that filled his body had disappeared too. There was a bitter taste in his mouth as well. It was probably medicine that Lola had poured into his mouth. He did not know what medicine it was but it was clearly expensive.

His tensed nerves had finally relaxed a bit. Even the disgusting sewer smell had mostly faded. But for some reason, his arm felt sore. Was this a side effect of the medicine?

Rubbing his face and sitting up, he felt the heaviness of sleep. When he saw the note at the top of the bed, he instantly woke up and felt chills.

"Dearest little Yezi, a hot bath is ready in the bathroom, food is on the table, and I'm in the library. Do you want to shower first? Or eat first? Or get the f*ck over and explain what happened?"

Of the short few sentences, the first part seemed gentle and teasing. However, Lola seemed to put all her anger and frustrations into her pen. The red ink pierced his eyes. This was not teasing! If he did not deal with this correctly, it was basically a death letter!

Here, he finally realized that Lola had worried about him for the entire night and he did not even thank her. No wonder she was so pissed. One must never anger a woman, especially a woman like Lola who could kill easily kill someone. Avalon had four full years of bloody history that could prove this point. Ye Qingxuan was going to get killed by her too.

At this thought, he did not dare to waste any more time. He scrambled out of bed, rushed into the bathroom, quickly got rid of the smell, rushed out, stuffed some pieces of bread into his mouth, and rushed into the library.

…

Half an hour later, Ye Qingxuan sat in the silent and dim library like a good student. He placed his hands on his knees, and smiled demurely without speaking. Lola's expression was heavy. After listening to Ye Qingxuan's story, she sipped her red tea. The knocking of porcelain created a heart-stopping sound.

The old-fashioned hat was placed on the table between them. It quietly emanated an ancient aura. The so-called 'ancient aura' sounded powerful but no matter how one thought, it did not seem to be of much use.

"So you're saying that you were out the whole night and almost died just to bring this back?"

"Yes."

"What did the parliament take away?"

"I don't know."

"What happened at the Royal Research Institute?"

"Not clear."

"Where did the Ripper come from?"

"Not sure."

And then a long, long silence.

After the long silence, Lola finally looked away and Ye Qingxuan secretly let out a breath. Sweat rolled down his back. If he really thought about it, he did not accomplish anything other than bringing back a stupid hat after working the entire night.

Yes, he made things difficult for the parliament, but only bringing back a hat from Avalon's Shadow was not allowed.

"The parliament went wild trying to take this. Maybe it's some holy weapon."

"All the holy weapons in the world are in the Church with serial numbers. There are only sixteen at most. How can a new appear out of nowhere?" Lola glanced at him. "Do you really think that you can find something at the level of the Sword within the Stone from Avalon's Shadow?"

"Uh, I was just suggesting the possibility." Ye Qingxuan flipped the hat over. "Look, at least it's alchemy equipment. Can you test it?"

"Yes, I'm disguised as a scholar of ancient studies, but I'm not an alchemist." Lola rolled her eyes. "Why don't you put it on?"

"Good idea!"

"Hey, you want to die?"

Ye Qingxuan had actually started considering it seriously. There was a large possibility that he would die, but it would not be worth it if he put in so much effort to bring a hat back and did not even try it!

After repeatedly checking for satanic traps or controlling music scores, Ye Qingxuan took a deep breath and put the hat on.

All was still. Nothing happened.

Lola looked at him seriously. She was ready to destroy the hat at any odd sign but Ye Qingxuan's face was blank. He moved his neck, touched the hat, and tried many poses, but nothing happened.

"How do you feel?" Lola asked gravely.

"It's pretty comfortable and the size is just right!" Ye Qingxuan grinned, feeling quite happy. "Do you have a mirror?"

Lola suddenly had the urge to kill him.

Ye Qingxuan pretended nothing was wrong while listening closely. He heard a song.

A boy's youthful voice sounded in his ears again. Like a dead spirit, he sang quietly, "The king and his helpers kidnapped the queen, imprisoning her in dreams. We have power and the sea so which direction should we wander…The bell has already rung in the cemetery. Did you hear the eerie song? Respond to our calls, the blood debt will be paid…"

The song sounded faintly again, but then disappeared like a hallucination. This thing undoubtedly had a definite relationship to Avalon's Shadow. But what mystery was hidden inside? And what did that chilling song mean?

He did not understand.

The song disappeared after that one time and did not reappear no matter how Ye Qingxuan waited. It was as if the curse haunting the hat had left, dissipating with the rotting scent. The wrinkled surface became smooth again after the dust fell off.

It had returned to its original graceful and elegant appearance. The dim music score inside the hat brightened again, waiting to be called upon.

"It seems that this is its true appearance. What did you do?"

"I don't know. I just struck a pose. I guess it likes to see me pretend to be cool," Ye Qingxuan praised himself shamelessly, however, his eyes twitched. Seeing something inside the brim, he reached in and felt a line of slightly protruding words. Too much time had passed so the silver thread had turned black, making it difficult to make out.

Relying on the touch, Ye Qingxuan subconsciously sounded out the words, "There is a limit to man's power and he must obey the boundaries."

This was one of the vows for a musician set by the first three kings. Every musician must abide by them. But why were they carved here? Unless…

He froze and his smile stiffened. "Unless this was the spell to activate the hat."

Putting weird and mysterious alchemy equipment on his head was one thing. Being close to uttering its activation chant…This could definitely be in the top ten of "One Hundred Dumb Ways to Die for a Musician."

He subconsciously tried to take his hat off but it was too late. The world went black. All he could hear was a crisp sound. And then the sky fell down!

The experience at that moment was painfully pleasing. It was indescribable. It felt as if someone hacked a giant hole into his head with a hammer. Then, something like mercury was forcefully poured in. An immense amount of runes and images flashed past his eyes, drowning him. Inheritance of a heart mark?

This should definitely be the inheritance of a heart mark but why was this so weird. Did they want to kill him? He fell unconscious before he could react.

After who knows how long, he opened his eyes and found himself on a metal bed. He saw the pale white light of a shadow-less light.

"How long was I out?"

"One full hour." Lola grasped a cup with two hands and looked down on him. "You wasted another of my recovery medicines."

"Sorry." Ye Qingxuan rubbed his swollen forehead and got up with difficulty. "My brain is a little messed up."

"Seems like it really is the heart mark inheritance." Lola looked at him gleefully. "The bad thing about old-fashioned alchemy equipment is that the load is too heavy. What school is it?"

"Ancient…School of the Stone Heart…it combined Abstinence and Modifications," he said with pauses in between as he searched through all the new information in his brain. "We weren't wrong. The hat is its inheritance ceremony. Its previous owner is…the first concertmaster of the Royal Musician Division, Andrea Casiraghi. Unfortunately, there isn't more information related to the user. There aren't any more records on Avalon's Shadow. The music score carved in this comes from…the Requiem?" Taken aback, he carefully distinguished the aether music score in his memories and let out a long breath. "It's the Requiem!"

"Which Requiem?"

"What else can it be? Of course it's the Requiem composed by Mozart, King of Yellow, which the Royal Academy of Music uses for its enchantment!"

Ye Qingxuan waved his fists in excitement. This reward alone made all his dangerous life-or-death experiences worth it! Worth it? No, he had hit jackpot!

"Don't get happy so soon," Lola dampened his excitement. "Which movement does the score come from? It'll be fun if it's Dies irae. It's a supersized forbidden score that requires more than three orchestras in coherence to play. We're not enough even if you sap us dry."

"It's 'Holy'." Ye Qingxuan felt the aether waves in the hat with his eyes closed. "This piece is called 'Holy'. It seems that its effect is protection abandonment."

After a short silence, Lola nodded slowly. "This is one of the most famous core elements of the School of Abstinence. It really does have the School of Stone Heart's style. You've really gotten lucky. It's the prototype of the School of Abstinence's scepter. It can create a completely pure territory and reject any outer music theory. As a defensive music score, it is definitely one of the best. Furthermore, it can completely protect you against one fatal blow. It's a savior for musicians."

Ye Qingxuan instantly grew overjoyed. "So I'll be able to do whatever I want now?"

"If you can bear its burden." Lola glanced at him with pitiful eyes. "You probably can't wear it past…thirty seconds at your current level."

"…"

"Don't just stand there. What else is there? What else did the heart mark inheritance say?" Lola asked. "The School of Stone Heart went extinct after appearing during King Arthur's reign. Maybe the reason is in the inheritance."

"What else? There's also…" Ye Qingxuan searched through his memories and recited seriously, ":?xt=urn:btih:WCJX3P5C5HZT26SKSHMWTD7WJW4LPM3Y…huh? Is this a password?"

"This should be the result after transforming music notes into binary numbers and modified with music theory. Its purpose is to ensure that others won't know about its secret core technique."

"It must be something good! Let me do it! I'll finish decoding in three hours!" Ye Qingxuan's eyes brightened and he excitedly climbed out of bed, not caring that a medicine bag was still hanging to him. "These century-old tricks are outdated. Do you have pen and paper?"

Lola shook her head helplessly and gave him the pen and paper. She also placed a translation dictionary of the lingua franca from one hundred years ago on the table before he could ask. And so the room fell silent once again.

Ye Qingxuan began focusing on the decoding and moved quickly. It was from years ago but the changes in sentence structure and music theory were headache-inducing. There was a multitude of problems. However, the further he went, the more excited he became. His eyes practically shone. He was so focused he had forgotten everything else.

Beside him, Lola gazed at his expression. She sighed after a long while. "You're growing more obsessed with decoding. If you continue…do you really want to be a scholar?"

"To be honest, I haven't considered it."

"Huh?" Lola was taken aback. "Never?"

Ye Qingxuan looked up and, after thinking, asked, "Lola, did you ever think about what you wanted to become when you were a kid?"

After a pause, Lola nodded. "Yes."

"Same with me. When I was little, I wanted to be a toy buyer. When I matured, I wanted to inherit the family business. After the catastrophe, I wanted to become a filial son. Then later, I wanted to become a priest. I wanted to pray for those who had died and live in a rural church until my death.

"Those are all pretty good, aren't they? Now that you mention it, I think being a scholar is pretty good too. But these are just for thinking. Anyway, for me, a lot of things are like that." He paused and chuckled. "Just think about it and that's it. It'll never happen so you don't need to think too much."

Lola fell silent. Seeing the youth's self-deprecating expression, she wanted to speak but stopped herself and looked away as if avoiding something. For some reason, she suddenly felt sad.

The only sound in the silence was the pencil scratching against paper. After some time, Ye Qingxuan set down his pencil. He stretched and moaned happily.

"Done! Lola, come look."

Lola snapped out of her thoughts and accepted the stack of notes Ye Qingxuan offered. Her expression grew stunned. "The Sub-Originator Theory? You've really taken back something impressive."

The Sub-Orginator Theory. Its full name should be "The Exploration and Production Method of the Sub-Originator Within the Human Body." This was the technique passed down from the School of Stone Heart, which had abruptly declined centuries ago. It contained a large amount of music theory and related scores that Ye Qingxuan sorely needed after entering the School of Abstinence. However, the most important was the core technology—the production method of the sub-originator.

The School of Stone Heart had fallen from its status as a major branch of the School of Abstinence in a few decades because they had lost this technology, making it unable to be passed down.

The Originator was the basis of the world, the core of the aether world, the source of the sea of aether, the birthplace of all music theory and miracles, and the location of all power and mysteries of the world. So many people dreamed of finding it.

Musicians had studied it day and night for countless years. After the pioneers of the saints and three kings, they established the foundation for the seven schools of musicians. These seven paths of aether led to the Originator.

Within these seven schools, there were hundreds of different theories and views with countless of research directions. One of them was the School of Abstinence branch that had been renowned for a time: the School of Stone Heart.

This school did not have many members and its music theory was mostly secretive. This was the School of Abstinence's unique point. They did not focus on appearances and just explored music theory fervently, searching for the aether's pattern. Thus, the others did not truly understand their direction of research and music scores. They were also the most mysterious of the seven major schools.

The School of Stone Heart's research direction was known as the sub-originator. This was a concept they suggested in contrast to the world's Originator—every human body contained a sub-originator.

By opening up, developing, grasping, and strengthening its power, a musician could store large amounts of aether inside their bodies. There was no need for outside help.

"With this as the fulcrum, one can lever open the sea of aether. One day, we will resonate with the Originator, and join the unknown." This was how the original creator had described it in the book.

"It truly is a good idea, but unfortunately," Lola could not help but shake her head, "It's impossible." The sub-originator theory had natural restrictions.

Ancient Eastern musicians had done similar research, which was the research of the 'dantian.' A distinguished work even suggested that the 'zifu,''tanzhong,' and 'danfu' were one. If one ingested mercury and lead, one could open three sub-originators simultaneously…but what of it?

Even if one took illegal drugs, used up one's life, and opened one-hundred and eight sub-originators in their bodies, what would happen? Mankind had its limitations.

The saying that man would win against nature was nonsense. Mankind had natural limits, so how could it be compared to the sea of aether? In theory, it was not impossible to develop the sub-originator so that it could resonate with the Originator; however, later experiments found that its success rate was a few thousand 'zeros' after a decimal point, and then a lonely 'one.' And then add a percentage sign at the end. It was a dead end.

However, Lola sank into a long silence after finishing reading. She had never expected the School of Stone Heart could achieve so much in a dead end. They had reached the peak of findings on the sub-originator. They were able to develop their own aether by opening up the sub-originator within their bodies and use precious materials to push the strength to its max. In the end, it was transformed into a strong 'heart.'

Different from the flesh heart, this was the 'stone heart.' With this, musicians could temporarily use more than ten times the strength they had and perform music scores above their level!

There was even a technique to assimilate their instruments with their own aether. By aether-izing their instruments and storing it in their stone hearts, the heart would become a cavity, creating a unique instrument.

Seeing this technique, even Lola was tempted. Unfortunately, she could only learn from these techniques. She had her own path and music theory. If she tried to use it forcefully, it would be painful and impractical. Her damaged symphony of predestination would break down once again.

Furthermore, the materials needed to realize the theory was ridiculous. Merely opening up a sub-originator was enough to bankrupt her. The materials needed for strengthening the aether was like a bottomless hole. No amount of money was enough.

"It's a good plan but too expensive." Gritting her teeth, she set it down. "Yezi, can you find something more useful next time?"

"Don't you think this stuff suits me?" Ye Qingxuan glanced at her with something like a smile. "It might be useless to you but it's perfect for me!"

"In your dreams!" Lola snickered. "First, you need to develop a medium that has the nature of aether and blood at the same time. Where are you going to steal such a precious thing? Of the dozens of formulas, not one is easy to find. You'll spend up to three-hundred thousand just to find the rare material. Then you must hire an alchemist to refine it and the failure rate goes without saying!

"In addition, the possibility of death when implanting it into one's body with our current technology is more than seventy percent! Only rich people who want to die choose to undergo this type of surgery!"

"But I don't need surgery." Ye Qingxuan tugged down his collar, showing Lola the bite mark on his neck.

Lola froze.

"From a certain aspect, I already have what's needed since birth, right?" Ye Qingxuan smiled secretively. "I don't think there's a 'medium' more suitable than the Deva's blood within me."

-

It was already late at night when Ye Qingxuan returned to school. The rebuilt history department was silent; everyone was asleep. Of course, 'everyone' did not include Charles.

He was about to graduate and suddenly did not have stress anymore. His sleeping habits were completely messed up too, and he had become a full nocturnal creature. He slept during the day and went out to drink and eat at night. He just ate and slept all day but would not gain any weight. In fact, he grew more handsome.

Ye Qingxuan could only say…life was unfair.

"Hey! Yezi, you're back." Charles waved at him with a beer bottle. "You're just like Bai Xi, always going out to play. I don't see you for the entire day. Come, come, drink with me!"

"Uh, I was studying in the library." Ye Qingxuan coughed awkwardly. Sitting down, he asked, "Senior, how was the recruitment interview?"

"Pretty good. I'm going to work tomorrow."

"Senior, don't feel dejected. The institutes that recruit in school are usually stricter. Even if you're rejected, it's not…Ach!" Halfway through, Ye Qingxuan spat out the water in his mouth. "You passed? You're going to work tomorrow? Where? The Musician's Union? The military? Or did you give up on yourself and sign up for the Dark World exploration team?"

"Calm down and listen to me." Charles could not help but excited as he spoke. "Here's what happened. Yesterday, I went to the Royal Research Institute…"

The Royal Research Institute? Ye Qingxuan could not help but laugh. This was the place all theory musicians fantasized about; it was every graduate's dream. It only had one opening annually and its interview was extremely strict. They would check up to three generations of the family and had fastidious requirements on morals and experience. No one had been accepted for more than three years. Even so, it was still filled with hopeful interviewees each year!

"Senior, you really were confident."

"Right? You have to have big dreams. Stop getting off topic and listen to me." Charles's expression turned serious. "So the Royal Research Institute came to recruit yesterday, right? So I just went to see! And guess what?"

Ye Qingxuan froze. "What?"

"It was packed!" Charles gestured exaggeratedly and sighed. "I knew from one glance that there was no way for me. I planned on leaving after walking around, but then at the back, I saw an old guy. He was pretending to be cool by wearing a doctor's coat and was sitting on the wall eating grapes!

"It looked so familiar. Then I realized that it was the cluster from the School of Revelations that I'd been waiting for two months! That guy stole my food from me, such blasphemy! I was so pissed!"

"And then what?" Ye Qingxuan's scalp felt numb.

"What else could I do?" Charles shot a judging glance at him. "I went up and beat him up. He stole my food! I hit him until his nose bled. You weren't there but a lot of people cheered me on."

"…" Ye Qingxuan was speechless now. Charles really had the talent of causing trouble wherever he went! It was a feat to return in one piece! Even if there were one-hundred of him, it was no enough to worry over Charles.

"But that old guy was actually happy to get beat up. He seriously said to me, 'Very good. You successfully caught my attention. Now I can give you a chance to show me your resume.'"

"And then?"

"And then I beat him up again." Charles shrugged helplessly. "Why are people so fake? He was that beat up but he was still pretending. He was just a janitor but thought he could be Newton in that doctor's coat!"

"…" Ye Qingxuan almost spat out blood. "And then?"

"And then I thought he had good taste, even though he stole my grapes, so I decided to show him my resume." Charles took it out and pointed proudly at the mass formula he had come up with a few days ago. "Look at this amazing research and world-changing discovery! That guy saw it and ran like he saw a ghost. If I reacted slower and didn't snatch my resume back, I wouldn't have even gotten to apply!"

"…And then you found out that you got accepted?"

"Yeah, someone just came to give me the notification." Charles whistled proudly. "Indeed, gold shines anywhere! Yezi, my era is here!"

Ye Qingxuan suddenly felt a headache coming. He took Charles's beer and gulped it down. Letting out a long breath, he asked, "Senior, did you realize that everyone was looking at you strangely when you were beating that old guy up?"

"Don't they always look at me weirdly? Don't worry, I don't mind. After all, geniuses can never fit in with the others."

Ye Qingxuan did not know what to say. He could only get up and pat Charles's shoulder with pitiful eyes. If he guessed correctly, his stupid senior had accidentally beaten up the interviewer at the school recruit session.

He had wanted to see the resume to remember Charles's name, not to see his accomplishments! Charles had it in for him after entering the Royal Research Institute! He might only be sent to clean the toilets. He might even be taken to the dissection table to be experimented on.

Thinking of this, Ye Qingxuan's eyes grew even more sympathetic as he looked at Charles. "Senior, you've done so many stupid things but I really can't help you this time. Good luck!" he thought.

He sighed and patted Charles's shoulder. "Senior, do something with your life before you die. Come help me. Is your alchemy equipment set still there? I need to use it for an experiment."

"It's still there but what do you need it for?"

Ye Qingxuan chuckled and said lightly, "Blood test."

Preheat the crucible, wash the test tubes, organize the lab table, and purify the air. Charles had done this procedure countless times and was an expert at it. It was obvious from how many things he had created. He had some weird problems as a musician but his talent in mechanics and alchemy was undeniable. Of course, fooling around like this was risky.

Ye Qingxuan had taken out the needle, removing the fresh and hot Deva's blood, as Charles was cleaning up. The more he drew the blood, the more unwilling he became.

Deva's blood was a high quality medium. If this worked, every drop was an essence hundred times more precious than similar material. It was practically liquid gold! And Lola drank all that money like beer. It was a stab to Ye Qingxuan's heart.

Beside him, Charles looked at his pain and fell silent. Suddenly, he patted Ye Qingxuan's shoulder in pity. "Junior, I see that you're drawing blood in pain. Is there something you're not telling me? You're so young and yet…ah, you must go to the doctor quickly for these illnesses. Don't be scared."

"That's enough." Ye Qingxuan rolled his eyes. He pulled out the experiment material that he had just bought. If he had not taken advantage of the Shaman and those Indian smugglers, he would not have been able to find these illegal items so quickly. These things were not rare, but were unpopular, and not many would buy them.

According to the theories of the School of Stone Heart, regular people had aether inside of them too. Musicians often interacted with it; therefore the aether's fusion rate was higher. However, unless the musician used healing music scores for the body, the rate would not be higher than ten. And then he would die.

A 'medium' was created by large amounts of alchemy equipment so there would be an environment where aether and man could coexist. When receiving a suitable medium, one must first test its nature. One must also understand its fusion rate with aether. If it was too low, implanting would be a waste of effort.

Ye Qingxuan was a bit unsure about this. He did not know if it was a one-sided relationship. But Deva's blood sounded powerful and it had been sitting inside his body for all these years. There had to be a time for it to shine, right?

While he was lost in thought, the preparation had drawn to an end.

Drip drop, drip drop, drip drop… The material had assimilated into the rosin after multiple filters and processing. Now it flowed thickly and dripped into the beaker. In the end, they solidified in the beaker, shining with warm glow like amber.

Ye Qingxuan sucked in a breath. He twisted the valve, allowing his blood to flow into the beaker along the tube. And so dark red blood seeped silently into the amber. The redness bled through the amber. In the end, it stopped in the center like a blood crystal wrapped in amber.

Crack. Ye Qingxuan's eye twitched at the soft crack. He glanced into the beaker. The solidified blood crystal had shattered and something flowed out. It filled the amber, swinging gently with faint ripples. The silvery ripples reflected with a dazzling color. There was a serene beauty in the fleeting light—it was moonlight.

The gentle moonlight flowed endlessly out of the blood crystal like liquid. It undulated on the amber and faintly rose to the air, transforming into flames—the moonlight flames.

Ye Qingxuan turned off the lights. The moonlight stood in stark contrast to the darkness. The amber rippled gently in the beaker. It faded, melting into the moonlight, transforming into pure silver-white. The light illuminated the youth's face and he smiled involuntarily.

"Success," he murmured. "As expected of Deva's blood." There was no doubt that the strongest nature of his blood was the moonlight inherited from Ye Lanzhou. Its fusion rate was a shocking one hundred percent—no, it had even passed that.

He had only put in the standardized amount of test drug. It was impossible to see how far it had gone out of range. Now, he could only be in awe of Deva's blood. As the source of power for the nine Dragon bloodlines, it had such a high fusion rate with aether.

He was right. His blood was the most suitable medium for putting the sub-originator theory into practice. It was inside of him naturally and did not require surgical implantation. This removed the risks and the need for more medicine and funds. He could skip the most dangerous step. As long as the moonlight in his blood could strengthen to the needed level, he could open the sub-originator within him using music score, and cross into the core technique of the Stone Heart. They had provided many formulas and tedious techniques to strengthen the nature of the medium. However, Ye Qingxuan had a better solution. He was the clearest about his own matters.

The moonlight in his blood came from Ye Lanzhou. If he wanted to strengthen it, he would just have to continue studying the Moonlight score that Ye Lanzhou had left behind.

Being so close to becoming an official musician, he could manage to play the movement with some outside help. However, it was clear that Moonlight was a score to purify demons. He must have demons to purify if he wanted to strengthen it.

"But where can I find a bunch of demons in Avalon?" His head hurt but he stopped before he finished speaking. Demons…Wasn't there a place with too many demons to count?

Gazing at the burning moonlight in the beaker, he suddenly grinned. It seemed that some things required long-term planning.

-

Though he had slept the entire day after that busy night, Ye Qingxuan was still sleepy after finishing the medium testing. The parliament's exploration into Avalon's Shadow had failed. He did not know what they wanted but they probably would not act in recent times. That meant he could relax for a few days and sleep in.

He had received a precious life saving hat. The heart mark inheritance that had been an obstacle in learning the School of Abstinence had been solved too. He had even verified the possibility of the sub-originator theory. Avalon's Shadow had become a goldmine for him.

Ye Qingxuan felt as if a weight had been lifted after solving all these problems at once. Autumn was ending soon and winter was coming but he felt the comfort of spring warmth. What was that Eastern saying?

It was the best season if there were no worries.

He sprawled on the bed and closed his eyes. There was nothing tomorrow so he would just sleep now!

Soon, cruel reality slapped him in the face, shocking him awake. Old Phil pushed the door open and tossed a letter onto his face.

It looked like an unimportant bill from the Church bank; however, Ye Qingxuan swore at the content after decoding the message hidden in the numbers. He felt chills all over. He hurriedly tossed his clothes on and ran out.

The letter said:

The Shaman has been attacked. Life status unknown.

-

Half an hour later, Ye Qingxuan pushed open the door to a hidden room and saw the old man on the bed. Resting against the headboard, the Shaman was reading the newest paper with his glasses on. Seeing Ye Qingxuan enter, he looked up and motioned for the youth to sit.

Ye Qingxuan pulled a chair over and sat across from him. The Shaman had all his limbs intact. It seemed to have been nothing but a fright.

"I heard that you got killed."

"It's not that bad but also not that good." The Shaman chuckled and tossed the newspaper to the side. "As you can see, I'm…hanging onto life." There was a gaping hole on the chest of his white patient's shift. Ye Qingxuan could see the bloody bedsheet behind him through the hole. He could also see the quivering lungs; the heart was missing. Choir musicians had implanted various auxiliary organs to keep him alive. Keeping him alive was the extent of their abilities.

Ye Qingxuan's eyes twitched and he looked away. "How unfortunate."

"Yeah." The Shaman nodded in agreement.

In the silence, Ye Qingxuan asked, "How did you fall to this state?"

"Last night, at dawn, a man with an eagle head descended from the sky. All my guards died. The six musicians that tried to stop it were torn apart like paper bags. Finally, it clawed at my chest and my heart was gone. If Ghosthand hadn't helped me escape, you'd probably be looking at pieces of the Shaman now."

Ye Qingxuan fell silent. He had seen this creature with a man's body and eagle's head last night in Avalon's Shadow. Hyakume's priest had transformed into that too.

"An eagle's head and man's body is the characteristic of the natural catastrophe Eagle Wing Mother. It's one of the lower gods of Hyakume. Dark musicians that sign a contract with it will turn into it. It seems that the parliament had fully joined Hyakume."

"As expected," the Shaman said. "The true background controller of the parliament has always had something to do with Hyakume. But you came here for something else, right? Good or bad?"

"Bad," Ye Qingxuan said. "The parliament had started entering Avalon's Shadow."

The Shaman did not show any shock or anger. He just nodded. "I know." He pointed at the newspaper he had tossed away, motioning for Ye Qingxuan to look. The youth froze when he opened it.

The first headline of the second article: Mysterious damages have been caused to the building of the Royal Musician Division. The banquet hall is in ruins. May have been caused by activists.

There were also a few blurry pictures. Ye Qingxuan did not need the pictures. He had seen it with his own eyes! But he had seen it in Avalon's Shadow…

"That's not unusual," the Shaman said. "Avalon and its shadow have always been one of the same. If the Shadow is damaged, the surface will be damaged as well. This isn't something surprising but what it represents is unsettling."

Ye Qingxuan thought for a moment. He looked up and asked, "Do you know what they want to do?"

"The authority of the bell," the Shaman replied. "They want the bell authority that controls the enchantment of Avalon.

"This is the custom of the Royal Musician Division. They're responsible for guarding the Elizabeth Tower since centuries ago and ring the bell at dawn and dusk. The Elizabeth Tower is the heart of the Avalon enchantment.

"It's heavily guarded—the Royal Musician Division's most important task is to maintain its safety and existence so Anglo won't fall into the hands of a natural catastrophe. Thus, the Royal Musician Division is given the 'bell authority.' This authority could be in the form of anything. It can be a ring, a piece of white paper, a sword, a hat, or an eye."

The Shaman's voice was meaningful. "The parliament can enter the Elizabeth Tower with this authority. They can enter the heart and destroy the equilibrium of Avalon's enchantment, whether it be inside the Shadow or outside.

"Once it loses control, the natural catastrophes' power can truly enter Avalon's Shadow, enter…the palace in the Shadow. That would be the worst result for me, you, and the entire country." The Shaman studied the youth. Dying embers seemed to spark again in his dull eyes. They were inexplicably somber. "So I must ask something of you."

"What is it?"

"Slow their exploration down. Stop them from entering the Elizabeth Tower." The Shaman began coughing violently. Bone fragments and blood spewed from the giant hole in his chest. His organs trembled painfully.

His servant rushed in to change the machine, but the Shaman pushed him away with an order. The servant hesitated before leaving obediently.

Only the Shaman and the youth remained in the silence. Ye Qingxuan looked at the Shaman and the Shaman looked back.

"You can do it. I know it."

The youth shook his head. "I can't do it alone."

"The Butcher will help you. I also have a group of secretly recruited musicians. When needed…the Ripper will help too."

"The Ripper? Are you kidding?" Ye Qingxuan laughed involuntarily from shock. "He almost killed me. Twice! And once was last night in Avalon's Shadow!"

"He…lost control."

"Okay, so let's not talk about what Hyakume wants the parliament to do. Anglo's at the brink of danger, right?"

The Shaman nodded.

Ye Qingxuan could not help but feel incredulous. "A jubilant western country has no idea that it's close to danger. And they're going to rely on an executioner, a bloodthirsty madman, and an Eastern kid in a vest. Isn't that funny?"

After a long pause, the Shaman sighed. "After all, your mother is—"

"She is but I'm not!" Ye Qingxuan raised his voice and interrupted the Shaman furiously. "She is, so she trusted her husband, her family, and her country…and everything she trusted betrayed her. Shaman, she's already dead! If you want to keep discussing things with me, don't use her to admonish me. Never do that!"

The Shaman did not reply. Expression troubled, he remained silent. After a long while, Ye Qingxuan, who had closed his eyes, opened them again. He let out a long breath.

"Okay, I'm calmer now. We can continue." After a pause, he asked directly, "What's in the palace of Avalon's Shadow? Shaman, you must tell me what the deal with Avalon's Shadow is. Why has the royalty tried to hide it for these hundreds of years? Where do the skeletons piled under the city come from?"

"What's in the palace?" The Shaman had a strange expression. He looked at Ye Qingxuan regretfully. "Avalon's Shadow is a reflection of King Arthur's era. What do you think will be in the palace?"

Ye Qingxuan suddenly shuddered.

What was in the palace? Was that really a question… Why did he not think of it? Why had he never thought of it? The palace of Avalon's Shadow obviously had King Arthur! But after centuries, was King Arthur…still alive? What had he turned himself into…

-

"There are many secrets in this world, Ye Qingxuan. Many. As the Indians say, it's like the amount of sand and rivers," the Shaman said with his eyes closed. "Some secrets are unimportant. Some must be buried in darkness forever, for eternity—any attempt at uncovering them will create disasters. That's how your father died. Do you remember the musician's vow? You must obey the boundaries, Ye Qingxuan… Obey the boundaries."

Ye Qingxuan's shoulders trembled. He looked up at the Shaman with confused and troubled eyes. After a while, the troubled gaze faded and he recovered his usual calm coldness. He said coldly, "Shaman, I don't like how you keep hiding things."

"To be honest, I don't either." The Shaman sighed. "I hate it."

Ye Qingxuan looked at him coldly as if trying to find a shred of pretense in the man's expression. After a long while, he said in a low voice, "Tell me what happened to Ye Lanzhou after all this is over. This time, you can't hide anything. Otherwise, we're over. No matter what natural catastrophe or parliament it is, I'll take my friends away from this country. You and Anglo can go to hell."

"I promise." The Shaman nodded. He had no way to refuse these conditions.

Ye Qingxuan left and forcefully slammed the door.

-

Boom!

The room was silent again.

The Shaman looked in the direction Ye Qingxuan had left with bitterness and helplessness. He understood the youth. Or rather, he deeply agreed. Anyone would be furious when they realize they had been betrayed. It was human.

After a long time, Ghosthand entered. He put a letter with the double snake watermark into the Shaman's hands.

"These are the results from the Trader. You don't seem to have good luck."

The Shaman opened the letter and closed it after a long time. He asked, "Is Hermes sure?"

"Yes, I've confirmed it repeatedly with him," Ghosthand said. "You weren't attacked last night by a man or dark musician, but the result that dark musicians dream of. It's a demon that had reached the Distortion level after completing the natural catastrophe's transformation."

There was a scribbled picture on the letter as if someone had drawn it with a finger sticky with sauce. However, it was extremely realistic and menacing. In the messy ketchup drawing, the black eagle had hundreds of wings and three eyes. It was awesome as if it would burst through the paper. It was the eagle mother—Kehlsteinhaus. It had already sent its children into Avalon.

-

In the dark night, a giant eagle descended from the sky. After landing, the bones scraped, the feathers changed, and it transformed into an old man with a black robe. His face was still sinister, like an eagle, and inhumanly cold. He looked at the man on the long bench.

"Well met. I am the head of the parliament," the man said. "You can call me Robin."

The eagle demon looked down at him as if sizing him up. After a while, he nodded curtly. "Malpas. In the human world, just call me Malpas."

The robin nodded.

Malpas's voice was monotonous but he was clearly displeased. "I thought the White Raven would come meet me."

"The White Raven? I haven't seen him in a long time." The Robin glanced and pointed at himself. "You must know that I'm in charge of things. I'm the only main priest of lord Hyakume. The others aren't important."

"You replaced him?" Malpas's eyes were suspicious. "I can't see how you're more powerful."

"It's just a replacement." The Robin furrowed his brows. "If you can find the White Raven, then go find him. Otherwise, let's move on from meaningless matters."

After pondering, Malpas nodded. He tossed a crystal eye into the Robin's lap. "As per Hyakume's order, this is what my wings have brought back. According to him, you'll be in charge of this mission. Not many have entered Avalon so you must use them carefully. We've already lost six men to the Ripper last night."

"I know." The Robin put the eye into his sleeve. "Don't worry. After all, the Ripper had killed believers of the lord. I've already asked the lord to place a mark on him." With that, he opened his hand. There was a red mark on his palm—it was a distorted eyeball. "Hyakume has the Ripper in his eye. He won't live for long."

"Since this is the lord's decree, I will obey it." Malpas lowered his eyes and asked, "There's also the Vengeful Spirit. He's always in the way. Is there a punishment for him?"

"He's just a clown. I can take care of him," the Robin said lightly.

"I remember he defeated you twice."

"I can take care of him." The Robin's voice grew sinister. "I have my own thoughts. You needn't worry or care."

Malpas stared deeply into him. After a while, he understood something and nodded. "As you wish. The hatred between humans is too much of a hassle."

His body suddenly scattered a bit. The eagle head flickered back; he could barely maintain his human figure. Looking up, he saw the fleeting rainbow in the night sky. It was Avalon's enchantment.

The rainbow hung in the air, sweeping in all directions. It would arrive soon. At that time, Malpas would be unable to hide his catastrophic power.

"It seems that I must go." Malpas sighed and took a step back. He unfurled his strange gray wings. A feather with the length and sharpness of a blade fell and floated toward the Robin. It curled in the air until the feather transformed into a black iron bell. The fist-sized bell landed in the Robin's hands. It was heavy yet cold to the touch, and he could vaguely hear an eagle's cry.

"To call me, ring the bell." The black shadow soared into the sky, yet the heavy voice seemed to hover in every inch of the sky, vibrating. "I am omnipresent."

The eagle soared into the sky and disappeared in the night. The Robin looked up into the night sky, not looking away until a long while later. He scoffed.

"He's gone?" A figure walked silently out of the shadow of a tree behind him. He gazed in the direction Malpas disappeared with mock interest. "The demon transformed from his shell and was given an aetheric body by the natural catastrophe. From a certain aspect, 'omnipresent' is not an empty word. It'll be more convenient now that you have this. Ring the bell and he'll immediately descend from thousands of miles away. Fast and speedy. Seems like the lord truly trusts and loves you, my priest."

The Robin glanced at him. "Naberius, you're late."

Naberius was a middle-aged man. The hair on his temples was graying and his hands were stuffed in his sleeve cuffs. He looked like bookish scholar—not a bit like a dark musician.

Hearing the Robin's accusation, he just chuckled. "I was actually early, but Malpas is still a messenger who represents the natural catastrophe. I do not dare approach him. After all, I'm not the type of person who likes to play around with contracts. It's one thing to take advantage. It's another to hang around a god and annoy them."

"Whose fault is it that you thought yourself clever and found a loophole while exchanging with a natural catastrophe? You were locked in the Resonance level for eighty years by the god. I thought you'd learn after that punishment."

Naberius was not angry. He just shook his head and sighed. "That's how I am. I can't help it. Taking advantage of a natural catastrophe is difficult. I ought to suffer some losses too."

"Next I will start preparing to explore Elizabeth's Tower." The Robin handed him a blood-colored conch. "The Vengeful Spirit is for you."

"That's a small matter."

"Small matters should be done seriously, shouldn't they?" The Robin glanced at him coldly. "You've slaved for so many years for your crime. You don't want to have done it all in vain, right?"

"Of course." Naberius glanced casually at the holy symbol before the Robin's chest. The Eye Within the Eye seemed to be staring at him. One was smiling lightly, the other was cold and shrouded in darkness. "With your blessing." Naberius bowed politely and left, disappearing into the darkness.

-

The Royal Academy of Music was bright and sunny in the afternoon. The warm sunlight passed through the window and shone on Old Phil, covering him with a layer of gold. He looked so holy, so stalwart, so…majestic. Passing him, the sunlight shone on the bowl of aromatic ribs and the youth prostrated before it.

"Boss, I'm relying on you this time." Ye Qingxuan grasped its front paws with anticipating eyes. "You have to help me! Please just guide the path. I really need to get into Avalon's Shadow. Oh, and can you come take me out again when I give you the signal?"

"…" Old Phil did not reply. Of course, dogs could not speak. However, its disdainful eyes seemed to be reprimanding the failure before him.

"Yes, yes, yes, you're right!" Ye Qingxuan scooted over shamelessly and petted his fur. "I'm so weak. I can't be compared to you, Boss! Right? Humans are stupid, so can you please be kind and merciful and show me the way? I'll give you anything! Ribs, lobsters."

Old Phil glanced at him and then looked away coldly.

As Ye Qingxuan was still lying on the ground awkwardly, he heard a confused voice behind him. "Cousin, what are you doing?"

"Uh…" Ye Qingxuan froze. He squeezed out a smile and chuckled. "Aha, I thought the weather was nice today. I want Old Phil to take me out."

"It's walking the dog but why does it look like Old Phil's walking you?" Bai Xi's lips curled. "Oh, and you looked really stupid."

"All geniuses are mad," Ye Qingxuan said, trying to keep his pride. "My intelligence has already exceeded the limit, so just stop talking if you don't understand."

"Ha." It was rare to have a chance to make fun of Ye Qingxuan, so Bai Xi obviously would not let it go easily. After munching on baked seeds for a while, she petted Old Phil. "It's rare to see him so pathetic. Can't you just help him? Take us out later to play, please?"

Old Phil glanced at Ye Qingxuan. Finally, he nodded unwillingly.

For some reason, Ye Qingxuan had the urge to cry. Times were changing and Old Phil's top follower had somehow turned into Bai Xi. No wonder his words were useless. All those years of hardships together were nothing compared to a few words from a little girl. Ye Qingxuan felt wronged and dejected. Seeing him like that, Bai Xi snorted proudly and patted Old Phil.

"I'm going upstairs to get something. Wait for me."

Watching Bai Xi leave, Old Phil rose lazily. He slapped the youth with his tail, telling him to follow.

After twists and turns, they left from the school's back door and entered a deserted alley. Old Phil squatted on the floor and eyed Ye Qingxuan. He barked like a hooligan driver looking at his client, asking where to go.

"As long as it's in Avalon's Shadow." Ye Qingxuan rubbed his hands with a fawning smile. "If possible, I'd like there to be demons nearby."

Old Phil nodded. It offhandedly pushed aside a manhole and barked. This time, the meaning was much simpler. It was just one word: Jump!

"Uh…" Ye Qingxuan looked at the heavy smoke somehow rising from the sewer. There was also the pungent odor that just felt unreliable. "Is this okay?"

Woof! Old Phil was starting to get impatient. It meant, Jump if you want but don't waste my time.

"Fine, fine, I'll jump! I'll jump!" Ye Qingxuan sighed inwardly. Old Phil's temper was getting worse and worse but what could Ye Qingxuan do? Would he have to act so servile whenever he wanted to get in and out of Avalon's Shadow in the future? The nice and cooperative Old Phil had changed.

Crying silently, Ye Qingxuan gritted his teeth, stomped his feet, closed his eyes, and jumped.

Plop. And no more sound.

Old Phil quietly gazed at the fog that had swallowed the youth for a long time. Then it nodded, put the manhole back, and left with its tail wagging. The alley was quiet once again.

-

Plop. Ye Qingxuan felt like he had jumped into some messed up pool. His surroundings were suddenly covered with something sticky. As he struggled wildly, he suddenly lost balance and crashed against the wall. In the darkness, he lit a lantern. The fog dissipated slowly.

The Blood Path flowed forward in this deserted and deadly still sewage tunnel. It was like blood rushing in a vessel, guiding him to an unknown place.

"I really got in?"

Ye Qingxuan froze. He quickly tossed his heavy bag to the ground. He put on the heavy coat and various equipment from the bag and folded it, hanging it to his waist, after checking everything. He snapped out his cane and carefully walked forward. Avalon's Shadow was creepy. Who knew what he would run into this time?

As he walked silently, his steps suddenly halted and he looked in all directions. The boy's singing had started again. Maybe it was because he was wearing the hat, but this time, it was clearer. The boy was practically singing into his ear. He could even feel the singer's cold breaths. He spun around but there was nothing there.

"The king and his helpers kidnapped the queen, imprisoning her in dreams…" It was this song again. It haunted the city's shadow like a curse. Every corner, every inch, was filled with this chilling hatred and evil.

After a long, long time, it was still there. It was just lingering in the ear, in the wind, and the broken sounds. If one listened, one would sense it.

Ye Qingxuan sucked in a breath and ignored it.

The Blood Path had disappeared.

He had re-entered Avalon's Shadow.

-

When he finally pushed aside the manhole cover and climbed out of the sewer, the first thing he saw was a thick layer of cotton. The dusty cotton and thread was scattered all over the large room.

One could vaguely make out that this was a large mansion. However, it was filled with strange eggs for some reason. Giant eggs the size of children were piled in the dust and cotton. He could see hundreds upon thousands at a glance. It was as if he had walked into an egg market.

He stepped back instinctively. The sticky glue-like feeling underfoot finally made him think something was wrong.

This was not cotton! The thing crisscrossing all over the large room was a giant spider web!

Thud! A sound came from midair. Something like a giant cocoon fell down.

Ye Qingxuan expressionlessly brushed away the webs on it and saw a corpse that had been sucked dry. He could vaguely make out the painful expression as it had died.

Cracks and pops sounded above. Things in the dark seemed to have awoken and climbed down the webs, waving their bones. Ye Qingxuan looked up and saw the green 'stars' that filled the sky. Those were the compound eyes of countless spiders. They were staring at Ye Qingxuan with open mouths secreting liquid that represented their hunger.

"Old Phil, you really understand me. You're my soulmate!"

The youth suddenly wanted to cry. When Old Phil had asked him where he wanted to go, he had said somewhere with many demons. So then Old Phil opened the door and…as expected, Old Phil never disappointed him. Indeed, there were many demons here…because Old Phil had led him to the demons' nest!

He was so happy to have such a caring friend. The demons looked happy too. They had been sleeping for so long that the bones had lost flavor. Today, something meaty had given himself up and he looked fresh.

Anyway, everyone was happy, but this happiness was a bit too sudden.

Soon, something humongous climbed out of the darkness. The giant shadow practically toppled the walls. A large compound eye appeared in the crack. Pungent wind surged behind it, along with a shrill shriek.

Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop! Pop… All the giant eggs in the room cracked open. Oddly shaped spiders covered in stickiness climbed out. Struggling in the dust, their shells quickly hardened and became menacing.

"It wants me to feed its kids?"

With the sudden realization, Ye Qingxuan looked at the sea of spiders flying out of pores in above and around him. A mere glance was enough to see it was a terrifying amount.

Though he could not rate the giant spider mother he had not yet seen, the other spiders were not very high quality. But if he added them together, it was enough for quantity to be over quality.

Should he run? He looked down at the manhole cover. After short hesitation, he could not help but sigh.

"Let me show you something good first!"

Boom! He slammed the black iron cane on the ground. The majestic boom was the horn that represented the coming of dawn! The clanging of iron sounded continuously under the fast melody. The tangible sound hacked at the thick spider webs like an ax. The ringing stunned the newborn spiders.

Dozens of long silver nails appeared out of thin air and pierced in all directions. They passed through the black wave of baby spiders and shot into the direction of the strange aura.

Shrieking sounded instantly. Many half-transparent spiders appeared amidst the black mass of bodies. Their large tails shook. Pungent venom shot out and sizzled on the ground. Even their own brethren had melted.

Ye Qingxuan felt chills. He thought he could practice with the babies! Why were there matured ones hiding amongst them?

The dozens of long silver nails crisscrossed, piercing the faces of the transparent spiders. The scriptures carved onto them flashed with a blazing light and spat out burning flames. The fire that burned within the spiders used their flesh as fuel and burned gloriously. A burning ring instantly appeared around Ye Qingxuan.

The melody was pressing to the point of suffocation. Under it, the flames danced like living beings. They melted into the rhythm and swallowed the endless spiders under Ye Qingxuan's guidance.

At the moment, it was a stalemate. The most pressing matter had been solved, but Ye Qingxuan began to sweat under the high pressure. Unfortunately, he had not prepared well enough. If he had time to prepare the materials needed for Night on Bald Mountain, he would be able to create a massacre.

The dozens of silver nails were the materials for singing Night on Bald Mountain. If Ye Qingxuan could hire an alchemist to create a similar set for himself, he would have the confidence to face that giant spider mother. Unfortunately, that was expensive…Too expensive!

Back when the Church's Ministry of Faith was still called the Inquisition, they were known as the monster department. They used up to forty percent of the Church's budget each year!

At that time, the discipline musicians used this piece as their weapon. Pure silver flowed out from them like water. Lethality created by the buildup of money was more terrifying than any other type of power.

They did not only use the sacred metals created by green gold and pure silver. They also used large amounts of holy water. All of that was money, money, money…

If the Church was not the biggest financial support of the world, they would probably go bankrupt from this.

For Ye Qingxuan's financial status, the materials needed for strengthening was too much of a luxury.

Boom! The entire nest of spider demons was shocked awake. The spider mother shrieked. At the same time, dozens of metallic spiders dropped from the air with incredible speed. However, Ye Qingxuan had already raised his cane. The amber gem at the tip brewed with thunder and lightning.

"Do not let the three realms turn to ashes!"

Lightning shot out and wrapped around the youth. Ye Qingxuan's vision went black as he almost suffocated. It was a total overload to withstand the burden of Night on Bald Mountain and Indrah's Eye at the same time!

Boom! Boom! Boom! He guided the lightning to criss cross around him. The light brewed from blood was like a glowing pen that sketched with sharp strokes in the air. The beams of light converged rather than dissipating. They joined together, transforming into complex designs that one could not stare at for long. Then they scattered in all directions.

Ye Qingxuan felt his blood dissipating quickly. He used all his energy to guide the lightning. Cracks appeared in the ground and air around him. The lightning died away in a snap of the finger.

However, the complex cracks had already connected. The complicated music theory had completed its structure under the guidance of the lightning. As if they were made of silver, the complex notes crisscrossed and overlapped. They were branded into the stone, air, and pillars. They resonated with the wild aether, sucking dry the aether within a hundred meter radius!

"Success."

After the flames were extinguished, the exhausted Ye Qingxuan leaned on his cane, panting for breath. With the flames gone, the black mass of spiders shrieked and converged toward him quickly. The darkness surged. The only noise in the silence was the chilling broken scraping sounds.

In this terrifying silence, someone sucked in a breath and raised his hand.

Snap! The crisp snap spread. As if it was an order, the hidden music notes in its path exploded with lightning. They connected with each other and affected the complicated threads of music theory, causing them to reveal their true appearance.

It was a music score created by lightning—the movement Moonlight!

Amidst the cold melody, moonlight descended from the sky. The illusionary moonlight illuminated the youth's face and scattered equally in all directions. The spiders in its path screamed in terror. The sharp shrieks rose in waves but were unable to cover the sparse and cold music.

A pure white moon appeared over Ye Qingxuan's head, scattering the clear radiance.

All demons trembled violently under the moonlight. Restricted by the formless moonlight, they were forced to ground, shaking. The all-reaching moonlight passed through their shells and compound eyes, melding into the spiders' bodies. Gently, yet undeniably, the moonlight purified the demons from the inside out.

All chaotic auras were flattened and transformed into moonlight. They integrated into the silence and order, causing the clear radiance to shine even brighter.

The moonlight converged onto Jiu Xiao Huan Pei, making up for Ye Qingxuan's energy loss. He suddenly recovered from his exhaustion. In fact, he was stronger than before. He could feel the Deva's blood within him strengthening gradually.

"As expected of moonlight." Ye Qingxuan sighed. He was covered in cold sweat. Thank God this idea worked. Otherwise, he would have had to run for his life!

-

An idea bloomed in his mind after reading the sub-originator theory. Since his blood contained moonlight and Indrah's Eye sucked his blood, could it activate the music in his place? If it could withstand the enormous pressure, he could activate the overture of Moonlight with his current power. It was doable in theory. The most difficult was the conversion stage.

After studying for the night with Lola, he had used the newly-acquired music theory from the School of Abstinence and his enlightenment from Deva sensing to create this idea.

The Emerald Tablet was known as the source of all current alchemy techniques. Its content was deep and difficult to grasp. Ye Qingxuan was not an alchemist, but he had touched upon it during Deva sensing and was inspired by it.

The inspiration could also be called 'creativity.' For some reason, any method would become an unorthodox and astray path in Ye Qingxuan's hands. Otherwise, he would not have turned into this from an average person in a few short months.

Using the compatibility of Jiu Xiao Huan Pei and Indrah's Eye, paired with the translation method, he was able to create a one-time alchemy object by carving the music score in the surroundings with lightning. Thus, Moonlight's effect became an alchemy ceremony. He could not personally create the effect, so he used other objects to make up for it. He was then able to perform the overture of Moonlight.

Here, Ye Qingxuan's headache worsened. Moonlight did not consist of only one movement. The entire score comprised of forty-five movements. There were three overtures, four main sections, twelve pure sections, nine mixed sections… Other than the section's own effect, different combinations had different effects as well.

Back in the day, Moon Chant had played around and created his own rules for purifying demons as the first demon hunter. Not only was there an immense amount of music theory, it also included the complete profiles of most demons in the world, their weaknesses, things to keep in mind, and ways to deal with them. It could help people in the future inherit his role and continue to kill. Ye Qingxuan could only say that this was crazily boring.

Crack. A crisp sound traveled to his ears. Ye Qingxuan rolled forward without thinking. The moonlight above him dimmed. It had been covered by white spider webs without him realizing. His original spot had been gouged by an invisible blade. It had been going for his head.

Strands of spider webs hung in the air. He did not know where they came from, but they hovered in the wind, quietly covering everything.

Ye Qingxuan's head shot up. The giant spider mother behind the crack in the wall had disappeared. All that remained was the strands of webs falling to the ground like snow. However, they carried chilling murderous intent.

Shadows that the moonlight could not shine onto began writhing like living creatures. Endless streams of tiny spiders climbed out and flowed forward.

A huge and oddly-shaped shadow had appeared above the empty wall without him realizing. There was nothing there but when the moonlight shone upon it, it cast a menacing and dim shadow.

There was something there!

It was as if a giant beast had quietly 'seeped' from the wall. Sensing Ye Qingxuan's gaze, it looked down. One of its compound eyes lit up. And so rock-like material and color began spreading under the path of its gaze—the fossilizing gaze! This spider mother had the slight bloodline of the stone statue demon!

The moonlight struggled to maintain equilibrium. Where it met the gaze, powder would fall down. It was the dust bloated after turning to stone. Broken noises continuously came from the spider. The youth could vaguely see the menacing shadow of the spider slowly raise two pincers.

"This is kind of difficult." Ye Qingxuan rolled his stiff neck and gripped his cane. "It's challenging!"

Boom!

-

Three minutes later, Ye Qingxuan was running for his life in the dead-silent street. The giant building behind him was covered in spider webs. Countless spiders rushed in all directions like a flood. They passed through some other demon nest, causing a commotion.

The guy who had started all this was squatting in a tight corner, wiping away his sweat. He let out a sigh of relief as he watched the chaos in the distance. As expected, he could not beat it!

He sighed. Once again, this strengthened his decision to take shortcuts and use tricks whenever possible and never fight face-to-face! Ever since the infamous Vengeful Spirit debuted, he had never fought straightforwardly. He had always relied on despicable tricks. He could not help it. His actual abilities were not enough.

Using tricks was more fun too; it was less troublesome. He just set it off and everything was fine!

Sighing, he caressed his cane. The gem Jiu Xiao Huan Pei had been sullied. It was ruined in his hands. He could only awaken its true strength when he became an official musician. A hat could contain so much music theory. Ye Qingxuan believed that the Ye family had put some good stuff into the instrument as well.

He did not need powerful scores like "Guangling Zhixi" or "Eighteen Songs of a Nomad Flute," but there should at least be "Changmen Yuan," right? There should be at least two or three copies of trademark Modifications scores too.

Ye Qingxuan felt much better from fantasizing about the impossible but beautiful future. But soon, a caw sounded again, shattering the silence. Furrowing his brows, Ye Qingxuan looked up slowly. On the withered tree above his head was a giant black crow. It was staring at him and screaming, attracting all the surrounding demons over.

This was how they lived. The crow could eat his decaying flesh after the demons killed him. Unfortunately, the demons living in surrounding neighborhoods were either attracted by the commotion caused by the spiders or were hiding in fear.

"Caw! Caw!" Seeing that no one was responding, the crow panicked. It cried louder, "Caw caw!"

Still, no one came. The only sound in the silence was the youth's sympathetic whistling. He rose slowly and walked over, an eerie smile on his lips.

"Caw caw caw!" The crow tried to fly away, but Ye Qingxuan's off-handed frost ray froze its wings together. It dropped to the ground and cried pitifully while curling up in a corner. Sadly, all cries for help were useless. The youth's black shadow swallowed it. His smile was cold.

"You like to scream, huh?" After thinking for a bit, Ye Qingxuan pulled some ropes from his waist. Tugging it, he smiled in pleasure. "Then I'll let you scream some more."

Five minutes later, the tortured and damaged crow was tied up and hanging from the youth's cane. It trembled as it swung side to side.

Two mussed feathers fell amidst the cold drizzle. It looked so pitiful but the crow was much more obedient now. It knew when to scream and when to shut up.

"No wonder they say crows bully the weak and fear the strong." Ye Qingxuan sneered. He strode into an alley while holding the bird.

When he found a dead alley he liked, he hung the crow on the wall. After preparing everything, he pulled some beast traps out of his bag, placing them all over. Finally, he wiped his sweat in satisfaction. He looked up at the trembling crow and began hitting it with his cane.

"Scream! Hurry and scream! No one's gonna save you even if you scream your throat out!"

And so the crow began to scream under the immoral torture. It did not scream stupid things like "Your throat out! Your throat out!" but it did have some effect. When Ye Qingxuan heard scattered footsteps from the distance, he hid into the shadows, gripping the 'trick' Jiu Xiao Huan Pei. He was happily waiting for the prey to fall into his trap.

-

Today truly was the day of misfortune for crows in Avalon's Shadow. They used to be so loved, but today they were being hunted cruelly. A shameless black shadow was searching for these poor fellows and tying them up one by one. He would lure demons into his trap and then destroy them all. If he killed a crow, he would switch to another one. If the second one died, he would get a third.

In a few short areas, all the crows of South Buck had become victims. They had practically all died in this guy's hands. The demons were confused too when they rushed forward at the signal only to find a seductively tied up crow. And then they would get hit in the back of the head.

Boom! Another primate demon fell to the ground. Before the shaking crow, Ye Qingxuan expertly pulled out his knife and slit the demon to let out the blood. After collecting the most valuable material, he kicked the thing into the sewer without hesitation.

After accumulating enough, he used one-time moonlight to purify them all!

The most valuable material to a primate demon was the two vertebrae. Ye Qingxuan soaked them in alchemy liquid and stuffed them into his bag. His bag was already filled to the point of bursting now.

Seeing that he had made ten-thousands of pounds in a few short hours, Ye Qingxuan suddenly felt that Avalon's Shadow was a good place to get rich. He just had to catch some crows. If the demon attracted was too powerful, he could turn around and run, and catch another crow to start over. It was all gain and no pain! Unfortunately, his could not put more in his bag.

After purifying the last group of demons, Ye Qingxuan was tired enough to collapse onto the floor. He had used Moonlight multiple times in one afternoon. Indrah's Eye took the burden, but he was still mentally exhausted. He decided to take a break and wait for Old Phil to contact him. However, he saw faint mist in the distance when he looked up again.

Stark white fog creeped in from every corner under the eternally-unchanging night. The heavy whiteness swallowed all commotion in its path, causing all to sink into deadly silence. The fog had appeared though there was no water vapor here. It was like the mist that shrouded Avalon in the morning, but it had a slight decaying odor and it swallowed everything.

He could not see his own fingers in the heavy fog. Thunder roared in the distance, resonating faintly.

Ye Qingxuan halted. He studied the white fog heavily. As more surged in, the song that had haunted his ears disappeared as if it had been strangled. The youth shivered at the thought.

Though the song disappeared, he felt that the animosity of this shadowy city had multiplied tenfold or thousand-fold. Each inch of air and earth was filled with disgust and animosity toward outsiders. He could barely even breathe.

"Traitor," someone spat in the fog. "Traitor…" The voice was old and hoarse. It seemed to be a roar that had traveled from far away and was filled with raw hatred. It repeated over and over, "Traitor…traitor…traitor…"

Ye Qingxuan froze. He subconsciously tugged his hat but the power sleeping within it seemed to have awoken. The fleeting sound grew clearer in his ears. He could hear the unclear yet spiteful murmur. It was a list of all the traitors; it was a declaration filled with hatred.

"Guinevere, Gawain, Percival…and Merlin. Merlin, you clown, you b*tch, demon…" The voice was filled with deep-rooted wildness and fury. "Traitors…all traitors…they're all traitors!"

Ye Qingxuan felt a chill to the bone as he listened. To be honest, he did not want to know who was talking, but he could not help but suspect the undead king sleeping in the palace.

"Arthur, what exactly did you all do?" he muttered to himself, not daring to think. Perhaps the Shaman was right. Some secrets were too dirty and should sleep in darkness for eternity. Brashly going after them would lead oneself into danger.

In the few short hours, he had thought that he was getting familiar with Avalon's Shadow, but now it was unbelievably unfamiliar now.

He could not sit here and wait. Even here, he could feel the breath of danger sweep past him. It was obvious that the closer he was to uptown, the more dangerous it would be.

After Avalon's Shadow was covered in fog, it had transformed into an entirely different place.

He began packing immediately, throwing away everything unnecessary. With a lighter load, he walked quickly toward the city gate. He could not help but let out a breath of relief after brushing past the dangerous aura. He sped up but suddenly, he halted.

All was unclear in the silent fog. He could only see a few meters ahead, no matter how many Revelations scores he used. This was the limit.

Gazing around, he looked at the city's serene silhouette in the fog. It was silent and cold as always. There was nothing wrong. But for some reason, he had a bad premonition.

"Is it my mind playing tricks?"

"Is it my mind playing tricks?"

After hesitating, he took a few coins out of his pocket. They were pure silver coins carved with tiny music notes. He had stayed up all night making them to test the paths in this dangerous place but had, not used them yet.

Now he tossed one coin forward. It created a soft arc of light in the air like a lantern. Landing on the ground, it rolled on the crumbled stones and stopped moving. The light on the coin extinguished but nothing happened.

He tossed another one. It landed before the previous coin. Rolling forward, it lit up and then extinguished. All was silent still. He tossed yet another one but still, nothing happened.

Satisfied, Ye Qingxuan nodded. He turned around and walked without any regret.

He should have decided early on that if this place made him feel unsafe, it was either paranoia or he had detected something subconsciously. Either way, it was better to take a safe path than putting in all his effort to test things. However, after three steps, a sigh came from behind him. And then someone soared toward him.

Ye Qingxuan dove forward without looking back, and rolled on the ground. He felt a metallic hand brush past him and slam onto the table, flattening a large mass of stone and wreckage.

He looked back as he rolled and saw a strange figure appear gradually beside the silver coins. It looked like the average stray that he had seen in the Jianlan Underground Palace. It had a bony face and long and thin limbs, like steel wires coiled around a skeleton.

However, this guy was unbelievably long. Just squatting on the ground like a dog, it was already two meters tall. Other than two long and narrow arms, it also had seven other arms of different lengths and shapes.

The youth felt goosebumps all over after seeing it clearly.

This *sshole had been sitting on the ground, waiting for Ye Qingxuan to walk over him unknowingly, then give him a warm hug. And then Ye Qingxuan would be shattered. But who had hidden it?

Ye Qingxuan had tested three times without finding anything weird. This was too scary. Even an expert at the School of Illusions would reveal some flaws under this type of targeted test.

He did not have any time to think. While rolling, he heard a noise under the stone. It was as if there was a pot of bubbling stew under the stone tiles. Strange bubbles kept appearing with a string of popping sounds. He raised a hand cautiously and pressed down.

Boom! The shaking Sigh. The stone tiles shattered instantly as the terrifying shaking lifted all the surrounding tiles. Ye Qingxuan had been propelled to the air too.

In the air, he felt that polluted blood was spewing from under the stone. He had killed the demons that had been called over at their most fragile state.

An ear-splitting scream followed. A hysterical melody rang out of thin air. The violin wailed, faintly freezing the air. An eerie deep-rooted chill spread out. First, it was the School of Illusions, then Revelations, and now it was Modifications?

Ye Qingxuan had no time to think further. He pressed his chest and unleashed the music score sealed onto his jacket. The gentle melody rang out!

Abraham had been worried for his safety when he had decided to jump into the quagmire of downtown a few months ago. He had sealed the score Tranquility into this jacket.

After all this time, Ye Qingxuan would have forgotten about this awesome thing if not for this life-or-death situation.

Tranquility was known as the trademark Resonance level score of the School of Abstinence. It was also proof that Abstinence could counter the other six schools. Once activated, everything in a ten meter radius would become a silent aether zone for half a minute. During this time, the aether would reject calls of any music score. Nothing lower than the Resonance level would work.

Sharp cries sounded as soon as Tranquility was activated.

The color of frost spread in the sky. Icicles appeared out of thin air. Modifications formulas were carved onto the triangular icicles with an unbelievably eerie aura. It was obvious at a glance that they were piercing attacks designed for defense and protection.

Hundreds upon thousands of frozen arrows appeared in an instant, enough to turn Ye Qingxuan into a sieve. However, once they entered the silent zone, they broke apart. The coldness disappeared and they dropped onto him as snow, scattering on the ground.

The fatal shots were now as laughable as a snowball fight. Ye Qingxuan did not dare to relax though. He had already heard the mutated 'stray' with nine arms run over. It was as if a giant rock was rushing over. As it ran, it opened its nine hands, wanting to rip Ye Qingxuan to shreds.

Ye Qingxuan quickly raised his cane. He narrowed his eyes, waiting for this guy to reach the most suitable distance. Then he would remove Tranquility and unleash the power of Indrah's Eye.

However, the stray seemed to receive some order. It halted abruptly and stopped in place. Then it hurriedly crawled back to its original spot. A demon created by Satan…was just like a dog.

Ye Qingxuan squinted. He could finally see the figure walking out behind it. He was hunchbacked and walked slowly. He reached out and stopped the frantic stray. Then he looked up toward Ye Qingxuan.

Ye Qingxuan could not see the face clearly due to the fog but he could sense the taunting smile.

"As expected of Avalon's legendary character." The man raised his hand and clapped lightly. "That was a beautiful counterattack. Decisive, unhesitating, careful, and yet with above-average decision making skills. It was not a waste in coming here."

Ye Qingxuan looked at him coldly as he tried to guess the man's identity. This dark musician could control demons and was well-versed in music from various schools. Ye Qingxuan did not know if the man was hiding here for him or just anyone, but the parliament had hired a troublesome—no, headache-inducing—enemy. He seemed to be at least at the Resonance level. It was rare for a Resonance level to be skilled in so many schools.

Ye Qingxuan could not defeat him. One did not even have to think to know that Ye Qingxuan could not defeat him. So what were his odds? He began calculating quickly.

"Mr. Holmes, do you not like talking?" The figure cocked his head as if waiting for a reply. "Did I disgust you with my impoliteness or do you like being called the Vengeful Spirit more?"

"You flatter me. Why don't you just choose whatever you like?" Ye Qingxuan shrugged, pretending to be relaxed. "I don't mind."

"Oh? Then what if I use your abbreviation S.H? S.H., S.H., S.H…" As he sounded out this name, his eyes filled with anticipation. "This name is cute and lovely. Don't you think we're closer now?"

"Ha." Ye Qingxuan's smile was devoid of warmth. He did not understand this man. Did he want to talk? Or just kill? This confusing attitude was freaky!

"Close?" Ye Qingxuan asked. "Your way of getting close with others is unique."

The man laughed. He said warmly, "I was just greeting you. After all, we've interacted for a long time. Please don't find it strange that I had to greet you warmly. I believe you won't mind, no?"

Ye Qingxuan sneered. "Would you apologize if I said I do mind?"

Pop! There was the sound of a water bag popping. Ye Qingxuan stared at the figure before him in blank confusion.

The moment he spoke, the dark musician had raised his hand. His fingers slashed to the side like daggers. Foul blood spewed out and the strange stray's head flew to the sky. As the head landed with a thud, the giant body continued to spew blood like a fountain. It died the fog read. The menacing figure looked clearer in contrast.

"This stray was a gift from Hyakume from before," the dark musician suddenly began explaining for some reason. "It's a new breed from the Dark Mother, called 'hymner.' The nine hands can use holy power. They're indestructible. Let's skip the other features for now. It's a rare but fine specimen, and of precious material. For a dark musician, the technology within is the true gem. They're great to use on your mutations or to transform yourself."

He glanced at Ye Qingxuan with a genuine expression. "Think of it was a meeting gift from me to you. Can you feel my sincerity?"

Ye Qingxuan's eye twitched. This was too weird. What did this guy want? He asked, "Are you from the parliament?"

"Yes." The man put a hand to his chest.

After a pause, Ye Qingxuan chuckled. "Do you all have the habit to give gifts before killing someone?"

"Normally, no. I don't, at least." The dark musician laughed and shrugged. "Would you believe me if I said I think highly of you?"

Ye Qingxuan nodded seriously. "Of course. For people like me, we're as eye-catching as the sun in the darkness wherever we go. It's not strange for you to think highly of me."

The dark musician blanched and coughed awkwardly. He could not reply to this. In all these years, he had seen many geniuses but this was his first time meeting someone so shameless.

"To be honest," Ye Qingxuan said, "there are too many people like you who talk in circles. Everyone has the disease of not knowing how to speak correctly. So can you stop making me think so hard? Why don't we be honest and open?"

"I like being honest and open." The dark musician nodded in agreement. "I just came on the parliament's orders. For example, helping the Robin solve some problems. However, I feel that killing isn't the only way to solve problems. Killing is the final solution but not always the best. Do you understand?"

"I agree greatly." Ye Qingxuan nodded. He suddenly felt he could identify with this man. "However, I'm sorry if you want to recruit me. I don't plan on worshipping Hyakume."

"Hyakume isn't the only one for dark musicians. There are many natural catastrophes. In comparison, my god is one of the stingiest. There's a lot of work but not much money. The contract is long too. You can easily die if you're not careful. The main work is mundane work, like being a loan shark. To be honest, anyone with a brain would avoid it." The dark musician laughed. "So it's okay if you aren't willing to become a follower. You just need to become a dark musician. What do you think?"

"Hey, giving your life and future to some weird thing." Ye Qingxuan laughed too. "Why would I jump into the abyss for no reason?"

"What's that saying? There's a great future in the abyss." The dark musician's voice was meaningful. "I can help if you're willing to sign with any natural catastrophe. Idealistic people like you will have high goals for natural catastrophes too, right? Let me guess, the highest order…is it the Three Outer Gods? The Three Saints? The Four Living Objects? I believe people like you would be a great follower to any of them."

"I reject." Ye Qingxuan sighed. "I reject you, Mr. dark musician who isn't willing to reveal his true identity. I won't accept any natural catastrophe."

"Then we'll have to use the most barbaric method." The dark musician scratched his head in frustration and sighed. "I didn't want this."

"There's a question I need to ask though," Ye Qingxuan suddenly stated.

The dark musician nodded. "Please ask."

"Have you ever felt regret and guilt from your actions as a dark musician all these years?"

The man fell silent. After a long pause, he nodded slightly. "Mr. Holmes, a man is destined to feel guilt toward things you are powerless against. This is the original sin. No one can avoid it, other than gods."

"Really?" Ye Qingxuan chuckled. "That's good."

"Huh?" The dark musician froze. He watched as the youth lifted the cane and slammed it on the ground.

Boom! The thud was heavy yet cold. A crazed melody sounded instantly. The song of hopelessness filled in all directions. The black flood had come!

He could not see, could not hear, and could not feel; he was tormented. Even his sound of heart was trembling. The black river swallowed the dark musician's mind. However, the negativity pouring out of his heart was abruptly restrained by a powerful strength.

After the short confusion, he was already clear-headed again. The moment he felt something was wrong, he instinctively put his hands together.

Crack! A sharp noise sounded, echoing through the air.

Ten thousand tons of pressure dropped from the air, smashing toward where Ye Qingxuan stood. The stone tiles were pulverized, instantly creating a crater.

However, the moment he moved, the youth had already adjusted his steel skeleton and shot forward like an arrow. He was running! This boy acted when he wanted without hesitation, acting even faster than the dark musician. He was also better at escaping than expected, disappearing in the blink of an eye.

"Hehe, what an interesting opponent." The dark musician stared in Ye Qingxuan's direction. He did not hurry over, but instead went to Ye Qingxuan's original spot. He looked at the cracks on the ground. After a while, he dabbed his finger on the insignificant trace of blood.

The drop of blood moved as if it was alive. It coiled up his finger, finally swimming to his palm and pointing to the distance.

"Run, run, run quickly." Dark musician Naberius gazed at the city shrouded in fog and chuckled. "Barbaric killing is so boring. If it's you, this will at least become interesting, right?"

-

Ye Qingxuan fled for his life in the fog, panting for breath.

Practice marathons, practice marathons, practice marathons. "Ye Qingxuan, why didn't you practice for marathons? Look at you now, you can't even run," he thought to himself.

He mocked himself in his head. Sprinting, he crossed dozens of meters in an instant and rushed deep into the darkness. His perception threads could sense that the strange dark musician was slowly but steadily following him. He needed Old Phil now but…he did not know where Old Phil was. His life depended on himself.

Boom! There was another muffled boom. The spot he was in instantly began a black wind tunnel. It sucked in everything within ten meters of the tunnel like a vacuum. Then it exploded; the air pressure shot up hundred-fold.

If Ye Qingxuan was a second later, he would be sucked into that hellish change. If he did not implode in the vacuum, he would be pressed into a meat pie.

The School of Modifications…

Immediately after, innumerable insects rushed out of the cracks in the tiles, charging toward Ye Qingxuan. His face changed and he began sprinting again. He did not want to see what would happen if he got bitten by things called by the Summoning…

The School of Summoning…

Immediately after, the ground before him began bubbling. Water demons covered in mud began climbing out continuously. Ye Qingxuan was stunned but immediately sneered and charged through them. Ripples spread through the illusion of the demons and quagmire, and the image collapsed.

The School of Illusion…

Ye Qingxuan suddenly felt dizzy. He wanted to gag as his heart pounded like a drum. The moonlight in his blood hummed; it flickered and extinguished by itself. It was hard to breathe and Ye Qingxuan spat something black out of his throat. The thing squirmed on the ground as if it was living.

It was a curse from the School of Choir!

There were thick layers of fog between them but the dark musician would not give up. It was as if Ye Qingxuan's every move was in his control. This was the probe from the School of Revelations.

Ye Qingxuan lost control of his panic and fear. He also felt despair and the urge to go crazy, which he should not have. He swore inwardly. When did this *sshole plant the hint?

The School of Mind…

Modifications, Summoning, Illusion, Choir, Revelations, Mind…

Within a short few minutes, Ye Qingxuan had suffered attacks from the six major schools. They had been activated hurriedly but they were already enough to kill him. This d*mn guy had learned all of this! Other than the School of Abstinence, he was an expert in all six schools. How bored was he?!

"Mr. Holmes, are you scared?" The taunting voice traveled through the fog. "Are you thinking who would be bored enough to withstand the incompatibility and backlash of the different theories and forcefully learn the six schools?"

Ye Qingxuan leaned against the wall and panted without replying.

"It's simple. It's really because I was bored." Naberius' voice floated from left to right like a spirit. This was an auditory illusion. "To be honest, when I was still young sixty years ago, I was a genius. Really, I was just like you right now."

"Ha." Ye Qingxuan flicked a coin forward. The music note carved onto it activated an auditory illusion, creating a snicker. Then the coin was swallowed by a giant snake that reached out from the fog.

Cold sweat seeped from Ye Qingxuan's temple. As expected, this guy had no good intentions!

-

"Seems like I made you laugh." Naberius sighed in the fog. "I was once like you, hungry for power. I fell because of this and became a dark musician. I had no hesitation or moral torment. It was just a choice I made after deep thought. To a genius, the rules and sense that average people insist one are just jokes. Mr. Holmes, do you understand this?"

Ye Qingxuan flicked a coin and scoffed.

"Unfortunately, I was too arrogant. I thought I could trick the gods so I did something to the contract." Naberius sighed. "I succeeded and gained some more power. I also avoided being controlled by the gods and being transformed into a demon. But unfortunately, I failed too." He suddenly waved his hand. Wild wind blew forward under the piercing music, blowing past Ye Qingxuan. Everything in its path split apart as if hacked by an ax.

"This was Hyakume's punishment to me. I will forever be restricted to the Resonance level. It has been sixty years! Sixty years! Sixty years is too long.

"It was long enough to make me die of boredom. I raised my music theory for all six schools to the Resonance level. It was long enough for my brother, far less talented than me, to become the king of dark musicians and fall in the hands of saints.

"Yet I am still paying for my crimes." He paused and said in a low voice, "To be honest, taking care of you is my final mission. Once complete, I'll be free again."

Another coin rolled in the fog, bringing with it a mocking voice. "So were you bullsh*tting just then?"

"No, no, everything I said was the truth." Naberius' expression as solemn but his lips curled into a fanatic smile. "I want to trick him again! Mr. Holmes, let's play again! Losing isn't scary. What's scary is if you don't have the courage to challenge him…I'm going to use my own ways to complete my last mission. I'm going to gamble my sixty years of fury to lie to the gods again! It will pay for my sixty years of torment!"

His eyes grew wild as he spoke. "Think about it, Mr. Holmes! Isn't tricking a god a challenge? Avalon's Shadow is a blind spot for him. He won't know anything that happens here. If you're willing to work with me, we'll definitely win! I'll win freedom and you'll win power! Isn't it a double win?"

"You're crazy." The youth in the fog sighed. "I'm sorry. I acknowledge your pride and motivation but please allow me to reject you." He did not use an auditory illusion this time; he spoke with his own voice. Perhaps this was respect, to some degree.

"No need to apologize." Naberius lowered his eyes. "I should be the one to apologize. I'll use your respect to kill you." The aether around him swelled, ready to destroy the enemy with destructive power. However, the drop of blood that guided him suddenly began burning. It shone with a cold yet deadly light.

The blood instantly became scalding lava. The moonlight burned in his hand, sizzling, piercing through his hand, and dropping to the ground. A hole appeared in his palm.

Naberius instinctively tried to reconnect the broken music theory, but he discovered that his senses had been cut by that light! Confused, he looked at his hand. The flesh around the hole writhed but was unable to heal. Raising his hand to his eyes, he studied the wound.

Did the youth turn the tides? One could vaguely see his pleasantly surprised smile through the hole. It seemed that this hunt was becoming more interesting! It was so great that he could have such an enemy for his last mission!

-

The silent fog was like a dark forest. He could not see anything three steps ahead. Everything was unclear yet eerie and filled with murderous intent. This was the world's best hunting ground.

The hunter and prey seemed to have returned to an equal starting point. They sharpened their teeth in the darkness, looked for their enemy's flaw, and then…performed the fatal blow!

"Chirens once said that bitter fruits await during a long ascetic practice. I truly love this phrase." Then Naberius suddenly asked loudly, "Mr. Holmes, do you read poetry?"

"Never." The reply in the fog was short and fleeting.

And so Naberius nodded with a sense of loss. "Seems like you don't like literature. What about life? How do you view life?"

"Sincere and priceless."

"Well said! Life is priceless! To live, nothing counts as insulting." Naberius chuckled as if praising him rhythmically. "Then, Mr. Holmes, I'm willing to take a step back. Are you willing to leave Avalon's Shadow and never return?"

"Sorry, I can't."

"There's nothing to be sorry about. I knew you would reply like that."

Naberius bent over. He took off the steel box from his waist and took the accessories out one by one. Holding them, he studied and chose the accessories. He said conversationally, "You know, you're very famous. Many dark musicians know you."

"Oh?"

"Regular people think you're a dark musician. Dark musicians think that you're not a regular person. Without a doubt, you're rational. There aren't many rational people but I like those types of people. We can discuss everything." After a pause, he suddenly asked, "To be honest, you suit me. Are you interested in becoming my student? Join me. I promise you that in thirty years, you'll be powerful enough to be top ten on the wanted list."

The youth in the fog seemed to be shocked. After a while, he chuckled lightly. "I have a teacher."

"Really? That's a pity." Naberius sighed. He looked at the accessory he had finished assembly. "Your teacher must have never taught you what special skills the guys on the wanted list have."

Boom! Ye Qingxuan felt his vision go black. Blood rose to his head and he barely managed to stay standing.

Boom! With another muffled boom, Ye Qingxuan's face flushed. It was difficult to breathe and he could barely make a sound. His heart was pounding furiously and almost jumped out of his chest. In the distance, a metallic heart suddenly appeared in Naberius' hand!

The gentle yet sturdy heart assembled from metal pieces had seven holes like a flute. Naberius held it in his hand and played it. The sound was heavy yet fine; the music was melodious like the song of life. However, this song was despair. It was the song of life withering away.

Within a few moments, Ye Qingxuan's blood was chaotic and his heart almost cracked from pounding.

"You've never personally experienced a battle with a Resonance level musician, right?" Naberius sighed. "Musician duels under the Resonance level are focused on countering different schools. It's like chess. But above the Resonance level, it's the defense and crashing of the sound of heart. Once the frequency of your sound of heart is grasped by your enemy and broken down, you'll have no room to fight back."

Ye Qingxuan stooped low. Blood trickled from his lips. Hearing this, he asked hoarsely, "You…you can hear my sound of heart just from my speech?"

"No, no, that would be too idealistic. You must have well-rounded calculations and a series of guidance with much experience. This is probably my most unique skill. Because of this, the Sacred City calls me the 'heart hunter.' So, give up, Mr. Holmes." He looked down at his metallic heart and studied the pulsing atrium. "Thanks for talking to me for so long, letting me prepare with ease. Now, your heart is in my hands."

"Ha." The youth's weak voice traveled in the fog. "Do you really have improper thoughts about me?"

"To be honest, I don't reject close relationships between two men." After short and serious consideration, Naberius nodded and said, "Let's decide the technicalities after I see what you're like. After all, everyone loves beauty."

"Ha, your fantasies are pretty beautiful." Ye Qingxuan coughed violently. "But fine. Come over and I'll show you something good."

"Okay," Naberius said. However, his footsteps stopped thirty meters away. Thirty meters, thirty meters…that was a critical distance. "You want to show me that alchemy equipment that shoots lightning, right?" His expression was cautious. "I'm sorry for being a coward, but according to the information I've received, that extremely powerful weapon is a saint's relic, correct? So how about no. I've already been transformed but I still won't be able to withstand that type of power at a short distance."

Ye Qingxuan muttered a curse. The cane that he had raised now fell to the ground listlessly. Indeed, a trick would lose effectiveness if used too many times. This time, his enemy was well prepared. The parliament had probably grown defensive of Indrah's Eye.

"You tried so hard to make me fall but you're too scared to come over. Don't you think that's laughable?"

"Safety first. I don't mind being laughed at." Naberius looked down at the metallic heart and murmured, "In my opinion, this isn't enough. I must be more cautious when facing enemies like you."

Ye Qingxuan was caught between laughing and crying. "You still need to be more cautious?"

"At least…I should at least make you too weak to speak." Naberius clenched his fist. With a boom, Ye Qingxuan's face turned red and purple. He gagged and spat out sticky blood.

"Look how pitiful it is for someone to control your heart." Naberius' voice traveled from afar. "Your sound of heart represents having control over your life. Once it is controlled by your enemy, it means that your life is controlled by him."

"Yeah, just like the relationship between you and that god of yours—" Before Ye Qingxuan could finish, his vision went black again. The pressure in his eye was so strong that it felt as if his eyeball would burst. Under the guidance of his frantic heart, his organs started rebelling as well. The blood, veins, lymph nodes, and bone marrow all over his body were influenced as well.

It would be easy for Naberius to kill him. The man only needed to hold that heart and play a few tritone intervals. After a few measures, Ye Qingxuan would be more dead than dead.

But that *sshole clearly wanted to keep him alive. And the bad thing was that he could really do it! Ye Qingxuan realized that if this continued, he really would not be able to speak anymore.

Lowering himself, he tore open the hidden button in his sleeve with difficulty and injected the cardiac needle, local anesthesia, and stimulant. The prick of the needles brought immense pain. His lungs trembled and swelled as he said hoarsely, "You know why…I don't want to be a dark musician?"

"No, normal people all want to be dark musicians, right?" Naberius could not help but whistle. "Let me guess. Is it because of prejudice?"

"No." Ye Qingxuan shook his head painfully. He collapsed onto the ground involuntarily as he lost support.

After pondering, Naberius asked again, "Is it because of your ideals? Are you like those revolutionary soldiers who want anarchy?"

The youth laughed mockingly. His voice was weak and hoarse.

"Oh, then is it because the rewards aren't enough? You must be the core student of some school then, right? Indeed, a contract with a saint is looser than relying on natural catastrophes."

This time, the youth in the fog did not even feel like replying.

Naberius chuckled. After thinking again, he sighed involuntarily. "If it's not because of interest, prejudice, or ideals…Hey, are you really into keeping the vow as a musician?"

No one replied. The youth in the fog could no longer spoke. Even his breathing had become irregular. The breathing sounds came once every few seconds.

Wait, once every few seconds?

Naberius froze. He counted in his head, five, four, three, two, one, exhale, five, four, three, two, one, exhale…

His expression changed drastically. Cutting through the fog, he rushed to where the youth was.

No one was there.

There was only a coin with an auditory illusion shining there. It would make a breathing sound every five seconds. Beside it, he could see the blood the youth had spat out. As well the trail of him crawling away painfully.

Beside the coin, he could also see the answer that the youth had written with his blood: Why don't I want to be a dark musician? The reason is simple. It's because you're all too stupid.

Naberius' face changed. In the end, he could not help but burst into laughter as if he had heard the world's greatest joke. Rather than feeling anger or confusion, he felt appreciation from the bottom of his heart.

"He really escaped? Mr. Holmes, you're an opponent I must respect from every aspect!" Watching the direction the youth had crawled in, he rubbed his hands excitedly. "Then let's see how far you can run!"