Silent Crown - Chapter 351

Chapter 351: Past Hallucinations

 

The moment the Hellhound appeared, the entire territory started trembling. The symphony of predestination was at its limit, and it could no longer take it, especially faced with the ‘scepter killer’ created by the School of Summoning.

Amongst the various beastly natures that created the Hellhound, the strongest were the three heads that controlled the hound. And amongst them, the most important was the demon wolf that could swallow the sun in legends.

In order to fuse the beastly nature and human body completely, the school had wagered the phantom beast saved within the aether world and drew its essence into the inheritance of the beastly nature.

Now, the Hellhound raised its three heads. They roared in unison. The menacing wolf in the center threw its head back. Opening its mouth, it tore at the invisible music theory and swallowed all light. The sea of light poured into its throat but could not sate it. It was a key point in the School of Modifications—the nemesis of ‘heat’ of ‘light.’ With its existence, the territory that relied on endless light was in danger.

After swallowing much light, the Hellhound tripled in size. The dark aura around it thickened. Roaring, it charged into the Romulusian army. Its tail swung, tearing through the formation. It cut through the dying six-headed snake and roared without waiting for the priests to start beating the drum again.

The drum exploded; the priest broke down and was divided by the three large mouths. The wolf forcefully pushed back the saint’s boundless electric light and the territory’s immense pressure. It ravaged the territory. Extreme pressure focused onto the Hellhound but the wild beast did not care. It charged at the sun in the air again and again. It allowed itself to be burned all over.

Whenever the beast was injured, Torre’s body would shudder. Various ghastly seams cracked open on his skin as if an invisible chain connected him and the beast. The cost of turning into a complete beast was sealing one’s humanity. The ‘result’ was completely losing control and falling into the abyss of demonization. This was something the School of Summoning would never allow. Thus, there must be restrictions.

Casper’s restriction was his brother Torre. When Casper’s humanity regressed and was replaced by the beastly nature, Torre took charge of controlling him. Discipline Abstinence musicians had placed a large shackle on the wolf. Torre gripped the shackle, constraining the wolf within it.

With the Hellhound’s hindrance, Sam, still in the state of spirit incarnation, started up again. He quickly attacked the saint. Torrents of fiery thunder and layers of icy metal fell upon the sun.

He must extinguish Romulusian’s former glory!

–

Above the sun, the Hole of Destruction had contracted to the size of a thumb. Its music theory was one touch away from breaking apart. The musician controlling it sensed the shaking of the territory. Determination flashed past his eyes and he clenched his fist,

The Hole of Destruction exploded soundlessly. The energy created from the destruction of everything it had sucked in now poured out like a waterfall.

Boom! Boom! Boom! Boom! Tragic cracks appeared on the scepter continuously. Even the saint’s body cracked. Through the cracks, one could vaguely see burning light flowing in his body like blood. The symphony of predestination was nearing its climax but it suffered attack after attack. It was close to the end.

Behind Sam, the shadow of the Copper Mountain rumbled. Under the frantic melody, countless bolts of lightning grouped in his hand and transformed into a spear hundreds of miles long. He hurled it into the saint’s chest.

The spear did not fly out—it dove straight toward the core of the territory. Then it broke apart and swept in all directions as streams of light. The territory in its path shattered. The Romulusian formation evaporated into steam.

As the lightning spear continued to attack, the Hellhound roared. The three heads spat out true dragon breaths! Red light that represented ultimate destruction fell upon the saint’s body. There was a thunderous roar. The scepter in the saint’s hand shattered!

The endless sea of light, the countless cheering spectators, the shadows of spirits, and the hoarse yet solemn eclogue all disappeared. The incomplete realm within the aether sea completely broke apart. Disorderly streams of light shot into all directions. The glorious scepter was destroyed!

–

That instant, Ye Qingxuan’s body shook. Lowering his head, he vomited scarlet blood.

His consciousness had almost gone with the symphony of predestination’s spirit. Thankfully he had constricted at the last moment and escaped the terrifying storm.

However, streams of chaotic hallucinations came toward him in the empty space of consciousness. He saw everything this saint had seen. He saw the clouds in the sky and, in the clouds, he saw the vast black shadow that covered the earth. The shadow hung in the Romulusian air, covering the sun, announcing the arrival of the spirit.

He saw a bustling city fall apart. Countless people wailed, blood flowed into a river, bodies separated, countless people died in horrible ways, and infants cried in their cradles.

He saw a seemingly familiar face. The eerily handsome blond youth held his head. Smiling, he closed the unseeing eyes of the dead saint. Ye Qingxuan could faintly see the design of two entangled snakes on the man’s palm.

Next, it was the golden era of Romulus again. Countless historical miracles replayed before his eyes. He could feel that everyone was calling out one man’s name in unison.

In the next memory, he saw a spirit burning in flames. This was Romulus’s first emperor. He had created the glorious empire. Worshipped as a god, the hero rose from the holy flames. Looking up into the sky, he shed scarlet tears.

At the end of the hallucinations, Ye Qingxuan saw a large door open. Beyond the door was the familiar palace. However, a sad middle-aged man walked into Hades’ Door through the palace, walking into the darkness. The man wore a sacred robe but he did not care for it at all. The robe was ragged and nothing like its original appearance. The ring of entwined rings told Ye Qingxuan who he was.

The King of Yellow! He was the King of Yellow!

He walked through Hades’ Door and into the darkness that Ye Qingxuan could not see. There, someone lit a torch, illuminating three figures.

“Let us begin.”

And the hallucination ended.

Ye Qingxuan’s body shook. He escaped from the space of consciousness but he had no time to think closely. Activating the Governor, he wielded electric light and used all his power to shoot up into the sky.

As if he was launched by a catapult, he pounced toward the falling saint’s body. What was most important right now? Of course, it was fighting for the loot!

This horrible battle had lasted for so long. Now, it was finally time for the victors to divide up the goods. Countless figures amongst the musicians flew up instantly.

Sam was the closest and had an advantage. He grabbed at the saint’s skeleton but the Hellhound under him reacted speedily. It opened its mouth and pushed in.

The unfair thing was that it had three heads. One head went for the saint, another gnashed at Sam, and the last one turned one-hundred-eighty degrees and blew a gale of wind at the other guys who were coming.

Because of the agreement they had signed, they could not hurt each other. Therefore, no one used techniques that could kill anyone. However, anyone who was a step late would go home empty-handed!

A large majority of them were still letting out relieved sighs and had not yet processed everything when more dark shadows leapt from the crowd. They had clearly held back during the earlier battle. Now, they burst forward with incredible speed. Seeming to have prepared for a long time, they were instantly before the saint’s body.

Then Sam turned around. Behind him, the saint’s shadow let out a desolate song. A mass of air actually solidified, wrapping around the figures like amber. Flames erupted in Sam’s hand and he pushed it onto the Hellhound’s head.

Pop! The head was forced back. A large crack appeared on the skull but healed in the next moment. Wounds that did not injure the core were nothing to the Hellhound.

The man and hound wrestled in mid-air. Swelling aether scattered; icy winds and fiery rain appeared one after another. Sam gripped the saint’s shoulder tightly but the Hellhound bit the corpse’s waist.

As they tried forcing the other to let go, the musician who had summoned the Hole of Destruction appeared behind the saint like a hallucination. He grabbed at the back. Tapping with his fingers, his rings lit up again. The shadow of a woman with hair made of snakes rose behind him and gazed at the others.

Sam’s expression changed. Letting go, he twisted in the air, dodging the incredibly strong fossilization ray. One of the Hellhound’s heads turned into rock instantly. This guy was clearly well-prepared. Grabbing the saint’s body, he turned to leave.

However, something mysterious appeared before him and slammed down on his head before he even had time to smirk. He blacked out and dropped to the ground with a thud.

Ye Qingxuan emerged out of thin air. He shook his cane, turning it into an extremely thick instrument string that curled toward the saint’s body.

“Let go!” someone huffed coldly. A mass of steel plates came whistling. Burning light appeared behind him and the quagmire underfoot bubbled. An unbelievably big snake head poked out, snapping its mouth at Ye Qingxuan.

In the air, Ye Qingxuan’s scalp went numb. He had nowhere to hide in the air. Everyone was restricting themselves and he would not die from all of these powerful direct hits, but he would definitely have to go to the intensive care unit.

Here was the problem: There was one cake and one knife. How could five little kids split it? Most musicians would think that they would just have to kill the other kids. However, if he could not kill the other kids but still wanted the cake for himself, there was only one solution…

Chapter 352: Skull of Truth

 

The youth’s eyes were determined. Opening his hand, he let out a beam of blazing light.

The sun had descended. Without warning, countless mirrors refracted the light, practically turning into the sun and blinding everyone. Amidst the pained cries, Ye Qingxuan hurled a mass of metallic wind and thundering rain toward the saint’s body.

There was an blast. The saint’s body exploded into dozens of pieces! Good friends had to learn how to share!

Countless people cried out in shock and anger. Chaos ensued. However, people still rushed against the blinding light to snatch up the broken pieces.

Sam was first. He descended with flames and reached into the mass of light, grabbing with two hands. Various pieces fell into his pocket—the left arm, a rib, and the heart!

The three-headed hound burst into action. All three mouths opened. Taking a deep breath, they swallowed all the shards of the scepter and escaped quickly because all the other musicians had swarmed over.

Broken pieces flew in the air.

With a rumble of thunder, a musician with dreadlocks broke through the air with shocking speed. He left behind white air waves in his path. The guards on his hands and feet were bright red from the friction. Everything blocking him were upended. Pushing against the dazzling light, he grabbed two things before he was swallowed by a thunderstorm. When he rolled out, he was charred black and no longer able to compete.

A giant hand appeared from a crack. It grabbed the saint’s right leg before disappearing.

Baro’s flying Sycle flew across sneakily and bit a crystal that had fallen from the saint’s chest. It quickly disappeared, hiding its achievement. A handful of groups acted at once, dividing up the saint’s right leg.

With an angry roar, a three-meter tall black giant ripped open his clothes and jumped from the crowd. He kicked a competitor aside and snatched half of the left hand. After a few jumps, he was out of the crowd. His body shrunk and his manmade muscles scattered in the wind. Miller walked out, cheekily putting his loot away and taking out a transparent test tube. The liquid inside the tube was clearly not something good.

He shook it before the musicians who had crowded around him with evil intentions. He acted as if he was going to break the tube. The others froze in place, features twisting.

All the musicians fell into chaos during the messy battle. One musician had lost his temper and plunged his dagger through another’s back. That competitor collapsed and he froze in place as well. Metallic light spewed from his throat, wrapping around, and his head fell to the ground.

Violators would die.

The majority pined after the saint’s spine. As a few musicians dueled, the spine was lifted by an air current. It flew in an arc overhead and landed outside the crowd. It landed perfectly into someone’s hand ss if it was a coincidence.

“I’m so lucky.” Colt seemed to have planned to stand there. Faced with everyone’s shocked eyes, he sighed softly and collected the vertebrae without any effort. He subtly stole a glance at the white-haired youth on the other side of the crowd.

Ye Qingxuan remained in his spot, watching as everyone fought over the precious saint’s body. He smiled and put his hands behind his back as if he was not interested at all.

There was a circular bulge in his bag though. The cover showed a strand of burnt hair. The saint’s most valuable body part—the Skull of Truth—had entered his bag without anyone realizing.

Every part of a saint’s body had different uses according to the saint’s territory and scepter when he was still alive. For example, some saints’ rings could provide the ability to breathe and live underwater. The hearts of others could be implanted into another musician’s body, allowing him to be practically immortal.

However, the similarity of all saints was their skulls. Carved with their symphony of predestination and all their spirit, these skulls were known as the Skull of Truth. It could only be used once but if the schools were compatible, the musician could borrow the saint’s remaining power and receive a mysterious experience.

Lifting the fog of reality, the musician could see the true appearance of the aether sea. After this experience, he would receive a large majority of the saint’s previous enlightenments, allowing him to take a giant step forward in music theory and knowledge.

In Ye Qingxuan’s opinion, special alchemy equipment and supernatural abilities were incomparable to the development of one’s own abilities. If he could use this opportunity well, he might be able to answer the Seven Questions for Musicians and reach the Resonance level.

Seeing how Ye Qingxuan had taken his treasure so easily, Colt did not blow his cover. Instead, he just said, “You didn’t even have to let out your hidden ability. Seems like you’re more powerful than I thought.”

Ye Qingxuan just smiled meaningfully. “Try a few more times. There’s always hope.” Hope my ass! I don’t have any hidden abilities, alright? It’ll be funny if you can force it out of me! You want a hidden ability? Here, I have a whistle that the weird grandmaster gave me. You want it? Take it! he thought.

During the intense fight, everyone took turns pulling tricks and finally, they finished cutting up the saint’s body.

Sam called Baro over, giving his loot to him and said something to Ye Qingxuan. After Ye Qingxuan nodded, his eyes rolled and he passed out. Beside him, Miller had already prepared various medicines and music scores. He put all of them on Sam for emergency treatment. Seventy percent of his body had been severely burnt, and he had extreme blood and energy loss…

There was a cost to being the incarnate of a spirit. Sam had only entered the Resonance level recently. He was still too unfamiliar with Distortion level strength. The stronger the power, the more difficult it was to control. The scarier the music score, the worse the consequences of losing control. One incorrect music score could cause a catastrophe.

Baro summoned a bear to take Sam away. An invisible Sycle guarded them. He looked at Ye Qingxuan and asked, “What now?”

Ye Qingxuan looked back at Hades’ Door. It had cracked open. “Now we’ll see what’s behind it…”

Colt, Torre, and Ye Qingxuan, who had walked over casually, stood before Hades’ Door. They stared at each other but no one took a step forward. One saint’s body was already hard enough to deal with. What if they walked in and six saints climbed out of their coffins?! It was not that probable, but what if?

Colt smiled at Ye Qingxuan and broke the silence. “You first?” According to the rules, Ye Qingxuan should go first and pick what he wanted. However, he was the one who set the rule so he did not have to follow it.

Thinking a bit, he looked at Torre. “You first?”

Torre smiled. He carried his unconscious brother without any intentions of moving. Instead, he looked to Colt. “You go.”

They had gone in a circle but Colt was not surprised. He had expected this. He was the most observant of the three and would definitely know if there was danger behind the door. The other two were unable to rule out the possibility of something hiding there. Colt only had to pretend a little for them to scare themselves.

Hearing their words, Colt smiled. Seizing the chance, he walked toward the door. His frail figure disappeared in the darkness. There were no more sounds. All was silent.

Technically, Colt should give them a sign no matter what he found. It was inevitable for them to think the worst after such a long stretch of silence.

Just as Ye Qingxuan and Colt stared at each other awkwardly, there was an angry roar.

It was Colt. It was like a wild roar after losing all sanity, filled with unrestrainable shock and hysteria. Ye Qingxuan and Torre froze before sprinting into the darkness.

They quickly saw Colt. He was rooted in the darkness, his eyes dark and furious. Veins bulged on the hand that gripped his wooden staff. This was the first time Ye Qingxuan saw him lose control. He could not even control his aether waves anymore. If this was a black zone, he would have imploded from the backlash of the music theory.

Furrowing his brows, Ye Qingxuan looked around. He froze as well.

Torre looked in silence; only his expression changed. After a long while, he sighed. “I’ve used up all my ideas,” he said before turning to leave.

In the darkness, Ye Qingxuan focused on everything the Eye of Silence would sense. After a while, he took a torch from his pocket and raised it up. Under the illumination, Ye Qingxuan scanned every inch of the dark hall.

The walls were covered in paintings of heaven. The colors had faded after the thousands of years and had become speckled. The angel’s faces were unclear. When they looked down at the newcomers, their gazes were blurry and muddled, as if they were looking here from long, long ago.

Eleven statues stood in the hall among countless dust and cobwebs. These eleven Romulusian gods had stood here for thousands of years and had become damaged beyond repair.

This place was like an abandoned temple. It had been years since anyone had come to worship.

There was an altar under the various statues but the sacred fire had long been extinguished. All that remained was white ash. The fire watcher’s chair beside it had rusted and one could vaguely see the image of the saint sitting there.

There was nothing else here. There was none of the noble graves that they had expected, nor any challenges. There were not even any spiders. There was only an empty temple. It was terrifyingly still. There were no paths either. This was the end of the underground palace.

“So what’s this?” Ye Qingxuan gaped at the giant broken statue before him. After a long while, he threw down his torch and glanced at Colt. “Did you discover any secret paths or hidden rooms or any other traces?”

Colt turned around. There was mockery in his dark eyes. “Would I be like this if I did?”

Who knows? A tricky b*tch like you can do anything… Ye Qingxuan thought. Of course, he could not say that out loud. Otherwise, Colt would have flipped out. But despite the fact Ye Qingxuan could still crack jokes, he was disappointed as well.

The Eye of Silence did not detect any hidden rooms or secret paths. There were no double layers either and there was nothing behind the paintings. Ye Qingxuan cut some pieces down, only to find yellow dirt. There were no messages in the paintings. The ground was smooth and had been cut from stone, just like the statues.

He reached for the broken ‘probe’ he had found in the palace. Poking the ground, he discovered that there were hundreds of meters of dense stone underneath. There was no empty space at all. That meant there truly was nothing hidden here. That posed another question…

Ye Qingxuan sank into deep thought. Where did the King of Yellow go?

Chapter 353: Barrier of Knowledge

 

Five days. There were no traces or progress in five whole days. The frustrated musicians had flipped through the entire palace, pushing aside and smashing the statues and looking through all the coffins but they found nothing.

They did not find the King of Yellow, but they did find a dozen yellow cloths wrapped around corpses. It was enough for everyone to use for blankets at night. Some musicians were still investigating closely but many impatient ones had gone home already. Others had just started fighting the palace, practically beating each other’s brains out. However, there was no progress.

The King of Yellow was still missing. His disappearance was strange and unnatural, dumbfounding everyone.

As the days passed, autumn was coming to an end and winter was coming. With the wind, Auschwitz’s temperature dropped lower and lower. Many people changed into their winter clothes.

In the sky, gray clouds clumped together, brewing with a blizzard. It was rare to see sunlight. Under this suffocating atmosphere, many had either lost the motivation to continue searching or felt anxious to do something big.

Ever since Colt returned from the underground palace, he locked himself in the church’s library. He rarely came out and his teammates gradually stopped contacting him.

In the library, the bedraggled Colt sat amongst scattered books. He read book after book of records in silence, trying to find some clues. However, it was to no avail.

After he flipped through the excavation records for the fifth time without any results, he closed the book expressionlessly. The book turned to dust under the angry aether waves and fell from his hands. The white dust fell into the scattered records on the ground.

“Those Romulusians…” Coldness flashed past his narrowed eyes. “They must’ve hidden something important!”

It was a pity the Sacred City forbade musicians to do anything to the Romulusians. Otherwise, Colt definitely would not have wasted all this time. As he pondered in silence, his expression changed. He tried to think of a way to make the Romulusians talk.

Unfortunately, Caligula was a trickster who did not care about anything. He took drugs and drank every day. It was clear he was the worst off mentally of these refugees.

If Colt did something wrong, he could ruin it all. If there was a commotion, the School of Rock might get ordered directly by the Sacred City to modify itself and pay for it.

The current pope was not merciful. His tactics were comparable to the fifth pope who had resealed the Dragon of Armageddon. He was never lax with those who went against the Sacred City’s orders.

The ring on his finger suddenly flashed while he was deep in thought. His eyes brightened. Pulling out a pitcher of water, he poured it out seemingly carelessly. However, the water never reached the ground. It turned into a thin water mirror in the air under the gently flowing melody.

This was just a medium. It was actually a projection from a scepter in the aether world. The ‘Torchlight’ that shrouded the School of Rock thousands of miles away now projected into his mirror. It also established the connection between him and miles away.

A blurry figure soon appeared in the water mirror. He said, “Mr. Colt, there is news about what you wish to investigate.”

In the North, above Asgard’s frozen earth, the School of Rock was perched at the peak of a cluster of mountains. It rose out of stone that contained a rich iron mine. It was the highest point on Earth and was the closest to the stars.

There contained the world’s oldest School of Revelations and the source of all “Starry Eye musicians”—the “Secret Keepers.” Colt’s teacher, Heisenberg, was one of those grandmasters.

For millenniums, the Secret Keepers received signs of the future from deep within the stars. They also listened to the voice of the earth. Under the guidance of the few generations of grandmasters, there were people all over the world to provide information to the Secret Keepers. They continuously provided secrets and messages, pushing the School of Secret Keepers closer and closer to the legendary point of ‘all-knowing.’

As Heisenberg’s student and the future inheritor, Colt naturally had the right to use this vast information web to his advantage. Now, days of silence later, he finally received feedback from the informants.

Colt only nodded. “Speak.

“Ye Qingxuan is a member of the music history department of the Anglo Royal Academy of Music,” the man in the mirror said. “This music academy is particular about heritage and knowledge. However, he was able to enter the academy with unprecedented full marks on the written exam.

“Because of his qualifications, he was seen as the disgrace of the academy, but those who mocked him all disappeared within the academy. During this year’s school trials, he went against the entire academy by himself and won first place. At the same time, he helped an infamous failure of a senior graduate with the highest score…

“Within half a year, he went from a student with nothing to an official musician. He may even break into the Resonance level within a short period of time. His teacher is Abraham, who made the biggest ancient academia discovery within decades due to his interpretation of the Voynich Manuscript.

“I’m sure you’ve heard about the plagiarism scandal. According to investigation, Ye Qingxuan played a major role in this. To take revenge for the plagiarism, he singlehandedly forced Ingmar, professor of the School of Revelations, to insanity. Ingmar died in the asylum two months later, mysteriously just like everyone else who had wronged him before.

“This includes Gavin’s brother Banner. Gavin had become enemies with Ye Qingxuan due to this and was affected. The entire Adrian family had fallen during Anglo’s political cleansing last year…

“According to our investigations, the second princess had seen him off when he embarked on the journey here. She is the heir to the crown. His relationship with Anglo’s royal family is not average.

“According to informants, there are rumors that his recommendation letter when he entered the Royal Academy of Music was written by the current…King of Black?” When he finished reading, the man in the mirror laughed, thinking the last sentence too incredulous. However, Colt did not laugh. After a long silence, his face darkened.

“I see.” Colt raised his eyes and asked, “What does my teacher think about the King of Yellow’s traces?”

The man in the mirror answered, “According to the grandmaster’s speculations, the Sacred City already knows where the King of Yellow went but isn’t willing to publicize it. He doesn’t understand why the Sacred City organized this trial. However, the end result will be to use your hands to tell the world where the King went or completely bury this matter.”

After pondering, Colt nodded. “I understand.” He raised his hand to end the water mirror but the man spoke.

“The grandmaster has another word for you. He hopes you can listen carefully.”

Confused, Colt looked up.

The man in the mirror looked at him and said coldly, “The grandmaster said that, if you wish to accomplish something during this trial, then Ye Qingxuan is your enemy. If you really can’t win against him, don’t even think about inheriting the mantle. I would rather end this school in my hands than have it ruined by incapable musicians.”

Colt nodded after another stretch of silence. “I understand,” he said. “Please tell him that I understand.”

The water mirror dissipated. In the silence, Colt looked down, staring at the yellowing scrolls. He hid his gaze in the darkness.

–

At noon, a merchant caravan unwillingly stepped onto the barren earth and traveled dozens of kilometers to Auschwitz.

The market near the gate that had been deserted for a while was finally filled with the sounds of hawking merchants. Most caravans were unwilling to come here because there were not many people and they did not have much money. The merchants just sold some grains, meat, salt, and other unprofitable goods. The money they could make after all that effort was probably not even as much as the profit of a batch of silk. If the Sacred City did not give merchants tax redemption for going to Auschwitz, no one would come.

Amongst the hustle and bustle, a white-haired youth lay in the best spot and slept. Bathing in the sun, he slept so well it was shocking.

Someone in the passing carriages was confused. He raised a and to lift the curtain of his carriage. He stopped when he saw the young man. His eyes were meaningful.

“What’s wrong?” his companion asked.

The man looked away and let down the curtain. In the dimness of the carriage, the man with a hood stated, “For some reason, I really want to kill him…”

–

For some reason, his train of thought was interrupted. Ye Qingxuan opened his eyes and sighed dejectedly. When he looked at the passing carriages, he yawned and flipped over to continue sleeping.

With his eyes closed, he could practically see the dazzling symphony of predestination. Other than the dead saint, he was probably the clearest about this symphony. He transformed into moonlight and entered it, experiencing every change in the majestic music score.

Countless music notes formed intervals; the intervals worked with each other to form the music theory, expressing incredible miracles. It was vast yet detailed, fine yet majestic… He was in awe whenever he thought about it.

Ye Qingxuan knew without a doubt that his Moonlight could be developed to this extent if he had the ability. After merging into this symphony of predestination, his knowledge of music theory had improved a lot.

Symphonies of predestination were the crystallization of a musician’s soul. It contained his life, experiences, personality, and everything else. Entering it was the same as that saint giving him everything to learn. If not for the Barrier of Knowledge, Ye Qingxuan would probably have risen to Resonance on the spot.

Ye Qingxuan still did not abandon his path, step around the Barrier of Knowledge, and use the symphony of predestination to break into Resonance. If Lola found out about that, he would probably get hung on Traitor’s Gate for being a disappointment. But what should he do now? At a loss, Ye Qingxuan opened his eyes and stared blankly at the sun.

After a long period of accumulation, he finally ran into the enemy of all musicians, the eternal shadow, the impassible wall—the Barrier of Knowledge!

Chapter 354: Existence of Knowledge

 

For the first time, Ye Qingxuan experienced the depression that came with not being able to make any progress no matter how hard he worked. It was not serious enough to be traumatizing, but he could imagine how crazy he would feel if he were stuck here for three or four years.

So many musicians were willing to turn to the dark side just to obliterate this obstacle. One must make sacrifices and be determined to abandon everything. Otherwise, they had to be prepared to never take another step forward.

Ye Qingxuan sighed and closed his eyes. Reaching out, gentle music notes sounded as his fingertips pressed down. The fog dissipated. The formless aether sea gradually showed its vast appearance, filling the sky and earth. Compared to it, he was even smaller than dust. However, in this speck of dust, his perception extended boundlessly and delved deep into the aether sea.

Ye Qingxuan could feel four paths slowly unfurling before him. They varied in length and led in four different directions. They represented the four schools that he had knowledge in.

One of them seemed to be made from countless stars. The stars rotated, illuminating the fog for him. They faintly pointed out the direction of the end. This was the music theory path for the School of Revelations.

One path was fleeting like a hallucination, fading in and out of existence. This was the School of Illusions.

One path extended from under his feet and spiraled upward. Countless unclear faces appeared, stared at him. They were filled with incessant temptation, luring him to come forward and walk to the end. This was the School of Mind.

The last path was the longest and the firmest. It extended from his body into the sky, extending steadily inch by inch to the core of all. This was the School of Abstinence, which was the school Ye Qingxuan grasped the most of.

He could feel that he was only a tiny bit away for his consciousness to go through the musician path and enter the heart of the aether sea. Then, he could project into the aether world, nail himself into a spot, and resonate with the world to enter the Resonance level. He only needed a bit more. However, this little bit was as vast as an abyss.

Ye Qingxuan knew he could not cross the abyss until he broke through the Barrier of Knowledge. This was why he was frustrated. The Barrier of Knowledge would not be known as the cliff of despair if it were easy to cross, would it?

Only the cream of the crop could use their ability to cross the Barrier of Knowledge. The cost of using a spirit or demon was too small, so small people easily lost sanity due to this difficulty.

Ye Qingxuan retracted his senses and opened his eyes again. “Is it time to eat?” he muttered to himself. He touched his stomach and it grumbled.

He was once again whiling his days away. During the day, he would go to Caligula’s house if he was bored. They would talk about classics and history and other small talk. He had learned a lot about Romulusian history and the elder had given him some drugs to get a high as well. Ye Qingxuan memorized the former and tossed the latter into the trash. Other than that, he had no accomplishments.

Occasionally, he would go to the Church to see if the priest made any progress in the virus research.

As for the King of Yellow? Ye Qingxuan had forgotten all about him. After all, he did not come here for the Pope’s reward.

Just as he was tossing on the chaise and wondering if he should eat some fried pancakes or dried grains, a shadow fell across his face.

“Hey, sunbathing?” The white-haired senior from the East bent down and smiled at him.

“Mr. Hu, you’re taking a walk again?” Ye Qingxuan rose and invited him in. He poured a cup of coffee from the stove for the man.

“I’m taking a stroll,” Mr. Hu said, kicking at the covers. “I used to really like walking. When I was still a student, my teacher would tell me to take a walk whenever I am feeling down or feeling indecisive about something.”

“Does it work?”

“I guess?” Mr. Hu scratched his head. “Once, my teacher met with the emperor. He was troubled when he returned so he took me out on a walk. We left from the capital and walked west for ten years before coming back slowly. In the end, my teacher thought it through.”

Ye Qingxuan was curious as to what question had taken Mr. Hu’s teacher more than ten years to think through. “Then what?”

“Then?” Mr. Hu shrugged. “Then he died and I took his ashes back to the capital. He was enshrined in the Lingyan Pavilion. It’s been many years.”

Ye Qingxuan did not know what to say. He cleared his throat for a while and sighed, “The East is a strange place.”

“Yeah, it’s a nice place.” Mr. Hu pulled out a thin pipe and stuffed it with tobacco. Lighting it, he sucked in two breaths and let out a plume of smoke. He smoked while squatting on the ground like a farmer taking a break rather than a scholar with students. He smoked happily and lazily. “Hey, kid,” he suddenly said. “Have you thought about visiting the East?”

Caught by surprise, Ye Qingxuan shook his head.

“You should go.” Mr. Hu glanced at his white hair and said, “Otherwise, you’ll regret it.”

After a moment of silence, the youth could not help but scratch his head. “Sir, there’s nothing regretful. There’s only a few things people like me can do. Everything will be good if I can do it right. If not, nothing will happen. But right now, I can’t even handle the things that I need to do. I don’t have the effort to think about the East.”

“But have you ever thought that there’s something waiting for you there?”

After thinking a bit, Ye Qingxuan shook his head. “Never.”

Mr. Hu nodded. He suddenly chuckled. “Then that’s that.” He let out a breath and rose as if he was relieved. “It’s good this way.”

He nodded in farewell but Ye Qingxuan called out to him just as he turned to leave. “Mr. Hu, you’re an important figure in the Imperial College. You must have your view on music theory, right?”

Looking at him in confusion, Mr. Hu nodded. Thus, the youth smiled happily and moved closer to him, rubbing his palms in anticipation. “Can you help me with a question?”

Half an hour later, they were in a quiet corner of the inn’s hall.

“I see.” Mr. Hu nodded after listening to Ye Qingxuan’s current troubles. He had some ideas. Soon, he asked, “Ye Qingxuan, have you ever thought about what the source of the world is? How does life produced and evolved?”

“No.” Ye Qingxuan shook his head.

“The nature of time and space, the laws of the natural world, the existence of souls?”

“I don’t know.”

“The relationship between humanity and the world?”

“Never thought about it.”

Ye Qingxuan nodded crisply, but Mr. Hu looked at him with sharp eyes as if trying to see through his disguise. “You’ve never thought about it or you’re not willing to think about it?”

Ye Qingxuan froze, his expression stiffening. After a long while, he scratched his head awkwardly. “Sir, what do you mean?”

“The upper path of mind and thoughts is intangible, the lower path is tangible. This is the explanation of the musician paths by the ancient East. There is a separation between inside and outside. The seven schools can also be categorized as such. If I’m not wrong…” He reached out and grasped Ye Qingxuan’s wrist. His three fingers fell lightly onto the youth’s pulse. Sensing his sound of heart, understanding filled Mr. Hu. “Revelations, Mind, Illusion, and Abstinence? I see… Ye Qingxuan, how long has it been since you’ve dreamed?”

“Dreamed?” Ye Qingxuan was confused. “I dream every d-”

He stopped. He just realized that it had been a long time since he had dreamed. At some point, he had stopped dreaming and he no longer remembered any dreamscapes. Thinking back, he could only remember that person in the dream telling him to go to the end of the dream…

“This is where your problem is.” Mr. Hu toyed the thin pipe in his hands and asked lightly, “Ye Qingxuan, other than the way of abstinence that focuses on aether, you’ve learned practically all the ‘paths of self.’ However, there’s disparity between your sense of self and reality. You’ve felt this before, correct?”

Ye Qingxuan stayed silent because Mr. Hu was correct. He had long realized that there was something wrong with him but he could not pinpoint what it was.

“That’s why you feel you don’t fit with many musicians. You never saw yourself as part of the same world as them, and you lack the real sense of being a musician. So many people swarm by and you’re caught in the middle as a bystander, unable to integrate into them. It’s just like how a zebra can’t find their place between black horses and white horses.”

Mr. Hu studied him with pity and sympathy.

“Ye Qingxuan, what would you do if you realized the world is completely different from what you thought?”

Ye Qingxuan hung his head. He could not reply.

Mr. Hu rose to bid farewell. He patted Ye Qingxuan’s shoulder, saying, “This is your Barrier of Knowledge.”

–

In his room late at night, Ye Qingxuan finally snapped out of his deep thoughts. To be honest, he really had no other solutions. If this problem was his Barrier of Knowledge, then he truly had no idea how to solve it.

“So I have to rely on you?” He looked up at the weathered skull on his desk. The eye sockets were pure black as if it contained all the darkness in the universe with unknowable secrets.

It was the Skull of Truth.

Chapter 355: Jiu Xiao Huan Pei

 

Ye Qingxuan lifted the skull and stared at the eye sockets. The skull was cold as tone and seemed to be made of metal. Its mouth was filled with solid gold, making it look like a menacing piece of art. However, waves rippled through constantly, resonating with the aether world in death.

This was the source that the saint left behind—a connecting point between the aether and material world. Through this point, Ye Qingxuan could experience the saint’s lifetime accumulation and absorb understanding of music theory. This way, he could see the truth through the fog. After he broke through the Barrier of Knowledge, he could enter the aether world, anchor his own point, and enter the Resonance level.

He did not need to sign with a spirit or demon so he did not need to be restricted or affected by the contract. This was the more stable solution but it was not entirely harmless. After all, the aether world was not a paradise. It was an illusory realm enveloped by the Originator. Unknown dangers were hidden in the shadows there. To them, rashly entering musicians were the best feast.

If he entered without enough accumulation and was not protected by a saint or natural catastrophe, he could attract the attention of something scary without realizing. Plus, Ye Qingxuan already had Hyakume’s eyes on him!

That natural catastrophe had established a bottomless abyss in the aether world and was not some nice guy. The aether world was his territory! If he was not gravely injured as expected or had recovered a bit, he would definitely ‘welcome’ Ye Qingxuan to visit and perform a bunch of ‘tricks’ for him…

“So should I gamble it?” Ye Qingxuan muttered to himself as he gripped his chin. He laughed involuntarily. Should he keep dragging it on until Hyakume recovered? It was just a matter of time. After all, the aether world was huge. He would not be so unlucky that he would fall into Hyakume’s territory, right?

As the saying went, you only live once. He would be like any other loser if he had such a good opportunity before him and he did not try.

Ping! Ping! Ping! Ping! The strings on Jiu Xiao Huan Pei quickly extended and crisscrossed through his room. They vibrated and established an aether blending music theory, constructing a small enchantment.

Moonlight creeped on the instrument strings and connected above the sub-originator. The sub-originator’s music theory came from Avalon’s enchantment and brought together the wisdom of several generations of musicians.

It was overqualified to be used here, but it was better safe than sorry in this situation. Ye Qingxuan did not want to get stabbed in the back while his consciousness was extending into the aether sea through the musician path.

When everything was ready, he cut open his finger. A strand of silvery moonlight blood dripped from his finger. It fell onto the skull and disappeared. The skull absorbed his blood like a bottomless and insatiable hole.

Ye Qingxuan’s expression quickly changed. His blood was flowing faster and faster as if it was being sucked by an invisible vortex. A bout of dizziness besieged him. In his daze, he saw that flesh was growing on the skull.

The withered face grew plumper and a pair of eyes slowly opened in the empty sockets. It looked at him and sighed, singing a hoarse song. Ye Qingxuan was swallowed by the song. He sank into a daze and could not move.

The fog that constantly shrouded the world before him suddenly disappeared. Once again, he could observe the omnipresent aether sea. The sea was boundless. Waves surged to the rhythm of the world’s breathing. Light flowed from another world in the depths of the sea.

The four musician paths appeared before him again. Mind, Illusion, Revelations, and Abstinence. They were waiting for Ye Qingxuan’s choice.

However, before Ye Qingxuan could think, the moonlight inside him started burning. The sub-originator rose up and a gentle melody spread out. The sleeping Deva’s blood woke again under the melody. It radiated inside him. It felt as if his head split apart under the illumination of the moonlight. Sealed memories boiled in his mind, emerging one after another. They dragged him in, going deeper and deeper inside, deeper…

Finally, amidst the immense pain, he saw the seal made of moonlight inside his mind. Influenced by the Skull of Truth, some kind of power was awakening behind the seal. It was the power hidden in his blood, a melody that had accompanied his life since his birth. It was the talent within his Deva’s blood!

Ye Qingxuan could only feel that his blood had turned into some sort of medium. Countless complex sleeping music theories emerged in his blood. They connected with each other, transforming into a detailed but vast structure. Finally, it turned into a complicated music score. That was the nature of the Dragon bloodline, the source of the white-haired Deva’s strength!

The music score’s power continuously charged against the seal that Ye Lanzhou had set. The music notes inside the seal shook, pounding against Ye Qingxuan’s head, engulfing him in debilitating pain. However, the seal was undamaged.

Influenced by the music score, the Skull of Truth’s guidance suddenly changed. The talent within the Deva’s blood had chosen for Ye Qingxuan. Its power entered the Skull of Truth. It burned with the saint’s enlightenment and knowledge, quickly enacting one of Ye Qingxuan’s propositions.

Flames lit up inside the dark eye sockets of the skull. The inheritance was starting!

Countless music theories started emerging from the Skull of Truth. They wove with each other until the thousands of strands connected with the four paths made of music theory. Like tendrils and ivy, they grew quickly. They formed a complete entity where Ye Qingxuan had never thought of before and seeped into the four paths. They combined with the four entirely different music theories, starting an unexpected chain reaction.

The first to collapse was Revelations. Of the four, Ye Qingxuan’s study of Revelations was the shallowest. Therefore, the music theory in that path was the easiest to change. In his mind, the School of Revelations quickly evolved until it became a beam of light that flowed into the path of Abstinence.

There was a rumble. Countless music notes flowed on the path of Abstinence. They rose like flames and changed on the spiraling path. It wrapped around the Revelations music theory in an unimaginable way and became more solid. A dazzling star rose slowly at the end of the rode, illuminating the future path.

Next was Illusion. It evaporated and seeped into Abstinence. Countless music notes emerged and fused. The Abstinence path became both real and illusory as if it was between the real and nonexistent realms.

Finally, the path of Mind merged completely with Abstinence. Rays of light and shadows instantly appeared on either side of the path. They seemed to pass through hell and heaven, going to an unknown destination.

After the three changes, the path of Abstinence was nothing like before. It seemed to have turned from a bungalow to a tower that reached to the sky.

Countless music theories were combined by the saint’s enlightenment, enveloping Ye Qingxuan’s music theory within. This path transformed with the entirely new state, transforming into a structure that Ye Qingxuan could not understand. It was majestic and solemn. More moonlight spirit was merged into it. It had some signs of a symphony of predestination but was hard to grasp.

Ye Qingxuan was dumbfounded before this tower. He had no clue what was happening. The seven schools were different but it was possible to merge. However, one needed to be at least the Distortion level to merge to this extent. Before writing the symphony of predestination and entering the Scepter level, musicians must go through the ‘completion stage.’ They must merge his specialized path with the other six schools and complete the evolution.

Only a complete and stable system could support the vast symphony of predestination. Ye Qingxuan never expected that the Skull of Truth could cross all that at once and help him merge four paths before he even entered Resonance.

This change had solved one of Ye Qingxuan’s hardest problems though. All four paths were long and hard to choose but now they had become just one path. The downside was…the enlightenment within the Skull of Truth that could help him break through the Barrier of Knowledge had thinned. If it was a blazing fire before, now it was only a weak flame. All that power had been used up by the Deva’s blood!

Ye Qingxuan wanted to cry. What kind of musician was he now? Now, the sub-originator was the core within his body. His blood formed a system that merged four schools together… It looked like he had formed a special school but there was no sign of Ye Qingxuan’s Dreamweaver! It seemed that the world hated him.

However, he had no time to waste. His perception climbed the tower of music theory and charged into the depths of the aether sea. It felt like he was flying in the air. Breaking through layers of fog, he soared like an eagle. Riding the waves of aether, he flew higher, higher, and higher until he reached the end of the sky.

The scenery around him was bizarre. Figures appeared in the countless rays of light. Those were the silhouettes of musicians that had left in the aether sea when they entered Resonance. They spanned throughout history and were of all ages. Some wore noble clothing while others were in rags. Some may have died but their consciousness was carved within the aether and shone like stars.

The higher he went, the closer he was to the depth of the aether sea. He could sense more and more vast realms operating within the distant world.

He ‘stepped’ on the tower with stars of music theory guiding him overhead. Rather than being distracted by the absurd scenery, he walked steadily along the star’s guidance. Passing countless paths, he walked in his own direction and entered deep inside the aether sea.

As he walked, the figures around him lessened. The remaining aether waves were stronger. Finally, the figures turned into Eastern musicians in elegant robes. They were of different ages and genders but their marks in the aether sea rippled with familiar waves. The same family emblem was on their long robes.

The same…Jiu Xiao Huan Pei!

Chapter 356: The Shadow of the Aether World

 

For thousands of years, the Eastern Deva’s blood, the Ye family of the nine dragon bloodlines, and all musicians who had reached the Resonance level had left their mark here. Whether near or far, they guided the road for Ye Qingxuan. However, there were very few people up ahead.

Ye Qingxuan began to feel weary and exhausted but the flames of the Skull of Truth still provided him with the power to fly to the depths of the sea. Finally, he saw the familiar figure.

The ethereal figure stood alone at the highest point, hanging high like the moon as if waiting for the successor with a smile.

“Father?” Ye Qingxuan was stunned. He had been walking down the musician path into the depths of the aether sea. His sense of the aether world also reached an unprecedented clarity.

As if standing at the peak of the land, he gazed at the stars and saw countless sweeping nebulae in the starry sky. It was either the territory and lair of natural catastrophes or the scepters and temples of first generation kings and saints.

The most striking of all was the Sacred Temple, which was shrouded in divine light. Countless magnificent songs played in the temple. Saints stood like star, illuminating layers of darkness like the sun.

It was the Sacred City founded by the first three kings, around which countless saints and the scepters of the holy spirits revolved like satellites. Together, they created a galaxy.

In another distant place, Ye Qingxuan sensed a huge abyss, full of darkness. Endless cries emerged from it. There seemed to be countless huge figures hidden in the dark. Those shadows loomed in the dark with terrifying outlines.

As he gazed at the abyss, the abyss seemed to be watching him too. The horror emblem of the Eyes Within the Eye emerged from it. It was the territory of Hyakume, the original darkness of the world where all the evils gathered.

Ye Qingxuan felt distraught with a mere glance, growing breathless. He dared not to look again. Somewhere else, there were countless scepter territories operating.

One of the scepter fields was like a huge scorching sun, overbearing but lacking agility as if it was sleeping. It was the throne of the Burgundy Kingdom—the evidence of the Sun King. However, the position of the Sun King had been vacant for hundreds of years. No one had risen to it yet.

In the east, Ye Qingxuan could feel a huge wall extending tens of millions of miles. On that high barrier, countless beacons burned with eternal light. They were the physical incarnation of the holy spirits. The light interwove into an enchantment, resisting all the darkness and attacks, firmly shrouding the eastern land.

For hundreds of years, the saints from the nine Dragon Bloodlines were not welcomed into the Sacred City after their deaths. Instead, they became a part of this horrible realm. The Eastern emperor and the nine families had spent hundreds of years creating this weapon of terror to keep natural catastrophes away from.

Then, Ye Qingxuan perceived the direction of Anglo and the faintly revealed Holy Grail. This was the legendary artifact—the destructive Grail covered the country, emitting cold murderous intention, keeping people from approaching it.

Deeper in the void, Ye Qingxuan sensed a broken city… It was the fallen Avalon’s Shadow! The moment he sensed it, a bell rang from the shadowy city. The resonance between the enchantment of Avalon and the sub-originator was clear and unguarded toward him.

If Ye Qingxuan wanted to enter sub-originator with others’ power, he should anchor himself in Avalon’s Shadow. This way, not only could he reach the Resonance level, he could also inherit the Avalon’s Shadow in the future and leap into the Scepter level. Unfortunately, he was not planning to get involved in this rotten legacy from hundreds of years ago. In fact, he intended to keep as far away from it as possible…

At the same time, he sensed another realm that seemed to have lost touch and drifted into the depths of the aether world. When he looked in puzzlement, he saw countless tombstones in that realm, desolate and old like a cemetery. He could see his own name on one of those tombstones! All the lights under the tombstones were extinguished; only a solitary lamp was lit before his tombstone.

It suddenly dawned on Ye Qingxuan when he saw the light. That was where he had pushed open the door of musicians and made a pact with the Originator. It was also the realm that had been passed down the Ye family for the past hundreds of years. The moment he sensed it, he felt his vision spin. His induction quickly blurred. In his hand, the flame of the Skull of Truth trembled like a candle in the wind. It extinguished.

It had to be now!

Before Ye Qingxuan could react, he felt his perception decline rapidly and fall from the sky. As he was falling, he looked back and saw his previous direction.

Light was surging on the desolate land of Romulus! Countless lights flowed under the earth like rivers and gathered in the underground palace where he vaguely saw a door. It was the door that could only be seen through the flames of the saint’s remains!

A door?

Late at night, Ye Qingxuan opened his eyes in the darkness. In his hand, the Skull of Truth had turned to ash and dropped from the fingers. But Ye Qingxuan did not feel down. He was ecstatic! He had completed the ‘completion stage’ in advance and organized his chaotic music theory system. It was worth the price. Moreover, his strength had made great progress with this experience.

He believed that he could enhance his perception to find the origin in the near future, even if he could not break through the Barrier of Knowledge. Now, the most important thing was that he finally found the clue hidden in the underground palace!

“Sure enough, the problem is still hidden in the temple…” Ye Qingxuan murmured to himself. He quickly packed things up and wore the Governor under his coat. Opening the window, he silently ran toward the mine under the dark night.

–

Upstairs, the loudly snoring Angloian grandmaster turned amongst the scattered plastic containers and dirty dishes. He stared blearily in Ye Qingxuan’s direction.

“It’s so late. Why is he running around instead of sleeping?” he muttered. He snapped his fingers and continued to sleep. By his bedside, something flashed vaguely.

–

Ye Qingxuan sped through the silent underground palace, bypassing the musicians who stayed up late looking for clues. He did not attract anyone’s attention and walked into the temple.

In the silent shrine, there was only debris all over the ground.

The statues were shattered by the musicians in anger and the precious artifacts had become fragments. This was also the reason why Ye Qingxuan was unwilling to come here. As a scholar of ancient studies, it made him uncomfortable to see all this.

The eleven statues had all been smashed. The walls were also pitted. They had truly dug three feet under and even the ceiling was full of holes… Ye Qingxuan sighed, slowly shaking his head. A nation’s history and past was completely destroyed.

Some places had been pulverized. Nothing could fix it.

Ye Qingxuan wandered in the decadent temple, staring at the eleven statues. They were proved to be the holy spirit Aeneas, the father of Thunder; Aeneas’s wife who was later worshipped as the mother of the gods; and several of their children including the God of Light, Cupid, Goddess of Hunt, Two-sided Ares, the God of Secrets, as well as the God of Wine and the God of Wealth…

Ye Qingxuan walked around while counting the statues again and again… In the end, he was finally sure that his guess was correct.

There were twelve deities in the ancient book that Caligula gave to himself but there were only eleven here! Ye Qingxuan stopped between two statues. There should be another one here. It should be Mercury, the messenger of the gods and the spirit of the traveller.

In Romulus’s pantheon, Mercury’s domain was of traveling and messengers. In the ancient language of Romulus, both musicians and messengers were known as ‘Dark Duke’.

On the day of his introduction, Abraham once told him that musicians also served as messengers.

In ancient Romulus, musicians were loyal to the temple and conveyed the will of the gods. The aether was the messenger that led those who had gone astray back to the Originator. Therefore, Mercury also served as musician!

The missing deity’s archetype came from the oasis in the Desert of Thebes, the origin of mankind centuries ago. People called it Thoth, the god of wisdom.

Although Mercury’s position was not very high among the gods of Romulus, he was obviously still very important. It was not possible to omit his existence in order to save space. So, this meant that his statue was ignored deliberately! In order to hide something…

Ye Qingxuan thought for a moment, looking at the gap between the two statues. The longer he gazed, the more familiar it was. He had seen this somewhere.

All of a sudden, something flashed through his mind.

He took out a crumpled map. Comparing them, he became confident in his guess. He had seen this place amidst the graffiti he had bought from Elsa. On the back of the map, Elsa’s graffiti clearly depicted this corner of the image but the graffiti looked vague and strange so he could barely recognize it. However, the space was not empty in the graffiti. There was a door!

Ye Qingxuan walked forward, touching the potholes on the wall. He could only feel the cold and solid rock. How could there be a door? There was not even an empty hole!

He looked down at the back of the map to look at the scribbles. After a long while, his expression became helpless. Elsa’s drawing was too messy. She was really a ‘soul painter.’ Everything was crooked and nothing could be figured out.

There was something strange drawn on the door as well. Ye Qingxuan struggled at it for a long while. Suddenly, something dawned on him. He pulled out his pocket watch and compared them. He was almost shocked to death.

The two squiggly lines was the double snake emblem!

Did she draw it here to test his imagination?

Chapter 357: Goodbye

 

If it was not midnight, Ye Qingxuan would have definitely rushed into Caligula’s home to interrogate Elsa on how she had entered. However, Elsa only had five minutes of memory so she probably could not explain clearly, right? But why was the double snake emblem here? There was one on her wrist too…

Ye Qingxuan stared at the pocket watch and thought for a long time but he still did not understand. He grew depressed. The worst thing in the world was when the door was right there but one could not find it.

He sighed. Looking back at the shattered statue, he shook his head slowly. “It’s been so many years. The Romulusians have probably all forgotten about it. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be this damaged.”

Shaking his head, he turned to leave. But then he froze.

The holy fire…

The holy fire!

When the Romulusians left the oasis, they established seven City of Wolves and created their own empire. Many races had come from all over and assimilated into Romulus. They also brought their own gods which was why Romulus’ temple was known as the ‘thousand god temple.’

However, the Romulusians maintained their worship of their most primitive ancestors. They believed that the souls of their ancestors lived inside their family flames. Thus, the family flame must always be lit. A family must worship the same flame. The connection was closer than blood relationships.

The elder of a family was also the priest of the family flame. Every family had a unique prayer and ritual. When a daughter married, a musician needed to witness the marriage before the family flame in place of the ancestor’s spirit. This way, the girl could leave the family flame and enter another family’s flame. Therefore, the holy fire that represented the many gods in the temple would never be extinguished. Even in the temple, the saint’s relic acted as the fire watcher. When he resurrected, he absorbed the fire and transformed it into his own power, and the fire was no more.

“Then…I’ll light it up for you again!” Ye Qingxuan returned to the altar and cleared away the ashes. He broke the rusted chair and tossed the parts in. He created a spark of fire and tossed it in as well. Fire lit up in the darkness.

Ye Qingxuan took off the Eye of Silence and studied the temple. Under the weak firelight, a solemn aura appeared around the broken statues. Centuries ago, the Romulusians had come here to create a cemetery for their heroes. They also built a residence for their gods and sacrificed slaves and beasts to them.

With the fire’s return, the gods seemed to have returned from darkness. Their broken faces gazed at Ye Qingxuan, the foreign worshipper.

Before the weak fire, Ye Qingxuan felt his pocket watch vibrate. Taking it out, he saw the double snake emblem lit up slowly before dimming. Even the dark design disappeared. The mirror-like outer shell reflected the holy fire’s glow. There seemed to be small contours on the surface, producing rectangular shadows on the wall.

The light floated on the wall as Ye Qingxuan moved his wrist. It finally moved between two statues. It looked like a door.

A door…

Ye Qingxuan gaped at his pocket watch and then looked at the door of light and shadow. He put his watch away but the door’s contour was still there.

“This is possible?”

Doubtful, he walked over and pushed. The door opened.

It really was possible!

He stared blankly at the open door and the bright space behind it. After a long while, he stepped through.

In the secret room behind the door, there was a statue holding flames. There was a line of dark gold words carved on the statue’s foundation. Made of green gold and copper, it did not rust.

Under the firelight, discipline from ancient priests shone brilliantly.

“Dis te minorem quod geris, imperas.”

Thou rulest because thou bearest.

Before the words, someone had abandoned a ragged robe. It was covered in dust but Ye Qingxuan could tell immediately that it was from the King of Yellow. He had abandoned it here as if abandoning the glory and position that countless people dreamed of.

Before Ye Qingxuan could take a closer look, the thing beside the robe caught his attention. He suddenly wished he had never come here.

He’d rather have never discovered the secret behind the door, wishing he had never come here in the first place. It was pure regret from the bottom of his heart! He wanted to run away.

Staring at the thing, it felt as if he had fallen into an icy gorge. He shook violently and practically collapsed.

He had never hesitated, even as he faced the strongest enemy, the most terrifying beast, or natural catastrophes. Ye Qingxuan had once thought that there was nothing in the world that could shake him up like this. But looking at this, Ye Qingxuan felt raw fear.

“What in the living f*ck is this?!”

–

Late at night, a heavy yet sad bell rang from the peak of the Sacred City and spread in all directions.

Outside the Holy Spirit Temple, a few solemn archbishops clad in red stared at the flickering firelight within the faraway temple. They sighed under the bleak bell and lowered their eyes.

The Holy Spirit Temple was the most important place of the Sacred City. It was the core and even more important than the pope’s palace. However, it was not heavily guarded. Rather than knights guarding it, there were only priests clad in gray.

This temple enshrined the saints who placed their consciousness into the aether after death and transformed into holy spirits. The spirits slept inside the temple and slowed down their decay, waiting for the time they needed to step onto the battlefield. However, a man’s consciousness was so insignificant and temporary compared to the world.

When the slow death finally came, the bell would ring to announce the passing of a holy spirit. This was the sixth this century. The archbishops outside the temple murmured amongst themselves.

“It must extinguish in the end?”

“He is a saint but it is the sixth hundred year, after all. No living thing can escape it.”

“But he’s different.”

Someone sighed then they fell silent.

The one that would soon extinguish was the powerful musician who had started the age of Romulus six hundred years ago, the eternal emperor of the Romulusians—holy spirit Aeneas.

Someone entered the temple. The traveler from faraway walked past the stone coffins on either side and stopped before the altar. There, the unclear face of a holy spirit looked up from the weak flame and looked at the comer.

The newcomer was completely different from before. He was no longer eerily handsome, but his long hair was still as golden as before. Within a few short months, he had aged to a middle-aged man. He looked timeworn but was still fat.

The double snake emblem on his cane still shone. Seeing the holy spirit in the fire, he smiled.

“Hermes?” In the fire, Aeneas looked at him. His eyes filled with recognition. “Long time no see.”

“Yes, long time no see.” Hermes sat beside the altar and rested against the pillar. He said softly, “I’m here to see you off.”

“Thank you.” Aeneas nodded. Hermes lowered his head and pulled a pipe from his pocket. Sadly, the lighter was wet and would not ignite. After struggling for a while, he sighed helplessly and cursed.

Aeneas pressed a finger onto the pipe. The weak embers lit up the tobacco.

“Thanks.” Opening his mouth, Hermes sucked in deeply and let out a long breath. “I sat on a carriage for days. I’m so tired.”

Aeneas looked at him. Hesitating, he asked quietly, “Are they…okay?”

“Of course,” Hermes answered. “It’s good enough to be alive nowadays, right? And anyway, it’s good enough for them to have a place to stay as a group of homeless wanderers. What about you? You stay here like it’s a prison. Want me to take you out for a walk?”

“I had a dream before you came,” Aeneas. “And you were here when I woke up. What a coincidence.”

“It’s good to dream. What did you dream? Tell me about it.”

“I dreamed of my family flame.” He sighed. “I dreamed that I left this place and returned to the family flame, reuniting with my ancestors. But when I woke up, I felt scared. I’ve done so many things wrong. I don’t know what they will say to me.”

“Don’t worry. You did many things right too,” Hermes said. “If there’s an afterlife, you’ll definitely be rewarded there.”

“Is there really an afterlife?”

“No.” Hermes shook his head. “You’ve lived for so long, Aeneas. Do you still not understand? Humans are just as you can see—seventy percent water, calcium in the bones, blood in the body. They breathe when they’re alive, and when they’re dead? There’s nothing anymore.” Pointing at his head, he said softly, “There’s no ‘soul’ here, Aeneas. I’m sorry, but there’s no afterlife.”

“I see.” Aeneas sighed as if he had settled down. “Thank you.”

“No need to thank me. This was my duty. You were the first man I ever met. I have the responsibility of witnessing your death. I just didn’t think that this day would be six hundred years too late.”

“Soon, it’s coming soon… In the blink of an eye, it’s already been six hundred years.” Smiling, Aeneas closed his eyes. In the fire, the holy spirit half knelt on the altar and lowered his head to the person before him. “I once stepped onto the path of destiny as guided by a god and accomplished something great. Now, six hundred years have passed. The traces I’ve left on the earth have disappeared and I will disappear as well. You’ve witnessed all of this.”

Hermes lowered his eyes. “Aeneas, you’ve witnessed me as well.”

“For people like me, we had strength while we were alive and did some things so we were known as heroes and kings. Sadly, I have my limits. After living emptily for six hundred years, I wish I could do something for those lost folks. But sadly, I can’t do anything. Hermes, I hope you can guide them just as you guided me before.”

“Everything has a life, Aeneas. Fate guided you,” Hermes said softly as he smoked. “I will take care of them for you. Don’t worry. There’s still an old man with a good head. They won’t live badly in the future.”

“That’s great.” Aeneas smiled in content. His dim figure flickered in the flames and gradually dissipated, turning to ash. Amongst the ashes, the old face slowly shattered. He uttered his last farewell, “Goodbye.”

“Yes, goodbye.” Hermes closed his eyes.

The flame extinguished. The ashes scattered like birds flying in the sky.

Hermes reached out. Catching some falling ash, he clenched his fist. “Goodbye.”

Chapter 358: The Fire Will Soon Extinguish

 

Only the dim family flame burned in the dark room. According to legend, this flame contained the spirits of the ancestors. Now, it flickered unstably like a candle in the wind.

Caligula, sleeping before the fire, opened his eyes and sighed. The dove in the cage beside him had felt the unrest and flapped its wings in fear. Caligula grasped it and slit its stomach open, taking out the thin intestines. He hummed the ancient song lightly and deciphered the obscure sign under the firelight. After a long while, he tossed it into the fire.

“The fire will soon extinguish.” He read the message from the heavens. Looking up, he stared in the distance blankly as if he could see the spirit far away in the temple, dissipating into flames.

“Your Highness, I hope your gradually leaving spirit will gallop through the starry skies just as you raced across the lands…But sadly, there will be no family flame for you to rest in…”

Caligula lowered his eyes as he murmured. Thick blood flowed from his nostrils and dropped onto the back of his hand. There, grayness spread with the smell of disease and sickness.

Scales slowly grew on his ankles like an awakening demon. The disease that had been hiding inside the Romulusians had finally awaken and broken out. His vision went black and he stumbled, almost falling.

“Has this day finally come?” he murmured to himself as he pushed himself up. “Whatever, Romulus’s era should have ended long ago. The ashes of the old age should be pushed into the garbage.”

Behind him, the door was pushed open cautiously, revealing a young face. Elsa had been startled awake from her nightmare. She clutched her doll and looked at Caligula.

“Daddy, I’m scared.”

Caligula smiled with difficulty. He hugged her and petted her long hair. “Don’t be scared, Elsa, don’t be scared.” Wiping away his nosebleed, he asked softly, “Do you still remember Mommy?”

“Mommy…” Elsa hung her head. “I dreamed of Mommy. She told me not to be scared but I was still scared. Then she left. Daddy, will you leave too?”

“No.” Hugging her, Caligula hid his tears. “Mommy won’t leave you either. She loves strong children.”

Behind him, the family flame burned faintly. Wind seemed to blow. The fire would soon extinguish. Thus, a mournful song sounded in the flames.

–

The mournful song resounded over Auschwitz during the silent night.

“Come, let me tell you about the future, tell you the honors the descendants of god won, how your descendants will be…” This was a canto from long ago. It recorded the honors the saint had made on this land and the ballads that Romulusian poets had sung. However, these ballads were ineffably sorrowful and bleak.

As the song resounded, the Romulusians woke from their sleep. They saw the gray spots expanding on their bodies and the blood flowing from their nostrils. The family flames went out one by one as if the ancient souls living within them were dying. However, those dying souls were singing of the glory of the olden days, the city, and miracles that the Romulusians had once made.

Finally, all flames extinguished in the darkness as if their ancestors had burned to nothing in the fire. All was in darkness.

Then the earth started shaking. A terrifying rumble came from deep underground. The entirety of Auschwitz started trembling. Enormous slabs of stone collided against each other with shattering roars.

Under the deafening roars, countless cracks spread through the walls and buildings. Intense shaking followed one another.

The musicians startled awake from their dreams, sensing the changes in the world and the roars in the air.

“What’s going on?”

They looked up reflexively to the sky.

“Grandmaster Koch?”

In the reflections of those eyes, the black clouds were burning. Pained cries sounded.

Behind the clouds, firelight surged. The frail old man turned into withered bones that fell apart in the air. Dust fell from the sky, bringing murderous intent from the heavens.

Darkness came with disaster.

–

Five minutes ago, the clouds were illuminated by the bright moon. In the sky, Grandmaster Koch opened his eyes, his brows furrowing.

On the ground, aether waves rippled through the entire city. As if gales of wind had swept through, the family flames that had been lit for millenniums suddenly extinguished. The earth was thrown into darkness.

The moment the firelight was extinguished, his head shot up to see the abnormality. Darkness came from the starry sky, extinguishing the starlight. The darkness seemed to be a living creature. It enshrouded Auschwitz, instantly creating an immense shadow. He could not see his own fingers in the darkness.

Grandmaster Koch furrowed his brows. He drew in the air with his pen and a music score emerged on his sheepskin scroll. Gentle starlight rose from his scroll like a small sun. This was the ‘glow of insight’ from the School of Revelations. It allowed him to see all truth.

The darkness in the light’s path faded, shrunk, and revealed the dark music theory within. Under the glow of insight’s illumination, hundreds of rays of blood light appeared in Auschwitz.

Koch’s face paled and he gasped. Every dot of blood light represented a dark musician… The dots were mostly hidden in the outer inns and around the market. That was where the caravan that entered Auschwitz in the morning lived but how could a caravan be so scary? This place had turned into a demon nest!

Koch did not understand. He had been here since the trial began to supervise everything. How could so many people go undetected from his Starry Eye?

“No need to blame yourself,” an easygoing voice said. “They’re all believers blessed by the dark followers. They’re deeply protected and it’s quite normal that you couldn’t tell.” The voice was polite and filled with chivalry but Koch felt as if he had fallen into an icy gorge. Trembling, his pallor turned ghastly.

Even with the glow of insight, he still did not feel anything behind him. However, an empty hole appeared as the voice spoke. A black hole suddenly opened in the mass of light. An unclear figure came out. It stared at him and spoke in the human tongue. However, the hole seemed to reach into an abyss. The figure was inhuman and terrified him.

“I didn’t think the School of Akasha’s Book still has inheritors. You must be the current Recorder, yes?” The empty hole ‘stared’ at the sheepskin scroll in Koch’s hand and nodded in understanding. “What a pity.”

“Paganini!” Koch’s voice was hoarse. He stared at the comer. “Fallen saint Paganini’s Garment of Original Sin… No wonder I couldn’t tell! Are you all the ‘perishing praise?’ You’re Crowley Ergo?”

“No wonder you’re the recorder of Akasha’s Book. You even know this.” Crowley chuckled lightly. His true appearance was revealed from the Garment of Original Sin. His white face was like a youth but his withered hands were wrinkled.

Centuries ago, the sixth generation Paganini had crossed the forbidden line to search for the essence of music theory and turned to the natural catastrophes, thus becoming a dark follower.

The holy name of Paganini had fallen and was no longer passed down. At the same time, the musicians who had inherited his music theory also fell into the demonic realm. They formed the perishing praise and were third of the sixteen fallen orchestras blessed by Hyakume. They were guided directly by the dark followers.

These fallen musicians wandered through the world. Some even lived inside the dark world. When they acted, they were a synonym to natural catastrophes. Everything in their paths were reduced to ruins. No one had expected this group to dare to appear here!

Seeing Koch’s cautious expression, Crowley laughed. “You want to drag things out so the others can spread the news? It’s useless. We’ve obviously made some preparations since we’ve come so far. We at least have all of your information. There are people taking care of things below. You don’t have to worry.”

Koch’s expression darkened. “Is there something in Auschwitz important enough for the perishing praise to come out for? Or are you planning to declare war against the Sacred City?”

“I didn’t think you’d worry for us. How touching.” Crowley smiled, his youthful face filling with innocence and joy. He pointed at the land below them. “Look at that flower…”

In the darkness, the world shook. Auschwitz drowned in wails. There was no flower but Crowley was captivated.

“The seed was planted a century ago. Now, it’s finally blooming.” He reached out as if gently caressing the city. “I thought it would take a few more centuries of care but sadly, His Majesty was gravely injured and we had to put the long-term plans to the side.

“After tonight, other than the mermaids, demi-dragons, and black moon spirits, our lord will have a new race following him… I’m sure the Romulusians will give birth to many demon children.”

“Your wishful thinking!”

Enraged, a dazzling light glowed within Koch’s wizened body. An immense star seemed to surge from his body, practically burning him to dust and breaking through!

Chapter 359: The Gift of Life

 

The symphony of predestination instantly solidified and transformed into a cold star, practically leading the stars outside the Dark Atrium to move. The starlight was murderous and the twelve constellations rotated unstably. One could faintly see music notes surging and a grand melody shooting out. There seemed to be a muddled world within the glow of starlight. The Originator opened and all organisms began growing. The sight was splendid and dazzling.

This was the amazing miracle in Akasha’s Book created by countless Recorders who wove music theory through the centuries. Now, it was called forth, bringing strong murderous intent.

Then the music score stopped abruptly, shattering.

Crowley reached out. His figure went past the star map and pressed onto Koch’s neck, raising him slowly. The explosive starlight fell on him and was swallowed by something, disappearing without a trace. This was the artifact weapon that fallen saint Paganini had made from Crowley’s body and instrument—the Garment of Original Sin.

Back then, Paganini’s heart was captured by the abyss due to his greed for power and the Originator. He had sealed the secret of the abyss into his instrument, thinking that he would not be tainted by it. However, the listeners would see a demonic shadow when he played the instrument.

His appearance looked normal but the abyss had already devoured his insides. When he joined the natural catastrophes, his body and instrument had practically become the abyss’s physical incarnate on earth and led to the gates of hell.

He had transformed his body into a fallen instrument. Those who wore this garment would be wrapped in the abyss and supported by the natural catastrophe. One must have a killing artifact of the same caliber to penetrate it. Though the Recorders had passed Akasha’s Book down the generations, it was still not used for killing and could not penetrate the garment’s defense.

The power of the Garment of Original Sin immediately counterattacked. Layers of black aura seeped into Grandmaster Koch’s face, moving under his skin like a snake menacingly. The darkness was eroding him.

“Do not struggle.” Crowley gripped Koch’s neck and looked down with a cheerful smile. “You must know that there is a grand future in the abyss.”

Koch raised his head with difficulty. Staring with his bloodshot eyes, he suddenly laughed. “It was hard to have you come closer… Then, as you wish.”

Crowley’s expression changed.

Koch surrendered and allowed the power of the Garment to taint him, transforming him into a dependent of the abyss. However, his symphony of predestination on Akasha’s Book still in his hands quickly moved and released explosive starlight. In the gales, the book recorded by countless musicians from different schools slowly opened and flipped to the last page. There were only eight words on that page: The stars will fall. The world will end.

Printed with Koch’s symphony of predestination, it now contained his scepter. Now, the prediction of the world’s ending had arrived. Boundless starlight shot from the page and swept toward Crowley who was so close by.

Koch had ignited his scepter so Crowley could die with him!

The School of Revelations had always lacked the power to kill. It was the same for grandmasters such as Koch. The best way to use his shortcoming was to be decisive, even if it was deadly to himself.

Burning light instantly swept through the sky, engulfing Crowley. Even with the Garment’s protection, he was still gravely injured at once. Half of his body was burnt to crisp, turned into a torch by Koch’s self-sacrificing attack. His symphony of predestination was also damaged. The Dark Atrium that covered Romulus shook.

Koch, burnt to crisp, fell from the clouds amongst the blazing light. The burning Akasha’s Book flipped in the wind, recording the life of the last user and burnt away with him.

Grandmaster Koch, the second clerk of the Sacred City Parliament, passed away.

–

In the sky, Crowley’s expression was dark. His burnt face twitched.

The shaking from Koch’s self-destruction of his scepter had caused the Dark Atrium, Crowley’s scepter that had sealed Romulus, to practically break apart completely. The one attack had stirred the music theory. Even the general structure had become slightly warped.

If he could not fix it, he would not be able to maintain the Dark Atrium’s lock. Not only had the self-destructive attack created a big problem for Crowley, it also revealed his arrival to the other musicians. Even worse, these were all the small details. Koch had actually wanted to create a hole in the Dark Atrium, break through the lock, enter the aether world, and transform into a lighthouse to warn the Sacred City.

Thankfully, the Garment of Original Sin had sealed the last beam of energy. Otherwise, the problem would be worse.

Knights Templar, the Sacred Choir, and the saints could not hurry over because they were thousands of miles away. But the Pope of the Sacred City was apparently a demi-god!

Known as the interpreter of the holy message, the master of holy power, the holder of sacred authority, the Pope had inherited ten generations of the King of Red. The most intimidating thing about him was not the countless destructive music scores such as Fate, Emperor, and Ode to Joy. It was the ability beyond human limits to enter unimaginable states. Such as resurrection, incarnation, and teleportation, the extreme wish of the School of Modifications…

He could be at the church the last moment and be right before Crowley the next moment. So many infamous dark musicians had died due to this…

“Reinforce the lock.” Crowley’s voice was hoarse and vicious. “Tonight, this is the land given to us by our lord. Do not let anyone out.”

“Yes.” In the empty market of the dark Auschwitz, the hooded musician looked away from the sky. His lips twisted into a sneer and he looked back to the goods in the wagon behind him.

Under the moving of a few muscular men, the precious goods that had been transported thousands of miles were now thrown mercilessly to the ground and shattered. Finally, all that remained was a steel box.

They placed it before the hooded musician. Taking an excited breath, he grabbed a crowbar and pried the box open. Inside it was a writhing piece of flesh. It seemed to have grown into the steel. Veins appeared on the box, fusing the two together.

The lump of purple flesh writhed in the night wind. A girlish face appeared within. It quietly sang a song about life. It sang of all organisms growing, intoxicating all who heard it.

“The Dark Gaia…” the hooded musician murmured, his eyes filling with intoxication. “I am so honored to finally be able to see you.”

The steel box contained the flesh of the Dark Gaia. Or rather, it was a ‘container’ created by fallen alchemists that could bear the power of the Dark Gaia. The formless power had entered it and become one with it so the dark musicians could transport it.

“This power of life…the vitality of the abyss is so touching.” The hooded musician caressed it, allowing the flesh to eat away at him. However, the flesh was unable to seep into his skin and was sealed outside. Merely opening the steel box made all dark musicians feel as if they had arrived in heaven.

The demonic blood within them became unprecedentedly active and waited to evolve. Many prepared dark musicians took off their robes and stood beside the box naked. They fervently sang the fallen hymns and praises of destruction.

The flesh boiled under the song. Viscous liquid seeped out and trickled on the ground, crawling up the singers.

The singers ignited. They dance and sang crazily in the fire, letting their bodies burn to ashes and scatter in all directions. Like the seeds of a dandelion in the spring. They would bring the blessing of the deep abyss to all of Auschwitz.

A few moments later, those countless seeds had fallen into the Dark Atrium and mingled among Crowley’s scepter territory. It was as if the Dark Gaia had personally arrived to where the Dark Atrium enveloped. She selflessly gave the deformed lifeform to her children.

With their true nature revealed, the dark musicians grew more menacing. However, they were not the lifeform’s true target. Its target was the Romulusians who contained the demonic bloodline!

The rich vitality flowed into the Romulusians as a catalyst for their vigor and woke the demonic blood within them. This strong catalyst could complete hundreds of years of change in one night, completely awakening the demon in them.

The panicking Romulusians gradually fell unconscious. A layer of thick horn-like material grew on their bodies, cocooning them within. After this night, they would break through as newborn demons…

This was the true goal of the perishing praise. They dragged the Romulusians into the abyss using the Dark Gaia’s flesh to create true dark descendants. At the same time, they could capture the next generation of powerful musicians. It was two birds with one stone!

To most musicians captured within, the danger was much more serious than that. They quickly realized that the density of aether in Auschwitz was quickly rising after the Dark Gaia’s power had flowed into the Dark Atrium. It would quickly rise from the red zone to the black zone and enter the zone of absolute danger. The rising trend was not showing any signs of slowing down anymore…

White zone, yellow zone, red zone, black zone…if they pushed through another level, it would be the phenomenon that all musicians spoke of with terrified expressions—sinking.

All of Auschwitz was like how Avalon’s Shadow had been. It sank toward the aether world. One night later, Auschwitz would disappear from the material world and fall deep into the aether world to be swallowed completely by Hyakume’s territory!

Five short seconds later in the underground palace, Ye Qingxuan snapped out of his shock.

Chapter 360: Dusk of Hell

 

Ye Qingxuan bent down in the mysterious temple and stared at the thing that was half his height. It clearly did not belong here and had been brought in by someone else. The copper kettle-like object seemed like a lotus. It was delicate and detailed without a single seam throughout the body. Ye Qingxuan cautiously put on a mask and gloves and opened the lid. He counted the grooves of varying sizes.

“Dispatch pool, fusion pool, cultivation pool…”

Fungus grew in many of the grooves due to the long period without maintenance. The cistern was murky and smelled horrible. The detailed inner paths were clogged and rust covered everything. This priceless cultivation kettle had been completely damaged due to the lack of care. As a specially-made alchemy equipment, it was useless to regular musicians. It could neither be used as a weapon nor perform any music scores. It was only used as aid for some Choir musicians. Its main use was…growing viruses!

With his last shred of hope, Ye Qingxuan reached out and scraped off a remaining white dot from the bottom of the kettle. He observed it with his Eye of Silence, magnifying it one-thousand times. He could vaguely see that countless dead viruses had dissolved but there was still a tiny bit of lively ‘survivors.’

As an outsider, Ye Qingxuan did not understand what they were. The Eye of Silence was not professional equipment either, and could not determine how the virus was made or what effect it had.

He only knew one thing: this virus was identical to the one he saw in the church! Understanding this, his gut dropped.

The virus that had exploded a few years ago and contaminated all of Auschwitz had come from this cultivation kettle. This site also contained traces of the King of Yellow. Everyone on this planet knew that the current King of Yellow was a once-in-a-century genius. In addition to high attainments in alchemy, he was also unparalleled in his studies of the School of Choir. Knowing this, who would believe that the King of Yellow did not create this virus?

Ye Qingxuan believed it. He did not dare to not believe it. If the King of Yellow really did do it, then he would have to think about what the Sacred City was doing…

The Romulusians had already been driven to barren Auschwitz because of their demon blood. However, the various nations still viewed them as a cancer that must be removed no matter the method…

Caligula had once showed him the scales on his leg, saying, “We’ve already paid too much for the sin we were born with.”

At that time, Ye Qingxuan did not understand what Caligula had meant but he seemed to know now. If all of this was due to the Sacred City, then…

“If you’re so powerful, why don’t you just become a god yourself?” Sighing, Ye Qingxuan thought for a bit and pointed his cane at the kettle. Under blinding electric light, the cultivation kettle quickly melted, distorted, and finally turned into unrecognizable liquid.

The words carved onto the Eye of Silence were true. Sometimes, knowing the truth was not an easy thing.

Ye Qingxuan decided to let this secret rot in his gut. It affected too many people. He could not tell anyone; he could not even let people discover that he had been here. He did not want to suddenly die in his sleep.

The countries did not keep assassins for fun. Plus, there was also a nightmare that hung above the heads of all musicians—the Silent Authority.

The only thing he could do was leave this place immediately and find an excuse to bring Caligula and Elsa to somewhere else. He believed that the Fifth Department could easily hide the two.

Before leaving, he took one last glance at the statue. It seemed to be looking down at him too. Its face was half-hidden in darkness and its lips were curled into what looked like a mocking smirk.

Ye Qingxuan quickly looked away. He closed the door and extinguished the holy fire. Looking back, there was no trace of the secret room. However, when he was carefully getting rid of his traces, something above him rumbled. Dust fell down and a giant crack appeared in the ceiling.

“An earthquake?” he muttered subconsciously.

But then he felt the blood boiling as it flowed through his veins. Moonlight flashed uncontrollably. It had sensed the overwhelming breath of the abyss…”Dark musicians!”

Stunned, he gaped at the Eye of Silence. The Deva’s blood sensed aether with music theory from the abyss appear endlessly. Both near and far, he could sense nearly one hundred dark musicians!

There was also a distorted ripple in the sky that he could feel even through the rock layer in the underground palace.

He sprinted out of the palace.

Just below the entrance of the mine, a burnt body fell from the sky. Boiling blood fell like rain.

Ye Qingxuan looked up. He could see through the ghastly crack that the black sky was red from the flames, bright as morning. It was like dusk in Hell.

–

With no time to hesitate, Ye Qingxuan quickly started climbing out. When his head peaked out, all he saw was a mass of killing.

Torre was surrounded by a group of beasts. He tore through them. When he saw Ye Qingxuan, his eyes brightened.

“Ye Qingxuan, did you see Kasper—” Before he could finish, countess cold lights flashed past. The silver nails turned red in the air and pierced Torre’s throat. A horn rang out and flames exploded, burning him to crisp.

Ye Qingxuan waved emotionlessly and retrieved his nails.

“Trying to fool me with illusions?”

The corpse fell down. The thing had no face. As the vitality was sapped, it stiffened. The soft scales that continuously changed colors quickly withered. Finally, it became a pile of black ash.

“Faceless actor.” Ye Qingxuan bent down and picked through the ashes until he found half a bone. The skullcap looked like a mask with a mocking smile. These were the children the dark followers created with the Dark Gaia’s power. Different from cannon fodder like the strays, the faceless actors were the best demon assassins born with illusion powers.

They could imitate someone pretty well with just a mere glance from the distance. One would not be able to distinguish the differences in a hurry. Plus, these things specialized in the imitation branch of the School of Illusion. They could imitate practically all music scores without any flaws other than a reduction in strength.

They could act as one’s lover for years without anyone realizing, let alone acting as a musician.

However, no matter how they changed, they were still demons and would activate the moonlight from dozens of steps away. In a hurry, they were unguarded against Ye Qingxuan. He easily cast Night on Bald Mountain, which he had saved in Jiu Xiao Huan Pei, and used the power of the stakes to kill the faceless actor. Otherwise, there would be more trouble.

He did not know what the demon would do if he dragged things on. The disguises were nothing to him but…what about the others?

Ye Qingxuan looked around. Under the Eye of Silence, he saw that Auschwitz was covered in red light. He seemed to have gone to another world and fallen into the lair of dark musicians.

“Will the others be okay?”

–

“Garbage!” Glen huffed as he was surrounded by demons. His armor was red-hot and blindingly bright. Under the song, dazzling flames shot out from under his feet, swallowing the incoming demons. The fire was more powerful than an incinerator.

The demons were practically cremated instantly but these things continued to crawl out of holes and walls like bugs. They just kept coming. If one died, ten more would appear. After eating the ashes of their dead, their bodies expanded and grew more menacing. They kept swarming over, surrounding Glen.

“Glen, don’t delay!” Not too far away, Torre was killing with Kasper. He looked back and said, “Go first and regroup with the others.”

“Doesn’t matter how much of this sh*t there are.” Glen grabbed a random demon. He closed his iron grip and turned the struggling demon into dust. Laughing wildly, he unsheathed his long sword.

Musicians rarely used swords because to them, regular weapons were incomparable to music scores. However, Glen’s school was unique and combined music scores with swordsmanship. Paired with a sword and armor, they looked more like warriors than musicians. They fought as wildly as warriors too.

With his sword out, the fire everywhere was stifled. Wild wings wrapped around the blade, almost tangibly. One could faintly see a blurry layer of whiteness. As the blade swung, the invisible wind cracked the earth apart. Blood sprayed.

Glen jumped into the mass of demons, cutting apart everything in his way. He struck with his sword, creating splatters of scarlet. Within an instant, the demons were all cleared away.

Amidst the bodies, Glen sneered. He sheathed his sword and turned toward Torre. “Look at these—” Before he could finish, the flesh scattered on the ground pounced onto him like a living thing. Caught by surprise, Glen was swallowed whole. The flesh had instantly become rotten and sewed together crudely. The stitches were made of white bone and looked mournfully abnormal.

The sewed up corpse roared. Its giant ‘head’ twisted and locked onto Torre. A beam of scarlet fire lit up in his abdomen. It screeched and Glen, covered in fire, broke out of it.

However, the armor that covered him had been eroded by the terrifying acid. Even his skin was gone. All that remained was a layer of desolate red.