Chapter 1273: Listening
Translator: Nyoi-Bo Studio Editor: Nyoi-Bo Studio
Pei Min walked up to the Magic Zither, surrounded by towering sword wills as he moved.
Sword aura and demonic might clashed within an instant.
He extended his hand, and sword will howled. Something was then dropped onto Pei Min’s hand—a terrifying sword conjured from the sword will.
His palm shook, and he pointed his finger. The sword tore through space and broke through the terrifying demonic aura currents, heading straight for the instrument. He did not try to pluck the strings. He tried to stab the instrument with a sword instead.
Clang…
The sword landed onto the string, and it surprisingly held. Notes that carried terrifying demonic aura rolled about in the space, rushing at Pei Min.
Pei Min stepped forward and tore through the space. Sword wills once again coalesced right before him. He flicked his wrist, and yet another sword streaked through midair. That blade was sharper than the one before, bringing about a sonic boom as it moved.
The blade hit on second string and rang. Both the sword and string vibrated. There were then two swords on the strings.
The strings continued to vibrate, and terrifying demonic power gushed out, howling. The swords on them continued to shake and ring, yet the towering sword will continued to rain down and meld with the swords, enabling them to stick on the strings without breaking off.
The third sword was fired.
It was then followed by the fourth and the fifth.
Every single blade was stronger than the one fired previously, getting increasingly powerful.
The space seemed to have been drowned by demonic aura, and Pei Min seemed to be trapped within. However, he remained standing like an unbreakable sword.
Terrifying demonic shadows appeared and howled, corrupting the swords and making them pitch black.
However, Pei Min continued to shoot the sixth sword, which stuck to the string without flinching.
Towering notes continued to dance, and the six swords stuck on the strings shook with even greater force.
Pei Min’s aura was incredibly strong, and he then fired the seventh sword.
A dragon of the sword seemed to have appeared on his body as the sword was manifested, tearing through everything in its path as it stuck to the seventh string.
All seven strings on the Magic Zither vibrated violently. Boundless notes were unleashed as if a devil was howling.
The seven swords rang and unleashed terrifying light, shrouding the instrument, trying to pin the retaliating demonic will power down on the instrument.
Pei Min stepped forward and fired the eighth sword—himself.
His surroundings roared and howled as everything turned dark and severe. The peach flowers in the forest wilted quickly, and everything seemed dead.
Pei Min seemed to have seen an overbearing figure playing the instrument. All seven strings sounded as that figure put one finger down.
A crisp sound was heard as all seven swords shattered at the same time. The suppressed demonic will was unleashed within an instant, bursting with harrowing might and banged into Pei Min, who was moving forward.
Boom…
Pei Min grunted as a rumble was heard. Sharp, ringing sounds were emanated as he was thrown away like a sword flying straight, leaving a deep gash on the ground.
Pfftt!
Pei Min spat up blood, yet all that was seen in the eyes of those watching him was solemn respect.
While it was still only seven notes, the effort was nonetheless very commendable.
He had wanted to break through the limit of seven, which drove him to suppress the demonic sound with his swords. That was seen to be an impressively overwhelming feat.
Pei Min intended to suppress the tune of the demonic emperor with his swords.
While he had failed, his resolve remained apparent.
It was just like what he said to Xie Qingshan. While his chances of failing remained, he had tried.
A figure headed straight for the Magic Zither before anyone was able to react after Pei Min was thrown back.
That figure was moving at extreme speeds. It was as if he had burst right through space itself and appearing right before the instrument. He extended his arm, and the powerful will of the great path of space burst forth. He waved, and the instrument resounded within an Instant.
” Jiang Tai’e.” All who saw him turned their gaze forward solemnly again.
Jiang Tai’e of the Jiang clan of Crimson Dragon City was known to have a body inherently suited for practicing the ways of the great path. He was proficient in space abilities, and it was rumored that many years ago, that the Jiang clan had descended from a Renhuang.
Jiang Tai’e was extremely renowned in Crimson Dragon City. He and Luo Yang were both known as the two geniuses of the city, and both of them were ranked in the Regional King Ranking.
Powerful will of the great path of space burst around him. Rings of space shone around him. The raging demonic might seemed to have shot right through his body.
He extended his hand and then plucked the string on the instrument remotely. A sound from the Magic Zither was heard once again.
The feat of manipulating the instrument remotely spoke volumes of Jiang Tai’e’s space powers. It was a feat seen as no less than terrifying.
If that had been an opponent instead of an instrument, he would have been able to attack his opponent directly from a distance without any regard for the distance between them.
The rings of the great path of space continued to circle him. He continued to pluck the strings on the instrument, with his body getting increasingly close to it with every attempt.
There seemed to be an image of the great path of space right before him when he stepped out. Demonic aura bombarded him, yet it was all devoured by that image and broken. Those powers enabled all to sense the extent of his powers.
However, despite Jiang Tai’e’s strength. The raging demonic power brought forth when he plucked the seventh string shattered said image right away.
Jiang Tai’e had failed as well.
Luo Yang, Yu Shifei, and Xie Qingshan made their attempts after he was done.
However, while all of those ranked on the Regional King Ranking had been able to make the instrument produce seven tones, none of them were able to make it further.
It was as if seven notes was the limit of the instrument itself, and that limit was something unbreakable.
Xing Kai emerged as well. The aura on him gushed with great force. He looked like a god of war when he walked imposingly to the instrument.
He attacked the instrument without reserve. The rings of the great path bombarded the Magic Zither, causing it to produce notes while shaking furiously at the same time.
However, Xing Kai disregarded the instrument’s rattling altogether, continuing to attack with imposing force.
He was also thrown behind after seven attempts, and he had truly been overwhelming and unforgiving.
“So the Magic Zither continues to dominate in this year’s Peach Banquet,” many noted to themselves.
By then, every single person who had received the Peach Invitation had attempted, except for Ye Futian.
Even if Ye Futian were to try, everyone thought the end result would be the same as all the previous attempts.
The Magic Zither was deemed a lost cause.
Everyone wondered what kind of treasures would be presented in the banquet instead.
Many turned their eyes to Ye Futian, who was sitting, seemingly without any intention of getting up.
“So he is not even going to try, then?” some thought.
While all of them who tried had done little but pluck the strings on the instrument, the attempts nonetheless gave the spectators insights.
For example, those who were ranked on the Regional King Ranking were apparently more exceptional than everyone else.
As such, many wanted to see how many times Ye Futian would be able to pluck the strings, wondering if he would be able to make it to the seventh string as well.
“You want to give it a try, City Lord Ye?” Chi Shang asked.
“Your Highness, what Xie Qingshan said is sensible. If one were only to pluck the strings, seven notes would indeed be the limit. While every single attendee here is an extreme genius, it remains an impossible feat to resist the will of the demonic emperor through the will of sainthood,” Ye Futian said.
Chi Shang was thinking the same thing. The Magic Zither had remained a puzzle for many years, after all.
“So you’re saying that to master the Magic Zither, one has to be at Renhuang Plane then, City Lord Ye?” Chi Shang asked. That seemed to be the only way to overwhelm the will of the demonic emperor.
“If one were to use the Magic Zither to play songs, I’m afraid it would be extremely difficult for anyone who is not a Renhuang.” Ye Futian then continued, “I would, of course, not be able to do so as well. I would be able to play a few notes at most. Mastering the instrument would be impossible.”
“Your words hold true. A guqin left behind by a demonic emperor holds the will of said emperor. It is indeed difficult to go about mastering it.” Chi Shang then added, “However, even if one was unable to truly master the instrument, being able to play a song, even if just a few notes, they would be considered as having solved the puzzle with the Magic Zither. If you are capable of that much, you’re welcome to take the instrument.”
“I’ll give it a try,” Ye Futian said. He then walked towards the Magic Zither.
Countless pairs of eyes watched Ye Futian at that moment.
Everyone made their attempts, and they deemed him to have been unnecessarily flamboyant.
“Is he saying that his attempts will be different from the others?” they wondered.
Ye Futian walked towards the Magic Zither. Overwhelming demonic aura washed all over him, drowning him in it and eating away at his will.
He seemed to have been sucked into the demonic space, arriving at yet another world.
A giant demonic guqin was seen hanging in the sky. Ye Futian approached with his will, which was then encroached by the demonic will.
He extended his hand, intending to touch the strings.
Everyone intensely watched Ye Futian. Everyone saw him making his move, putting his hand onto the Magic Zither, and yet, he seemed to have no intention of plucking the strings. He had rested his hand on it.
“What is he doing?” Everyone’s eyes were filled with a peculiar expression.
They were unable to fathom what he was trying to do.
Ye Futian clearly knew that since the instrument had a will of the demonic emperor left within it, it was utterly impossible for them to simply overcome it with their will power. The recoil would definitely be immense.
As such, even the most powerful of those who tried had only been able to pluck the strings seven times, and that had been the limit.
That was unless the one plucking the strings were to be a Renhuang.
If he were to repeat what everyone else before had attempted, it would not yield much of a result, despite the effort being useful to temper his spiritual will to a certain degree.
The end result would be the same.
The sound of the guqin was something imbued with the emotions of the one playing the instrument. Every single note had an expression, illustrating the inner feelings of the one playing it.
That had nothing to do with status, as well as if one practiced demonic ways or not.
The Magic Zither had a spirit, and mastering it required one to be able to comprehend the instrument’s will itself.
Ye Futian did not resist the flowing demonic will power within the Magic Zither. His spiritual will was quickly encroached by the demonic will, as demonic might enveloped his entire being.
He seemed to have been encroached by demonic powers right there and then.
Dark demonic light shimmered on his face.
Demonic aura slithered and coursed all over his body.
Chi Shang was baffled at the scene. He and Yu Shifei, who was by his side, looked at each other. Both were able to see the surprise in each other’s eyes.
Both of them were proficient in the art of the guqin, so they were able to tell what Ye Futian intended to do.
Ye Futian did not pluck the strings right away. He listened instead.
He was listening to the will of the Magic Zither itself.
Nobody had tried to so in the past.
Yet, at that very moment, both Chi Shang and Yu Shifei came to a realization. It was as if both realized that they should have done so a long time ago.