Silent Crown

by Feng Yue

  “—Your Symphony of Predestination!”

  49 Jiu Xiao Huan Pei 1

  Hariti was like a ghost in the sewer.

  Blood mixed in with the poison boiling in her chest, the pain fueling her excitement.

  The formless ghosts fed on all the blood available, becoming more powerful and violent. But in her eyes, they were as obedient as dogs.

  As a deposit for her mission, the Easterners had given her medicine for the side effects, helping her to recover. It had been a long time since she felt so invincible.

  Even if it wasn’t real, it was still intoxicating…

  The more she walked, the more she could sense Bai Xi’s breath…it was a sweet coppery scent, and she moved in haste.

  “Blessed Gift?” Intoxicated by the blood, Hariti suddenly uttered the Easterner’s descriptions and licked her lips. Something like a will-o’-the-wisp shone in her eyes.

  It was such high quality blood. Even if it was sacrificed to Hyakume, it would be a high class offering…

  Tiryagyoni’s music score gave her strength, but also a demon-like thirst. The thick scent of blood invaded her senses. For the creatures, the high of blood was stronger than any drug.

  Drunk in the blood, she laughed maniacally as she conducted the formless ghosts, dragging her underlings from the corners and splitting them open.

  The blood was so fragrant.

  She reached out, skimming blood away from the cracked skull. It tasted so sweet on her tongue, but her movements suddenly froze.

  The ground was shaking.

  Dust flew in the air, unsettled by the sudden quaking.

  They danced on the corpses, as if trying to escape. The entire tunnel quivered, but the trembling seemed to come from the ninth level under the Earth, shaking her senses.

  Everything trembled, unsettling like furious wind. Lightning and thunder sounded.

  It was as if electric light danced in the thundering clouds, split open by the wind.

  The formless ghosts stopped listening. Frantically, they tried to shake off their shackles. Blood rose to Hariti’s face, almost spilling out.

  She wailed, forcing the formless ghosts down, forcing them to follow her.

  Then, she finally saw the source of the shaking.

  —

  In the darkness, the youth knelt, hugging the unconscious girl.

  As if something scary had latched onto his body, there was a low buzz from his lungs, like the howl of thunder and wind.

  Mighty strength gathered in his body, turning his face pale. One could see the sparks of aether in his bulging veins.

  The formless ghosts that had been wrapped around him were torn away by this strength, dissipating into the wind like smoke.

  There seemed to be cold moonlight in his lowered eyes. The blood around him retreated with his breaths, forming a perfect circle.

  And there was nothing else in the circle.

  “The Shine of Holy Spirits?” Hariti froze, terror flashing through her eyes. Quickly, she discovered that it was not the music to call forth the Holy Spirit. It was not the magnificent music, praised by millions, like the legends said either.

  It was hard to understand, but everyone knew what this pure and basic phenomenon was—an abnormality created by too much aether at once.

  “F*ck.” Hariti stepped back.

  —

  In the stillness, the youth seemed to wake from a long dream. He raised his eyes and looked Hariti. His eyes seemed to reflect moonlight—cold, quiet and empty.

  Like a demon’s eyes, that gaze was full of nameless power. Just seeing it was enough to make one terrified, awestruck, and…insane!

  It was silent, but under the gaze of those eyes, the wailing sounds muted. The writhing runes started drinking Hariti’s blood wildly, playing “Tiryagyoni Prologue” in full force.

  And so countless painful wails sounded once again. The Formless Ghosts began sucking on Hariti’s blood, growing even fiercer. It was obvious to the naked eye that Hariti’s body had withered. The immense pain was driving her crazy. Clutching her head, she screamed, “Kill him! Kill him!”

  Her teeth played a strange melody and the formless ghosts in the blood followed her command. They started shaking wildly, then expanding.

  In the pungent metallic wind, the blood began to boil, and rushed toward the youth.

  Within the rumbling blood, Harati saw the youth raise an arm, spreading his left hand open. In that moment, she saw Ye Qingxuan’s lips curl into a smile. The strange feeling flashed past, stunning her. A bad premonition overcame her.

  Ye Qingxuan opened his mouth and, over the thundering wind, she heard him murmur something. As if a chorale had been added, a miracle occurred.

  Aether’s light joined, resting on his broken left hand, pushing it back into place with a pop. Blood flowed back into the wound and the torn skin began to regenerate. All that was left was a bloodstain.

  In an instant, the shattered arm had been healed perfectly.

  There was a mysterious consciousness guiding him from the bottom of his heart, making him raise his palm reflexively, and pressing down on the emptiness.

  At his fingertip, aether’s light glowed like fire, igniting the ring surrounded by keys.

  They shone and then vanished.

  Following it, a succession of sounds shattered Hariti’s thoughts.

  Ping! Ping! Ping! Ping! Ping!

  The sonorous scraping of metal sounded. Like marbles dropping onto a metal plate, the sound was crisp. Music notes burst from the air, practically sparking fire! The crisp sound was like a heavy storm, reverberating through the air. Every reverberation created a tiny hole in the wall. Other than that, it seemed useless.

  But the formless ghosts halted instantly. In the same position, they stopped on the ground, in the blood, in the air, frozen.

  —

  Hariti watched all of this happen in a daze. A chill spread through her body.

  The demons were still on the ground, unmoving as if set in concrete. But they could not be because there was nothing solid in the air, and time could not freeze either.

  They were not actually frozen. They were still struggling, but they stayed in the same place because they had been nailed there.

  The burning fire illuminated the scene—the aether had solidified into strings of thin yet strong silver thread!

  They shot out from the pores in the walls, ceilings and floor, stretched forward, and came out from another wall. This tight threadwork wound through the sewer tunnel like a web. It was as it should be, like an instrument’s strings stretched over the frets.

  No, they really were strings…strings made from solidified Aether!

  The moment the evil spirits and creatures rushed in, the strings spread out on all sides, creating a complicated barrier to protect the youth in the center.

  The force of spreading out was too powerful. The thin strings turned into arrows, piercing through everything. They shot through the stone and evil spirits in their way.

  The closest string was only one step away from Hariti!

  Within the crisscrossed strings, the crazed formless ghosts began to struggle, trying to pull themselves out. But the strings were like knives, slicing through their veins and nerves, humming with vibration.

  The sound was as clear as a bird’s call, cold and distant. They came from nothing, disappeared into nothing, only leaving behind a delicate echo.

  “A trap?” Hariti was stunned. Quickly, she was overtaken by a feeling of absurdity. This was not a trap…

  Those crisscrossed strings were not a trap at all. It was the base shape of something.

  It was forged by the aether’s fire, formed by a melody, and originated from the runes. This was a sharp blade created by an alchemist’s soul; it was the instrument that could control aether and the universe!

  “In the quietness, music plays. It is beautiful, but is the weapon responsible for life and death.” [2]

  At the bottom of Ye Qingxuan’s
heart, the voice whispered, “Yezi, this is the Jiu Xiao Huan Pei.”

  The sleeping soul opened its eyes.

  Using Ye Qingxuan’s eyes, it looked down at the world. Using his hands, it gathered the aether and guided his body to sit, as if seated at the front of a grave hall.

  For some reason, Ye Qingxuan thought of his lost notes. The messy notes that Wolf Flute had scribbled in, those blurry words, and music notes in his memory suddenly started changing.

  No, they had always been like that. But for an unknown reason, no one realized that it was the seal’s effect on the paper and in his mind. Now, the seal was broken, and he finally realized that there was something he had missed.

  The scrawled words started changing in his mind, turning into ethereal runes at last. The runes changed too, transforming into entirely new notes and melodies. The melody played in his heart, making him raise his hand unconsciously, pressing down on the strings.

  And so the ancient instrument that had slept for so many years was finally being played.

  For a moment, the musician known as Moon Chant was brought back to life by the youth, his consciousness flowing through his veins, guiding him to pluck at the strings and perform his Symphony of Predestination!

  [1] Jiu Xiao Huan Pei: an ancient qin (zither) passed down from the Tang Dynasty (around 700 A.D). It is a real instrument, made up of multiple parts. Five have survived to present day. Two are kept by collectors while three are in museums.

  [2] These phrases, among others, are carved into Jiu Xiao Huan Pei

  50 The Moon Above the Ocean

  The moment the string was plucked, all sound muted.

  The silver haze suddenly joined together and swept into a frenzy. But the aether’s glow disappeared, only leaving behind the sparse notes from the instrument.

  Hidden behind the beautiful music was a sharp and sonorous breath. Like an unsheathed blade, it scraped and hummed, gradually revealing its murderous intent.

  Within the sparse notes, weak ripples spread from Ye Qingxuan’s fingertips, extending in all directions.

  Everything in its path dimmed. Flames snuffed, fresh blood lost its color, and darkness turned into a muted gray. Everything looked unchanged, but something seemed to be dragging them further and further away.

  Mist was born from the sky then scattered. It wasn’t thick—it was thin and unnoticeable until it fully enveloped the space. Like a breath in winter air, it dissipated.

  A vague chill rose, seeping into every open crevice.

  Her body could still feel the heat left behind by the fire, but all her senses began to feel icy.

  Hariti turned pale. Reflexively, she tried to step back, but her foot stopped mid-step. The nonexistent coldness had already seeped into her brain, freezing her thoughts and consciousness. Finally, she stood stunned in the white mist, her mind frozen in shock and terror.

  In this cold mist, everything came to a standstill.

  —

  In the dancing white mist, there was only the sound of the zither.

  Soon, the spattering of notes changed, turning into a continuous melody. The true overture had finally begun.

  In the silence, the zither suddenly produced a harmonized crispness and heaviness. Burning decisive thoughts appeared, and were hammered into everyone’s hearts.

  The notes reverberated through the air, shapeless and intangible, but powerful and awe-inspiring. In its path, all ghosts and demons were crushed by the majestic yet cold air.

  This was not physical interaction. It was purely resonance between souls.

  The music was sparse, but destroyed every evil spirit. The resentment harbored in the aether was easily crushed too. Resentment, dissatisfaction, and poisonous thoughts were nothing in the face of the music.

  Like a sand castle before a tsunami, it collapsed like a joke.

  Ping!

  The strong and persistent will solidified into a blade. Blended into the music, it swept in all directions, slicing apart the formless ghosts, trembling and frozen in the white mist.

  All that was left were white bones scattered on the ground.

  The remaining resentment spilled out, crashing toward Hariti’s fragile mind like a tidal wave!

  Her rheumy eyes bugged open.

  On her ancient body, Tiryagoni’s music notes were pushed to their brink, like a rag frozen on an iceberg.

  Quickly, the crazed resentment pulled on her, swallowing her last bit of consciousness.

  —

  It was as if she was thrown into a bottomless pit.

  She could not see, could not hear, could not smell, could not feel…

  The cruel zither tore her perception away bit by bit, until all that was left was a stooped soul, falling hopelessly down the into the abyss.

  Falling, endlessly falling, falling for eternity.

  An unprecedented loneliness engulfed her thoughts. She wailed, but she was not even sure if she could make a sound. Then she saw moonlight jump from the abyss.

  Cemented in the seemingly eternal loneliness, everything lost its meaning. Even living became a long nightmare.

  With time at a standstill in the abyss, the nightmares seemed to last forever. It would trap her for thousands upon thousands of years. But this feeling only lasted a moment, and ended before she could react.

  After that, Hariti was still standing in her original position, unmoving.

  Boom!

  The noise of a firecracker thrown into a ditch sounded.

  It came from inside her skull, as if some delicate and soft membrane had cracked open. Black blood ran from the corners of her eyes, nose, and ears.

  She was finally freed from that nightmare.

  In her last moments, she stared at the shadow behind the youth. Caught between tears and laughter, she cried, “You…you’re still here…that white-haired creature is you!” Her voice was dumbfounded. “Why are you here?”

  Those eyes were vaguely mocking, but were also tinted with genuine terror. It was the reflection of her last moment alive. Her eyes dimmed and she collapsed.

  Blood trickled from her body, collecting into a puddle and seeping through the cracks in the ground.

  —

  The clang of music still reverberated between the tight walls. It spread through the alley until the scattered notes melded into rock, water, and wind.

  In that moment, everyone in downtown of Avalon heard a noise in their dreams. Clanging music from the zither entered their dreams, changing their dreamscape.

  They saw a mysterious ocean wave in the pitch-black night. In the endless tide, a silver-white moon rose up from the end of the sky. The moonlight illuminated everything, shining kindly and fairly upon the entire world.

  The moon above the ocean!

  At this moment, the moonlight was everything in the skies and on earth.

  —

  After a long time, the strings began to scatter.

  The solidified aether lost its shape again, returning to a silvery mist. The mist dissipated quickly. Its vague shadow barely discernable in the cloud.

  Like a mirage from far away, his body was blurry, his face empty white. But when he looked at the youth before him, his eyes were gentle and soft.

  He caressed the youth’s white hair, as if wanting to touch him with the help of the mist, but he couldn’t.

  When Ye Qingxuan awoke from that all-consuming dream, he could only see the man’s shadow.

  He faded into the distance, dissolving with the mist. Sensing the youth’s gaze, he stopped and turned back slightly. His blurry lips seemed to smile, but it was impossible to see clearly.

  “Yezi, solve this mystery.” His lips moved soundlessly. “Go to the end of that dream.”

  Something rippled through the mist, then disappeared.

  Ye Qingxuan gaped at where he had been. He wanted to say something, but it was too late. It seemed to have been a hallucination, but it had felt so real. The man had come back, summoned because of the music. Yet he had to leave
again after his short stay.

  Ye Qingxuan pounded the wall, venting out the sadness and frustration in his heart. If only he had woken up earlier, he might have had time to talk to the man.

  He did not know what to say. Maybe he would yell or accuse him. “But why do you have to leave so quickly?” he thought.

  Frustrated, Ye Qingxuan hung his head. He wiped at the corner of his eyes, as if wanting to get rid of the bitterness there.

  He finally saw the girl slowly open her eyes, as if waking up from a long dream. She opened her eyes with fatigue, and looked at the youth before her, trying to decide if he was real or a hallucination.

  “You’re awake?” Ye Qingxuan wanted to pull her up, but his body hurt like it had been smashed by a rock. But he did not realize until then that his shattered bones had been put back together.

  His fingers were still swollen and black, though. But maybe they had not complelely rotted, and could still be brought back to life with medicine. Ye Qingxuan tried moving his joints and smiled when a finger twitched.

  “Let’s go,” Ye Qingxuan said. “We should go back.”

  Bai Xi gazed at him in a dazed confusion. After a while, she pulled on his sleeve and climbed up. She seemed exhausted, with no energy to speak. But now she was a good child. She no longer played around, ran, or disobeyed. She obediently held onto Ye Qingxuan’s shirt sleeve, quietly, like all girls. Sometimes, she’d look up at Ye Qingxuan’s profile, her eyes confused and complicated. Sometimes, she would say in her weak and tired voice, “…I just had a nightmare.”

  “The nightmare is over,” Ye Qingxuan said. “There’s always a limit to bad things. Once they’re over, they won’t happen anymore.”

  “Really?”

  “Really.” Ye Qingxuan patted her hair. “I won’t lie to you.”

  Bai Xi looked into his eyes. “Will you get angry when I lie?”

  “No. It’s okay, even if you lie to me…” Ye Qingxuan grasped her hand, saying softly, “Thank you, Bai Xi.”

  She froze, looking as if she wanted to speak. But she did not say anything. After a long time, she lowered her head and uttered, “Oh.” And said nothing else.

  Seeing how she wanted to say something, but was too embarrassed to speak, Ye Qingxuan could not help but laugh.