Silent Crown

by Feng Yue

  “When I came back, I found that everything was different. Teacher had disappeared and you and your mother were exiled to the frontier. At that time, I wanted to find out the truth. But in the end, I fell to this state. I could only change everything and sneak back into Avalon to investigate what had truly happened back then.

  “Until now, I still haven’t solved many mysteries. I just know that he has some relationship with Avalon’s Shadow.”

  A pregnant pause.

  “…That’s it?” Ye Qingxuan’s mind was muddled.

  “Yes.” Lola nodded. “That’s how simple things are. How can there be complicated matters to speak of?”

  “But it’s too simple.” The youth furrowed his brows. “It’s suspicious.”

  “You think I’m lying?”

  “Not exactly lying, but you didn’t tell me everything.” Ye Qingxuan shook his head. “How did you meet my father? Why did he accept you as a student? What did you find out? And who destroyed your symphony of predestination? You didn’t talk about any of this. Don’t say that they don’t matter. And…” His gaze as he looked at Lola was strange. “You fell for him?”

  “…” Lola froze and grew angry.

  Ye Qingxuan nodded in understanding. “It seems that you fell for him.”

  “That was one of my many mistakes.” Lola looked away, finding excuses for herself. “Superstitions are engraved in a demon’s beliefs. And anyway, I was young…”

  Ye Qingxuan had no words and did not want to keep insisting on this awkward topic, so he changed the subject. “After all these years, have you found anything from the parliament? I just know that he taught in the academy before.”

  “Yes.” Lola’s expression changed slightly. “Later, he worked in the Royal Research Institute, but they don’t have his files. His documents during his career are in the Arkham Asylum.”

  “Where?” Ye Qingxuan’s expression darkened. “Did he participate in the forbidden technology for mutations?”

  “Back then, it was only a secret department of the Institute, specifically for researching the habits and structures of demons and finding the essence of natural catastrophes. Later, he was assigned elsewhere and the department was abandoned too. The mutations came after. As what he did afterward, I can’t find anything else.” Lola sighed in regret. “You should know that he rarely went home for a time.”

  “Where did he go?”

  “I don’t know.” Lola’s eyes were cold. “But undoubtedly, it’s the place that killed me.”

  Ye Qingxuan shook his head and corrected her, “He’s still alive.”

  “He’s dead.” Lola raised her voice, eyes growing troubled. “Ye Qingxuan, accept reality. I saw with my own eyes…”

  “He’s still alive, I can feel it,” Ye Qingxuan repeated. His expression was determined. “This isn’t refusing to accept reality or fantasizing. I can only say that he’s still alive in some corner of this world.”

  After a long silence, Lola asked softly, “Are you sure?”

  “To me, the only good thing about the Dragon Bloodline is that we can sense each other. When I entered the Student level, I felt the resonance between us. So Lola, rest assured. Someday, I’ll yank him out with my own hands.”

  “Yank him out?” She felt that something was wrong. “And then what?”

  “And then?” Ye Qingxuan smiled and flexed his fingers, face full of anticipation. “We’ll talk after I beat him up.”

  180 The Fast Method

  In the large library of the old building, sparse instrument strings hovered in the air. They crisscrossed, wrapping around the youth. As his fingers pressed down, a crisp crack-like sound was produced. The sound was distant, and its echoes snaked up to the ceiling beams.

  Before him, Lola’s eyes were slightly upset. “Long time no see, Jiu Xiao Huan Pei. Sadly, you’ve fallen into that guy’s hands and won’t be used to your full potential.”

  Hearing the bitterness in her voice, Ye Qingxuan snickered. “Would you take it if I gave it to you?” With that, the strings were pushed forward. Lola’s eyes grew angry and she glared at Ye Qingxuan. It would be okay if it was a regular harp, seven-stringed or twelve-stringed instrument, but Jiu Xiao Huan Pei was the kryptonite for demons. No one knew how many demons had died because of it over thousands of years.

  Back then, Ye Lanzhou came to the West by himself. He came by land rather than sea! He had gone directly through the Dark World, cutting a path through the sea of demons and beasts. No one knew how many demons had died from the music of Jiu Xiao Huan Pei. A small clan had even been wiped out by it.

  The lives of innumerable demons had given Jiu Xiao Huan Pei its powerful name. No one could remember it, but Jiu Xiao Huan Pei’s lethality was no joke. This was the reason why Lola had chosen to work with Ye Qingxuan instead of playing it personally. If she tried to use the instrument, it would be like a rat eating arsenic—complete suicide.

  “Keep it for yourself,” Lola stated coldly. “You’ve had it for more than ten years but only officially awakened it for the first time a few days ago, and you don’t feel ashamed to brag about it?”

  “Of course I have to brag. I have to make it obvious too! After all, it was thanks to you, wasn’t it? Look, look…” Ye Qingxuan picked up the instrument and shook it before her.

  Lola was annoyed, but whenever she was about to unleash her anger, Ye Qingxuan would give her some time to buffer, causing her emotions to stop at the awkward border. After a few times, she finally processed it. Clenching her teeth, she grit out, “Ye Qingxuan! Is this how you use the heart mirror?!”

  “…Uh, I’m just experimenting.” Ye Qingxuan awkwardly looked away. His eyes were black, but under the candlelight, they looked like copper mirrors, reflecting Lola’s image. In the reflection, red light representing anger was wrapped around her and burned.

  This was one of Jiu Xiao Huan Pei’s abilities—heart mirror. All instruments in this world, other than those made for students to practice on and produce goods, were the finest items created by alchemists with blood, sweat, and tears.

  Not only could the instrument’s timbre adjust according to the musician’s thoughts, but they also had a wide range of uses to make a musician’s playing easier. Jiu Xiao Huan Pei was a legendary item that reigned over the entire range of string instruments. In fact, it could change its key and take over parts of the piano’s range.

  In addition, all instruments had a unique point. Take the ecliptic series for example: all twelve instruments had their own unique and mysterious point. Maybe it was sensing danger or reducing energy use…Every time one was released, people would flock to the market to spend fortunes for one. But with Ye Qingxuan’s current abilities, he could only use Jiu Xiao Huan Pei’s most basic feature: heart mirror.

  As the name implied, it was the mirror of one’s heart. With this effect, he could easily see every change in emotion of the living things before him, whether it be anger, frustration, hesitance, confusion or fear. The specific applications required large amounts of practice and trials, but at least he would be able to scare people more easily from now on.

  “Seems like you’re determined to become the Vengeful Spirit,” Lola scoffed. “Speaking of which, you’ve really become a legendary figure of Avalon after ‘killing’ me. Do you feel happy?”

  “It’s okay.” Ye Qingxuan pursed his lips. “After being beaten by you this morning, that small amount of fame won’t make me happy anymore.”

  “Oh? Seems like you’re not as stupid as I thought.” Lola put down her book and said lightly, “Then let’s continue our topic from this morning. Where do you think you lost?”

  Where else? Ye Qingxuan smiled bitterly. He could only say that he had no way of fighting back. He had been played by Lola the entire time and was under both the School of Illusions and Mind. He could not have died a better way.

  Seeing his pain, Lola laughed, but her mouth was still merciless. “You’ve won so much, but it was never because of your music ski
lls. You won because of your calculations and plans. Ever since the beginning, you’ve relied on sneak attacks and the enemy’s weak points. You even take advantage of their crises, don’t you?”

  “Yes.” Ye Qingxuan sighed. He was not lowly enough to deny his weaknesses.

  “Ye Qingxuan, don’t let the fame get to your head. You’re only at the Rhythm level. You haven’t even fully grasped Black Friday yet, so don’t even think about Moonlight, which is even more profound.

  “In a face-to-face battle, even a regular third level musician would be able to win you easily, if you only use your own skills. Face your situation clearly. You can’t live lawlessly in this world with your amateur illusions. Otherwise, you’ll be like me and fall to this state.”

  Lola’s voice grew hoarse and her eyes darkened. Ye Qingxuan wanted to comfort her, but he realized that he did not know what to say. Lola was just like him. She was not the type to cheer up after hearing those warm and pretty words. They did not need pity.

  -

  Neither Ye Qingxuan nor Lola was the type to drown in negative feelings. They quickly pulled themselves back together and began discussing what action to take next. No matter what, the parliament’s preparations and plans all these years had completely failed after the Arkham Asylum. The giant beast had gone into hibernation and the robin had disappeared too. It was clear that there would not be any new traces in the short-term. This meant that they had received precious time for a break.

  “But you can’t let down your guard because of this,” Lola said gravely. “Your most important task now is to make up for what you lack. Just live here starting tomorrow.”

  “Wait!” Ye Qingxuan waved his hand. “I still have to go to school! It was so hard for me to get in. I can’t get expelled because of my attendance!”

  “Just say that you’re my student now.” Lola made it sound simple. “My identity as a Revelations musician is fake but I still have a bit of fame. Those old guys at your school won’t stop you.”

  “A little bit of fame?” As a renowned history scholar and Revelations musician, Lola was practically seen as a grand master. Without speaking of her beauty, so many people would kill to be her student just for influence and power. But…

  Ye Qingxuan felt a bit helpless. “Actually, I have a teacher.”

  “Abraham?” Lola chuckled. “Indeed, he’s a good musician, but what can he teach you? He’s an expert at the School of Abstinence, but those are classified secrets from the military. Without special permission, he won’t dare teach you a single word. Otherwise, he’d be hurting you.”

  “I think he’s good at teaching Revelations too. The interpretation method is pretty useful!”

  Lola scoffed. “Don’t you know that the academic world sees his stuff as blasphemy? It has its advantages, but compared to the mainstream theories of Revelations, it’s a completely different school. Unless he can prove that his theories are actually effective, the interpretation method is just a joke to most musicians!”

  “That’s because they’re short-sighted.” Ye Qingxuan’s expression was still neutral, but his eyes were determined. It was clear that this topic was not up for discussion.

  Lola looked at him for a long time. She laughed suddenly. “Whatever you want.” Ye Qingxuan felt his hair rise at the smile. With that, she tossed over a heavy book that she had just finished explaining, and was densely filled with annotations. “Just come over every other day,” Lola said. “At least I can teach you what I learned from Teacher.

  “I don’t care what Abraham teaches you, but I at least have to make you inherit Teacher’s mantle and become a musician from the School of Mind. Don’t be scared. I’ll start from the basics.”

  -

  “The School of Mind?” Ye Qingxuan accepted the book and flipped it open. After reading two lines, he felt his scalp go numb. Flipping to the end, he felt his body go cold. Closing the book, he could not help but inhale sharply. “Are you sure that I won’t turn into a madman if I learn what’s in this book?”

  He had just scanned it quickly, but under Abraham’s guidance, he had become sensitive to resources and music theory. The result was that he was scared by the brewing evilness in the book!

  How was this a beginner book for the School of Mind? This was practically a Wikipedia page on how to play with someone’s soul! Every line, every passage of information was about how to destroy one’s sanity. Every chapter was suffused with poison, wanting to push one’s soul into the deep abyss. All the material and methods were for one goal: to make the enemy lose their sanity and play with them like a puppet. Was this woman trying to turn him into a dark musician?!

  “Holmes can be scared of this stuff too?” Lola laughed seeing his shocked expression. “You should like this stuff. They all say that you’re the guardian angel of the Arkham Asylum now.”

  “That’s not my fault.” Ye Qingxuan widened his eyes. “I didn’t do it on purpose!”

  Lola nodded and patted his shoulder, comforting him gently. “Yes, after you learn all this, you can do it ‘on purpose.’”

  “…” Ye Qingxuan suddenly felt slightly depressed. It was so painful to not be understood by the world. He looked through the content more and discovered a problem. “At least I have some knowledge of Revelations, but I don’t even have a foundation for Mind. Are you sure I can learn all this in a short time?”

  “Of course.” Lola’s smile gave him a bad feeling. “Naturally, it’s hard if you go step by step, but fear not. I have a faster method.” She pulled out something that Ye Qingxuan predicted—the blood-red conch. The sign shone lightly, tugging at one’s heartstrings as if it had some magical power forcing one to become drunk in it.

  “…What faster method?” Ye Qingxuan felt coldness at the back of his head.

  Lola’s voice was extremely gentle, making one panic. “According to my experience, if you can go crazy ten times, you’ll be able to find a way to make others go crazy. Seeing that you’re talented in this aspect, as long as you cooperate…”

  “Uh, what are you saying? I didn’t hear…ah, I’m sorry but I’m busy this afternoon. I’ll be going now.” Ye Qingxuan shot up with a stiff smile on his face. He quickly retreated, almost running for his life.

  “Only an idiot would cooperate! I don’t want to be a crazy dark musician!” He had to leave. If he did not run now, it would be too late when he was pinned to the chopping board!

  “Now you want to run?” Lola shook her head as her gentle voice sounded behind Ye Qingxuan. “Too late.” There was a flash of red.

  Ye Qingxuan fell to the ground with a thud. He was immobile. All that could move were his large eyeballs rolling around in confusion.

  “Don’t worry, you’ll get used to it quickly.” Lola breathed softly into his ear, causing him to shiver despite the temperature. Then the Pyramid King pulled on his legs and dragged him to the secret room behind a bookshelf. A gentle laugh sounded in the darkness. “It’s just a nightmare…”

  181 So Many Love the Joyful Times of Your Youth

  When Ye Qingxuan walked out of the old mansion the next day and felt the sun, he had the urge to cry. “It’s so nice to be alive” he said.

  For the past two days, he had been tortured by that crazy woman Lola in so many ways. When he was awake, she would use excuses to order him around. When he was asleep, he would have different nightmares. He could not live nor die.

  It would be okay if it was just consumption of physical and mental strength. After all, Lola’s food was pretty good. She would use different ways to nourish him. It could basically make up for his exhaustion.

  At first, Ye Qingxuan had been touched, but when he finished, Lola held down his neck and revealed two small canines to start ‘eating.’ Ye Qingxuan realized her ulterior motive!

  “That crazy woman completely turned me into a personal blood bank!” Ye Qingxuan rubbed the two small holes on his neck and felt his heart hurt. There was no trust between people. Now, he just wanted to get home qui
ckly, sleep, and go to the library tomorrow to read everything on Lola’s book list.

  Thinking of how he had been busy every day for the past few months, and was about to become even busier, Ye Qingxuan was depressed. Life was so hard and the days were impossible.

  -

  After his long wait on the side of the road, bells finally chimed in the distance. It was the public horse carriage returning to uptown. Ye Qingxuan pulled himself together. He did not need to walk anymore.

  “Stop, stop!” He blocked the carriage in the front and flashed his academy badge. “Give me a ride.”

  “Concertmaster Ye?” came a shocked voice within.

  Hearing this, Ye Qingxuan looked up and quickly reacted. “Wow, what a coincidence. What school are you all from? All of you ditching together?”

  “…”

  The extended carriage was filled with at least a dozen boys and girls wearing school uniforms. They were all from the academy. Hearing his words, they became speechless. Someone muttered, “Concertmaster Ye, today’s the returning day.”

  Ye Qingxuan was confused but then he remembered that every ten days, the Academy would have a three-day break. Coincidentally, today was the day break ended and everyone returned to school. But Ye Qingxuan had ditched too many classes and did not have this concept in his mind.

  “Sorry, forgot about that.” He chuckled awkwardly and went past the seats to the very back. He quickly closed his eyes and began sleeping. Along the way, students entered the carriage constantly. They were stunned when they saw him, but they would all come forward and politely greet “Concertmaster Ye.”

  After all, the only ones who would use the public carriage to return were commoners who did not have money or their own carriages. As for Ye Qingxuan’s concertmaster position, there was widespread recognition and respect. But for some reason, they all looked at him strangely today.

  In his drowsiness, he vaguely heard the whispers in the carriage.