Silent Crown

by Feng Yue

  “…And then you found out that you got accepted?”

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

  “It’s still there but what do you need it for?”

  Ye Qingxuan chuckled and said lightly, “Blood test.”

  263 Bad News

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

  -

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

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

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

  It was the best season if there were no worries.

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

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

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

  The letter said:

  The Shaman has been attacked. Life status unknown.

  -

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

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

  “I heard that you got killed.”

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

  Ye Qingxuan’s eyes twitched and he looked away. “How unfortunate.”

  “Yeah.” The Shaman nodded in agreement.

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

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

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

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

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

  “Bad,” Ye Qingxuan said. “The parliament had started entering Avalon’s Shadow.”

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

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

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

  264 Authority of the Bell

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

  “What is it?”

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

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

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

  “You can do it. I know it.”

  The youth shook his head. “I can’t do it alone.”

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

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

  “He…lost control.”

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

  The Shaman nodded.

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

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

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

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

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

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

  Ye Qingxuan suddenly shuddered.

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

  -

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

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

  “To be honest, I don’t either.” The Shaman sigh
ed. “I hate it.”

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

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

  Ye Qingxuan left and forcefully slammed the door.

  -

  Boom!

  The room was silent again.

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

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

  “These are the results from the Trader. You don’t seem to have good luck.”

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

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

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