by Feng Yue
Ye Qingxuan quickly looked away and returned to staring at the stone door.
“Have you started interpreting?” Colt asked beside him. “How are you going to start?”
Ye Qingxuan was trying to find an ‘entrance point’ amongst all the strands of music theory within Hades’ Door so he could start interpreting. This was the most important preparation step. All he did was take out a marker and draw two straight lines on the door. They intersected at the bottom right and was marked with a small dot.
“How about here?” He drew a circle around the dot casually as if doodling. “It’s a seam that the alchemists had made while working together. It should be enough buffer.”
Colt gaped at him. “You’ve already calculated before?”
“It’s just preparation.” Ye Qingxuan chuckled. “When do you prepare to start?”
“We shouldn’t wait any longer.” After a moment of thinking, Colt checked over all the preparation work. He pulled the ‘anti-tune’ sword. Slowly but surely, he stabbed it toward the door.
Three inches away, the door started shuddering and dust flew.
Boom!
345 Besiege
Boom! Booms sounded constantly as the sword advanced. The levels of transparent shields seemed to be breaking apart under the anti-tune. Every boom created tidal waves in the aether sea.
Standing in the center of the tides, Ye Qingxuan felt his body shaking. It was suffocating.
Something flashed past Colt’s eyes. He stepped forward.
The blade entered the door. The underground palace shuddered abruptly as rumbles continued sounding. Brilliant light shone from the door. Countless precise yet wild music notes were overlapping with one another, forming intervals and music theories. They formed an ivy-like formation, snaking across the door. They covered every inch.
As the anti-tune entered, a circuit was cut apart, creating a scalp-numbing shriek. This was the melody of the interpretation completely turning the music theory and notes around. This was fatal poison to Hades’ Door!
The protection on the door instantly fell apart. Wild waves of aether shot out. The underground palace shook with a giant boom. Countless sounds crashed and converged, pouring out under the pushing of the immense air pressure. Finally, a tsunami-like ‘wave’ erupted out of the mine and into the sky. The chilling sound was like the earth cracking apart.
The grandmasters in the sky looked down in unison. Realization flashed past their eyes when they saw the mine. It had finally begun.
-
Deep inside the underground palace, Ye Qingxuan, Colt, and Torre had all stepped forward the moment the roaring began. They forcefully pushed back the suffocating aether tide. Pressing against the door, they connected with the complex and vast music theory. Connection was completed. The interpretation would begin now!
-
At the same time, all musicians waited and looked in all directions. The sound of a rushing river had appeared out of nowhere. It echoed throughout the grave palace like a flood. The guarded musicians looked around but could not find any changes. Until something sticky fell onto someone’s face.
“Rain?” Someone touched his face. Seeing the sticky mud, he was stunned. He looked up and saw that mud was pouring endlessly from the crevices of the stone ceiling.
“The ground!” someone yelled. “The ground too!”
As mud seeped from the ground, a crack appeared in the wall. A beastly head floated out. It opened its mouth and mud shot out like a tide.
“Wh-what is this?” Inside the crowd, Miller looked at the mud that was now over his feet. It felt wrong but could not pinpoint why. He could see that it was not poisonous or anything special. It was just…mud.
“Are the Romulusians trying to drown us in mud?” Someone laughed involuntarily but was quickly cut off.
Sam raised his hand. The Copper Mountain roared and Foehn wind heaved. A heat wave spread instantly, practically igniting everyone’s hair. Screams sounded throughout the crowd.
“Sam, are you crazy?!”
The next moment, the boiled mud dried and evaporated. Faint shadows left the mud. Roaring angrily, they dissipated with the water vapor. However, even more shadows rose up from the mud. One, two, four, eight… The mud fell off, revealing the metallic porcelain-like texture of the burly bodies, as well as large shields, heavy spears, and lances. They were the clay warriors that everyone had struggled against!
As they started climbing up, everyone was stunned. They now stared at the mud in terror. This was not mud anymore. This was the raw material for making the clay puppets! In other words, they could make a limitless clay puppet army if they wanted!
The musicians struggled to keep them back. Puppets rose from the mud and fell apart back into the mud. Finally, the first ten-man group stood together with the second ten-man group. The musicians’ pressure doubled!
When the first hundred-man group was formed, the musicians started truly struggling. This was the protective alchemy array that had been hidden since the construction of the underground palace. It represented the peak of Romulus’ artistic technology. Clay warriors could be created at any time, any place. This kind of protection was comparable to the secret defense of larger schools. Faced with these guys that would continue to multiply and be born as long as the underground palace existed, the easiest solution would be to destroy the palace but…who would do that?! And who could actually do that?
The musicians’ attacks slowed but the clay puppets did not! In the blink of an eye, the battalion had become four-hundred-men strong. They advanced forward, tossing the exploding lances and spears without caring about expenses, forcing the musicians back.
However, the scariest was that musician assassins were hidden within them. They would jump out from the mud without the musicians realizing. They moved like ghosts and caused bloodshed with a mere jump.
Glen had used his Modifications formulas to move freely within the formation. However, he was hit by a hidden assassin and almost died. Drenched in cold sweat, he retreated back to the shield in cold sweat. His armor was practically covered in cleaved traces.
Thankfully, many smaller groups worked together well. They went into coherence and performed symphonies to block the clay puppets. Otherwise, the musicians would be forced to fend for themselves.
On the battlefield, small enemies were was easy to pick off as small morsels of desserts. Faced with these extremely powerful enemies, everyone used all their strength to maintain the completion of the shield ring.
Many musicians with fast reaction speed had started to attack the root of the problem by getting rid of the mud under their feet. However, the supply of mud was limitless. Even if they used all their tricks, they still could not clean a large enough area.
As a choir musician, Miller walked around the circle, singing hymns and healing the gravely wounded musicians. He supported the musicians. In a large-scale battle, a choir musician was like an angel. However, he was spread too thin as well. If he let his guard down for a moment, he would be beheaded by an assassin from the sky. Right now, enemies could attack from everywhere and anywhere. If not for Baro’s Sycle, he would probably be headless by now.
“Where’s your giant worm? Your snake of the atrium?” Miller shook Baro. “Get rid of the mud!”
Baro practically spat out blood. “I have limited chances! Even if I’m the future inheritor, I can’t keep dragging them out of the aether world. If they get pissed and slap their tails out of the aether world, we’ll all die!”
“Then what do we do?”
Miller suddenly discovered that the defense ring had contracted. They had been in the safe zone but now they were left behind. Within the moment of inattentiveness, they were discovered by the clay warriors. Countless spears and swords were about to come for their blood… Sam, the best fighter, was far away and could not come help.
Miller’s expression grew bitter. He really regretted choosing ‘physical resistance’ as his specialization. The only
thing he could do was make diseases and viruses. He was powerless against clay and wooden statues.
“Do you have any solution?” He looked at Baro with teary eyes. “Anything that can save us.”
Being looked at like that, Baro gritted his teeth in determination. “That’s what you said so don’t regret it!” As soon as he finished speaking, he pulled out a really weird chant consumable. It was a white dress embroidered with roses using silver thread. It looked extremely elegant and luxurious. It even had a faint fragrance. However, it just felt wrong in Baro’s hands. He was like a pervert who had stolen a dress at night and was planning on doing something weird to it.
Sensing everyone’s gazes, he forced his tears back. This was a strange Summoning score from a lost school that he had found in an exploration years ago. It did not require much energy but had explosive power which suited this situation. Baro had sworn to never touch this again after using it once because it was so embarrassing. But now…
He could not keep this hidden anymore. Surviving was more important than keeping his dignity.
Under the ethereal and graceful melody, the white dress suddenly floated up. The spirit born from the music score had emerged, transforming into a beautiful girl. From her side profile, one could see her skin as white as snow, hair as black as coal, and lips as red as blood. She was beautiful and her voice was otherworldly. With a tinge of sweetness, she was pure as a fairy. Countless musicians were attracted by the song. They turned to look and practically drooled.
Under those enthusiastic gazes, the girl slowly turned around, revealing her sexy beard, straight and big nose, and a giant mouth. In the halo of spirituality, even the knife scar looked charming. Her eyes were flirty and she was ugly to the point that it was impressive.
It was Baro’s own face!
346 Low Quality Goods
“F*ck!” All the anticipating musicians choked at the same time and wished they could gouge their eyes out.
Amidst the retching sounds, Baro’s face darkened. Covering his face, he muttered, “I was forced to, I was forced to, I was forced to…”
The moment the girl turned around, the tiles started shaking. Seven holes appeared on the ground and seven dwarves jumped out. “To fight for you, my princess!” the seven muscular and bearded dwarves yelled in unison.
Waving hammers, axes, flails, and swords larger than themselves, they rushed into the Romulusian formation. The giant shield formation crumbled under their attacks. The dwarves jumped up and down around the clay warriors, deftly shattering the metallic porcelain armor.
Their speed and strength were both incredible and unbelievable. They were extremely agile as well. None of them slacked off, and they all worked together, one kicking and the other hacking away…
These were not summoned objects! They were practically seven top-class knights! Everything in their paths was destroyed. They had no enemies! Within ten minutes, the hundred-man clay battalion was forced back. Finally, the dwarves disappeared along with the white dress.
Baro and Miller had also returned to the protective ring and even gotten the upper hand temporarily. There were no problems other than being embarrassed.
Many of the musicians stared at Baro, hoping he could do that again. Some girls were even willing to give him their dresses…
“Don’t even think about it!” Baro roared with a red face. “I’d rather die than humiliate myself again!”
“Psh…” Many pursed their lips and looked away in disappointment.
Pained cries sounded again. However, this was from a musician rather than the wildly advancing clay warriors. A man with half his chest ripped apart was brought over. Blood flowed like a river and he was on his last breath. Miller and two other choir musicians rushed over without hesitation.
Many of the musicians looked into the distance while fighting. They were in the side wing and, other than the few united groups, someone else was fighting against the Romulusian formation.
One person was at the very front. The dirty and pathetic-looking young man squatted on the ground with his sharp teeth bared. He roared and his wild aura spread in all directions. He was not singing a melody but was roaring like a wild beast. The thundering melody had a crazed beauty. The music notes played like a group of beasts growling while killing.
It was fierce, crude, and shockingly pure.
Countless strange apparitions flashed in his vicinity as the melody changed. Wild beasts appeared one after another. It was enough to destroy one’s mind but the deathly wild beastly nature had no effect on him. Instead, they worked reverently to his roars.
He did not clean the mud under his feet. Instead, he let the clay warriors emerge, tearing them apart immediately after. Countless invisible mouths were hidden around him.
The being squatted obediently in the area Casper had marked for it. Anything, even teammates, that dared to approach were ripped to shreds. It was like a rabid guard dog or wild wolves supervising their territory—it was a pure beast.
Casper Hauser.
Even while interpreting, Ye Qingxuan could feel the strange wolf-like aura that rose to the sky like smoke. Turning around involuntarily, he saw the hunched yet wild figure with shocked eyes. He had never seen alienation to this extent!
“What’s wrong?” Colt’s thin voice floated into his ears. “Curious?”
Ye Qingxuan looked away. He knew it was wrong to ask about others’ personal matters but he could not help it. “What’s wrong with him?”
“You really don’t know?” Colt’s tone was meaningful. “He was born as the result of the inheritance of beastly nature. As a natural-born musician, he carries the anticipation of his ancestors.
“His father wanted to isolate him from other influences, so he was locked in a cellar until he became a Resonance musician at age fifteen. He’s a true genius with incredible talent, but he doesn’t know how to talk. He doesn’t have any common sense and doesn’t know how to socialize. He doesn’t understand others either and can’t communicate at all. To him, human language is meaningless, like empty music notes.”
Stunned, Ye Qingxuan almost lost control of the interval in his hands. “Is he still human?”
“His father had wanted to turn him into a beast since the beginning—a pure beast.” Colt’s voice was indifferent. “That’s the only way for him to completely fuse with the beastly nature and enter deep into the aether world to complete the transformation. Then he could become a phantom beast in a human’s body.”
After a long silence, Ye Qingxuan shook his head. “His family is too cruel.”
“Aren’t musicians all like this?” Colt chuckled. “The way to the Originator is long and hard. It’s already passed the realm of ethics. Sometimes, you have to throw away some things to go further. Ye Qingxuan, don’t be shocked. You’ll do this one day if you keep going along this path.”
Ye Qingxuan did not answer. He focused entirely on interpreting. The complex and vast array on the stone door before him shook. About half of the flowing veins of light were extinguished. This was the masterpiece of ancient Abstinence musicians, but it was still something centuries removed from current technology. After the anti-tune had let them close in the gap, the three were able to chip away at the seal slowly but surely. It was just a matter of time, but the problem was, how much time did they need?
Ye Qingxuan had viewed this as a big job and planned to fervently work six hours per day for seven days. But for some reason, the progress this time was…too fast! Everything went on unbelievably fast. Of course, he was responsible for half of that.
After all, the core of Abraham’s interpretation method was ‘fast.’ Its goal was to interpret the enemy’s next move in battle so it must be fast. He had to overlook the details and focus on the big picture to solve the core problem. He did not care about anything else.
Ye Qingxuan performed the interpretation method smoothly and expertly. He was as fast as a rabid dog freed from its leash. When he ran into harder parts, he would t
oss it to Torre. The latter was responsible for forcefully undoing the unavoidable obstacles in the music theory. In other words, he stormed the obstacles.
This was their first time working together, but they cooperated well after the run-in period. After all, Ye Qingxuan’s interpretation method was Abstinence music theory disguised as Revelations. He had also inherited theory from the School of Stone Heart. This collaboration made things easier for him.
He did not lack anything on the aspect of theories but had some shortcomings for real-life application. This opportunity allowed him to see how the School of Abstinence worked. He was able to copy Torre and secretly learn everything.
With them decoding in the front, Colt had undone a good portion of Hades’ Door’s prohibition. His speed was increasing too. His understanding and investigation of music theory was beyond Ye Qingxuan’s expectations. He was not like a twenty-five-year-old at all.
Sometimes, Ye Qingxuan would get the misconception that there was a grandmaster beside him. He did not agree with Heisenberg’s character but the Rock Institute’s ‘secret bearer’ inheritance lived up to its reputation. Working with someone like Colt cut down on the worry and effort. However, for some reason, Ye Qingxuan felt like he had overlooked something as he continued.
He even had time to turn around at times to check on the others. The clay warriors grew back as soon as they were destroyed and were getting stronger but the musicians had started standing their ground after the earlier panic.
The overall situation was good. Not just a bit good but very good. Yet he felt something was wrong. It was so successful that he felt sorry for the Hades’ Door and such a large alchemy array.
Ye Qingxuan was confident in his abilities, but he did not think he was good enough to tear through Hades’ Door as if it was a counterfeit good.
Were ancient Romulusians all fools? There must be a plot twist hidden somewhere he would never think of. While he was distracted and thinking through the Romulusian history he had read, trying to find something he had missed, he felt the pressure decrease.