by Feng Yue
White zone, yellow zone, red zone, black zone…if they pushed through another level, it would be the phenomenon that all musicians spoke of with terrified expressions—sinking.
All of Auschwitz was like how Avalon’s Shadow had been. It sank toward the aether world. One night later, Auschwitz would disappear from the material world and fall deep into the aether world to be swallowed completely by Hyakume’s territory!
Five short seconds later in the underground palace, Ye Qingxuan snapped out of his shock.
360 Dusk of Hell
Ye Qingxuan bent down in the mysterious temple and stared at the thing that was half his height. It clearly did not belong here and had been brought in by someone else. The copper kettle-like object seemed like a lotus. It was delicate and detailed without a single seam throughout the body. Ye Qingxuan cautiously put on a mask and gloves and opened the lid. He counted the grooves of varying sizes.
“Dispatch pool, fusion pool, cultivation pool…”
Fungus grew in many of the grooves due to the long period without maintenance. The cistern was murky and smelled horrible. The detailed inner paths were clogged and rust covered everything. This priceless cultivation kettle had been completely damaged due to the lack of care. As a specially-made alchemy equipment, it was useless to regular musicians. It could neither be used as a weapon nor perform any music scores. It was only used as aid for some Choir musicians. Its main use was…growing viruses!
With his last shred of hope, Ye Qingxuan reached out and scraped off a remaining white dot from the bottom of the kettle. He observed it with his Eye of Silence, magnifying it one-thousand times. He could vaguely see that countless dead viruses had dissolved but there was still a tiny bit of lively ‘survivors.’
As an outsider, Ye Qingxuan did not understand what they were. The Eye of Silence was not professional equipment either, and could not determine how the virus was made or what effect it had.
He only knew one thing: this virus was identical to the one he saw in the church! Understanding this, his gut dropped.
The virus that had exploded a few years ago and contaminated all of Auschwitz had come from this cultivation kettle. This site also contained traces of the King of Yellow. Everyone on this planet knew that the current King of Yellow was a once-in-a-century genius. In addition to high attainments in alchemy, he was also unparalleled in his studies of the School of Choir. Knowing this, who would believe that the King of Yellow did not create this virus?
Ye Qingxuan believed it. He did not dare to not believe it. If the King of Yellow really did do it, then he would have to think about what the Sacred City was doing…
The Romulusians had already been driven to barren Auschwitz because of their demon blood. However, the various nations still viewed them as a cancer that must be removed no matter the method…
Caligula had once showed him the scales on his leg, saying, “We’ve already paid too much for the sin we were born with.”
At that time, Ye Qingxuan did not understand what Caligula had meant but he seemed to know now. If all of this was due to the Sacred City, then…
“If you’re so powerful, why don’t you just become a god yourself?” Sighing, Ye Qingxuan thought for a bit and pointed his cane at the kettle. Under blinding electric light, the cultivation kettle quickly melted, distorted, and finally turned into unrecognizable liquid.
The words carved onto the Eye of Silence were true. Sometimes, knowing the truth was not an easy thing.
Ye Qingxuan decided to let this secret rot in his gut. It affected too many people. He could not tell anyone; he could not even let people discover that he had been here. He did not want to suddenly die in his sleep.
The countries did not keep assassins for fun. Plus, there was also a nightmare that hung above the heads of all musicians—the Silent Authority.
The only thing he could do was leave this place immediately and find an excuse to bring Caligula and Elsa to somewhere else. He believed that the Fifth Department could easily hide the two.
Before leaving, he took one last glance at the statue. It seemed to be looking down at him too. Its face was half-hidden in darkness and its lips were curled into what looked like a mocking smirk.
Ye Qingxuan quickly looked away. He closed the door and extinguished the holy fire. Looking back, there was no trace of the secret room. However, when he was carefully getting rid of his traces, something above him rumbled. Dust fell down and a giant crack appeared in the ceiling.
“An earthquake?” he muttered subconsciously.
But then he felt the blood boiling as it flowed through his veins. Moonlight flashed uncontrollably. It had sensed the overwhelming breath of the abyss…“Dark musicians!”
Stunned, he gaped at the Eye of Silence. The Deva’s blood sensed aether with music theory from the abyss appear endlessly. Both near and far, he could sense nearly one hundred dark musicians!
There was also a distorted ripple in the sky that he could feel even through the rock layer in the underground palace.
He sprinted out of the palace.
Just below the entrance of the mine, a burnt body fell from the sky. Boiling blood fell like rain.
Ye Qingxuan looked up. He could see through the ghastly crack that the black sky was red from the flames, bright as morning. It was like dusk in Hell.
-
With no time to hesitate, Ye Qingxuan quickly started climbing out. When his head peaked out, all he saw was a mass of killing.
Torre was surrounded by a group of beasts. He tore through them. When he saw Ye Qingxuan, his eyes brightened.
“Ye Qingxuan, did you see Kasper—” Before he could finish, countess cold lights flashed past. The silver nails turned red in the air and pierced Torre’s throat. A horn rang out and flames exploded, burning him to crisp.
Ye Qingxuan waved emotionlessly and retrieved his nails.
“Trying to fool me with illusions?”
The corpse fell down. The thing had no face. As the vitality was sapped, it stiffened. The soft scales that continuously changed colors quickly withered. Finally, it became a pile of black ash.
“Faceless actor.” Ye Qingxuan bent down and picked through the ashes until he found half a bone. The skullcap looked like a mask with a mocking smile. These were the children the dark followers created with the Dark Gaia’s power. Different from cannon fodder like the strays, the faceless actors were the best demon assassins born with illusion powers.
They could imitate someone pretty well with just a mere glance from the distance. One would not be able to distinguish the differences in a hurry. Plus, these things specialized in the imitation branch of the School of Illusion. They could imitate practically all music scores without any flaws other than a reduction in strength.
They could act as one’s lover for years without anyone realizing, let alone acting as a musician.
However, no matter how they changed, they were still demons and would activate the moonlight from dozens of steps away. In a hurry, they were unguarded against Ye Qingxuan. He easily cast Night on Bald Mountain, which he had saved in Jiu Xiao Huan Pei, and used the power of the stakes to kill the faceless actor. Otherwise, there would be more trouble.
He did not know what the demon would do if he dragged things on. The disguises were nothing to him but…what about the others?
Ye Qingxuan looked around. Under the Eye of Silence, he saw that Auschwitz was covered in red light. He seemed to have gone to another world and fallen into the lair of dark musicians.
“Will the others be okay?”
-
“Garbage!” Glen huffed as he was surrounded by demons. His armor was red-hot and blindingly bright. Under the song, dazzling flames shot out from under his feet, swallowing the incoming demons. The fire was more powerful than an incinerator.
The demons were practically cremated instantly but these things continued to crawl out of holes and walls like bugs. They just kept coming. If one died, ten more would appear. After e
ating the ashes of their dead, their bodies expanded and grew more menacing. They kept swarming over, surrounding Glen.
“Glen, don’t delay!” Not too far away, Torre was killing with Kasper. He looked back and said, “Go first and regroup with the others.”
“Doesn’t matter how much of this sh*t there are.” Glen grabbed a random demon. He closed his iron grip and turned the struggling demon into dust. Laughing wildly, he unsheathed his long sword.
Musicians rarely used swords because to them, regular weapons were incomparable to music scores. However, Glen’s school was unique and combined music scores with swordsmanship. Paired with a sword and armor, they looked more like warriors than musicians. They fought as wildly as warriors too.
With his sword out, the fire everywhere was stifled. Wild wings wrapped around the blade, almost tangibly. One could faintly see a blurry layer of whiteness. As the blade swung, the invisible wind cracked the earth apart. Blood sprayed.
Glen jumped into the mass of demons, cutting apart everything in his way. He struck with his sword, creating splatters of scarlet. Within an instant, the demons were all cleared away.
Amidst the bodies, Glen sneered. He sheathed his sword and turned toward Torre. “Look at these—” Before he could finish, the flesh scattered on the ground pounced onto him like a living thing. Caught by surprise, Glen was swallowed whole. The flesh had instantly become rotten and sewed together crudely. The stitches were made of white bone and looked mournfully abnormal.
The sewed up corpse roared. Its giant ‘head’ twisted and locked onto Torre. A beam of scarlet fire lit up in his abdomen. It screeched and Glen, covered in fire, broke out of it.
However, the armor that covered him had been eroded by the terrifying acid. Even his skin was gone. All that remained was a layer of desolate red.
361 The Dead
“Torre, help…” Glen rushed out of the corpse’s belly and fell to the ground, screaming for help. However, the giant corpse suddenly bent over and swallowed him again. It started to chew wildly. After a few snaps, the dull screams disappeared, leaving only a curved sword poking out of the corpse’s mouth, hanging on the face like a strange strand of hair.
Casper bared his teeth. His muscles pulled taut, and the hair on the back of his neck stood up. He wanted to pounce but Torre grabbed him and turned away without hesitation. No one knew what was going to happen while fighting with demons here. He was already aware of the strange aether fluctuations coming for him.
Just around the corner ahead, a faint aether wave suddenly emerged.
Torre did not stop but his voice suddenly turned gentle. He chanted soundlessly, playing a silent movement in the stillness. The music theory was being constructed in his hand, ready to be sent.
In an instant, two figures met in the corner. Coldness flashed in Torre’s eyes, but the other person jumped back and raised his hands to protect his face.
“Wait!” The white-haired young man exhaled when he saw it was the Hauser brothers. “Torre, it’s me, Ye—”
But Torre continued without hesitation. He pressed his palm down and the other person froze. Crimson blood boiled under his skin. His face distorted. Then, an invisible giant head descended and bit. The flesh and blood burst. Soon, the flesh disappeared without trace. It was just a phantom.
In the distance, Ye Qingxuan’s figure appeared. He looked at them, full of vigilance. “How can you do that? It’s me, Torre, what’s wrong with you?”
Torre narrowed his eyes and watched him for a while. His taut body finally relaxed.
“Sorry, I’m too nervous. I thought you were an enemy in disguise.”
Ye Qingxuan’s face twitched a bit. He sighed helplessly. “Forget it. I understand. What’s your next step?”
“Look for other people first. The more people who gather together, the bigger the possibility of survival,” Torre said. “I wonder what is going on with the Masters.”
“I’m afraid we can’t worry about them.” Ye Qingxuan walked forward with Torre. “I did not expect that those dark musicians are so rampant. They even…”
Boom! Behind him, Casper rampaged. Layers of huge mouths shrouded Ye Qingxuan’s back. Ye Qingxuan’s expression changed. He tried to roll forward but found his feet were anchored to the ground. The air around him was solid like a lock, tightly clamping him in. The next moment, the flesh and blood burst. The phantom dissipated and a hideous, hollow head rolled to the ground.
Torre smashed the head with his foot expressionlessly and lightly said, “Play such a trick before discipline musicians? Are you kidding me?”
In the silence, someone coughed behind the corner not far away. “Well…” Under two sharp gazes, a white-haired youth came out, holding his hands high with a complex expression. “If I said I’m real, would you believe me?”
Torre paused for a moment and glanced at Casper. Casper looked as he had before. He glanced at Ye Qingxuan then looked away, continuing to hang his head. Casper never recognized people by their face, temperament, feeling, breath, or fluctuation. Beasts only judged beasts. As the result of the animal genetics, he could sniff the beastly nature hidden in one’s mind. Almost no camouflage could cheat its eyes.
Seeing Casper’s such reaction, Torre sighed softly. “You’re real.”
“So can I come forward?” Ye Qingxuan took a step cautiously. Then after another step, he stopped and thought for a while. He stepped back to his original spot and smiled. “Or I just keep being like this. This will also be more convenient for us to escape.”
“…” Torre was speechless. In the end, he just sighed. “Whatever. Do you have any advice?”
“Just do as you discussed with the previous ‘faker.’ Find the others. At the very least, figure out what’s going on.” Mercury threads spread from the youth’s body and melted into the hellish crimson wind and flew into the surroundings. At the same time, his face slacked. He looked back to the collapsing burning house. His smile stiffened.
Torre followed his eyes but could not sense the breaths of any living creatures. “What’s wrong?”
Ye Qingxuan was silent for a while. He whispered, “Can you ask your brother to help lift the wall up?”
Torre looked at Casper. Casper growled and the wall was flipped by some unknown force. There seemed to be an invisible giant beast scratching; even the flames were extinguished. The body under was revealed.
When Torre saw the clothing of the corpse, he soon understood something. He lowered his eyes.
Ye Qingxuan bent over to sweep the dust off the deceased’s face. The dead looked grim and full of anger as if he had suffered an incredible betrayal.
“It’s you.” Ye Qingxuan lowered his eyes, sighing sadly. He put a holy emblem in the palm of the deceased and folded his fingers so he could firmly hold it. Thus, in the ashes, the dead’s angry expression faded and his eyes closed.
“Dust to dust, earth to earth.” Ye Qingxuan gave him one last glance. “Goodbye.”
The figure slept in the fire and blurred. The sound of the flames was muffled as well like a farewell. After a long time, there was no more sound.
-
Sam was thirsty as he slept. Some sweet liquid fell onto his face and flowed into the dry and cracked lips. He moaned and subconsciously sucked the droplet by the corner of his lips. What filled in the mouth was a cold iron taste. It was blood.
He awoke from his dream and saw the burning town. Miller was carrying him on his back. He was still thin but a faint deep blue showed under his skin like steel covered with a layer of leather.
“You’re awake?” Miller smiled wryly. “I thought you would sleep for six months.” Then Miller applied the medicine for him again. He hesitated but took out a tube to give Sam a shot. Now, Sam was finally sober. His tiredness disappeared and he became energetic again. Even the cracks on his face revealed some faint glow.
He had slept for so many days that, if it were not the dark musician’s attack, he would still be lying in the church. At the
beginning of the attack, the first to be destroyed was the church. Miller had rushed into the burning church, carried out the sick Sam, and ran until now.
When Baro found him, he was surrounded by a group of demons. If it was a little later, the demons might have feasted on him and Sam. It was Baro who had come all the way to gather the musicians. There were about thirty flustered musicians. None of their usual demeanor and reserve could be seen. They were like a group of wandering beggars.
Baro had a broken hand and bloodshot eyes. He muttered something like a psychopath. He had forced too much beast nature out, which was about to crush his sanity. However, the crazier a Summoning musician was, the more powerful! In particular, he unified the phantom beasts with the sound of heart “Tiger Bone” to forcibly repress the beastly nature. He barely managed to stay sane.
Around him, the invisible flying sycles were inflated several times, emitting strong murderous intent. Even the recently-stitched giant corpses were torn up by the furious phantom beasts.
“Now that the grandmasters disappeared, where are we going?” After understanding the situation, Sam looked to Baro who was guiding the road. “Rushing out is impossible. This is the dark atrium that the dark saints had evolved with their scepters. They probably want to capture all of us. And…”
He smiled wryly and looked at the high wall up to the sky in the distance. Maybe those nations didn’t expect that the elite musicians of the new generation would be trapped in behind this wall when they built in order to isolate the plague.
“Go north.” Baro wiped the blood on his face. His voice was hoarse. “First we evacuate to the Snow Hotel where I came from. There is a grandmaster there.”
“Which one?”
Hearing this, all the people became excited and began to ask questions. The morale turned high when they got to know the details. Even the effect of the music scores became stronger.
“Be careful! Don’t attract any monsters.” Miller sighed. “We’d better save our strength. I already feel my body starting to fade. The dark atrium is suppressing us.” As a Choir musician, he was obviously the most aware of his physical condition. He could surely detect the silent erosion from the dark atrium. The repression on the strength was not the worst, but the dark atrium’s force directly influenced the spirit. If they did not pay attention, they could be turned into demons without realizing it.