8 Music Notes (1/2)
”If you want to be a musician, you need to understand who the musicians are. Throwing out all accessories, removing all glories--being a musician is to devote yourself purely to your career. Compared with the musicians of the Dark Age, we cannot even say we love music. Compared with other people, we cannot even say we sacrifice more.
”But there is no doubt that we are most suitable ones for communicating with aether, and we are the ones who can best understand aether, too. Aether is everywhere. It is part of the world, existing even earlier than humans. Whether it is soil, water, fire or air, those are composed of aether. But aether is different from these elements because they can, and only do, respond to sound. Do you understand this premise?”
Ye Qingxuan nodded.
”At first, the communication between humans and the aether relied on runes. Those notes inexplicably transcribed the voice of the Gods, composing music that could shake reality. These notes are known in some places as 'runes,' in some places as 'charms,' and in the East, they are called 'Mantra.'
”In that era, humans communicated with the Aether by singing the runes,” Wolf continued to explain. ”With time, a lot of things changed. Runes evolved into small sections called measures, and measures evolved into music scores until there was a need for dozens of musicians to release the formation of the 'symphony.'
”Music division classification also became more and more defined. There are hundreds of special careers in seven specializations. The sages' explorations formed the road to the 'Nine Levels of Musicians.' Even returning to the Originator was not a delusion anymore.
”But before that, there was always a never-changing iron rule–connect with the aether, respect the aether!” Wolf Flute stared at Ye Qingxuan's pale face, trying to gain a feel for him, but then he slowly shook his head. ”You cannot sense the aether, Ye.”
Ye Qingxuan kept silent. After a long time, he softly said, ”Mr. Wolf Flute, I can learn musical instruments, I can even-”
”No, you cannot.” Wolf Flute became serious. ”A man who has never been close to an animal cannot ride a horse, and a man living in the desert cannot swim
”Ye, perhaps you have a reason why you must be a musician. But if you can't even sense the aether, you'll be constructing a building without a foundation. If you can't sense the aether, you won't know what the aether is doing.
”At that time, it'll be a good thing if your music score has no effect. If a single rune goes out of control, the result could be horrifying…” He paused, his eyes turning pained.
”The smallest mistakes I've seen were all paid for in death. This is why cities and villages are all built in places of low aether density. Important places must even be set inside silent enchantments to freeze the aether. A musician must also have a unified heart of sound to rid your body of white noise disturbance.”
Here, Wolf Flute realized that he had said too much.
The more he said, the crueler it became for Ye Qingxuan to endure because it became more and more clear to him that his dream was far, far away from him.
Ye Qingxuan was still looking at him, so he could not bear to stop. He sighed, ”Ye, these words that I've said to you could be considered compensation for your work. But I cannot talk too much, as this information is restricted and is not open to ordinary people. If you are still interested, the stuff you will see later will be my last exhortation.”
Then, he did not wait for Ye Qingxuan to answer, and raised his own hands. He was no longer laughing. His face became serious, then more and more pale.
In front of Ye Qingxuan, Wolf Flute leaned against the wall, his hands folding into his chest, and took a deep breath.
At the end of a long exhale, the slightest strands of sound spread out with his long song. This kind of voice seemed to be deliberately suppressed to be faint, like a vague wind, but also had the essence of a snake's subtle sound.
But in this enchanted sound, the air in front of Wolf Flute suddenly became blurred!
A trace of a light from the convergence gathered in front of him three feet ahead of the place, surging and brewing. Then, it burst into full bloom. It converged into crystals and grew in the air, reflecting the shadows of roses. Roses reflected irises vaguely. It was magnificent enough to make people intoxicated.
Then, the silky sound suddenly changed by a slight jump, which made it out of place.
In response, the magnificent flower turned into disgusting dark red and dark green. The mixed colors made one feel nauseous, then quickly collapsed while the crystals were broken, and burst.
Snap!
The shock of the bursting sound awakened the sluggish teen.
Wolf Flute put down his hands, breathing heavily. His forehead exuded a cold sweat.
”Those were the so-called out-of-control notes, Ye.”
Wolf Flute wanted to raise his hands, but his body could not bear to, so he gave a bitter smile. ”That's it for today. Ye, I am a little bit tired. Please let me rest for a while.”
Ye Qingxuan was ready to leave, but was stopped again.
”Ye, even if you don't become a musician, life can still be very good.” Wolf Flute stared at him while lying in the bed. ”Do not be too obsessed with its aura.”
”I understand.” Ye Qingxuan reluctantly smiled as he pulled the door.
After a long time, someone knocked on the door again. Not waiting for him to answer, Father Bann pushed into the room.
”He's gone.” Wolf Flute said lazily, ”Congratulations, you will get a qualified little priest, but next time, can you tell him those cruel words yourself?”
Father Bann retorted, ”Shouldn't musicians be cruel?”
”Nobody said that one had to be cruel to be a musician…” Wolf Flute squeezed his eyes and whispered, ”But not being cruel enough will not make for a happy life.”
”Looking at you, I understand exactly what you mean.” Father Bann nodded, which made Wolf Flute unable to breathe for a while.
After coughing for a long time, he finally uttered, ”Hey, Father, why are you so bored that you have to destroy young people's dreams like poking at soap bubbles? Everyone wanted to be a musician when they were younger, right? How wonderful to be a musician! I was cheated when I was young and thought that the musicians were so handsome and fun, and they could save lives, but the result was that it turned me into this messed up state. He would have understood it sooner or later.”
Father looked at him coldly, shaking his head. ”This child is not the type to dream of all that glory. I am worried about his pursuit of some even more dangerous things.”
”Dangerous?” Wolf Flute grinned. ”Could it be more dangerous than my situation?”
Father Bann seemed to be puzzled, wondering for a long time, then raised his eyebrows slowly.