112 Dark Musician (1/2)
In the darkness, the youth gripped his cane, manipulating the dark melody with his eyes closed. He was in a place where it was impossible to be disturbed, and he could focus entirely on manipulating the aether. He could feel the music notes flowing with his mind, jumping out of the instrument strings, falling into the omnipresent sea of aether. The notes echoed and the ripple spread in all directions. It was his first time experiencing this sweet feeling.
Before, precise manipulation had been close to impossible, but now, with the help of Jiu Xiao Huan Pei, it was easy as pie. Maybe this was the ‘feeling’ that Charles always spoke of. The dark music was a link, connecting man with aether. Ye Qingxuan was entirely submerged in this amazing experience. Jiu Xiao Huan Pei was now fully awake, an extension of his right hand.
For a millennium, this zither had resonated with his ancestors, becoming one with the Ye lineage. Now, it became Ye Qingxuan’s cane, helping him run down the road to becoming a musician.
Just as his consciousness expanded with the aether, the melody suddenly stopped. ”Bai Xi? Old Phil?” His eyes flew open in shock. ”Why are you here?!”
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In the crowd, Bai Xi watched everything in bewilderment.
Sam went crazy under everyone’s gaze. He screamed at the empty darkness and stumbled back, scared out of his wits.
Chills went down everyone’s spines. Outside the illuminated area, the darkness surged. The dark melody was like the tragic song of a demon in hell, calling for death.
”It’s Anta, it’s brother Anta!” A thug with a bow in his hands looked around, his eyes filled with fear. ”He’s back! He’s back for revenge!”
Sandro gaped at his boss’ hysterical reaction. He moved to stop him, but as soon as he touched his shoulder, the Pyramid King screamed.
He spun around and aimed the bow at Sandro’s head. ”Go die!” The Pyramid King’s eyes were blood red. ”Die!”
Sandro froze, ”Boss, I…”
Crack! His head exploded and he fell.
Amidst the spray of blood, the Pyramid King stood atop of the corpse, bellowing with laughter. With his face covered in blood, he continued kicking the body. ”Dead, he’s dead! Haha, Anta, you died again! You died again. If I can kill you once, I can kill you again!” Stepping on Sandro’s corpse, he shot arrow after arrow. The hysterical laughter did not fade until Sandro became a porcupine.
Finally, his reason won against his fear. He woke from his daze and touched the blood on his face, not knowing what had just happened. ”Sandro? Sandro?!” The Pyramid King called his underling’s name, not knowing that he had just shot his most trusted man’s head open.
Everyone stared at him in horror, stepping back as if watching a lunatic.
In the silence, the Pyramid King seemed to understand. He screamed, ”Get the f*ck out of here!” He stared at the crowd with dead and dark eyes, trying to see which face hid the demon. He continued screaming, ”Get out of here! I’m going to kill you, you son of a b*tch!”
”D-dark musician!” someone in the crowd yelped. ”Run, that guy is a dark musician!” Dark musician! In an instant, everyone was suddenly ”enlightened,” having realized the true nature of the monster, and the fear came soon after.
Yes, only a creature like a dark musician could manipulate such an eerie melody, play with a man’s mind so easily, and turn someone into a lunatic. All dark musicians were either wanted by secret authorities for exploring forbidden areas, or joined Satan, aiding in natural catastrophes. No matter what, dark musicians were synonymous with fear and monsters. No matter what, they had so much blood on their hands! Just like the Rain Artist who had given his hometown to Satan without hesitation, these things were monsters unable to be measured by morals or common knowledge. An indescribable panic radiated from everyone with the murmurs and whispers.
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”Dark musician?” Ye Qingxuan’s expression changed in the darkness, ”Am I really like that?” He was troubled. All he had done was make a plan. First, he had learned of the Pyramid King’s past from multiple people, getting the information he needed. Then by attacking Kruger, he was able to make the Pyramid King angry. Then he guided the man to discover the tombstone he had prepared, instilling fear. Finally, Sandro uttered the name ”Anta” in panic, successfully touching on the deepest fear in the Pyramid King’s heart. Thus, the Pyramid King was submerged in his nightmare since the beginning. Black Friday had just been the bait. It weakened his guard, leading him to hallucinate on his own until he lost all control. The process was just much more successful than Ye Qingxuan had anticipated.