328 I am Ye Qingxuan… (2/2)
”Stop joking.” Arianna glared at the speaker. ”You think brainwashing is as easy as wiping words off a piece of paper? You have to block the memories, reset the personality, correct the self-recognition…you need at least one hundred hints. This involves inheritance. It's impossible if you don't have a teacher who is also an expert and ultra-precise operation. Especially with a musician like Simon, you can easily ruin everything with the slightest moment of inattentiveness. It's so much easier to just kill him!”
”What if you do it? Is it hard for you too?” It was obvious the asker did not have good intentions.
Arianna scoffed. Her smile was indescribably enchanting and demonic. ”What do you think?”
The other's heart shook and he quickly looked away in regret. Why did he mess with the psychos from the School of Mind?
Arianna smiled as if nothing had happened but it was clear she would remember that man and deal with him later.
”Enough, stop fooling around,” Colt uttered, snuffing the start of an internal war. ”There are ten more minutes until the deadline. If you have any conflicts, wait until dawn to fight.” He looked away and calmed himself down. He focused on the surrounding marks he had set and felt for aether waves. However, he heard someone else's voice in the silence.
”Hey, Colt, someone else is coming.”
Stunned, he looked up and saw fire. In the distance, at the end of the road, the rain was burning like fire. A youth was walking forward on flames. He strode over, ignoring the group in the distance. As if he was in his own world, he hummed an unclear and faraway song. Raindrops fell onto him and rose like flames. When he stepped onto the ground, mud splashed like water.
It was pure aetheric change. The nature changed without any sign. It transformed into wind, condensed into rain, converged into fire, and turned into dirt. It was like an illusion.
Colt furrowed his brows in discontent and looked back. ”There's been enough weird things,” he growled. ”Rebecca, stop joking and get rid of the fulcrum.”
Rebecca froze under everyone's scrutiny. Suddenly understanding, cold sweat appeared on her forehead. ”I-it's not me.” She waved in panic. ”That's not my fulcrum.”
Everyone's eyes grew serious in the dead silence. A song traveled to their ears.
The youth's hoarse song resounded in the rain and spread in all directions. It seemed to be some diddly but was so unclear. It was indescribably pleasant and distant as if it came from the mountains. The song hung in the air. And under it, everything began to change. The youth came forward with fire in the darkness.
-
All was silent in the air.
”It's an Eastern language.” Someone looked to Mr. Hu. ”Is this your student from the Imperial College? I've never heard of this music score…”
”No, it's just a folk song. It's not a music score and it doesn't have any effects.” Mr. Hu chuckled wryly. ”And we don't have any Indians. If I'm not wrong, this is probably the other youth I've seen.”
”Who?” The grandmasters exchanged glances. None of their schools had a young man like him. ”Is he a student from a secretive school or fraternity?”
”He's finally here?” the mysterious man blowing his nose murmured from the back as he smiled. ”You made me wait for so long, kid.”
-
In the silence, only the song sounded. Everyone gazed at the young man singing and advancing with fire. They watched as he walked in the mud without any obstacles. The footprints he left behind burned in the rain.
Rain drenched his body and he looked pathetic but he did not seem to care. In fact, he smiled happily. Faced with so many menacing musicians, he was still relaxed as if this was a day trip. Rain fell on all his swords and knives, rolling down the hilts and blades. The average swords seemed mysterious now too.
The atmosphere grew heavy, pressing down on everyone's hearts and making it hard to breathe.
”Who is he?” Someone in the crowd furrowed his brows. ”A sword seller?”
In the flowing flames and burning rain, the youth took off his heavy turban and revealed his trademark white hair. The whiteness shone in the fire, piercing their eyes.
”I am Ye Qingxuan…” The youth gazed at their faces and smiled warmly. ”I'm here to sell swords.”