Chapter 630

Chapter 630: Don’t Play Next Time

Ye Xu’s expression remained impassive.

Through two lifetimes, he had never heard such dreadful music.

No—it couldn’t even be called music.

It was purely noise pollution.

"Master…" Taotie choked back hot tears. "Please stop him. If this continues, I might not die on the battlefield—but die by his hand!"

"The master of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion?"

Qi Ancestor’s eyes flickered with relief as joyful tears welled up.

Celestial Lord Wu also watched with hopeful anticipation. Though the Tao Tie Heavenly Palace was his adversary, he yearned more for Ye Xu to subdue Zhuge Qinmo.

Others played the zither for money; but his playing cost lives.

"Daoist friend, who are you?" Zhuge Qinmo frowned in displeasure. "To insult my musical skills is to insult me."

"Zhuge Qinmo, you don’t deserve the words ‘musical skills’."

Ye Xu sneered.

"Senior, that was terrible," Xixi added the final jab. "Don’t play next time."

"…"

Zhuge Qinmo’s eye twitched violently, fury blazing through him. "You dismiss my musical skills as worthless—yours must be unparalleled, then.

How about we hold a contest?"

Ye Xu’s depth of cultivation was unfathomable, impossible for Zhuge Qinmo to discern. He dared not speak too rashly—after all, the yang realm housed Dao One powerhouses. If Ye Xu was one, showing humility might still grant him leeway.

"Very well." Ye Xu grinned. "Begin."

"Haha—then, Daoist friend, play!"

Zhuge Qinmo sat cross-legged, fingers sweeping the zither strings.

Twang!

A chord like thunder cracked down!

The world fractured into countless shards beneath a terrifying power; streaks of sword qi crisscrossed the sky, plunging toward Ye Xu.

"He’s tired of living…" Taotie and Celestial Lord Wu exchanged triumphant, mocking glances.

Who was the master of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion?

A supreme powerhouse who hadn’t just crushed the Haotian lineage beneath his heel—but nearly dragged the world of the Pure Land into the yang realm, almost ending all creation.

Not even a Dao One powerhouse would dare strike against Heaven’s Secret Pavilion’s master. Yet Zhuge Qinmo—a mere Dao Ancestor—took the first move?

He obviously didn’t know how the character for ‘death’ was written.

Ye Xu smirked, amused. He took one step forward.

The sword qi dissolved into nothingness.

The chord vanished, erased by an unfathomable force. He appeared directly before Zhuge Qinmo, gazing down at him.

Zhuge Qinmo’s face drained of blood, terror seizing him. Without hesitation, he surrendered.

"Daoist brother, your capabilities transcend creation—I concede wholeheartedly."

"I haven’t demonstrated my musical skills," Ye Xu countered mildly. "You haven’t lost yet."

Ye Xu’s gaze fell upon the black zither as he smiled, "Why not lend me this zither to play a tune, Daoist friend?"

"???" Zhuge Qinmo felt an ominous sensation rise in his heart. A grand Dao One powerhouse, yet couldn’t even produce a worn-out zither?

"Are you unwilling, Daoist friend?" Ye Xu asked with displeasure.

"Willing!"

Zhuge Qinmo laughed uproariously, "This junior happens to want a lesson from Senior." He respectfully presented the black zither.

Ye Xu sat in the void, placed his ten fingers upon the zither strings, and closed his eyes.

"Is Senior actually good at playing the zither?" Xixi wondered aloud.

Everyone wore expressions of anticipation.

"The Master is an extraordinary transcendence beyond this world; he must possess supreme musical skills," declared Qi Ancestor, his eyes full of expectation as he put away his own zither, leaned in, and prepared to learn well.

Twang!

Ye Xu plucked a string with his index finger.

Zhuge Qinmo’s face instantly turned pitch-black.

"Awful!"

The others’ expressions also grew peculiar.

Twang, twang, twang!

Ye Xu was thoroughly enjoying himself, his fingers dancing across the strings. The zither notes lingered, each tone leaping within the void, composing noiselessly the song of the "Lone Brave."

"Argh…"

Zhuge Qinmo showed no mercy, spewing and spewing.

Qi Ancestor’s face froze stiff.

Does higher cultivation level mean worse zither playing?

Taotie, Celestial Lord Wu, and the other cultivators simply sealed their six senses, not daring to listen further. Unlike Zhuge Qinmo, blocking their senses meant they heard nothing, spared the pollution of Ye Xu’s zither music.

The piece concluded, and Ye Xu opened his eyes.

"Never thought I possessed talent in this area too," Ye Xu chuckled proudly. "In the future, I shouldn’t focus all my energy on chess and Dou Di Zhu. The potential for music, chess, calligraphy, and painting can blossom as well!"

Ye Xu now understood. Zhuge Qinmo’s poor musical skills were purely his own fault; it had absolutely nothing to do with the black zither.

"Xixi, how did it sound?" Ye Xu fixed a burning gaze on the young girl.

Xixi removed her hands from her ears, glanced at Zhuge Qinmo, and said, "Senior, you played far better than him. This… he calls playing the zither?"

Zhuge Qinmo snorted icily, "Barely more than pounding random notes!"

"Then let a professional judge." Ye Xu said to Qi Ancestor with a smile, "Daoist friend, what’s your opinion of me?"

"The melody was novel and had great innovative significance." Qi Ancestor said with a laugh. Apart from that, he couldn’t find even a shred of merit.

"The Master’s musical skills surpass Daoist Friend Zhuge’s." That was the truth. Zhuge Qinmo’s playing the zither was truly dreadful; Qi Ancestor still couldn’t understand how a Dao Ancestor immersed in musical skills could produce such an awful tune.

"That’s outright lying!" Zhuge Qinmo said indignantly.

"You’re playing the zither for the first time, Senior; you’ll definitely keep improving." Xixi said.

"Daoist Friend Zhuge, we’ve finished the match; let’s settle the account." Ye Xu held onto the black zither and didn’t give it to Zhuge Qinmo.

"Senior, my zither…" Zhuge Qinmo’s heart skipped a beat; he started to speak but stopped.

"Don’t worry." Ye Xu said with a smile, "Once we settle the accounts, I’ll give it back to you." "How could I, a respected and honorable Master, covet a single zither?"

"Taotie, come over here." Ye Xu beckoned, and Taotie appeared instantly, crossing thousands of miles.

"When Daoist Friend Zhuge played the zither earlier, did you feel unwell?" Taotie nodded sorrowfully and said, "If the Master had been even a second later, I might have died here. Please uphold justice for the members of the Taotie Heavenly Palace!"

"…" Zhuge Qinmo was plunged into deep doubt. Was his playing really so bad?

"Impossible." Zhuge Qinmo snorted coldly, "He must be trying to cheat me!"

"The Taotie Heavenly Palace has forty-eight thousand loyal members, all my trusted subordinates." Ye Xu lamented painfully and said, "Daoist Friend Zhuge, you nearly caused the deaths of my 48,000 subordinates; you must provide compensation." "Damages for loss of youth, mental anguish, medical fees…" Ye Xu listed them on a bill.

"Fifty trillion divine stones?" Zhuge Qinmo’s eyes bulged. Qi Ancestor shivered. Rumors that the master of Heaven’s Secret Pavilion was shamelessly greedy turned out to be no exaggeration.

"Daoist friend, this is already a discounted price."

Ye Xu said discontentedly, "Besides, I even bested you in our recent spar…"

"Esteemed senior, please say no more."

Zhuge Qinmo’s gaze remained fixed on the black zither in Ye Xu’s hands. Compared to an epochal treasure, fifty trillion divine stones seemed like a mere drop in the bucket.

"Elder truly is formidable."

Xixi sighed. "With just a few words spoken, fifty trillion divine stones flow into your coffers."

"That’s the toll fee."

Taotie laughed.

Zhuge Qinmo drew forth an ancient bronze sword. The weapon, tarnished green with age and heavily rusted, radiated a ferocious, suffocating aura—as if it imprisoned a great demon of unparalleled cruelty within its blade.

"Esteemed senior, this is an incomparably wicked sword forged three epochs ago. Though damaged," Zhuge Qinmo declared solemnly, "it could unquestionably cover the price of fifty trillion divine stones."

Under others’ eaves, one must bow.

"A pliant pupil learns."

Ye Xu accepted the ancient sword yet did not immediately surrender the black zither.

Zhuge Qinmo stood frozen in confusion.

"Aren’t you searching for Qin Huangluo’s whereabouts?" Ye Xu smiled meaningfully.

"How would esteemed senior know that?"

Zhuge Qinmo’s expression flickered with surprise.

"No matter," Ye Xu continued lightly. "Since you just arrived in the yang realm, you remain unfamiliar with the reputation of my Heaven’s Secret Pavilion."

Zhuge Qinmo’s pupils contracted sharply.

Naturally, he knew the whispers about Heaven’s Secret Pavilion—he’d merely scoffed, believing no truly transcendent, all-knowing being could exist in this world.

Yet, hearing of a name pales before a firsthand meeting.

Here and now, he dared not doubt.

"No need for haste," Ye Xu said with a chuckle. "I shall indeed reveal Qin Huangluo’s location to you."

"Qi Ancestor."

"Greetings, Master," Qi Ancestor murmured, heart sinking with dread. Ye Xu calling him out separately boded ill.

"What commands does the Master have?"

Ye Xu offered a genial smile. "On this occasion, you fled into Zixiao Immortal Domain."

"Fortunate it was," he continued, "that I intervened and resolved your predicament. We may call this fate."

"…"

Qi Ancestor’s heart plummeted to the abyss.