Chapter 39: The Fearsome Might!

  "What's wrong with him? Why hasn't he started yet after half a day?"

  "It can't be, can it?"

  "How is this possible? Ranked second overall, can't even compose a first movement?"

  ……

  A low murmur of discussion came from under the platform, and the words were full of doubts.

  "What's wrong with you, Elder Xiao?"

  Among the crowd, Lin Chuyin and Luo Qing both looked at Xiao Yun with a puzzled expression, not knowing what was going on with her. They had witnessed Xiao Yun's piano skills before, which could only be described as mesmerizing. Had she gotten stage fright?

  Xu Wanjun and Lu Jianfeng's eyes were also filled with curiosity, this first-place-in-literary-exam-and-third-place-in-martial-arts-exam disciple wouldn't be empty-handed, would he?

  ——

  After a pause, Xiao Yun suddenly let out a breath of air, and a tune was locked in his mind. Since he couldn't play a good one, then he would play a bad one.

  This is a song that is revered as a 'divine melody' on Earth, winning countless awards and being sung by countless people to the point of exhaustion. However, in Xiao Yun's opinion, this 'divine melody' would only become a common tune in the Tian Yue continent. When he first heard this song, he felt that it could be summed up in two words: torture!

  Song name: "Apprehensive"!

  Xiao Yun let out a sigh of relief, it's all right if it's rotten, getting the last name doesn't matter, Mu Tian'en was right, timely low-key can make oneself walk more steadily in the future.

  This song perfectly reflects Xiao Yun's current anxious state of mind, but as soon as it comes out, I'm afraid it will be scolded by countless people, and its existence as the second-place winner on the total chart is just making a mediocre song, let alone such a terrible one.

  "Apprehensive?"

  After waiting for a long time, Xiang Yun finally spoke up. Everyone perked up their ears, although they didn't know what kind of "nervousness" Xiang Yun was referring to. However, with the previous brick-throwing and jade-offering, as the second-ranked existence on the overall list, the song he composed shouldn't be bad either. Perhaps they would even have the good fortune to hear a song that would linger in their ears.

  "Clang!"

  The score gradually became clear in his mind, Xiao Yun's fingers moved, and the notes floated out one by one, spreading throughout the entire square in an instant.

  "Hiss!"

  The sound of the qin had just begun, and a murmur arose from below, most people's faces changed from expectation to disappointment. Lu Jianfeng even let out a soft laugh. This piece didn't evoke even half a point of spiritual energy, the melody was so simple, it was just a common tune, and not only that, but also the worst kind of common tune, there wasn't even half a reason for people to continue listening.

  How did this happen?

  Lin Chuoyin and Luo Qing both had disbelieving faces, even the first-place winner Xu Wanjun had a similar expression. It was too unexpected, she had considered Xiao Yun as her arch-rival, but how could Xiao Yun come up with such a piece? Could this even be called music? It was simply disappointing.

  "Clang! Clang! Clang!"

  "Huh?"

  Just when everyone was extremely disappointed, the piano sound suddenly changed, and all the people on the scene, including the elderly on the stage, felt their hearts beating violently with the piano sound at the same time.

  Many people were whispering among themselves, but at this moment, everyone fell silent. The feeling was as if a group of students had been called upon by the teacher to hand in their homework, all movements came to a standstill, and an inexplicable sense of panic crept quietly into the hearts of the crowd.

  "Clang! Clang! Clang!"

  Xiao Yun himself was completely unaware of this, playing self-absorbedly, his ten fingers flying rapidly on the strings, the melody constantly changing, one second still in the sky, the next second falling to the ground, and the next second as if standing in the vast ocean.

  Almost all of the disciples stared blankly at Xiao Yun, this tune was completely challenging the limits of what they could endure.

  On a scorching hot day, people felt as if they had fallen into an icy cave, with goosebumps all over their bodies. They were terrified, and their hearts beat to the rhythm of the eerie melody, sometimes fast, sometimes slow, suddenly contracting, then expanding. A nameless palpitation lingered in their minds.

  As the unpredictable melody sounded, an atmosphere of panic instantly spread across the entire square, and illusions flashed before their eyes. Many low-level disciples quickly fell into it, with extremely painful expressions on their faces.

  Many people covered their ears, but the sound of the piano still hit their eardrums relentlessly. Those with slightly higher cultivation hastily sat cross-legged on the ground, circulating their internal energy to resist it, their faces turning bright red as their hearts thumped wildly and erratically, as if they were about to collapse at any moment.

  "What kind of ghost song is this?"

  Xie Tian let out a cry of surprise, a vulgar tune, unexpectedly causing such a big commotion, it was simply unimaginable. Even his own musical realm was affected by Xiao Yun's song, making him feel extremely uncomfortable. The few musicians also had goosebumps all over their bodies and couldn't help but secretly circulate their internal energy to resist.

  "Ah yi ya yo..."

  Bounced to the depths, Xiao Yun actually started singing again. That voice was simply an outburst of the soul of life. Many disciples who were still resisting with their skills collapsed immediately after Xiao Yun opened his mouth.

  "What is he singing? What song is he singing?"

  "Oh heavens, shut him up already!"

  ……

  Apart from a few disciples with deeper skills who could grit their teeth and persevere, most of the disciples covered their ears and wailed. The sound was like a devilish melody that pierced their minds and souls, causing the five-note gods in each disciple's mind to shake violently. The indescribable pain made many disciples fall to the ground, with some even vomiting on the spot.

  "Kid, stop playing, put your hands up!"

  "Clang!"

  Xiao Yun was in the midst of a delightful conversation when suddenly, out of nowhere, he heard a thunderous shout from Mo Tian'en right next to his ear, which made him jump and almost get injured by the piano strings, causing the music to come to an abrupt halt.

  Looking back, Mu Tianen was staring at him with anger, and the bodies of several music masters were also slightly swaying. Xiao Yun was somewhat inexplicable, didn't this old man ask him to keep a low profile? He picked up a rotten tune to play, could he still be wrong?

  Looking down at the stage again, I don't know when, a large area of the stage had already fallen, and many people were vomiting uncontrollably on the ground. Xiao Yun was shocked, is this song so hard to listen to? Or is it just my own singing that's hard to listen to? It seems like I've only sung one sentence, and I haven't even gotten into it yet.

  "Others sing for money, but you're singing as if it's going to cost us our lives! Get down from there quickly!"

  This kid doesn't know what kind of freak he is, a common tune can be performed with such great power. If it wasn't for him stopping in time, I'm afraid many disciples below the stage would have been hurt. What's even more infuriating is that this kid still has an innocent look on his face, just like a naive monk, as if he hasn't realized yet that the tune he just played almost had such severe consequences.

  Just as he picked up the Jiuxiaoqin and stepped down from the stage, those disciples saw Xiao Yun come down, each and every one of them looked like they had seen a ghost. Xiao Yun was somewhat perplexed, returning to his seat, looking around left and right, Xu Wanjun and Lu Jianfeng were both meditating with their eyes closed, their faces flushed bright red, as if they had practiced their skills incorrectly.

  "Could this tune 'Terror' have such great power?"

  Xiao Yun's face was filled with thick doubts, but after thinking about it again, he felt that something wasn't right. It was just a common tune, how could it cause such widespread harm? What exactly had just happened?

  This song from the earth can be said to be the most unique one in Xiao Yun's memory, with extremely high difficulty, requiring not only deep singing skills and rich expressions, but also unpredictable melody and very unique rhythm.

  Not only does the song make people feel like they're being tormented in the 18th level of hell, but its lyrics are also unacceptable because no one knows what the lyrics are singing about. Compared to those "divine songs" that can be recited fluently after just one listen, this song is notorious for being impossible to learn even after listening a million times.

  Xiao Yun almost collapsed when she first heard this song, but later she spent time learning it to challenge herself. However, what she learned was only a semblance of the original, and to achieve a similarity like the original singer would be beyond human limits for Xiao Yun.

  A wave of "awe" stirred up, and it didn't stop for a long time. After a while, the square gradually returned to calmness, and almost everyone's eyes still had lingering fear. If Xiao Yun continued to play for a while, I'm afraid many disciples would have ruined their spiritual palace and abandoned their Taoist practice.