Chapter 92

"Today, we will begin a more full-fledged sound arts class."

As always, in the soundproofed sound arts classroom on the third floor of the Music Hall, the Heavenly Sound Fairy Hong Ran looked around at her disciples and spoke. Today, she planned to lecture on a more practical study of sound arts rather than theory.

"First, I will show you a demonstration. Please watch carefully."

In front of her, as she prepared to play the zither, was a pot with a single lily flower blooming in it.

The Heavenly Sound Fairy Hong Ran placed the zither on her lap and began to play. She was the owner of a splendid and mysterious tone, not shameful of her Jianghu title, the Heavenly Sound Fairy. A heavenly, immortal sound, unbelievable to be of the human world, flowed from the tips of her elegant fingers.

A fabric of beautiful tones, woven with beautiful melodies, became a huge net of sound and swept over them. It was a sweet tone that made their eyes close on their own. The faces of the students, who were listening to her zither sound neatly, also brightened up in tune with her melody. Indeed, her skill in sound arts was amazing.

The more splendid, clear, and cheerful her zither sound became, the more beautiful the color of the single lily flower blooming in the pot seemed to become, and the green of its leaves seemed to become more vivid. Everyone appreciated her ultimate sound arts with eyes and ears full of admiration.

However, her clear and cheerful tune suddenly changed. A sad tone, which was hard to believe had come from the same instrument and player just a moment ago, flowed from the zither strings. The pitiful and mournful tone instantly dug into the students' hearts and made them feel depressed. They were already being influenced by the Heavenly Sound Fairy's sound arts without even knowing it.

As her tone became higher and faster, a noticeable change occurred in the lily blooming in the pot. The lily flower, which had been boasting the freshness and splendor of life until just a moment ago, lost its color and gradually withered.

Her zither sound, which had been touching the heartstrings of many people with a heartbreaking sorrow, began to get faster and faster, and the sound became more passionate. Once again, her jade-like fingers danced passionately on the zither strings.

Diding!

The bodies of everyone listening flinched. Suddenly, her zither sound had sounded frightening. For a moment, they were engulfed in a strange energy that made them feel as if they could not control their own bodies. Their hearts pounded violently for no reason, and the blood in their whole bodies boiled. Their breathing also began to quicken. If that state continued, it could become dangerous.

Only then did everyone realize the situation they were in and secretly began to raise their internal energy to counter the zither sound that was invading from the outside. They could not endure it as it was.

When a sense of alarm and awe finally arose in everyone's hearts, the zither sound disappeared from the air as if it were a lie, and the pressure that had been binding them also disappeared like a mirage.

"How was it?"

The Heavenly Sound Fairy Hong Ran asked for the students' impressions with a bright smile. A student suddenly stood up from his seat and said.

"I was impressed. It was a skill worthy of the famous master of sound arts in the Jianghu, Teacher Heavenly Sound Fairy Hong Ran."

He was Jin Seok-heon, a second-year student and a disciple of the Zhongnan Sect. The only reason he was taking this class was that there were overwhelmingly more women than men in the lecture.

"I can't think of any other words but admiration and respect for your excellent skill, which was like washing my ears."

This time, a female disciple stood up and praised her highly. Of course, even without the flattery, the Heavenly Sound Fairy's zither sound and skill in sound arts were worthy of praise.

"Now, now, everyone please calm down and look at the pot here."

Hong Ran's hand pointed to the lily pot that was placed in front of her. Naturally, the students' gazes also turned that way.

"Huk!"

"Oh my! How can that be!"

"Indeed!"

Exclamations of admiration burst out from here and there.

There was no longer a fragrant flower in that place. Only a withered stem was eerily in its place. The lily flower, which had been blooming and emitting a fragrance in the pot just a moment ago, had already lost the freshness of life, its flower had fallen, and even its stem was withered. It was a harmony that was unbelievable even after seeing a perfectly fine lily flower become like that in such a short time.

"As you can see, the best way to practice sound arts is to practice against plants. Plants are more sensitive to the emotions contained in sound than they look, so they clearly feel and react to the malice and death contained in the sound arts practitioner's melody. But one thing you must keep in mind is that one who cannot play life is not qualified to play death. When life is contained in the practitioner's melody, the plant will grow, using life and love as nutrients. And when death is contained in the melody, death will come. Try to make a plant the target of your sound arts practice. Any plant will do. Then you will all be able to clearly feel your own achievements."

Certainly, all the students in the hall could see the power of sound arts with their own eyes through the withered lily.

"In the old days, there was a legendary master of sound, the Sound Immortal, Heavenly Fragrance Fairy Lee Hyang-ryeong. A legend has been passed down that when the scent of death resounded in her melody, all living things within a radius of 30 meters met their death. Also, it is said that even a huge, giant tree would turn into a dead tree in an instant before her melody. More than 90% of our bodies are made of water. Just as a small stone thrown into a calm lake forms ripples, the melody of sound arts also forms ripples in our bodies like a thrown stone. Depending on what form those ripples take, they can make a person's mind peaceful, or make it painful, or take away their soul, or the ripples can become waves and shake the inside of the body as they stir up the lake. This is the secret meaning and profound principle of the study of sound arts."

Hong Ran, who had paused for a moment, looked around the hall once and then continued.

"As you have seen for yourselves, there is nothing better than a flower for testing your sound arts. Flowers are very sensitive to sound, unlike how they look, so they are perfect as a target for practicing sound arts. You should also try to make a flower the target of your sound arts practice. Not just lilies, but any kind of flower will do. You will be able to see the results and achievements of your sound arts study with your own eyes. Then, next time, we will study the differences in the nature of sound arts according to the type of instrument and the full-fledged attack method, the Striking Sound from a Distance."

The Heavenly Sound Fairy Hong Ran ended the class by announcing the content of the next lecture.

The weather was very good, without any heavy rain or gloomy fog. The sky was clear without a single cloud, and the sunlight was extremely warm. If one were to secretly look into Bi Ryu-yeon's current psychological state, it would be as follows.

'On a day like this, it's best to just ditch all the studying and training and go out to play.'

After the Heavenly Sound Fairy's sound arts class, where she had announced that they would start practicing the Striking Sound from a Distance in earnest from the next class, Bi Ryu-yeon was walking down the corridor, chatting with Hyo-ryong, Jang Hong, and others. Moyong Hwi was also next to them, but it was difficult to have a conversation with him, who was poor at socializing and extremely sparing with his words. They were on their way to the next classroom.

Bi Ryu-yeon, who was walking with the long Thunder Zither, Ink Thunder on his back, was busy chatting with his companions and did not have the time to pay attention to the people passing by him. And even if he had known, it was not Bi Ryu-yeon who would have moved out of the way first. Therefore, even when a person bumped into his Thunder Zither, he did not feel any apology towards the other person. No, rather, only anger towards the opponent who had impacted his precious Thunder Zither raised its head. How expensive was this...

"How rude!"

The man who had bumped into the end of Bi Ryu-yeon's Thunder Zither glared at Bi Ryu-yeon and burst out in a loud shout. Because Bi Ryu-yeon's Thunder Zither had hit him, the man had lost his balance and had almost been embarrassed. Although he had avoided the embarrassment of hitting his nose on the floor after being tripped by the Thunder Zither, his dignity was a mess because he had flailed his body to regain his lost balance. More than anything, he was very displeased.

All the anger that had risen in his heart was shot at the suspect like a sharp arrow. But this so-called cause provider was looking at him with his head held high and with a shamelessness, as if he were the one who had been wronged!

The self-proclaimed victim, the Iron Sword Flying Dragon, Ha Se-in, was just dumbfounded. Bi Ryu-yeon, for his part, had been about to forgive the disrespectful act of the ruffian who had dared to impact his extremely precious sect's secret treasure, the Thunder Zither, Ink Thunder, with a heart as wide as the sea and let it go, but his mood was very bad because the other party was glaring at him and shouting. For Bi Ryu-yeon, who believed that the responsibility for not paying attention to the front was entirely on the other party, there was nothing to be afraid of.

"What's the matter?"

That one word from Bi Ryu-yeon turned Ha Se-in's stomach once more.

"You punk, are you asking because you don't know?"

An ominous light began to hover around the lips of Bi Ryu-yeon, who always kept a smile. It was a smile that was famous for being unpredictable.

"Of course I'm asking because I don't know. Then are there also fools who ask what they know with difficulty?"

Although it was a calm tone, for the listener, it was rather more uncomfortable and grating on the ear.

"What? Are you saying that for me to hear?"

A double fuse was lit on Ha Se-in's forehead. Because he thought he was being teased by a pitch-black junior. It was not a wrong feeling. He had not seen anyone who was so rude to him, a member of the Azure Dragon Squad and one of the Nine Dragons and Seven Phoenixes, in recent times. They would look up to him and send him feelings of admiration, respect, adoration, and affection, but there was absolutely no such rudeness.

"Come to think of it, I've seen that face somewhere."

Bi Ryu-yeon, who still had a smile on his face, looked at the man in front of him, who was insisting that he was the victim, once more, as he looked familiar.

"Ah, come to think of it, you're a member of that Azure Dragon Squad or whatever, who was struggling because they couldn't even beat one Vermilion Bird Squad. In this case, should I say it's nice to meet you?"

He had wondered where he had seen him, and it turned out he was one of the group of the Azure Dragon Squad that had come in a little ahead of the Vermilion Bird Squad last time. The only one who didn't know was Bi Ryu-yeon; there was no one in the Cheonmu Academy who did not know him and the Azure Dragon Squad he belonged to.

Bi Ryu-yeon's slick words once again made Ha Se-in's anger surge.

"Do you want to die?"

A tremendous killing intent was emitted from Ha Se-in's whole body like an awl. But Bi Ryu-yeon calmly received the words, as if he could not feel the killing intent.

"Longevity is one of my two beliefs, along with a smile brings ten thousand blessings."

Ha Se-in's complexion hardened more and more. Hyo-ryong, Jang Hong, Moyong Hwi, and others who were watching from the side were even more restless.

"Hey you, what on earth are you doing? Do you know who that person is?"

Jang Hong, who was trying to stop Bi Ryu-yeon from the side, also seemed to know Ha Se-in's identity. So he was worried about Bi Ryu-yeon's safety. But Bi Ryu-yeon turned Jang Hong's efforts to naught.

"Why, did I say something wrong? I don't think so."

There are times when speaking in a roundabout way is more annoying than speaking directly. Bi Ryu-yeon's case was exactly that case right now. He was already feeling the sting and burden of the surrounding gazes that were weighing the two sides because they had not been able to clearly determine the winner and loser with the Vermilion Bird Squad these days. So his nerves were several times more sensitive than usual, and today he had met a person who was shaking those taut, sensitive nerves.

The veins on the forehead of the Iron Sword Flying Dragon, Ha Se-in, bulged and turned as red as a heated piece of iron. He could not suppress his anger and calm his anger with the inventory of his patience.

"You... you rude punk! You are truly insolent. How arrogant and lawless must you be to dare to do such a thing in front of a senior! I will give you a sharp lesson for your insolence today. That is the true way of a senior! I will not forgive you."

How angry would Ha Se-in be when a greenhorn punk he had never seen before was turning his stomach upside down, when his heart was already restless due to the pursuit of the Vermilion Bird Squad these days? The frustrations that had been accumulating due to the Vermilion Bird Squad had at once broken the dam of his patience and flooded the land of his mind.

Ha Se-in's right hand gripped his beloved sword, the Iron Flying Dragon, tightly. His patience was also at its bottom now. He was really on the verge of drawing his sword right away. No, it was rather strange that he had not drawn it yet.

Just as the Iron Sword Flying Dragon, Ha Se-in, was about to draw his beloved sword, the Iron Flying Dragon, and strike a blow of admonition to establish his authority as a senior, his two companions who were with him blocked his action and calmed his anger, which was running wild like a mad horse.

"Hey, Se-in, calm down. Although that punk's rudeness is excessive and he is extremely insolent, now is not the time. Have you already forgotten where we are going? The appointment time is soon. We have to hurry."

The one who had calmed Ha Se-in, who was on the verge of running wild, from the side was the Light-Splitting Divine Sword, Je Gi-il, of the Diancang Sect, who was also a member of the Azure Dragon Squad.

"That's right. We can't be rude enough to be late for an appointment with none other than Old Master Ice Sword Gwan. Don't you know his knife-like personality better than anyone, Young Hero Ha? Don't mind such a punk and just endure it this once. There will be another opportunity for a lesson later."

The owner of the voice that had helped the Light-Splitting Sword, Je Gi-il, from the side was a woman, and she was the heroine, the One Fragrance One Sword Woman, Gang Yu-ran, who had inherited the ultimate techniques of the Zhongnan Sect, one of the nine great sects. Her beauty was so outstanding that it was said that no one in the Zhongnan Sect could match her beauty. Of course, she was a woman whose sword ki was as mysterious and divine as her beauty.

The reason why the three of them, who were members of the Azure Dragon Squad, were rushing down the corridor was because they had an appointment for a lesson with Old Master Ice Sword Gwan Cheol-su. In front of Old Master Ice Sword Gwan, even the world's Azure Dragon Squad was just a quiet little child. Whether the renowned reputation of Old Master Ice Sword Gwan was effective, or whether the medicine worked well, Ha Se-in was able to barely kill his anger and calm down.

"I have an important prior appointment today, so I'll let you go, but don't expect such luck to overlap again next time. You should know you're lucky."

If the appointment that was to be held a little later was not an appointment with the peak swordsman, the Ice Sword Gwan Cheol-su, one of the Five Great Swordsmen of the World, and if that appointment was not about a new martial arts training, Ha Se-in would not have hesitated to discipline the ill-mannered junior, Bi Ryu-yeon (leaving aside the question of whether he had the ability to execute it). Of course, if he had even batted an eye at that, it would not have been the world's Bi Ryu-yeon.