by Feng Yue
Wait, wait a minute…what was this? Was it a hallucination? Had he suddenly teleported to some weird parallel universe? Was the history department fighting within themselves? The one who completed the music score at the most critical point and relieved everyone’s stress, pushing the history department to the point of no return…Was Charles?
214 Small Episode 3
It was like the whole world was going wrong. Cullen blacked out and his ears rang. He was completely clueless as to what was happening. Why did Charles join in their coherence and work so hard to help them play the music, share the pressure, and help Banner to complete the movement? Was it because of his long-time hatred for Ye Qingxuan that he took this opportunity to kill Ye Qingxuan? Or did he want to betray his friends so that he could join in the student council? Or was he going to do something bad?
No, that was not right. The main control of the coherence was in the hands of Banner. Charles could only help after joining in. If he wanted to spoil it, he would be the one to take the pressure when the music theoretic balance was destroyed and be the first to die. So why did he do this?
Cullen’s face paled instantly and every cell of his body was screaming, “Something’s fishy! Fishy! Fishy! Fishy!” There must be something wrong here! They must have some kind of trick! But what was it? He wanted to call off Banner, but Banner was already immersed in the immense power, calling the shadow in the clouds, and had fallen into madness.
In any case, the fourth movement was nearly complete! The shadow of the giant dragon would be summoned to completely destroy the Eastern kid. Whatever Charles had intended to do, it was too late.
In the next moment, in the heavy darkness of the night, a rainstorm fell from the sky. Everything lost its color under the roaring thunder. Mighty was the nature’s power.
Even people outside were shaken to numbness and were immobilized. They were frightened by the terrible pressure in the clouds. The clouds broke apart, from which the embryo of destruction was finally born.
Banner laughed because in the next moment, the dragon would descend from the sky and destroy everything.
“I haven’t seen such a crazy student in decades.”
“He’s only eighteen years old but he dared to challenge the Resonance level and is even able to resonate weakly with the aether sea …”
“Is this a skill of the School of Royalty? It’s really impressive.”
“Although this is too bold, but his talent should not be denied.”
On the stands, the professors exchanged views with each other and looked to Ye Qingxuan with some compassion. Perhaps this talented youth who recently became infamous would become Banner’s stepping stone on the path to success?
Startled shouts also came from the spectators. Many graduates were pale with the horror of the horrible astronomical phenomenon. They were full of astonishment, fear, confusion, and exclamation. Was this the difference between geniuses and mortals? It was like they finally realized how shallow their abilities were. After such a long time, they had barely touched the edge of Deva sensing. How old was he? How was he able to reach the Resonance level?
Under all the troubled eyes, the clouds, dark as iron, cracked apart. A pair of ice-blue eyes opened within. They lit up with the majesty from the top of the food chain. The eyes were cold, serious, dignified, and high and mighty. It was the emperor sitting on his throne. Everything was only dust before it; all living things were his slaves.
Under the call of the music, the hideous shadow rose from the throne made by those iron clouds. Then it descended from the sky and uttered a thunderous roar, “Meow!” At this moment, whether it was on the field or outside the city, the bleachers or the auditorium, the locker room or even the entire Royal Academy of Music, it was all thrown into silence.
There was a deadly awkward silence. Everyone stared blankly at each other and could not believe what they had seen.
Only at the very edge of the field, Old Phil suddenly raised its head, opened its mouth excitedly and began barking.
“Is it the effect of the fourth movement from Symphony No. 8?” The bleachers were still silent as Egor asked weakly, “Or am I seeing incorrectly? Why do I see a…a…”
“Cat,” Ludwig replied blankly. “Yes, it’s a cat.”
At this moment, everyone felt the limitations of their brain and suddenly felt that their IQ was too low. What the h*ll was going on? There was such a big buildup, such strong aetheric fluctuations, such an awesome prestige and majestic momentum…but all that was summoned was a f*cking cat! Next, was the most embarrassing, most difficult and darkest minute since the establishment of the Royal Academy of Music.
Countless people began suspecting their own eyes and sanity, asking themselves if they smoked too much mandala last night. How could they have such an illusion?
A cat?
Why was it a cat…
The gray cat had four pure white paws and a strand of white at the tip of its tail. It walked back and forth in the arena. Banner’s face was pale as he watched the cat rubbing around himself sweetly.
The cat’s face revealed a fawning expression. The expression was even more exaggerated than that of a human. It was b*tchy, just like the b*stard standing in the corner of the field, almost passing out from laughter!
“Hahahaha …” Charles was now rolling on the floor laughing, and had almost lost his breath. He pounded the ground with indescribable joy in his heart. After so many years of disappointment, he finally let others experience how he had felt before.
This world was like this. After one suffered, watching others suffer again was a great enjoyment. Especially for Charles, who was a b*stard that was best at feeding others sh*t, seeing this scene made him cry tears of joy.
As Banner’s face twisted, Charles’s laughter gradually spread like an infection until, in the end, everyone in the stands laughed involuntarily. Both on and off-field were suffused with this light atmosphere.
To quote Charles’s dream talk about computer games, all the laughter lacked was someone saying “good game!” But this was not the end.
Three kittens fell down one by one, in the dark clouds which had not dissipated yet. After landing, they started torturing Banner’s teammates like a windstorm.
Then came a strange pile of pots and pans, chairs, tables, grilled chicken with cheese and turkey. Finally, a cute yellow mouse fell from the black cloud. Then the war started…
As the autumn wind blew the fallen leaves, the yellow mouse and the gray cats began to fight, ignoring everyone else. Armed with various weapons, they frantically beat each other amongst the fossilized players. They looked so lovely and cute, but each was more brutal and bloody than the last.
They fought with such intensity that children would cry in fear if they saw. During the fight, the gray cat kicked the soccer ball that was in its way, and then grabbed a chopper and iron bar to chase the yellow mouse.
The ball that was kicked cut a sad arc in the air. It passed over the blank goalie, and finally fell into the net. The whistle sounded. The music history department got one more point…
Cullen’s heart almost broke at the whistle. Two lines of tears rolled down silently and he practically broke down sobbing. Gavin gave his younger brother to him, so Cullen put so many of his best men into this team to help Banner regardless of the cost. But what was the result? They were beaten like dogs by amateurs of the music history department.
From beginning to end, Banner had not adopted any of his suggestions but held his own stubborn thoughts, aiming all hatred to that Eastern kid. He fought in full force early at the opening, and just now, he even directly absorbed the other’s power.
This extravagant tactic was like the legend where a man used one-thousand green gold coins to kill a tiger. It was forthright and strong, but he had completely hurt himself and it was unnecessary. Moreover, the music history department had a set of strange skills. Ye Qingxuan, especially, was still mysterious. Was this guy trying to imitate the wolf disgu
ised as the sheep? But it did not look like that!
Cullen still could not figure it out. Even with his years of experience, and was sly as a fox, he still had no idea what Ye Qingxuan was intending to do. He could not help but be so depressed he almost spat out blood.
Actually, according to the current situation, there was a more straightforward way—for example, they could bypass Ye Qingxuan directly to defeat the rest one by one, but Banner would never admit that he could not handle Ye Qingxuan.
Even if Banner tried to be like Gavin and pretended not to care about school matters, he still could not copy his elder brother’s essence. Instead, he was so easily provoked by Ye Qingxuan’s joking words before the game.
Cullen sighed. He suddenly looked up and shouted, “Referee, request for a timeout!”
-
The request was accepted and the spectators booed. Banner’s face turned white and green. He looked at the others like a beast looking at its prey. His teammates were too afraid to look him in the eye, but Cullen stood still before him.
“Why stop?” Banner asked hoarsely. “I just need a bit longer because I…”
“Before you lose miserably,” Cullen interrupted him with a solemn look. “Banner, don’t be childish. You were played in his hands from the beginning. Don’t you remember how Modifications died in the first round?”
“That’s because they’re too weak!”
Cullen frowned. “But you might not be strong either.”
“You …” Banner fell into rage. He did not understand how the submissive guy who had always obeyed him suddenly become so brave. He wanted to yell but turned speechless in front of Cullen’s eyes.
In the awkward stillness, Cullen lowered his voice and looked at him. “You are the leader, but don’t drag the others down because of personal reasons. Gavin didn’t tell us to help you embarrass the whole student council!”
Hearing his voice, Banner face turned white with splotches of lividness. Fury built up in his features, but when he looked at the players, he was forced to restrain his anger. Those players had no objection to Cullen’s decision. In other words, they were practically cheering.
One must know that although the leader was Banner, all the players were the backbone of the student council. In their eyes, when Gavin was absent, the real leader was Cullen. Banner was after Cullen…If not for Gavin’s orders, these guys probably would not even respond to him.
Having thought it through, Banner forced his anger back, chewed his thin lip, and lowered his eyes. “I…understand.”
“Good. It’s not too late to fix things.” Cullen patted him on the shoulder with a sincere expression. “Don’t be upset. Gavin is my good friend so I’ll definitely help his brother. Don’t worry, this time we’ll win beautifully!” He cheered up and led his teammates to form a circle. He quietly cheered the frustrated students on. He might not have had Gavin’s extraordinary influence, but Cullen’s speech undoubtedly lifted the team’s spirits.
“The next tactic is to secure the offense. Ignore the interference of the music history department and absolutely do not get affected by them. The best way is to turn a blind eye. Never get caught up in their rhythm, okay?” Cullen looked solemn. “…This time, at the opening, we’ll bypass Ye Qingxuan and go straight to the goal. The white-haired girl is exhausted and there’s no need to worry about Charles. The remaining players pay attention to the guy with the headpiece Follow our original plan and turn the tides in the second half! Are you confident?”
“Yes!” The players roared and their muscles bulged. They were energized with their morale lifted.
Cullen smiled and patted Banner heartily on his shoulder. “This time, Banner, you’re still main offense. As long as you do follow the strategy, the victory will be ours!”
Banner’s shoulders trembled. He lowered his head and said, “I know.” In a place where no one could see, his eyes darkened. That green in his eyes was like frozen ice, hiding the deep abyss underneath. The manticore beside him felt his inner chaos. It turned its head and looked at him in bewilderment.
He smiled. “Don’t worry about me.”
He stroked the manticore’s hair and thought, “It’s just there are some facts that they can’t understand…” His fingers were cut by the scales among the hairs, but he did not feel it. He just silently recalled that white-haired youth’s face and chanted in his mind, “No one can look at me like that, no one.”
215 Big News
“F*ck, Yezi, I think this is going to be bad.” Faced with the opponents that were getting ready again on the field, Charles was a bit panicked. He said quietly, “They probably have another lowly and evil trick! You have to be careful.”
Ye Qingxuan rolled his eyes. “You think they can be lowlier and more evil than us?”
“Oh, that makes sense!”
“…” Ye Qingxuan did not want to bother with him anymore. He glanced at Bench Guy, who sneakily made a hand gesture to show that he was ready.
On the other side, Cullen was stunned. The history department’s formation had changed. This time, the guy with the headgear had run to the front. Ye Qingxuan played center and they gathered their strength in the back for defense.
Cullen sank into deep thought. He actually did not care about Charles, Bai Xi, and Old Phil. Charles had his own limits, Bai Xi was already exhausted and sitting beside the goal, and Old Phil…Even the most powerful dog was still a dog and was nothing.
Ye Qingxuan had many tricks up his sleeves and was both evil and lowly. But if Cullen fought fairly against him, he would win naturally. Ye Qingxuan was just a bit annoying—he could not make up for the difference in skill, unless he pulled out a magical weapon now and turned the tide. But if he really did have a magical weapon, he could even fight all the way to the palace…if he had this power, why was he still playing soccer?
Therefore, the only trouble that remained was this headgear guy who had never revealed any clues or weaknesses. The man who Ye Qingxuan called “Bench Guy,” had not shown his face even once. They could not even tell which school he was from. A mystery, a mystery.
Even Cullen, who had been the secretary of the student council for so many years and had seen many geniuses, had a thorny feeling when facing this guy. “Be careful of this guy later.” He glared at the headgear guy and pulled out his instrument, playing a faint melody when he moved—it was a rarely seen organ.
Specifically created for musicians, this organ had forgone most of the pieces. After the makeover, it turned into geometric crystals that hovered around him. The silver crystals reflected weak light and manipulated the air pressure. Vibrating the springs of the instrument, it created a light and ethereal sound. It sounded as if a young boy was singing gently of God’s glory.
After the spirit of the music score was awoken, it let out the echo of a hymn on its own accord. As the song spread, rays of light fell on the spectators. Their spirits instantly began recovering.
There seemed to be incense burning in the air, bringing with it an ineffably mysterious and distant smell. It made one feel as if he was in a temple.
In the Academy, Cullen was one of the few who chose to study the School of Choir. His family had close connections with the Westminster Chapel. He had been a choir apprentice as a child and learned about temperament and music theory from the hymn singers. Thus, he learned the most classic mass from the School of Choir.
The serial code of this mass was Op. 35. Its name was nothing special and had no holy characteristics. It was very easy too, but became widespread due to its ability to help others recover their spirits. Used here, it was perfect. It energized everyone, helping them quickly recover from fatigue.
His teammates cracked their knuckles and stared at the history department across the midline. Anyone could see that these guys had finally stopped underestimating their opponents’ strategy and had grown serious.
“This is going to be interesting.” In the stands, the principal whistled. No one knew why he was excit
ed.
In stark contrast to him was Ingmar, in the faculty seats. His face had been gloomy this entire time. He said nothing and just stared at the players on the field. The only thing in his eye was the reflection of the student with the headgear. He murmured something quietly.
“Start!” The referee blew the whistle, creating a sharp sound.
As if they had prepared beforehand, Bench Guy instantly stepped back. Walls and shields shot up in front of him. Colored lights followed immediately, shooting across the air. The shields broke continuously in the resonance. It was the instantaneous attack made by the student council. It was so aggressive and explosively fast that everyone was astonished.
Just behind the midline, Bench Guy had no time to steal the ball. The shields around him rose and crumbled continuously, suppressed immediately. He could only defend passively.
The suddenly activated attack caught Bench Guy by surprise too. It was difficult to handle at the moment. But in the midfield, Ye Qingxuan just stood in his spot. He gazed at Bench Guy, who had been surrounded, and muttered something. He waved his hand and light fell down into the dirt under his feet, forming a shapeless bump. Instantly, hundreds of light spots scattered in all directions under Ye Qingxuan’s murmur.
One must admit that Ye Qingxuan was highly skilled at music note variations. Note variation application was only a slight increase of difficulty for students, but rarely was anyone able to create so many variations in such a short period. There was barely any pause between each note, and each was perfect.
Hundreds of notes became touch-activated traps after modification. They created “ditches” all over midfield. Even if the opponent was well-prepared, they would be in trouble once they stepped onto one. At that time, the opponent’s formation would be thrown into disarray and Ye Qingxuan’s team would find an opening.
Off field, not even the strictest professor could help but nod. It was as expected from an Abstinence teacher’s student. His music theory foundation was firmer than regular students, but unfortunately, his teacher could only help him this much.
