Xie Bin himself had not expected this result. He gave a hearty laugh and decided to play the piece from the very beginning, accompanying it with a song: "Pheasants fly at dawn, calling in harmony; male and female flock together by the mountain's curve. I alone am grieved, for I have no home; the day draws to its close, what can be done? Alas, the day draws to its close, what can be done!"
Legend has it that a hermit of Qi, over fifty years old and without a wife, watched the twilight gather and the birds return to their nests. He sighed to the heavens, saying, "The Great Sage is in his heaven, and his grace reaches even the grass, trees, birds, and beasts, yet I alone am forsaken." He plucked the strings and sang, and thus this melody was born. I could not help but admire Xie Bin's taste; this piece was ever-changing, delicate, and subtle, long renowned for its perilous complexity. Paired with the demon zither’s treacherous timbre, it was exquisite. Furthermore, the allusion of *Pheasants Flying at Dawn* resonated perfectly with the engravings of lonely palace laments upon the zither’s body.
The musical notes curled through the air without end, and the entire room was entranced. However, the Huanzhen energy within my body began to vibrate uneasily. The same was true for Zhu Yixin and Qiao Songlin’s Dharma treasures—the Mirror of the Clear Mind and the Cauldron of the Clear Mind—which began to grow warm within their sleeves. This zither music was indeed the most wondrous I had ever heard in my life, far surpassing even the *Banquet of a Thousand Autumns* played by Xue Yishan during the Imperial Birthday Festival. This result had nothing to do with the performer's skill; it was simply the zither itself using the occasion to utter demonic words of enchantment. The one playing the zither was, in fact, being played by it.
Different people likely heard different things. What I perceived were desolate mountains stretching endlessly, bleached white bones, crumbling palaces, and the illusory nature of life. Zhu Yixin’s scalp prickled as her entire body trembled, as if she were witnessing a scene of extreme horror. Qiao Songlin’s brow furrowed; he sensed the fires of war, armored horses trampling across mountain passes, and mountains of corpses floating in a sea of blood.
If even those of our spiritual strength were affected thus, the group of dandy lords and noble ladies in the room—who mostly relied on pills to increase their cultivation—were even less able to restrain themselves. Soon, someone leapt up in a frenzy, intending to seize the *Jade Hook Slant*. Meanwhile, Xie Bin and those closest to the zither on stage, Shen Yinian and Li Zizhuo, were already lost in the trance, completely unaware that they were in danger.
Just as the scene was about to descend into chaos, Zhang Zhuyi finally made her move. Her *Nine Heavens Ringing Pendants* had been placed across the table at some unknown moment. Under the bright, brilliant lamplight, the zither’s majestic, deep red body appeared even more pure. With a single pluck of a string, the vibration shook everyone in their seats. Like a sudden thunderclap descending upon the eight wildernesses, she had chosen a piece equally violent and perilous: the *Thunderclap Prelude*, meeting force with force!
A poet of the Tang, Shen Quanqi, once described it: "Lightning flashes like leaping dragons, thunder rumbles in dark rain. The air hums in elegant assembly, as sudden forms arise. It is like driving a thousand banners, commanding the five weapons; severing the desert serpents, hacking the great whales." The body of the *Nine Heavens Ringing Pendants* was broad, its resonance magnificent and its tone deep. Zhang Zhuyi’s performance was the exact opposite of her calm and indifferent nature—it was impassioned, vigorous, and possessed a monumental momentum.
The voice of the demon zither had reached a vast distance, likely piercing straight through the air above the Cinnabar River toward Mount Liangyue. Yet, under the pressure of her music, its defensive line began to shrink bit by bit. Xie Bin, oblivious, continued to play in a state of self-forgetfulness, unaware that his zither’s voice was weakening and losing its initial eerie sharpness.
The maddened guests, soothed by the ancient, pure tones of the *Nine Heavens Ringing Pendants*, gradually regained their reason. They sank back into their seats as if drained by wine.
Finally, the voice of the demon zither went completely mute, returning to its initial state where no one could hear it. Within the room, only the thunderous music of the *Nine Heavens Ringing Pendants* remained, continuing to dispel the faint, lingering demonic aura that clung to the rafters.
Xie Bin was drenched in sweat. He slowly opened his eyes as if waking from a great dream, sitting there in a daze. Shen Yinian and Li Zizhuo were even less able to endure it; they had long since fainted on the spot.
After a long silence, the people below the stage began to whisper. They had a general understanding of what had transpired. Many of the more sensible ones wiped the cold sweat from their brows and approached Zhang Zhuyi to offer their thanks.
Zhang Zhuyi merely glanced at Li Zizhuo and Xie Bin on the stage and said softly, "This zither... do not play it again." With that, she had her maid carry the *Nine Heavens Ringing Pendants* and rose to leave the hall.
Only then did Xie Bin recover his wits. He laughed loudly. "Interesting!"
Shen Yinian had just woken up and was already trembling with fear. He smiled bitterly. "Master Xie, you certainly have courage. You are fine, but do you know that in my dream just now, I... I killed my entire family..."
Li Zizhuo, however, was uncharacteristically silent. His face was pale and defeated, and he sprawled on the floor, unwilling to get up. Shen Yinian kindly reached out to help him, but it seemed to trigger an extreme terror within him. He let out a paranoid scream: "Don't kill... don't touch me!" Before Shen Yinian could react, he seemed to regain his strength in an instant, stumbling and rolling off the stage as he fled back to his room.
With such chaos occurring in the hall, Duan Qimo rushed over as soon as she received the news. Yan Xiangjun followed behind her, their servants carrying the little fire fox. Duan Qimo hurried onto the stage, inspected the zither, and then checked on Xie Bin and Shen Yinian. She offered words of comfort with perfect poise and tact. Yan Xiangjun, meanwhile, asked Yu Niannian, "Where is my brother?"
"Senior Brother Yan went back to his room after he finished eating," Yu Niannian replied, her face still somewhat pale. "Sister Xiang, just now... just now I saw many terrible things... it was a bit like the fear I experienced during the Lustration Festival, but this was... ten times more terrifying..."
Yan Xiangjun, distressed, pulled her into her arms and patted her gently, comforting her in a soft voice. "It's alright, it's alright. We were all safe that day; can this dead object really turn the world upside down? Your sister here specializes in expelling demons. I'll perform a ritual in a moment. I doubt any evil spirit will dare return!"
"Is it an illusion?" Yu Niannian asked worriedly. "That day, Sister Azhi’s fellow disciples were all present, otherwise the consequences would have been unthinkable."
Even I was somewhat surprised by the demon zither’s power to affect the human mind. Niannian was usually brave, yet she had been frightened into such timidity; she must have seen something truly horrific. Yan Xiangjun had not experienced it herself. Hearing this, she looked at her in surprise and pinched her cheek, teasing, "What could possibly scare our Niannian so much? You've made me curious. Who wants to play it again so I can hear?"
"Absolutely not!" Niannian cried out in haste. "Sister, don't joke around!"
"It is orthodox sorcery." During this time, Duan Qimo had finished inspecting the zither. She apologized to everyone and politely requested the guests to leave. After arranging the aftermath, she finally found a moment to approach the two. "Xiangjun, I leave the ritual for averting calamity to you. I will discuss this object with Young Master Li to see if we can keep it for safekeeping or simply send it out of the tower and back to his home. Leaving it here is bound to be a disaster."
Yan Xiangjun nodded. "Go and attend to your business. My brother and I will stay here. If you need anything, just send word."
Duan Qimo smiled and stopped standing on ceremony, turning to leave with her usual efficiency.
Zhu Yixin had already greeted us and gone to keep an eye on Zhang Zhuyi. Qiao Songlin followed Duan Qimo to find out where the demon zither was being taken. For the moment, I had nothing to do. I sent the wound-healing medicine provided by the tower to Wen Qi. In truth, Chaoyun had already treated her wound, but I used it as an excuse to get close to the Wen sisters. I quietly used my spiritual power to probe their souls, confirming that their minds had not suffered much damage, and used my power to soothe and steady them. Soon, they also left together.
Yan Mingqiu arrived, yawning and scuffing his boots, having been summoned by his sister. This earned him a glare from Yan Xiangjun, who twisted his ear and demanded he fix his clothes before explaining the situation. She then solemnly performed the demon-expelling ritual, using a high-grade Dharma tool to seal the zither. She handed it over to four guards in the middle stage of the Cloud-Swallowing Realm, sent by Duan Qimo, to be taken away.
The second day’s banquet thus ended in a muddle.
When Zhu Yixin returned, she said that Zhang Zhuyi was acting as usual, though she had visited Wen Jiang in her room before retiring. She only stayed for a short while, spoke a few words to Lingqing, left some common supplements, and departed. I told Zhu Yixin the convoluted story of Wen Jiang’s return journey after she left the banquet. It brought tears to her eyes as she sighed in sorrow. "No wonder. With Miss Zhang’s impeccable etiquette, she would naturally go to check on her. Alas, what kind of unbreakable knot have Miss Wen Jiang and Miss Duan tied between them? They clearly love each other so much."
"By the way, is Sister Jiang alright? The formation I left in her room hasn't shown any abnormalities."
"Her? Her face is covered in sweat and tears. It seems she cries herself to sleep, then wakes up and cries again. Lingqing didn't want to tell Zhang Zhuyi, but that's what I saw." Zhu Yixin frowned. "Her health isn't good either; she even shows signs of a fever. Lingqing called for a doctor, and the medicine is warming on the table, but Wen Jiang refuses to take it."
I sighed as well. Wen Jiang had always been drinking excessively and neglecting herself. In such despair and pain, she seemed to have a death wish. Duan Qimo likely knew of this... if a guest fell ill and the tower's doctor was called, how could the hostess not be informed? The only person who could make her take her medicine was probably her, yet she was unwilling to stay by her side all night again, as she had at the Orange Garden.
As a servant, Qiao Songlin was not staying in the same large dormitory as us. He sent a communication talisman saying that Li Zizhuo had locked himself in his room and refused to see anyone. After consulting with him outside the door, Duan Qimo had stored the demon zither, *Jade Hook Slant*, in the Xixi Tower’s storehouse. She had set aside a separate room and assigned
