Aha, Give Me a Cup of Water to Forget Love

"Wow, so this is the Fuxi Qin!"

Before Fuxi brought out the Fuxi Qin, Xiang Dong had been looking forward to seeing it, but when he saw the real thing, he was somewhat disappointed.

The Fuxi Qin had appeared in quite a few games, movies, television dramas, and other works.

Its standing was high, too. It was usually listed among the Ten Great Divine Artifacts, alongside the Demon-Refining Pot and the Kongtong Seal.

But sorry, this was the Primordial World. The Fuxi Qin didn't rank at all, and it couldn't be compared with the Demon-Refining Pot and the Kongtong Seal, Top-grade Innate Spirit Treasures capable of suppressing fortune.

It simply wasn't qualified. At best, the Fuxi Qin was an Upper-grade Innate Spirit Treasure, and its main effect was that its music could bring peace and serenity to people's hearts, thereby achieving the wondrous effect of purifying their minds.

That was why the Nine-Grade Lotus Throne would be quite helpful to Fuxi.

"Why do I think I see disappointment on your face?"

Fuxi didn't quite understand. Xiang Dong had been the one eager to see it, so what was with the disappointed look now that Fuxi had brought it out?

Xiang Dong nodded, speaking frankly.

"Because it's not quite what I imagined. It feels too ordinary."

Fuxi looked at his Fuxi Qin. Its body was three chi, six cun, and five fen long, corresponding to the degrees of the celestial sphere. It was six cun wide, symbolizing the six directions of heaven and earth, and its five strings corresponded to the Five Elements. Treasured light flowed over its entire body. Weren't all Innate Spirit Treasures like this? What was ordinary about it?

As Fuxi pondered, Xiang Dong fixed his gaze on the bamboo grove in the spirit field. The bamboo was purple all over, like purple jade, and most importantly, it grew straight and sturdy. Xiang Dong took a liking to it at first sight.

"Fellow Daoist Nuwa, may I cut a stalk of bamboo to make an instrument?"

"Do as you please, Fellow Daoist."

It was only an Acquired Spirit Root, so Nuwa didn't mind. She was also a little curious about what instrument Xiang Dong would make from the bamboo.

The instrument Xiang Dong wanted to make was simple: a bamboo flute. With his current abilities, making one was quick work. As an Acquired Spirit Root, the Purple Jade Bamboo was already a first-rate material. All that remained was to mark and drill the holes, then tune it.

After Xiang Dong tested and adjusted its tuning, the bamboo flute was complete.

The moment the bamboo flute was finished, the Heavenly Dao sent down a wisp of black-and-yellow Qi. It was Heavenly Dao Merit.

The wisp of merit fused into the bamboo flute, turning what had originally been an ordinary Acquired Spirit Root into a Merit Spirit Treasure.

"Th-this... this... the Heavenly Dao actually sent down merit and turned it into a Merit Spirit Treasure."

Fuxi stared in astonishment. He had only wanted to see what instrument Xiang Dong could make, yet the result was a Merit Spirit Treasure.

Although it contained only a wisp of merit, so its value wasn't especially great, and it had no particularly powerful offensive or defensive capabilities, the fact remained that it was a Merit Spirit Treasure. It had been certified by the Heavenly Dao. If you destroyed it, congratulations—you were on the Heavenly Dao's watch list. Whether you were next designated an untrustworthy person or blacklisted would depend on your conduct.

Fuxi's fingers moved swiftly as he made calculations, and he soon understood what had happened.

"I see. Creating something that doesn't yet exist but is useful to the Primordial World can also earn Heavenly Dao Merit, but only the first one receives it."

Fuxi's explanation was somewhat general. He himself found it rather difficult to understand exactly what counted as something useful to the Primordial World, but he had at least gained a rough idea of one way to earn merit.

Although the amount was small, it was reliable. Earning merit this way didn't make your heart burn with worry.

Xiang Dong wasn't particularly interested in earning merit, but he made a few more instruments anyway, then got Fuxi to join him in playing a piece, "High Mountains and Flowing Water."

As the saying went, "High mountains and flowing water meet a kindred spirit." Xiang Dong and Fuxi did have common ground in the Dao of Musical Harmony, but their differences were greater, because Xiang Dong had been exposed mostly to pop music, while Fuxi played classical music.

Watching Xiang Dong and her elder brother argue endlessly over a single note, only to end up holding a talent showdown, Nuwa looked utterly helpless.

Xiang Dong brought out a multicolored disco ball. His clones swayed as they operated an assortment of instruments, playing feverish music, while his original body put on sunglasses, rolled a leaf into a microphone, and shouted:

"Everybody, come on! Sway with me, sway together..."

Xiang Dong's music was simple and cheerful. The notes bounced as though they had a life of their own, spreading in every direction with the music.

The Spirit Roots in the spirit body and the living creatures near the foot of Buzhou Mountain also grew restless because of Xiang Dong's music.

But this restlessness was neither anger nor violence. Rather, it was a rhythm of life that made them sway their bodies along with it. Though its meaning was unclear, it brought a joy that came from nowhere, and even their bodies and minds seemed to relax.

Fuxi's face was expressionless, but all ten of his fingers flexed and tapped slightly to the beat.

Before long, the piece came to an end, and it was Fuxi's turn.

"The music enters the ears, and emotion suddenly arises!"

"Xiang Dong, your Dao of Musical Harmony has yet to reach this level."

"Zheng—"

Fuxi's hands deftly plucked the strings. The music carried traces of resentment, but more than that, it was filled with gloom.

His little sister had grown up and no longer listened to her elder brother. As her brother, his heart was full of sorrow.

The music spread in every direction, affecting all the living creatures in this area at the foot of Buzhou Mountain.

The previous music had made them restless and relaxed in body and mind, but this was more like demonic music pouring into their ears.

Those with intelligence fared better and could resist a little. As for those without intelligence, the moment the music entered their ears, it stirred up the misery in their hearts. In milder cases, they wept bitterly; in severe cases, they beat themselves repeatedly and began to think of ending their lives.

Xiang Dong, standing before Fuxi, was affected even more deeply. He thought through every miserable thing that had happened in his life. His sorrow flowed upstream into a river, and his flower disk was covered in golden points of light.

"I've suffered so much! Do you know how I've lived all these years? How many Yuan Meetings has it been? From the opening of heaven until now, I don't even know how many Yuan Meetings have passed, and I've been all alone. I've suffered so much... boo-hoo-hoo-hoo..."

Fuxi's music had completely detonated the loneliness and isolation that had accumulated deep in Xiang Dong's heart all this time. Xiang Dong burst into tears, and his crying eventually turned into wails.

As he cried, he began singing at the top of his lungs.

"It's not a crime for a man to cry, cry, cry..."

"Aha, give me a cup of water to forget love, in exchange for one night without tears..."

"You're so cruel, you're so cruel, you're so cruel, cruel, cruel, cruel..."

"Fellow Daoist Xiang Dong, calm down. Please stop crying."

Xiang Dong couldn't hear a word anyone said now, so Nuwa's attempts to comfort him naturally came to nothing. In the end, Nuwa could only look at Fuxi, and the meaning of her gaze was clear.

You made him cry, so you soothe him.

Fuxi: (≖_≖)

Fuxi had just been about to say something when he sensed a powerful expert at the entrance, outside the formation surrounding the cultivation ground.