It Had Divided My Corpse

"Miss, we have arrived at the academy."

The servant's voice roused He Wei Ni Ya from her restless sleep.

She opened her sleepy eyes and looked out of the carriage, and sure enough, she found that she had returned to the academy.

It's been less than four days since I left the academy, but it feels like a long time has passed.

"Miss, you don't look well," the servant said, looking at He Wei Ni Ya with concern. "Are you ill?"

No, it's just that Visas has hollowed out his body.

He Wei Ni Ya thought to herself, "I'm just complaining."

After the battle with Ha Duo Ke, He Wei Ni Ya did feel the burden, but it wasn't to the point where she couldn't bear it.

But after she used her eyesight to defeat Xie Er Fu, her body collapsed instantly.

For a fleeting moment, she felt as if she were about to meet the real He Wei Ni Ya, and at that moment anyone could see that something was wrong with her.

Fortunately, she had planned ahead. After dealing with Xie Er Fu, she would go straight back to the academy. During the half-day journey back to the academy, no one except the servants driving the carriage would be able to contact her. She also took this time to rest and finally recovered most of her strength.

Yes, the servant now felt that her unusual physical condition was the result of her recovery, and He Wei Ni Ya could easily explain it away with the simple statement that she "didn't get enough rest."

He Wei Ni Ya got out of the car, and the cold wind that hit her face cleared her muddled mind a little.

"Please take good care of yourself, Miss," the servant said, bowing. "And I wish you great success in making a name for yourself at the Grand Ceremony."

He Wei Ni Ya glanced back at her servant.

In the Holy Sound, apart from the Seed Zone, no one is unaware of the Grand Ceremony, not even the servants of noble families.

After blessing He Wei Ni Ya, the servants drove away, leaving He Wei Ni Ya to enter the academy alone.

Logically speaking, the holiday isn't over yet, and there shouldn't be many people in the college. He Wei Ni Ya was worried that returning to school so early might attract too much attention.

But when she entered the academy, she realized she was wrong.

There were already quite a few people in the college, not just the school staff, but also many students. They seemed to have returned to school long ago and were now busily walking through the snow, even though classes hadn't started yet.

However, He Wei Ni Ya quickly guessed the reason.

It's still Grand Ceremony.

According to tradition, the official announcement of the Grand Ceremony will be made after the Seven Sound Festival ends, so those who are expected to participate in the Grand Ceremony will begin their preparations at this time.

However, there was something more important that He Wei Ni Ya needed to figure out first, rather than the Grand Ceremony.

That is, whether the deaths of Ariana and Daphne have been investigated.

If it gets discovered, will they suspect me?

If this matter isn't handled well, then she won't need to worry about the Grand Ceremony.

Although Bai Wei told her, "Don't you trust me to handle things?", He Wei Ni Ya was not really at ease. After all, when she went to find Xie Er Fu before, Bai Wei also said, "Go ahead and go, leave things to me." But in the end... he did handle it, but she was the one who paid the price.

This also made He Wei Ni Ya realize that many things that Bai Wei considered insignificant could be catastrophic if not handled properly by her.

Therefore, it is best to act cautiously and not think about using Bai Wei's power all the time.

Otherwise... He Wei Ni Ya was also worried that she wouldn't live to see the Grand Ceremony.

And so, He Wei Ni Ya returned to her dormitory.

But instead of going straight back to her room to sleep and rest, she went to the common hall on the first floor of the dormitory and sat down by the fireplace.

This is a great spot for gathering information.

Most girls can't keep secrets. They like to casually mention secrets they promised not to share with others at small gatherings, and they also share gossip and rumors they've gotten from who-knows-where while walking and chatting.

These were He Wei Ni Ya's main sources of information when she first arrived at the academy; she quickly learned about the academy through these whispers and murmurs.

We're just repeating that process now.

Although the Small Church is some distance from the college, with so many students already back on campus, the news from there shouldn't stay hidden for long.

Sure enough, before she could even settle in, He Wei Ni Ya heard people talking about the Small Church.

They said that the area has been sealed off, and several school staff are guarding it, preventing anyone from getting close.

Someone glanced over and discovered that the Small Church was gone, and there was a large crater in the ground. No one knew what had happened.

... The Small Church is gone? Was the commotion Bai Wei caused that night really that big? He Wei Ni Ya wondered to herself.

Some students also mentioned that they hadn't received a reply to their graduation thesis submitted to Professor Ariana before the Seven Sound Festival. Professor Ariana is known for her meticulousness and rarely makes such requests. This worried one student, who wondered if there was something wrong with their thesis.

... Then she probably won't be able to reply to you in this lifetime. I just don't know if you'll be able to graduate this way. He Wei Ni Ya thought to herself.

There was no other way; she had to keep thinking to prevent her utterly exhausted body from simply falling asleep.

Looking at the fire in front of her, she couldn't help but think of the fire she had set in the Seed Zone yesterday.

What was burned down was her former "home".

Ha Duo Ke, the two musicians, and her aunt who had been affected by the magic at some point and died a humiliating death in a sack, all disappeared into the sea of fire and were completely swallowed up by the flames.

As He Wei Ni Ya watched the flames blaze, she felt somewhat dazed.

She burned her past with her own hands.

But will she gain a future because of this?

It seems unlikely.

So what was her motive?

He Wei Ni Ya's eyelids drooped little by little as fatigue and drowsiness washed over her like a tide.

In that moment of distraction, she heard someone ask in her mind again.

"What exactly is your purpose?"

The voice sounded like her own.

Or perhaps... other people.

"Tell me, Ni Ya," the man asked, "What exactly do you want to do?"

"What... do I want to do?"

"Yes, tell me, Ni Ya," the man said gently. "Tell me what you want to do."

The fire in front of him grew increasingly blurry, and the eyes that could once see through everything could no longer even make out the flames, just like He Wei Ni Ya's spirit.

"I... I..."

She murmured softly, as if she were about to fall into an endless dream.

Just then, a clear female voice suddenly rang out, instantly waking He Wei Ni Ya from her half-asleep state.

"Ah! I received it, I received it!"

He Wei Ni Ya subconsciously looked up and saw a young girl frantically waving a letter in her hand, as excited as a rabbit waving a carrot.

"What did you receive?" her companion asked immediately with concern.

The young girl tried hard to suppress her inner joy, but she was clearly not very successful; she couldn't suppress the upturned corners of her mouth no matter what she did.

However, she wasn't foolish enough to reveal it openly in front of everyone. Instead, she pulled her two companions to a seat in the lobby, acting as if she didn't want outsiders to know about her personal privacy.

But her attempt to "lower" her voice was still clearly audible to everyone in the lobby, including He Wei Ni Ya, who was a little distance away from them.

"It's Young Master Watson! I've received an invitation from Young Master Watson!" the girl said excitedly.

"Young Master Watson?" His companion's eyes widened instantly. "You mean..."

"Yes, it's that Young Master Watson!" The girl unfolded the letter for her companion to see; it bore a family crest. "He invited me to join his band!"

Upon hearing this, the expressions of the girl's two companions changed instantly.

One of them immediately took the letter, read it carefully, and exclaimed in surprise, "It really is Young Master Watson! Young Master Watson's orchestra must be aiming for the Inner Melody, right?"

"No, it's not an impact!" the girl immediately corrected. "Their family has never missed Inner Melody!"

He Wei Ni Ya listened silently.

She naturally knew what "Inner Melody" meant.

Simply put, the Grand Ceremony is a musical extravaganza dedicated to the Lord of Holy Sound, but not all orchestras or pieces are qualified to be offered to the Lord of Holy Sound.

After all, the Lord of Holy Sound's time is not infinite.

Therefore, the number of pieces that can be dedicated to the Lord of Holy Sound at the Grand Ceremony is limited and fixed. These pieces are considered the Inner Melody. The pieces that cannot be dedicated to the Lord of Holy Sound only to fill out the Grand Ceremony and liven up the atmosphere; these are called Outer Melody.

The reason why the Grand Ceremony is called the most important day for the entire Holy Sound is because there are many people who can participate. Even the Outer Melody ensembles probably have thousands of people.

However, the number of Inner Melody is fixed, so the orchestras need to compete for them.

However, this competition has little to do with He Wei Ni Ya. Golden Sound will always be an Inner Melody -Inner Melody, belonging to the very top of the pyramid. Even if she doesn't join Lawrence's orchestra, she can still enter the Inner Melody by finding a few musicians to participate on her own.

Therefore, the competition between Outer Melody is more of a competition between players with "average talent," because there aren't that many "Golden Sound" in the world, and most of Golden Sound like to stick together and form orchestras.

This gave many Silver Sound Player an opportunity, a chance to change their fate.

Because being able to play for the "master" is the greatest achievement for an ordinary musician.

"That's great." One of the girl's companions immediately showed an envious expression. "Aimiya, it looks like you'll be able to go to the Upper City District after the Grand Ceremony."

Aimiya chuckled, but did not deny it.

"I have heard that in the Holy Sound, as long as you enter the Lord's sight, no matter what your background is, you will have a bright future."

At this moment, Bai Wei's voice slowly echoed in He Wei Ni Ya's mind.

"So I'm wondering, is the so-called Grand Ceremony just a group of people in darkness desperately climbing towards the last remaining ray of light?"

Bai Wei's sudden words startled He Wei Ni Ya for a moment.

At the Holy Sound, everyone regarded the Grand Ceremony as Lord's Grace, because as long as the Lord heard their voices, everything would be alright.

However, when these words came from Bai Wei's mouth, He Wei Ni Ya felt that what she heard was not "grace" but rather... charity.

After a brief silence, He Wei Ni Ya asked, "Mr. Visas, are you familiar with the Lord of Holy Sound?"

"We've had a little bit of dealings with each other."

He Wei Ni Ya asked instinctively, "What kind of dealings?"

"He parted my body."

He Wei Ni Ya: "..."

Bai Wei smiled and said, "Are you trying to ask me my opinion on the Lord of Holy Sound?"

"If you are willing to answer," He Wei Ni Ya said cautiously, after all, this was a discussion of deities.

"There's nothing I'm unwilling to do." Bai Wei's tone was very relaxed, as if discussing deities was nothing to him, just like evaluating an ordinary person. "If you ask me, I would say it's arrogance."

"...arrogant?"

"Yes, the so-called Grand Ceremony that happens once every twenty years is really just singing for Him," Bai Wei said calmly. "Whether you are male or female, of humble or noble birth, you have to go to great lengths to please Him. From this perspective, isn't that just arrogance?"

He Wei Ni Ya fell silent once again.

Bai Wei's words could be considered the greatest blasphemy anywhere, but she couldn't find a reason to refute them.

However, she didn't need to refute it.

"However, what does the arrogance of God bring to man?" Bai Wei said lightly.

He Wei Ni Ya frowned slightly. Just as she was about to ask a question, she caught a glimpse of the trio over there out of the corner of her eye.

The girl named Aimiya was holding a cup of hot tea, sipping it slowly, her excitement still evident on her face.

Meanwhile, a companion sighed, "I'm so envious. The positions of the notes in the Inner Melody have already been decided. I wonder how many people are eyeing your empty spot."

"At least a hundred," another companion said quietly. "Aimiya is the Fifth Note. There are at least a hundred Silver-level Fifth Note in the three academies."

"But none of them are as good as me!" Aimiya said with a smile. "I am the best among them, otherwise why would Young Master Watson have chosen me?"

With that, Aimiya downed the hot tea in her cup in one gulp and then stood up.

"Of course, I won't stop here. I'll continue to refine my voice until the Grand Ceremony officially begins!" Aimiya shook her fist. "I won't let anyone have a chance to push me out! Absolutely not!"

"I want to become a note in the Inner Melody!"

"Next, I'm going to enter the Upper City District!"

"I'm going to have a different life!"

"No one can stop me..." Aimiya's voice softened little by little, "No one can."

"I've had enough of the old days."

"I don't want to be a tool for breeding."

"I, I, I..."

"Alright, alright." Her companion waved her hand. "We know you don't want to go back. You don't need to keep talking to us. We haven't settled things yet. If you keep talking, we'll get angry. Get out of here."

Aimiya did not move.

The two companions instinctively looked up.

Then, seeing that Aimiya looked dazed and her eyes were lifeless, just as they were wondering what was going on and about to ask, black blood suddenly flowed from Aimiya's eyes and nostrils.

Then she collapsed with a thud.

"Aimiya!"