Sins Upon Sins

He Wei Ni Ya was even more surprised after receiving Daniel's affirmation.

Is it really possible to go from the silver tier to the gold tier? But if that's the case, why are Gold Tier Note still so rare?

Moreover, the Advancement Magic is Forbidden Magic.

Then there is only one possibility.

He Wei Ni Ya asked, "Is the success rate very low? Or is the cost very high?"

Daniel laughed, "You are indeed very clever, Miss He Wei Ni Ya. That's right, the reason why Advancement Magic is Forbidden Magic is because of those two points you mentioned... Yes, it is not only difficult to succeed, but also comes at a great cost."

As he spoke, Daniel brushed off the last bit of snow from his body, returning to his previous elegant demeanor, and then gestured for He Wei Ni Ya to proceed.

"May I have breakfast with you, Miss He Wei Ni Ya?"

He Wei Ni Ya did not refuse the invitation, and she also wanted to learn more information from Daniel.

So the two walked together in the snowy morning, and Daniel casually explained the Advancement Magic to He Wei Ni Ya.

"This is a very ancient magic. The person who developed it has been dead for at least a hundred years," Daniel said slowly. "He was also the first person to successfully advance from the Silver Rank to the Gold Rank. At that time, he thought that this magic could change the entire Holy Sound, and that the era in which everyone could become Golden Sound person was about to arrive."

"It seems he failed."

"Obviously," Daniel said with a smile. "As for the reasons, they are the two points you mentioned earlier. Let's talk about the cost first; it is actually a very cruel magic."

"Cruel?"

"Yes, because it directly shapes and enhances the musical scale. It's like someone with very awkward facial features who needs surgery to become more attractive. Small eyes are enlarged with surgery, and a large nose is shortened with surgery," Daniel said calmly. "And this is without using any pain-relieving magic, because if you do, it could directly affect the patterns of the musical scale and cause failure... Hmm? What's wrong with you?"

Daniel saw He Wei Ni Ya suddenly cover her nose and say in a muffled voice, "Just hearing you say that makes me feel pain."

"Is that so? Haha, sorry, I shouldn't have been so blunt. I'll be more careful next time."

He Wei Ni Ya lowered her hand, sighed, and said, "What's done is done, there's nothing more to worry about. At least I understand now."

"Okay, then I'll continue," Daniel said. "If you understand this, then it's easy to explain why it fails so easily. It's like when you're operating on your eyes, you can easily gouge them out if you're not careful. Once you overdo the shaping and enhancement of the scales, it's irreversible. You can't even use the most basic functions anymore. In other words, you lose the identity of the player."

... Does failing mean you're no longer a performer?

He Wei Ni Ya thought of Olenna again.

"No wonder its success rate is so low," He Wei Ni Ya said softly. "The price is too high; a slight mistake could lead to utter ruin."

"That's true." Daniel nodded slightly. "Moreover, if the goal is to advance to a higher rank, the difficulty will increase several times over."

"Hmm?" He Wei Ni Ya was slightly taken aback. "Weren't we just talking about advancing to the next rank?"

"Yes, but advancement is only the ultimate goal," Daniel said. "Remember what I said earlier? It's essentially used to improve the timbre, but improving the timbre doesn't necessarily mean advancing the rank. If it's a silver rank with a relatively poor timbre, you can use Advancement Magic to improve the timbre to a better and more complete level. If that's all, then its success rate is much higher than advancement. It's like trying to widen the corners of your eyes; you won't touch the most important part, the eyeball."

"What if I want to advance to the next level?"

"That doubles the difficulty. Because essentially, advancing in rank is like getting a new face; it's not a project that can be completed in one or two tries," Daniel said. "Moreover, the original musical scale will strongly resist this transformative process and will constantly try to repair itself. In other words, until the rank is completely advanced, the musical scale is like a pool that's constantly being drained. During this period, the caster is always in the pain of bleeding, and the slightest mistake could lead to utter destruction."

After listening to Daniel's explanation, He Wei Ni Ya fell into a long silence before finally speaking softly, "It is indeed... surprising. Is this why it's classified as a forbidden spell?"

Daniel nodded. "Miss He Wei Ni Ya, I remember your family also has Seed Zone, right? In that case, you should also know that Silver-ranked players are already rare in the Holy Sound. And this spell is so risky; it could easily destroy a Silver-ranked player. So in many families, and even in the academy, this magic is not allowed. Of course, in most cases, even if Silver-ranked players know about this spell, they won't try it lightly."

He Wei Ni Ya noticed a key phrase in Daniel's long speech. "The vast majority of cases?"

"Yes, most of the time, silver-ranked players know that it's too difficult to become gold-ranked through this, and simply improving the tone is too risky and doesn't yield much benefit, so it's not worth it at all," Daniel said slowly. "But it's different at the Grand Ceremony. In the past, that added tone had no effect, but at the Grand Ceremony, it could very well be the key to whether or not you can squeeze into the Inner Melody."

"If your voice were just a little bit better than others, just a little bit better, you could have joined the Inner Melody band. You're just a tiny bit short."

"Once you get into the Inner Melody ensemble and perform successfully at the Grand Ceremony, even if you don't win the Lord's favor, you'll catch the eye of countless nobles and then naturally enter the Upper City District. If you don't manage to get into the Inner Melody, then after graduation you'll obediently return to the Lower District and become an ordinary sheet music copyist."

"All of this begins with whether or not one can enter the Inner Melody, and it also begins with that subtle difference in timbre."

"It was so close, so close."

"And at this moment, an opportunity presented itself."

"If it were you, what would you choose?"

"Miss He Wei Ni Ya."

He Wei Ni Ya turned her head and saw Daniel looking at her. His brown eyes were full of indescribable meaning, and an inexplicable pressure surged into her heart, making her breathe involuntarily slow down.

Before she could give any further response, Daniel immediately reverted to his previous demeanor, laughing and saying, "I was just joking. Miss He Wei Ni Ya is Golden Sound, and Golden Sound never needs to be caught in such a dilemma."

He Wei Ni Ya breathed a sigh of relief, then patted her chest and said with a hint of reproach, "You really scared me, Mr. Daniel."

She paused, then said, seemingly casually.

"But Mr. Daniel, you really know a lot. Unlike me, I've never even heard of this Advancement Magic. Could this be the Primordial Family's intelligence network?"

"Calling it an intelligence network is a bit of an exaggeration," Daniel said with a smile. "However, Primordial has stood firm in the Holy Sound for so many years, experiencing countless Grand Ceremony. Some things that seem novel at first glance have actually been done long ago. You should understand, Miss He Wei Ni Ya, Grand Ceremony are meant to drive people crazy. Of course, most of this madness is displayed among the commoner performers. For us, it's just a grand event, so there's no need to worry, Miss He Wei Ni Ya, no one dares to harm you. Of course, if you're still concerned, perhaps..."

"Going directly into the Ether Family, right?"

A detached male voice suddenly rang out from behind them.

"Your plan is way too obvious, Daniel."

He Wei Ni Ya and Daniel turned around and saw that Finnis had appeared behind them at some point, and next to him stood a dark-skinned musician who didn't look very respectable.

The dark-skinned musician's eyes suddenly lit up when he saw He Wei Ni Ya.

He Wei Ni Ya wasn't surprised by Finnis's appearance, but the other player...

She noticed the undisguised golden musical notes on the other person's arm and immediately guessed his identity.

This should be the other Golden Sound player in the orchestra that Finnis mentioned before— TuPake.

"Good morning, Mr. Finnis," He Wei Ni Ya said first.

Finnis responded with a smile, "Good morning, Miss He Wei Ni Ya. I hope you are not offended by my sudden arrival."

After speaking, Finnis looked at Daniel again, his smile gradually fading, and said calmly, "I didn't expect this, Daniel. Does the Ether Family intend to play the Seven Sound Divine Song at this Grand Ceremony?"

"How could that be?" Daniel replied with a smile. "In the Holy Sound, no one would be less reluctant to see the birth of the Seven Sound Divine Song than the Primordial One."

"Then why did you come to invite Miss He Wei Ni Ya?"

"Is there any necessary connection between them?" Daniel said with a smile. "Miss He Wei Ni Ya is the Golden Seventh Sound. Even the Primordial Two Great Families are eager to have Miss He Wei Ni Ya."

Daniel made no attempt to conceal his intentions, smiling as he met Finnis's gaze.

Finnis frowned slightly. He didn't say something foolish like "Miss He Wei Ni Ya has already promised me," but instead said slowly, "It seems we need to put our sincerity on the table and talk about it."

To Finnis's surprise, Daniel smiled and shook his head, "That won't be necessary. Everyone knows that the stakes of the Primordial Beginning have never changed over the years."

"Even the Golden Seventh Sound?"

"Even if it's the Golden Seventh Sound, to be honest, the Primordial Family does have Golden Seventh Sound, they just can't participate in the Grand Ceremony," Daniel shrugged and said, "But as pioneers in the art of harmonious notes, the help we can provide to Miss He Wei Ni Ya on her path as a performer is unmatched by any other family. You know, Miss He Wei Ni Ya, since the establishment of the Holy Sound, countless families have tried to join the Primordial Family, but there have only ever been two Primordial Family. So, we may not be the highest bidder, but we are definitely the safest choice."

Daniel's second half of his sentence completely ignored Finnis and was only addressed to He Wei Ni Ya. After speaking, he didn't intend to stay any longer and said goodbye with a smile.

"Aren't we going to have dinner together, Mr. Daniel?" He Wei Ni Ya asked.

"I think I'll pass." Daniel smiled and shook his head. "I would love to have breakfast with a beautiful lady like you, but I'd rather not with two men who are hostile towards me."

After saying that, Daniel really didn't linger and left quite gracefully.

Finnis watched his retreating figure, his brows furrowed tightly.

"What's wrong?" TuPake asked.

"I didn't expect the Ether Family to send him. In my memory, he's not someone easy to talk to," Finnis said. "I wonder if this guy has some other plans."

"What plans could he possibly have? Didn't he just say that he knew his options weren't as good as yours, so he gave up?" TuPake shrugged, then immediately greeted He Wei Ni Ya, "Hi, Miss He Wei Ni Ya, my name is TuPake, and like you, I'm also Golden Sound."

"Hello, TuPake Mr.," He Wei Ni Ya responded politely, then turned to Finnis and asked curiously, "Mr. Finnis, Mr. Daniel just mentioned that his family also has Golden Seventh Sound, but they can't participate in this Grand Ceremony. Why is that?"

Before Finnis could speak, TuPake interrupted him.

"It's quite simple. Golden Sound are time-limited; each player's notes fade with age. While this doesn't affect their use of musical magic, it greatly impacts their ability to simply play the music. And the Lord doesn't like such music. Simply put, the Lord prefers younger voices," TuPake said boastfully. "Therefore, not all Golden Sound can participate in the Grand Ceremony; if you miss it, you miss it. Unlike us, Miss He Wei Ni Ya, we are the true chosen ones."

As TuPake spoke, he showed He Wei Ni Ya his gleaming white teeth.

Finnis frowned even more deeply as he watched TuPake fawn over him.

But he didn't say anything, he simply extended an invitation to He Wei Ni Ya.

"May I have breakfast with you, Miss He Wei Ni Ya?"

Ten minutes later, the three arrived at the restaurant.

The combination of the three Golden Sound was simply too eye-catching, especially when everyone knew that the other two had come for He Wei Ni Ya, the expressions in their eyes were very complicated.

TuPake casually beckoned to the waiter. "Let me see what specialties the Three Academies have. I'm sick of eating fish every day in the Second Academy."

The waiter approached and stammered, "Hello, hello."

The sound immediately made He Wei Ni Ya raise her head. The first thing she saw was the rough ornament hanging around her neck, and then she saw a familiar face.

It was Auger.

"What a terrible thing to do," Bai Wei said leisurely.