How Did You Even Survive Until Now? (5K)

Ulysses suddenly opened his eyes and looked at the ancient tree outside the house, swaying in the gale, its bells playing a rousing melody.

"She really did make a move."

Ulysses chuckled softly.

"Just as you predicted," said Anita, who was waiting nearby. "She is indeed a bold and crazy person."

"Yes," Ulysses said with a smile, "This is the first time in a thousand years that an original genealogy has come this far. No matter the outcome, she has already made history."

"But I think this is the end for her," Anita said. "Tonight, she is at odds with the entire Holy Sound."

"Heh." Ulysses chuckled. "Those people can't represent the entire Holy Sound, but you're right, she's facing considerable trouble, especially with La Wu Er involved, but..."

He paused.

"Isn't it true that great works are more likely to be born in desperate situations?"

After listening, Anita remained silent for a moment, and then slowly nodded.

"Understood." She stood up. "I will witness it for you. Tonight... entrust everything to me, Headmaster."

Ulysses smiled and nodded.

"Thank you, Anita."

Todd felt uneasy.

Although he couldn't explain why, from the very beginning, he had a feeling that something big was about to happen.

Of course, something big is going to happen tonight.

The final Outer Melody will conclude in the early hours of tonight. Tomorrow, the first Inner Melody should begin, and the true performers should take the stage to offer hymns to the great Lord of Sound.

Logically, he should be happy.

Not only will he be the lead performer, but also because their biggest rival in this Grand Ceremony, the Lawrence Family, has effectively lost its competitiveness and has no way to compete for first place.

In this way, the positions of the Primordial Two Great Families will not be shaken.

His annoying older brother, having lost any chance of winning, could no longer cause any trouble.

This should be a double celebration.

But why couldn't he be happy?

Is it because of "Xi Ze" who has never been caught?

That was indeed a potential problem, but theoretically, he should have no chance left.

Once tonight is over, and the Outer Melody have been exchanged, and the Lord's gaze falls upon the earth, he will no longer have the opportunity to act.

Even if he doesn't take action, he can't continue to lie low, because the Dean is already making preparations at Eternal Note. Once the Dean completes the ritual, he won't even have the means to continue hiding.

Therefore, theoretically speaking, running away is his best option.

Since he has already collected so many sounds, even if he doesn't participate in the Grand Ceremony and leaves the Holy Sound, he can still live well in various places with that power. There is absolutely no need for him to jump into this dead end.

Even if that guy is still unwilling to give up and wants to make one last gamble, Todd doesn't need to worry too much.

It wasn't just because he was surrounded by several Golden Sound musicians sent by the family, but also because Todd's tone was the Three Sound. According to intelligence, that guy already had the Three Sound, so there was no reason to attack him.

Hmm... He has no reason to lay a hand on himself.

Todd kept trying to comfort himself.

Unfortunately, it wasn't very useful. When he reached the door of the training room, he stopped and turned to ask his servant, "What time is it now?"

"It's already eight o'clock," the servant replied. "In less than an hour, Dean La Wu Er will begin the ceremony."

Is there only one hour left?

So far, we haven't heard anything from that guy.

It seems he has truly given up.

With that thought in mind, Todd pushed open the door to the practice room.

Then they smelled a strong stench of blood.

He paused for a moment, then subconsciously raised his head.

He saw the stunningly beautiful girl standing in the pool of blood, silently watching him.

"She's already made her move!"

"There are at least three eyewitnesses who can testify that it was He Wei Ni Ya!"

"Ka Lun Chu Ke and Evan De Li are dead!"

"Todd Chucker was seriously injured after just one exchange with her, and she's still hunting Todd down!"

During the Eternal Grand Ceremony, La Wu Er listened to the school staff's continuous reports while looking up at the magnificent Eternal Note before him.

Even though he tried hard to remain calm, his constantly twitching eyebrows betrayed his state of mind.

"Mr. Finnis." He turned to Finnis, who was sitting beside him, "Tell me, what exactly is she trying to do? As far as I know, she already has the notes for Ka Lun, Evan, and Todd, so why would she make a move against them at this time?"

"Dean," Finnis's expression was equally unpleasant. He shook his head and said with a wry smile, "If I understood, do you think I would still be here?"

Yes, the current situation has completely exceeded La Wu Er's expectations.

It should be noted that La Wu Er had already prepared for He Wei Ni Ya's desperate last-ditch effort, gathering the missing note— the Two Sound— around him.

That is, the female two-tone player from the Finnis and Ether Family.

If He Wei Ni Ya wants to collect all seven notes, she must come here to obtain one of the two notes.

But this forces He Wei Ni Ya to confront La Wu Er directly.

If he doesn't come, then La Wu Er will complete the ritual, receive the power of the Eternal Note, and go directly to the academy to find and deal with her.

Unless she escaped, La Wu Er couldn't think of a third possibility. So La Wu Er made thorough preparations, even assigning most of the academy's Golden Sound school workers to this location.

But now, her third option has arrived.

"Is this guy planning to kill all the Golden Sound?" La Wu Er said softly.

At this moment, the school staff who had been waiting stepped forward and said to La Wu Er, "Dean, we can't just wait here any longer! That woman is insane! She wants to kill all the Golden Sound so that we can't complete the Grand Ceremony!"

This is indeed the most likely thing to happen right now.

But after a moment's thought, La Wu Er shook his head.

"No, judging from what she's done, she's a very rational person. She's been planning for so long, she wouldn't choose to self-destruct at a time like this," La Wu Er said. "She wants to force us back, or rather, she doesn't want to see me complete the ritual... Well, that must be it."

La Wu Er, confident in his judgment, addressed his subordinates.

"It is precisely at times like these that we must not be led by the nose. We do not know what other hidden powers she may possess, and it would be too unpredictable to rush back to the academy to find her. The safest approach is to wait for me to complete the ritual."

The school staff looked at each other, then asked, "How much longer do you need?"

La Wu Er glanced at the time. "There are less than forty minutes left."

"Forty minutes? We're just going to wait here for another forty minutes?" the school janitor said. "Young Master Todd is still being chased! Are we just going to wait here?!"

La Wu Er's brow furrowed even more.

He knew things were about to get complicated.

Because most of the capable school workers under his command came from the Primordial Two Great Families.

Therefore, they are more loyal to their families than to the academy.

Realizing this, La Wu Er understood even more that he couldn't rush things, so he tried to speak calmly, "She only has forty minutes. How much can she possibly accomplish? The alarm has already been raised, and the other Golden Sound will naturally be on alert as well. So far, she has only managed to get her hands on Ka Lun and Evan, and they didn't have any guards to begin with. They only let their guard down because they thought He Wei Ni Ya already had the corresponding notes and wouldn't attack them. That's why Mr. Todd survived, didn't he? Although the situation seems rather bad, please remember, it's precisely in times like these that you must not lose your composure."

After La Wu Er emphasized it again, the school workers began to hesitate.

"Don't think of her as too terrifying. If she really had that kind of power, she should have already come here to kill her way in." La Wu Er continued to reassure his men. "The fact that she didn't only shows that her strength is still limited. She only had an advantage because she had more musical notes and hid in the shadows at the beginning. As long as the people left in the academy come to their senses, she won't be able to cause any trouble."

La Wu Er's reasoned explanation gradually calmed the school staff down.

Indeed, that woman was just one person at the end of the day.

To think that one person could challenge the Primordial Two Great Families, which have been passed down for thousands of years, is truly wishful thinking.

In that case, the safest approach is indeed...

"Bang"!

The doors to the Hall of Eternal Note were pushed open once more.

An old, blood-soaked Silver Sound Player rushed in, then collapsed before everyone's eyes.

"This is... Kui Er?!"

"It really is Kui Er!"

"Damn it, wasn't this guy protecting Master Todd?!"

The school worker from the Chu Ke Family immediately rushed over and pulled Kui Er up.

"Kui Er?! Kui Er, are you alright?!"

"Don't ask how he is! What about the young master? How is Young Master Todd?!"

Kui Er's eyes were blank, as if he had lost his mind, and he kept repeating a few words to himself.

"Young Master... save him... young master..."

Upon hearing this, La Wu Er realized that the situation he had managed to stabilize was about to spiral out of control again.

As expected, the school workers belonging to the Chu Ke Family immediately stood up.

"Dean, we can't wait any longer," one of the school staff said to La Wu Er. "We've already lost young master Ka Lun tonight, we can't afford to lose young master Todd too. Perhaps your plan is good, but we cannot accept such a price."

Although he had already guessed that they would make this choice, La Wu Er still sighed softly and tried to speak in a commanding tone, "What if I, as the Dean, ordered you to stay here and protect me?"

"I'm sorry, Dean." The school janitor bowed to La Wu Er, but his words were unusually cold. "You do not have such an identity."

Upon hearing this, La Wu Er's expression immediately darkened.

However, the school worker from the Chu Ke Family did not explain anything and immediately left with the other school workers from the Chu Ke Family.

The Ether Family followed.

"I'm sorry, Dean. As you know, we've already lost young master Daniel in the three colleges, and then we lost young master Roland a month ago." The Ether Family's school worker also said, "Even the Ether Family cannot afford to lose a Golden Sound performer."

He then led his people away.

As a result, less than a quarter of the musicians remained in the hall, consisting only of the orchestra responsible for the first Inner Melody and Finnis and his people.

Silence, a long silence.

La Wu Er stood quietly beneath the Eternal Note. Although his expression did not change much, the oppressive atmosphere made everyone present feel breathless.

Just a moment ago, he was like the new ruler of this academy, Primordial Two Great Families had to obey his orders.

But at this moment, everything returns to its origin.

"I didn't expect that," he said softly. "After all these years, the Primordial Two Great Families are still the same, without making any progress. No wonder the headmaster has always looked down on them. Don't you think so, Finnis?"

La Wu Er seemed to be chatting casually with Finnis, but Finnis was hesitant to join in, because he could sense that La Wu Er was like a lion desperately suppressing its rage, and he didn't want to provoke him at this moment.

Fortunately, La Wu Er held back, because he knew that getting angry at this point would not be of any use and would only bring more uncertainty.

"A long time ago, the principal told me that a qualified musician should not be unaffected by anyone or anything, but should only focus on his own path." La Wu Er walked towards the Tuning Master placed in the center of the hall and put his hand on his shoulder. "Remember this, Mr. Finnis, it is the truth."

Finnis nodded slightly. "I will remember."

La Wu Er smiled, clearly having composed himself.

"Don't worry, you'll be fine tonight," he said calmly. "I can assure you."

"Of course, Dean," Finnis replied with a smile. "I trust you."

This isn't exactly a compliment, but it's not entirely accurate either.

Finnis did believe it, but the object of his belief was not La Wu Er, but rather— the Lord of Holy Sound.

As time went by, they gradually became able to hear the melody of the last Outer Melody.

The melody gradually entered the main hall, illuminating the outermost few Eternal Note.

The performers present also felt the notes within their bodies responding involuntarily to this power.

The Lord of Holy Sound is about to awaken.

He was awakened by this once-in-twenty-year musical wind to appreciate this Grand Ceremony that belonged only to him.

However, before that,

This wind belongs to La Wu Er.

He stood at the center of the formation, feeling the power symbolizing the Lord of Holy Sound seeping into his body through every pore. His power and his senses were rapidly expanding.

Every piece of music played by every musician in the main hall was so clearly audible.

The ever-present musical notes in the main hall seemed to be held in his hands.

This is... the power of the Lord.

La Wu Er clenched his fists tighter and tighter.

It's almost finished.

At this moment, he is... um?

Out of the corner of La Wu Er's eye, he saw a figure rush out from the orchestra of the first Inner Melody and then attack him straight away.

... He Wei Ni Ya?! When did she come in?!

La Wu Er hadn't even seen clearly yet, but his body reacted instinctively, and he immediately pulled out his staff and pointed it at the other person.

A beam of light shot out from the staff.

In an instant, he sent his opponent flying, crashing down into the Eternal Note like a leaf blown away, his blood splattering everywhere.

"Heh, so this is still the target?" La Wu Er narrowed his eyes slightly, then slowly walked towards the figure that had been knocked away. "Although I don't know how you got in, but..."

He was speaking when his pupils suddenly narrowed, and he immediately turned around, pointing his staff at Finnis not far away.

Finnis's attention had been focused on La Wu Er, and when he saw Raoul suddenly turn and point his staff at him, he was shocked and wondered why La Wu Er was attacking him.

No, La Wu Er has no reason to lay a hand on him.

It can only be...

He turned around abruptly and, sure enough, saw a pair of cold eyes and a Magic Power scythe being swiftly swung down.

With a "pfft".

Finnis's entire chest was ripped open.

"Tick-tock", "Tick-tock".

Blood dripped from his chest onto the ground.

Finnis was panting heavily, his eyes filled with terror.

Just a little bit more, just a tiny bit more.

Death's scythe almost took him away.

If La Wu Er hadn't reacted quickly, he would be a corpse by now.

"Alright, Mr. Finnis, have your men take you away from here first." La Wu Er stood in front of him, looking at He Wei Ni Ya was not far away, using Magic Power to transform her staff into a scythe. "Leave the rest to me."

Finnis opened his mouth, as if to say something, but couldn't utter a word.

The Lawrence Family immediately helped him up and led him toward the exit of the main hall.

During this time, Finnis looked up at He Wei Ni Ya.

Even now, Finnis finds it hard to believe that the other person is the seemingly harmless, manipulative woman he always thought she was.

Those eyes, especially the left one, only met his gaze once before losing the courage to confront him again.

Why... why is this happening?

They are clearly the Lawrence Family.

They should be the main focus of this Grand Ceremony.

What exactly did they do wrong?

Finnis wanted to scream, but as soon as he opened his mouth, blood kept gushing out. In the end, he couldn't even make a sound and was dragged out like a dead dog.

Only He Wei Ni Ya and La Wu Er remained in the arena.

"Although I would like to commend your combat style of using musical notes and staffs as weapons to evade the senses."

La Wu Er slowly opened his mouth. With the help of the Eternal Note, his perception was further enhanced. He could even clearly feel every resonance of the He Wei Ni Ya Note, every heartbeat, and even every breath.

So he had a question.

"How did this body of yours..." He stared into He Wei Ni Ya's eyes, "How did it manage to survive until now?"