A Golden Scale Is No Creature of the Pond [Monthly Ticket, Investment]

The young people were gathering, and the old men and women could not very well force their way in. Not only was the age gap too great, but the difference in cultivation was immense as well. Sitting together would have made everyone uncomfortable.

Next, it was naturally Star Peak's prodigy, Hua Yunfei, who received Jiang Ming and Ji Haoyue.

The senior figures simply chose to overlook Jiang Ming's current sinister, devilish aura. Who knew what it was, or whether it was merely an outward appearance?

So long as Jiang Ming did not massacre innocents or wreak havoc upon the world, they had no reason to provoke a Buddhist prodigy whose backing and origins were unfathomable. They even suspected that this Dharma Master Sanzang had left the Western Desert to travel the world with a protector secretly following him.

"Has Xiao Nannan fallen asleep?"

Hua Yunfei transmitted his voice gently.

"Mhm, she's asleep."

Jiang Ming looked at Xiao Nannan with doting affection, though there was concern in his eyes as well. He was certain that once she woke up, she would no longer recognize him. She might even slip into the void and fly away at any moment.

It was all that damn system's fault. How wonderful would it have been if it had bound the Ruthless Empress of the Desolate Forbidden Land? She had been one of his most beloved waifu characters in his past life. Yet it had failed, splitting one red thread into three, and it had taken everything upon itself, not even sparing Xiao Nannan.

Forget it. What was the point of complaining?

The system had brought him far too much trouble, far too many debts of affection. Looking at his current appearance as a great devil with monstrous demonic aura, if he had not shown off too much at Taixuan Sect, perhaps someone would already be trying to uphold justice by slaying demons.

Ji Haoyue thought of his younger sister and smiled gently as well. Ji Ziyue was his full-blooded younger sister. His father had more than a hundred confidantes, and the first rule of the Desolate Ancient Families was that they did not raise useless people. Even if one lacked talent, or could not cultivate at all, one simply had to take more wives and have more children.

For instance, Ji Haoyue's father had inferior talent compared to his eldest uncle, who was now the head of the Ji Family.

However, thanks to Ji Haoyue's Divine Body and Ji Ziyue's unusual physique, his parents' status within the family had long since risen. They were finally no longer stuck in that awkward, neither-high-nor-low position.

Speaking of Desolate Ancient Families, the Jiang Family was another matter. Jiang Ming's branch had been left behind after their great-grandfather departed from the Jiang Family.

The Jiang Family's internal struggle for power was severe, because unlike the Ji Family, they had no young ancestor like Ji Zi as their foundation. Their internal strength was badly depleted.

Moreover, some exceptionally talented Jiang Family descendants had rebelled against the family and become bandits.

Then the White-Clad God King had vanished.

The unpredictability of worldly affairs had already sent the Desolate Ancient Jiang Family down a declining path.

That was why, later on, the Jiang Family searched for their departed direct bloodline, eventually finding Jiang Tingting and Jiang Bo in Clearwind Town.

So long as a Desolate Ancient Family did not completely lose its way, it attached great importance to nurturing its talented younger generation, as well as its descendants and bloodline. The glory bestowed by one's ancestors still needed descendants capable of preserving it.

Furthermore, the Ji Family was different. All the living old monsters knew one thing: the Ji Family's young ancestor was still alive. He was the son of the Void Great Emperor.

"I'll arrange a room for her to rest in."

Hua Yunfei spoke again and led them to a green bamboo cabin not far away. The cabin was antique and elegant, woven from carefully crafted bamboo, suitable for calming the mind and meditating.

"Alright, then let her sleep here for a while."

Jiang Ming carefully placed Nannan on the bed.

Hua Yunfei handed him a small pink blanket. Jiang Ming nodded and covered her with it.

Taixuan Sect had children too, so they did not lack such things.

"Come, let's go outside. I promised to play a tune for you, Brother Yunfei. Later, I'll ask Brother Haoyue to appraise it as well."

The three left the cabin. Jiang Ming smiled brightly and spoke with free-spirited ease.

"Good. Then I shall listen with rapt attention."

Ji Haoyue immediately cupped his fists in salute.

The cabin was equipped with soundproof Formation Patterns, so Nannan would not be disturbed. However, the moment she woke, she would trigger the formation and all three of them would sense it.

The three sat down at the edge of a cliff two hundred meters away. Maidservants had already arranged spirit fruits, spirit wine, and spirit tea there.

Hua Yunfei lightly waved his hand, and the ancient zither that had been resting on a blue stone atop the ancient cliff floated directly toward Jiang Ming.

Jiang Ming did not stand on ceremony. He reached out and caught the ancient zither, then picked up a small jar of wine beside him and raised it to his head for a long drink. The wine poured continuously into his mouth with a splash until the jar was empty.

"Fine wine. A thousand cups are too few when drinking with a kindred spirit; half a sentence is too much when words do not align.

"A tune of smiling proudly at the world, for you both."

In his previous life, Jiang Ming had been a grandmaster of the zither. He had played music and drunk tea with Nü Yuan, living as a devoted pair in utter bliss. Unfortunately, good times did not last, and the past was too painful to revisit.

Bright moon over the vast sea, pearls weep with tears; warm sun over Lantian, jade gives rise to smoke.

This love may become a memory to recall, yet even then, it had already been lost in confusion.

If he had another chance, he would certainly do better. He would not let anyone be harmed.

[The Smiling, Proud Wanderer Tune (Zither and Flute Ensemble Version), VIP Master Recording, Hu Weili, insert song from the Lü Songxian version of the TV drama "The Smiling, Proud Wanderer"]

"A soaring song intoxicates with sorrow; how many return after smiling proudly through the martial world? Ask not where heroes come from. To meet a kindred spirit is life's greatest beauty."

Jiang Ming lightly stroked the zither and spoke with a laugh.

A few resonant notes rang from the zither, each one entering the ears and stirring the heartstrings.

The zither's notes were sonorous and powerful, carrying no elegance, only soaring heroism, unrestrained chivalrous spirit and tender feelings, twisting and turning without end.

After hearing it only once, Hua Yunfei's heart stirred. With a lift of his hand, a jade flute appeared in his grasp. He had always loved the art of the zither, though he also knew a little about playing the flute.

With his understanding of music, this tune was incomplete. It needed flute accompaniment.

"Haha, Brother Yunfei truly is a kindred spirit. This ancient tune indeed needs flute accompaniment. Ideally, it should be performed by a man and a woman. Alas, kindred souls are hard to find. When the strings break, who will listen?"

Jiang Ming laughed heartily.

Hua Yunfei had truly come to like Jiang Ming as a friend. In truth, he had only wished to be an ordinary zither-playing youth, admiring his own fragrance in solitude, sharing lofty mountains and flowing waters. Yet when he was five, the Ruthless Lineage had come seeking an heir, and he had been chosen.

After that, he had become two-faced, openly and secretly, constantly growing stronger and gaining many opportunities, such as the ancient heavenly technique Phoenix Tribulation. Yet he had become increasingly unable to grasp his own fate.

A little fish might still have a chance to slip through the fishing net, but once it became a big fish, it could only wait to be slaughtered.

Unless it had the ability to achieve Carp Leaping Over the Dragon Gate and transform directly into a True Dragon.

The seven-stringed zither was peaceful and upright, accompanied by the clear, secluded sound of the flute. The music was melodious and deeply moving, as though the zither and flute were asking and answering one another.

The zither gradually rose in pitch while the flute slowly sank lower. Yet though low, the flute did not cease. Like gossamer drifting in the wind, it remained unbroken and continuous. Yin and yang intertwined: a man's iron-blooded loyal heart, a woman's chivalrous tenderness.

Though the jade zither carried sonorous notes that seemed to contain killing intent, beneath the elegant and winding narration of the flute, even tempered steel was transformed into softness around the fingers.

The zither and flute harmonized. The zither's sound gained softness as well, and the two melodies rose and fell. Then, suddenly, the zither and flute changed sharply. Though their sounds became endlessly intricate and varied, every note retained its cadence, pleasing to the ear and stirring to the heart...

The flute was clear and soaring, like a bright moon after rain and a pure breeze, representing progress, sunlight, and goodness. The zither was low and rich, ancient and grand, representing worldly experience, the vicissitudes of life, and profound enlightenment. The two complemented each other as yin and yang. It was not a killing tune like the Nine Tribulations Phoenix Song, nor the sound of the immortal path, but after all splendor faded and the music ended, it contained a realm of Dao-heart within the ordinary.

"A golden scale is no creature of the pond; once it encounters wind and clouds, it undergoes Dragon Transformation.

"Brother Yunfei, the road ahead is long and distant. Though the Dao is blocked and the journey long, one will arrive if one keeps walking. So long as one never ceases, the future is promising."

Jiang Ming withdrew his hand from the zither, gently stroking its strings as he looked at Hua Yunfei. That had truly been exhilarating, and he could not help offering him a word of guidance.

"Whoosh!"

Just then, Nine Heavens Divine Light descended where Nannan was sleeping, like the light of guidance and ascension from legend.