The group left the inner hall and came to the open space outside. The city lord instructed the silver-clad warrior to activate the teleportation. With a flash of white light, the group left the Sparse Sound Hall.
The grand-uncle mentioned by the city lord was one of the few remaining elders of Heavenly Melody City. Ever since his master sealed Heavenly Melody City, he had been trying to break the restrictions, but unfortunately, his master was an extraordinary expert, and after a long time, he had only managed to crack a small part of it. To this end, he trained a group of juniors, attempting to rely on their numbers and use the rotating formation he designed to break the Mystic Qi outside the Mysterious Domain Secret Chamber. However, the extremely cold Mystic Qi outside the Mysterious Domain Secret Chamber required Empty Sound Fork as a medium to open it, but the Empty Sound Fork had long been taken away by his master, so he could only try to replicate it based on his memory.
This is an extremely quiet little courtyard. A few sparse white branches stand upright at the entrance of the courtyard, and vines climb all over the courtyard wall, with strings of green fruits hanging down, and a few pale blue flowers glistening with water droplets.
The city lord stood outside the courtyard gate and respectfully said, " Lan Hainü requests an audience with her Grandmaster Uncle."
After a long silence, the courtyard fell still. The city lord spoke again, "Please grant me permission, Grandmaster Uncle, that a friend has come to visit."
Li Qiang noticed that even Geng Feng had a serious expression, which told him that this Grandmaster Uncle Tianhong must be very important. He could tell just by looking at everyone's expressions; not a single person was anything but respectful. After a while, the courtyard door opened by itself without any wind, and the courtyard remained quiet. The city lord glanced back at everyone before gently stepping through the gate.
The courtyard was very clean, with only a small house, shaped like a thatched hut, with a roof covered in white grass-like plants. It had no door and was more like a pavilion than a house, open on all sides, with only a few white pillars supporting the roof. The floor of the room was about half a meter higher than the outside, and an ivory-colored mat was laid on the ground. A person sat in the center of the room, deep in thought with his eyes closed.
The city lord and a few others stood outside the room, waiting quietly. Li Qiang, bored out of his mind, looked around and noticed that many things here resembled items from his hometown, but were all white, which he found strangely amusing. Just as he was starting to feel impatient, his grand-uncle Tianhong suddenly opened his eyes and scanned everyone. The city lord Wen Qiuli lowered their heads, but Li Qiang looked at him nonchalantly.
Grandmaster Tianhong sat cross-legged on the ground, his back ramrod straight. He wore a bright yellow long robe, with a belt as wide as a palm, adorned with pieces of jade and several jade pendants. He wore a furry vest draped over his shoulders, its color a fiery red. His long black hair was tied in a knot on top of his head, his face was handsome and refined, and his two jet-black mustaches were neatly trimmed, making him look very energetic.
He lightly stroked his mustache, his gaze sweeping across the crowd like lightning, and suddenly, his eyes stopped on Li Qiang.
Li Qiang had seen his share of experts, so he remained calm and fearless, looking back at Tianhong.
The city lord glanced over and inwardly groaned. She had forgotten to tell Li Qiang beforehand that Grandmaster Tianhong held an extremely high position in Heavenly Melody City. Without Grandmaster Tianhong, Heavenly Melody City would never be where it is today. But now it was too late to stop Li Qiang.
Geng Feng was also quite surprised. He admired Grandmaster Tianhong the most, as all the elders had been guided in their cultivation by Tianhong. He thought to himself, "This little guy is really crazy, even crazier than the Old Madman, daring to look Grandmaster Tianhong in the eye."
Tianhong suddenly laughed and said, "Who is this little guy? His cultivation level is quite high. I've never seen him before. Hehe, who are you?" His voice was slightly hoarse, as if it had a power to shake one's soul.
Li Qiang struggled internally for a moment before stopping himself from speaking. He was secretly astonished: this person is truly formidable. He remained silent, watching quietly, and suddenly chuckled, "Hehe, your cultivation level is truly high, but it seems your weapon-refining skills aren't very good."
Tianhong was slightly taken aback. He knew that his words just now were delivered with True Essence Power combined with sonic vibrations, specifically targeting Li Qiang. Almost no one could escape this attack. He truly spoke his mind without hesitation. Little did he know that this little guy was not only very clear-headed but also mocked his poor weapon crafting skills. Weapon crafting was his weakness. Because of it, he had already delayed his cultivation progress. A Harmonizing Sound Fork had left him extremely frustrated, and there were no weapon crafting masters in Heavenly Melody City. He had to rely entirely on his profound cultivation to explore, but he failed more often than he succeeded, which had almost become a source of anxiety for him.
Tianhong's two dark eyebrows slowly rose. The city lord was greatly surprised when he saw this and hurriedly said, "Grandmaster Uncle, this is a guest who has just arrived in Heavenly Melody City and has come to pay his respects."
Tianhong was genuinely surprised. He used stroking his beard as a cover to calm himself down. "This guest is impressive. He actually managed to throw me into a state of State of Mind turmoil. Truly remarkable."
Geng Feng was starting to worry. He had boasted at the Sparse Sound Hall earlier, and if this Little Madman really knew how to forge weapons, even though everyone knew he was Old Madman, he would really lose face if he had to call Li Qiang his father.
Tianhong said, "Everyone, come up and sit down. Come sit next to me." He pointed to Li Qiang and said.
Piao Yuan and Lan Xin ran to Tianhong's side, one on each side, and said in a spoiled tone, "Grandpa, let's sit next to you." They sat down next to him and kept chattering.
Tianhong laughed and said, "You two little girls, instead of cultivating properly, you only think about playing all day. You should help your master. And you, Hai'er, don't spoil them too much."
Lan Xin said coquettishly, "Grandpa said Xin'er is no good again. We've already worked very hard, hehe, it's just that Heavenly Melody City is too boring, we can't go anywhere."
Tianhong sighed, "Everyone needs to work harder. Alas, Heavenly Melody City has trapped us all. It's my fault for being useless."
The city lord hurriedly said, "This isn't your grandmaster's fault, Xin'er. You've upset him again; I won't let you come next time."
Lan Xin lowered her head, not daring to utter a sound.
Tianhong shook his head and said, "It's not Xin'er's fault. The restrictions left by Master are truly extraordinary, beyond our reach. To break them... it's difficult! difficult! difficult!"
Li Qiang remained silent, sitting cross-legged. He thought to himself, "This Tianhong should know Brother Fu, right? He's considered a senior in the Cultivation Realm."
Tianhong suddenly thought of a question and asked, "Little guy, you cultivate in the Tanbang Continent, how come you can speak the language of Heavenly Melody City? Where did you learn it? Could it be... that you have met my master..." His eyes suddenly lit up.
The city lord and the others also looked at Li Qiang, as they had not received a reply from Li Qiang.
Li Qiang scratched his head. "Let me ask you something first, um... where is your hometown?" He added, "I mean, where were you born?"
Tianhong's thoughts immediately drifted far away, and after a long while he slowly said, "I can't remember very clearly... it's been too long..."
Li Qiang tentatively asked, "Do you remember what era it was?"
Tianhong seemed reluctant to recall, shaking his head and saying, "Sigh, I only remember one prefecture name, Jiujiang Commandery, and I can't remember anything else." Li Qiang wasn't good at history, but he knew that Bai Juyi's poem " Song of the Pipa " contained the line "Seeing off a guest at night at the head of the Xunyang River," which was in Jiujiang Commandery.
There's a city on the banks of the Yangtze River, now called Jiujiang City. He wasn't sure if it was the former Jiujiang Commandery, but he knew that Tianhong must have come from his hometown. Li Qiang laughed and said, " Mount Lu... Xunyang River... Poyang Lake... Hukou... Dragon Tiger Mountain..." He rattled off a string of place names, thinking to himself, "Li Qiang You must have heard of at least one of them."
As Li Qiang named the place, Tianhong's expression grew increasingly agitated. He stared at Li Qiang in disbelief, muttering, "Impossible, how could anyone else come out of there..." He could no longer sit still. He leaped to his feet and paced rapidly around the room, repeatedly muttering, "Heavens! Heavens! So many years... I've actually seen people from my hometown again, this can't be real... I've tried so hard to forget, I remember nothing... Heh... Waaah..."
To everyone's surprise, Tianhong burst into tears. He was a master cultivator skilled in music, and his sobs were heartbreaking for everyone present.
Li Qiang tried his best to control his emotions, but this was Tianhong's genuine expression of grief, and how could he resist it? His nose tingled, and tears streamed down his face uncontrollably.
Immediately, everyone in the room burst into tears, with Piao Yuan and Lan Xin, whose cultivation levels were lower, crying even louder. Li Qiang knew this was bad; if Tianhong were allowed to cry uncontrollably, no one here could bear it, and those with lower cultivation levels might even get injured. He looked up to the sky and roared, using this to protest against the sorrowful sound.
The city lord also woke up with a start and shouted, "Grandmaster Uncle! Grandmaster Uncle! Stop! Xin'er and the others can't take it!" Her voice also contained True Essence Power.
Li Qiang's long howl and the city lord's sharp shout finally silenced Tianhong's sobs. He went outside, looked up at the sky, and remained silent for a long time.
Tianhong looked up at the sky and asked, "Young man, when did you leave your hometown?"
Li Qiang wiped away his tears and said, "Not long after..."
The city lord said from the side, " Xin'er and your senior sister should go back first and cultivate in the Silent Hall. Be careful not to leave any hidden dangers. Grandmaster Uncle, let Xin'er and the other girl leave."
Tianhong nodded silently. After a while, Tianhong asked again, "Who took you away? I remember the teleportation array to go back has long been destroyed. Who has such great ability?"
Unlike Fu Shan, Tianhong wasn't lucky enough to return. Moreover, his skill level wasn't as high as Fu Shan's; he was only one level above Li Qiang. Therefore, he couldn't imagine that anyone could return, let alone bring others back with them. Seeing Li Qiang's high level of cultivation, he understood that anyone who could reach such a level in such a short time must have a secret technique or treasure from their sect. What kind of sect was this?
Li Qiang said, "I am from the Chongxuan Sect. My elder brother brought me from our hometown. My elder brother's name is Fu Shan, Fu Chongbi."
Tianhong trembled violently, and said in surprise and doubt, " Fu Shan... Heavens... the renowned True Person Green Peak, you... do you have any proof? Alas, never mind, this is impossible to prove."
Li Qiang stretched out his hand, revealing the Soul-Releasing Dragon Ring on his fingers.
Tianhong suddenly saw it, and his body trembled again. After a long while, he said in a daze, "As expected! As expected! It's the mark of a core brother of the Chongxuan Sect... He's really amazing, he finally went back."
The city lord Wen Qiuli were both confused about what was going on, but Geng Feng became worried. "This Little Madman seems to have quite a background. We mustn't get involved with Grandmaster Uncle Tianhong, or we'll be in big trouble. The Old Madman will definitely be killed by this Little Madman."
Tianhong looked dejected and stood there for a long time before gesturing for everyone to sit down again.
The city lord said cautiously, "Grandmaster Uncle, the young man said he knows how to forge weapons; perhaps he can help us forge Harmonizing Sound Fork..."
Tianhong nodded and said, "The core brothers of the Chongxuan Sect are all grandmasters of weapon refining. Hai'er, you can't call him little brother anymore... His seniority... If you really count it, even I am his junior. My master is a friend of his elder brother. I met Senior Fu a long time ago, but I never thought I would meet an old friend's brother again today." His voice sounded very lonely.
Geng Feng's first thought was, "We're doomed!" This Little Madman not only knows how to forge weapons, but he's also the elder of his elders.
Li Qiang wasn't surprised; he just thought Brother Fu Shan truly had friends all over the world, and that his reputation was incredibly useful. He still preferred to keep to his own circle of acquaintances, so he said, "I've found the Cultivation Realm to be a complete mess. It's really hard to figure out. Let's just keep to our own circles. Hmm, I'll call you 'Brother,' City Lord, and hehe, I'll call you 'Sister'..." He then turned to Wen Qiuli and said, "Hmm, Brother Wen, what should I call this Geng... Old Madman?"
Geng Feng broke out in a sweat and said repeatedly, "Just call me Old Madman, hehe... hehe... heh..." He kept chuckling to himself, trying to hide his embarrassment.
The city lord was overjoyed upon hearing this and said, "Alright, I'll acknowledge this younger brother."
Tianhong stroked his beard and smiled faintly, "Good, brother, you're very easygoing. Everyone should treat him as an equal, no need to be too reserved." Upon hearing this, the city lord and the others were all surprised, knowing that Tianhong's grand-uncle was very particular about seniority.
Actually, they didn't know that Tianhong's master had once told him to call Fu Shan "Shishu" (a respectful term for a senior disciple), which he had always Qi Ingestion. Only after learning that Fu Shan had returned to his hometown did he realize that Fu Shan's cultivation was far superior to his own. Logically, he should also call Li Qiang "Shishu," but he really didn't want to. Seeing that Li Qiang didn't care at all, he took the opportunity to back down.
Li Qiang laughed and asked, "Brother, what is that Harmonizing Sound Fork? Can I see it? What's Harmonizing Sound Fork used for? Why does the Mysterious Domain Secret Chamber need it?" His barrage of questions made Tianhong and the others laugh.
Tianhong turned to the city lord and said, " Hai'er has already told you about the Mysterious Domain Secret Chamber, brother? I'm ashamed to say that we've been stuck in Heavenly Melody City for so long—to put it bluntly, we're trapped here. In all this time, we've tried to break Master's restrictions, but we've only managed to break a little bit and still can't get out. This time, we'll have to rely on you, brother."
The city lord advised, "Grandmaster Uncle, don't be sad. With your younger brother here this time, perhaps the restriction can really be lifted, and we can leave this place and go to the Wild Plains to find Grandmaster Uncle. There must have been an important reason why he left and never returned, and why he sealed off Heavenly Melody City."
Tianhong nodded, stroked his beard, and said, "Let me explain. The Mysterious Domain Secret Chamber wasn't created by Heavenly Melody City, but discovered by my master. It might be something left behind by an ancient cultivator. It has thirteen levels, a golden, tower-shaped chamber. I went there with my master, but we could only get to the bottom level; we couldn't enter the twelfth level or above. When we opened the thirteenth level, we found many rare treasures and books inside. My master guessed that there should be even more things above the twelfth level, but unfortunately, we tried many methods to get in but couldn't. Later, because my master left, we didn't continue exploring."
Li Qiang asked doubtfully, "Thirteen stories? How big would that be?"
Tianhong said, "It's not very big... This Mysterious Domain Secret Chamber looks only about one person tall, and it's very exquisite. But once you go inside, you'll find it's really huge. I don't know what it's made of; it's simply breathtaking. However..." He paused for a moment and continued, "Outside the chamber, there's a mass of ten-thousand-year-old ice essence, which we call Mystic Qi, guarded by many Ice Spirit Essence. It can only be broken with Empty Sound Fork, but Master took the Empty Sound Fork away, so now we can only make a replica. We've tried many times, and many experts from Heavenly Melody City have sacrificed themselves, but it still doesn't work. Alas..."
Tianhong took out Harmonizing Sound Fork, a pale green fork about the size of a book. Tianhong smiled wryly, "Master's Empty Sound Fork is only the size of a palm, but I can only refine it to this size. There's really no way to shrink it any further, and it's also very difficult to arrange the sequence and combination of notes inside."
Li Qiang took the Harmonizing Sound Fork and examined it closely, finding it familiar, as if he had seen it somewhere before. He then used his true energy to investigate, but strangely, he couldn't detect anything; there was no formation inside. After pondering for a while, he asked, "Brother, how did this happen? There's nothing inside."
Geng Feng's heart skipped a beat, and a smile involuntarily spread across his face. He couldn't help but chuckle softly, "Hehe, so you don't understand either... hehe... Old Madman's really happy now..."
Tianhong's gaze swept over Geng Feng like a knife, and Geng Feng was so frightened that he quickly lowered his head. He dared not go crazy in front of Tianhong.
Li Qiang sighed inwardly. Although the Chongxuan Sect's weapon crafting skills were unparalleled, not everyone could master all of them.
Tianhong said, "Brother, in our Heavenly Melody City, we use music as the foundation of cultivation, and the same applies to weapon crafting. Try checking inside; are there many small dots with opposite attributes? Try using your True Essence Power to vibrate them. This is the most basic method of weapon crafting."
Li Qiang closed his eyes and examined it carefully again. With Tianhong's guidance, he immediately understood and was overjoyed. "Haha, so that's how it is! I understand, I understand!" He said, "I'll try, but I need to know the arrangement of the phonetic sequence inside."
The city lord said happily, "Great! Brother, just tell me what you need, and Elder Wen will fetch it." Wen Qiuli looked at Li Qiang and said, "Brother, just tell me what you need."
Li Qiang shook his head and said, "No need, I don't need anything."
Geng Feng asked incredulously, "Little Feng... uh... little brother, how do you forge weapons without tools?"
Li Qiang countered, "Who said that weapon crafting necessarily requires tools?"
Geng Feng rolled his eyes, speechless at Li Qiang Tianhong was present, but muttered to himself, "Hmph, wait until we get to the Ice Eye, let's see how arrogant you are then."
Tianhong took out a Jade Pupil Slip and said, "Brother, take a look. This is the arrangement of phonetic sequences. Ask me if you don't understand anything."
Li Qiang had already developed a great liking for weapon crafting. He took the Jade Pupil Slip and began to study it seriously. The Jade Pupil Slip contained very little content, mostly about the most basic crafting methods and musical arrangement. Li Qiang only briefly touched on the crafting methods, as his weapon crafting skills were many times higher than that. What he was most concerned about was the musical arrangement, which was what he needed to learn seriously.
Li Qiang kept his eyes closed, immersed in this new world, and he was very excited. After a long time, he exchanged views with Tianhong, and then continued learning. The city lord and the others were all experts in cultivation, and they also sat in meditation with their eyes closed.
Finally, Li Qiang laughed and said, "That's about it. Hmm, brother, tell me the order of the notes in the Harmonizing Sound Fork; it's not mentioned in the Jade Pupil Slip."
Tianhong was a little incredulous. "So fast? You understand everything already?" Seeing Li Qiang nod, he couldn't help but sigh, "I really envy True Person Green Peak... He's amazing!"
Although Geng Feng was Qi Ingestion by the Little Madman, he knew that his grandmaster was telling the truth. Several elders, including himself, and some disciples had all studied the contents of this Jade Pupil Slip, but almost none of them had been able to fully understand it; they were all stumped by the difficulty of refining weapons.
Tianhong took out a silver, finger-sized object and said, "I'll play it for you using the ' Whistling Arrow,' it has three sections. Everyone should use their internal energy to protect themselves, and you'd better memorize it with your mind. I'll try to slow it down."
He put the Whistling Arrow in his mouth, raised his hand, and unleashed a beam of white light. Instantly, the entire courtyard was enveloped in a white mist.
Li Qiang understood that this must be a protective measure, and immediately increased his power to activate the Shadow Dream Armor to protect his entire body.
"Chirp chirp..." The sound was extremely strange, consisting of a series of unrelated syllables, which was very unpleasant to listen to. Fortunately, it was very short and ended in less than thirty seconds.
Li Qiang let out a long sigh, "My god... this is awful..."
Tianhong burst into laughter at his words, saying, "The first section is the best; the next two sections... that's where the melody really gets interesting."
The city lord and the two elders were also deeply saddened by what they heard.
Wen Qiuli said, "The more skilled a person is in music, the more unpleasant it is to listen to. Every time I hear it, my mood stays bad for a long time. I really can't bear to listen to it..."
Geng Feng nodded in agreement.
Tianhong said dismissively, "You haven't grasped the essence of it, so of course you won't feel good. Alright, the second section is like this."
"Bang bang bang..." In an instant, even the air trembled.
Li Qiang was taken aback, thinking, "How can he be so powerful?!"