Song Clings to Flute

"Tie Siming is dead?"

"Yes, he actually managed to withstand twelve moves from Chu Tianshu, which is quite remarkable."

However, those twelve moves were so fast that they seemed like a single, continuous strike. To someone with poor eyesight, the twelve variations appeared as a single, fleeting, and mysterious strike.

The Tie Siming was cleaved in two.

On the second floor of the ship, the glow of dusk shone through the windows, and the ripples on the lake were reflected on the windows like shimmering golden waves.

The entire room was filled with a magnificent color.

Flowing Cloud Manor Master sat leisurely by the window, holding a teapot, pouring out a stream of water, and asked another question.

"Chu Tianshu... knows the Demonic Saber Technique?"

Ye Zongsheng said, "It shouldn't be. His attacks are powerful and domineering, and his swordsmanship changes like lightning. Even if he were holding an iron rod instead of that sword, it wouldn't make a difference."

The Demonic Sect Sect's signature sword technique naturally brought out the full potential of that treasured sword.

When Chu Tianshu held that knife, it was almost as if people had forgotten that it was a curved blade.

That is definitely not the martial arts style of the Demonic Sect.

"That's really strange."

Flowing Cloud Manor Master poured himself a full cup of tea.

The water level had risen slightly above the cup, and the emerald green tea resembled a clear, bright gemstone.

He placed his fingers beside the teacup, but did not immediately pick it up.

Because his state of mind at that moment was not as calm as it appeared on the surface.

If you hold that cup of tea with that kind of mentality, some tea will inevitably spill.

Flowing Cloud Manor Master was utterly baffled. "How exactly did he find the leader of the Demonic Sect?"

If the leader of the Demonic Sect Cult is still at the headquarters and has been found, it would be easier for people to understand.

However, the leader of the Demonic Sect Cult should have already set off by then, and even the followers at the main headquarters wouldn't know exactly which path he took or where he ended up.

Ye Zongsheng had the same question in his mind.

Having witnessed Chu Tianshu appear with his own eyes, carrying that demonic blade, his confusion was compounded by a deep sense of shock.

The Demonic Sect Sect's sword has a very high reputation in the Central Plains martial arts world.

Many people have heard of, or even seen, images related to, that knife.

The lingering, eerie ferocity emanating from the knife made it even clearer that they hadn't made a mistake.

In particular, Ye Zongsheng had personally witnessed the Demonic Sect Leader unleash such a sword technique on the Flowing Cloud Manor Master.

Such a figure was quietly defeated in a place unknown to everyone, and even his treasured sword was taken away.

Even with his initial confidence in Flowing Cloud Manor Master, Ye Zongsheng couldn't help but waver somewhat in the face of that moment's shock.

"For tomorrow's battle, the Lord has instructed me to bring all thirty-seven Flowing Cloud Guards to the island."

Ye Zongsheng said, "Perhaps when they targeted the leader of the Demonic Sect Cult, it wasn't a one-on-one situation."

Flowing Cloud Manor Master stared at the cup of tea, slowly picked it up, and drank it all in one gulp.

"He wouldn't resort to such underhanded tactics in a duel under the watchful eyes of everyone."

"Your mind is in turmoil. What you need to do is keep an eye on those remnants who have emerged this time."

"His killing of the Demonic Sect Cult leader might not be a bad thing. Everything has become more straightforward. What we originally planned to use to guard against the Demonic Sect can now be used to target his side."

Flowing Cloud Manor Master faced the rosy glow outside the window and waved his sleeve.

"You may step down. The duel is scheduled for tomorrow, and I need to focus all my energy on martial arts."

Ye Zongsheng felt that the entire room was filled with a warm, light gold atmosphere.

He felt as if he had been carried away by the sunset, and for a moment he couldn't quite put his finger on which part of his body had been subjected to the force first.

The guards standing outside the door watched as he slowly floated out of the house, and the door was already closed.

Everything happened so naturally.

The guards did not hear any strong wind that could blow a person away.

But they also saw the glow of dawn shining through the paper windows and doors.

The room was filled with a lingering, bright light.

Even late at night, the room, without any lights on, was still filled with a bright glow.

It is unlike any other place that relies on the light and shadow of lanterns.

Flowing Cloud Manor Master, holding an iron flute in his hand, remained seated by the window, his eyes half-closed and his breathing barely audible.

Only after his invisible inner force was released did it light up.

Therefore, it doesn't have that feeling of a single light source with the strongest radiance.

His entire silhouette was still clearly visible as he sat in the brightly lit interior.

Light and air flowed gently and changed constantly, while his body remained still.

After midnight, more and more boats appeared on the lake.

It was already the beginning of a new month, the first day of the lunar new year.

People with various motives came to the lake under the cover of night, and all noticed the brightly lit room on the large ship.

They were either wiping their knives at the bow or sitting quietly inside the boat, all waiting.

As the eastern sky gradually brightens, the light in the room gradually fades away.

The sky was already white, but the sun had not yet risen.

The scenery of the lake and mountains is refreshingly cool.

A small boat then came from the shore.

The lake's water is rarely this clear and mirror-like for even a few days each year.

The other ships seemed like ornaments already placed on this giant mirror, each with its own place.

Only this small boat, leaving a trail of water, flowed slowly on the mirror-like surface, full of vitality and still not ceasing.

Chu Tianshu stood on the small boat and slowly approached Kangshan Island.

The people of the Flowing Cloud Manor all stared at the small boat.

Whether it was the towering ship or the small boats moored, everyone's nerves were on edge.

Just then, a faint flute melody drifted from the second deck of the ship.

"Um?"

No one expected that someone in the Flowing Cloud Manor would have the leisure to play the flute and music at such a time.

But as soon as the flute music started...

The oppressive feeling caused by Chu Tianshu's sudden appearance yesterday with the Demonic Sect Sect's treasured sword has lessened considerably.

The Southern Shaolin monks, who had already arrived by boat around the island, all went to the bow of the boat, their faces extremely serious.

No matter what the people of the Flowing Cloud Manor are doing now, in their eyes, something fishy is definitely going on.

"Sonic Art?"

Chan Master Miaokong twirled his prayer beads, the thought flashed through his mind, and he immediately wanted to recite a sutra to disrupt the melody.

Who knew that the flute music was so powerful and delicate? At first listen, it seemed to be quite subtle.

Before we knew it, wave after wave had passed.

When Chan Master Miaokong tried to unleash the Lion's Roar, he immediately entered the realm of Sonic Art and faced the pressure head-on.

He opened his mouth, but couldn't utter a single word.

Sweat condensed on his bald head and nose at a visible speed.

Many people on the lake also realized that something was wrong at this point.

The flute music, at its very first note, dispelled the oppressive atmosphere that Chu Tianshu had created yesterday, but conversely, it also created an even more chilling sense of unease.

The rise and fall of the tone is like searching and probing the level at which each school and type of internal martial arts is located.

As the flute notes rise and become melodious.

The internal energy of the vast majority of people was involuntarily controlled by these sound waves.

The internal energy fluctuates, sometimes rising and sometimes falling.

Many experts standing at the bow of the boat, with their internal force suddenly collapsing, caused the boat planks to break open due to the pressure, and the lake water began to rush into the boat.

Shortly afterward, more than a dozen ships had sunk into the water.

Ironically, the people on the boat were all controlled by the whistle, their faces contorted in struggle, their bodies stiff, as the boat sank, the water already above their knees.

Those ships that hadn't sunk yet were all terrified, doing their utmost to suppress their inner strength.

Chu Tianshu's eyes flickered.

Although he himself was not greatly affected, he felt the infinite mysteries and ingenious variations within the music.

If one tries to forcefully suppress it with methods like howling, it will consume a great deal of internal energy.

If left unchecked, the flute music enveloping the island will create an increasingly terrifying atmosphere.

Chu Tianshu could already see the colors of Yanxia in the sky, appearing and disappearing intermittently.

This Flowing Cloud Manor Master was able to utilize the power of the Mist and Rosy Clouds Realm Layer without even making a direct move.

The inner strength and intense inner struggles of the experts present became the triggers he used to manipulate the Yanxia.

Lu Shuangyan, who was on the Xiahou Family's ship, also gazed at the sky and felt the power of the Yanxia.

To break this method, it seems the only way is to rush to the ship and get to the room where the Flowing Cloud Manor Master has been sitting in meditation for a long time.

"Guang... Cheng... Zi!"

Chu Tianshu looked up at the warship and sang aloud, his voice carrying far.

He randomly picked out a sentence that was somewhat fitting from the miscellaneous books he had read.

But the sentence itself is not the most important thing.

Importantly, his pronunciation was perfectly timed, coinciding with each nuance of the flute's sound.

"Guang Chengzi, twelve hundred years old, reclining high in the cold clouds of Kongtong. Teacher of emperors, dweller of heaven and earth, roaming Zongheng..."

The flute's melody quickened, Chu Tianshu's words becoming increasingly urgent; then the flute's melody slowed, Chu Tianshu's words becoming more relaxed.

The two seemed to have some kind of tacit understanding, but in reality, Chu Tianshu was holding onto the sound of the flute.

"By the willow's shade, beneath the pine's shadow, straighten your spine and let all worldly ties be severed. Lock the restless mind, tame the wandering will, and engage in idle talk of immortality..."

He used every fleeting premonition to capture the next note in the flute's melody.

Make sure the words you pronounce are perfectly in time with the beat.

The sound traveled further and further, echoing throughout the island's mountains and forests.

The people, whose bodies were half-submerged in the lake, suddenly let out a long howl, jumped out of the water, and took temporary shelter on a nearby boat.

"Lord Putian, Lie Yukou, riding the wind, he pierced through heaven and earth. He summoned the Southern Star and the Northern Dipper, and in his dreams, he was carefree..."

Those who had not yet sunk but were struggling felt a sudden surge of inner strength and a sense of comfort throughout their bodies.

One by one, their brows relaxed, and their faces radiated with joy.

Chu Tianshu's figure suddenly leaped into the air.

He strolled leisurely across the water, traversing several dozen feet of the lake, until he reached the reef.

Because the ships from the Flowing Cloud Manor never landed on the island, this reef was actually the closest place to the ships.

Behind the reef is a low cliff facing the rising sun.

In front of the reef, there is a narrow strip of sunlit water and the shadows of the ships.

The wondrous flute music seemed to be mostly trapped back in this shadow.

The sound layered upon layer, but its spread was far less than before.

"No traps, no pretense, it remains unbroken despite the relentless passage of time."

Chu Tianshu spoke to the warship, his voice rising higher and higher, so loud it seemed to stop the clouds in their tracks.

"A boat sailing against the current, oars propelling it, clearing away the wind and debris..."

On the ship, the hundreds of people from the Flowing Cloud Manor felt their ears ringing.

The flute music and singing made many people dizzy and sway from side to side.

The flute's melody suddenly soared to its highest point, as if gold and jade had shattered and a silver bell had broken.

Immediately, a sliver of dark light shone through the second-floor window.

The sound of the flute was still echoing on the lake when the iron flute arrived, cutting through the wind and pointing straight at the reef.

Chu Tianshu waved his hand.

The iron flute was flung away by him, piercing through a small reef and embedding itself in another, higher reef.

On the second deck of the ship, a swift, fleeting shadow appeared, flashing towards us.

The nearly twenty-zhang distance was covered by the Flowing Cloud Manor Master using his height advantage, without the slightest pause.

No sooner had the iron flute been knocked away than he appeared in front of Chu Tianshu.

Her right shoulder leaned forward, her long hair billowing in the wind.

Flowing Cloud Manor Master bumped into him with his shoulder.

The two were still five feet apart.

A powerful Gang Qi has already begun to impact the main gate of Chu Tianshu's central palace.

(End of this chapter)