Silent Crown

Seeing that still stunned face, Ye Qingxuan laughed until he could not breathe.

“Not long ago, you said that I couldn’t handle great responsibility, that I wasn’t suited to power, but look who has fallen now, Your Majesties?” Ye Qingxuan laughed until his sides split. “How does it feel to become part of the White Knight? You’ve once again become the kings of the earth, forever and ever! Hahahahaha!”

Even though they were being ridiculed by Ye Qingxuan, their faces did not betray the least bit of shame. The former kings had been buried in the Ultimate. Their bones had been interred in the island, and their consciousness had been melded into the arrays, becoming the iron rules that governed the Ultimate. After the White Knight had devoured their bones and consciousnesses, he used the masters of the earth that Hyakume had created to make the kings a part of him.

The former kings of the earth and the present kings of the earth had been melded into one. Their bones had been molded into a crown and placed upon the White Knight’s head, and all their music theory and elements had been integrated into his body.

The former kings who had ushered in the age of humanity had become a stepping stone for the ancient darkness.

Could there be any mockery crueler than this?

The Sickle of God’s Wrath fell, and the sun’s glow was torn in two. Ye Qingxuan’s smile became even more mocking, and he opened his mouth to say something even more cutting, but before he could a chill rose up from under his feet, distracting him from what he was saying. The man who was skilled enough to make all the thieves in the world shed tears of painful defeat was forced to roll several meters away for safety.

A roar burst forth.

Broken stone went flying. Some of it smashed into his face painfully.

He looked up and saw the White Knight’s longbow slowly transform into a primitive spear. Arrays were shining upon the spear, and lightning curled around it.

The White Knight sped up. He galloped towards Ye Qingxuan on his warhorse with a spear in hand and stabbed at the place where he had just been, cracking the stones. Everywhere he passed everything turned to ash. His face had transformed into that of the Master of the Golden Palace.

“D*mn it!” Ye Qingxuan gaped at him. He finally remembered, when the White Knight had devoured the former kings, he had not just obtained their memories and their elements, but also their terrible martial power that was strong enough to found a new epoch.

He looked down at the sickle he was holding, then looked up at the lightning gun that the White Knight had. He felt like he was screwed. He had to fight in close combat with seven or eight of the best warriors in the world, the knights who had founded a new epoch?

You’ve got to be kidding me. He once again remembered the time he had been strung up and beaten by the Witch Hammer’s instructors.

After he had crammed for it for so long, his martial arts were still bad enough to make people cry and not bear to look. Maybe if Lancelot was here he could go a few rounds with these emperors, but if Ye Qingxuan went up against them, he’d be dead meat!

And who was the Master of the Golden Palace?

A monster who, by himself, with only a single horse and gun, could assume the forms of all the warriors of all the tribes of Asgard!

For the former kings, defeating a dime-a-dozen fighter like him would be a matter of only a couple of shots. They might not even want to get their hands dirty killing a weakling like him.

“Wait!” Ye Qingxuan raised his hand and shouted, “Didn’t you say we were going to have a fair and upright fight as musicians?”

Bang! The lightning gun roared, piercing through the void and crashing into the Sickle of God’s Wrath. Ye Qingxuan flew several dozen meters. Before he had stopped, the lightning gun began to shake and reformed into a longbow, and an elemental arrow came whistling over towards him.

Ye Qingxuan was beset from all sides, with wolves nipping at his legs. For some reason, he felt wronged.

What was this? His just deserts?

Fair and upright? How can you even freaking say that, Ye Qingxuan? Have you ever, at any time in your career, been a fair and upright musician?

When it comes to your ability to throw a sack over someone’s head and beat them or other dirty tricks the Musician’s Association had to take your name off the list!

And you still expect others to fight you fairly?

In your dreams!

That was not even the worst part.

The worst part was that the White Knight on his warhorse reached out and grabbed the broken Stone Plate. He held the core of a catastrophe, and using this as an interface, extracted unlimited power from the Ultimate.

With this massive infusion of aether, the shadows of the kings appeared behind him.

There was a crisp snapping sound as bones began to grow. Two pairs of skeletal arms quickly grew out of his split open back, holding a bow and arrows, a long knife and an epee. Under his crown, new features slowly emerged on the two sides of the White Knights head.

Ye Qingxuan’s hair stood up at the thought that he would have to face this six armed, three-headed monster. He gazed resolutely at the core of the catastrophe, gritted his teeth and firmly planted his feet. He had made up his mind.

If you won’t be benevolent, I won’t be righteous.

You’ll watch me die, but I’m going to call someone!

“Don’t play dead, elder!” shouted Ye Qingxuan. “You’re the one who wants to sit on the mountain and watch the world burn, right? Even when I’m doomed, you still won’t deign to help? Or are you prepared to fight this d*mn battle for 300 rounds?”

All was silent. There was no answer.

The White Knight’s lips curled into a mocking smile.

But what happened next stunned everyone watching.

There was a sudden burst of cold light in the steel of a piece of the broken Ultimate. A sword as sonorous and powerful as Solomon’s Seal flashed down, ringing out continuously. The movement-like ringing of the sword transformed into a dragon’s roar.

A freezing cold sword burst out of what had originally been nothing grew closer and closer. That length of steel was like a tightrope held by an invisible swordsman, wobbling up and down. In a flash is snapped back and forth 19 times, and the sound of rupturing pierced everyone’s ears without end.

The Dragon-form Sword that should have already disappeared coalesced once again. After experiencing annihilation it became even more precise, murderous and restrained, not revealing anything.

In an instant of violence, it pierced, slashed and cut 19 times in a heavenly display of swordsmanship. It pierced through eyes, cut throats, broke arms, cut through sternums, smashed hearts, severed limbs…

The chilling sword technique evolved into a scene straight out of a horror story, cutting the White Knight to pieces in a flash.

Even Chopin was dumbstruck.

…He could freaking do that?

Not only had he not died while under attack from the elemental arrows; he had feigned death in order to escape, had slunk away avoiding the catastrophes’ eyes and ears, and had hidden close by.

Although it was only a blow and the White Knight was difficult to kill, the fact that there was such a frightening sword technique in the world was enough to keep even the greatest up at night.

Other people had not been able to see the moment that the White Knight had freed the elemental arrow, but Ye Qingxuan had relied on the perception granted to him by the blood of the Deva to see it clearly.

At the moment before he was about to be pierced, the Dragon-form Sword had turned back and destroyed itself, killing its own projection first!

Dead things can’t kill again.

And something that did not exist could not continue to attack.

The bronze arrow suddenly lost its target. It fell limply and disappeared into the air.

The Silent Sword Movement!

That’s right, it could do that!

It was not empty boasting to say that the Yuan family’s sword movement was the best way to kill.

With it, you could kill others and naturally also kill yourself. You could even seek life in the midst of death, tempering your will and transforming yourself.

This move would be a deathblow for others. For the musicians of the Yuan family, it was nothing more than a painless drizzle.

Among the Nine Families of the Dragon Bloodline, theirs was the most unusual. Things were out of their proper order: their swords were like people and their people like swords.

The Yuan family cultivated their music theory to the end. Before they could use it on others, they had to first slay themselves and experience the arcane truth of the line between life and death. At least one out of every three would die at this critical juncture.

At least 90% of the sword and the music theory had been lost in the recent transformation, but this was no trouble for the Yuan family.

This was their true talent.

These madmen believed that the purer the power, the better. They often pursued a higher realm of art. When it came to power, there was no difference between level one and level 100. A small weapon was enough to kill someone, especially if it was wielded by a member of the Yuan family.

The Yuan family was obviously annoyed that their background had been revealed by a junior member of the clan, but for the time being, they were forced to cooperate with him.

But what had happened next had made the main part of the clan far to the east so upset they could have vomited blood.

He had come up to the top, but then… Ye Qingxuan ran away! He seized this rare opportunity, and then retreated hundreds of meters, escaping without hesitation to a safe distance.

And then the head of the Yuan family was caught by the White Knight and violently attacked. He was in the same situation as Ye Qingxuan, or possibly even worse.

Shameless!

“Ye Qingxuan, what are you doing?” screamed the head of the Yuan family.

“Come on, elder! Believe in yourself, you’ve got this!” Ye Qingxuan waved the sword at him in a gesture of thanks. “Just hold on! I’ll go get reinforcements from the Anglo Kingdom and come save you!”

Screw the reinforcements! If he waited for the reinforcements to come, it’d be too late! Even if he came with the Knights of the Round Table, what the h*ll would be the use?

Despite the fact that the sight of that sword made him want to cover his eyes, Ye Qingxuan lowered his protective barrier, used the Sickle of God’s Wrath to prop himself up. He closed his eyes as if beginning a spiritual journey.

His consciousness ran along the Heaven Ladder, instantly jumping up hundreds of rungs, traveling hundreds of miles to the Kingdom of Heaven and Earth.

An illusory figure appeared In the throne hall of the reflected city of Avalon. He shouted until his throat was hoarse as if his teacher was being dragged away by a demon, “Save me, Your Highness!”

Mary, who had been sleeping in the throne room, was awakened by this. She opened her eyes and looked at him in confusion. “What’s wrong?”

Ye Qingxuan had no time to explain, instead directly asking, “I remember that we had already started repairing the things in Stein’s Chamber number nine before I left. Has there been any progress?”

Mary frowned and thought for a moment, and her expression became helpless. “Lucky you remembered. That researcher who you ruined has gone crazy, as I complained to you several times. Over the past few days, he prepared the basic alchemy arrays, but it will take some time to install the main parts.”

“It’s good enough! It’s good enough!” Ye Qingxuan sighed with relief. “Let me borrow it, if I could trouble you to confer another title upon me?”

Mary looked at Ye Qingxuan’s roguish look and couldn’t help but glare at him. “Then come present yourself before me.”

Ye Qingxuan half kneeled. Mary drew her sword and placed it on the projection’s shoulder. “In my name, I bestow upon Ye Qingxuan, the Prince of Avalon, the title of my personal knight. At ease, you can stand up now.”

Ye Qingxuan couldn’t help but smile at her temper. He was about to leave, but he heard Mary’s voice. “Is everything going well?”

Seeing the faint worry on Mary’s face, Ye Qingxuan grinned. “There have been some twists and turns, but they won’t stop us.”

“I’ve given you the sword and armor of a knight.” She reached out and lightly touched the projection’s cheek. “I look forward to your triumphant return,” she whispered.

The knight nodded. “I won’t let you down, Your Highness.”