Chapter 2 Zither and Bamboo: A Perfect Match (Part 2)

A tall figure walked in from outside. It was a young man with a tall stature and an imposing aura, resembling Ye Li by at least eighty percent. Handsome and resolute, his arrival brought a refreshing presence unique to the Zhu Sect's Zhu Douqi. It was Ye Li's son, Ye Zhong.

Ye Li said, "Zhong'er, meet your Uncle Qin."

"Uncle Qin, hello. I heard from Ying'er that you have come for my son?" asked Ye Zhong, after making his polite greetings.

Qin Shang's eyes shimmered slightly, and he smiled, "Zhong'er, I remember meeting you when you were young. Yes, your Zhu Douqi has reached the First Rank Yellow Bamboo, which is equivalent to the Beginner Green rank of the Rainbow-grade."

Ye Zhong, clearly not interested in talking about his own strength, said eagerly, "I heard from Ying'er that you think my son is a genius, a genius in learning Zither Magic, is that right? If possible, could you please take him as your disciple?"

Gleaming with excitement, Qin Shang, not waiting for Ye Li to speak, hurriedly said, "Of course, it's possible, but your father disagrees."

Ye Zhong looked at Ye Li, puzzled, "Dad, why not?"

Ye Li, slightly angered, said, "Get out! Do you think you have a say here? You say why? We only have one child. If he learns from the Zither Sect, what will happen to our Zhu Sect?"

Ye Zhong retorted, "But he was born with eight fingers and is not suited for inheriting the sword techniques of our Zhu Sect. Don't you want your grandson to become powerful one day? It's not easy for him to learn the martial skills of our Zhu Sect; isn't learning the magic of the Zither Sect perfect? You are having typical sectarian prejudices. Haven't you always said..."

"Get out!" Ye Li, furious, raised his fist and swung it at his son. Ye Zhong dared not fight back. With a bang, amidst a burst of purple light, he was blasted out of the bamboo door with a strange look in his eyes. Of course, though Ye Li seemed to strike hard, he merely used his Douqi to push his son away—who would actually want to hit their own child?

Qin Shang looked at the furious Ye Li and said, "See, even your son understands better than you. Old Bamboo, I've thought about it and I have a proposal. Let your grandson learn Zither Magic with me and Zhu Douqi from your sect concurrently. In the future, he will still be considered part of your Zhu Sect and have nothing to do with our Zither Sect. How about that?"

The anger on Ye Li's face eased a bit, "Why should I believe you can train my grandson to be a powerhouse capable of contending with Faran's Seventh Tower?"

Qin Shang replied solemnly, "Now, on the Ryuzakinus Continent, both magic and Douqi are organized according to the Seven Colors of the Rainbow Grade. But we, the Eight Eastern Dragon Clans, are the exception. Whether it's our Four Magic Sects or your Four Douqi Sects, during cultivation, we only undergo three color changes, with each color having nine ranks. Adding up, this is equivalent to the Seven Colors of the Rainbow Grade scheme. Especially the last color, which is also Ninth Rank Zi rank. Thus, only by cultivating to the Zi rank, can we keep the secrets of the Eight Eastern Dragon Clans from being discovered by the outside world. But how easy is it to cultivate to Zi rank without over fifty years of effort and exceptional talent? People on the Ryuzakinus Continent only know about Faran's existence; who else knows about our Eight Eastern Dragon Clans?"

Ye Li snorted, "All of that is nonsense; don't I already know this?"

Qin Shang said, "Then tell me, what are the three colors and nine ranks of our Zither Sect?"

Ye Li replied, "Isn't it just the Red Soul-refining Qinxin, the Yellow Sword Gall Zither, and the Purple Ziwei Qinxin? You are currently at the initial stage of Ziwei Qinxin. It's similar to our Zhu Sect's Green Bamboo, Yellow Bamboo, Zi Zhu - the twenty-seven ranks of our three major levels. We just start with green as our first level, which is more intimidating than your Zither Sect's when dealing with outsiders anyway."

Qin Shang nodded, "Correct, it is indeed these twenty-seven steps, each one progressing to the same extent as the twenty-seven steps of the Seven Colors of the Rainbow Grade. The cultivation of the Red Soul-refining Qinxin's ninth rank is the most important for us in the Zither Sect. To learn the zither, one must first refine the soul, expel the miscellaneous thoughts from one's mind, let the zither's sound penetrate deep into one's brain, and gradually enhance the cognition and power of the zither's sound. This is the orthodox cultivation method of the Zither Sect. Anyone with a normal talent should be able to complete the cultivation of the Red Soul-refining Qinxin's ninth rank within about six years. However, the foundation laid by the Red Soul-refining Qinxin leads to difficulty in advancing later on. How can refining the soul compare to a zither soul that is inherently pure?"

Ye Li expressed his confusion, "I don't quite understand what you mean."

Determination shone in Qin Shang's eyes, "If you are willing to let your grandson become my disciple, then I will have him start his cultivation with the Red Soul-refining Qinxin, instead of the untouched Pure Qinxin."

"What?" Ye Li looked at Qin Shang in shock, "You mean the method recorded in your Zither Sect's Mysterious and Magical Score that no one has ever succeeded in cultivating? Have you lost your mind?"

Qin Shang spoke earnestly, "I have not lost my mind. In fact, the Pure Qinxin is the true method of cultivation for the Zither Sect, but due to its extremely high requirements and difficulty, no one has ever succeeded in cultivating it. But your grandson is different, born with Eight Fingers, naturally sensitive to musical perception, I believe he will definitely succeed. With a Zi rank mentor like me, there's at least a seventy percent chance. The Pure Qinxin is much harder to practice than the Red Soul-refining Qinxin, but once successful, the true door to cultivating the Qinxin will be opened. He could even reach the level of the Purple Ziwei Qinxin in a short period of time, and with enough effort, ascending to the legendary Taixuan Qinxin is not impossible. Combined with my research on Douqi assistance techniques, Faran's Seventh Tower will no longer be a threat."

Ye Li spoke gravely, "What if you fail?"

Qin Shang said indifferently, "Even if I fail, as he has been cultivating your Zhu Sect's Douqi all this time, you can simply let him give up the zither and switch to cultivating your Sect's martial skills in time. The Pure Qinxin does not involve external objects. If I'm not mistaken, his Douqi will improve at a very fast pace while cultivating the Pure Qinxin, enough to compensate for the late start in martial skills. Old pal, such an opportunity comes perhaps once in a hundred years for our Eight Eastern Dragon Clans. Are you sure you don't want to give it a try? If you agree, I am willing to exchange anything from my Zither Sect."

Purple light flickered in Ye Li's eyes as he waved his hand, "There's no need to exchange anything. I can agree to your request, but you must also agree to three conditions of mine."

Without hesitation, Qin Shang said, "Good, tell me."

Ye Li said, "First, if he succeeds, once my grandson grows up, he will be the joint leader of both the Zither and Zhu Sects."

Qin Shang nodded, "That's not a problem, as long as he has sufficient strength, no one will be able to oppose it. Besides, we two are the ones making this agreement."

Ye Li said, "Second, on the premise that he succeeds, the five famous zithers of your Zither Sect will all be his."

Qin Shang stared at Ye Li with wide eyes, "You sure are greedy, old man. Do you know how important the five famous zithers of our Zither Sect are? They are like the magic wands in the hands of the Mages from Faran's Seventh Tower. They are akin to Divine Artifacts."

Ye Li spoke languidly, "If it weren't for this, I wouldn't even bother. Doesn't our Zhu Sect have treasures? The only things in your Zither Sect that caught my eye are these five zithers. Anyway, my grandson will be the future Sect Master of your Zither Sect, so why be stingy? The Singing Phoenix Zither, Desolate Dragon Yin's Zither, The Great Sage's Legacy Zither, Nine Heavens Ring Zither, plus that Spring Thunder Zither you always use. I guess that's decent enough. Haven't you told me before? To play a certain piece of music, one must use a zither that matches it, the higher the compatibility between the zither and the piece, the greater the power of the Zither Magic. You haven't forgotten, have you?"

"Extortion, this is outright extortion," Qin Shang said, slightly angry.

Ye Li chuckled, "So will you agree or not?"