Book 5: Chapter 9.2: A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix, Part 2
By the Silver Moon Sea, Seven Kills frowned heavily. “This makes no sense. This person has no music Dao artistic conception at all. Why is this piece so strange?”
Not far from the Silver Moon Mountain Manor in the city, a pink-clad man sat in a restaurant. While others were scared into hugging their heads and trembling, this pink-clad man sat calmly by the window and drank wine. As he watched the battle outside, the sound wave attacks seemed to have no impact on him. That man looked like an ordinary human, but with one difference: an additional finger on his left hand. This person had six fingers on his left hand.
“Oh? A suona piece? The first call had the air of a sovereign? No, it should be the sovereign of birds? This is a phoenix?” The six-fingered, pink-clad man narrowed his eyes.
The phoenix!
That was right. Gu Hai played “A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix.” Although the name did not seem special, practically everyone in Earth’s China had heard it before. This was a piece that everyone remembered by heart. It had been passed down for centuries on Earth without disappearing. People played this piece during weddings and joyous occasions. It would always be this piece, undergoing countless reiterations and improvements, a piece that had never died off for a millennium.
[TL Note: “A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix” is a Chinese piece originally written as a solo suona piece but later altered to add in other instruments. It started as folk music. Here is a Youtube link to one version of it: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JYVpqlf6Cmg.]
Although it was a piece of folk music, it had lasted for centuries, so it had to have its unique points.
As Gu Hai blew the suona, his heart still pounded. However, as Yun Mo started playing, Gu Hai started to relax. Indeed, this piece works.
“You bastards, why did you stop?! Keep playing! Destroy Gu Hai!” Feng Tonglao yelled furiously as he glared.
The Supreme Ascendant Dao’s zitherists played quickly.
Caw! Caw!
Loud, savage cries rang out all over the place. Many ferocious birds charged at Gu Hai. Tens of thousands of birds filled the air, swooping in a fiendish assault.
If it were in the past, this scene would have already been sufficient to scare people to death.
Now, countless zitherists imitated Gu Hai’s “A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix.” A boundless music Dao’s artistic conception gathered near Gu Hai and manifested a tit—an ordinary tit.
As the tit cried out, it immediately suppressed the aura of the swarm of ferocious birds.
This was the first segment of “A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix”: A Tit’s Alarmed Cry.
As this tit let out alarmed cries, it flitted everywhere aimlessly. It was very innocent and loved to have fun. That scene significantly lightened the previously extremely suppressive scene.
The tit messed up the ferocious birds’ rhythm.
“What? Quickly play! Why did you stop! Finish him!” Feng Tonglao said anxiously.
However, Feng Tonglao’s anxiety did not help anything. The Supreme Ascendant Dao’s zitherists suddenly started sweating profusely because the music Dao’s artistic conception of “A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix” seemed to be interfering with “Murderous Ballad of the Ferocious Birds” and exceedingly bizarrely taking control of it.
The ferocious birds stopped when they saw the tit. It was clear that the sound waves of “A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix” plundered the musical domain.
The tit behaved cheerfully—no, not just cheerfully, but teasingly. It flew about, occasionally flying to a peacock’s tail and pecking it, then standing on a vulture’s head. The tit did not fear these ferocious birds at all.
“Explode it! Hurry! The one manifesting the peacock with your playing, quickly explode it!” Feng Tonglao ordered in a rage.
“I can’t control it! I’m no longer the one controlling that peacock!” a Supreme Ascendant Dao’s zitherist said anxiously.
“What?” Feng Tonglao’s expression changed.
Outside Silver Moon City, Seven Kills’s face sank. “Music Dao interference? Is he controlling the other side’s music Dao? Who is this person? When did such a person appear in Silver Moon City?”
Soon, the playing entered the second segment of “A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix”: Spring Returns to the Land.
As the surrounding zitherists continued playing, the tit in the air spread its wings. Then, green sound wave ripples appeared and swept out.
“Quickly! Stop it! Stop his sound waves!” Feng Tonglao yelled as he glared.
However, there was no stopping the green sound waves. It instantly covered the entire city and rushed at the dark clouds in the sky.
All the ferocious birds seemed to be infected by the green sound waves in the blink of an eye.
Chirp! Chirp!
The teasing tit flitted about aimlessly. Wherever it flew, the ferocious birds stopped what they were doing and started playing with it.
The ferocious birds no longer attacked the citizens, appearing to have forgotten everything. The teasing tit led them astray.
Chirp! Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!
The surrounding ferocious birds cried out happily.
Outside the city, Seven Kills said with a stiff expression, “The atmosphere seems somewhat off?”
Then, “A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix” entered the third segment: The Warbler Sings and the Swallow Dances.
The atmosphere in the entire Silver Moon City changed. Things seemed scary, uncertain, and malevolent earlier. Now, it turned joyous and incredibly happy.
Are these the extremely ferocious birds from earlier? Why did they all turn cheerful?
Feng Tonglao was somewhat stupefied. My piece is clearly one of sorrow and horror. Why did it turn cheerful? Can anyone tell me why it is cheerful?
“Scare them! Scare them!” Feng Tonglao frantically played his piece.
However, the atmosphere remained strangely cheerful.
“Mister Gu, it is done! Your piece, it succeeded!” Yun Mo excitedly followed Gu Hai’s playing.
“A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix” entered the fourth segment—Frolicking in the Forest—in the blink of an eye.
As the tit frolicked in the forest, its behavior suddenly returned to normal. It no longer teased the ferocious birds. Instead, it weaved through the hundreds of birds and flew to the peacocks. Then, the peacocks sillily plucked out a tail feather and gave it to the tit, letting the tit wear it.
Then, the tit flew to the other ferocious birds. Everywhere it went, the ferocious birds plucked out their best feathers to offer them to the tit. Then, the tit placed the feathers on its own body.
After the one hundred types of ferocious birds offered their best feathers, the tit was no longer a tit. Having gathered the beautiful feathers of all the ferocious birds, it turned into a large phoenix in the blink of an eye.
“A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix” finally entered its fifth segment: A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix.
Boom!
The phoenix perched beside Gu Hai. Now that it sported the most beautiful feathers of the one hundred types of birds, it had an intimidating air as it faced the ferocious birds.
The hundreds of ferocious birds no longer danced happily, suddenly feeling a heavy pressure. The aura of the sovereign of birds pressed down on them.
The ferocious birds immediately cried out as though paying homage to the phoenix.
Caw! Caw! Caw! Coo! Coo! Coo! Cheep! Cheep! Cheep! Chirp! Chirp! Chirp! Clack! Clack! Clack! Cluck! Cluck! Cluck!
One hundred types of birds paid homage to the phoenix, bowing down to it as one.
“What? My ferocious birds! My ferocious birds! What are you doing?” Feng Tonglao yelled, wide-eyed.
——
Above the Silver Moon Sea:
“This is the piece that Gu Hai is using to counter ‘Murderous Ballad of the Ferocious Birds’? It is parasitizing the other side’s piece, assimilating and controlling it at the same time?” Seven Kills goggled.
Whoosh!
Seven Kills’s figure flashed, rushing towards Silver Moon City.
——
In the city, Feng Tonglao’s expression changed dramatically. How can this be possible?
A hundred birds paying homage to a phoenix?
However, “A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix” was not over yet. Soon, it entered the sixth segment: The Phoenix Spreads Its Wings.
Coo!
The phoenix spread its wings, releasing a bright light that illuminated Silver Moon City. All the Silver Moon citizens suddenly felt a warmth in their hearts. The courage that crumbled earlier suddenly returned.
Bang!
The phoenix flapped its wings hard, entering the final segment of “A Hundred Birds’ Homage to the Phoenix”: Spreading Wings and Taking to the Sky.
Rumble…!
The phoenix took to the sky, and all birds bowed in worship. Suddenly, the phoenix’s gaze turned to Feng Tonglao.
The multitude of ferocious birds heeded the phoenix’s command. They turned around and looked ferociously at the Supreme Ascendant Dao’s zitherists.
“What? Controlling my music to deal with me? No! That’s impossible!” Feng Tonglao exclaimed in alarm.
The expressions of the Supreme Ascendant Dao’s zitherists changed as well.
Coo!
The phoenix let out a long cry as though issuing an order. The many ferocious birds immediately charged down at Feng Tonglao.
The many birds rushed at him. A shock that surpassed everything before overwhelmed the Supreme Ascendant Dao’s zitherists.
“Argh!”
Experiencing deep horror, several of the Supreme Ascendant Dao’s zitherists were scared utterly witless.
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“Put down the zithers! Stop playing! Stop playing!” Feng Tonglao yelled in fear.
Stop playing?
No, all of the Supreme Ascendant Dao’s zitherists had stopped playing long ago. However, why had the ferocious birds not disappeared yet? Why were they still here?
“No! No! No!” As Feng Tonglao screamed in terror, the many ferocious birds approached under the phoenix’s lead.
Boom!