Chapter 844: Five-Star Demon Sound Master

Back at the Demonic Tunes Pavilion, Zhang Xuan's zither music echoed, growing louder and louder as it resonated off the surrounding walls, soaring straight into the sky.

Soon after the music filled the air, a cry rang out, and a crane flew over, dancing gracefully as if enchanted by the beautiful melody.

“One really came...” His eyes brightened.

The sight of the flying crane indicated that his performance was on the right track, and he had successfully passed the one-star assessment.

“Let’s see if I can attract two...” He raised an eyebrow. Without changing the tune, his mental state shifted. The second level of the Way of Heaven Demonic Tune cultivation art began to circulate within him, and the zither music immediately became sharp and chilling.

Normally, each star assessment required a specific piece of music, but Zhang Xuan was too lazy to go retrieve one. This current piece was good enough, and he figured he could just see how many stars it would allow him to achieve.

With the second level of the cultivation art active, his artistic conception instantly elevated, and the sound grew even louder, giving the impression of a thousand galloping horses.

The crane that had been flying earlier, feeling the oppressive sound, seemed to have been struck by something. It let out a startled shriek, fell from the sky, and passed out.

“This...” He hurriedly stepped forward. Seeing that the crane was only unconscious and not fundamentally harmed, Zhang Xuan breathed a sigh of relief, but his brows furrowed.

“Could it be... this piece of music can’t be used to assess a two-star Demonic Tunes Master?”

He scratched his head. “Definitely not. A Demonic Tunes Master is about a realm, not a specific piece of music... It must be that my realm has improved, and it no longer perfectly aligns with the tune. If worst comes to worst... I'll just modify the piece!”

A piece of music, just like a Startling Dance Master’s dance technique, is merely a means; the important thing is the artistic conception.

It’s like painting: as long as one reaches the Sixth Realm, whether they paint grass or a bird, the essence can be expressed. The rest are just vehicles.

This situation didn't mean the music was flawed, but rather that his realm had advanced, making it incompatible with the original tune. A simple adjustment should fix it.

With his current insight and knowledge, modifying the piece was no trouble. Before long, he had adjusted the previous tune to fit his current realm.

He strummed the zither strings once more.

Indeed, it wasn't long before two more cranes flew over.

Seeing that it worked, he smiled faintly. Zhang Xuan shifted his aura, preparing to advance to the realm of a three-star Demonic Tunes Master, when the ancient zither beneath his fingers changed pitch too quickly and couldn't withstand the pressure. With a crisp “snap!”, one of its strings broke.

It was his first time experiencing a broken string; he hadn’t controlled his power well...

*Thud! Thud!*

Two more cranes lay on the ground, their long legs twitching wildly, foaming at the mouth, and their eyes rolling back, seemingly filled with indignation.

They had only come to enjoy the music...

“Uh...” Zhang Xuan's mouth twitched.

Having just assessed for two stars, he had already stunned three cranes. He was probably the only one in the Demonic Tunes Academy's history to do so.

However, to be honest, he hadn't done it on purpose; it was simply that the ancient zither was of exceptionally poor quality.

“This time, there can’t be any more problems...”

He reattached the string, carefully studied the music and the ancient zither, and only continued playing once he was sure there would be no more issues.

The zither music played, and soon after, three cranes flew over.

This time, he controlled it well and didn't harm the cranes, but during the four-star assessment, he applied too much force, and with another “snap!”, a string broke again.

Accompanying the broken string, the four previously happy cranes followed in the footsteps of their predecessors, uniformly crashing to the ground.

The ancient zither provided by the academy was truly of terrible quality. It wasn't a problem for the first three stars of assessment, but it could barely withstand the four-star assessment.

Furthermore, his soul body was incomparably powerful, and having just begun learning about Demonic Tunes Masters, he couldn't yet perfectly control his strength.

Knowing that even if he went out to exchange it, he'd only get the same quality instrument, he suppressed his frustration, adjusted for a while, and continued the assessment.

He had now passed the four-star assessment and could attempt the five-star.

Reaching five stars meant he would be considered a master in the Demonic Tunes Academy, and the difficulty was more than double what it had been before.

With a serious expression, Zhang Xuan lightly plucked the zither strings, and the melodious sounds grew increasingly loud.

This time, the cranes were somewhat fearful; they didn't arrive as quickly as before. It took nearly five minutes for them to fly in after the music began.

Watching the five cranes dance in response to the zither music, Zhang Xuan nodded in satisfaction.

Just as he sighed in relief, thinking the five-star assessment wasn't difficult either, the zither strings beneath his fingers once again snapped with a “pop!”, breaking apart.

This time, two strings broke.

Without the support of the strings, the immense power spread out once more. With a "chirp!", the five flying cranes, looking utterly resentful, followed in the footsteps of the previous few, plummeting to the ground.

Seeing the ground littered with cranes—a full twelve of them—Zhang Xuan's mouth twitched uncontrollably, and his vision swam.

Honestly, he really hadn't meant to.

The key was that this broken zither was simply too poor in quality, while his soul body was incredibly strong.

It was like an adult trying to draw a child's bow and arrow; even a slight lapse in concentration would lead to uncontrolled power.

Fortunately, they had only suffered soul shock, not serious injuries. Otherwise, if he had come to the Demonic Tunes Academy and incapacitated twelve of their assessment cranes at once, Dean Jiang Qingqin would surely have eaten him alive.

However, even so, it would be difficult for them to wake up anytime soon. And whether they would have lasting psychological trauma or continue to 'attend' performances after waking up was hard to say.

In other words, these twelve cranes definitely couldn't participate in assessments for a while.

“Although the cranes are unconscious, according to the Demonic Tunes Pavilion’s criteria, I’ve already passed the five-star Demonic Tunes Master assessment... I might as well push through and finish the six-star assessment!”

Despite his frustration, he knew he had passed the five-star assessment and could now attempt the six-star.

Without further ado, he reconnected the broken strings, adjusted his state, and continued to play.

The clear sound resonated through the sky. Ten minutes later, three cranes flew over.

“Why only three?”

He was clearly playing six-star level demonic tunes, yet only three cranes flew in. Zhang Xuan was utterly bewildered.

He played for a bit longer, but the piece soon ended, and still, only three cranes were present. He could only shake his head, stand up, and head for the exit.

It seemed that due to the ancient zither's material limitations, five stars was its peak performance. He simply couldn't complete the six-star assessment today.

Arriving at the entrance, the young man was still dozing. Seeing Zhang Xuan approach, looking a little dejected, he smiled faintly, “Becoming a Demonic Tunes Master isn’t that easy...”

“Indeed!” Zhang Xuan nodded.

He had thought the six-star assessment would be effortless, but he hadn't expected the instrument to be inadequate. It seemed he would have to find an opportunity to purchase a suitable zither for himself before returning.

“Where can I find a better zither here? I’d like to buy one...” Pushing his frustration aside, Zhang Xuan asked.

“A truly good zither needs to be crafted by oneself. Only by personally completing it can it perfectly resonate with you and unleash its maximum power...” the young man explained.

Zhang Xuan paused for a moment, then nodded, “Alright!”

Having studied countless books, he had some knowledge of zither crafting methods. However, he currently had no time, and lacked the necessary materials. It seemed he would have to wait until later.

“Where can I collect the badge from the assessment?”

Although he hadn't achieved six stars, he figured he should take the five-star badge first to avoid future hassle.

“A badge? You passed the one-star assessment?” The young man looked surprised, then pointed forward. “It’s over there! Just press your palm against the wall, and the assessment badge will pop out automatically.”

Following the direction of his finger, Zhang Xuan walked over.

It looked somewhat similar to the Artifact Sea at the Blacksmith Guild, very simple.

He pressed lightly. *Clatter!* A badge dropped down, five gleaming stars shining brightly on it.

“Five stars...” The young man, who had initially thought this guy might have just passed a one-star assessment, was startled to see a five-star badge appear.

Passing five stars in one go... and with that antique zither provided by the academy...

How did he do it? With that thing... if he had used it, he wouldn't even have passed three stars!

He swallowed hard. Thinking of something, he couldn't help but look over. “You assessing for five stars... you should have told me so I could prepare the cranes in advance. Otherwise, even if your zither music reaches the required level, if the cranes don’t hear it, or if there aren’t enough of them, you won’t get a score...”

“Not enough quantity?” Zhang Xuan was stunned, then quickly looked over. “How many cranes does our Demonic Tunes Pavilion have for assessments?”

“Fifteen!” The young man smiled. “The Dean also raises a dozen or so, but they’re too far from here, so they won’t come over or participate in assessments...”

“Fifteen?!” Zhang Xuan's vision swam again, and he finally understood.

He had been playing for the six-star assessment without any cranes appearing, and it turned out, it wasn't because his skill wasn't enough, but because twelve were lying on the ground... and the last three had flown in earlier... There simply were no more cranes left!

No wonder the last three cranes that flew in looked at the pile lying on the ground with puzzled expressions. They wanted to escape but were drawn in by the zither music, unable to bear leaving.

So that was the reason!

“If there aren’t enough cranes, can it also count as failing the assessment...?” he couldn't help but ask.

“Yes, if the number of cranes isn’t enough and too few fly over, the Demonic Tunes Pavilion will naturally deem it a fail!” The young man nodded.

“I see. I’ll go to the Dean’s residence then...” Understanding what had happened, he couldn't hold back any longer and hurriedly walked towards Dean Jiang's abode.

No cranes? Then he’d borrow three... His only worry was... would Dean Jiang lend them or not?