Chapter 41: The Grand Music Master Charges In, Teammates Cower in the Fountain

"Since Master Lu is right here today, I happen to have a new piece that I would like to invite Master Lu to appreciate," Ji Ge said with a warm smile.

Without waiting for Lu Ge's consent or refusal, he placed both hands upon the zither strings.

Clang—ling—ling~~~

His fingertips plucked the strings, sending ripples of sound surging outward.

The very moment the notes entered the ear, they felt like celestial music played close at hand, compelling one to lose oneself in their spell.

Lu Ge closed his eyes slightly, turning his head to listen.

Refined. Truly, exquisitely refined.

The zither music was lingering and melodious, echoing around the beams and refusing to fade.

Yet, halfway through the performance, a sudden discordant noise shattered the harmony.

Lu Ge frowned slightly and opened his eyes.

He saw that the people surrounding them, who had been listening to the music, now all wore flushed faces, their eyes filled with a frenzied light.

Each and every one of them appeared as though they had sunk deep into an illusion.

Even Shen Dao beside him was not spared.

The jarring noise from a moment ago had been a low roar escaping from Shen Dao's own mouth.

This zither music was flawed—or rather, fraught with danger.

As Lu Ge observed, the melody grew increasingly soaring and intense.

"Hhahahaha!"

"It's done. I've succeeded!"

"The laws of the Heavenly Dao are now within my grasp!"

Shen Dao suddenly burst forth, dancing wildly and falling into a state of madness.

Not just him, but the hundreds of others listening to the zither were gripped by the exact same frenzy.

The vast Ancient Zither Terrace was enveloped in delirium at this very moment.

Only the man playing the zither in the center and Lu Ge remained as calm and unaffected as before.

As Ji Ge watched Lu Ge's expressionless face, the more he played, the greater the shock that surged through his heart.

He had meticulously studied the Dao of music for decades, comprehending from it the divine ability of the Blissful Illusion.

Whenever he played, he had never once failed.

Lu Ge was the very first person capable of maintaining absolute clarity of mind under his divine power.

Until the song came to an end, Ji Ge, unwilling to accept defeat, prepared to strike up another tune.

Since he had already made his move, this had long since become a life-or-death struggle.

"Enough."

With a flick of Lu Ge's finger, a beam of sword qi whistled forth, slicing Ji Ge's guqin clean into two halves.

"Even if you were to play it a thousand or ten thousand times more, it would still have no effect on me."

Though the zither was shattered, Ji Ge's expression remained unchanged.

"Now that the zither is broken..."

"Perhaps you might care to try a different instrument?" Lu Ge asked with a beaming smile.

Ji Ge chuckled softly. "Does Master Lu truly believe victory is already within your grasp?"

Lu Ge spread his hands slightly.

"And why ever not?"

Had it been earlier, the tunes Ji Ge played might have still posed a minor threat to Lu Ge.

However, three years of spiritual torment had propelled his Dao of Supreme Forgetting into an even higher realm.

When it came to mental defense, it was no longer something Ji Ge could hope to pierce or influence.

"Hhahahaha!"

"How could I possibly be so foolish?"

"Knowing full well that you, Master Lu, are the foremost person beneath the heavens, would I dare to come seeking trouble with you all by my lone self?"

"As a venerable Daoist patriarch, how can you be so lacking in insight?"

"You little realize that you have already been completely surrounded by us."

Ji Ge abruptly raised his right hand high, roaring toward the surrounding wilderness, "What are you all waiting for? Why haven't you made your move yet?!"

As his voice fell, Lu Ge glanced sideways.

Hm?

An ambush?

Yet, after Ji Ge finished shouting, the surrounding landscape remained completely unchanged.

Ji Ge's expression tightened, and he roared again, "Are you still not going to strike?!"

Even Lu Ge was made slightly nervous by this display.

With a slight shift of his body, the Free and Easy Wandering footwork unfurled.

In the blink of an eye, he had swept across a radius of a hundred miles.

His speed was so immense that Ji Ge, standing right opposite him, never even noticed that Lu Ge had moved away.

He merely thought Lu Ge's figure had blurred for a fraction of a second.

Amidst the mountain forests and grassy thickets, there were indeed traces of people having been present.

Yet, not a single living soul was in sight.

Returning to the Ancient Zither Terrace, Lu Ge cast a peculiar look at Ji Ge.

"Grand Music Master, where are your teammates?"

Ji Ge's heart skipped a beat.

Under normal circumstances, by the time he had shouted several times, they should have swarmed out to cut this Master Lu down right here.

Why on earth were they still not showing themselves?

"Tell me, do you suppose they might have all run away?" Lu Ge asked softly.

Ji Ge's body trembled, and he shouted angrily, "Impossible! That is utterly impossible!"

With that, he dashed toward the nearest ambush location.

Lu Ge made no attempt to stop him, merely watching him quietly.

When Ji Ge reached the previously agreed-upon ambush spot, however, he found the area completely deserted. Only the crushed grass on the ground bore silent witness to the fact that someone had indeed been stationed here earlier.

"How dare they?!"

"The philosophers of the hundred schools—utterly devoid of faith, fleeing right before the battle!"

"Despicable! Truly shameful!"

Ji Ge's angry roar echoed through the air.

Unwilling to accept this, he raced to another ambush point, only to find it equally empty.

At that moment, despair finally took root in his heart.

Lu Ge stepped forward and said, "The philosophers of the hundred schools united to set an ambush and kill me."

"And you were chosen as the vanguard."

"Now that the vanguard's initial sortie has failed to disturb my mind..."

"Since I remain completely unharmed, they naturally recognized the sheer terror of it."

"It is only natural that they would abandon you and flee to preserve themselves for another day."

Ji Ge felt all his strength drain away, and he collapsed limply to the ground.

"Shameless... utterly shameless!"

"Beasts, every last one of them!"

"The philosophers of the hundred schools—acting in such a manner, do they have no fear of the world's ridicule?" Ji Ge muttered dazedly, his gaze vacant.

Lu Ge shook his head. "Compared to preserving one's life, what does mere reputation matter?"

"Besides, even if you manage to survive today, it will do you no good to go out and proclaim this tomorrow."

"After all, there are many of them, and they hold the power of discourse under heaven."

"They might even turn around and claim they never cooperated with you at all, arguing that you were merely trying to frame them."

Ji Ge turned his head, glaring bitterly at Lu Ge.

"You rebel against the state, a pestilence to the realm! Today you have won and I have lost—if you want to kill me, then kill me."

"What need is there for you to lecture me?"

Though cursed at, Lu Ge did not grow angry.

The roar of a dying man was nothing more than impotent fury.

"Grand Music Master, let's make a deal."

Lu Ge squatted down, meeting the gaze of Ji Ge who was slumped on the ground.

"The philosophers who conspired with you today all fled from the battle and abandoned you without a second thought."

"How about this: tell me who they all are."

"I'll help you exact your revenge. What do you say?"

Hearing this, Ji Ge pointed at Lu Ge and laughed heartily. "Do you take me for a three-year-old child?"

"Their goal is identical to mine—they all want you dead."

"Even if they fled today, they will inevitably make a comeback the moment another opportunity arises."

Ji Ge stared fixedly at Lu Ge, his eyes burning.

"Compared to them, I want you to die even more."

"Only with your death is there any chance for the various states to defeat Qin."

"And only if Qin is destroyed can our House of Zhou endure."

Lu Ge pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Why are you so stubborn?"

"If Qin were gone, wouldn't there still be other states?"

"If those states come to power, the Zhou royal house still won't survive."

Ji Ge fell silent for a moment.

Lu Ge's words hit the mark.

The Zhou royal house had already declined into obscurity; regardless of which feudal state ultimately unified the world, the Zhou royal house would inevitably be liquidated.

After a long silence, Ji Ge seemed to resign himself to fate, his expression desolate as he spoke.

"I can tell you who they all are."

"But spare me the hypocritical nonsense about killing them to avenge me."

"I have only one condition."

Lu Ge raised his chin. "Name it."

Ji Ge took a deep breath.

"Regardless of which feudal state unifies the world in the future, as long as you do not die, you must ensure that the bloodline of my Zhou house is not extinguished."

"Even if... even if only a single person manages to survive."

"The ancestral foundation is beyond my power to preserve."

"But the bloodline and incense must not be cut off."

After pondering for a moment, Lu Ge replied, "Very well, I agree to this condition."

"As long as I walk this world for even a single day, I shall safeguard the bloodline of the Zhou house and ensure its incense never dies out."