Chapter 143: Living in the Present

Alongside Liao Yuan, those who advanced to the Top 10 included the living cannon Zheng Lan, the prairie gentian Yang Jie, the angry sunflower Shi Ruoxiang, and Zero Zero Yao, Xu Ling'er, who had advanced together with Liao Yuan through a four-hand piano duet during the preliminary rounds.

Every single one of these individuals was a heavyweight master on the J-Site's China division, with Shi Ruoxiang and Xu Ling'er standing out as the crème de la crème.

However, when the drawing of lots began, almost everyone in the room was silently praying not to cross paths with Uncle A!

During the previous round of the Top 10 competition, Liao Yuan’s rendition of *Railgun* had left everyone's scalps tingling with shock. That performance, which reached a quasi-concert level, had become a nightmare for nearly every contestant present.

Looking back, almost every piano piece played by Uncle A was a masterclass in its own right, such as *Rhapsody of War* performed during the knockout stage, as well as internet sensations like *Unravel* and *The Fact That You Left*.

Based solely on these astonishingly high-quality piano pieces, Uncle A's fame had thoroughly resonated throughout the domestic music scene. Not only had major domestic opera houses successively extended olive branches, but several foreign opera houses had also taken action, attempting to forge cooperative ventures with Uncle A.

Consequently, in this edition of the One Emperor and Four Empresses Piano Competition, Uncle A was undoubtedly the most dazzling star of all.

Yet, compared to the nervous trembling of the others, the madman Zuo Zuo apparently cared little for this pressure. When it was their group's turn to perform, he was the first to request taking the stage.

Fierce and passionate piano notes stepped across successive scales, continuously sparking brilliant fireworks.

Under the gaze of eighteen thousand spectators in the arena, Zuo Yongsi's hands nimbly danced across the keys.

"This is *Raving Blade Slash*, adapted and written by Zuo for the anime of the same name."

Down below, Zero Zero Yao Xu Ling'er listened attentively for a moment before analyzing it for Liao Yuan beside her: "The difficulty is around Grade Eight, but Zuo has clearly made new adaptations, making this piece sound much more blood-pumping."

Liao Yuan nodded: "I see."

Xu Ling'er continued: "Your hand speed is plain for all to see. It's not that there aren't great pianists in the entire circle who can rival you, but they certainly aren't here. Zuo clearly realizes this, and I think he intends to win through quality. Because the anime of the same name is extremely popular, *Raving Blade Slash* is a piece the public is very familiar with. From this point alone, it earns Zuo quite a few extra points."

Liao Yuan expressed surprise: "Is that so?"

Seeing that Uncle A was not in a high conversational mood, Xu Ling'er paused, then shook her head and closed her mouth.

Perhaps in Uncle A's eyes, *Raving Blade Slash* was simply not worth mentioning at all!

However, the audience at the scene clearly bought into it completely!

"He's the composer of the theme song for *Raving Blade Slash*!"
"Everyone in the Cantonese region knows him; he's very famous in Hong Kong!"
"A top-tier talent from the Music Department of the Chinese University of Hong Kong, he has composed many well-known anime theme songs!"

"Still, running into Uncle A, he's just unlucky!"
"What a pity!"

Zuo Yongsi could easily perceive the commotion among the audience, but on this vast stage, with the spotlight shining down from above, Zuo Yongsi felt as though he could forget everything, with only the piano remaining in his field of vision.

There was no clamor in his ears, no clutter in his sight.

When the music reached its climax, everyone seemed to see a ragged boy covered in scars holding a long blade, leaping down from the heights—a classic scene straight out of an anime, making the blood of everyone present surge with heat!

"If there are no torches henceforth, I shall be this sole light! Raving! Blade! Slash!"

As the piece concluded, enthusiastic applause erupted throughout the venue.

"Good luck!" Fu Xiaoci encouraged.

Liao Yuan nodded, stood up, and waited until Zuo Yongsi walked off the stage amid thunderous cheers before he took step-by-step up the stairs, arriving at the grand piano placed on the stage.

The stage was vast, almost endless.

The audience was numerous, densely packed, every single face bearing a look of expectant light.

Liao Yuan wore a deep blue suit. Beneath the white mask on his face, those eyes resembled a newly awakened tiger. With just a single uplift of his head, he silenced the entire audience in an instant.

He bowed slightly to the audience, then turned around and sat before the piano.

*Raving Blade Slash* was a typical passionate anime piece, sharing almost the same genre as *Railgun* and *Unravel*, stirring up hot-blooded excitement. If it were played during the climax of an anime plot, it would be even more capable of arousing deep emotional resonance within people.

If Liao Yuan were to pull out another similar song, it would feel a bit too tit-for-tat, and moreover, it would easily induce aesthetic fatigue.

Therefore, he took an unconventional path, preparing to whisper softly to everyone and tell a little story through the piano piece *A Little Story*.

Down below, on the second floor.

When Xi Yun saw that figure step up the stairs one step at a time and walk onto the stage, her eyes welled up with tears.

Even though he wore a mask, having spent an entire high school career together, how could she fail to recognize his true appearance?

"You can do it!" she shouted inwardly in her heart.

As the fluent piano notes rang out, the world seemed to grow quiet.

Xi Yun relived scene after scene from her high school days in her mind, unable to hold back her tears.

What does it feel like to give up someone you love?
It is like a fire burning down a house you have lived in for a long time; you look at the despair of those ruins and ashes, knowing that it was your home, but you can never go back.

Liao Yuan's arms fluttered, and the flowing light at his fingertips transformed into little elves dancing gracefully across the keys. Every dance step was accompanied by a nimble note of music, and as they intersected, the entire sky was suddenly filled with brilliant starlight.

Sitting in the contestants' area, Zuo Yongsi couldn't help narrowing his eyes.

He also appreciated Uncle A's work, but he was unwilling to easily give up this opportunity to make himself thoroughly famous. *Raving Blade Slash* was his first piece on the chessboard, and he had even more works he wished to unveil going forward to compete with Liao Yuan.

Judging from the current situation, however, Liao Yuan's playing was clearly more effortless than his own, resembling a storyteller recounting one small story after another to the listeners at a leisurely pace.

In those stories, there were you, there was me, and there were them.

For Liao Yuan, life felt akin to a farce, yet everything was extraordinarily real. Whenever the dead of night arrived, someone would always be murmuring by his ear in his dreams, recounting one absurd tale after another.

How he wished that one day he could suddenly jolt awake and discover he had merely fallen asleep during a class in his senior year of high school.

Everything he was experiencing now was just a dream...

In the dream, he listened attentively to the lecture, took notes diligently, and occasionally let his mind wander, looking out at the playground beyond the window. Everything was so familiar, and everything was still full of hope...

If...
If he could travel back to his high school days, Liao Yuan would surely enjoy life leisurely.

But there were no ifs.

So right now, for the sake of life, for his family, and for those who had mocked him, he had to live in the present and strive to forge an era of his own.