Hearing Yuan's question, Disciple Fei said, "This zither competition is one of the largest competitions in the continent that occurs only once every three years, and as you may have expected, it gathers the best musicians from around the world. Despite my abilities that are widely praised by the entire sect, I'd only placed 7th in the last competition out of thousands of participants."
"Seventh out of thousands? That's already very good…" Yuan said with slightly wide eyes.
"Seventh place may be good but it isn't good enough! I want at least 3rd place, as that's when you get the real rewards!" Disciple Fei said.
"What kind of rewards?" Yuan asked, his interest piqued.
"For the last competition, third place got some Earth-rank Zither Art as a reward. The second place received a Heaven-rank Zither Art, and the first place received a Heaven-grade treasure that is also a zither."
"Zither Art? What are those?" Yuan asked.
"They are… Here, let me show you instead. It'll be much quicker that way."
Disciple Fei then sat behind her zither and took a deep breath before pulling one of its strings.
Ting!
A sharp and aggressive music note that Yuan wasn't familiar with resounded and a somewhat transparent arc that resembled Yu Rou's Wind Blade technique flew from the zither before hitting a teacup on the table a few meters away and cleanly slicing it in half, almost like someone had slashed it with a thin sword or a sharp weapon.
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"What you've witnessed just now is Zither Art without any techniques. By infusing some spiritual energy into your fingers and releasing it with the zither, you can turn the zither into a deadly long-range weapon." Disciple Fei said to him.
"Turning instruments into weapons?" Yuan looked at her with a gawking expression on his face, as he would've never imagined that such a thing could be possible.
Disciple Fei then continued, "As for this year's competition… Because they will be receiving support from the Heaven and Earth Palace, the rewards have become much more valuable and desirable. Third place will receive an Earth-rank Zither Art technique and an Earth-grade treasure. The second place will receive a Heaven-rank Zither Art technique and a Heaven-grade treasure. As for the first place, shockingly, you will receive a Divine-rank Zither Art technique and a Heaven-grade treasure! Do you have any idea how valuable Divine-rank techniques are?!"
"A Divine-rank Zither Art technique…" Yuan mumbled in a low voice.
However, despite the temptation of a Divine-rank technique, Yuan was more interested in the Heaven-grade treasure, as he wanted a zither of his own.
"And you want me to participate in this competition with you, right?" Yuan asked her a moment later.
"That's right! With your zither skills, we'll have a great chance of reaching the top 3! If we reach the top three, we'll share the Earth-rank Zither Art and you can keep the zither since I already have one! My current Zither Art is only Mortal-rank after all! What do you think? I'll even pay you contribution points for your participation!" Disciple Fei looked at him with a pleading gaze.
After pondering for a moment, Yuan nodded his head and said, "Okay, I'll participate in this competition with you. Just let me know when."
"Thank you very much! I'll let my Master know later!" Disciple Fei was so excited that she unconsciously grabbed Yuan's hands and shook them vigorously.
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"By the way, now that we're going to be partners in this big competition, we'll need to practice and hone our skills before the competition. Since you cannot enter the Inner Court easily as an Outer Court disciple, I will come to your living quarters instead so that we can practice together. Where do you live?" Disciple Fei asked him later.
"Building #70," Yuan answered with a calm face.
"That area, huh? Well, it's not too surprising since you have a gold identification token. Okay, I'll see you there first thing tomorrow morning!" Disciple Fei said.
Sometime later, Yuan left her house and the Inner Court, returning back to his own house.
'A music competition, huh? How long has it been since I'd last participated in one…?' Yuan thought to himself. As someone who has participated in hundreds of competitions before, he couldn't help but feel excited about participating in another competition after so long.
Once Yuan left, Disciple Fei also left her house to seek out Elder Shan, her Master.
"Master, I have something important to tell you."
"Hm? Disciple Fei? What's the matter?" Elder Shan stopped working and looked at her.
"This is regarding the zither competition next week."
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"Oh, right, the one backed by the Heaven and Earth Palace. What about it? If I recall correctly, you are required to bring a partner this time. Did you find one yet?" Elder Shan asked her.
Disciple Fei nodded and said, "Yes, I found someone, and he's that Disciple Yuan I mentioned not too long ago."
"D-Did you just say Disciple Yuan?!" Elder Shan exclaimed in a shocked manner.
"Y-Yes… Is there a problem with that?" Disciple Fei asked with a nervous look on her face.
Elder Shan did not immediately respond to her and silently pondered with a deep frown.
A moment of silence later, Elder Shan spoke, "Disciple Yuan… What did he say?"
"Uhhh… He'd agreed to participate in the competition with me," she responded.
"I see…" Elder Shan closed her eyes and sighed.
After another moment of silence, Elder Shan stood up and said, "Follow me."
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"Eh? Where are we going, Master?" Disciple Fei raised her eyebrows as she followed Elder Shan outside.
"To meet with the Sect Master."
"The Sect Master?! W-Why?! Did I do something wrong?!" Disciple Fei exclaimed with a nervous look on her face because only disciples who are in deep trouble with the sect would meet the Sect Master.
"Calm down, you're not in trouble. This is about Disciple Yuan. I don't know how much you know about him but I'm sure that you can tell that his existence within the sect is a unique one." Elder Shan said to her.
"D-Disciple Yuan? Is he's really that special?" Disciple Fei looked at her with a dumbfounded face.
"Special is an understatement, my dear disciple. You'll understand more about him in just a moment." Elder Shan said as she brought Disciple Fei to the Sect Master's headquarters.