Gu Qingfeng's familiarity with numerous tunes not only left Ouyang Ye utterly astonished but also lent a certain authenticity to the fabricated identity of Young Lord Chiyan. Of course, the most important thing was that her face had been saved—at least for the time being.
The little girl didn't let this success go to her head. She knew that a fake was still a fake. If things continued, those two nuisances, Yun Hong and Ye Hui, would surely try every means to test the truth, and if any flaws were exposed then, the disgrace would be immense.
Therefore, Ouyang Ye seized this opportunity to quickly move Gu Qingfeng to another seat. However, with the Musical Arts Conference about to begin, the venue was already packed. Only a few tables and chairs remained in the corner. With no other choice, Ouyang Ye had to sit in the corner. Although the spot wasn't great, as long as it kept her away from those two nuisances, Yun Hong and Ye Hui, it was fine.
Gu Qingfeng didn't mind at all. As long as there was food and wine, he was content.
"Thank you so much for earlier. Here, let this young lady toast you a cup."
Ouyang Ye was very happy and excited, especially when she thought of the ugly expressions on Yun Hong and Ye Hui's faces. She almost wanted to rush over and kiss Gu Qingfeng again. Downing the fine wine in her cup, she asked, "I truly never imagined you'd know so many tunes. It's simply incredible... How did you manage that?"
"How did I manage it... How should I put it? I was obsessed with it for a very long time back then. Those years, I scoured everywhere for musical scores. After seeing and hearing enough, I just came to know them."
To be honest, the reason Gu Qingfeng had studied Musical Arts back then was purely to please a woman. He never expected to become so deeply engrossed. In those days, to collect various musical scores, he had indeed traveled to many places and even excavated the cave dwellings of some great experts proficient in Musical Arts.
"Hey, be honest with me. How high is your attainment in Musical Arts... What tunes can you play?"
"My attainment in Musical Arts? That's sky-high... As for tunes... I can play so many... So many that even I've lost count."
"Pfft, you really know how to boast!"
Ouyang Ye rolled her eyes and said with annoyance, "You think just because you know so many tunes, your attainment must be high? Each tune includes many fingering techniques, sound strings, and spiritual arts. Just learning one fingering technique takes a long time, not to mention sound strings and spiritual arts... They all require comprehension, you know? And that's just the tunes. A single piece contains many, many tunes. To play a piece with its profound mysteries, you can't manage it without three to five years of practice."
Since Musical Arts is ranked among the Ten Great Immortal Arts, it's naturally not that simple.
As Ouyang Ye said, to play a piece with its profound artistic conception, one must not only learn various fingering techniques and sound strings but also comprehend various spiritual arts. The reason Musical Arts is called the most aloof of the Immortal Arts is precisely because its difficulty far surpasses that of martial skills, spells, or sword techniques.
Gu Qingfeng smiled but didn't say anything. Noticing the packed venue, he raised an eyebrow slightly and asked, "What exactly is this Musical Arts Conference for? Why hasn't it started yet?"
"What's the hurry? It's about to start."
"And then?"
"And then? Then everyone takes the stage to perform..."
"That's it?"
"What else?"
"Everyone just goes on stage to play a few tunes, and that's called a Musical Arts Conference? What's so interesting about that?"
Gu Qingfeng truly couldn't understand.
"Hey, don't say that. For us young musicians, this is a great opportunity."
Gu Qingfeng looked puzzled. "What do you mean?"
"Performing on stage can increase your fame and raise your market value. The price for playing a tune later will go up, making it easier to earn Spirit Stones."
"So that's how it is."
Gu Qingfeng nodded in understanding. Earning a living through Musical Arts wasn't shameful. After all, cultivation required many resources—buying pills, artifacts, maintaining formations—everywhere needed Spirit Stones. Ordinary families couldn't bear such costs. Back when Gu Qingfeng was short on Spirit Stones, he had also performed for money.
With interest, Gu Qingfeng asked, "So what's your market value?"
"Me? Not much, just average. When I perform outside, people pay me a thousand Spirit Stones per tune..."
"A thousand? That much?"
Gu Qingfeng had cultivated in his youth during the late Ancient Era, when spiritual energy was sparse and Spirit Stones were very valuable. In his memory, a thousand Spirit Stones was no small sum in the mortal world. Was it because of the Great Calamity of the Heavens and the revival of all things that Spirit Stones had depreciated? Or was this little girl's attainment in Musical Arts truly that high?
"Of course! This young lady is quite famous in the Qingyang region!"
"Is your attainment in Musical Arts that high?"
Gu Qingfeng could tell that this little girl's cultivation was only at the Innate Realm, not even Foundation Establishment yet. While such cultivation made her outstanding among her peers, that was about it. Although cultivation level wasn't directly linked to Musical Arts attainment, this art required talent. And as the little girl had said earlier, playing a piece with its profound mysteries was very difficult.
"Me? My attainment in Musical Arts isn't very high, just average, I'd say. But... this young lady has a unique advantage: I can play two of the Monarch's tunes with a touch of their profound mystery."
"Just a touch of profound mystery, and you're worth a thousand Spirit Stones?"
Every piece of music contained many profound mysteries. If one could play them out, it could trigger spiritual resonance. If one could play out the artistic conception, it could make people dream of ancient times. What Gu Qingfeng couldn't understand was that this girl, playing his own tunes and only managing to evoke a touch of their profound mystery, was worth a thousand Spirit Stones. Wasn't that a bit exaggerated?
"What do you mean, 'just a touch of profound mystery'?"
Ouyang Ye glared at him fiercely, saying very displeased, "This young lady is playing the Monarch's tunes! The Monarch's tunes are hailed as the most profound tunes in the world and the most popular tunes of our time. Among all the musicians here, there are hardly any who can play the Monarch's tunes with their profound mystery!"
Munching on melon seeds, Ouyang Ye continued, "Do you know Master Wenzhu? He's the leading authority on Musical Arts in our Qingyang region. He has spent his whole life comprehending the Monarch's tunes and can only play a little over ten of them with their profound mystery. Moreover, in the entire Qingyang region, only he can play the Monarch's piece 'Wind Rising Over the Great Green Mountain' with its artistic conception."
"My... oh, I mean... Gu Tianlang's tunes aren't that difficult, are they?"
Gu Qingfeng thought carefully. The tunes he composed were indeed peculiar, but they shouldn't be that hard, should they?
Ouyang Ye shot him a look that said 'how ignorant can you be' and remarked, "I really don't know why you memorized so many tunes if you don't even know how difficult the Monarch's tunes are. Clearly, your attainment in Musical Arts isn't up to par. I advise you to practice more in your spare time. Just memorizing a bunch of tunes is useless if you can't play them. What's the point then?"
Gu Qingfeng shook his head, speechless. Just as he was about to say something, suddenly, the crowd in the venue erupted in commotion. Many people stood up, clapping and welcoming someone.
What was going on?
"Master Wenzhu is here..." Ouyang Ye excitedly stood up, raising her little head and clapping warmly in welcome, chattering nonstop, "Master Wenzhu will personally comment on this conference. Heehee, if I can earn Master Wenzhu's praise later, my market value is sure to skyrocket."
Since entering this manor, Gu Qingfeng had heard the name 'Master Wenzhu' no less than ten times. He also wanted to see what this legendary master was really like. Looking over, he saw an elder walking in amid the cheers of the crowd.
The elder had white hair and beard, wearing a very clean robe. Beside him followed a purple-haired little girl of about seven or eight years old.
Wasn't this the old man and that adorable little girl from the garden?
"He is Master Wenzhu?"
"Mhmm! Mhmm! Mhmm!" Ouyang Ye clapped enthusiastically, nodding in response. "I heard Master Wenzhu will also select an outstanding young musician for a duet this time... Oh, how wonderful it would be if I could perform a duet with Master Wenzhu..."