The Wuse Flower blooms for five days, each day a different color.
This spectacle of synchronized flowering is absolutely unique in the Great Northwest.
Every year, countless people come to admire the blossoms.
Of course.
Some, after admiring the flowers, also wait to collect the fallen Wuse Flower petals.
For others, appreciating the flowers is secondary; more importantly, they wish to listen to handsome men and beautiful women perform music at the Flower Banquet.
The Wuse Flower Banquet held on Wuse Mountain has long ceased to be a purely floral event; it has become more of a grand gathering for the world of Musical Arts. By then, almost everyone proficient in Musical Arts from the Great Northwest region will attend. Moreover, this particular Flower Banquet is the final one to be hosted by the Musical Arts Grandmaster, Senior Kumu, who has selflessly contributed many precious Musical Scores for others to study and comprehend. One can imagine just how lively this year's Wuse Flower Banquet will be.
Indeed, the reality matched the expectation.
When Gu Qingfeng arrived at the Wuse Garden, the place was already packed to the brim. People of all kinds, in groups of three or five, strolled through the garden admiring the flowers.
The Wuse Flower is also known as the Five Elements Flower.
Legend has it that the five colors represent the five elements: metal, wood, water, fire, and earth.
On the first day, the Wuse Flower is a brilliant golden yellow, dazzling and colorful. At a glance, it resembles a vast ocean of golden-yellow blossoms.
Gu Qingfeng wandered among the flower beds, feeling quite sentimental, as if he had returned to his youth. The Wuse Flowers were still the same flowers from back then, but the people admiring them were no longer those from that era.
There were many Pavilions within the Wuse Garden, almost one every hundred meters. Each Pavilion displayed some Musical Scores.
These Musical Scores were painstakingly collected by Senior Kumu over thousands of years and then meticulously recopied by him. Among them were even rare, sole surviving copies of famous pieces from the ancient era.
In this day and age, Musical Scores aren't particularly rare or valuable; you can grab a handful of them anywhere on the market.
However, that also depends on who did the copying.
The Musical Scores copied by different people are different.
Copying a Musical Score isn't as simple as casually transcribing it with a brush. If it were merely copying, what you'd get is indeed the score, but only the melody and fingering techniques. The profound mysteries contained within the score cannot be copied out.
To transcribe the profound mysteries contained within a Musical Score, one must infuse it with their own spirit.
That is the most precious part.
And it's not something just anyone can accomplish.
First, you must be proficient in Musical Arts, and your attainment in it cannot be low.
Even so, copying a single Musical Score requires a significant amount of spiritual energy.
The Musical Scores displayed in the Pavilions were all from Senior Kumu's own hand, copied by him personally, one by one. Who knows how much effort and heart's blood he poured into them.
A person's attainment in Musical Arts differs, and so does their understanding of a musical piece. Consequently, the profound mysteries contained within the scores they copy will also vary to some extent. Senior Kumu is a universally acknowledged Grandmaster of Musical Arts from the ancient era. The profound mysteries contained within the scores he copied, while perhaps not comparable to the original masterpieces, can certainly reach seventy or eighty percent of their essence.
And such a Musical Score is worth no less than an earth-grade magical treasure on the market.
The more famous the score and the more profound mysteries it contains, the higher its value.
Now, Senior Kumu has displayed all the Musical Scores he has copied in his lifetime. Such a selfless and broad-minded act is truly worthy of admiration.
The vast garden contained an unknown number of Pavilions. Each Pavilion displayed several Musical Scores. No one knew exactly how many scores were displayed in total this time, only that every single Pavilion was surrounded by a crowd of people.
"Old Gu, you understand Musical Arts too?"
Ever since learning that Gu Qingfeng was the one who had defeated Miss Qing Xi, Li Dapang had been following him around like a shadow all day. Not only that, he treated Gu Qingfeng to good food and drink every day, flattering and currying favor, hoping to learn some chess skills from him. That way, even if he couldn't woo a goddess like Qing Xi in the future, he could at least attract some pretty girls.
"I know a little."
Gu Qingfeng strolled leisurely through the garden, stopping at each Pavilion to look at the Musical Scores.
"Really?"
Li Dapang was somewhat skeptical.
The Immortal Dao has Ten Great Arts.
Each art is profoundly vast and deep.
And most ordinary people can only specialize in one Immortal Art.
After all, a person's energy is limited, and these are such frenzied times. Focusing on martial arts or spells is the proper path. As for Immortal Arts like music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, someone like Li Dapang could only dream about them. Not to mention he lacked the energy for it; even if he did, he didn't have the talent.
In his mind, it was already remarkable that Gu Qingfeng understood chess. If he also knew how to play music, then he would be a genius among geniuses.
Thinking of this, Li Dapang felt a surge of envy and jealousy. They both had two shoulders supporting one head, both were at the Golden Core cultivation level, so how come the other guy's chess skills were so high, and he understood music too?
It was just too unfair.
"Damn it!
Are all people surnamed Gu this amazing?!
If I'd known, I'd reincarnate with the surname Gu in my next life! No!
Not just the surname Gu, I'll call myself Gu Qingfeng too!"
Feeling deeply unbalanced, Li Dapang tentatively asked, "Old Gu, your martial art attainment probably isn't that great, right?"
"Just average."
"Hehe!
Average is good! I knew it! With the Ten Great Immortal Arts, if you master one, you either don't understand the others, or even if you do, your attainment isn't much."
Hearing Gu Qingfeng say this, Li Dapang felt a bit comforted and laughed, "Old Gu, let me tell you a secret. Don't think I don't understand chess or music, but my martial art attainment is no weakling. I also understand formations. Even though I'm only at the Golden Core level, if it really came to a fight, taking down a Nascent Soul expert with my life on the line would be a piece of cake."
"Is that so?"
"What? You don't believe me? Let's spar tonight. I'll give you ten moves and you still won't be my match."
"Ha!"
Gu Qingfeng chuckled in amusement. "Alright! It's a deal."
Just then, a commotion broke out ahead. Gu Qingfeng thought something had happened, but when he looked over, he realized the disturbance was caused by the appearance of that little lady, Qing Xi.
"The goddess is here! Old Gu, come on, let's go take a look too."
"Nothing worth seeing."
Gu Qingfeng shook his head. "That woman Qing Xi isn't flirtatious or seductive, and she certainly won't dance a titillating dance for you. What's there to look at?"
"Old Gu, you've got to watch your words! It's lucky only I heard that. If it got into other people's ears, you'd absolutely get beaten to death today. Half the people who came for the Flower Banquet are here for Miss Qing Xi. You need to be very careful."
"Got it. You go ahead and look by yourself."
Gu Qingfeng was standing in a Pavilion looking at a Musical Score when another wave of commotion erupted ahead, accompanied by all sorts of screams and shouts.
"Good heavens!"
Li Dapang looked up and immediately said to Old Man Liu beside him, "Old Man Liu, your goddess is here too!"
"Where?"
The honest and simple Old Man Liu became instantly excited upon hearing this, looking around everywhere.
"Over there! Miss Qing Xi's master, Liu Qingyan!"
Liu Qingyan?
Hearing this name, Gu Qingfeng's heart skipped a beat. He put down the Musical Score in his hand and also asked, "Liu Qingyan is here too?"
"Hey, Old Gu, why are you getting so excited?"
"She's my goddess too!"