467: Chapter 467 The Dark Palace Attacks

Luo Li did not answer and continued to play. The Soul Suppressing Melody echoed in the cave, sweeping up the falling stalactite fragments and making them spin in the air.

Bai Zhi put down her white jade flute and stopped attacking. She looked at Luo Li, her eyes filled with gratification.

Bai Zhi tucked the white jade flute back into her waist, her tone filled with praise: "Your talent and Comprehension Ability are above mine. For the third trial, integrate everything you have learned into your own 'Dao'. Use your melody to tell me what your 'Dao' is."

Luo Li sat cross-legged and placed the heavenly sound zither across her knees. She closed her eyes and fused all the musical techniques taught by Bai Zhi, the Star Battle Song, the Tianyin Pavilion Secret Manual, and her own musical insights from over the years.

In her mind, countless musical notes danced. She recalled the sounds of the wind, rain, bird calls, and flowing springs of Tianyin Mountain.

She recalled Tian Xin's hearty laughter, Su Ning's cool words, Chu Lan's excited cheers, Yao Guang's gentle whispers, Lin Yue's honest laughter, Lin Jingyu's steady sword hum, and Situ Lan's free-spirited singing.

She remembered what Gao Feng had said to her—use your zither music to protect more people.

All these sounds converged into a single melody. It had no name, no score, only the Dao in her heart.

She opened her eyes and played that nameless piece. The zither music was ethereal, like the clouds and mist of Tianyin Mountain; the zither music was warm, like Elder Qin's smile; the zither music was firm, like Gao Feng's back.

Upon hearing this, Bai Zhi's eyes revealed a glow of gratification, and her phantom figure began to dissipate from her feet into specks of starlight.

"Your 'Dao' is protection. The protector is the most difficult 'Dao', and also the most powerful 'Dao'. The Tianyin Stone is yours."

Bai Zhi reached out, wanting to touch Luo Li's head, but her fingers passed through her hair. She withdrew her hand and said softly, the future of Tianyin Pavilion is entrusted to you.

That child named Yun Xi is good, but she still needs time to grow. Before that, you must support her.

Luo Li nodded: "I will."

Bai Zhi's phantom figure completely dissipated. Those specks of starlight circled a few times in the cave and landed on Luo Li, like a mother's caress.

Luo Li knelt on the ground and kowtowed in the direction where Bai Zhi had dissipated.

She stood up, walked to the Tianyin Stone, and pressed her hands on the stone surface. The Tianyin Stone sensed her melody and began to shrink. From the height of a person to half a person, from half a person to the size of a watermelon, from the size of a watermelon to the size of a fist. Finally, it turned into a silver-white crystal that fell into her palm.

The crystal was warm, and fine patterns flowed on its surface, like a solidified galaxy.

Luo Li put the Tianyin Stone into her Storage Pouch, then took out the jade pendant Elder Mingyue had given her from her bosom and placed it where Bai Zhi had dissipated. She bowed in salute and turned to walk out of the mine.

Elder Mingyue was waiting at the entrance, and seeing her return safely, she let out a long sigh of relief: "How was it?"

"I got it." Luo Li nodded, her footsteps not stopping.

Elder Mingyue followed behind her and suddenly said: "Luo Li, you are different from before."

"How am I different?"

"Your eyes used to always carry guilt and avoidance. Now, your eyes are very firm." Elder Mingyue's tone was filled with gratification, "You have suffered a lot over these years, haven't you?"

Luo Li was silent for a moment and said: "I have found what I want to protect."

After returning to Tianyin Pavilion, Luo Li began her seclusion. She refined the Tianyin Stone and fused it into the heavenly sound zither. The quality of the heavenly sound zither rose from the seventh rank to the eighth rank, and silver-white patterns appeared on the zither body, identical to the Tianyin Stone. The Zither Spirit also became more active and could engage in simple Soul communication with Luo Li.

Luo Li's cultivation level broke through from the seventh layer of Foundation Establishment to the Middle Stage of the seventh layer of Foundation Establishment, and her spiritual power was several times more profound than before.

She began to study the ninth layer of the Tianyin Pavilion Secret Manual, using the heavenly sound zither to assist her Cultivation. The incantations of the ninth layer were obscure and difficult to understand, with musical notes swimming on the pages like tadpoles. But with the assistance of the heavenly sound zither, those musical notes began to become clear. Under the moonlight, in the music room of Tianyin Pavilion, the zither music lingered, not stopping for the entire night.

Moonlight shone through the glazed tiles at the top of the Lingxiao Music Hall, forming mottled light and shadows on the ground.

The hall was not lit, and the silver-white moonlight was the only light source. Luo Li sat cross-legged in the center of the hall with the heavenly sound zither across her knees, while Yun Xi sat opposite her, holding a seven-stringed ancient zither in her hands.

"This note needs to be half a tone higher, yes, that's it." Luo Li instructed patiently. Yun Xi's fingers plucked the strings lightly, raising that musical note by a fraction. The zither music echoed in the hall, intertwining with the lingering resonance of the heavenly sound zither. Yun Xi's progress was fast; three months ago she could only barely play the first two sections of the Star Battle Song, but now she could perform the entire piece completely.

The heavenly sound zither was placed by Luo Li's side, its body emitting a faint glow under the moonlight, and the Zither Spirit was jumping lightly on the strings, as if it were also listening to Yun Xi's zither music.

Luo Li was just about to continue guiding the next note when her brows suddenly furrowed.

Her Divine Sense captured a strange aura approaching the Lingxiao Music Hall, moving extremely fast and silently. It was not the aura of a Tianyin Pavilion Disciple, nor was it the aura of an Elder—that aura was cold, restrained, and carried an uncomfortable sense of oppression.

"Someone has infiltrated!" Luo Li pulled Yun Xi behind her and grabbed the heavenly sound zither at the same time. Yun Xi had not had time to react, and the ancient zither in her hands almost slipped, but was caught by Luo Li with quick reflexes.

The hall doors were blown open by a gust of cold wind, and the door hinges made a harsh creaking sound. A black figure flashed in, casting a long shadow under the moonlight.

It was a man wearing black tight-fitting clothes, with an ordinary face that would definitely not be noticed if thrown into a crowd. But his eyes were as sharp as a hawk's, and when they swept across the hall, they were like two knives. Hanging from his waist were two short knives, with the word "Dark" carved on the scabbards, and dark red patterns flowing on the scabbards. Golden Core, third layer.

"Dark Palace assassin." Luo Li's heart chilled, and her fingers rested on the strings of the heavenly sound zither. The Dark Palace had finally come after all; news of the Tianyin Stone had indeed reached their ears. The assassin spoke, his voice hoarse and devoid of any emotion: "Hand over the Tianyin Stone, and I can spare your lives."

Luo Li sneered: "The Tianyin Stone belongs to my Tianyin Pavilion, why should I give it to you?"

The assassin stopped talking nonsense, his figure flashed, and he lunged straight at Luo Li. His speed was astonishingly fast; the moment the short knife was unsheathed, the blade was already three inches in front of Luo Li's throat. Luo Li played the Star Battle Song with the heavenly sound zither, and the sound waves turned into ripples of gold, blocking in front of the assassin. The short knife slashed against the sound waves, erupting with a harsh metallic screech.

The assassin was shaken back half a step, but immediately adjusted his posture and lunged again. The short knives flew up and down, every strike aiming at Luo Li's vital points. Luo Li kept playing the heavenly sound zither, and sound waves shot out one after another, weaving into a golden net in front of her. The short knives slashed at the sound net, and every collision sprayed sparks.

Yun Xi was behind Luo Li, holding the ancient zither with trembling hands. She took a deep breath, forcing herself to calm down. Master had taught her that the more critical the moment, the less she could panic. She closed her eyes, placed her fingers on the strings, and played the amplification part of the Star Battle Song. The zither music echoed in the hall, turning into an invisible force that surged into Luo Li's body.

Luo Li felt her spiritual power circulation speed increase by thirty percent, and the power of her musical rhythm also increased significantly. "Well done!" She said to Yun Xi when she had a moment. Yun Xi opened her eyes, her eyes filled with determination.

The assassin was forced back a few steps by Luo Li's musical rhythm, his face looking somewhat ugly. He took out a black Talisman from his bosom and stuck it on his forehead; the Talisman burned and turned into black light, and his eyes turned pure black. A God-Sealing Talisman, which could briefly isolate Divine Sense attacks. The people of the Dark Palace had indeed made preparations to deal with the musical Spells of Tianyin Pavilion.

The assassin lunged again, faster than before. Black mist emerged on the short knives; that was Black Lotus Poison, specifically targeting spiritual power and Divine Sense. Luo Li no longer resisted head-on; she stimulated the power of the Zither Spirit of the heavenly sound zither to the extreme, and used musical rhythm to set up a "musical rhythm maze" in the hall.

Every step the assassin took, the surrounding musical rhythm would change, making him unable to distinguish the direction. It was clear that Luo Li was right in front, but when he slashed with his knife, he hit empty air. It was clear he was walking to the left, but his body would involuntarily turn to the right.

The assassin was trapped in the maze but did not panic. He closed his eyes, locked onto Luo Li's position with "Shadow Perception", and then slashed out with his knife. The black Saber Qi split the musical rhythm maze and went straight for Luo Li. The Saber Qi came aggressively, and Luo Li could not dodge in time, so she could only block with the heavenly sound zither. The Saber Qi slashed against the heavenly sound zither, erupting with a deafening bang. Luo Li was shaken back several steps, her tiger's mouth numb.

The Zither Spirit of the heavenly sound zither let out a sharp cry, and the zither body emitted a silver-white light, dissolving the remaining Saber Qi.

The sounds of the fierce battle alerted Elder Qingfeng. She was organizing classics in the Scripture Pavilion, and hearing the commotion coming from the direction of the Lingxiao Music Hall, her face changed, and she grabbed her Jade Sound Flute and rushed over. When she arrived at the Lingxiao Music Hall, she saw Luo Li fighting fiercely with a man in black. She was stunned for a moment, then let out a cold snort, took out the Jade Sound Flute, and joined the battle.

"Tianyin Break!" Elder Qingfeng used an attack piece from the Tianyin Pavilion Secret Manual to strike directly at the assassin's Divine Sense. The sound waves of the Jade Sound Flute intertwined with Luo Li's zither music, attacking the assassin from two directions simultaneously. The assassin blocked with his short knives, but musical rhythm attacks were formless and substanceless, and the short knives could not block them. Under the pincer attack of the two sound waves, the God-Sealing Talisman developed cracks.

Elder Qingfeng's participation changed the battle situation. The assassin was fighting two opponents, and gradually became strained. His short knives swung slower and slower, and several wounds were added to his body. But he was still struggling, still looking for an opportunity. He suddenly turned and lunged toward Yun Xi.

Luo Li's face changed drastically. Yun Xi was only at the sixth layer of Foundation Establishment and could not block a full-force blow from the third layer of Golden Core. She could not care about anything else and played the newly comprehended "Soul Suppressing Melody" with the heavenly sound zither. The golden sound waves turned into a sharp sword, striking directly at the assassin's Divine Sense.

The sound waves pierced into the assassin's Sea of Consciousness, and the God-Sealing Talisman shattered instantly. The assassin's Divine Sense was severely damaged, blood flowed from his seven orifices, and he let out a miserable scream as he fell from the air. The short knives slipped from his hands, clattering onto the ground with a crisp sound. The assassin struggled to get up, but was bound by Elder Qingfeng with the "Jade Sound Lock".

Luo Li walked up to him and said coldly: "Who sent you?"