Chapter 1626 Play for Me
"The Four Arts? Husband, are you familiar with Arts other than Domain?" Selheira asked with a bit of expectation in her voice.
Ryu chuckled. "It might be too much to say familiar. I mostly used them as a means to an end. I have a small understanding of them."
"Can you play something for me? Music, I mean," Selheira continued with even more excitement.
"Oh? Do you like music a lot?"
Selheira blushed slightly. While she was transitioning to her human body, she spent a lot of effort trying to become more... "Ladylike" so that she wouldn't stick out like a sore thumb.
Part of that came in the form of her gentle demeanor, and part of that came in even more superficial ways like learning some etiquette and more "feminine" hobbies.
Much of those things she hated. Her "gentleness" reminded her a lot of her Crystal Dragon lineage. And, honestly, of the things she had tried, even compared to Domain, it was what she was best at.
However, when it came to music... she liked it very much. It was just a shame that she didn't have much talent for it, it never really... clicked with her.
Music was very much a human creation, she couldn't get a hang of it as a beast. While she could mimic, actually grasping the tone and feel of a piece was beyond her.
Ryu listened to Selheira's explanation and smiled.
"Hm, I can. What would you like to hear? I can play the flute, the lyre, the guqin..."
"What are you best at?" Selheira asked.
Ryu smiled. What was he best at? There was really no distinction. He could be considered an "expert" in them all. With his former Ice Jade Crystal body, his dexterity and fluidity of mind was on a completely different level, and with his Heavenly Pupils, whether it was his memory or sharpness, they had always been on another level compared to mortals.
Actually, his Ice Jade Crystal body had played a much larger part. That was because it allowed him to be ambidextrous, easily using both of his hands just as easily, and independently of one another as well.
Often, as a musician, hand independence was the biggest mountain to climb. It was something that even martial artists would struggle with. This was why you couldn't just find dual wielders everywhere, despite the fact dual wielders had an obvious advantage against single weapon wielders.
"How about this," Ryu said. "What instrument do you like the most?"
Selheira pouted a bit in thought. "... I don't really know. But the flute, I've never heard the flute before, I'm a bit curious."
"Flute it is," Ryu smiled.
Ryu was about to bring out an old flute when he suddenly paused.
"Hus..." Selheira's voice trailed off as she sensed Ryu's focus.
Suddenly, using one hand to hold up Selheira's thigh, he used the other to raise a finger toward the air before tapping down.
A gentle gust of wind formed. There was no sound and it confused Selheira for a moment... until Ryu tapped again.
The wind, this time, carried a gentle green color. It reminded one of steeped tea, a beautiful pale jade. Whether it was by coincidence or a trick of the mind, Selheira even seemed to be able to smell this tea.
And then came the sweet sound of a flute.
It was subtle and low, but it made Selheira's bones tremble.
Soon, the notes began to layer atop of one another, sweet scents and gentle sounds pulling at her heart strings. It felt that she had long since picked up the tea cup, taking a deep sip that warmed her throat and filled her veins with vitality.
Ryu's fingers continued to tap at the air. His gaze was a bit unfocused and his mind was completely enamored. He saw a beauty to music right now that he hadn't in the past...
But it had little to do with the music itself.
His Northern Heavenly Wind was the King of Winds. It was designed to help one meld into your surroundings, increasing your oneness with the air until the point you were as light as a gust and completely unaffected by even the wildest of storms.
But how did it work?
It had to be a form of resonance, and weren't sound waves another form of resonance?
When you played the flute, you pressed down pads or covered up holes, changing the frequency at which the instrument resonated to and thus changing the sound of the note.
So, if he listened to his Northern Heavenly Wind...
Didn't that mean that he could play the tune that resonated the most with the world he stood in?
Couldn't he play the music of the Heavens themselves?
The Crystal Mountains in the surroundings began to tremble slightly, glowing.
Ryu was lost in his thoughts and Selheira was completely enamored by the music, tears streaking down her face in torrents.
How could it sound so beautiful? Why could she feel it to the depths of her soul?
She felt like her Dao Heart was glowing, her cultivation stirring and reacting. She could sense her path clearer now than she ever could before, as though Ryu was transferring the effects of the Crystal Mountain directly into her ears.
He stripped away the trial, stripped away the challenge. He found the root of the trial itself, sinking down to its very purpose.
The music seemed to be capable of ignoring all the protective layers around the greatest benefits of this mountain range, finding the core and giving it freely to the world...
As though it wanted everyone to see this beauty.
At some unknown point, Ryu's fingers stopped moving, but the music didn't.
With every breath he took, with every exhale he pushed out, his body resonated with the world and the music continued.
The fragrance was intoxicating, and the feeling seemed to echo in bones.
Ryu felt that if he were to throw out a punch at this moment...
He could raze the world to the ground.
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