“Huh? Sound energy can charge the immortal brain? And unlock new functions?”
Mu Yanxi thought the previous functions were already powerful enough.
She felt conflicted now—she hadn’t found a way to charge the immortal brain until this moment, and now that she had, didn’t that mean she absolutely had to form this band?
Just then, Shangguan Yun asked Yu Qiuyu, “Classmate Qiu Yu, didn’t you say you’d never studied the Dao of Music before? But you clearly seem familiar with it—you even tapped out a whole tune just by striking wine glasses.”
Yu Qiuyu replied calmly, “Since I want to team up with you all, and even though I haven’t cultivated the Dao of Music, I do know a thing or two about music theory.”
With her saying that, Shangguan Yun couldn’t really find fault.
Mu Yanxi understood music theory but hadn’t cultivated the Dao of Music, yet something about Yu Qiuyu’s words felt off. To compose a piece without any cultivation in the Dao of Music was simply unbelievable.
But Shangguan Yun had carefully sensed Yu Qiuyu’s performance of High Mountains and Flowing Water just now—there was indeed no trace of sound energy effect.
Neither did Mu Yanxi’s version have any. The refreshing, soothing effect basically came from the two divine artifacts and her own sound dao cultivation base—truly incredible.
“Wait, hold on? You’re forming a band?” Lei Mulan asked excitedly.
This time Mu Yanxi didn’t deny it; she nodded in confirmation.
Shangguan Yun smiled and asked, “What, do you want to join too? But demon cultivators generally aren’t good with instruments or music theory. How about you be the lead singer?”
“No thanks, if I’m the lead singer I’ll just howl.” Lei Mulan turned to Hai Lingxue.
“Lingxue, didn’t you say last night that you also know how to play an instrument? And you wanted to show off your sweep picking skill. Want to join their band?”
“That—that was just a joke!”
Hai Lingxue immediately covered her face, but her face was already completely red. The other four all stared at her.
What nonsense had she said to that innocent little wolf demon last night!
“Just kidding? So Lingxue doesn’t know any instruments? I was really hoping to hear you play.”
Lei Mulan’s wolf ears drooped instantly, looking very disappointed.
“No, I do know a bit. The joke was about sweep picking, um…”
Seeing Lei Mulan deflated, Hai Lingxue quickly explained, but felt like she was only making things worse.
“You really do know? Then join the band! What instruments can Lingxue play?” Lei Mulan perked up again, her tail swishing back and forth.
Mu Yanxi felt she could already read Lei Mulan’s emotions from her body language. She also spoke up proactively: “Classmate Lingxue, if you join, I’d be very happy to welcome you.”
“Hmm?”
Shangguan Yun glanced at Mu Yanxi. She could tell that Mu Yanxi’s attitude earlier had been hesitant and unwilling, but now she was actively inviting Hai Lingxue. Why the sudden change in attitude toward forming a band?
“I’d rather not, thank you for the invitation, but I want to focus on independent cultivation for now. Bands and the Dao of Music aren’t really my thing.”
Hai Lingxue declined politely and tactfully.
“Alright, but if you ever change your mind, please consider our band. You’re always welcome.”
Mu Yanxi didn’t press further.
This attitude made Hai Lingxue feel quite comfortable. She nodded and said, “Okay, if I change my mind, I’ll definitely consider your band first.”
“Speaking of which, Hai Lingxue, which club did you join? Seems like you haven’t told us yet.” Bai Huang looked at her.
Hai Lingxue suddenly found herself in an awkward and embarrassing position again. She didn’t want to admit she joined the Service Department, so she put up her spiky shell again:
“That’s none of your business, is it? The sect doesn’t require us to disclose which club we join.”
The atmosphere in the private room grew a little tense.
Shangguan Yun tactfully intervened to defuse the situation: “Indeed, the sect has no such rule. We should respect our fellow disciples’ privacy. Come on, eat the dishes while they’re hot. I’ll also tell you about the upcoming courses and some important sect rules.”
Shangguan Yun skillfully changed the subject.
From then on, it was all about eating, drinking, and listening to Shangguan Yun talk about the Spiritual Moon Sect. The atmosphere warmed up again, and the girls frequently raised their glasses to clink.
Mu Yanxi listened quietly while eating, occasionally taking a sip of moonflow nectar. The mana accumulating in her body was on the verge of breaking through to the Qi Refinement sixteenth layer. She increasingly felt that this cultivation method was truly a pleasure.
This made Mu Yanxi start to doubt whether her previous life’s closed-door ascetic cultivation approach to immortality was fundamentally wrong.
Immortality cultivation sought carefree freedom and longevity, but many cultivators spent their entire lives in seclusion, only to fail to break through to higher realms and die of old age in their cave dwellings.
Or they took risks to explore opportunities for breakthroughs, only to die from a single misstep, or even just bad luck.
These cultivators never enjoyed many of life’s essence treasures in their entire lives. Even if they lived longer than ordinary people, what meaning did it have?
Cultivating to the point of supreme forgetfulness of emotions, sitting silently in a cave—where was the freedom and ease?
In contrast, here in the Spiritual Moon Sect, though they were just a group of Qi Refining cultivators, their lives seemed far happier.
Not only did they have delicacies from land and sea, but even the spiritual water in the bathroom, the beds made of Bodhi Wood in the rooms—these were enjoyments she never had in her previous life.
She lived more like an immortal now than when she was at the Nascent Soul Stage.
As the welcome dinner came to an end, the table of dishes was completely cleaned up, and even the bones had been gnawed clean by Lei Mulan.
Shangguan Yun called a maidservant to settle the bill. This meal cost over a thousand spirit stones—a few hundred more would have been equivalent to a month of Mu Yanxi’s family income.
This quickly snapped Mu Yanxi out of her earlier thoughts. She still had no money. How could she afford such luxury? Only with spirit stones could she be free and happy in her cultivation; otherwise, everything was just a fleeting cloud.
Back in the dormitory, Mu Yanxi decided to focus on cultivating first, at least to convert all the delicacies she’d eaten into her own mana and physical strength. The best cultivation spot was still the bathroom.
This time, Shangguan Yun was busy with her student council affairs and couldn’t accompany Mu Yanxi for double cultivation in the bath, which actually relieved Mu Yanxi.
Shangguan Yun’s double cultivation was certainly effective, but she was too passionate—Mu Yanxi’s body couldn’t handle it. She preferred to cultivate quietly alone.
Submerging herself in the bathtub filled to the brim with spiritual water, Mu Yanxi looked at the terminal bracelet on her arm, opened Ruo Ruoxuan’s chat window, and typed with her spirit sense:
“Xuan’er, do you still want to form a band with me?”
“Of course! Have you decided to form one?”
Ruo Xuan replied instantly—either she happened to be looking at the chat program, or she had set Mu Yanxi as a priority contact.
“Yes, my roommates and I plan to start one for fun. Do you want to join?”
Mu Yanxi extended the invitation.
“I’m in! I’ll go practice the guitar right away. Or if you need any other instruments, I can learn those too.”
Ruo Xuan responded immediately.