Duan Qing's words were concise and experienced, and the cultivators who heard them subconsciously roared with laughter.
Play the zither?
What kind of rule was that? Since they were here to learn the zither, was there anyone here who couldn't play the zither?
Even if they couldn't play the zither, how could they not play the zither?
The cultivators didn't know whether to laugh or cry.
Duan Qing didn't say much. After the crowd quieted down, he waved his sleeve, and a white light flashed from the storage bracelet on his right wrist. A glowing zither instantly appeared in his hand.
The body of the zither seemed to be made of some kind of pale white jade, warm and translucent.
The yue mountain inlaid on the zither's forehead was actually a greyish-white bone. However, the bone didn't have any evil aura. Instead, it had an aura of lightness.
This was a seven-stringed zither that looked very extraordinary. It exuded a heavy aura, and the seven strings were faintly greenish-white. There were a few faint cracks on the zither, but as if it had been there for a long time, the cracks didn't ruin the beauty of the zither. Instead, it gave the zither a sense of antiquity.
Chu Chen's first reaction was that this zither was definitely not simple.
"As long as you can play the zither, you have the right to become the zither master's disciple. Everyone, you may begin the test one by one."
Duan Qing calmly pointed at the zither on the stone table, then stood to the side with his hands behind his back.
"Are you sure you can play it?"
"Did the zither master lower his standards because he's in the Lesser Immortal Realm?"
"As long as it plays the zither, it's fine. I've hit the jackpot this time!"
The cultivators felt that happiness had come too suddenly, and they didn't dare to believe it.
Duan Qing said with certainty, "That's right. As long as you can play the zither, you can receive the zither master's personal guidance and be accepted as an in-name disciple."
After receiving Duan Qing's final affirmation, a few cultivators stood up and rubbed their hands together, eager to give it a try.
However, there were also many cultivators who suggested that there must be something special about this zither. After all, there was no such thing as a free lunch in the world.
A tall, black-clothed man's eyes twinkled. "Hehe, I've heard that some sects that practice the Dao of Archery have special requirements for their disciples. They must have extraordinary arm strength. To be qualified to become a disciple, one has to draw a three thousand jin bow and make the bowstring vibrate. Could it be that the zither master also accepted disciples like this? "
The black-clothed man suggested that the reason for the sound of the zither should be the strength!
"Hahaha … Learning the zither isn't like drawing a bow. It's not like you can play the zither well with more strength. Moreover, if playing the zither requires a thousand pounds of strength, then who can play a tune? I'm afraid I'll die of exhaustion after a few rounds! "
A youth in blue shook his head. "I think the hidden condition is that one has to understand music theory. Only someone who understands music theory can possibly play it."
The blue-clothed youth's words caused some of the cultivators who already had a foundation in playing the zither, especially the few female cultivators, to reveal looks of joy.
An elegant white-clothed old cultivator frowned slightly. "Junior Brother Duan Qing, you can't be guarding the zither and interfering when it's about to be played. Those who aren't as strong as you naturally won't have a chance to play it."
The old cultivator's words caused an uproar among the cultivators.
Duan Qing, who was guarding the zither, raised his eyelids and replied indifferently, "I won't use such a boring battle method. We're learning the zither, not fighting. This zither has already been tested. The zither master has personally instructed us to test it. Everyone will know once you test it. Let's see what happens. "
"Then … I'll give it a try first."
Seeing that the cultivators present were hesitant, a petite girl in white walked to the zither. This somewhat delicate female cultivator stretched out her right hand and lightly plucked the strings.
The greenish-white strings vibrated slightly. It was easy to pluck them, but not a single sound spread out?!
"Junior Sister, I have to remind you. When you circulate your spirit energy, each string has its own vibrating frequency. You have to ensure that your spirit energy vibrates at the same frequency as the zither strings. This is the talent of practicing the zither. This zither doesn't have any requirements for the amount of spirit energy, but it does have an extremely high requirement for the precision of spirit energy control. "
Duan Qing reminded the first candidate in a deep voice. He also intended to inform the other cultivators.
The delicate girl was stunned for a moment. Her fingertips faintly glowed with white light.
However, she tried several times on each string, but not a single string made a sound. Unknowingly, the girl's forehead was covered in sweat.
"Give up. Learning the zither requires talent. If you can't even control the vibrating frequency of the zither strings, you'll lose more than you gain in the future."
Duan Qing calmly concluded.
The delicate girl softly said, "Oh." Her face was full of disappointment.
At this moment, Chu Chen could also see that among the people here, the female cultivators were basically here to learn the zither.
Some of the male cultivators' motives were not so simple. Most likely, most of them were here for the beauty of the zither master.
"Let me try!"
The tall man in black snorted softly and walked to the zither. His palm emitted a bright red light.
The green and white strings danced on his fingertips. Although they danced happily, there was still no sound. The man in black's face flushed red.
"Your spirit energy is too strong and domineering. Playing the zither is an elegant thing to cultivate one's mind. It's not like you're fighting a bloody battle. Why are you being so rough? This zither belongs to the zither master. If you break it, it will greatly spoil everyone's mood. "
Duan Qing sternly said.
The man in black refused to give up. He continued to play, but his face was getting redder and redder. Under Duan Qing's urging, he finally clenched his fists and turned to leave.
There was nothing one could do about talent.
Some people just didn't seem to be suitable for playing the zither. It was useless to force them.
Next, a few more cultivators went to try. The green and white strings were easy to pluck. They basically didn't need to use any strength.
However, no matter how hard they tried, the zither strings didn't emit any sound at all.
It didn't matter if it was a male or female cultivator, whether their cultivation was strong or weak, no matter how skillful they were, the zither strings didn't make any sound at all. There was no movement at all.
"Can you really play this zither?"
Seeing that several male and female cultivators had failed, the yellow-robed cultivator, Ouyang Yun, who was sitting in the crowd, began to make things difficult. "Duan Qing, did you do something to this zither?"
"Ignorant."
Duan Qing sneered and didn't answer.
The frivolous and arrogant Ouyang Yun was immediately enraged. If Duan Qing wasn't in charge of the test, he would have stepped forward and attacked.
"Let me try."
Suddenly, an aged voice rang out. It was an old cultivator in black robes who was seated quietly.
This old man was the oldest among them. He looked to be in his sixties or seventies. Although his hair was snow-white and his face was full of wrinkles, he was hale and hearty. His posture was straight and upright. When he stood up, he didn't look like an old man with a hunched back.
The old cultivator walked to the zither with a solemn expression. His hands were in his sleeves for a while, and he held his breath in concentration.
Then, he slowly stretched out his right hand and played the zither.
His fingertips brushed across the body of the zither, and the green and white strings vibrated slightly. In an instant, "Zheng!"
A melodious and crisp melody resounded in the air!
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