Above The Sky

"Walking through the bright red autumn leaves and fire, the warm wind under the setting sun brushing my skin~ The white birds flying over the gloomy sky, you know where my heart desires to perch~"

Ian picked up the lute and improvised a piece according to the rhythm of the bard in memory - the cheerful tavern tune dyed the whole study room with warm tones.

If you count the lyrics, this is a country folk song with a little yellow content, and it is very popular throughout Nanling, but if you don't count the lyrics, it's just an ordinary ditty.

As for the yellow component...to be honest, there's nothing to expect, and it's essentially no different from a folk song like 'Pinch a Big X at You'. After all, it's a folk song from a rural area like Nanling, and don't expect the lyrics to be too stylish - even the lyrics above are the result of Ian's beautification as much as possible.

In fact, the version in the tavern is 'the autumn maple leaves are so hot, the warm wind blows across your cheeks ~ the white birds in the sky are swaying, just like my heart when I saw you~'.

The maple leaves and white birds here have their own references.

The Viscount should like it.

Anyway, Ian couldn't sing that tune.

But I have to say that in the tavern, there is a very local atmosphere.

Isengard listened to Ian's performance. He wanted to praise Ian's skillful technique, but he gradually raised his brows in confusion, showing a puzzled look.

"It played very well..." the blond boy said to himself with some confusion: "But it feels a little... um... different from what I heard in Port Harrison before? Ian, your playing is a little bit like a ballad, a little too much. A glance at it..."

"Understand."

Raising his hand, he stopped playing, Ian looked at Isengard, and he gently put the instrument back in place: "The core of art is to be different. Because of the mood, because of the state, because of the emotions and small impulses in the brain."

"Even the same movement is different in the subtleties. The demeanor, the action, the chosen step and position, the enthusiastic attitude, the contagious power, the stride the bard moves towards the audience... … these are hard to imitate.”

"If you want to imitate these things, you need to consider too much."

"But if it's your own nature, you don't need to think too much, you just need to be yourself - so some people can heat up the atmosphere, and I just simply restore the process of his playing."

Having said this, Ian smiled and looked out the window of the study: "Every song sung by different people is different - the world in each person's eyes is also completely different, each person, even the same person at different times, Listening to the same song, the feelings that arise in my heart are also different."

"So I really like music, I like this difference."

Isengard listened silently. He felt as if he saw a more real Ian...in a way he had never known before.

"Originally, I was a little worried, afraid that my mother would see through your secret."

Isengard said softly, then nodded reassuringly: "Now it seems that this is too much concern. You can cover up such a completely different side of yourself so well, I'm afraid no one can see your true face."

"It's not that much, mainly because when we take risks together, we don't have much chance to talk about music."

The teenager shook his head slightly: "Does Mrs. Ellen want to see me?"

Although Ian knew about this for a long time, he pretended not to know: "Morning or evening? Or noon?"

"Noon. Let's have lunch together."

Isengard tidied up his clothes, he packed up the documents, nodded and said, "Let's go in a while... Miss Hua An and the others can go if they want..."

"Better not to involve them."

Ian answered decisively, narrowing his eyes: "In such a hurry... Mrs. Ellen must have something to tell me. Maybe it has something to do with your second uncle Michael... Maybe it has something to do with you. "

"Isen, recently in the Imperial City, there is something about the Alchemy Association... Has something happened?"

Isengard was stunned for a while, then searched for information from his memory: "Yes. A few days ago, after my teacher and I returned to the imperial capital, we found the master who engraved the array of inscriptions on my bracelet... He was taken away. After the title of master, an old alchemist who had the ability but no title took his place."

"This is a disgraceful thing - an alchemy master actually does some murderous work for money, which will undoubtedly damage the reputation of the alchemy association, so the alchemy association held a free alchemist Qualification certificate, there are additional rewards for the first few people in the assessment..."

"You also know that in the past, the alchemist qualification certificate had to bring its own materials and medicines, but this time it was paid by the association, and there are rewards for the top ranking. When will there be such a generous thing?"

"I remember that it lasts for seven days, and the whole process is free. There seems to be a limited number of people, but seven days are enough for all qualified people to participate."

"So, this time, a lot of people came here on purpose. In their opinion, the first one should be the default, but if you can't get the reward, it's a free practice. You don't need to use it for free."

Isengard jokingly said that he did not intend to participate, after all, he had already been assessed for the title of an elite alchemist, and he was still a long way from the master, and there was no shortage of materials and money at home: "This is me. I said before that if you want to show you the place, if you can get the top three, I will arrange a laboratory for you and no one will say anything."

"Also, taking advantage of this fame, you can also make a name for yourself in the Alchemy Association. In the future, you will have a system, which will be convenient for you to do anything."

"Looks like I just caught up." Ian nodded slightly, he probably had guessed what Mrs. Ellen was going to say to him - nothing more than let himself take this test, show his strength, and then let himself join the platinum Iridium Workshop, as Isengard's deputy.

How could Mrs. Ellen not be able to think of what Ethan could think of? It's just that the other party silently followed current events, set the stage, and waited for them to go up.

Ian didn't think there was anything wrong with this - he just needed a shelf, and everyone else helped him set up the stage, although it wasn't built for him on purpose, but it saved a lot of effort.

After he showed his alchemy strength, and then used the merits of the patrol knight to exchange the material of the extreme realm, no one would care.

Everything went very smoothly and all the plans were on pace.

However, it was different from what Ian imagined.

In addition to this stage, Mrs. Ellen also prepared a rather unexpected surprise for him.