Chapter 718: Only Take One Xiao

“Woo… whimper… woo woo…”

Hu Yun was running wildly through Niu Kui Mountain, carrying two purple bamboo stalks that still had branches and leaves. Every now and then, they would emit a pleasant, ethereal sound.

The little paper crane was no longer perched on Hu Yun's head. Instead, it stood at the very top of one of the purple bamboo stalks, swaying with the bamboo. Whenever a "woo" sound rang out, its two wings would flap particularly vigorously, rising in sync with the pitch, clearly having a great time.

It was just getting dark when they left, and by the time they returned to Ning'an County, the town was already quiet. Even before entering the city, they could hear the distant barking of dogs from its deeper parts.

“Shhh… Little Paper Crane, hold these two bamboo stalks. Don’t let them make any more noise.”

The little paper crane tilted its head and looked at Hu Yun upon hearing this, but still complied. Its two paper wings, one on each side, gently curled around the tips of the purple bamboo, instantly suppressing any subtle vibrations in the stalks, naturally silencing them.

The next moment, Hu Yun took a running start and leaped directly onto the wall of Ning'an County. Then, from the other end, he soared like a glider towards the heart of the county, his agility on the rooftops startling half the cats in Ning'an County to death. The other half either didn't see him or were old cats who had seen Hu Yun before.

When the fox and the crane frolicked back to Ju'an Pavilion, only Ji Yuan and Date Maid were left in the courtyard. Ji Yuan looked up at Hu Yun and the little paper crane entering through the doorway, then his gaze fell upon the two purple bamboo stalks. His eyes lit up; Hu Yun had indeed brought some pleasant surprises.

“Sir, where’s Sun Yaya?”

“Look at the time. Her family is waiting for her to eat. After being away for several years, she’s back home, and they’ll naturally celebrate. Did you expect her to stay here all night discussing musical scores?”

Hu Yun scratched his head. Although Mr. Ji had a point, he felt that Sun Yaya would surely have been happy to stay at Ju'an Pavilion a bit longer. Then he grabbed the purple bamboo and shook it.

“Woo… whimper…”

“Sir, look! I found these two purple bamboo stalks in the purple bamboo forest on Niu Kui Mountain. They’d be perfect for making flutes, wouldn’t they?”

Hu Yun presented the two bamboo stalks like a treasure to Ji Yuan, who reached out and took them, his gaze constantly examining the bamboo from top to bottom.

“Excellent, excellent! Two superb purple bamboo stalks, naturally imbued with spiritual essence. Fortunate indeed to see them; one could search a thousand forests and not find their like. At least two *dongxiao* and two *qinxiao* could be made from them!”

“Hahahaha… As long as you’re satisfied, Sir. These bamboo stalks make a lovely sound when the wind blows through them. Ask the little paper crane if you don’t believe me!”

“Chirp chirp!”

Ji Yuan smiled and gently tapped the bamboo stalks.

Whoosh… whoosh…

A gentle breeze swept through the courtyard, causing the branches and leaves of the large date tree to sway slightly, creating a rustling sound. The two purple bamboo stalks in Ji Yuan’s hands also “whimpered” and hummed, their sounds blending naturally.

“Sir, do we need to find an experienced craftsman from Ning'an County to make the flutes? I heard the artisans in Ning'an County are renowned throughout the land.”

Ji Yuan used his sword-finger gesture to gently tap along one of the purple bamboo stalks, section by section, especially tapping twice on the nodes. In his ancient eyes, the two purple bamboo stalks glowed with a faint ethereal purple aura. With each tap, this aura would diminish slightly, not disappearing, but retracting into the bamboo’s internal meridians.

“That won’t be necessary. Although I am not a craftsman who makes musical instruments, I understand where the proper sound of a *xiao* flute originates from this bamboo. So, I will proceed like this!”

After Ji Yuan finished the first part of his explanation, the latter half sounded more like a murmur to himself. Then, maintaining his sword-finger gesture, he slid his fingers along one of the bamboo stalks.

“Swish, swish, swish…”

As Ji Yuan’s sword fingers brushed against the bamboo stalk, dust from its nodes scattered, and soon only a smooth purple bamboo remained. Unlike the slightly hazy purple before, the bamboo now had a luminous translucence under the starlight.

Ji Yuan gently caressed the bamboo stalk, feeling that the broken end at the bottom was almost perfectly cut, and the spiritual essence at the break point was gathered and not dispersed. He couldn’t help but glance at Hu Yun again, realizing it was no wonder Hu Yun had been entangled by the Nine-tailed Fox’s inner demon. Moving his fingers up nine more sections, the distance was just right, and he lightly tapped a node at the very end.

“Snap!”

The purple bamboo snapped in response.

Then, as Ji Yuan’s sword fingers brushed over the newly severed purple bamboo, he tilted the bamboo opening towards the ground, and some debris from the internal nodes poured out onto the ground.

Ji Yuan didn’t need to measure or verify anything; he simply relied on his intuition. With a precise touch on the bamboo staff in his hand, a hole appeared where his finger landed, and it was immediately coated with a silvery sheen of starlight.

In fact, it wasn’t just the flute; everything in Ju’an Pavilion was bathed in starlight and imbued with spiritual wind, including the two purple bamboo stalks on the table.

Hu Yun, the little paper crane, Date Maid, Golden Armor, and even the tiny characters from the Sword Intent Scroll hanging on the date tree, all watched intently as Ji Yuan crafted the flute. In his hands, processes like air-drying or polishing seemed completely unnecessary; it was as if making a good flute only required a certain intuitive touch.

But everyone present understood in their hearts that Mr. Ji was almost using methods for refining magical artifacts to create the purple bamboo flute. Yet, his technique was so light and nimble, leaving no trace of ordinary craftsmanship.

Each time a hole was completed, Ji Yuan would put his ear to the bamboo stalk and listen quietly. The starlight from the heavens continuously converged, and the spiritual energy circulating around the large date tree also swirled around the stone table.

“Woo… whimper, whimper…”

The spiritual wind blew past Ji Yuan, not only making his robes flutter but also raising a series of clear, ethereal sounds. Though not as magnificent as "Phoenix Seeking Mate," they nonetheless brought tranquility to those who heard them.

Starlight descended like fine meteor showers gathering in the courtyard. Ji Yuan’s nimble creation of the flute inherently offered immense aesthetic beauty to observers, who could also perceive an aura of profound Taoist essence.

“Starlight descends from heaven, purple bamboo grows from earth. The timbre gathers the Five Elements, and when the music is complete, it merges Yin and Yang, aligning with the wondrous methods of artifacts, and integrating with the natural way of heaven…”

As Ji Yuan crafted the flute, he softly explained, his movements sometimes slow, sometimes fast. The process of listening to the sound and guiding the stars took a fair amount of time, but for Ji Yuan himself, as well as for Hu Yun, Date Maid, and the others watching, it didn’t feel long at all. After all, in a sense, they were listening to Ji Yuan expound on the Tao, benefiting greatly.

It didn’t take much time or effort. Just an hour later, a beautifully shaped *dongxiao* flute appeared in Ji Yuan’s hand.

“Mr. Ji, is the flute finished?”

Hu Yun was the first to ask, eager to hear Ji Yuan play "Phoenix Seeking Mate" again. Ji Yuan examined the *dongxiao*, then nodded gently.

“It’s done, but there’s one more step.”

As he spoke, the wolf-hair brush from the brush stand on the table automatically flew into Ji Yuan’s hand. Without dipping it in ink, he held the brush above the flute and began writing. In a moment, the characters “Ji Yuan” were complete. There was no ink; the characters were merely a slightly paler shade of the flute’s purple, yet they hadn’t damaged the bamboo’s outer skin.

“Hahahaha, I accidentally carved my name onto the *dongxiao*…”

Ji Yuan chuckled, prompting Hu Yun to mutter to himself, “Clearly, Sir wrote it on purpose…”

“Oh! Sir, can you play ‘Phoenix Seeking Mate’ again now?”

Hu Yun’s anticipation was shared by everyone. Ji Yuan looked around; even Golden Armor turned its head towards him, not to mention the others. But this time, Ji Yuan shook his head.

“Let’s not today.”

“Oh… Well, Sir, there’s still a large portion of this purple bamboo left, and this one is completely intact. We could still make more flutes.”

“Yes, indeed. But one *dongxiao* is quite sufficient.”

“Huh? What about the rest of the purple bamboo then?”

Hu Yun stared blankly at the purple bamboo on the table.

“Two options: either you keep it for yourself, or you plant it back in the purple bamboo forest on Niu Kui Mountain. It’s up to you.”

Ji Yuan’s words dumbfounded Hu Yun again.

“It can be replanted?”

“Yes, it can. When you broke the bamboo, you controlled it very precisely: you sealed its spiritual essence without harming its resonance, and separated the stalks without damaging their vitality. And since there was no scorching power of the sun, if you plant them back before dawn, these two purple bamboo stalks won’t lose too much of their innate energy.”

Hu Yun, the little paper crane, and even Date Maid immediately looked at the purple bamboo in Ji Yuan’s hand. One of them had already had its bottom section cut off by Mr. Ji to make a *dongxiao*—and it still wouldn’t lose its innate energy?

Ji Yuan chuckled awkwardly.

“That’s why I said ‘not too much’ innate energy, not ‘no’ innate energy. Of course, this bamboo has natural spiritual essence but wasn’t destined to become a spirit; it’s merely good material. If you want to keep it, keep it; don’t overthink it.”

“Oh… but…”

Hu Yun picked up the purple bamboo stalk that was missing a section and gestured towards the current break point.

“Sir, this break is much smaller than the one in the mountain. It won’t connect…”

“Well, then you’ll have to figure something out!”

Ji Yuan winked at Hu Yun, who scratched his head repeatedly. After thinking for a while, a sudden idea struck him, and he grabbed the two bamboo stalks and jumped off the table.

“Mr. Ji, I’ll go then?”

“Go on, go on!”

Ji Yuan waved his hand, then watched the red fox dash out of Ju’an Pavilion, carrying the two bamboo stalks. Hu Yun remembered Ji Yuan’s instruction to do it before dawn, and although there was still some time until sunrise, it was safer to go early. The little paper crane chirped and flew out again, catching up with Hu Yun.

Watching Hu Yun choose to plant the bamboo back without a second thought, Ji Yuan in the courtyard thoughtfully stroked his chin. With his other hand, he gently turned the *dongxiao* flute he held. As his eyes slightly closed, a thought drifted out of his mind like a dream.

Not long after, in Niu Kui Mountain, the fox and the paper crane were again dashing through the mountains, dragging the two purple bamboo stalks. They quickly arrived at the previous purple bamboo forest, reaching the broken bamboo stalk in the clearing.

“Let’s try this one first!”

Hu Yun pressed the intact purple bamboo stalk mouth-to-mouth against the broken end of the bamboo on the ground. He gently held it in place for a moment and found that the bamboo seemed to “stick,” and its spiritual essence reconnected with the earth.

“That’s amazing? What about this one…”

Hu Yun gestured with the remaining bamboo stalk in his hand, realizing it was clearly a circle smaller than the break on the ground. Frowning in thought, he extended a claw, pondered for a moment, then let out a low cry.

“Little Paper Crane, watch my sword fingers!”

“Scratch, scratch, scratch, scratch, scratch…”

Hu Yun used his hard claws to scrape off the outer skin of the purple bamboo stalk in his hand, producing many bamboo shavings. Then, he used his claws to scrape off the inner ring of the bamboo node on the ground. At the same time, with another claw, he made a distant gesture towards the node, actually pulling out threads that seemed to be made of nothing. He then wrapped these threads around the purple bamboo in his hand and inserted the bamboo into the ground.

“Snap!”

Whoosh… whoosh…

The mountain wind blew, and the two purple bamboo stalks, one tall and one short, once again emitted “whimpering” sounds.

“Hehe, it worked!”

“Chirp!”