The Shining Star Above The Heaven-Chapter 530: At the Central Region

The sound of the guqin could initially only be heard in the area surrounding where Aldrian sat, but it soon began to spread everywhere. Aldrian will not expect this, he only wanted to play the guqin normally. Since he was outside of his domain, he believed his music would not spread into it like it had the last time.

But unknown to him, he still underestimated both his guqin skills and the place itself. This place, built by two of his followers in his past life, was bound to make everything he did extraordinary.

As if the nature of this place recognized the one playing the guqin, it responded in its own way. The sound that had only been audible near Aldrian began to spread, as if the wind carried the notes of the guqin—not just across the grassland, but throughout the entire core area.

Xin Haotian and the others, who were still cultivating, eventually heard the guqin’s sound, causing them to pause. They opened their eyes and looked around, but could not see anyone playing the instrument. The music sounded so close, as if someone were performing it right beside them, which left them surprised.

This was clearly like one of the techniques of a sound-element cultivator, allowing listeners to hear the music clearly even when separated by great distances.

"This is Aldrian, so don’t worry," Xin Haotian said, which made the others nod in understanding.

Of course, Xin Haotian knew this was Aldrian’s style of playing. He looked toward the distance where Aldrian had walked. He could no longer see him, as Aldrian had gone far beyond their line of sight, but he hadn’t forgotten the guqin performance from last time—the beautiful music that carried a soothing yet longing sensation.

At this moment, the entire core area could hear Aldrian’s guqin playing. Everything within the barrier seemed to recognize the one playing it. The trees rustled, as if showing their happiness. The flow of heaven and earth energy, and even divine energy, became much calmer—almost as if it had come to a halt just to listen to Aldrian’s music.

Even the small creatures, like crickets, fell completely silent, as if giving way to the guqin’s sound—as if they, too, did not wish to interrupt it.

The sound reached the floating land as well. Within a hall inside the palace, a golden hue illuminated the vast space. The grand hall was magnificently luxurious and imposing. But within this hall, there were only two things that would draw attention the moment anyone stepped inside.

The first is a single grand throne located near the end of the hall. Even though the throne is empty, it gives any onlooker a sense of the greatness of the one who sits upon it. The one who sits here is unlike other rulers.

The second is a golden matter floating high in the hall. It resembles gathered energy condensed into a solid form, exuding an aura that would compel anyone to bow before it. This golden matter is what illuminates the entire hall, making the place feel holy and sacred.

As the sound of the guqin entered the hall, the golden matter suddenly began to flicker, reacting to the music. It then shone more brightly, so intensely that it lit up the entire hall with a blinding radiance. If Aldrian had been atop the floating land, he would have seen golden light shining from a part of the palace.

The golden matter continued to shine for a few moments before dimming slightly, though it kept flickering.

Aldrian, still playing the guqin, remained unaware of any of this and simply continued his performance. Only when the sky in the eastern horizon turned a shade of purple did he finally stop. He opened his eyes and looked around. Nothing seemed out of place, so he stood up and returned to the group.

But once he arrived, he was stunned by the patriarch’s remark.

"I didn’t know you could play the guqin so well. Even as a peak Emperor Stage cultivator, my soul was affected by the sound."

"You could hear my guqin playing?" Aldrian asked.

"Of course. How could we not hear it when it was clearly audible here? Just ask the others," the patriarch replied, prompting Aldrian to look at Xin Haotian.

Xin Haotian simply nodded. Aldrian sighed.

"My apologies if my playing disturbed your cultivation," he said to the others.

"No, young master. Your guqin playing was truly wonderful. It actually stimulated my cultivation progress."

"Yes, young master. We didn’t feel disturbed at all. In fact, I would love to hear your playing all day—it brought me a peace I haven’t felt in a long time."

"Young master, you are truly talented—"

Voices of praise and admiration echoed from the elders, making Aldrian smile and nod in understanding. Not long after, they continued their journey toward the central area.

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A few hours later, they finally arrived beneath the floating island. They were now in a mountainous region, where tall, staff-shaped peaks pierced the clouds. The giant statues they had occasionally seen throughout their journey stopped right at the edge of the area beneath the floating land. There were no statues within the territory directly under it.

Once they entered the mountainous region, they finally noticed something they had not seen before.

The mountains were positioned in a circular formation around the central area. There were nine mountains in total, each one far apart from the others. The farthest mountains could be seen at the horizon. Beneath them stretched a landscape of dense forest and grassland, filled with hills and valleys, creating a spectacular natural view from Aldrian and the others’ flight path.

They also saw a massive structure that they assumed marked the central area. It looked like another palace, though on a smaller scale compared to the one on the floating island. Still, it was grand, with towering buildings that reached into the sky, built in the same architectural style as those on the floating island.

They continued flying in that direction, and only after four hours did they arrive at the palace. The palace complex was circular in shape, with several buildings inside. The main building was the central palace, whose top pierced the clouds. Surrounding the palace was a beautiful artificial waterway, separating the palace grounds from the surrounding land.

Aldrian and the others landed before the waterway and looked at the clear blue water, which was exuding rich heaven and earth energy. They wondered what kind of water it was, but they did not dwell on it for long, as they decided to enter the palace area through the only bridge visible from where they stood.

Aldrian looked up at the palace. From one of his visions, he remembered visiting a palace like this. As far as he could recall, this palace was a place where many of his followers used to stay or gather in the past. It also functioned as a place for teleportation to the floating island above.

Since the floating island was a flight-forbidden zone, anyone who wished to visit the palace above had to use the teleportation formation located here.

As Aldrian’s group entered the palace grounds, they could see the clean buildings within the palace complex. There was no dirt or anything that would make one think of this as a neglected or dirty place. It felt as if the entire area was always being maintained—yet they saw no one around, and their senses detected no movement.

Considering how long this building must have stood in this place, the fact that it remains in good condition after all these years is truly amazing. They walked along the large path that connected to the main palace.

From time to time, they stopped to examine the buildings around them. They entered each one carefully, but all they found were empty spaces. This left them confused—what was the purpose of these grand buildings if there was nothing inside?

However, for Aldrian, the atmosphere felt nostalgic. It was the effect of his visions and the memories from past life, which had started resurfacing again. In those memories, in this very place, he could see many of his followers standing on his right and left along the path. They had greeted him with enthusiasm.

He had warmly returned their greetings and even spoken with them amicably.

Now, looking at the desolate and silent atmosphere around him, he couldn’t help but feel a sense of emptiness and miss those people. Unfortunately, some of them might have already perished—for whatever reason.

They kept observing and checking the palace complex until they finally arrived at the huge and towering building—the main palace. To reach it, they had to cross a vast open space, like a gathering ground capable of holding thousands of people.

Once they entered, they were greeted by a wide, empty hall. They looked around curiously, but their attention soon turned to Aldrian, who seemed unconcerned with his surroundings and was already walking alone toward the deeper part of the palace.

Wondering where Aldrian was going, they quickly followed him.

Aldrian did not mind them following and continued walking toward the inner part of the palace. That was because he could feel something waiting for him inside.

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