I can see experience bars after being transported to another world.

Chapter 287 The Tavern's Bard

Lu Yuan did not respond.

After passing through a stretch of road with a wide view, the city wall can be seen in the distance.

As the setting sun cast its rays upon the bronze walls, the runes gleamed with a dim, eerie light in the warm glow. Unlike the imposing metallic sheen they exuded under the sunlight when we first arrived, the bronze city in the evening possessed an ancient warmth.

Lu Yuan still remembered his initial assessment of Bronze City when he and Herman first arrived: "The safest city."

Lu Yuan now knows what lies beneath the city walls.

Copper pillars. Seals. Pipelines. Ghouls. And that thing that connects to something deeper inside.

But the people on the street didn't know.

They are buying bread, unloading goods, and queuing to buy oil.

We're back on track.

Lu Yuan withdrew his gaze and continued walking forward.

The tavern isn't far.

From afar, you can see a crooked wooden sign, the words on it half-blurred by the smoke from the lamplight.

Two people were standing at the door smoking pipes, and dim light and noisy laughter emanated from inside.

Hank quickened his pace.

"arrive."

Push the door open and go inside.

The tavern wasn't large, with a dozen or so long tables and chairs. Behind the bar, a burly man was wiping glasses. Several oil lamps hung on the wall, their light flickering.

There were already about twenty people seated. Most were locals, with a few out-of-towners wearing leather jackets mixed in.

There was a small group of people in the corner.

Four of them, crammed together next to the innermost table.

The musical instruments were laid out on the table—a stringed instrument, a small drum, and two tubular instruments that Lu Yuan couldn't name.

They were travel-worn and their clothes were old but patched; the musical instruments were better cared for than the people on them.

The lacquer on the stringed instrument was meticulously maintained, gleaming softly in the lamplight.

The leader was a middle-aged man with his hair tied back, his face showing signs of sun and wind damage, and his fingers rough but flexible. He was tuning a stringed instrument.

The surrounding drinkers were raising their glasses, waiting for the group of bards to tune their instruments.

Lu Yuan glanced at him.

At the edge of my field of vision, a line of gray and white text quietly appeared.

[Target for detection: Bard (Exceptional Knowledge)]

[A human who has ascended to the extraordinary realm with strange knowledge, seemingly capable of being used to please...]

Lu Yuan's gaze lingered on that line of text for a moment; the gray-white notification was becoming increasingly strange.

Hank had already reserved a spot next to him and was waving at Lu Yuan.

"Captain, over here."

The group took their seats. Buren chose a corner against the wall, his cane propped up beside him. Kel sat next to him, still holding the stone tablet given to him by Green, his eyes occasionally glancing toward the bard, clearly very interested in him.

Hank said something to the bar owner, and soon a large glass of beer arrived.

Hank also specially ordered a glass of juice for Kel.

This made Buren very pleased.

Hank poured a glass for everyone.

Before the casual conversation even began, the bard in the corner was already ready.

The middle-aged man in the lead placed the stringed instrument on his lap, pressed the strings with his left hand, and plucked them twice with his right hand to test the sound. His companion next to him picked up a small drum, placed it between his legs, and lightly patted the drumhead twice.

Several locals in the tavern turned to look at them, waiting.

The middle-aged man didn't say much, his fingers rested on the strings, and the first note fell.

The string music was deep and rough, striking back and forth between the wooden beams of the tavern.

The snare drum follows, the beat is very slow, and there are gaps between the beats.

The burly owner behind the bar stopped wiping the cups.

An elderly local man sitting next to me suddenly patted his classmate's arm.

"Hey, The Boatman of Copperhorn Bay."

"It's been a long time since I've heard anyone play this piece."

His tablemate didn't speak, but leaned back in his chair with his cup in hand and listened.

The noise in the tavern subsided.

Lu Yuan held the cup, his fingers resting on the rim.

The melody is not complicated, even simple, but the middle-aged man controls the stringed instrument very steadily, with the length and intensity of each note just right in a comfortable position.

Lu Yuan's attention was drawn in.

It's not the music itself, but what's contained beneath the music.

A very faint extraordinary fluctuation.

The aroma diffused, drifting from the strings and slowly spreading through the air, causing those around to unconsciously breathe a sigh of relief.

Lu Yuan felt that his shoulders were lower than before.

He did not resist deliberately.

This fluctuation was very weak; there wasn't even a notification in the gray text, indicating that it was far from reaching the level of interference.

It has a similar effect to Tranquilizing Flower, but works in a completely different way. It's not the same thing as ancient music theory at all, which is interesting.

However, the way the melody was arranged shared a certain logic with the ancient music theory he had learned.

He couldn't pinpoint the exact location, but his intuition told him it was there.

The piece was finished.

The tavern was quiet for a couple of seconds, then someone tapped the table and someone whistled.

The middle-aged man smiled, turned the stringed instrument over, and patted the back of the instrument twice.

The young man playing the drums next to me was already working on the drumbeats for the second song.

The atmosphere in the tavern heated up.

Hank waved towards the bar and shouted something.

The food was served shortly afterward.

A large plate of salt-baked pork, cut into thick slices, the meat is dark in color and coated with a layer of coarse salt crust, and served on a bed of black bread.

Next to it was a bowl of Tongcheng bean soup, stewed until very soft, with a layer of dark green oil floating on top, and steam still rising.

Finally, there was a small dish of pickled wild olives, purplish-black in color, soaking in a braising liquid seasoned with some unknown spices.

Hank pushed the salt-baked meat to the center.

"Try it. This stuff was out of supply for a while. The caravans that were supplying it were stuck outside the city and couldn't get in. It's only just been restored now."

Frank had already reached out and broken off a piece of dark bread, dipped it in the bean soup, and stuffed it into his mouth.

Kai looked at the bowl of bean soup, seemingly unsure how to eat it.

Buren handed him his spoon.

"Try it, Tongcheng bean soup. It's three times more expensive in the south, and you can't even find the authentic version."

Kai'er took the spoon, scooped up a mouthful, and her expression was somewhat subtle.

"The taste is a bit... strong."

"Nonsense, it's for drinking with."

Hank laughed and took another big gulp of beer.

The glass of juice that he had ordered earlier was sitting in front of Kel, untouched.

Lu Yuan broke off a piece of bread and chewed it slowly.

The bean soup wasn't very good; it was too salty, and the beans were overcooked, leaving a mushy residue in my mouth.

But with bread and meat, it's not hard to eat.

He also drank two more glasses.

This was not very common before.

Since reason became something he had to calculate every day, he rarely relaxed to this extent when he was outside.

But nothing really happened today.

There's still no news from Klaus, and the pipeline mission is suspended without any clear solution.

"The last day of leisure," were the young night watchman's exact words when relaying the message.

Then take a break.

Casual conversation flowed naturally between the drinks and the food.

Frank said that a lot of caravans have been pouring in recently, and the city gates are two or three times busier than before.

"But there are a few groups of people who don't look like they're doing legitimate business. They're carrying weapons and have all sorts of accents. The guards at the city said that the number of suspicious people has increased significantly recently."

Hank waved his hand dismissively.

"Isn't it always like this? Once the city gates open, all sorts of people rush in. The rule in Copper City is that it's easy to get in but hard to get out. Let them do what they want."

The young night watchman, chewing on an olive, added a comment.

"I've heard that the church has been sending people in and out of the inner city frequently lately. I wonder what they're up to."

No one picked up on that topic.

At another table, the bards were also chatting with local drinkers.

Lu Yuan was half-turned, and could hear some fragments of sounds.

"The markets in the south reopened last month, and the prices of iron ore and copper ingots are rising."

"Is Dongda Road open yet?"

"Half of it is open, but the section near Bolai Town is still closed. They say the roadbed collapsed, but I don't think so."

"What do you mean?"

"The roadbed collapsed, but it shouldn't be closed for three months, right? Everyone coming and going from there has been stopped, and caravans are taking a detour, which adds four days to their journey."

The middle-aged man strummed a string and interjected.

"When we came from the north, we encountered several church patrol teams on the road. We don't know what they were checking."

"Not in previous years?"

"Yes, but not that frequently."

He stopped talking after that and changed the string to continue tuning.

This information is fragmented, a mix of good and bad.

The southern market has reopened, and trade routes are being reconnected, but the road here has been closed for three months, and the church there is frequently conducting inspections.

The overall environment is improving, but there are more unstable places than before.

Lu Yuan kept these things in mind and did not discuss them on the table.

After several rounds of drinks...

The bard played three or four tunes, and the atmosphere in the tavern relaxed in a fairly good way.

Some people started to feel sleepy, while others went to the bar to refill their drinks. The lively atmosphere made it hard for Lu Yuan to clear his mind.

Beren leaned against the chair in the corner, his eyes closed, it was unclear whether he was resting or thinking.

Kel sat beside him, still holding the stone tablet Green had given him, but his attention was fixed on the bard.

Lu Yuan noticed that Kai'er was looking at the bards more and more frequently.

This child just learned today that his path is Dark Inscription and Mystic Inscription, two paths that almost no one walks. He is obviously struggling with how far he can go.

Now I see another group of people walking around doing "useless extraordinary" things and enjoying it.

He's probably thinking about something.

Lu Yuan, holding a half-full glass of beer, moved to the table next to the bard while refilling his glass.

The middle-aged man had just finished playing a piece and was wiping the soundboard of his guitar with a cloth.

Lu Yuan didn't sit down directly, but leaned against the edge of an empty table next to him.

"There are some subtleties in what you're playing."

The middle-aged man raised his eyes.

He did not deny it.

"The skill of cooking requires some expertise."

He turned the guitar over and checked the tuning knobs at the bottom.

"You can tell? Most people can't."

"Most people wouldn't notice the changes in the air when playing the piano."