Chapter 2607: Pioneer Chant, Elven Performance

As a brand-new art form, Magic Shadow is different from all past arts, and it has higher requirements for the professionalism of its practitioners.

Take poetry, for example; even an illiterate old farmer, after years of labor and gaining some insight, can recite a couple of lines on the fly. Take theater; much of it is adapted from various folk tales.

But Magic Shadow creation, even when simplified to the limit, is still an extremely exquisite stage play recorded in the form of Magic Image, and if it is more complex, it requires a bit of editing of the Magic Image.

It is similar to the difference between video editing and computer animation on Earth.

Relevant practitioners need to possess one or more of the following skills: illusion editing, scene arrangement, perspective adjustment, plot design, and character performance.

On Earth, film is called the seventh great art after literature, theater, music, sculpture, painting, and architecture; clearly, in this magical world, Magic Shadow should have similar potential.

In the early stages, it might be necessary to subsidize its development and promotion, but a brand-new art form will surely bloom with the charm it deserves.

……

At the opening ceremony, after watching the two-hour Magic Shadow Legendary, almost everyone was left wanting more, including the creator of this "Dungeon Treasure Hunt," Xia Duo.

Under the calls of countless people, Xia Duo replayed this Magic Shadow Legendary, to the point that the opening ceremony of this Cultural and Arts Festival turned into a Magic Shadow promotional event!

The first replay could not be called a response to public demand, but the seventh time seemed too deliberate.

"Turn the soil—"

After the refreshing Pioneer Chant, the audience's focus returned to the opening ceremony itself, and the previously unusual performance order.

"Pull the small saw—"

But the current Northland climate has seen minor changes due to the collapse of the Dragon Madness Mythal; it was only October, yet a hint of chill already permeated the air.

Therefore, Xia Shao had Laidun adjust the performance order, moving the Pioneer Chant performance, which was originally earlier, to later. Now it was not yet October; if it were that time in previous years, the tail end of summer would have just passed, and there would not have been much chill in the air.

But at this moment, whether it was Xia Duo or anyone else, no one cared about these details; one by one, they were once again immersed in the mysterious and unpredictable adventure in the Underdark.

"Lads—time to work—"

"Lads—" the group leader sang.

The form of the Pioneer Chant is basically a call and response, alternating back and forth, with a sonorous and powerful tone; the lyrics clearly show traces of artificial processing and refinement, but they are also interspersed with a large amount of actual shouting from labor.

And it is not humans.

First was the new play segment by Zhuang Suying and others, interspersed with performances by the commoners. In the middle, there was even an Elf from Akaola participating in the performance; although they only performed a poem-singing act reflecting the new trend movement in Great Xia Territory, it still caused a sensation comparable to the Magic Shadow.

Then the members of these two work groups responded together: "Coming—"

Xia Shao could tell that this was not deliberately arranged by Laidun, but rather the commoners responding naturally out of their own feelings; this scene truly shocked the guests who had come from outside.

"Time to work!" the group members joined in.

But there was only one such person; other Elves, while willing to participate in the Art Festival, were not necessarily willing to perform in public themselves.

Before today, only a very small number of people in the entire Territory knew the complete performance list. Although Elves had been wandering around the Territory for nearly half a month, no one thought the Elves would perform for a group of ordinary people.

As for the outsiders from the Tianshui Three Planes, those who had the opportunity to come to Great Xia Territory had mostly seen Elven performances in the past, but even Xia Shao knew that to invite Elves to perform, at least a certain standard of environment was required.

One of the people who looked like a group leader deliberately elongated his tone and shouted loudly—

……

In fact, these Akaola artists who came this time were also non-mainstream existences in Elven society. They sympathized with the bottom layer and supported the bottom layer, but they were Elves, and the bottom layer they identified with was mostly Elves like themselves.

"Work hard!"

……

After the Magic Shadow, the original plan was a new play rehearsed by Lawrence and others, but considering that the audience's minds on the plaza might still be lingering in the Underdark and unable to return to their bodies.

Not to mention those arrogant artists, many of whom actually also held the status of Spellcasters; for a rural place like Great Xia Territory, it was actually very difficult to invite an Elven artist to come and perform.

And Xia Shao also recognized that the Elf singing the poem on the spot was exactly the same Elf he had seen at Linshui First Village a few days ago. At that time, a child had mischievously hurt his hand in the wheat field, and it was that Elf who had healed him.

After the second broadcast finished, many people were still shouting for another one, but this time Xia Duo did not satisfy them. After all, the opening ceremony performances were not just Magic Shadow; replaying one would mean cutting out other excellent works.

"A good prospect for a new life!"

"Turn the soil!"

Those outsiders aside, most were Spellcasters, and Xia Shao's commoners who came to Code Plaza to watch the Cultural and Arts Festival opening ceremony had mostly changed into autumn clothes.

However, this was the voice of the laborers themselves; the performers were laborers, and the audience were also laborers, so naturally, they should join in the chorus.

But the people performing the Pioneer Chant were all bare-chested, holding various tools used for pioneering, and lined up in two teams, rushing into the plaza in the center of the square.

When the two work groups were performing in the center of the plaza, many of the surrounding Great Xia Territory commoners followed along, to the point that the audience's voices actually drowned out the performers.

Yet this thing still happened, and even the guests from outside felt it was incredible. Not to mention those from the Tianshui Three Planes, who were more inclined to think of Elves as enemies, so seeing enemies performing here felt very incredible.

The appearance of the Elf could be considered another climax of this Art Festival opening ceremony, but this time there was not much shouting for "one more time," though the cheers and applause that should have been there were not lacking at all.

"Pull the small saw!"

And after the Elf, although the commoners' performances could be called wonderful, after the stimulation of the previous two major climaxes, the audience's emotions were mostly exhausted. Plus, the extension of the opening ceremony caused by the Magic Shadow replay made the latter part seem a bit uninteresting.

Although the current Great Xia Territory could rank in the forefront of Netheril in terms of total population, in terms of prosperity and the status in the eyes of Elves, it was still far inferior to Seventon.

"Good prospect!"

……

At first, Xia Shao was just holding a "try it and see" mentality when he let Lawrence invite the Elven artists from Akaola to participate in the opening ceremony performance; he did not expect that some Elves would actually agree.

"Work hard and strive diligently!"

Not thick, but not thin, used to resist the autumn chill under abnormal weather.