Zheng Must Repair the Eight-Tone Diagram

The divine beast Zheng received a promotion exam assignment from the Celestial Court: travel to Yuyin, a kingdom renowned for its music, and collect traditional Eastern instruments to light up the Eight Tones diagram.

Seeing how simple the task sounded, Zheng set off for Yuyin at once. Only after arriving did he discover:

The people of Gezhou are skilled drummers, but their drums are drum kits.

Zheng: "Why doesn't the Eastern-style drum I made myself count toward my progress?"

Zhuzhou was once the birthplace of flutes and bamboo pipes, but their production is now strictly forbidden.

Zheng: "What does the frequent disappearance of people in the bamboo forest have to do with the mountain god? Can the people of Zhuzhou stop worshipping the mountain god so blindly?"

Tuzhou prizes music in its natural form and rejects any instrument that requires elaborate processing.

Zheng: "Since Tuzhou is known for its pottery, why not make earth-class instruments directly from clay?"

"You call that elaborate processing? Ridiculous!"

In Muzhou, all Eastern and Western instruments have vanished without a trace.

Zheng: "Why is a great demon competing with me for instruments? Wait, haven't I seen this great demon somewhere before?"

The people of Paozhou pursue perfection in music so relentlessly that their gourd instruments have nearly been lost.

Zheng: "There are still fragmentary manuals on making and playing gourd instruments. We can organize and restore them."

"Oh no, it'll take a billion tries."

The people of Shizhou have always believed that a good voice needs no instrumental accompaniment.

Zheng: "You don't care what musician Zheng has to say? What if I say it as a pop star instead?"

Sizhou has four great clans, each guarding a treasured secret.

Zheng: "So the treasures are silk instruments. What, I have to complete a trial from each of the four clans to obtain them?"

Jinzhou, home to the capital, even uses Western instruments in its ceremonies to worship heaven.

Zheng: "They say the popularity of Western instruments in Yuyin has a lot to do with the Imperial Preceptor. I want to see what kind of person he is."

"Why is the Imperial Preceptor of Yuyin from my hometown?!"

A light fantasy novel. The setting is fictional, so don't nitpick the historical details.

In ancient times, the Eight Tones referred to instruments made from eight different materials: hide, bamboo, clay, wood, gourds, stone, silk, and metal.

Theme: Eastern and Western music blending to create a new sound for a new era