Majestic Feathers- I’m going solo from now on, so no more proofreaders. Thanks to Editors Ducky and Tippy for getting me this far!
By the light of the fire, they could see the appearance of the giant creature at the bottom of the pool. It was a silver monster fish with wings, measuring fifteen meters in length and over twenty meters in wingspan. Its fish scales shimmered with an eerie sheen in the faint moonlight. Its eyes emitted a green glow in the darkness, and its belly was reddish in color. As it spread its wings slightly, the feathers on its wings scratched against the rock wall, making a piercing sound. To their surprise, the feathers on the tips of its wings were extremely sharp, almost like a pair of iron points!
Everyone shrank to the corner together.
“What…what the fuck is that?” Yu Ren Shu asked.
“It’s a luo fish,” Sisi said solemnly. “Luo fish like to hide underwater and rarely appear. I’ve only heard of it from my elders since I was a child, and this…ah, it’s much bigger than they said.”
Ruan Qiansu shouted, “What are we doing chatting! Let’s run!”
As soon as the luo fish emerged from the water, its huge glowing eyes stared directly at its egg. The people standing not far away from the egg didn’t dare to move, and they awkwardly stared at each other for several seconds.
Sisi whispered, “Move to the side.”
The luo fish still had half of its body in the water, but the range of its wing attack was enough to cut them into pieces repeatedly. They moved to the side gently, tightly holding onto their weapons.
The luo fish stretched out one wing and lightly swept the egg into the water, returning it to its original location. At the same time, its dull eyes followed the movements of the people.
Yun Xi swallowed his saliva and said in a very low voice, “It, it seems angry.”
Sisi murmured, “We didn’t eat the egg.”
“Who asked you to take it out!” Yu Ren Shu snapped.
Jiang Chao Ge chuckled twice but didn’t say anything.
The luo fish flapped its gills, and its wings also moved slightly. Suddenly, a large circle of ripples appeared on the surface of the water.
Sisi yelled, “Run!”
The group hauled ass, heading towards the closest spot to the courtyard above their heads. The luo fish let out a clear and melodious call, which echoed in the spacious water cave, and was pleasant to hear. However, its wings, which chased after them, were not so pleasant. The iron feathers swept past them, and the wind knocked them down. They only heard a rough, grating sound as stone debris fell from above and hit them painfully.
Tian Rong and Zui You transformed instantly and carried the others as they ran forward. The luo fish’s wings were as agile as a swallow, and its vision was extremely good. It chased after them as they ran.
Yun Xi yelled angrily, “The best guide of the Tuozu tribe?!”
Sisi protested bitterly, “What does that have to do with me? It was their idea to take the egg.”
At this moment, the luo fish had completely floated to the surface, and the size of this water cave was clearly tailored to its needs. It was flexible enough for it to turn around easily, and it could quickly touch any corner it wanted. If it were even slightly bigger or smaller, it wouldn’t have had the same effect. It was as if it were deliberately opposing them.
The luo fish was thoroughly enraged. Its wings flapped wildly in the water cave, and to Jiang Chao Ge, it looked like a giant propeller flying recklessly in an enclosed space. It could cut them into pieces at any moment.
Tian Rong and Zui You ran around in the water cave, but with the ceiling too high, they couldn’t climb up without being hit by the luo fish’s wings. They could only run around in circles.
Ruan Qiansu summoned Zhen Chen and jumped onto its back, shouting, “You guys distract it, I’ll go check out the courtyard!”
The wings attacked again, and Tian Rong quickly lay down on the ground, barely avoiding it. However, because he applied too much force, everyone on his back fell to the ground. The luo fish’s wings followed closely.
Jiang Chao Ge gripped his Zhi Xuan blade tightly and used a strong release of spiritual power to confront the sharp feathers. Jiang Chao Ge watched as the feathers sliced towards him like countless giant blades. However, Zhi Xuan flew towards him, knocking him to the ground just as the feathers passed over his head. A strand of his black hair was sliced cleanly off and fell to the ground. At the same time, several of the feathers were broken by his powerful spiritual energy. The luo fish emitted a sad howl, which was so pleasant to hear that it made people feel intoxicated. However, its killing intent was stronger than ever, and it attacked fiercely once again.
“My hair…” Zhi Xuan was furious and screamed at the luo fish, “You beast!”
Surprisingly, the luo fish’s movements paused in mid-air, making a weak whining sound as if hesitating.
Yu Ren Shu pulled up the two people from the ground and said, “Run!”
Zheng Chen had already taken Ruan Qiansu and flown to the top of the cave. Ruan Qiansu cut through the overgrowth and jumped up. She shouted down, “Come up quick!”
Zheng Chen sent her up to the courtyard and came back down to get the others. Yun Xi and Si Si summoned their zhen niao respectively, and they picked up the people in the water cave and fled in different directions.
After pausing for a moment, the luo fish stopped attacking Zhi Xuan and instead pounced towards Yun Xi.
Yun Xi was frightened and shouted, “Help me!”
Sisi quickly drew an arrow at an extremely fast speed, the bow was bent like a full moon, and the arrow shot towards the fish’s eye. The luo fish seemed to sense it and tilted its head to the side, causing the bamboo arrow to pierce through its thick lips.
The monster was completely enraged, opened its diamond-shaped fish mouth, made a sharp call towards Sisi, and charged towards him with all its might while flapping its wings wildly.
Sisi stood firmly on the back of his zhen niao, his body not leaning to either side, and his stance stable. The bird swam agilely in the water cave, and the luo fish’s attacks were not strong enough. The fish was furious and continuously swung its wings, striking the rock wall and creating countless injuries and falling stones.
Long Xiang borrowed the force of Zui Yu to kick himself onto the luo fish’s back boldly. Its back was covered with silver scales that were incredibly slippery. Long Xiang immediately started to roll down, but he managed to stabilize himself by thrusting his weapon into the fish scales, and the tip of the halberd buried almost half of it. The luo fish writhed in pain and desperately flapped its wings but could not reach its own back.
Long Xiang’s body was thrown into the air; he tightly clutched his halberd and roared, “Get out of here!”
Yun Xi was the second person to be flung around, and Ruan Qiansu grabbed his arm and pulled him.
Jiang Chao Ge and Zhi Xuan, followed by Yu Ren Shu and Tian Rong, all lay on the back of their respective birds and flew out.
Zui Yu shouted, “Little Xiang, hurry up and go!”
Long Xiang held onto his halberd, which was still inserted in the luo fish’s back. His body swayed like the willow tree in the wind. He shouted, “Don’t worry about me, go up quickly!”
“Jump on the back of your birds! The luo fish is sinking!” Sisi shouted.
Sure enough, the luo fish couldn’t shake off Long Xiang and attempted to sink into the water to drown him. Its diving speed was extremely fast, and its tail had already disappeared underwater. Long Xiang tried to pull out his spirit weapon, but it was stuck deep in the fish and he couldn’t remove it.
With a running start, Zui Yu leaped and jumped onto the luo fish’s body. He grabbed onto it with his big claws and stood firmly.
The luo fish’s body wriggled even more violently, and its sinking speed increased. Zui Yu climbed up with all his might, and most of its fluffy nine tails were already soaked in water.
Yu Ren Shu looked on anxiously from above, holding his weapon as if he wanted to go down. Tian Rong grabbed him and said, “It’s no use for you to go down there. Leave it to them.”
Sisi stood on his zhen niao, frantically circling around them. He dared not provoke the luo fish, for that would only make it sink faster.
Zui Yu finally managed to climb up to Long Xiang’s side. He opened his mouth and bit the halberd’s handle, and together with Long Xiang, they pulled with all their might to remove Zui Yu’s weapon. Finally, they managed to pull it out. If Zui You’s halberd sank with the luo fish, the fish would never come up again. No one knew how deep the water was, and the weapon might not resurface again.
Long Xiang jumped onto Zui Yu’s back in one go, Sisi hugged its neck, and Zui You flew up with a leap. In mid-air, its body transformed into its human form, and it landed on the zhen niao steadily. The bird let out a cry and flew towards the courtyard, followed closely by Sisi.
The group rushed up to the courtyard in one breath. As they saw the outside world again, even though the rain was still pouring and the cold wind was biting, the joy of surviving the disaster overwhelmed everything.
The luo fish angrily slammed itself against the waterhole. The group dared not stay any longer; they quickly climbed onto the birds and flew into the rainy night.
After flying for more than ten miles to the east, they stopped under a big tree.
The series of adventures that night felt like a long nightmare. Everyone was so tired that they could barely keep their eyes open. They sat under the tree, wrapped in rainproof blankets, too exhausted to even move their fingers.
“When will this rain stop?” Yun Xi touched his wet clothes and couldn’t help sneezing. He took out a medicine box from his storage bag and handed each person a pill. “Take this to prevent chills.”
Everyone swallowed the pills; the bitter taste melted in their mouths, making their mood even more somber.
“Let’s wait until dawn.” Sisi leaned against the tree for a while, then suddenly laughed out loud. “Being with unlucky people is really exciting. I always encounter things I haven’t seen before.”
“Pah, jinx!” Jiang Chao Ge gave him a disgusted look. “I don’t want to encounter anything anymore.”
Sisi was happy by himself, gesturing with his hands as if he were shooting arrows. “How about that? I’m an excellent marksman, but it’s a pity I don’t have a good bow.”
Jiang Chao Ge knew that Sisi’s bow was only an ordinary earth-ranked spirit weapon. The Tuozu tribe had been passed down for millions of years and had some accumulation. There were several legendary mythic-ranked spiritual weapons, but none of them fit Sisi. What puzzled him was that the Tuozu tribe had always provided bows for their leaders from generation to generation. It was impossible not to give the grandson of the tribe leader even a profound-ranked bow. Jiang Chao Ge couldn’t help but ask him this question.
Sisi touched his nose. “When I was a child, I had a mythic-ranked spiritual weapon. When I was eleven years old, I ran away from the mountain for the first time and stole two silver coins. I spent it all quickly, and then…”
Ruan Qiansu stared at him and said incredulously, “Did you sell your own spiritual weapon?”
For a spiritual weapon master, a spiritual tool is their closest friend. If it’s just an ordinary weapon like a yellow rank spirit weapon, it can be replaced easily. A common weapon master may only be able to obtain one Earth rank weapon or one mythic-ranked spiritual weapon throughout their entire life. A mythic rank weapon costs several hundred gold coins, and only a few spiritual weapon masters are able to hunt for, afford, or be gifted with a mythic-ranked weapon. A Heaven rank is even rarer. Therefore, for a spirit weapon master to sell their mythic rank spirit weapon because they lack money is equivalent to throwing away their dignity for a mouthful of food. It sounds unbelievable and absolutely contemptible.
Except for Jiang Chao Ge, the foreigner, everyone else looked at him with uncomprehending eyes. Jiang Chao Ge was concerned about how much he sold it for, but he thought about it and decided not to rub salt in his wound. However, Sisi was indeed a rascally child from when he was young until now.
Sisi’s gaze was dodgy, and he weakly defended himself, “I was still young at that time. I regret it too.”
Ruan Qiansu shook her head and said bluntly, “You just don’t have a conscience.”
Sisi pouted and said dejectedly, “Anyway, after I came back, my father hung me at the entrance of the village for three days and nights. Since then, he hasn’t given me any good weapons. Every time I left the village, it was to hunt for good beast materials to make a bow, but the materials for a bow are not as simple as for swords; they need to be both rigid and supple, with adequate length and width. I haven’t found a suitable beast yet.”
Everyone expressed, “You deserved it.”
After a short rest, the sky cleared up, and the rain stopped in time.
The sky above Kunlun Mountain was pure and clear like a freshly washed blue, dotted with a few light white clouds. Last night’s raging storm, dark clouds covering the moon, seemed never to have existed. Only the damp grass and trees and the muddy ground could prove that they had experienced a rainy night.
Sisi stood up and stretched, twisting his waist and stretching his legs. Then he stepped on a tree branch and suddenly jumped up, crawling up the tree like a monkey. With a few leaps and swings among the branches, he reached the top of the tree and exclaimed joyfully, “Good weather and a good mood… huh?” And then he fell silent.
“What’s wrong?” Jiang Chao Ge looked up at him.
Sisi crouched on the tree for a while, looking around, and didn’t come down for a while.
“Sisi?”
Sisi jumped to the lowest branch and laughed awkwardly, “Um… it’s strange. I don’t recognize this place.”
The faces of several people turned black at once.
Sisi pretended to be relaxed and said, “Yesterday, we ran crazily in the cave for a while. We didn’t know the direction or where we were going. After flying out, it was too dark to see clearly…” His voice became smaller and he grabbed his hair. “It seems like we got lost, hahaha.”
Yun Xi gritted her teeth and said, “The best guide of the Tuozu tribe?!”
“This can’t be blamed entirely on me. I’ve never seen anyone from outside the mountain who can cause more trouble than you guys, with one moment being attacked by owl men and the next a lou fish. I wonder why you guys are so unlucky,” Sisi said.
Ruan Qiansu narrowed her eyes and asked, “Have you ever seen outsiders on Kunlun Mountain before?”
Sisi was speechless for a moment.
Jiang Chao Ge said calmly, “Can you still lead us to Xuan Yuan Hill?”
“I can,” Sisi said firmly. “As long as you give me some time, I’ll definitely be able to take you there. No one knows Kunlun Mountain better than me.”
“Bragging.” Even Long Xiang, who was usually reticent, didn’t mince his words.
Si Si got angry and said, “I’m not bragging. I’ll definitely find a way. You guys stay here and don’t run around.” After saying that, he swung through the branches and quickly ran away.
Ruan Qiansu sighed, “This guide is too unreliable.”
“Yes, but besides trusting him, we don’t have any other options now.” Jiang Chao Ge looked around. “Right now we can’t even go back to the Tuozu tribe. We are completely trapped deep in Kunlun Mountain.”
After a while, Sisi came back, his face all excited. “I looked around and I think we’re on the third path I mentioned earlier.”
Jiang Chao Ge squinted his eyes and pointed to the ground. “Get down here.”
Sisi shook his head. “I won’t come down.”
Jiang Chao Ge was so angry he wanted to slap him.
Sisi smirked, “Just accept it. There is a predetermined arrangement in the universe. We are meant to take this path.”
Ruan Qiansu said, “Let’s try to find a way to go back the way we came.”
“I don’t know how to go back another way,” Sisi said.
Everyone immediately gave up on the idea of going back the way they came.
“But you’ve never walked this path before. How can you lead us to Xuan Yuan Hill?” Ruan Qiansu asked.
“Don’t worry, I know the direction of Xuan Yuan Hill naturally. No matter how we detour, I won’t forget it. Just keep going in that direction, the destination is the same no matter the route.”
The crowd looked at him skeptically.
Sisi became anxious, “What kind of look is that? I said I will take you to Xuan Yuan Hill, and I will definitely bring you there!”
Jiang Chao Ge sighed, “There’s no other option now, we can only go.”
Yun Xi hesitated, “But who knows what kind of dangerous beasts and creatures we may encounter on this path.”
Sisi grinned, “There’s no safe route, no matter which way you go. If we want to reach Xuan Yuan Hill, we can’t be afraid of death.”
Yun Xi muttered, “It would have been less dangerous if we never entered that cave…”
Sisi pretended not to hear and shouted, “Let’s go!”
Sisi watched the route from the trees while the others walked below. After a night of torture, everyone was cautious, afraid of encountering more strange and terrifying creatures.
Fortunately, the day passed without incident. By night, Ren Qiansu’s numbness from the bite of the owl-faced creature had dissipated.
Jiang Chao Ge was leaning against a tree, almost dozing off mid-meal.
Zhi Xuan held a water pouch to his lips. “Drink,” he said.
Jiang Chao Ge took a sip and shook his head. “I’m so tired.”
No one had slept a wink the night before. Zhi Xuan looked at his dark circles with sympathy. “Eat quickly, then sleep. I’ll keep watch.”
Jiang Chao Ge nodded, then said happily, “Did you see the sword stroke I made earlier? My spiritual power increased again.”
“I did. In a little while, you can try summoning me.”
“Can I really do it?” Jiang Chao Ge asked, hesitating.
“If you can’t, it doesn’t matter. You can always try,” Zhi Xuan replied.
“Well, then let me try now,” Jiang Chao Ge said eagerly.
Zhi Xuan raised an eyebrow. “It won’t work right now.”
Jiang Chao Ge focused his energy and infused his spiritual power, but Zhi Xuan remained unchanged. He sighed, “As expected, it doesn’t work.”
Zhi Xuan whispered in Jiang Chao Ge’s ear, “If you want to summon my true form, then mate with me.”
Jiang Chao Ge gave him a sidelong glance. “Can’t we just mix blood?”
“No,” Zhi Xuan glared at him. “Absolutely not.”
Jiang Chao Ge had already given up. “Fine, since I promised you, then… wait until we find Yin Chuan.”
Zhi Xuan kissed him hard, his smile brimming with amusement. “Yin Chuan will definitely tell me that you’re my female beast.”
“Has Yin Chuan ever encountered his female beast?”
Zhi Xuan shook his head. “No, that’s why Yin Chuan says not everyone is lucky enough to meet their own female beast.”
Jiang Chao Ge hissed, feeling uneasy with those two words. “Don’t you, as a beast, have any females? Can’t they pursue and wait for their male beasts?”
“I already told you, most of the Twelve Beasts are hermaphroditic. They just take on a more masculine appearance to show their strength. Over time, they get used to being masculine. However, Hong Yuan likes to switch between masculine and feminine forms because he likes it.”
“Who is Hong Yuan?”
“The Vermilion Bird. He’s annoying as a female and even more annoying as a male.”
Jiang Chao Ge couldn’t help but laugh. “Do you have a feminine appearance too?”
Zhi Xuan raised a brow. “Do you want to see?”
Jiang Chao Ge was only asking casually, but he didn’t expect Zhi Xuan to actually have a feminine appearance. He was suddenly extremely curious and excited. “Yes, I want to see. Show me.”
He thought a bit lecherously that if Zhi Xuan, with his stunning looks, transformed into a woman, he would have no psychological barriers against performing any mating rituals or forming bonds.
Zhi Xuan pinched his cheeks. “Dream on. I’m not going to become a human female.”
Jiang Chao Ge felt a bit disappointed. “I just wanted to see.”
Zhi Xuan snorted. “I’ve never liked that frail human form, let alone women.”
“Then does Yin Chuan have a female appearance too?”
“Yes, sometimes Yin Chuan shows himself in a feminine appearance to make humans less afraid of him. But it always makes humans lustful, so he stopped doing it,” Zhi Xuan rubbed his chin. “Actually, for us, there’s not much difference between male and female human forms. They’re equally weak, and the physical differences are even smaller, especially after they put on clothes. Sometimes I can’t even tell if someone is male or female, like Ruan Qiansu or Yun Xi. If you guys didn’t tell me, I wouldn’t be able to tell.”
Jiang Chao Ge felt awkward. “Then why don’t you show me your feminine appearance?”
Zhi Xuan glared at him. “Because you are my female beast, so I can’t become a female.”
Jiang Chao Ge pouted, feeling disappointed.
Zhi Xuan hugged his waist and pressed his head against his shoulder. “Moreover, if I became a female, I would be less tall and strong than you.”
Jiang Chao Ge couldn’t help but smile and relaxed, leaning on Zhi Xuan. In fact, he secretly thought that the second method of contracting was more suitable for spirit weapon users and spiritual beasts. In countless days of sharing difficulties and accompanying each other through life and death, the feelings between them gradually become interdependent and difficult to cut off. Because of their mutual attachment, they become the most trustworthy and loyal companions in this world. Such emotions cannot be obtained by anyone else, as long as they have emotions, how could they be indifferent? Once feelings develop, even if it’s not love between a man and a woman, many people can accept closer ways of getting along in order to enhance their cultivation, and it’s beneficial for both parties.
Even a straight guy like him, who had been upright for more than twenty years, had already been shaken and even agreed to it. It was just that he had already become accustomed to having Zhi Xuan by his side. He knew that even if the whole world betrayed him, Zhi Xuan would not, and he also knew that until the day he died, the last thing he saw and the last person who accompanied him would definitely be Zhi Xuan. This kind of feeling has already transcended many worldly things, making the norms of society seem insignificant.
