#34: Man-Made Disaster (7)

“Where is this?” a groggy, sweet voice asked. Yao Yin subconsciously replied, “This is the ranch for the higher-ups of the Ghost Tribe.” Halfway through, Yao Yin exclaimed, “You’re not Hua Jun Yan? Who are you!”

“I am Zi Chen.” The voice was soft and gentle; though its tone was utterly serious, it still sounded somewhat childlike.

“Zi Chen?” Yao Yin was puzzled. Confirming the source of the voice was at her feet, she looked down and saw a pair of fluffy paws clinging to her ankle. Yao Yin, startled, lifted the owner of the paws to her eye level.

“Ouch! I’m a patient! An injured one!”

Yao Yin’s eyes widened as she recognized what was in her hands.

It was a bird.

A bird that looked somewhat like a parrot.

It was fiery red all over, with three silver tail feathers on its forehead and several branched long feathers on its tail. Its eyes were covered with white gauze, just like Zi Chen’s. The entire bird looked sickly and a bit malnourished.

“You are Zi Chen?”

The sickly bird fluttered its wings: “Undeniably.”

“How did you turn into a bird?”

“Perhaps my spiritual power is insufficient, unable to maintain human form...” Zi Chen laboriously flapped his wings to keep himself floating in the air. Yao Yin’s eyes widened, and she poked the three feathers on Zi Chen’s forehead with her hand. Although they drooped sickly, they felt quite good to the touch.

“Such good texture.”

Zi Chen didn’t dodge, letting her stroke him. He chuckled, “Being forced back into my original form has only happened twice. Once, a long time ago, I was severely injured, nearly dying, and returned to my original form to recuperate. This time, the situation should be similar, it’s just a pity...”

“A pity what?”

“It’s a pity there’s no goddess to extend my life this time...” Zi Chen pretended to wipe the corner of his eye, intending to shed a tear for sympathy, but discovered that not only were his eyes gone, but his hands had also turned into wings. He stopped flapping, and his body plunged straight down.

Yao Yin swiftly caught him and held him in her arms.

“You don’t have a goddess, but you have me. But... weren’t you a mortal? How do you have an original form?”

Zi Chen stuck out his tongue: “Sorry, I lied to you before.”

“...” Yao Yin sighed, realizing that such a joke was actually inconsequential. After all, no matter how mysterious Zi Chen’s identity was, it wouldn’t be as surprising as Yun Yan being the Lord of the Ghost Tribe, would it? The urgent task now was to heal Zi Chen.

Yao Yin said faintly, “Although I’m not as capable as the Azure Emperor’s daughter, I still have magical treasures that can save your life.” Yao Yin spoke, taking out six Bashe eggs from her pocket and presenting them to Zi Chen’s mouth as if offering a treasure.

Zi Chen’s eyes lit up. He unceremoniously swallowed them one by one, shell and all. He smacked his lips as he ate, “Why are you bringing up Yao Zheng again out of nowhere?”

Yao Yin rolled her eyes and said, “Do you take me for a fool? You still think I can’t figure out your identity by now?”

“What... you know everything?” Zi Chen stopped eating upon hearing this, looking up at her in a daze.

“Precisely. How much longer did you plan to hide it from me?”

“I’m sorry, I just thought it wasn’t necessary. Once I recover...”

“You don’t need to apologize to me,” Yao Yin interrupted him before Zi Chen could finish. “When you were forced back into your original form, the one who saved you was Imperial Daughter Yao Zheng, wasn’t it? And you’re not some mortal; you’re a demon, a bird demon!”

Zi Chen froze.

“Oh, actually, what if you are a demon? I won’t look down on you because of that. Most celestials in the Celestial Tribe ascend from the lower three realms. You don’t need to feel inferior. Demons have to work much harder to cultivate and achieve enlightenment than gods born with immortal bodies. You can proudly tell me, ‘I am a bird demon! A positive and diligent bird demon who cultivates for enlightenment!’“

After hearing Yao Yin’s grand words, Zi Chen adopted a “don’t bother me” expression, lowering his head and eating the eggs one by one.

“Why aren’t you speaking?”

“Hey...”

“Zi Chen?”

Zi Chen was so annoyed by Yao Yin that he finally said irritably, “I’m just wondering why you didn’t say I was a chicken demon?”

“That’s easy! Because chickens can’t fly!”

“...It’s rare that you know chickens can’t fly,” Zi Chen pressed his hand to his forehead, saying, “I’m a bit full. Let me digest for a while.” With that, he slumped his shoulders, curled himself into a ball, and burrowed into Yao Yin’s arms. Yao Yin knew Zi Chen was at his physical limit and didn’t want to disturb him further, so she wrapped her outer garment around her chest, holding him, to keep the severe cold out, hoping to give him more warmth.

Just then, human voices came from not far away. Fearing that ghost tribe members were coming to hunt them, Yao Yin quietly hid herself behind a tree.

“We’ve been searching here for days, and there’s no news of Prince Zi. Is he really here?”

“No mistake, his aura is on Hua Jun Yan.”

“But it’s been tens of thousands of years. If he were truly here, we wouldn’t have failed to find him.”

“His Highness’s aura appeared once thousands of years ago, and recently it has reappeared, and it’s not far from us.”

The voices sounded like an elderly elder and a young demon. After a while, the vermilion-painted gate of the fence opened from the inside, and Yao Yin finally saw clearly that the two were the caretakers of the Ghost Tribe’s ranch, Gu Yu and Feng Yuan.

“Grandpa Yuan, I don’t want to stay in the Ghost Tribe anymore. My feathers are almost corroded away by the miasma.”

“Shh... Someone’s here.” Feng Yuan made a shushing gesture. The two stood still in front of the vermilion gate. Feng Yuan’s eyesight was already poor, but his normally downcast eyes suddenly widened when he saw a puddle of bird feathers on the ground. He reached out a hand, and the feathers all fell into his palm.

“Th-these are phoenix feathers!” Feng Yuan’s hands trembled, unable to contain his excitement.

“Really? Are these Prince Zi’s feathers?”

“Phoenix?” Yao Yin asked, surprised, blurting it out subconsciously.

“Who’s there!” Feng Yuan spoke sharply, and a palm strike came directly at her. Yao Yin was too slow to dodge. To protect Zi Chen in her arms, she instinctively turned around, taking the full force of the blow on her back. A mouthful of fresh blood spurted out, and Yao Yin’s form became visible.

“Who are you?” Feng Yuan raised an eyebrow, sizing her up.

“Revered Envoy?” Gu Yu was the first to recognize Yao Yin. “How did you end up in this state?”

Yao Yin wiped the blood from the corner of her mouth, pointing at Feng Yuan and saying irritably, “Thanks to him.”

“Heh, if you’re going to be sneaky, don’t blame me for being merciless.” Feng Yuan glared fiercely at Yao Yin, then continued to examine the feathers in his hand. Yao Yin had nothing to say to this old man with a temper as foul as a rock in a latrine. Seeing that they didn’t intend to make things difficult for her, she endured the pain and staggered to her feet, checked Zi Chen in her arms, found nothing amiss, and then felt relieved.

“Revered Envoy, where are you going?” Gu Yu asked again.

“Back to the Celestial Palace.”

“You... are an immortal?”

Yao Yin did not deny it, saying, “Miss Gu Yu, could you give me directions on how to leave the Ghost Tribe and return to the mortal realm?”

“Normally I could send you out, but...” Gu Yu’s face showed difficulty, and she glanced at Feng Yuan, saying, “We have very important matters to attend to right now, so we can’t send you.”

Just then, a plume dropped from Yao Yin’s embrace, silvery and shimmering brilliantly in the darkness. It was one of the three feathers from Zi Chen’s forehead.

“Zi Chen!” Yao Yin exclaimed in shock, quickly hugging him, “Zi Chen, what’s wrong?” She saw Zi Chen trembling uncontrollably like a sieve, his feathers shaking and scattering all over the ground, even the three feathers on his forehead were reduced to only two remaining.

“Grandpa Yuan, look quickly!” Gu Yu stared at Zi Chen in Yao Yin’s arms in surprise. Feng Yuan glanced at him and couldn’t take his eyes off him: “W-who is he?”

Yao Yin was concerned about Zi Chen’s safety and couldn’t hear Feng Yuan’s words. Feng Yuan, anxious, walked up to her, took Zi Chen’s wing, and carefully checked his pulse.

“Please! Save Zi Chen!” Yao Yin clearly felt Zi Chen’s aura growing weaker and weaker, but at this moment, she was utterly helpless. Seeing Feng Yuan checking Zi Chen’s pulse, she didn’t stop him; she only hoped Feng Yuan could find a way to save him.

“What did you feed him?”

“Bashe eggs... six of them.”

“Nonsense!” Feng Yuan’s beard bristled with anger. “He’s already physically weak and can’t handle such rich补品 (supplements). Aren’t you sending him to his death?!”

“I’m sorry! I didn’t know it would be like this. He was poisoned; I just wanted to save him...” Yao Yin said anxiously, tears welling up in her eyes. “Elder, do you have a way to save him? If you can save him, I’ll do anything!”

Feng Yuan ignored Yao Yin, instead summoning spiritual energy to create a barrier around Zi Chen. The milky white halo, like an eggshell, enveloped Zi Chen, protecting him. Within the eggshell, Zi Chen stopped trembling, his breathing even, sleeping very peacefully, like an infant returned to its mother’s womb.

The three of them, seeing that Zi Chen seemed to be out of danger, breathed a sigh of relief.

“Is he okay?” Yao Yin asked anxiously.

“He’s safe for now,” Feng Yuan said impatiently, narrowing his eyes, “Who is he to you?”

“He’s my benefactor.”

“Benefactor?” Feng Yuan, hearing this, became so angry that he no longer stooped, standing straight and pointing at Yao Yin’s nose, furious: “Is this how you repay a favor? You clearly pushed him towards death!”

“I know I was wrong!” Yao Yin was startled, tears falling like broken strings of pearls. She instinctively hugged Zi Chen’s eggshell tightly, fearing that Zi Chen would truly leave her in the next moment.

“Alright, you said you’d do anything if I could save him?”

“Yes!” Yao Yin nodded vigorously.

“Alright, then, if you promise me that for generations to come, you will be a slave and servant, never stepping out of Fenghua Village, I will save him. How about it?”

“I’m willing!” Yao Yin nodded without hesitation, then hesitated, “But why should I believe you?”

Feng Yuan narrowed his eyes: “Besides trusting me now, do you have any other path to take?”

“...” Yao Yin was a little helpless, realizing this was indeed true, so she said, “Alright, I promise you. As long as you can heal Zi Chen’s injuries, I am willing to be confined to Feng for the rest of my life...”

“Fenghua Village,” Feng Yuan prompted, narrowing his eyes.

“I am willing to be confined to Fenghua Village for the rest of my life, serving as a slave and servant for generations.”

“Good, it’s a deal.” Feng Yuan put away his angry expression and clasped hands with Yao Yin in a solemn vow. “Here’s a stamp for you. From now on, you’ll forever be a person of Fenghua Village.”

Yao Yin felt a tingling sensation in her palm, and then a phoenix totem appeared. Its color was dark red, exactly like the Celestial Slave’s emblem. Yao Yin’s heart was filled with trepidation, but upon seeing the sleeping Zi Chen in her arms, she no longer felt uneasy: as long as she could save Zi Chen, she would do anything.

“Come with me,” Feng Yuan nodded at Gu Yu. Gu Yu received the command, then placed her hands to her lips. A piercing whistle sounded, and a small beast emerged from the ground, but it grew larger the moment it surfaced. Gu Yu pulled Yao Yin onto the giant beast’s back, and the three of them, along with the egg, flew towards the ranch.

Thus, Yao Yin, without quite understanding how, fell from being a minor immortal of the Celestial Tribe to a servant of Fenghua Village. Awaiting her was a village never before known to the world, inhabited by the legendary ancient divine tribe—the Phoenix Clan.

To reach Yu Huang Mountain, one first had to exit Nightfall Palace. Passing through the ranch, the path was deserted, yet ear-splitting roars echoed, a stark contrast to the empty streets. Around Yao Yin were cage after cage, and from time to time, two eyes would emit a sinister green light from within the cages. She was deeply concerned about the reliability of these cages and unconsciously tightened her clothes.

“Don’t worry, these things can’t escape,” Gu Yu chuckled from the side, “I’ve been here for thousands of years and have never seen a demon beast successfully escape.”

“Thousands of years?” Yao Yin was a little surprised, carefully examining her face. She found her features clear and beautiful, embodying a youthful grace, utterly unlike a ghost demon who had lived for hundreds of years.

“Who exactly are you people?” Yao Yin asked.

“You’ll understand when we reach Fenghua Village,” Gu Yu said with a profound, knowing smile. As for Feng Yuan, he disdained to speak with Yao Yin, walking ahead by himself.

Yao Yin suppressed the questions in her heart and instead paid close attention to everything along the way. The three of them turned a few small alleys, passed through a few long corridors, and flew for a while before arriving at an old槐树 (scholar tree). The scholar tree appeared somewhat ethereal against the backdrop of the ghostly aura. Its branches and leaves were lush, but its trunk had a huge tree hollow, almost human height. The three of them settled in front of the scholar tree. Yao Yin followed the two and glanced at the tree hollow, finding herself unable to look away. The tree hollow was pitch black, yet it seemed to possess a pair of eyes that drew you in, making it impossible to leave. Swirls of purplish-black miasma emanated from within, making one’s heart pound.

Yao Yin flinched slightly, subconsciously taking a step back, but Gu Yu pushed her, sending her tumbling towards the tree hollow. Yao Yin squeezed her eyes shut, hugging Zi Chen tightly in her arms. A sensation of weightlessness came over her, and she felt herself falling into water. She gasped for air, but river water entered her mouth and nose, making it difficult to breathe. The prolonged suffocation made her feel as if she was drowning, but at the last moment, she surfaced. The feeling of breathing again was like being reborn.

Yao Yin gasped for air, and when she opened her eyes, she was instantly stunned by the beautiful scenery before her. The area was surrounded by mountains on three sides and water on one, with the sunset reflected in the water and various birds circling in the sky. Their calls were melodious and unending. At the foot of the mountains lay a village. It was dusk, and smoke curled from the chimneys of every household in the village, presenting a scene of peaceful prosperity. Yao Yin had landed in the spring in the center of the village, and despite it being the coldest month of winter, she did not feel cold. A few people were sparsely gathered around, pointing at her.

Gu Yu appeared in the spring pool a step after her, and she was clearly prepared, with an invisible protective barrier around her body that kept the spring water out. At this moment, Gu Yu had removed her black clothes and changed into a colorful dress, shedding her previous ghost demon appearance.

Her peerless grace, deeply etched charm, and soft yet unfeigned features exuded nobility and elegance, making it impossible to look away. Compared to her, Yao Yin at this moment was like a drowned chicken.

Gu Yu smiled faintly at her and said, “Welcome to Yu Huang Mountain.”

...

...

Volume One: Meeting as Strangers

End.