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墨書 Inktalez
Chapter 15: The Phoenix Lures the Enemy
A Fire Goose crashed into a wall and died, while another one relentlessly pursued. This Fire Goose was quite tenacious, twisting and turning in the narrow space, closely biting at the shadow of the Phoenix as it flew by. The Phoenix was skilled in flight, and so was the Fire Goose, but the Fire Goose had to flap its wings much faster to maintain a speed roughly equal to that of the Phoenix.
The Fire Goose gave its all to keep up, and its efforts were not in vain; it slowly closed the distance inch by inch.
The Phoenix let out a low cry, and Ji Zichen immediately realized that the long beak of the Fire Goose was aiming for the Phoenix's tail. Fortunately, the Phoenix was well aware of the Fire Goose's tricks, and because of this understanding, it managed to avoid disaster.
Although the Phoenix dodged this peck, fragments of stone splintered off the wall and struck its body. Since both were flying at high speeds, the debris posed a significant threat. The stones hit the Phoenix painfully, but they did not injure it. The Phoenix slightly twisted its body, and the pain subsided.
The Phoenix expertly controlled its body to pass beneath a massive arching rock before suddenly ascending. Ahead lay a fissure between two towering stone peaks. The Phoenix tilted its body and slipped through the horizontal crack.
The pursuing Fire Goose was very close behind but did not collide with anything.
Soon, Ji Zichen grew increasingly frustrated with the persistent Fire Goose. Unaware of Ji Zichen's thoughts, the Fire Goose continued to close in. Despite being in a perilous situation, the Phoenix remained remarkably calm as it surveyed its escape routes. There were three paths: straight ahead and two passages on either side. The Phoenix chose not to veer off course and flew straight ahead.
After chasing for a while without any counterattack from the Phoenix, the Fire Goose felt quite vexed. It let out a loud cry upon spotting a cluster of trees growing on a steep rock face. These trees tended to grow on high cliffs and were not large—about the size of a steaming basket for buns. While flying, the Fire Goose deftly grasped one of these trees with its claws and uprooted it before hurling it toward the Phoenix.
As the Phoenix suddenly soared into the air, just inches away from being struck by the tree, it lost momentum and fell toward the peak below.
In that moment of ascent, the Phoenix let out an elongated screech that was exceptionally sharp. Ji Zichen couldn't help but think that if he were present at that moment, his ears might have been deafened by such a cry. He felt anxious at this piercing sound from the Phoenix; after all, such a scream would not deter the pursuing Fire Goose. Was this a sign that the Phoenix was nearing its end?
Just as Ji Zichen's thoughts settled, he heard a rumbling from both sides of the mountain walls as if they were about to collapse suddenly. Rocks continuously tumbled down from above. Ji Zichen was initially startled but then felt immense joy as he praised the cleverness of the Phoenix.
Lin Chuyu also understood what was happening and exclaimed, "Brother Ji, it's the sound of the Phoenix's cry that is shaking the mountain walls and causing the rocks to fall!"
Ji Zichen nodded in agreement. "Yes, it really is quite clever. However, I believe only a Phoenix could achieve such a feat; no human throat could ever produce such a sharp sound."
As the walls trembled, debris fell like a storm. A stone about two palms wide fell and struck the waist of the Phoenix. It let out a painful cry as its body suddenly dropped but quickly adjusted itself despite the pain and soared back into the air.
Ji Zichen seemed to catch a whiff of blood in the air and thought to himself that perhaps the Phoenix had been injured by falling rocks. Yet, despite everything, it maintained its speed without faltering.
The situation for the Fire Goose was not much better either; as stones rained down chaotically, one of its eyes was blinded by debris. It closed its right eye while blood trickled down from it but continued to pursue relentlessly. With one eye injured, its movements became somewhat erratic; it struggled to fly smoothly due to its impaired vision. Enraged, it screeched loudly as one wing collided with a mountain wall, sending countless stones tumbling down.
Fire Goose crashed into the mountainside, yet it still did not die. Fire Goose flapped its wings to regain control and resumed the chase. This collision with the mountainside bought Zhuque a moment of respite, but that was all.
Ji Zichen hoped that Zhuque could take advantage of this brief moment to shake off Fire Goose, but Ji Zichen's hopes were dashed as Fire Goose pursued once more. This time, however, it had fallen a bit behind. Seeing Fire Goose closing in again, Ji Zichen couldn't help but admire its relentless determination. He felt fortunate that the previous Fire Goose had been defeated; if there were two of them chasing now, Zhuque would surely be in grave danger.
As Zhuque weaved through the Stone Peaks, it still couldn't shake off Fire Goose. Although Ji Zichen was not physically inside Fire Goose, he sensed that it was in a frenzied state.
The Stone Peaks were about half a mile wide, but at the current speed of flight, it wouldn't be long before Zhuque could escape them. Once out of the Stone Peaks, without the cover of the mountainside, Ji Zichen truly wondered what options Zhuque would have against the pursuing Fire Goose.
As expected by Ji Zichen, it wasn't long before he saw the end of the Stone Peaks. Lin Chuyu nervously exclaimed, "We're about to exit!"
When Zhuque flew out of the Stone Peaks, it did not continue in a straight line but instead circled around the outer wall of the peaks. It seemed that Zhuque understood that without the protection of the mountainside, its chances of survival were slim. Moments later, Fire Goose followed closely along the perimeter of the Stone Peaks.
One advantage for Zhuque was that it was leading Fire Goose, much like a person being chased can manipulate their pursuer. Familiar with this area, it seemed that Zhuque had flown through these peaks countless times; otherwise, how would it know which parts of the mountainside were susceptible to sound vibrations?
Impatiently pursuing, Fire Goose let out a loud cry, and its speed suddenly increased significantly. As Zhuque turned around a bend in the mountain and began to dive downwards, the rapid descent left Ji Zichen feeling breathless.
Below this mountain bend lay a large lake with dark green water. The surrounding mountains resembled a bowl—broad at the top and narrowing as they descended. It appeared that Zhuque intended to plunge into the lake. Confused, Ji Zichen thought, "Is this bird trying to hide in the water?" He had heard that Zhuque could fly but had never heard of it having any affinity for water.
As Zhuque drew closer to the lake's surface, unsure of its intentions, Ji Zichen could only follow along in its dive. The pursuing Fire Goose was close behind, almost on the same horizontal plane; if it got any closer, they would collide.
Now able to hear the powerful flapping of wings behind him, which sounded like a summons from Hell's Judge, just five yards above the water's surface, Zhuque suddenly spread its wings wide. In that moment, he caught sight of a large dark shape beneath the lake's surface. A chill ran down his spine as he thought, "What is lurking in this lake?"
As they approached within three yards of this dark shape in the water, Zhuque abruptly pulled up. The massive shadow opened its mouth wide and surged out from beneath the surface just as Fire Goose, unable to adjust its trajectory in time, continued its downward plunge.
With a thunderous roar, the creature's mouth engulfed Fire Goose, leaving both Ji Zichen and Lin Chuyu stunned. "What on earth is that?!"
After swallowing up Fire Goose, the dark shape plunged back into the lake with a splash that sent waves crashing against nearby cliffs. The appearance of this creature was so brief that Ji Zichen couldn't fully discern what it was; however, he noted that its mouth was long and reminiscent of a crocodile—though he couldn't be certain due to its enormous size.
The creature's return to the depths caused tremors along all nearby cliffs. At this point, having regained altitude, Zhuque had successfully executed its plan to block off Fire Goose's line of sight from whatever lurked below.
Impressed by how well-timed this distraction was, Ji Zichen thought that if he were in place of that unfortunate Fire Goose, he too would have fallen for such a trap.
After successfully eliminating its foe, instead of lingering around, Zhuque took flight once more. Pondering where they might be headed next, Ji Zichen wondered just what destination lay ahead for them.
Flying Wolf was supposed to discuss where to expand the Defensive Works with the Militia, but at this moment, he couldn't muster any interest in it. He couldn't forget the foolishness he had displayed in front of Xia Lian.
If only, if Xia Lian needed it, Flying Wolf would willingly give his soul to her. Yet, he realized that Xia Lian's heart had already been claimed by Ji Zichen.
Feeling frustrated, Flying Wolf walked past a sentry outside the village. The Militia on guard was about to raise his weapon but quickly lowered it upon recognizing Flying Wolf. Nervously, he said, "The chief has ordered that no one is to leave the village after sunset. It's a command."
Flying Wolf looked up at the distant setting sun. "I know whose command this is, but the sun hasn't fully set yet, has it?"
The Militia appeared troubled. "But..."
Flying Wolf shot him a fierce glare, and the Militia dared not argue further, stepping aside obediently.
As Flying Wolf passed the sentry post, he noticed the trees and vegetation flanking either side. He took a moment to appreciate the scenery, thinking that when the Arbitrator arrived here, such beauty might not be available for him to enjoy.
After a brief glance, he withdrew his gaze. It seemed he no longer cared whether the entire area would turn to scorched earth. Frustration bubbled within him; thoughts of setting a fire even crossed his mind, but he quickly dismissed that idea.
Though Flying Wolf wasn't particularly fond of Ji Zichen, he knew deep down that Kiko was a capable person. If it came to a conflict between them, the one who would ultimately prevail might not be him. With the Opening of the Zhou Wasteland approaching, Demon Beasts would roam at night. Flying Wolf was angry but didn't want to court death; although he had left the village, he hadn't gone far.
He simply wanted to clear his mind. Burning with rage, Flying Wolf longed for someone or something—a Demon Beast perhaps—with which he could engage in battle to vent his jealousy towards Ji Zichen.
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