The more it struggled, the tighter the ropes bound it.
Two disciples even leaped directly onto the Black Bird's back, pulling the ropes with all their might, making it let out a sharp shriek.
Still not satisfied, they raised their hands, condensing spiritual light to whip its wings. Their tone was arrogant and dismissive: “Behave, or we'll pluck all your feathers to make talisman brushes and arrows. At least then you'll be of some use.”
Leaning against a tree, Song Yao clicked her tongue as she watched.
The last time the Black Bird had been in such a miserable state was at her hands. Now, it had actually fallen to the point of being bullied by a bunch of kids.
Tossing two pebbles in her hand, she lazily sent a voice transmission over: “Beg me. Beg me, and I'll save you.”
The Black Bird glared fiercely in the direction of her hiding spot, its neck stiffening as it shrieked twice. Its tail feathers puffed up one by one, making it clear that it would rather take a beating than beg her, telling her to mind her own business.
Song Yao didn't care what it meant. In the next instant, the two pebbles in her hand shot through the air. “Fine, I'll save you first. Remember to make it up to me next time.”
Thud!
Thud!
Two dull thuds rang out with precise accuracy, hitting the two disciples squarely in the chest.
Focused on taming the bird, the two were caught completely off guard. They flew backward off its back and slammed heavily onto the ground, groaning in quick succession.
The surrounding disciples' faces fell instantly. With sharp metallic clangs, they drew their swords one after another, warily scanning their surroundings as they shouted angrily, “Who is it?!”
“Who's playing tricks?!”
“Hiding in the shadows like a coward and hurting people—show yourself if you have the guts!”
Song Yao unhurriedly bent down to pick up another handful of pebbles to play with, but a hand suddenly pressed down on her shoulder. Spiritual energy enveloped her, firmly anchoring her in place.
Forced to stop all movement, she watched as dark red robes swept past her. Zhu Zhao stepped forward.
The crowd of disciples froze upon seeing her, immediately recognizing who she was.
The Second Senior Sister of the Nine Saints Hall.
She was rumored to possess the purest fire spiritual root in the world and be the most talented fire cultivator.
Her reputation was resounding; there was no one who did not know of her.
But right now...
...she was merely a prisoner of their two sects, no different from this Black Bird.
A young Taiqing Pavilion disciple took half a step forward, crossing his arms and lifting his chin. “Senior Sister Zhu, your spiritual pet shows signs of turning into a demon. We were kindly disciplining it for you. It's one thing for you not to thank us, but what is the meaning of hurting people now?”
He paused, then raised an eyebrow and added, “Besides, right now is your scheduled time for instruction. Instead of staying put and reciting the precepts of benevolence, righteousness, and etiquette, what are you doing running off here on your own?”
Zhu Zhao raised her eyes and swept a cool glance over him. Clearly too lazy to waste words on him, her thin lips parted slightly as she uttered a single word: “Break.”
As soon as the word left her mouth, scorching spiritual energy erupted from her body, and a wave of heat swept outward with immense force.
The Taiqing Pavilion disciples didn't even get a chance to draw their swords before they were violently blasted back by the massive force. They crashed onto the grass one after another, landing in a chaotic, pathetic heap.
On the other hand, the Beiyao Sect disciples who had also been involved and were standing in the center felt nothing more than a gentle breeze brushing against their faces, remaining completely unharmed.
At the same time, with a few light snaps, the ropes bound around the Black Bird shattered inch by inch, falling to the grass.
The Black Bird fluttered its wings and soared into the air, swooping over to Zhu Zhao's side. It nudged her affectionately, using its large body to hide Song Yao behind the tree even more securely.
Once the Taiqing Pavilion disciples scrambled up from the ground, covered in dirt, they realized something was wrong.
Why were they thrown around like this while the Beiyao Sect group stood completely undisturbed?
Double standards!
Blatant double standards!
Being relatively young, the youths forgot about the beating they had just received from Zhu Zhao and became indignant. “What do you mean by this?! We weren't the only ones who laid a hand on your spiritual pet just now. Why did you only attack us?”
Zhu Zhao didn't spare them a single glance, her eyes coolly sweeping over the standing Beiyao Sect disciples. “What are you still doing here? Have you memorized the mental cultivation methods and mantras I taught you yesterday?”
The Beiyao Sect disciples froze, exchanging hesitant looks.
Weren't they supposed to do this in secret?
Why was she bringing it up right in front of the Taiqing Pavilion people?
Since it was obviously not the time to clarify things, they hesitated for a moment, bowed to Zhu Zhao, and turned to leave.
But to the Taiqing Pavilion disciples, this scene was like a sudden clap of thunder.
The disciple who had just questioned her narrowed his eyes, keenly catching the key detail, and demanded sharply, “Cultivation? What cultivation? What mental cultivation methods and mantras?”
Zhu Zhao's brow furrowed slightly. She seemed to find further explanation troublesome and was too lazy to entangle with them any longer.
She turned around, reached out to grab Song Yao—who was still clutching half a handful of pebbles behind the tree—and wrapped her in spiritual energy, carrying her off toward the nameless peak in the back mountains.
The Black Bird flapped its wings and followed closely behind. As it flew over everyone's heads, it intentionally flapped its wings extra hard, blowing a face full of dust onto them.
Once the two people and the bird vanished past the horizon, the young Taiqing Pavilion disciples finally snapped out of it, saying in disbelief, “Those Beiyao Sect people are secretly learning techniques from Zhu Zhao behind our backs?!”
“No wonder their cultivation has been improving so quickly lately!”
“That kid Chen Qi was clearly no match for me before. I was wondering why he suddenly seemed to have an epiphany, with all his techniques reaching a whole new level! It turns out he found a new master!”
“They're doing this behind our backs?! Could they be trying to keep all the techniques for themselves?”
“I—I'm going back to report this to the Pavilion Master right now!”
...
“Say thank you.”
“Say it.”
“Why are you so impolite?”
“If you don't say it, I'll pluck your feathers.”
“With chicken wings this big, you must taste pretty good, right?”
“...”
The whispering in its ear showed no signs of stopping. The Black Bird forced itself to endure it for a while, trying to ignore her.
Had it not suffered enough of her torment in the past?
It must be because it hadn't been tortured by her for too long, which was why it felt a bit unaccustomed to it now.
She looked so frail right now. If it were to slap her with a wing like it used to, she would probably fall completely apart.
And if she fell apart, its master would definitely fight it to the death.
It was better to just bear it.
It would pass soon.
The Black Bird waited quietly, letting her words go in one ear and out the other. However, its defenses completely crumbled the moment Song Yao reached out and tugged at the phoenix feather on its head.
Tugging was one thing, but after doing so, she even asked with a sly grin, “Hey, does this count as a cockscomb?”
“...”
This time, it was completely pushed past its limit. Summoning all of its spiritual energy and cultivation, it roared out human words from its throat, “You! Are! The! Fucking! Chicken!!!”
It was an ancient spirit beast!!
Did this human even know what a spirit beast was?!
The roar came with a violent gust of wind. Song Yao lost her footing, stumbling back a couple of steps before bumping into someone behind her.
Turning around to look, she saw Zhu Zhao.
She immediately curved her eyes into a smile. “Long time no see, Second Senior Sister! Did you miss me?”
“...”
They had clearly just seen each other this morning.
Zhu Zhao looked down at the person who had stumbled into her arms. She didn't deny it, simply reaching out to steady her waist. Her tone was flat. “Didn't I tell you not to run around?”
Rate on N.U.
