Chapter 493: Action

Qing Luan’s eyes lit up as she gazed at the Treasure Sword on the skeleton at the peak. “Little Junior Brother,” she began, “that’s a Half-Immortal Soldier. I don’t know which great expert left this Magical Artifact behind, but for it to endure for ten thousand years and still remain imperishable, it must be an extraordinary Treasure Artifact!”

“That’s right! That’s right! This is definitely a supreme Half-Immortal Soldier.”

Fu Ren, standing to the side, also shouted in excitement, boasting, “Yi and I went through a lot of trouble to find this! Once we get it, we’ll have nothing to fear from those rivals of ours!”

Seeing this, Shen Daoxing’s eyes widened slightly. The moment he saw the Treasure Sword, everything in his Sumeru Ring—the Great Ming Demon Sparrow, the Shattering Void Sword, and Ta’e—all began to tremble with excitement simultaneously, as if struggling to break free and prove their superiority.

‘That Treasure Sword really is something special.’

But his thoughts quickly turned. Shen Daoxing looked toward the enormous nest on the dragon-shaped skeleton. Just then, two Human-faced Pigeons were feeding their young with the mangled lower half of some cultivator’s corpse.

Although these Human-faced Pigeons were now just remnant souls, lacking their original power, they still possessed the strength of a mid-to-late stage Refining Dust Realm cultivator. Even the young birds had the power of the Spirit Transformation Realm.

‘Getting that Half-Immortal Soldier from them won’t be easy.’

Seeing Shen Daoxing’s gaze on the giant nest, Qing Luan seemed to guess his worries and let out a charming laugh. “Don’t worry, Little Junior Brother. We’ve been watching this place for days. We have a crystal-clear understanding of these Human-faced Pigeons’ movements.”

Qing Luan then explained, “In a little while, one of the two adult Human-faced Pigeons will leave to hunt. All we need to do is lure the other one away, and the rest of us can seize the opportunity to retrieve the Half-Immortal Soldier.”

With that, Qing Luan led Shen Daoxing and Liu Ying to a patch of tall grass at the foot of the mountain. They hid, observing the activity on the summit.

A gentle breeze rustled the grass. Everyone fell silent, afraid of disturbing the Human-faced Pigeons on the summit and tipping them off.

A short while later, sure enough, one of the adult Human-faced Pigeons spread its massive wings. It circled once in the sky, then flew off the summit to hunt.

Seeing this, Qing Luan turned to the others. “It’s time! I’ll draw away the remaining Human-faced Pigeon. You all use the opportunity to retrieve the Half-Immortal Soldier.”

Everyone nodded.

Then, Qing Luan stretched out her open hand. A small paper crane suddenly appeared in her palm, emitting a faint glow as it flew into the air.

A soft murmur, like an incantation, escaped Qing Luan’s lips. A moment later, an ethereal, illusory figure flew out of her body and entered the paper crane.

Qing Luan’s eyes immediately went blank, but the paper crane in the sky came alive. It darted nimbly around Shen Daoxing and the others, flying in playful circles.

“This is Luan’s Soul Attraction Skill. It allows her Divine Soul to temporarily leave her body and possess a Paper Puppet to control its movements. She will use it to lure away the remaining Human-faced Pigeon while you all seize the opportunity to retrieve the Half-Immortal Soldier.”

Xuan Ye, who had been quiet until now, stepped forward and spoke slowly.

Shen Daoxing turned to him. “What about you?”

Xuan Ye didn’t answer. Instead, he moved to Qing Luan’s side and said slowly, “When Luan uses the Soul Attraction Skill, her Divine Soul leaves her body. That is when she is most vulnerable. I will stay by her side to protect her. If, by some chance, the Human-faced Pigeon that went hunting returns, I will step in to stop it.”

Shen Daoxing nodded.

‘Although Qing Luan, Xuan Ye, Fu Ren, and Fu Yi were all from different Immortal Islands and not of the same lineage, Shen Daoxing could sense the deep bond they shared. He could also clearly see the love between Qing Luan and Xuan Ye. Their relationship was anything but ordinary.’

Then, the paper crane inhabited by Qing Luan’s soul slowly flew high into the sky. It opened its beak and let out a strange “CHIRP! CHIRP! CHIRP!” that mimicked the call of a Human-faced Pigeon.

On the summit, the Human-faced Pigeon guarding the nest instantly turned its head toward the paper crane. Then, as if enticed by something, it spread its massive wings and flew out to meet it.

The paper crane performed a graceful loop in the sky. When the Human-faced Pigeon drew close, the crane led it away, deeper into the mountain forest.

Now, only the three or four Human-faced Pigeon fledglings remained on the summit.

Xuan Ye spoke up. “Luan might not be able to keep it away for long. You need to hurry.”

Fu Ren and Fu Yi’s eyes lit up. They immediately charged toward the summit, with Shen Daoxing and Liu Ying quickly following behind.

Xuan Ye paused, then added a warning, “Whatever you do, don’t startle those fledglings. If they cry out, the two adults will fly back immediately.”

Shen Daoxing and Liu Ying nodded at once.

But Fu Ren and Fu Yi were already scrambling hastily toward the summit.

Soon, they were halfway up the mountain.

Fu Yi was thrilled to see the Half-Immortal Soldier glowing on the summit. He leaped into the air, his chubby body landing right on the skeletal dragon’s tail, intending to climb up it.

However, the moment his chubby frame landed, the entire dragon skeleton trembled slightly. The Human-faced Pigeon fledglings in the nest above were all startled. In unison, they poked their heads out and looked down the mountain.

Terrified, Fu Yi immediately flattened himself against the dragon’s tail, shivering uncontrollably.

Fortunately, the fledglings looked down but didn’t seem to spot anything, so they pulled their heads back in.

Fu Ren, running up behind him, gave his clumsy brother an exasperated look. “Yi, you’re so clumsy! Lighten up! Don’t you know how heavy you are? If you startle those fledglings and lure the parents back, we’re finished!”

With that, he too leaped onto the dragon’s tail.

But the moment he landed, the entire skeleton trembled slightly as well.

“PEEP! PEEP! PEEP!”

The Human-faced Pigeon fledglings in the nest immediately poked their heads out again to look down the mountain.

Terrified, Fu Ren clung desperately to the dragon’s tail, also trembling.

At his side, Fu Yi shot his brother an irritated look. “You’re no better.”

Now, however, neither of the two dared to move another inch, terrified of truly startling the fledglings.

Seeing this, Shen Daoxing couldn’t help but smile and shake his head. “Allow me.”

Liu Ying came up behind Shen Daoxing. “I’ll distract the fledglings.”

Then, Liu Ying murmured something under her breath and flicked a finger upward. “Butterfly Shadow!”

A sudden glow enveloped her, and a stream of pink butterflies fluttered out from her hand. They flew steadily upward, and in a moment, they were right in front of the fledglings.