Chapter Nineteen: What, What

"Second Senior Brother, Little Junior Sister... it's me."

Lou Si, having been ignored, raised his hand weakly, looking at the two with a resentful expression. It was truly heartbreaking that a person as large as him could go completely unnoticed.

"Fourth Senior Brother?"
"Fourth Junior Brother?"

The two turned toward the source of the voice, spotting a young man sitting on the ground with his hand raised.

"It's me."

"Why are you with Junior Sister Zaozao?" Yan Wuqiu asked, pulling him to his feet with a puzzled look.

Jiang Zhuoran, standing to the side, also wanted to know what was going on. Logic dictated that the two shouldn't even know each other, let alone be traveling together.

Lou Si explained, "I ran into her by chance. Once I realized she was the Little Junior Sister's younger sister, I kept her by my side while searching for you both."

As for his ability to hear Jiang Zao’s inner thoughts, he decided to keep it a secret—even from his closest senior siblings. If he revealed it and suddenly lost the ability to hear them, he would be the one crying in the end.

Yan Wuqiu and Jiang Zhuoran looked at Jiang Zao for confirmation. She nodded and said softly, "That’s right."

[If I hadn't experienced it myself, I wouldn't believe something so absurd either.]

Everything was just too coincidental, as if it had all been orchestrated by someone else.

"Alright, this place isn't safe. Let’s leave."

"Agreed."

The three followed Yan Wuqiu’s advice and quickly distanced themselves from the area. The giant python in the lake had only been temporarily repelled; if they didn't leave now, they would surely become its meal once it recovered. Regret would be useless then.

With no specific destination in mind, the four wandered aimlessly.

"I mean, brothers and sisters, can't we just pick a spot and head straight there?" Jiang Zao complained from the back of the group. "If we keep going like this, we might as well just go back the way we came."

[After walking for so long, I really can't go any further. You guys go on without me.]

Jiang Zao plopped down on the ground, giving up. Her legs felt sore and weak; she was sure her calves were about to cramp. The three turned back to see her sitting there, fiddling with the grass. They realized she had indeed been walking for quite a while. Their cultivation was higher than hers, so they felt fine, but she was different.

"Second Senior Brother, A-Zao is so exhausted. Let’s rest here for a while," Lou Si suggested, unable to bear seeing her like this.

Yan Wuqiu nodded. "Very well."

Delighted, Lou Si sat down next to her and handed her a spirit fruit. "A-Zao, eat this to cheer yourself up."

Jiang Zao took the bright red fruit, her eyes curving into crescents. "Thank you, Fourth Brother."

"Go on, have a taste. I have more if that's not enough." Lou Si waited expectantly for her feedback.

Since Jiang Zao had only just begun her cultivation, she couldn't absorb overly dense spiritual energy. This fruit contained just the right amount of power, so there was no need to worry about an overflow.

"Mmhmm." Jiang Zao nodded and took a bite. It was crisp, sweet, and tart—much like an apple, only infused with a faint trace of spiritual energy. That was her first impression of the fruit.

Jiang Zhuoran: "..."

Since when did the two of them become so close? She sat on Jiang Zao's other side, looking at her with a hint of gloom. However, Jiang Zao was happily munching away, too focused on the fruit to notice her. *Hmph, such a little ingrate. Fourth Senior Brother bought you off with a single spirit fruit.*

"Little Junior Sister, would you... like one too?" Lou Si asked cautiously, pulling out another fruit, thinking she was angry because he hadn't given her one.

Looking at the red spirit fruit offered to her, Jiang Zhuoran shook her head. "No need, Fourth Senior Brother. Save it for Zaozao."

"Mmhmm," Jiang Zao agreed while eating. She really was the type to keep her eyes on the next bowl while still eating from her own.

"By the way, Fourth Brother, didn't you discover this secret realm first?"

Lou Si nodded, unsure of what she was getting at.

"Then do you know what kind of treasures are inside?" Jiang Zao asked seriously, now mostly recovered and ready to set off again as soon as they had a target.

Prompted by her, Lou Si began to think hard, and the other three waited for his answer. Any destination was better than wandering blindly; they had been here for so long and hadn't encountered a single other person.

"I remember now!" Lou Si exclaimed. The three looked at him with anticipation. Jiang Zao even stopped eating her fruit, waiting for his answer.

"What? What is it?"

"Rumor has it that a Vermilion Bird hatchling has appeared in this realm. Many cultivators have come specifically for it."

Lou Si’s face flushed with excitement. He had been so focused on A-Zao that he’d forgotten this crucial detail. Hadn't he sought help from their master precisely for the sake of that Vermilion Bird hatchling?

Jiang Zhuoran: "Really?"

It wasn't that she didn't believe him, but how could a creature as powerful as a Vermilion Bird leave behind offspring in such a small, obscure realm?

"It is likely true," Yan Wuqiu said, speaking up for the first time. He looked toward the southeast. "There is a powerful fluctuation of spiritual energy in that direction. Perhaps we should go and see."

Jiang Zao mimicked Yan Wuqiu, looking toward the southeast. She saw nothing, but she put on an expression that said, *Indeed, I see it too.* As long as she wasn't embarrassed, it was everyone else who would be.

Jiang Zao: "Then let's head out now!"

...

The four set off toward the southeast. The closer they got, the more people they encountered. By now, they had lost track of how many cultivators they had seen rushing in the same direction.

"The allure of a Vermilion Bird hatchling is truly immense," Jiang Zao remarked, looking up at the waves of cultivators flying overhead.

"It is a Vermilion Bird—a divine beast of antiquity. Who wouldn't be envious?" Jiang Zhuoran gazed upward. She had seen how cultivators would fight to the death over treasures; she feared this journey would not be easy.

Contending for opportunities always involved life-and-death stakes, let alone something as precious as a Vermilion Bird. Even an unhatched or infant bird could drive cultivators to slaughter each other.

[Fight all you want. In the end, it will all be in vain. It will only ever recognize my sister as its master anyway.]
[This is the benefit of being the female lead.]

Jiang Zao looked smug, paying no mind to the cultivators scrambling for the hatchling. Trying to snatch an opportunity from the biological daughter of the Heavenly Dao? They should check if they were even worthy. A single bolt of divine lightning would be a light punishment for them.

If Lou Si hadn't mentioned the hatchling, Jiang Zao would never have associated this realm with it. After all, this place seemed rather mediocre; how could it house the offspring of such a powerful creature? But now, it seemed she had underestimated this little realm. She hadn't expected it to be the place where Jiang Zhuoran would receive her first major boost.

In the novel, every time Jiang Zhuoran managed to turn a crisis into an opportunity, the little Vermilion Bird played a part. Although it would fall into a deep sleep after every time it helped her, its strength was undeniable. She had quite liked the fluffy little bird when she read the book, but unfortunately... in the end, it died to save its master.

The three were shocked and terrified upon hearing her inner voice. While Jiang Zao would occasionally mention "future" events they didn't understand, they had never taken it seriously, dismissing it as some form of hysteria. But the matter of the Vermilion Bird egg was happening right now. If this proved to be true, did it mean everything she had said was a fact that was yet to come to pass?

The three dared not think further. Whether it was true or false, they would know after this.

"Fellow Daoist, Fellow Daoist, please hold on!"