Baiba Mountain.
The Winged Tribe's sacred land.
It is also the place where the Winged Tribe Great Ceremony is held.
In this remote place, a person, covered in dirt, climbed up the mountain, trembling with fear every time she passed through the territory of a Winged Tribe demon.
"It's over, it's over. So wind is coming soon. I need to find a place to hide. Otherwise, I'll really be gone for good." Jiang Shaoxu panted, her eyes scanning her surroundings.
The wind grew stronger, stinging slightly as it brushed across her face.
Jiang Shaoxu's expression was grave.
It looked like So wind was coming soon.
"I really shouldn't have come in alone. How could I be so stupid?" Jiang Shaoxu scolded herself fiercely, then quickly searched for a hiding place.
Her eyes lit up when she saw a tree hollow not far away.
"Cawwwww!"
Suddenly, a bird's cry rang out. Jiang Shaoxu looked back to see a flock of transparent, ice-bodied Ice Air Wing Birds swooping down towards her.
Those were Ice Air Wing Birds.
Jiang Shaoxu moved quickly, rushing into the tree hollow, then desperately used Ice Magic to seal the entrance, layer after layer.
She only stopped when her magic energy was completely depleted.
At this moment, a "ding, ding, ding" sound came from outside. Those Ice Air Wing Birds were pecking at the ice Jiang Shaoxu had created.
"No, I need to call for rescue."
Jiang Shaoxu's face was pale. She took out a special item from her embrace that could transmit distress signals and locations to the military.
After using it, Jiang Shaoxu watched the special item disappear, and only then did she feel a slight sense of relief.
But the "ding, ding" sound outside the tree hollow continued incessantly.
"Brother, you see it, right? Your sister is also going to die." Jiang Shaoxu self-mocked, curling up and moving into a corner.
After a while, the sound faded away.
Jiang Shaoxu finally breathed a sigh of relief. Now she wouldn't have to die in the mouth of a demon.
She heard that avian demons specifically pecked out internal organs and brains, resulting in an extremely gruesome death. She would rather starve to death in the tree hollow than be pecked to death.
Looking at the thick white ice wall, Jiang Shaoxu slowly fell asleep.
The military received the distress signal and began to organize people to come to Qinling to rescue Jiang Shaoxu.
At this time, Jiang Yuan had just arrived in Qinling.
...
Jiang Yuan crossed the Great Hengling and continued towards his target destination.
More and more Winged Tribe demons appeared around him, and the plants also began to grow taller, with some ancient trees reaching several kilometers in height!
"Cawww!"
"Ugh!" Jiang Yuan casually dealt with a Commander-level Golden Blue Sparrowhawk.
This was already the thirteenth Commander-level demon he had killed.
Their territorial awareness was too strong.
Jiang Yuan couldn't even just pass by.
So he could only casually kill them.
Soon, Jiang Yuan arrived at the territory of the Ice Air Wing Birds.
Through the information the surrounding plants told him, he learned that someone had been here not long ago and was hiding in the tree hollow ahead.
And was still alive.
"Hmm?"
Jiang Yuan came to the tree hollow. Even through the thick ice layer, he could sense the aura of an acquaintance.
Jiang Shaoxu?
In the original timeline, she began to follow Jiang Shaojun's footsteps across the country after the National Government event, and was eventually trapped in a tree hollow on Baiba Mountain.
She was only rescued many days later by Mo Fan, Zhang Xiaohou, and the others.
Now it seemed this incident still occurred.
Jiang Yuan arrived here many days earlier than Mo Fan, and Jiang Shaoxu had just hidden inside.
Since he encountered her, he couldn't not save her.
Jiang Yuan controlled his strength, gently tapping the ice layer sealing the tree hollow with his finger. Only continuous "crack, crack" sounds were heard, and deep cracks appeared on the surface of the ice layer.
In one second, the ice layer shattered with a crash!
The loud noise woke up the sleeping Jiang Shaoxu.
Jiang Shaoxu, in the darkness, looked up at the entrance of the hollow. Light shone on Jiang Yuan.
For a moment, she even thought she saw a god.
"Captain Jiang Yuan?"
Jiang Shaoxu shook her dazed head and rubbed her eyes.
Jiang Yuan was still standing there.
"No, no, how could Jiang Yuan appear alone in a place like this? Am I going to die and starting to dream?" Jiang Shaoxu said sadly.
"You're not dreaming, it's me."
Jiang Yuan spoke.
"Really?!" Jiang Shaoxu's voice suddenly rose.
Suddenly, a crisp "smack" sounded inside the tree hollow.
"It hurts, it's real!"
Jiang Shaoxu exclaimed, rushing out of the tree hollow, jumping up and giving Jiang Yuan a strong hug, hanging completely on his body.
Jiang Yuan subconsciously supported Jiang Shaoxu's butt with his hands to prevent her from sliding down.
This reminded him of that "smack" just now.
Although the light in the tree hollow was dim, his eyes saw clearly that Jiang Shaoxu had fiercely slapped her own butt.
"I thought I was going to die here. I never expected someone to come and save me, and it was you, Captain! I'm so happy!" Jiang Shaoxu said, relieved to be alive.
"But Captain, how did you come to Qinling? And you came alone." After her excitement, Jiang Shaoxu asked.
"Hmm, do you want to get down before we talk?" Jiang Yuan asked.
"Alright."
Jiang Shaoxu got down from Jiang Yuan, a look of regret on her face.
She hadn't forgotten to get down; she simply didn't want to.
The sense of security Jiang Yuan brought was truly too strong.
"So Captain, how did you end up in Qinling?" Jiang Shaoxu asked again.
"I heard the Winged Tribe Great Ceremony was about to begin, so I came to take a look." Jiang Yuan answered casually.
"Winged Tribe Great Ceremony?" Jiang Shaoxu thought for a moment, recalling the Winged Tribe information she had seen before Qinling, and said, "I know what Winged Tribe Great Ceremony you're talking about. It's only held once every many years, and a Feather Emperor who rules the Winged Tribe will be born. It's indeed very rare. But it's too dangerous to come to Qinling just to see this Winged Tribe Great Ceremony."
"It's not that dangerous. I feel very at ease here." Jiang Yuan smiled.
Hearing Jiang Yuan say this, Jiang Shaoxu remembered Jiang Yuan's identity as a heretic.
So she asked, "Captain, can I ask about that day at Parthenon?"
"Of course," Jiang Yuan nodded, "That was a ritual I had planned for a long time."
Jiang Shaoxu pursed her lips, "Captain, because of that, you've been deemed a heretic by the Holy City. Now people are searching for you all over the world. Is that why you came to Qinling?"
She didn't use the word "hide," but the meaning was clear.
But Jiang Yuan wanted to say.
He was already a Dominating Emperor, ruling an entire Underworld, with two Emperor Generals and a large number of Undead Monarchs under him.
Did he need to avoid the Holy City's edge?
What a joke.
"It's just a heretic identity. Even if I stand before those Archangels of the Holy City, they can't do anything to me." Jiang Yuan smiled.
"Even Forbidden Spellcasterss wouldn't dare say such a thing. Captain, when did you become so strong?"
Jiang Shaoxu had no intention of mocking; she was genuinely curious how Jiang Yuan could say such domineering words.
He could even disregard the Holy City!