Chapter 1 Arrow Wound.
Several days have passed since Jiang Huaisu transmigrated to another world, but she still hasn't been able to adapt to her current body.
Because she turned into a bird.
Human hands can perform many delicate tasks, while the beak and claws are far less functional.
She examined herself closely by the river. She looked like a typical bird, not at all imposing, and her size couldn't compare to that of a bird of prey.
Based on the examination, it was determined to be a magpie. However, its feathers were a rare white mixed with gray. When the wings were spread, a faint gray-black sheen could be seen at the tips of the flight feathers, like lace trim.
Her unusual feather color caused her a lot of trouble, as some mischievous humans would try to shoot her down with slingshots.
Fortunately, Jiang Huaisu has not yet fully mastered flying skills, and even she cannot predict her own trajectory, let alone those non-professional players who use her as a moving target.
After a bumpy flight through the night, she finally escaped the human town and arrived at a small grove. She perched on a branch, shook her feathers, and looked around, hoping to find some wild fruit or something to eat.
A hand with bent bones descended from above, its palm open, revealing a handful of wild hawthorns. "Want some?"
Jiang Huaisu shuddered in fright and looked up in the direction of the sound. She saw an unidentified creature hanging upside down on a tree branch. Its upper body was like a human and its lower body was like a bird. The scene was indescribably eerie.
Seeing that she didn't answer, the half-human, half-bird monster threw the hawthorn away: "Stupid bird, don't eat it if you don't want to."
The monster spread its arms, revealing membranous tissue from its armpits to its ribs, making it look like a large bat with a human face standing up. Jiang Huaisu retreated in terror, watching it fly away, cursing all the while.
In the following days, she saw the long-legged ginseng, the old tree that scratched itself, and the rhododendron that loved to sing. The atmosphere in this grove of trees could be described as peaceful.
Plants generally don't move around much, while animals are much more active, and they like to gossip when they gather together. Jiang Huaisu was eavesdropping nearby, and they didn't chase her away.
Gradually, I realized that this was a completely different world. Perhaps it was because of the abundance of spiritual energy that plants and animals could cultivate themselves into human form.
This gave Jiang Huaisu hope. She was one of those who had already awakened their intelligence, giving her a significant head start over others. Wouldn't it be much easier for her to cultivate?
Cheer herself up and decided to build herself a decent nest first. Gathering some fallen feathers and animal fur, as well as twigs and dry grass, she finally created her own safe house, which looked crooked but was enough to keep her warm and dry.
Having spent the winter in the woods, Jiang Huaisu gained a new insight: do not be deceived by the friendly appearance of meat-eaters.
Although everyone seems to be living in harmony, some animals are quite dangerous! For example, that fox, unable to catch any prey and going hungry for three days, couldn't resist digging up and eating its hibernating friend.
Jiang Huaisu watched in horror, feeling thankful for the first time that she was a bird. Large birds of prey were rare here, so she had no natural enemies. Her nest was built high in the tree branches, and she didn't have to worry about becoming a prey for animals.
There was a long-tailed tit nearby who had a good relationship with her. It was quite accomplished in spiritual practice and would sometimes give her some pointers.
Importantly, the long-tailed tit only likes to eat small insects and fruits, posing no threat to Jiang Huaisu. Moreover, it is very cute, looking exactly like a round dumpling from the front, which makes it easier for her to let down her guard and interact with it.
But once winter is over, the long-tailed tits will have to leave and return to their northern home. Jiang Huaisu was depressed for a while, and looking at the light green of the branches that had been tinged with early spring, she also began to think about her future.
For months she had only been active in this small area, a real waste of her gifted wings. Now her flying skills were quite proficient, and she was eager to try her hand at flying further afield.
However, Jiang Huaisu wasn't someone who easily acted impulsively; she needed to plan carefully before setting off. After making some inquiries, everyone generally agreed that heading east would be better, as the east was rich in resources and there was less risk of competing for them.
Sister Woodpecker came from the east, and she gave very detailed advice:
"Be careful when dealing with humans. It's best to choose a secluded mountain or a forest. There's a Flower Fruit Mountain in the sea near Aolai Kingdom. You can go and take a look. But I've heard that the monkeys there are rampant. I wonder if birds will be ostracized if they go there."
Aolai Kingdom and Huaguo Mountain are two familiar place names.
Jiang Huaisu was startled and continued to ask, "Aolai Kingdom... is it Aolai Kingdom in Dongsheng Divine Continent?"
Having received an affirmative answer, she pondered: "It's strikingly similar to the setting of 'Journey to the West' in every way. Could it be the world within the book?"
After all, if something as absurd as time travel has actually happened, what else is impossible?
"Okay, let's go to Flower Fruit Mountain!"
If she really did travel into Journey to the West, wouldn't it be a wasted trip if she didn't go see the Monkey King? Besides, Jiang Huaisu has a strong childhood attachment to Sun Wukong and firmly believes that he is a good king who would never ostracize her!
It's just unclear what time it is now, and whether Sun Wukong has left the mountain to become a disciple.
It's not a big problem. Even if she misses out, she can settle down in Huaguo Mountain, which is a blessed land personally chosen by the author, with abundant sunshine and moonlight, making it suitable for cultivation.
This grove of trees is located in the Southern Continent of Jambudvipa. To reach Flower Fruit Mountain, she had to cross the East Sea. Not very confident in her physical strength, she decided to travel part of the way by fishing boat.
Filled with nervousness and anticipation, Jiang Huaisu bid farewell to her former friends and embarked on a new journey.
To my shame, as a bird, she was afraid of heights. Three months of living high in the air served as a form of desensitization therapy, helping her largely overcome her fear.
But when she actually took off, she only dared to hover at low altitudes, and the scenery rushing past below made her a little dizzy.
Maintaining this altitude, Jiang Huaisu flew for three days and two nights before arriving at a small town. She was now very close to the East China Sea, so she stopped to rest and replenish her energy.
The journey ahead was fraught with uncertainty. She couldn't place all her hopes on the fishing boats at sea; they were just fishing for a living, not risking their lives, so they certainly wouldn't go to very distant waters.
Cargo ships do travel further, but unfortunately, there are too few of them, and they may not travel the same route as her.
Therefore, it seems that one must be strong to succeed. She needs to seize the time to train her physical fitness and endurance, as well as further improve her flying skills, such as trying to reach higher altitudes.
Choosing this small town as a resting place was also partly due to this consideration. Knowing that there were humans watching her intently below, she would flap her wings even more vigorously.
In fact, the vast majority of people did not show any intention to attack Jiang Huaisu, but she had encountered naughty children who held slingshots and wanted to shoot her down, and more than once.
Therefore, she remained wary of everyone, and even if she wanted to visit the human market, she could only wait until she had transformed into human form.
Jiang Huaisu stayed in this small town for half a month. During this time, she flew around the town at a high intensity every day, which did improve her physical strength and endurance, but she did not dare to challenge too high an altitude yet.
Her current mental state is somewhat like that of someone preparing for a standing long jump, swinging their arms and bending their knees; the more nervous they are, the less they dare to jump.
After all, her wings were far less strong than an eagle's, and if she encountered extreme weather, she might perish in the sea. Moreover, she had never been here before and could not estimate the exact distance between the coast and Flower Fruit Mountain.
Ultimately, flying across the sea is still too challenging. Her childhood idol was right across the water, yet she hesitated to take that step.
She decided to observe the direction of the cargo ships on the shore more closely, and if necessary, wait a few more days to find a suitable ship with a favorable wind and try to travel a longer distance.
During this time, you can continue to hone your flying skills, adding an extra layer of protection.
On a sunny day, Jiang Huaisu stood on an ancient tree on the outskirts of the city, looked up at the sky, and prepared to challenge a new height.
Just as she was about to experience the thrill of soaring through the sky, her body suddenly swayed, her right wing drooping limply at her side. Unable to maintain her balance, she plummeted downwards.
Amidst a sharp pain, she realized that something must have injured her wing.
Everything happened in an instant. She used her uninjured wing to slow her fall as much as possible, but instead of falling into the mud as expected, she was caught steadily by a pair of soft hands below and held in their palms.
She was not grateful to this person for saving her, because Jiang Huaisu saw the small bow on the ground.
She immediately realized that this was the culprit who caused her wing injury!
Fortunately, the short arrow he shot did not hit her bone. But the wooden barbed arrowhead was embedded in her flesh, and it was still very uncomfortable.
The culprit was still young, and his hands were small. His palms had no calluses, the texture was soft, and the feel was better than silk or brocade.
But she couldn't understand how such soft and delicate hands could shoot such a fierce and accurate arrow. Drawing the bow should require considerable strength.
"Third Young Master!" A servant rushed over in a panic. "Third Young Master, why didn't you wait for me where you were? You ran here instead. I thought you were lost."
Okay, I misjudged. It turns out he's not a young lady, but a young master.
The servant's panic only highlighted the child's calm demeanor; such maturity in a child created a discordant sense of disharmony.
"He's not lost." He smiled at the servant. "Did you buy the sugar figurine?"
The servant held up the item in his hand. "Young master, don't worry, it's still warm!"
"Here you go, eat up."
After saying that, he lowered his head again and continued to observe Jiang Huaisu.
The attendant seemed to want to say something, but without looking up, he simply raised a finger to his lips, signaling the attendant to be quiet.
"Don't talk while you're eating."
"...Okay, okay."
With just a few words, he had the servant under his control. Jiang Huaisu was secretly surprised and felt that the child's personality was really strange, so she dared not underestimate him.
Unaware of what fate awaited her, Jiang Huaisu could only stare intently at him, trying to deduce his thoughts from his micro-expressions.
What exactly does he intend to do with her? Is he planning to roast her and eat her? Magpie meat isn't tasty!
He gently stroked the wound on her wing, a fleeting hint of pity in his eyes. Drawn to the metallic sheen of the feathers, he showed interest and fiddled with them a couple of times.
"It's very beautiful." He praised generously. "I wonder if we can take it off and sew it onto a dress to give to my mother. She would like it."
The third young master was handsome, with snow-white skin and clothes. A finely crafted red sash tied around his waist, like a string of red maple leaves in the snow, was extremely eye-catching. Unfortunately, beneath such a beautiful exterior lay a little devil!
Jiang Huaisu struggled for a moment; she didn't want to become a bald bird.
He gently pressed down on her fluttering wings, and placed a finger against her throat, stroking the downy feathers there.
Jiang Huaisu was startled and wisely remained still.
"You can understand me, right?"
Jiang Huaisu groaned in despair, regretting that she hadn't struggled earlier. The child was too perceptive; he immediately realized she wasn't an ordinary bird.
She was pondering whether to play dumb to the end or to go along with him and confront him.
The young master suddenly smiled sweetly, released his fingers from Jiang Huaisu's throat, and instead patted her head, as if to comfort her.
Her voice softened at the right moment: "Why is the little bird trembling? Don't be nervous, talk to me, okay? Don't ignore me."
Jiang Huaisu had once heard from her friends that some people harbored great malice towards the demon race.
Admitting to being a demon at this point could lead to even more terrible consequences.
A note from the author:
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This lotus root is a bit too aggressive now [Good luck lotus]. PS: The background isn't Chen Tang Pass, there's no "storming the sea" part.
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