The guardian, Gracia, comes from the Xia clan of the forest...
The mountainous region, the territory of the winged beastmen.
The feathered beastmen of the Salt Clan walked half in front of the Xia Clan's procession and half behind it, protecting Xia as they arrived in their territory.
As the sparse vegetation gradually receded, the Green-Branched Crow and the other winged beastmen stopped in a place where almost no plants grew. They turned to the beastmen behind them and said, "Xia's beastmen, please stay here. This is our clan's habitat. We only allow Lan and Nature to enter our habitat."
Jiang Yunlan knew they were very resistant to strange orcs entering their habitat, so she wasn't surprised.
Before she could even agree, the Xia clan beastmen, unable to comprehend the situation, became agitated and anxiously objected, "No! How could we possibly send Lan, a beastman alone, to an unfamiliar place?"
"We can go alone, but Lan can't!"
Xia's orcs grew increasingly worried, their gazes towards the winged orcs becoming wary, and their movements clearly separating Lan from the winged orcs. They moved closer to Lan, their eyes still fixed on the winged orcs, their tone displeased: "Lan, why don't we just go back to the clan? Their attitude is bad; let's not help them."
“Xia has never refused any orc. They’re so strange, only letting you and Ziran in. It doesn’t seem safe at all,” the orcs said worriedly beside Lan.
They certainly knew that 022 and the Ice Crystal were powerful enough to protect Lan, and that Lan also had ways to protect herself. However, ever since Xia built her habitat, Lan had never lacked Xia's orcs. This was to protect Lan, and also to guard against orcs from other clans.
Don't think they don't know that many orc clans covet Lan. Who knows if the winged orc clans are cunning and want to steal Lan's clan?
Listening to the accusations from the Xia clan beastmen, the winged beastmen of the Salt Clan couldn't help but reflect on whether their attitude had been too poor, after all, they were the ones who needed Lan's help. The winged beastmen hesitated, exchanged glances, and began to whisper among themselves.
“The Xia clan is very friendly. They even allowed our people to live in their habitat for a long time before. We’ve also exchanged goods with them several times. Isn’t it a bit inappropriate to be so wary of them?” The winged beastman, who had never been to the Xia clan, hesitated.
“Lan also said that the winged beastmen are Xia’s friends. Wouldn’t it be a bit too much for us to not let them into the habitat? Besides, Lan is still a cub. It’s normal for them to be worried about Lan. After all, our habitat is too unfamiliar to Lan.” The winged beastmen who had been to the Xia clan talked with their fellow beastmen.
After a brief discussion, they successfully convinced themselves and looked at Yan Duoyu and the other orcs who were still complaining to Lan about them, "Xia's orcs, how many of your kind do you want to accompany Lan into our habitat?"
"Of course, all of them!"
A rock squirrel beastman nudged the wolf beastman who had spoken of "all" with his elbow, and then corrected himself to the astonished feathered beastmen, saying, "Half."
The winged beastmen are small in human form, only slightly taller than the rock squirrel beastmen, perhaps a few centimeters. There are already many beastmen in the group, and many of them are tall. Sending all of their people would surely cause the winged beastmen to worry about their habitat being taken over.
The wolf-orc was nudged, and upon hearing his tribesmen's quiet explanation, he understood and changed his tune: "Half!"
The astonished winged beastmen immediately felt that half the number was acceptable, but they still struggled to bargain and successfully reduced the number by four.
The final number was larger than Xia's beastmen had expected. Yan Duoyu and the other beastmen were satisfied and urged the feathered beastmen to lead the way quickly. After dealing with this matter, they needed to return to the clan with Lan as soon as possible.
Jiang Yunlan, completely unable to get a word in edgewise, was somewhat bewildered. When did her people learn these conversational skills behind her back? These sets of techniques looked so familiar. It seemed like they had appeared in a book she had been reading to her people one evening.
I have a feeling that my people have grown up in ways she doesn't know about. I'm gratified.
Entering the roost of the winged beastmen, Jiang Yunlan immediately noticed the numerous nests they had built with stones. The nests, which provided shelter from the rain, were lined with animal hides and feathers, and looked quite warm. Perhaps because their beast form resembled birds, they exhibited some bird-like habits, carefully grooming their feathers.
The winged beastmen were not used to interacting with unfamiliar beastmen. Many winged beastmen sat still in their nests, watching the Xia clan beastmen who had come from afar.
The feeling this place evoked in the orcs was almost the complete opposite of summer; there was none of the usual boisterous chatter. If she had to give an evaluation of this place, Jiang Yunlan would say, "As expected of a clan from the mountainous region, it feels exactly like the mountains themselves—peaceful and tranquil."
The orcs, including Yan Duoyu, who had come with Lan, also sensed the atmosphere here and subconsciously lowered their voices and reduced their idle chatter.
The chieftain of the Feathered Beastmen, Cangmu Yuya, came to Lan and led her to a high place where the beastmen could see her, so that their conversation would not be overheard by the Xia Clan beastmen other than Lan.
"I heard you want to know about the mountains?"
The winged beastman, as tall as Gray Honey, sat cross-legged opposite Jiang Yunlan and asked in the language of the grasslands.
She remembered that she had clearly asked about the energy stones. Could the energy stones be related to the mountains? Jiang Yunlan blinked in confusion, then nodded while holding 022.
“This matter concerns all the clans in the mountains, and it shouldn’t be told to the orcs outside. But Green Haze and Green Branch trust you a lot,” Azure Feather Crow glanced at 022 she was holding, and then remembered that she was an orc that the orcs could trust, and felt much more at ease. “I’ve decided to trust you this time too.”
Jiang Yunlan's expression turned serious, and she straightened her already upright posture even more: "I will do my best to help you."
She heard Cangmu Yuya chuckle softly, and he said to her in a gentle tone, "Little one, don't be nervous. This is a responsibility our clan bears, and it has nothing to do with you. Little one, do you still remember what the mountains look like?"
These words awakened Jiang Yunlan's memory. Without thinking, she blurted out the scene she had witnessed, "Does it mean that the upper half of this mountain has no plants, and only the lower half has plants?"
If she wasn't mistaken, the altitude of the mountaintop shouldn't be so high that plants couldn't grow there. Perhaps this is one of the differences between the Beast World planet and Earth.
"It seems you've already noticed something strange. The mountains have fallen into their current state because many snow seasons ago, the guardians of the sky suddenly disappeared. The rainfall on the mountains has decreased drastically compared to before, and without the nourishment of nature's power, they have become like this."
Azurewood Crow recalled Nature, who possessed the power of water, and whom it had been missing for a very, very long time. It had been away from the mountains for so long that the Crow Clan almost doubted its existence was a legend left by their ancestors.
If one had never witnessed the Guardian's merciful rain of water, Azure Wood Crow would truly regard nature as a legend.
"After the guardian disappeared, our clan tried many methods to save the mountains, but unfortunately, almost none of them worked. The mountains need the power of nature, the power of water, and we are truly powerless to do so." He said, his expression downcast and his voice sorrowful.
It wasn't until three snow seasons later that the winged beasts realized this.
Hearing this, Jiang Yunlan understood why the winged beastmen were so sad that they wanted to cry.
"Do you need energy stones because they contain the power of nature?" she wondered. If she really couldn't get an energy stone, she still had the forest fragments and earth fragments the Zerans had given her. If that wasn't enough, she would ask for ice crystals.
The dragon-beastmen, who also possess natural powers, might be unwilling to help, so we won't consider them for now.
Hearing Lan's question, Cangmu Yuya was stunned. He hadn't considered this possibility before. After a moment of contemplation, he shook his head and said, "This is because the energy stones are the guardian's food. The long-lost guardian has returned to the mountains, and we found traces left by the guardian in the Milky Way."
“Those marks are strange. The guardian is likely seriously injured. She clearly came to the Milky Way to unleash the power of nature, but our clan felt nothing. It's alright if she doesn't want to see us, but she needs to replenish a lot of energy. We are very worried that she will die from lack of energy.”
The young winged beastmen in the tribe had never met the guardians and were not very familiar with their habits, but Cangmu Yuya, who had been taught by the previous chieftain, knew very well.
He didn't want the guardian to die, nor did he want the mountains to become dead mountains because of the guardian's death.
Upon hearing that energy stones were the guardians' food, Jiang Yunlan's eyes widened, a bold guess forming in her mind. She didn't voice it immediately, but cautiously asked, "Can you tell me what the guardians of the sky look like?"
Cangmu Yuya didn't understand why she suddenly became curious about the Guardian's face, but she patiently explained to her, finally looking at her expectantly and saying, "The Guardian's name is Gracia. Little one, have you... seen her before?"
He always felt that Lan, who was known as a wise man, would not ask useless questions.
“All I can say is that I’ve seen a dragon that looks very similar to the guardian you’re talking about, but I don’t know if it’s Gracia. If the guardian you’re talking about is him, then you can rest assured. He’s found himself in a mine with lots of energy stones. He’s not injured and looks to be in good condition.”
Jiang Yunlan, seeing Cang Muyuya excitedly stand up, also sat up from the ground. "I know where he is. Do you want to go and see him? But if we go now, it will be evening by the time we get there. Are you sure you can manage?"
Cangmu Yuya nodded eagerly, then turned and ran to tell his tribesmen to get the food and prepare to set off.
There had only been one dragon in the mountainous region, and he believed it must be Gracia who had returned.
Gracia. My comrade, my most important friend. It's so good that nothing happened to her.
The winged beastmen were so eager to see Gracia that they even suggested carrying Lan on their backs and flying over. This idea was rejected because Lan couldn't transform into her beast form, so they could only regretfully follow Xia's group to the first mining area.
There was no other way; their beast forms weren't large enough, and it wouldn't be safe for them to carry Lan in her human form.
First mining area.
Upon seeing the mine entrance, Cangmu Yuya knew without Jiang Yunlan's prompting that Gracia was inside. Overjoyed, he ran in and called out in the language of the mountainous region, "Gracia! Are you alright?"
There was no response.
“Gracia?” he asked, puzzled.
There has still been no response.
Why wasn't there Gracia's roar? He clearly remembered that Gracia should have impatiently asked him at this moment, "What do you want? I was just about to go to sleep."
Just like how Gracia interacted with each of the Feathered Beastman chieftains.
Just as he was beginning to suspect something had happened to Gracia, the quiet mine passage was suddenly filled with the sounds of animal footsteps and the dragging of tails on the ground.
Jiang Yunlan saw that Cangmu Yuya was standing there in a daze and did not realize that the owner of the voice was Long, so she realized that Long was not Gracia.
The sound of footsteps approached, and a sky-blue dragon appeared before the orc.
“Orc, the dragon is not my mother,” said the little dragon.
Cangmu Yuya looked at the young dragon and listened to it speaking the language Gracia had taught him. He could hardly believe his eyes. "You're Gracia's cub? Something happened to Gracia, didn't it?"
The dragon nodded.
Behind them, Jiang Yunlan silently stepped back a few steps, leaving space for the two people, a dragon and a beastman, who were meeting for the first time but seemed to know each other very well.
Things went smoothly but not perfectly, and Xia's orcs decided not to linger any longer, returning to their clan at dawn.
"If the problem in the mountains is still not resolved, come to Xia to find me, and I will think of a way," Jiang Yunlan said to the group of winged beastmen who were greatly discouraged.
They forced a smile and thanked Lan once again for her help.
“Is there anything Lan needs? We will deliver it to Xia’s habitat during the fruit season,” they said.
Jiang Yunlan showed them the various ores Xia needed, handing them one of each type, and said in a lighthearted tone, "We really need these. Please bring more ores during the fruit season, and we'll treat you to Xia's newly invented items."
She smiled at the winged beastmen, and as they watched her go, she left the first mining area with her people.
The world seemed more fragile than she had imagined. Jiang Yunlan vaguely realized this.
Mountainous areas need the power of nature to avoid becoming barren mountains, so what about other places? Do other places also need the presence of nature?
She thought of the forest Xia had left behind, a forest of nature that once protected the butterfly beastmen, Alanya. Now, the grasslands bore fragments of forest and earth left behind by the Zelans. She had never seen a region without the protection of nature before, and couldn't imagine what a place without nature would ultimately look like.
Without the protection of nature, rivers will dry up, and land will lose its vegetation... Is this the problem left over from the era of disaster?
-----------------------
Author's note: I wrote 770 words today, and still owe 522 words.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
