A tall and sturdy defensive wall that was the color of gray had suddenly emerged around the mountain. It looked indestructible, as though nothing could break it down.
In front of the wall was a deep irrigation canal. Although it was devoid of water at the moment, the sight of it alone would blow anyone away.
âOh my god! There wasnât anything here when I left last night!â exclaimed Aâze, whose mouth continued to hang agape.
âAre you sure you remembered correctly?â asked Advisor Jun. He found it hard to believe as well.
âYeah, I should have remembered correctly,â replied Aâze, as he rubbed his eyes repeatedly. He wondered if there was something wrong with his vision.
âStop rubbing your eyes. The city is real. Letâs go over and take a look!â Yun Jiuge was not particularly surprised by the sight. After all, Yin Shili was capable of using magic, and it would not be difficult for him to create a few defensive walls.
As they neared the small mountain, they saw Zi Shang standing at the top of the defensive wall. He had already noticed their presence.
His raven black eyes stared at Yun Jiuge intently, and there was a light smile on his comely face.
His ebony black hair and ends of his robe kept flapping about wildly in the raging winds, but he remained still as a rock.
Yun Jiugeâs hand was instantly seized by him when she landed next to him.
âWhat do you think? Did it surprise you?â Zi Shang asked with a smile.
âNot really,â answered Yun Jiuge. She looked around and noticed a tall wall that separated the mountain from the plains behind it.
The mountain was filled with caves, and it looked as though someone had punctured multiple holes onto it.
âWhat exactly are you trying to build here?â Yun Jiuge could not tell what kind of city Zi Shang intended to build based on what she saw at the moment.
âThe tribes that are good at fighting will live in this mountain. As for the area at the back, itâs meant to be used for farming. We can start planting seeds once the aqueduct is completed,â said Zi Shang, explaining his vision to Yun Jiuge.
âAre you planning to turn this mountain into a fort?â Yun Jiuge asked. She did not think that the small mountain was suitable for alot of people to live in.
âYes. I want this mountain to act as the fort. The tribes living here have to be prepared to fight if we ever come under attack. As for the old and the weak, they can flee to the back of the defensive wall when weâre attacked,â Zi Shang replied.
âI think youâre exaggerating things a little. Itâs not like weâre going to engage in some full-on combat,â said Yun Jiuge. She stared at the cannons positioned at the top of the mountain and felt a chill down her spine. This feels like weâre going to war soon, she thought to herself.
âThereâs no harm in being prepared for the worst,â Zi Shang answered. He did not tell Yun Jiuge about the ominous feeling that he had.
âOh, right. Whereâs Yin Shili?â asked Yun Jiuge. She surveyed her surroundings but did not see the Lord of Living Corpses anywhere.
âHeâs working at the back. Iâll take you to him,â answered Zi Shang, who led Yun Jiuge to the area behind the mountain, where they saw three figures trying to build a wall from afar. Numerous streams of Yin Qi shot out from their palms and transformed into a wall in an instant.
âHuh? Why did he get his family members to work with him as well?â Yun Jiuge was taken aback by what she saw.
Yin Shili was a man who doted on his family dearly. How could he possibly bear to make them do such menial labor?
âHe probably did that so as to speed things up,â Zi Shang said in a nonchalant tone.
âLady Yun! Youâre finally here,â said Yin Shili, as though he was seeing a loved one. He had been overworked by Zi Shang for the past few days, and desperately wanted to vent his frustrations to Yun Jiuge.
âAmazing work! Bringing you here was the right move!â Yun Jiuge gave a thumbs-up to Yin Shili.
Yun Jiugeâs words made it impossible for Yin Shili to vent his pent-up anger.
âIâll be heading out with Jiuge later. Iâll leave this place to you,â said Zi Shang as he patted Yin Shili on the shoulder.
âWhere are the two of you going?â asked Yin Shili, who was surprised by Zi Shangâs words.
âWeâre going on a date,â Zi Shang replied in a serious voice. âWhy? Are you saying that you can be with your wife, but I canât be with mine?â
âSure, sure. Go ahead!â replied Yin Shili, who turned around in frustration and continued to work resentfully.
Yun Jiuge did not know if her eyes were playing tricks on her, but she thought that the Yin Yang Qi within Yin Shiliâs body had increased significantly. He appeared to be working at a much faster pace as well.
âLetâs speak outside,â said Zi Shang. He led Yun Jiuge out of the area before continuing, âYin Shili has been transferring the Yin Yang Qi within his body to his wife and child these few years. Thus, they all have a lot of Yin Yang Qi in their bodies right now. It shouldnât be a problem for them to build a city with that much Yin Yang Qi at their disposal.â
âNo wonder! Still, itâs not good to overwork Yin Shili like that. Heâs our comrade after all!â Yun Jiuge guessed that Yin Shili must have been transferring his Yin Yang Qi to his wife and child all these years because he hoped that they would become a living corpse one day.
âIâll definitely reward him for his work. You donât need to worry about that,â Zi Shang said.
âHow do you intend to reward him?â asked Yun Jiuge doubtfully. Zi Shang did not have anything of value on him at the moment. She hoped that he was not giving empty promises to Yin Shili.
âAre you looking down on me?â Zi Shang sent Yun Jiuge a sideways glance and said, âIâm going to give him what he wants the most.â
âDonât tell me... Youâre going to turn his wife and child into living corpses?â asked Yun Jiuge, who was taken aback. She never knew Zi Shang had such an ability.
âNope! I canât do that!â
âThen... Why do you sound so confident that Yin Shili will be pleased with your reward?â Yun Jiuge asked.
âI canât turn his wife and kids into living corpses, but Fan Yin can! That guy still owes me one,â replied Zi Shang. He raised his brow and looked very proud.
âTsk. So youâre relying on others for help,â remarked Yun Jiuge disdainfully.
âDid you come here to squabble with me?â asked Zi Shang as he caressed Yun Jiugeâs hair.
âWhatever my reason was, it definitely wasnât to go on a date with you,â Yun Jiuge retorted, before she went on to tell him about the human-rabbit hybrid clan.
âSo, youâve come to me because you want me to deal with the human-wolf hybrid clan?â Zi Shang asked a question to which he already knew the answer.
âOf course. I donât trust anyone else but you,â said Yun Jiuge. It was very rare of her to compliment Zi Shang.n/ô/vel/b//in dot c//om
âHow sweet of you to say that! Alright then, letâs head over right now!â Zi Shang led Yun Jiuge back to the small mountain, and they saw Aâze making a din as it flew about while pulling Advisor Jun with him.
âCome here!â Zi Shang shouted at once, and the two human-eagle hybrids hastily flew towards him.
âLord Ye Zi! Youâre too amazing!â Aâzeâs eyes were filled with admiration as he looked at Zi Shang.
The Eagle Cliff only became its present state after countless generations of hard work were put into it. Yet, Zi Shang was able to build so much in just one morning. All his ancestors should come and worship him! Aâze thought to himself.
âStop trying to flatter me. I want you to bring us over to the lair of the human-rabbit hybrid clan,â Zi Shang said.
âUnderstood.â Aâze and Advisor Jun brought the pair over to the human-rabbit hybrid clanâs previous lair.
The hill that the human-rabbit hybrid clan lived at was teeming with weeds, but nothing seemed out of the ordinary.
Both Zi Shang and Yun Jiuge began searching the area for clues once they landed. A short while later, they found a mark that Aâhui had left behind in the corner.
âTheyâve found a clue as to where the human-wolf hybrid clan is at. Itâs to the east,â Advisor Jun said confidently.
âLetâs head over to find them then!â said Aâze excitedly. He could not wait to kill off all the human-wolf hybrids.
Zi Shang was about to nod his head and agree with him when a figure appeared in the skies. It was flying about erratically.
âItâs Aâhui! Oh my god! Aâfei is injured!â Advisor Jun and Aâze immediately flapped their wings and charged towards where Aâhui was at.
âLady Yun! Please take a look at Aâfeiâs injuries!â Aâze shouted anxiously as he carried Aâfei over.
Aâfei had lost consciousness. His wings were covered in blood, and his face had turned sallow.
...