227: If you are willing

On the night before departure, Xing Che took the "Soul-Condensing Powder" provided by Su Feng and was meditating deeply with his eyes closed for one last pre-departure adjustment, hoping that his soul could maintain basic stability when his appearance changed tomorrow.

Under the influence of the medicine, his five senses temporarily became sharp. He could clearly hear Bai Yao tossing and turning in the adjacent stone house and could also sense the presence of Su Feng, who was patrolling sleeplessly around the camp's perimeter.

Early the next morning, as the sky was just beginning to lighten, the team was already prepared.

The members of Su Feng's squad each checked their equipment with solemn expressions.

Bai Yao changed into a crude fur coat prepared by Su Feng, fitting the identity of a northern wanderer. Her hair was simply wrapped in gray cloth, and her face was deliberately smeared with some dust and plant sap to conceal her overly delicate features.

Su Feng walked up to them and handed over a small leather pouch containing silver powder with a pearl-like sheen. "phantom shape feather powder,"

he said succinctly, "sprinkle it on your hair ends, shoulders, and neck, and silently recite the short incantation I taught you. Remember, the effect lasts only twelve hours."

Bai Yao followed his instructions. The powder touched her skin, bringing a slight chill, and then she felt a mild tingling sensation in her facial bones and muscles.

She looked at Xing Che and saw that he had also changed his appearance. His silver hair had turned a common dark brown, and his face had become ordinary, but his eyes still held a depth of wisdom that was hard to conceal even under the illusion.

"Ready?"

Su Feng's gaze swept over the two of them, finally settling on Bai Yao's face. A glimmer of light seemed to flash deep within his golden pupils.

"Mm-hmm."

Bai Yao nodded, suppressing the rising tension in her heart.

"According to the plan, I'll escort you to Whisperwind Forest, twenty miles from Frostfang City. After that, you'll need to walk to the west gate and blend in with the medicinal herb transport team."

Su Feng paused, looked at Bai Yao, and suddenly said, "Walking is too slow and leaves traces easily on the snowy plains. I'll fly you there."

Without waiting for Bai Yao's response, he transformed into a silver-gray giant eagle, spreading his wings and stirring up a gust of wind.

He slightly lowered his body, gesturing for Bai Yao to climb on.

Bai Yao looked at the eagle's back, taller than her entire body, and the bottomless valley below, instinctively swallowing hard.

She wasn't afraid of heights—she had flown on airplanes in modern society—but this method of flying, completely exposed and relying solely on a living creature, still made her heart race.

"Scared?"

Su Feng's voice directly entered her mind.

"No."

Bai Yao took a deep breath, grabbed the thick, warm feathers by his neck, and clumsily climbed up.

The eagle's back was wider than she had imagined, with firm, powerful muscles beneath the feathers. Su Feng waited for her to settle, then handed her a cloak made of feathers.

"Xing Che, you'll be carried by Pine Axe."

Su Feng signaled to another beastman who had transformed into a brownish giant eagle, then flapped his wings and soared into the sky.

A strong sense of weightlessness instantly gripped Bai Yao.

She gasped, instinctively clinging tightly to Su Feng's neck, almost pressing her entire body against his back.

The howling wind whipped past her ears, icy and piercing. Even with a spiritual barrier, she couldn't keep her eyes open.

The ground rapidly receded, with rocks, snowfields, and sparse forests shrinking into blurry patches of color.

"Relax, don't tense up so much."

Su Feng's voice sounded again, closer than before. "Feel the wind, surrender to it. Fear will only make you stiffer."

Bai Yao tried to relax her tense limbs, but her body honestly remained pressed against Su Feng.

She could clearly feel the rhythm of his muscles during flight, the airflow from each wingbeat, and even hear his steady, powerful heartbeat—which seemed slightly faster than usual.

After an unknown amount of time, the wind seemed to soften. Bai Yao tentatively opened her eyes.

The sight that met her eyes instantly made her forget her fear.

They were soaring above the clouds.

The rising sun dyed the boundless sea of clouds a magnificent golden-red, while the thousand mountains and valleys of the northern realm below became dark silhouettes. The air was pure and crisp, carrying the unique chill of high altitudes, yet it felt incredibly free.

This was the magnificence of the sky. No roar of steel wings, only the rustle of feathers cutting through the wind and the warm body heat of the giant eagle beneath her. An indescribable sense of awe and emotion welled up in her heart.

"Look east,"

Su Feng's voice softened considerably. "That's Dawnbreak Peak, where the northern realm sees the sun first every day.

When eaglets of the Eagle Clan leave the nest for their first test flight, their elders always take them to watch the sunrise there."

Bai Yao followed the direction he indicated and indeed saw the summit of an exceptionally steep snow-capped peak, like a crown of a deity.

"It's beautiful..." she murmured.

"There's more beauty."

Su Feng adjusted his flight posture, beginning to slowly circle and descend, allowing Bai Yao to overlook the land from different angles.

"That's Mirror Lake. Even in deep winter, it never completely freezes. Hot springs bubble up year-round at its center, like an eye of the earth.

In summer, the lakeshore is covered with blue Ice-Bell Flowers. When the wind blows, they sound like countless little bells."

His description was vivid and picturesque. Bai Yao listened quietly, watching, and the gloom that had accumulated in her heart due to the impending danger seemed to be washed away by the vast sky.

Suddenly, Su Feng made a sharp sideways glide. Caught off guard, Bai Yao's body swayed violently. With a gasp, she clung to him even tighter, almost embedding herself in the feathers on his back.

"Sorry,"

Su Feng's voice didn't sound very apologetic; instead, it carried a hint of triumphant amusement. "Encountered some turbulence."

He steadily resumed level flight but didn't seem inclined to let Bai Yao loosen her grip.

Bai Yao, still shaken, felt her cheeks grow slightly warm.

She could feel a low vibration coming from Su Feng's chest—he was clearly laughing.

This guy... he did it on purpose!

"Su Feng!" she couldn't help but protest softly.

"Hmm?"

Su Feng responded candidly, even slightly turning his head. His huge golden eagle eye glanced at her.

"Hold on tighter. We're about to pass through a zone of broken winds; the airflow is very chaotic."

Before his words faded, he suddenly accelerated, weaving, flipping, rapidly climbing, and diving through the abruptly turbulent air currents.

Bai Yao felt the world spin, her ears filled with the shriek of the wind. Her mind went blank except for clinging desperately to Su Feng's neck.

This near-"aerobatic" experience lasted nearly a quarter of an hour.

When Su Feng finally resumed steady flight, Bai Yao's limbs were weak, her face pale, and her heart pounding as if it might leap out of her throat.

"You... you definitely did that on purpose!"

She accused breathlessly, her voice still trembling.

Su Feng chuckled lowly, the laughter transmitted through their close contact, resonating from his chest. "If not, how could you truly experience flying?"

He paused, his voice suddenly deepening. "Bai Yao, if you're willing, I can take you to fly over every sky in the Beast World. To see the endless flower fields in the south, the molten desert in the west, the emerald archipelago in the east... as long as you're willing."

This sudden, almost confessional statement stirred ripples in Bai Yao's heart.

His feelings were so direct and fervent, like the northern sun, making it hard to respond lightly.

She fell silent.

Beneath her was the warm, solid back of the giant eagle; in her ears were his candid, passionate words; before her eyes was the vast, boundless world.

Yet her heart was tied elsewhere—to that hatred, to that person whose fate was unknown.

After a long while, she whispered softly, "Su Feng, thank you for showing me such beautiful scenery. But my sky... is only in Frostfang City right now."

Su Feng's flying altitude seemed to drop slightly, but he didn't speak, just glided steadily toward the designated Whisperwind Forest.

Bai Yao could sense a hint of disappointment in him, but more than that, understanding.

He didn't press further or show displeasure, just quietly reined in that fervent emotion, transforming it into a steadier flight posture.

After flying for about another half-hour, a dark green coniferous forest covered in ice and snow appeared ahead.

Su Feng began to descend, circling over a relatively open clearing among the trees.

"We're here."

Bai Yao, her limbs still somewhat weak, slid down from his back and stepped onto the snowy ground.

Xing Che and the beastman carrying him had also landed nearby.

Xing Che's face was paler than before departure. Clearly, the high-altitude flight had also affected his soul injury, but he still stood straight, his eyes quietly watching Bai Yao and Su Feng, who had just returned to human form. His gaze was deep, revealing no emotion.

Su Feng returned to human form, his silver-gray short hair fluttering slightly in the cold wind.

He walked up to Bai Yao and pressed a small leather pouch into her hand, containing some dry rations, flint, and emergency medicine.

"Follow this animal trail north. Ten miles out, you'll see the road leading to the west gate of Frostfang City. The medicinal herb transport team will pass around mid-morning. The leader is a one-eyed wolf clansman named 'Scarface.' I've already arranged it. When he sees the gray cloth strips tied to your arms, he'll help you blend into the team."

Su Feng explained, his tone returning to businesslike calm. "Remember the effect of the phantom shape feather powder. Once inside the city, be careful in everything."

"Thank you, Su Feng."

Bai Yao gripped the pouch tightly, expressing her gratitude sincerely. Regardless of his feelings, the help he gave was real.

Su Feng looked at her, his golden pupils like molten gold in the morning light.

He suddenly raised his hand, as if wanting to touch her cheek, but paused mid-air, ultimately just gently patting her shoulder.

"Come back alive."

He only said these four words, then turned, nodded to Xing Che, transformed back into a giant eagle, and led the squad's warriors soaring into the sky, quickly disappearing into the vast horizon.

Bai Yao and Xing Che stood on the open, snowy ground in the forest, watching the direction they had vanished.

The brief protection of the eagle had ended. Next, it was up to them to face that perilous giant city.

"Let's go."

Xing Che said softly, tightening the crude beast-skin clothing around him.