Chapter 209

The former Wind God girl, a crow wandering the firmament, now looked pitiful, weak, and helpless, completely controlled by the sudden, malicious guest.

But Jia Ji would not easily lower his guard; just a moment ago, this creature had used every trick in the book, from acting cute to being shamelessly stubborn. Fortunately, his resistance was high enough that he didn't let her succeed.

Bound head-to-toe in thick hemp rope and unable to move, Shameimaru Aya dangled in mid-air in humiliation, while the other end of the rope was held in Jia Ji's hand, as if he were carrying a bento box.

Such a sturdy rope binding completely extinguished any thoughts she had of escaping.

"Are you sure this is the right way?"

"Mmm-hmm..."

The dejected Crow Tengu young lady nodded pitifully under Jia Ji's characteristically kind gaze.

The young Crow Tengu, who still looked somewhat immature, twitched her pointed ears. She had become a "guide" and a "traitor to the yokai" this time, though it couldn't be blamed on her.

After all, if one were to see the identical cold sneers worn by the Yokai Sage and the man currently dragging her, even Sarutahiko Okami (one of the prototypes for the Tengu) would likely be unable to help but close his eyes.

Birds of a feather, wolves in league, not exactly pure-hearted... whatever bad words existed, they could be applied to the two of them. A heartfelt chill struck Shameimaru Aya, who was young and careless and hadn't dodged in time; surely, she would be much more careful when going out in the future.

It shouldn't be a case of falling into the same trap over and over... right?

"Passing through the mountain path ahead is the Tengu Village..."

"Then why are there no White Wolf Tengu blocking the road?"

Jia Ji's gaze suddenly turned sharp. He poked the face of the helpless Aya; it was soft and bouncy, a nice texture, and he also stroked her wings, which were now tucked away and incredibly smooth.

Of course, this world likely didn't have the special custom where if a Crow Tengu's wings were touched, she either had to marry the person or kill them; otherwise, Jia Ji would never have escaped after grabbing the Oni tribe's horns to swing them around at Mount Dajiang.

Everything was going too smoothly.

As experts in flight, every Tengu—unless born with a disability—possessed the strongest mobility among all yokai, but not all Tengu flew in the sky at every moment; there were always times they had to land.

With Jia Ji's current strength, he naturally crushed everything in his path; except for encountering a Heavenly Demon, other Tengu couldn't escape even if they wanted to.

But... they had walked this whole way, and not only was no one blocking the road, but apart from the Kappa and Shameimaru Aya they met at the beginning, they hadn't encountered any other yokai, as if the others were intentionally avoiding them.

Although his senses could detect some faint peeking and whispering in the far distance, they disappeared at an extremely fast speed, not following in the footsteps of the Crow Tengu.

As for why Jia Ji didn't let Yakumo Zi just open a gap directly to the summit of Mount Yatsugatake and instead insisted on taking a hostage to walk up slowly, that had to start with the Heavenly Demon. According to Yakumo Zi's intelligence network, her greatest characteristic was—

—Leave it alone, because I find it troublesome!

She was elusive in her daily life, like a dragon that shows its head but hides its tail.

Trying to find her at the summit was infinitely less likely than finding an Oni King or something similar; she was one of those idlers who couldn't stay still, ignoring all other matters and leaving everything to her subordinates to resolve.

But the Tengu village was right here; even if the Heavenly Demon was good at enduring, she couldn't possibly let her clansmen and habitat be trampled flat.

This was the plan Jia Ji and Yakumo Zi had formulated from the start, though it seemed there had been a miscalculation.

Forget it, it didn't matter.

Regardless of how many ambushes were waiting for Jia Ji and the Yokai Sage after Aya was captured, they were basically vulnerable.

After pushing aside the lush vines and branches, the beautiful scenery hidden in the deepest part of the forest was revealed, and the view became abruptly bright.

A clear and bright lake was surrounded by trees, like a secret realm isolated from the world.

Overhead, the clear autumn sunlight poured down, shining on the flowing lake surface and causing spots of light to dance.

In the distance, a small waterfall splashed down, the water droplets hitting the gray-black rocks below without pause, creating a rhythmic natural sound.

In this place surrounded by hills and lake water, Jia Ji's group successfully invaded without encountering any obstruction.

And at the center of it all, a yokai was already standing quietly on the lake, waiting for them.

"I am the Great Tengu 【Iizunamaru Megumu】, the boss of the Crow Tengu, and the manager of Tengu society... Outsider, what do you seek?"

The girl on the left, wearing a black cape, two crossed golden threads tied at her waist, and golden shoulder armor inlaid with blue gems, turned around. She waved the fan in her hand and asked first with a sharp momentum.

As she spoke, her long, deep blue hair fluttered in the wind, looking heroic and spirited, with quite a bit of the demeanor of a big sister.

And as a Great Tengu, she could feel even more that this intruder was definitely not simple; after all, even Shameimaru Aya, the fastest flyer in the clan, had been caught by the opponent. If that could be achieved by pure speed alone, it was truly terrifying.

Of course, the Yokai Sage was currently hidden within a gap, observing from the shadows; otherwise, Iizunamaru Megumu would not be feeling alarmed, but terrified.

True experts don't need to say too much; they only need to communicate with their opponents using short questions or critical comments... for example, "Not bad," "One percent of my power," and so on.

The more calm you speak, the more it shows how powerful you are.

It's just that a person with such a lowly character as Jia Ji particularly liked to spout trash talk before a fight, for example—

"Iizuna? Megumu... who? You?"

Jia Ji blinked, suddenly feeling that something was wrong, completely confused.

Not sisters, is there a Great Tengu on Yatsugatake called Iizunamaru Megumu?

His intelligence network was falling a bit short.

"It's Iizunamaru, Megumu! Not Iizuna, Megumu!!"

The expression on the girl's face clearly froze for a moment, and then she immediately reacted, gnashing her teeth as she replied. That strange look, as if she were looking at something redundant, made her feel extremely annoyed.

I thought that either Lingjiu Yilin or the Heavenly Demon would come; what kind of bottom-tier person are you?

The Oni King, who was currently heading toward Yatsugatake in the distance, sneezed: You didn't ask if there were other Great Tengu!

"Boss Megumu, save me!"

The Crow Tengu, who had just been full of despair and looking like she was mourning her parents, immediately regained her spirit the moment she saw her direct superior and began to cry out for help.

The blue-clad Great Tengu let out a long sigh, "I wonder what it would take for you to let Aya go?"

Jia Ji looked her up and down and said:

"Fine, then I'll take you."

(End of chapter)