Chapter 125

In the courtyard house.

Bored to the point of molding, Zhou Ziyan was flipping through ancient texts; there was nothing else to do, he was so idle he might as well cultivate properly.

The entire Special Safety Bureau, including him and his colleagues, numbered only nine people total—less than double digits—with some righteous disciples from the Mysterious Gate, but mostly unorthodox practitioners.

They were very idle.

Although the Special Safety Bureau handles special cases such as occult killings, such supernatural incidents are actually rare in the country, especially after the push for science education, when many people simply don't believe in them.

Thus the bureau staff's daily routine was reading books and cultivating, occasionally receiving such requests, and they passed their days in this unhurried manner.

More importantly, many people don't even know such a department exists; even if they do, the Mysterious Gate Association simply snatches the paperwork away.

They believe each specialty has its own expertise, that they are the orthodox lineage, and look down on the state-established Special Safety Bureau, with even the wealthy thinking it's not up to par.

After all, one is a master appearing before millions, the other is an obscure, unpaid state department.

Hence the current situation: the Special Safety Bureau's door can catch sparrows, with membership under double digits.

Within the Special Safety Bureau, Zhou Ziyan's strength ranks among the top; as he flipped open a yellowed ancient text, his motion suddenly paused, and a du-du-du sound came from the closed glass window.

In the sunlight, a cute, plump gray sparrow kept pecking at the glass; seeing him look over, the sparrow instantly stopped moving and chirped at him: "Come quick, come quick, someone's calling you outside!"

Unfortunately he couldn't understand animal speech, but he suddenly sensed this little sparrow had something going on; Zhou Ziyan walked over, feeling in his heart that it seemed related to him, and with a thought he approached.

The sparrow spread its wings and swayed left and right, as if dancing or acting cute; Zhou Ziyan always felt something off, yet he reached out.

"Puleng~~"

The sparrow flew straight away, landing on a branch: "What are you doing? I'm only here to act cute, not to sell myself!"

Zhou Ziyan couldn't help laughing, walked out of the room, and the sparrow instead flew back, hovering close without touching, spreading its wings and flying circles around him.

Zhou Ziyan said: "What do you want to say? I don't understand, but if you want to do something, just show it."

Sparrow: "Stupid stupid stupid!"

It flew a few circles, then headed to the big door, landing on the lock, pretending to peck; Zhou Ziyan almost laughed himself to death at its feint.

"Could it be someone sent you to find me?"

As he spoke, he opened the big door; the previously aloof sparrow swooped into his soft palm; Zhou Ziyan looked up, caught sight of the newcomer, and stood stunned.

Ling Yue's pet food was snatched away piece by piece; she looked at the visitor: "Hello, I am Ling Yue."

That sentence was like a switch; Zhou Ziyan instantly understood, looked at the sparrow, a sudden realization—indeed he'd guessed right; he doesn't understand animal speech, but someone does!

Because Ling Yue displayed special abilities and great strength, she has always been a key focus of the Special Safety Bureau, though only that; even their bureau chief Jiang Ye is no match for her.

So they firmly believe: avoid provoking if possible; as for recruiting him into the Special Safety Bureau, Zhou Ziyan only has one sentence—'just a few peanuts a meal'—and dares to think that.

Smart with principles is a big shot!

This is Zhou Ziyan's impression of Ling Yue, though he doesn't know why she came; his thoughts racing, he invited Ling Yue inside.

Just as they entered, a rich sweet potato aroma swept in; beside them, colleagues gathered around a coal stove, eagerly waiting for the sweet potatoes to ripen.

They were still discussing: "Is it fragrant? This is the smoked sweet potato No. 2 I brought from home; they say if baked well, when torn open it hisses with sugar!"

"Damn, Old Zhao, you're a talent; it's a shame you're not selling sweet potatoes!"

The speaker, having been slapped hard by Old Zhao, retorted: "You're the one who should go sell sweet potatoes!"

Seriously speaking, they are also civil servants of a state department, with five insurances and one fund, meal subsidies, even employee dormitories; look, they work daily in a quadrangle worth over a hundred million.

After Ling Yue entered, what she saw was exactly this scene; she slightly curled her lips, while the deputy captain Zhou Ziyan beside her felt a bit embarrassed: "They don't usually act like this."

The next moment, hearing the team discuss, roasting sweet potatoes every day would be better swapped for roasted oranges—this tastes better and can even cure colds in winter.

Ling Yue looked at his embarrassed expression, blinked, and said, "You think I'd believe that?"

Zhou Ziyan: "......"

He gave a light cough; the teammates who were horsing around, thinking only the deputy captain would see Ling Yue's glance, all stared in shock.

"Streamer master?!"

Ling Yue: "???"

What the heck is this weird thing?

What she didn't know was that the bureau's staff were also lurking in her own livestream, though they were just ordinary lurkers; they watched Ling Yue reveal secrets, cheered for her, and admired her, a big shot indeed.

As for more, they can't and dare not.

Ling Yue's arrival startled the entire Special Safety Bureau; the child who had been refused when calling earlier brought tea, water, and fruit: "Eat, eat!"

Ling Yue smiled kindly at her, then turned to the hurriedly arriving bureau chief Jiang Ye, who is about thirty-something, not young, with some sharpness in his brows and clear eyes.

Ling Yue got straight to the point: "I came this time because I have something I want to cooperate with the Special Safety Bureau on."

Jiang Ye blinked: "Cooperation?"

Ling Yue told him about the invasive fish species she found by the river and the reckless people releasing them; Jiang Ye furrowed his brows, explaining: "The Special Safety Bureau handles special events; invasive fish species don't seem to fall under our jurisdiction."

Ling Yue: "What about me?"

"I'm preparing to set up a formation on the Yangtze; will you also not care?"

Ling Yue's sentence shocked everyone; as for more secrets, only Jiang Ye and deputy captain Zhou Ziyan knew, but everyone could see the bureau chief and team captain walk out with dazed eyes, as if their worldview had been overturned.

Meanwhile, Ling Yue stood there, relaxed and content.

After learning of her crazy, no, heaven-defying plan, Jiang Ye felt a surge of excitement; even though he'd seen great storms, he couldn't hide it.

How could she have such an idea? Bold, crazy, yet if realized, the whole Yangtze would benefit.

Jiang Ye couldn't help but speak: "Miss Ling, have you thought about joining our Special Safety Bureau?"

Ling Yue blinked, not yet speaking, when Deputy Captain Zhou Ziyan beside her proudly finished the chief's words: "Here we earn a monthly after-tax salary of ten thousand, plus five insurances and one fund and other benefits; after joining, you'd be a civil servant, and furthermore, regarding occult matters, our Special Safety Bureau may not be very famous…"

Zhou Ziyan paused, then added: "Not just not famous—we hardly have any presence; we're probably the most low-key department, to the point other agencies don't even know us."

He continued: "Other departments would give us some face."

Ling Yue: "But I have my own job."

Zhou Ziyan instantly caught her meaning, then laughed: "No problem; what I mean is your position—you would be an honorary consultant of our Special Safety Bureau; we'd never bother you with trivial matters."

Ling Yue pondered for a moment, then said: "I agree."

She laughed and said: "Is agreeing too quick? You should know, my focus is actually on animals; matters like metaphysics are few, mainly domestically…… seems also scarce."

At least, according to Ling Yue's knowledge and what she has seen and experienced, there are few.

Jiang Ye was taken aback, feeling surprised yet also finding it natural due to her keen observation, and explained: "Domestically there really are few, but abroad there are many more; previously, because of some matters, many practitioners went overseas."

Ling Yue didn't know there was such a secret; a flash of light crossed her eyes, she pursed her lips: "If I encounter it, I will do my utmost."

Jiang Ye saw her sincerity and smiled wholeheartedly, saying: "Rest assured, we will fully cooperate with you! Also, your documents—I will bring them over later; this is our Special National Security Bureau's proof."

Ling Yue nodded; as she left, she saw a few people standing to the side, their heads turning with her movements—the National Security Bureau staff looked wooden and dazed, making people unable to hold back laughter.

Before she left, she seemed to hear the staff's joyful cheers, her keen hearing catching their conversation.

"Wow wow wow, the big shot agreed?"

"It's truly, truly, truly, truly, truly great! Just wait to see what the Profound Mystery Association has to be proud about, always holding their heads high, looking down their noses at people!"

"Choose your words carefully; just look after yourself."

Ling Yue's steps halted; the Profound Mystery Association? From their tone of speech, the other side seemed quite arrogant.

Ling Yue stopped thinking about it; despite many occasions she had never encountered such a thing, but she hadn't expected that in the near future she would indeed encounter it.

The car entered the city district and couldn't move; ahead seemed to be a traffic jam; from Ling Yue's position, looking ahead, the end couldn't be seen; she furrowed her brows—this time of day is not rush hour, why would it suddenly jam?

The driver next to her, however, seemed to know something and began to discuss.

"Brother, why is there a traffic jam here?"

"It's not a traffic jam; it's that people are gathering, hearing that some big internet celebrity appeared, a huge crowd of netizens all came at once, that's what caused the jam!"

"That's news from how many years ago? The latest situation: it's not a person, but a bird, a especially large big bird; rumor has it it's a million-divine bird!"

Ling Yue licked her lips, not paying much attention; her phone in her pocket suddenly rang, she glanced at the display—Lin Shaoze—and couldn't help but frown slightly.

After the call connected, the speaker wasn't him but another strange man; his tone panicked, his urgent words came out like rapid-fire gunfire: "Miss Ling, I'm a staff member of the National Forestry Bureau; do you still remember the underground trading fair from earlier?"

Ling Yue said calmly: "I remember; what's wrong?"

"That gyrfalcon, the God of Myriad Eagles, because it was injured, was temporarily taken under our Forestry Bureau's care; after proper care, its injuries have healed, but today it escaped……"

In the staff's account, Ling Yue learned the full story.

To be precise, it was a planned escape.

Before the gyrfalcon's injury healed, it was constantly inconvenienced in movement; after healing, it also pretended to be uncomfortable, yet its behavior was obedient.

The Forestry Bureau staff all praised it, saying it was truly a sensible gyrfalcon.

But they didn't know that all this was the gyrfalcon's temporary expedient.

This morning, the Forestry Bureau staff went to deliver food; the gyrfalcon ate two bites, then, taking advantage of the staff's lowered guard, it directly unlatched the cage door and flew out.

At that moment, the staff were frightened out of their wits; after reacting, they made an emergency report; Ling Yue heard the time and checked her watch—it had already been over three hours since then.

Ling Yue furrowed her brows; in three-plus hours, if it's fast, it's probably already flown out of Jing Shi; calling her again would be useless.

Unexpectedly, they continued: "But we found traces of the gyrfalcon at a building on West Forest Road; it's on the top floor of the Ye Clan Building, entangled in the high-altitude safety net; however, it's extremely fierce, we dare not approach—may we ask if you're available now?"

Ling Yue instantly understood: they wanted to invite her.

She certainly had time, wait——

Ling Yue, in a daze, recalled; her gaze unconsciously fell ahead; she spoke into the phone: "The Ye Clan Building you mentioned—is it the Ye Clan Building that's been surrounded by internet celebrities?"

On the other end of the phone, the staff member stared in shock, looked downward—there was a whole area of internet celebrity check-in spots; it seemed, in an instant, the news of a rare gyrfalcon trapped in the high-altitude net had spread throughout the city.

Many streamers came intending to film videos; unfortunately, the passage to the Ye Clan Building had long been blocked, nobody could get up.

Suddenly, a sound came; he looked closely—good grief, the drones had all been dispatched.

The drone emitted a human voice: "Hello, we're just filming a video; we will absolutely have no effect on you."

This is somewhat like "there's no silver here but three hundred taels"—the staff chuckled twice, then solemnly said: "Please leave quickly."

What he didn't know was that his every move here was being livestreamed.

In the livestream room, a married couple of streamers; the female voice forced a smile: "Honey, maybe we should give up."

【Don't! This is first-hand material, we love to watch!】

【Holy shit, brothers, did you see what that is? The God of Myriad Eagles gyrfalcon, and still the rarest white jade claws—so cool!】

【These huge wings, these huge talons, this eagle eye—streamer, I love watching, film some more!】

【Song of the Grassland rewards ten pearls】

The speaking female looked astonished at the endless stream of rewards; a flicker of smile crossed her eyes; one sentence caused fans to reward hundreds of thousands!

Moreover, some people were dissatisfied with the Forestry Bureau staff—what is this person doing? Trying to rescue the gyrfalcon? Yet he just stands there catching a cold; the streamers all said it wouldn't affect him.

【Yeah, streamers, definitely don't agree—we just love watching this!】

The male youth pushed his glasses up, nodded, and said: "Netizens, rest assured, we will definitely see this through to the end."

Thus, the drone just kept hovering nearby; the staff member wanted to say something, then suddenly gripped the phone: "Yes, Miss Ling, this is the Ye Clan Building."

Ling Yue: "All right, then it's fine—I'm right beside the Ye Clan Building right now, quite a coincidence."

After Ling Yue finished speaking, she parked the car at the roadside spot and walked straight over.

Several minutes later, the elevator went straight to the top floor; Ling Yue pushed open the door, cold wind howled in; before Ling Yue could even speak, she saw an acquaintance.

If Lin Shaoze's appearance was expected, then Ye Xiu Lan's showing up made Ling Yue's eyes flash with surprise; she immediately realized—this is the Ye Clan Building!

Isn't that Ye Xiu Lan's conglomerate?

The two saw her at that instant, both nodded; Ling Yue's movement paused, and she returned a brilliant smile.

These actions were merely an instant; the most important thing was the gyrfalcon.

The staff's anxious tone made her unconsciously shift her gaze to the gyrfalcon; in that instant, Ling Yue's gaze locked.

On the expansive rooftop's edge, the cold wind was as sharp as a blade.

On the edge's high-altitude safety net, a pure-white gyrfalcon hung; its immaculate white feathers fluttered in the wind; its pair of wings, together spanning over two meters, spread wide, its gaze fierce and untamed as it looked down on everyone.

Even in such a predicament, Eastern Sea Green still exudes a mighty aura, its pair of eyes sharp as knives, making people involuntarily feel chilled, trembling!

At the same time, the drone beside her, seeking hotspots, directly captured Ling Yue's exquisite face on the screen; everyone who saw her was stunned.

【Ahhhhh, it's the streamer I follow, she's actually here! What is she going to do?】

【……Is she just trying to hype herself?】

【You okay. JPG you okay. JPG you okay. JPG】

【Good grief, she's the top streamer on the Orca Platform, coming to hype herself—are you joking, bro?】

Before the camera, after seeing her, the staff wiped the cold sweat from their foreheads and respectfully stepped forward: "Trouble you."

Ling Yue shook her head, her gaze always on Eastern Sea Green, and said: "Tell me about its condition."

The staff readily replied: "According to our observation, this Eastern Sea Green is not injured, but its body is entangled in a soft wire net; you've seen its current attitude—whenever someone approaches, it starts to resist and struggle."

"After all, it's a large raptor; can you communicate with it and get it to come down?"

Such a state-protected animal, and an extremely rare albino variant—if anything went wrong in the process…… the staff's hearts clenched in pain.

Netizens who heard this conversation—

【Holy cow, awesome! What kind of show is this, hype? They invited outside help!】

Ling Yue was about to nod when she suddenly flicked her gaze, staring straight at the drone; just moments ago, she had already felt being watched.

The netizens in front of the screen were directly struck in the soul by her cool, turning glance.

Before the camera, Ling Yue also guessed the other's intention; as for communication—

Her gaze fell on Eastern Sea Green; the moment she saw it, Eastern Sea Green suddenly struggled violently, but its body was wrapped in fine, dense wire—soft enough that the more it struggled, the tighter it wound, until finally the wires turned into thin blades that would slice it apart.

Ling Yue's expression grew solemn: "If you don't want to die, don't move."

Eastern Sea Green let out a harsh cry, its sharp eagle eyes locked on her, angrily saying: "You deceived the hawk; you don't keep your word!"

Ling Yue blinked, not understanding where this came from.

She spoke up: "When did I deceive you? How did I deceive you?"

Ling Yue said, stepping closer step by step.

The angry Eastern Sea Green paid no heed, continuing its harsh cry: "My wound is clearly healed; why didn't you come find me? You left me there—did you forget me?"

Ling Yue: "……"

How could that be? She had clearly said before to let Eastern Sea Green heal its wound first; the reason she hadn't gone was also to see what time it is now.

How many days have passed since the circus incident? Less than half a month.

After hearing her explanation, Eastern Sea Green fell silent for a moment: "Then when will you send me home?"

Ling Yue also thought, but she dared not look into Eastern Sea Green's eyes: "Probably after a while; I still have other things to do, but—"

Ling Yue stared at it steadily: "I can first take you to the zoo."

Eastern Sea Green looked at her half-believing, half-doubting; in fact, it still trusted Ling Yue quite a bit, but it really wanted to go home.

As for fleeing, Eastern Sea Green understood Ling Yue's words, knowing she was considering its own good; it wasn't fleeing, but seeking Ling Yue—yet once it flew out, it knew things would go wrong.

In a metropolis of nearly a million, densely populated, with all sorts of strange transport, it thus got lost without surprise.

That's how the scene Ling Yue witnessed came to be.

Ling Yue stepped forward, amidst the exclamations of the netizens in the live stream.

【She, she what is she doing?】

【She's saving Eastern Sea Green!】

【No, we all have eyes, we can see, but have you ever seen such a rescue—wearing nothing, bringing nothing—this is Eastern Sea Green, a raptor!】

【Frog off, real-life Beauty and the Beast?】

Ling Yue didn't know these; she looked at the stubborn Eastern Sea Green, and upon meeting its gaze, it turned its head aside, putting on a tsundere act.

Ling Yue: "Are you mad at me?"

After she said it, she felt something was off—her words sounded like she was coaxing someone.

Eastern Sea Green gave a tsundere harsh cry: "How could it be!"

The louder it protested, the cuter it seemed.

Ling Yue spread her hands, amid others' stunned stares, producing the pet food she carried: "You've been stuck up there a while—have something to eat first."

【I dare bet it definitely won't eat!】

Eastern Sea Green scoffed; it's incredibly skilled, hunting in snow mountains, eating only pure meat—this pile is what, looks bad at a glance……

Under Ling Yue's gaze, Eastern Sea Green slowly moved its head over: "Smells nice."

Ling Yue pressed her lips tight; if not for Eastern Sea Green, she would have laughed already.

She gave a light cough, gently looking at Eastern Sea Green: "At least take a bite."

Eastern Sea Green naturally understood her meaning; it now clung to the high-altitude safety net, looking down, seeing pedestrians and traffic as tiny as ants.

The habituated Eastern Sea Green felt nothing, nor did Ling Yue fear; the drone, manipulated by the streamer with ill intent, suddenly lurched—seeing this, the netizens instantly broke out in cold sweat.

By then, Eastern Sea Green had been tangled there for over an hour, its strength waning.

But, really, should it eat?

It is, after all, the fiercest male eagle—should it eat human handouts?

Not to mention the on-site staff; even the netizens in the live stream could see its hesitation and struggle.

【Eastern Sea Green should be a meat-eating raptor, right? What did the streamer bring—bird feed? I bet a pack of spicy sticks it definitely won't eat!】

On the wire net, Eastern Sea Green watched the humans raise their hands, then blinked, lowered its head, thinking, "Just one bite, I'll have one bite."

Yet how keen it is—after a single mouthful of pet food went down, it immediately sensed this was extraordinary; its beak opened wide, like those young chicks, aiming at the pet food in Ling Yue's hand, it gave a muffled gulp!

The netizen who had just been shouting the loudest: "My face hurts so much TVT"

Even more unbelievably, Eastern Sea Green ate bite after bite, finally emptying Ling Yue's pure rations.

Watching it eat so deliciously, the viewers couldn't help but grow curious: what exactly is this thing, why can it make this carnivorous sea eagle eat with such gusto!

【The pet food looks so fragrant, the aloof big shot has turned into a food-loving eagle!】

After it finished eating, Ling Yue had already started cutting open the wire net; the staff nearby could only watch helplessly, because once they approached, the sea eagle would let out a harsh cry, shake its body, showing clear resistance.

「Crack——」

As the last big scissors fell, the wire that had tangled the sea eagle for a long time finally loosened; the staff hurriedly gestured to her: 'Quickly lure it into the cage!'

Ling Yue froze, her gaze falling on the sea eagle, meeting its sharp, exposed eagle eyes.

The sea eagle suddenly spread a pair of pure-white, jade-like large wings, let out a harsh cry, and fearlessly leapt from the rooftop; everyone was startled, and the staff rushed over even faster, inwardly shouting 'Oh no!'

「Screech！」

Its bright cry pierced the sky, its whole body pure white like a deity descending, shattering the clouds as it shot straight up!

Ling Yue saw the staff beside her turn ashen, dejectedly gazing at the sea eagle, muttering: 'It's over, it's over, the sea eagle is done for!'

He was dazed, while the others all sucked in a breath of cold air: 「Quick look, what is that——」 ：，，.