Chapter 1174: [Lure] (Part 1)

Hu Xiaotian and Wang Sanxi stopped their steps. Hu Xiaotian quietly looked in the direction the sound came from and saw a thin figure walking toward them; the person was Luo Qianfu.

Wang Sanxi respectfully said, "Fifth Master!"

Hu Xiaotian also pinched his throat and shouted, "Fifth Master!"

Luo Qianfu didn't even look at them; obviously he didn't put these two minions in his eyes. Hu Xiaotian secretly sighed, thinking his worries were unnecessary. Luo Qianfu glanced at the corpse and said softly, "Just dead?"

Wang Sanxi said, "Yes! While moving the cargo, I was accidentally crushed by a cargo box."

Luo Qianfu stared at the corpse like a vicious wolf spotting prey, his eyes devoid of any pity or sympathy, and he let out a grating laugh: "Send it to the Mastiff Cave."

The two followed Luo Qianfu, turning right from the passage ahead into another cave entrance. Hu Xiaotian had thought he would feed the corpse to the mastiffs, but upon arrival he saw a large iron cage in the front cave, inside which a huge strange bird was confined. The bird resembled the one he had just encountered in the air, except its talons were chained and its wings bound with iron chains. From struggling, the feathers where the wings touched the chains had worn bare, revealing red flesh; the feathers on its head had turned white, making it look far weaker than the one he had just met, evidently having suffered much torment. The bird's feathers were also filthy, smeared with mud. Above the iron cage there was no rock wall; it opened directly to the outside, and the pouring rain fell unhindered from the sky into the cage.

Luo Qianfu opened a one-foot-square iron door on the cage and had the two shove the corpse inside. Wang Sanxi showed reluctance; upon seeing Hu Xiaotian's face for the first time, he assumed he was a complete stranger and exclaimed in surprise, his face full of astonishment.

Luo Qianfu swiftly turned, glaring at Wang Sanxi and snapped, "What's the matter?"

Wang Sanxi hastily lowered his head: "Fifth Master... I... I've never seen such a huge bird..."

The strange bird let out a violent cry, its beak lunging toward the cage opening, frightening Wang Sanxi into sitting on the ground and tossing the corpse aside.

Luo Qianfu let out a grating laugh, gesturing to Hu Xiaotian to shove the corpse into the cage.

Hu Xiaotian picked up the corpse and shoved it through the cage's small door.

The strange bird snatched the corpse in its beak, jerked its head, and slammed the body onto the cage; blood spattered everywhere, some landing on the three of them. Wang Sanxi screamed in terror, nearly wetting himself.

Hu Xiaotian also feigned terror, his head still drooping, appearing afraid to look at the strange bird, but actually he was worried Luo Qianfu would recognize his true identity.

Luo Qianfu glanced contemptuously at Wang Sanxi and said, "You wouldn't recognize it; this is a Flying Eagle—there are hardly any left in the world."

At that moment, one of Luo Qianfu's underlings stumbled in from outside, panicked, and reported, "Fifth Master! That Flying Eagle has returned!"

Overjoyed at the news, Luo Qianfu shouted, "Go check!" After taking two steps he recalled something and pointed at Hu Xiaotian and Wang Sanxi, saying, "You two come along as well."

Wang Sanxi had been terrified into weakness by the Flying Eagle in the cage, now stumbling and unable to move his feet, while Hu Xiaotian wanted to go out and see what was happening. After a while he realized the large bird was a Flying Eagle. Xia Zhangming had once told him that such birds were nearly extinct; he never expected to see two on Python Flood Island.

Wang Sanxi finally managed to stand, and the two followed Luo Qianfu outside to the place where they had entered the Flying Fish Cave. By the lightning's flash, they saw a huge black shape circling above Python Flood Island. Hu Xiaotian's eyesight was exceptional; in the instant of the lightning he identified the giant bird in the sky as the one he had previously encountered. The bird lacked a ring of feathers on its neck—precisely the ones he had plucked himself—so it was indeed a Flying Eagle, though he didn't know its relation to the one caged.

Luo Qianfu turned to Wang Sanxi and said, "Climb up the ladder!" He pointed to the slope above the Flying Fish Cave. Wang Sanxi shook his head vigorously; he was no fool and immediately understood Luo Qianfu wanted him to go up as bait to lure the aerial Flying Eagle down.

Luo Qianfu snapped, "Go or not?"

Wang Sanxi fell to his knees before Luo Qianfu with a thud, pleading desperately, "Fifth Master, spare me... I still have a seventy-year-old mother at home..." Before he finished, Luo Qianfu gave a cold snort, waved his right hand, and a black shadow lunged from the side, biting Wang Sanxi's throat.

Hu Xiaotian, being somewhat distant, noticed the change but didn't expect the attack to be so swift; moreover, his attention was mainly on the Flying Eagle in the night sky. Looking closely, he saw a black mastiff the size of a calf lunge at Wang Sanxi and snap his throat with one bite—Wang Sanxi died instantly.

Hu Xiaotian secretly blamed himself, thinking his momentary negligence had allowed this to happen; he wasn't thinking of attacking Luo Qianfu then to rescue Wang Sanxi—if he had simply taken the initiative to go in Wang Sanxi's place, perhaps the tragedy could have been avoided.

Luo Qianfu's bestial, vicious gaze turned to Hu Xiaotian, and he coldly ordered, "You go!"

The mastiff that had been tearing at Wang Sanxi's corpse lifted its head, its blood‑stained jaws opening to reveal a mouth full of white, menacing teeth.

Hu Xiaotian nodded, took a torch from one of Luo Qianfu's subordinates, and climbed the steps along the stone wall toward the upper Fish Cave. When he reached the top, he waved the torch as Luo Qianfu had instructed, to attract the Flying Eagle's attention.

The Flying Eagle in the night sky kept circling, issuing angry cries, while the imprisoned Flying Eagle in the Fish Cave continually wailed, its sound drifting from the cave mouth. Hu Xiaotian now understood Luo Qianfu's true intent: he was using the caged eagle to lure its companion to come rescue it. However, the aerial eagle was extremely wary; though it circled, it did not blindly swoop down, apparently anticipating an ambush below.

Hu Xiaotian waved the torch in the wind and rain until it burned out, still seeing no sign of the eagle descending; after it circled for half an hour in the air, he chose to leave the island.

Luo Qianfu finally lost his patience, gritting his teeth and cursing, "Damned beast, truly cunning!" He summoned Hu Xiaotian down from above.

Luo Qianfu, presumably pleased with Hu Xiaotian's recent performance, asked softly, "What's your name?"

Hu Xiaotian quickly thought of a reply: "Wang Sanxi!" Looking at Wang Sanxi, only a pile of white bones remained, completely cleaned by the vicious mastiff. Hu Xiaotian silently cursed, thinking Luo Qianfu deserved death a hundred times over for being so cruel as to let the beast devour a person.

Luo Qianfu said, "Stay; work by my side."

Hu Xiaotian feigned hesitation: "Fifth Master, but the warehouse is still waiting for me to return and move goods."

Luo Qianfu snorted, "If I tell you to stay, you stay—no need for all this talk. Yang Yuan, go find him a set of clothes to change into; tonight the Flying Eagle is entrusted to his care."

An attendant nearby replied in acknowledgment.

Several people turned back to the Fish Cave; Hu Xiaotian followed Yang Yuan to the servants' dwelling, where Yang Yuan tossed him a clean set of clothes and said, "Change into these!"

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "Older Brother Yang, I'm covered in mud; I need to wash before changing, lest I dirty the clothes."

Yang Yuan gave him a once‑over and said, "Kid, you've got a lot of nerve—why all the fuss? Hurry up and change, don't make things difficult for me."

Hu Xiaotian pointed at the cave entrance: "Please step out for a moment, Older Brother Yang; I feel awkward undressing here."

Yang Yuan snorted, both angry and amused: "Look at your pointy‑cheeked, ugly face—do you think I enjoy watching you?" In his view Hu Xiaotian was merely a human bait left by Luo Qianfu; dying was just a matter of time, and he saw no need to explain further, turning and leaving the cavern.

After Yang Yuan left, Hu Xiaotian quickly took off his clothes, dried himself with the prepared towel, and put on the provided garments—a black warrior uniform, likely the island's standard attire, its most notable feature being the embroidered "Yan" character on the back. Besides the clothing there was also a cast‑iron waist token engraved with a flying fish, presumably an identification mark. He concealed the dagger in his boot, coiled the soft sword, and then leisurely stepped outside.

Yang Yuan, having waited impatiently, snapped, "You're dragging your feet—just like a woman."

Hu Xiaotian laughed, "I've always been slow in action and reaction; Older Brother Yang, don't hold it against me."

Yang Yuan glanced at him, sighed, and began, "If you had any brains you wouldn't—" but stopped mid‑sentence.

Hu Xiaotian of course understood his meaning—no sensible person would willingly come to die as human bait.

Yang Yuan led him to the iron cage imprisoning the Flying Eagle, handed him a spear, and said, "Remember, tonight you must constantly prod it with the spear; don't let it have a moment's peace."

Hu Xiaotian silently cursed the crew for their cruelty, knowing they intended to use this method to lure the outside Flying Eagle, and deliberately asked, "Why provoke it? Then it will cry all night and none of us will get any sleep."

Yang Yuan retorted, "You don't know squat—this Flying Eagle is old, has been fasting for days, and won't live much longer; Fifth Master's plan is to use it to draw the external one."

Hu Xiaotian asked, "Is the outside Flying Eagle its son?"

Yang Yuan replied, "Who knows if it's a son or daughter? Anyway it's related; we've finally found this place, and we brothers have taken turns guarding for seven days and nights, wanting to rest—heh, we'll talk after Fifth Master captures the outside Flying Eagle."

Hu Xiaotian scratched his head, feigning continued confusion.

Two updates delivered—requesting monthly tickets! (To be continued…^_^)