Chapter 418: Rocs and Eagles

The rock spirit sighed; it wasn't as though it could just remove its rock armor at will. After all, it had only managed to obtain such fine armor after eating a truly incredible quantity of rock.

Upon hearing that it would have to 'disrobe' in order to ascend the mountain, the rock spirit reared back. "I apologize, but it doesn't look like I'll be able to accompany you up the mountain."

"Very well. Wait here for me and don't cause a disturbance." Zhang Lie sprouted a pair of wings from his back and turned to the white-haired crag eagle. "I'll head up with you."

The two of them flew toward the top of the peak as Zhang Lie murmured, "Your elder seems to hold a very important place in the tribe."

Smiling, the white-haired crag eagle replied politely, "The elder was the previous chief of the clan. When he retired, he gave his position to the current chief. Everyone listens to him."

At the top of the peak was a small wooden cottage where a male crag eagle was basking in the sun. His wings were made out of silvery-white feathers, and he looked both holy and ancient at the same time.

The white-haired crag eagle bowed down when she saw the silver-winged elder. "Elder, I've brought the guest here."

She flew off into the distance.

The elder flapped his wings as he descended from the rooftop. "Let me both apologize for the rudeness of my clan and thank you profusely for repelling our invaders. You've saved the crag eagles in a moment of crisis."

Zhang Lie let out a breath. "Finally, someone who's willing to talk to me."

The elder sighed even as he smiled. "Please don't blame the others. From a young age, they were inculcated with stories about the rock monsters, who they believed to be their mortal enemies. You would have garnered a much more positive reception otherwise."

"Just what did the rock spirits do in the past? I'm very curious."

"So they're called the rock spirits, not the rock monsters! I've always thought no clan would call itself monsters."

Zhang Lie's lips spasmed. "How can you be so sure they're your enemies when you don't even know the name of their race?"

The elder half-smiled again. "The appellation of 'rock monster' was passed down from our ancestors from long ago."

"It looks like you must have suffered greatly because of them."

"Our mountain wasn't always slanted, you know."

"I do know!"

"A long time ago, Mt. Wanren pierced the heavens like a dagger thrust straight up into the clouds. When a group of rock spirits suddenly attacked, the mountain tilted."

"Could the rock spirits really have been responsible for pushing the entire mountain sideways?"

How strong the rock spirits had to be when they were nomadic!

The elder asked, "What did this rock spirit tell you?"

Zhang Lie relayed the rock spirit's own accounting of events: "They came over here and had a fight with you. You were stronger than they thought, so they left."

"Indeed, that's more or less right. I heard the same story from my ancestors. A large fight broke out between our clan and the rock spirits, causing significant death on both sides. In the end, the rock spirits left."

"And then?"

What followed was surely the important part.

The elder sighed. "The rock spirits had, at one point, such an advantage that they were able to make their way to the foot of the mountain unopposed. They dug up part of the rock that made up the base of the mountain. The elders were very happy that those malicious rock demons had finally been chased away, but their happiness didn't last long."

"So that was why the mountain ended up tilting..."

Of course, if the rock spirits were to dig away part of the mountain's foundations, it would naturally begin to tilt as it was weathered by age and time.

The elder shrugged. "The stories became more and more exaggerated with each retelling: the rock monsters pushed the mountain down, the rock monsters would eat unruly children, and so on. These embellishments naturally engendered more and more hate and fear toward the rock monsters with every successive generation."

"I see."

The elder beckoned to his residence. "Shall we head in for a cup of tea?"

Zhang Lie didn't refuse him; the two of them stepped inside.

The interior of the wooden cabin was as shabby as its exterior. The elder smiled. "I learned how to build these lodgings on my own, so I hope you won't laugh at me. Most of the crag eagles are perfectly fine outdoors, with the sky as their blanket and the earth their bed. I'm the oddball around here."

"It's not bad."

Zhang Lie found a place to sit down while the elder poured him a cup of tea with his feet. Glancing at that cup of tea, Zhang Lie was struck with a dilemma regarding whether to drink it or not. He couldn't help but feel as though the faint stink of feet had permeated the tea leaves, and he didn't dare pick up the cup of tea to try it for himself.

"Surely you haven't called me here just to thank me?"

The elder smiled again. "And surely you didn't come all the way over here in order to fight with us crag eagles. If you came in order to take even more of our mountain away, you'll make my life very difficult."

"There's no need. The rock spirits have a large quantity of rock at their disposal now, enough to last them a few centuries. Past that point, I'll continue finding them more deposits of rock."

Unlike the wood spirits, who could nurture the growth of treasures like spiritual herbs, the rock spirits were treasures in their own right. With a sufficient quantity of rock and gems, along with time for them to grow, they would again be the same rock spirit clan that had once terrorized the second realm.

These rock spirits would become the guardians of his city.

The elder turned and looked Zhang Lie in the eye. "What do you want?"

Zhang Lie smiled. "It looks as though you have a request for me, Elder."

It seemed as though the elder were about to propose a transaction.

"I do."

"Is it about the golden rocs?"

The elder nodded. "Indeed. What's your request?"

"I want the starcloud fruit. It's with you, isn't it?"

The elder blinked. "What a surprise. As far as I know, only three people even know that I possess such a rare herb. It looks like you have an interesting source of information."

"I heard about it from a departed spirit," Zhang Lie replied mysteriously.

"Who was that spirit? I should like to know. Indeed, we do have one starcloud fruit in our possession."

"In exchange, shall I get rid of the golden rocs for you?"

.

"You won't be sufficient—we'll have to work together to get rid of the menace."

𝗳𝐫𝚎𝗲𝚠𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝘃𝚎𝗹.𝗰𝗼𝗺

"This sounds like a more serious problem than I had imagined."

"These golden rocs have only appeared within the last few years. Each one is about as strong as our current chief. They hunt for food in the vicinity, and the strongest among them is approaching the level of a sura king."