Jingwei

"Hehe, haha, hahahahaha!"

On the beach at dusk, Wu Wang's uncontrollable laughter grew louder and louder.

The bird cautiously landed on a distant reef. The short blade stood embedded three inches deep before it, clearly having been thrown by Wu Wang's laughter.

The bird transformed into a young girl again, sitting atop the reef and frowning as she watched Wu Wang soaking in the seawater.

Wu Wang immediately sprang to his feet. Just as he was about to speak, the girl took half a step back, her eyes filled with vigilance.

This... this kind of good fortune actually existed?

Wu Wang quickly steadied himself and analyzed the situation. He even forgot to dry the water from his clothes and hair, rising to give the girl a standard Human Domain Daoist salute.

"This poor Daoist is Wuwangzi. I was rather offensive just now; I hope the young lady will not take offense."

Uh, where had that "will not take offense" come from? And why had his voice suddenly become somewhat deep and robust...

"Human... Domain?"

The girl seemed to struggle somewhat when speaking, and her intonation was rather strange, but her meaning was still clearly conveyed.

In any case, her voice was exceptionally pleasant.

Wu Wang said seriously, "This poor Daoist came from the North Sea and wished to travel to the Human Domain. I encountered a minor mishap along the way, and an elder helped me with great divine abilities, sending me here.

"I was overly excited when I saw you earlier. There truly were other circumstances involved."

The girl's little face was full of suspicion.

Wu Wang pulled a smile that he considered exceptionally warm. Yet with the starfish on his head and his sharply defined face, he looked indescribably comical.

The girl turned her head aside. Unable to resist, she raised a hand and covered her mouth with the back of it, letting out a snicker.

Her delicate hand swayed lightly, and her body spun. She had already returned to the form of a bird and flew toward the tree, leaving behind only two words:

"Do not... disturb."

Wu Wang raised his hand and chased after her two steps, then felt he was being rather rash. He stopped and stood in the seawater, lost in thought for a while.

What... was going on?

Why could he have physical contact with this young lady without triggering Maiden Contact Sleep Syndrome?

Could it be because she was fundamentally a bird?

But there were quite a few Fierce Beasts in the Great Wilderness that transformed into human form. Back then, in order to verify his strange illness, he had begged his old father to try a whole series of humanoid Fierce Beasts.

The result was that the strange illness had completely strangled his chances of developing normal relationships with women.

Qingqiu women would not do, Rain Master Concubine women would not do, Black Corpse women would not do, Quanrong Tribe women would not do...

Then why could he alone touch this bird fairy?

"Hm?"

Wu Wang looked up at the Divine Tree upon the cliff and saw the bird the fairy had transformed into flying out from within the tree.

Flapping her wings, she flew above the seawater and dropped the branch in her beak into the sea.

Wu Wang keenly caught one detail—the colorful feathers on the bird's forehead were glowing at this moment, while the spiritual light in her eyes had faded considerably, making them seem somewhat dim.

Since his Star Invocation Technique was at least passable, Wu Wang's perception of souls and Spiritual Sense was fairly sharp. At this moment, he keenly sensed that something was wrong with the bird fairy's soul.

Only then did he remember to lower his head and inspect himself.

Wu Wang hurriedly leaped out of the waves and quickly tidied himself up. His Spiritual Consciousness remained fixed on the bird as he watched her fly back and forth, carrying branches and broken stones into the sea.

This scene inexplicably felt familiar to Wu Wang.

A pair of Star Wings spread behind him as he slowly approached the Divine Tree. He then landed beneath it, looking up at the bird as she flew back and forth, tirelessly and mechanically repeating the same action.

Carrying wood to fill the sea?

It was as though he had seen such a description somewhere before. It seemed to be... it was...

Suddenly, a flash of insight struck Wu Wang's mind.

The Flame Emperor's daughter, named Nuwa, drowned when her boat capsized in the East Sea. Filled with resentment, she became the divine bird Jingwei, carrying broken stones and branches to fill the East Sea, never ceasing through the passing years.

Wasn't this the mythological tale from his elementary school textbook in his previous life?

Jin Wei, Jingwei, Jing...

"Jingwei?"

Wu Wang nearly blurted it out.

The bird passing over his head lowered her gaze at him. The light on her forehead faded, while a few satisfied gleams appeared in her bird eyes. She landed back on a branch and repeatedly nodded at Wu Wang.

"Jin Wei!"

"You are Senior Shennong's daughter? Nuwa?"

"Jin Wei."

The Jingwei bird nodded gently, her gaze seeming somewhat forlorn.

Wu Wang immediately understood the chain of events, and why he could touch this fairy... This was Senior Shennong's unfulfilled wish!

She was currently a spirit body rather than a genuine living being, a remnant soul that had remained after death.

This...

Sensing the sorrow in Jingwei's eyes, Wu Wang did not know why she was so saddened, but he did not wish for her mood to darken because of his question.

He coughed, his thoughts racing. Then he said with a smile:

"Why does a figure from legend have an accent?"

Crack!

The branch was instantly crushed by a pair of exquisite bird claws.

The Jingwei bird angrily spread her wings, turned and burrowed into the Divine Tree. Soon, she flew back out with a short piece of wood in her beak, wheeled around, and dived. The wood smashed toward Wu Wang's forehead.

Wu Wang covered his face with both hands and repeatedly begged for mercy. The Jingwei bird pursued him relentlessly, and it seemed as though one "minus one" symbol after another popped up over his head.

After they frolicked like this for a while, the Jingwei bird seemed somewhat tired and flapped back into the tree canopy.

Before long, she flew back out carrying another branch. The colorful feathers on her forehead lit up as she sent the branch to the sea.

Wu Wang stood beneath the tree with his arms folded, and Jingwei's figure walking out from the blue mist appeared before his eyes. A faint smile rose at the corners of his mouth.

It was as though a drop of water had fallen into his heart, stirring layer after layer of ripples. The round moon reflected in those waters shattered a little as well.

He could not help imagining:

Could this have been arranged by Senior Shennong? Had he calculated all of this when diagnosing my strange illness? Did he want me as a live-in son-in-law?

Was that why he had tossed him here, to cultivate feelings with Miss Jingwei?

But how could a human and a spirit body have children?

Ah, what was he even thinking! Wu Wang, Wu Wang, how could you entertain such thoughts? Love required mutual affection, not something completely arranged by the older generation!

Still, they really had been able to touch each other just now... They could touch each other. In the Great Wilderness, apart from the Innate God who had cursed him, she might be the only woman he could touch.

Could he be destined to become the Great Wilderness's Ning Caichen?

No, that was not right either. The elder's wish should be to revive Jingwei. If Jingwei was no longer a spirit body, would he not become unable to touch her too?

Without realizing it, Wu Wang leaned against the faintly glowing Divine Tree with his arms folded, smiling as he watched the Jingwei bird tirelessly fly back and forth. He did not move for a long time.

After half an hour, Wu Wang finally remembered that he had more important matters to attend to.

Shock was shock, but once his Spiritual Sense had begun recovering, the first thing he did was spread out his Spiritual Consciousness to investigate the entire island and its surrounding environment.

The island was rich in Spiritual Energy, and the patches of spirit herbs growing everywhere should have been planted by Senior Shennong.

Several kinds of spirit herbs were even said to have vanished from the Great Wilderness. He had not expected to find patch after patch of them here.

The island was surrounded by shallow waters, clear blue-green seawater over a bed of pearly white sand. Coral stretched in clusters, spirit fish swam in schools, and within the ten-mile area covered by the formation, there was not a single ferocious sea beast.

Wu Wang spread his wings and flew to the formation. He placed the two rings Shennong had given him on his hands, and a black and a white strand of aura bloomed from them, drilling into the formation wall.

Could he get out?

A warning flared in Wu Wang's heart, and the necklace at his chest trembled lightly.

He instantly flew backward, but a beam of light abruptly erupted from the formation wall before him and struck him squarely on the shoulder!

An enormous force hit him. Wu Wang flew diagonally for hundreds of yards, let out a miserable "Aiya!" and plunged straight into the sea.

On the island cliff, Jingwei had just flown from the tree canopy with a piece of wood in her beak. She turned to look over, and her bird eyes widened. The wood slipped from her beak as she flapped her little wings and hurried over.

Blue sea, blue sky, white beach.

The young man sat cross-legged on the beach, scratching his head and grinning. His soaking-wet hair continued dripping water.

The bird before him hopped on one leg at times and waved her wings at others, chirping "Jin Wei, Jin Wei" without pause.

She seemed to be lecturing the young man.

Puff!

At the soft sound, Wu Wang instinctively looked up and saw the drifting blue smoke again. He saw a girl in a light green short skirt, barefoot, stepping out from the blue mist.

Wu Wang reacted much more quickly this time, fixing his gaze on her face to avoid any impropriety.

Yet what he saw were clever eyes and cherry lips, faint anger and delicate annoyance. Willow-leaf slender were the corners of her brows, crystal-clear and exquisite were her earlobes.

How should he describe her beauty?

Peach blossoms reflected in her face seemed a little too flirtatious; plum blossoms defying frost seemed overly cold. Wu Wang could not come up with words such as "neither increase nor decrease could improve her beauty; it was naturally, perfectly joined." He could only offer a serious assessment:

"Really beautiful."

"Hm?"

The girl, Jingwei, tilted her head slightly. She had been somewhat angry, but Wu Wang's declaration of beauty caught her off guard.

She gave a humph, seemingly annoyed, while a faint blush crossed her cheeks. Her lips, which had been about to open, pressed together. She hastily raised a hand and wrote two lines in the air, then turned and returned to the blue mist, transforming into a divine bird and flapping away.

Wu Wang carefully examined the rather complex ancient Human Domain characters and quickly understood the meaning of the two lines:

This place is covered by a formation. Recklessly barging around may cost you your life.

She was quite kind-hearted.

Wu Wang called out, "Thank you for the warning! This poor Daoist will be careful!"

But he received no response.

Judging by her age, if this still counted as living, then she counted as an ancient person, did she not?

Wu Wang exhaled softly, spread his wings, and flew toward the formation wall again. This time, he did not touch it carelessly. He merely circled the formation wall once, confirming that this great formation had no gaps whatsoever, above or below the sea.

At best, a few days; at worst, several years.

Combining Senior Shennong's instruction with the circumstances here, a bold thought immediately arose in Wu Wang's heart.

If Senior Shennong arrived in a few days, then the old senior was certainly worried that Wu Wang might abduct his precious daughter.

If Senior Shennong only arrived after several years, then this old senior probably truly had some little scheme in mind.

Actually, there was another possibility.

If the old senior could not come... Ahem, the Human Emperor was invincible, sweeping across the Great Wilderness!

The other possibility was the path of Gathering Belief into Godhood.

When he had spoken with Senior Shennong, the elder had mentioned this matter and said that "the Human Domain had tried it before."

If a remnant soul spirit body cultivated into an acquired god through Gathering Belief into Godhood, then that would indeed count as bringing Jingwei back from death.

He had just carried out Gathering Belief into Godhood in the Women's Country. Senior Shennong had found him in advance and sent him here, so it was quite possible that this was also for that matter.

No, that was not right. Without arrangements left behind by a goddess such as those in the Women's Country, how could creating a god from nothing be so easy?

Moreover, Jingwei's tale of filling the sea had circulated through the Human Domain for many years. If Senior Shennong had wanted to use Gathering Belief into Godhood, why would he have waited until now?

The elder had sent him here for some deeply meaningful reason.

Well, there is no use thinking too much. I'll wait and see first.

Before the elder arrived, he would interact more with Fairy Jingwei. At the very least, he would become friends with her first.

Wu Wang glanced at his attire and quietly slipped to the other side of the island. He used Magic Power to set up a tiny barrier, dawdled inside for half an hour, and only then stepped out.

Behold this young lord!

White robes like snow, long garments like brocade, a bright and handsome bearing, a face like polished jade. Red lips, white teeth, a wonderful young lord; clear brows, fine eyes, a little Moon Sacrifice. His long hair was combed without a strand out of place, and the soft hair ribbon drifted gently in the sea breeze.

He took out a folding fan and, wearing a faint smile, strolled toward the Divine Tree.

—His cultivation was too low for Skyward Flight, while Star Wings were too conspicuous and would ruin the overall aesthetic of his outfit. He could only walk.

Arriving beneath the tree, Wu Wang called out loudly:

"Fairy Jingwei, is filling the sea tiring?"

The tree was quiet for a while, with only the faint sounds of bird wings flapping.

"Um, Fairy, do you know where this place is? Which part of the Great Wilderness are we in?"

Puff puff puff puff...

Wu Wang blinked, but still did not give up. He waited beneath the tree for a while, then saw the Jingwei bird fly over and loudly called:

"Fairy! Have you eaten?"

The Jingwei bird turned and flew away with broken wood in her beak, leaving six faint ink dots in the air.

Wu Wang stood beneath the tree as a little north wind drifted past behind him, carrying away a somewhat yellowed leaf.

Why would she not acknowledge him?

She would not even give him the slightest glance.

Could it be because something was wrong with her soul? Or was his charm value simply too low?

He did not give up. He had finally encountered someone of the opposite sex who could sense each other's warmth. How could they simply remain strangers like this?

Even if she could poke him a few more times or pinch his shoulder, that would be an immense happiness!

Wu Wang took a deep breath, turned around, and fiddled around beneath the tree for a while. He took out a Northern Wilds hide drum, sat cross-legged on the ground, and began beating it.

After a while, the hide drum became a bronze gong, then a jade flute, then a leaf, then an erhu.

Wu Wang even unleashed his ultimate move. He took out a sanxian and sang the famous tune—Fairy Across From Me, Look Over Here.

Yet none of it could win so much as a backward glance from the divine bird Jingwei.

From the dead of night until dawn, Wu Wang sat somewhat exhausted beneath the tree, bitterly smiling as he watched the bird flying back and forth overhead.

He could now be certain that, in her current state, she had difficulty perceiving much.

You are forcing me to use my ultimate move!

Wu Wang took a soft breath, sprang up from beneath the tree, waited for an opportunity when the Jingwei bird flew out over the sea, and took out a sash. He tied a slipknot around a branch and put his head through it.

Then he bent his legs and assumed the posture of someone hanging himself.

—After he could circulate his inner cycle, holding his breath for several months would not be a problem.

The divine bird flying back suddenly sharpened her gaze. The glow of the colorful feathers on her forehead faded, and her speed abruptly surged!

Just as he was about to rush beneath the tree, she burst into a plume of green smoke in midair. Her graceful figure flew out from within, wrapped an arm around Wu Wang's waist, and dragged him aside.

Wu Wang looked up at the pretty face inches away, at her snow-white neck, and felt that slender hand encircling his waist. His heart suddenly thudded several times.

Her figure whirled around him, and Wu Wang was set down on a gentle slope nearby. Jingwei, however, wore a stern little face as she stood five feet away and glared at him.

"What are you doing?! Why are you treating your own life so lightly?"

"Fairy, you truly are kind-hearted," Wu Wang immediately said. "I used your kindness to wake you, and for that, this humble Daoist solemnly apologizes.

But Fairy, could you talk with this humble Daoist?

This humble Daoist... I truly want to know more about you, and I also want you to know more about me."

As he spoke, Wu Wang took two steps forward. Sunlight filtered through the treetops and fell upon him, illuminating his faintly apologetic smile and the helplessness in his eyes.

An Innate God had placed a curse on him when he was seven or eight;

He was the heir of a great clan, yet suffered from a strange ailment that made him unable to come into contact with women;

When he went to Women's Country, it was like entering a bathhouse while having to tie a safety rope to a bar of soap—he did not dare relax for even a moment;

Several times, he had fallen for women around him but dared not reveal his feelings, even deliberately distancing himself from them;

Though he knew that cultivating the ninth level of the Flame Emperor Token was harder than climbing to the heavens, and that he had absolutely started later than anyone else, he still clung to a sliver of hope. He wanted to free himself from the Innate God's shackles, even gain the strength to slap that Innate God across the face a few times...

It was as though a thousand words had lodged in his throat. Yet Wu Wang merely sighed softly, clasped his hands behind his back, and smiled.

"It's wonderful that I got to meet you so early."

"Hm?"

Jingwei blinked. One question mark after another sprouted above her head like little mushrooms after the rain.