Chapter 16
Under their guidance, the group arrived before a towering volcano. Its peak pierced the clouds like a sword, spewing scalding lava without cease. Thick smoke billowed upward, and firelight stained half the sky red.
What mountain is this? Why is the fire so fierce? I'm almost roasted! Ye Zhenzhen's little face was flushed, and she felt as though her whole body was catching fire and breaking into a sweat.
"This should be Blazing Fire Mountain. Legend says it rises beside Weak Water, and together they guard Kunlun Mountain, cutting it off from the outside world. Blazing Fire is no ordinary mortal flame. It can burn everything in this world." Ye Qinghui frowned at the mountain belching flames before them.
"Then how are we supposed to get past it?" Ye Qingyao looked worried. They had finally found a passage to Weak Water, only for a volcano to block their path. Why was the road to Weak Water so hard?
"Bifang! Bifang! Bifang..." A flock of enormous birds flew toward them from afar. They resembled cranes but had only one leg each. Red markings patterned their blue-green feathers, a pair of oxlike horns grew from their heads, and their beaks were white.
As they flew, they spat flames and set everything flammable around them alight. The Manman Birds caught sight of them and thrashed their wings in fright, nearly scattering again.
"Don't be afraid." Ye Qingyao stroked their heads and sheltered them behind her.
"Are those Bifang Birds? I heard they're one-legged firebirds that like to call out their own names and spit flames everywhere. Could they have sprayed fire at the Manman Birds earlier and caused them to get separated?"
Ye Qinghui nodded. "That's right."
The Bifang Birds at the front seemed utterly unafraid of Blazing Fire Mountain's flames. They flew over the volcano at an unhurried pace and, far from being scorched, gulped down several mouthfuls of flame from the rolling lava.
Hiss... Didn't that burn their beaks?
Watching the birds, Ye Zhenzhen suddenly had a daring idea. What if we rode a Bifang Bird across?
"We could try. Their wings can keep the flames out, and Blazing Fire won't burn them."
Mustering their courage, they tried to approach one of the Bifang Birds. It bared a mouthful of sharp teeth and mischievously spat a fireball at them, sending them scrambling out of the way.
The Bifang Bird refused to let up and flew after them. Fireballs rolled toward them one after another.
"Junior Sister, are you sure you want to ride this thing?"
"Within the seas, the Kunlun heights lie in the northwest, the emperor's lower capital. The Kunlun heights span eight hundred li and rise ten thousand ren. Weak Water and Azure Water flow from the southwest corner, heading east, then north, then southwest, passing east of the Bifang Bird." — Classic of Mountains and Seas: Classic of the Western Regions Within the Seas
Chapter 16
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Since Bifang Birds love eating flames, why don't we tempt them with a Fire-Controlling Talisman?
We can add some Fire Spirit Grass, too. We'll make this firebird drool and never let it catch a bite. The Bifang Bird's prank had left Ye Zhenzhen irritated, and she wanted a chance to get even.
"Watch me!" Ye Qingchuan, who had loved controlling fire since childhood, took a stack of Fire-Controlling Talismans from his Heaven-and-Earth Bag. He sprinkled a ring of Fire Spirit Grass over them and made a Spirit Fire ball. Fed by the grass, it blazed large and bright, far more powerful than the fireballs the Bifang Bird spat out.
Sure enough, like a cat that had caught the scent of fish, the Bifang Bird beat its blue-green and red wings furiously and chased the fireball, eyes blazing with its desire to swallow it at once.
Ye Qingchuan sent the fireball tumbling upward, diving downward, then circling through the air. It moved as swiftly as lightning, and no matter how fast the Bifang Bird flew, it could not catch up. Before an hour had passed, the bird collapsed with a mountain-shaking thud and lay sprawled on the ground.
Getting a bite of that Spirit Fire ball was far too hard.
Then, before its very eyes, a boy smaller than its head strolled up to it, caught the fireball with ease, and swallowed it.
The Bifang Bird's eyes widened. So impressive! I want some!
"Want a taste?"
Ye Qingchuan's lips curled. He made another Spirit Fire ball sprinkled with Fire Spirit Grass and let it have a small taste. The Bifang Bird quivered with excitement, its eyes shining. This fireball is delicious!
It was infused with a rich fragrance of grass and trees, chewier than Blazing Fire, with a taste that lingered endlessly. It even held pure fire spiritual energy. It was simply the finest flavor in the Mortal World.
"Bifang! Bifang!" it called to Ye Qingchuan, meaning: Delicious! I want more.
"Want more? Then you'll have to carry us somewhere."
And so Ye Qingchuan led his senior brother, senior sister, and junior sister onto the Bifang Bird's back without a care in the world. Its back was broad enough to seat more than a dozen people.
Once the Bifang Bird took to the sky again, he sent the Spirit Fire ball flying ahead. The bird chased it, caught up and took a bite, then chased it again as it flew onward. By repeating this, he guided the Bifang Bird across Blazing Fire Mountain with them on its back.
The unbearable heat vanished in an instant, replaced by a refreshing lightness that left their whole bodies at ease.
A vast river with a soft, luminous sheen appeared before them. It circled the towering Kunlun Sacred Mountain. This was the Weak Water they had spent so many days searching for!
Along the banks of Weak Water, clouds and mist curled around lush trees and brocade-bright flowers. It looked like an immortal paradise left behind in the mortal world.
"It's so beautiful here. This water is brimming with spiritual energy. I've never seen a river so clear you can see straight to the bottom." Ye Qingyao could not help marveling. She reached out to scoop up a handful of the still, crystalline Weak Water.
"Don't!" Ye Qinghui hurriedly stopped her. "Weak Water may be the purest water in the world, but purity taken to its extreme becomes a poison. Look: the river is clear, yet there are no fish or shrimp in it, and no animals live along its banks. If any living thing accidentally touches Weak Water, it will be completely purified and vanish from this world."
"It's that frightening?" Ye Qingyao snatched her hand back and hurried away from the river in tiny steps.