Jingwei carried tiny twigs in her beak, meaning to fill the Vast Sea.
Legend had it that Jingwei was the Flame Emperor's youngest daughter. As a child, she had been swept away by a great wave while playing beside the Eastern Sea, and after her death, she became a bird. Once transformed, Jingwei kept carrying pebbles and twigs from the shore and dropping them into the Eastern Sea, thinking that one day she would fill it.
Some said this was Jingwei's revenge: she meant to fill the sea that had killed her. Others said it was Jingwei's compassion: she would not let more people be swallowed by the waves.
Later generations saw many qualities in Jingwei: an uncompromising desire for vengeance, the kindness to deliver all from suffering, the unflagging perseverance of carrying wood to fill the sea day after day, the breadth of spirit to make a magnificent vow and act upon it, and the courage to challenge the mighty forces of heaven and earth.
Many revered Jingwei, though their reasons differed. Jingwei totems were a common sight. Some embroidered her onto banners, some carved her onto steles, and others built a vast city that floated upon the clouds and named it after her.
Countless Jingwei birds were painted on the city walls, carrying tiny twigs in their beaks and casting them into the Vast Sea. The city had a ritual: whenever a child was born there, the child's family would paint another Jingwei on the wall.
Such a ritual, together with this city suspended in the sky, readily brought to mind a tribute to Jingwei's courage in challenging the mighty forces of heaven and earth. For people were born to live upon the land, yet some refused to obey that arrangement. They wanted to live in the sky,