A strange, large black bird suddenly flew out from a crack in the rocks, making a sound that resembled human speech. The two savages were startled by this sight and stood there dumbfounded for a moment.
In that brief moment of distraction, everything before their eyes turned a dazzling white. The surrounding air seemed to be suddenly sucked away, and they felt as if the blood in their bodies had been drained. They became dizzy and disoriented.
In a white world, a painting and a picture book wall appear. On the painting is the shadow of a woman, and outside the painting is a giant black bird flapping its wings.
The savages were still quite resilient; they knew they had encountered a strange force and tried to draw their bows to shoot arrows at the woman and the large bird. However, in this dazzling white expanse, everything vanished—trees, land, rocks... all disappeared, even their bows were gone.
The woman beckoned to them, and they saw their souls fly away. Their souls flew to the edge of the white world, like distorted shadows stuck to the dome. They tried to bring their souls back, but to no avail.
The shadows stretched longer and longer, and the howling wind outside tore at the shadows clinging to the edge of the space, like a giant scrubbing grime off a piece of glass.
The savages felt excruciating pain, but there was nothing they could do. They could only watch helplessly as their souls were torn apart bit by bit by this terrifying force. The fragments, like black cotton wool, spun wildly along the edge of the eye of the storm, casting a layer of gray over the entire white space.
The shadows gradually dimmed, and the savage's body slowly became transparent. In this way, body and soul gradually dissolved into this dazzling white space.
The Crow withdrew its power, the gale ceased, the grass and trees were unharmed, and everything returned to its original state.
Two savages stood stiffly before them, their faces pale and bloodless, their dilated pupils filled with terror; they were clearly dead.
Crow cawed and landed on Su Huilan's shoulder, praising, "Wow, even killing is so artistic! No wonder you're a professor!"
Su Huilan laughed and said, "You're very strong too, even stronger than I imagined!"
"I've always said I'm really strong, crow!" The Crow proudly raised its head, then thought for a moment and said, "We work together so well, shouldn't we come up with a cool name for our duo?"
Su Huilan said, "Okay, what name should we choose?"
The Crow tilted its head and thought, " Boss Coal... Su Huilan... coal... Su... Lan... Guagua, plum and orchid are both flowers, both are among the Four Gentlemen, so how about we call them the Black and White Two Gentlemen Duo?"
It was very pleased with the name it had chosen, and it cawed Guagua.
Su Huilan was surprised that this bird knew quite a lot, but the name was a bit incongruous, so she laughed and said, "Why not call it Black and White Impermanence? That would be so much more imposing!"
The Crow thought for a moment and said, "That sounds like a good idea! But I still think calling him 'Two Gentlemen' sounds more cultured!"
Just then, Qingmu's voice came from behind the pile of rocks. "I think your group should be called 'Beauty and the Beast'."
Qingmu walked out, his footsteps clicking.
The Crow was startled. "Caw! How did you get here so fast?!"
Su Huilan was also surprised, but she chuckled at the name of the group that Qingmu mentioned.
Qingmu didn't go into the details of the battle, but he praised Hanran a few times. It seemed that Hanran's performance had also exceeded his expectations, just as the Boss Coal's ability had exceeded Su Huilan's expectations.
After they reunited, they continued walking towards the direction of the savage tribe.
The Crow suddenly fell silent, not uttering a sound the entire way, as if pondering some profound question. After walking for a long time, it finally spoke:
"Saying 'Beauty and the Beast' is just a roundabout way of praising her as beautiful and me as the beast!"
Qingmu and Su Huilan were amused by it; they hadn't expected that it had been thinking about this the whole way while it remained silent.
Qingmu said, "Isn't that the truth?"
The Boss Coal said, "I admit she is indeed a beauty, but I am not a beast! I am not wild, and in terms of species, I belong to the bird class, not the livestock!"
"So that's what a beast is like?" Su Huilan joked.
"Uh..." The Crow felt like it had set a trap for itself, but couldn't refute it, so it could only say, "Well, Guagua, I'm a bird, a Divine Bird! As the ancients said, 'Among men, the Qingmu; among birds, the Black Crow,' that's me! Guagua..."
"Who said that?" Su Huilan laughed heartily, "Among men, the Qingmu; among birds, the Black Crow..."
She pondered the words over and over, then looked at Qingmu beside her. Looking at his out-of-place old trench coat, a large black bird perched on his messy hair, and the clattering of his slippers, she felt a little disoriented, wondering if he was some strange person who had traveled from ancient times.
She then recalled the couplet she had seen posted on the door of Qingmu Studio in Liuying Lane— "Only Qingmu can shelter the divine crow." She asked, "Hey, what does the couplet on your door mean?"
Qingmu said, "Oh, it doesn't mean anything. It was just something to celebrate the opening. The proprietress wrote it for me."
"Oh... she's quite talented!" Su Huilan said.
The Sun had risen high in the sky, but it was blocked by the dense foliage in the forest, leaving only sparse patches of light on the ground.
The Boss Coal was still pondering the name of the group. "I still don't think 'Beauty and the Beast' sounds good; ' The Black and White Two Gentlemen ' is better!"
Qingmu and Su Huilan both shook their heads and ignored him, only meowing Hanran in response.
Hearing the cat's call, the Crow suddenly remembered its Hanran dream. A brilliant idea struck it, and it exclaimed excitedly, " Guagua, caw, I've got it! Ruxue! Ruxue!... You are dazzlingly white, and I am utterly black! We are a match made in heaven! The name 'Black and White Two Gentlemen' suits us perfectly!"
It jumped off Qingmu's head, landed next to Hanran, and turned to Su Huilan, saying, "I'm not teaming up with you anymore. I want to team up with Hanran, oh no, I mean Ruxue. I want to be a couple with Ruxue! We'll be the Black and White Two Gentlemen!"
Su Huilan feigned disappointment and said, "Then what should I do?"
The Crow flapped its wings and said nonchalantly, "You and him form a 'quack' duo."
Su Huilan laughed and said, "Aren't you afraid I'll become the third party in your relationship now?"
The Crow said, "Come on, he's just a block of wood. If you can fit it in, then go ahead! Hanran, let's go! Guagua..." After it finished speaking, it spread its wings and took off, with Hanran following closely behind, running towards the hillside ahead.
Qingmu shrugged helplessly and said, "A bird can't spit out an egg, so don't take its words to heart!"
Su Huilan giggled, "I'm finding your bird more and more amusing!"
Emerging from the woods and climbing the small slope ahead, they saw Crow and cats standing motionless on a towering rock, like statues.
Qingmu climbed up as well. Before him lay a wide valley. The forest in the valley had clearly been extensively logged. Many thatched wooden houses were scattered across the open space, forming a human settlement. Some savage figures could be seen among them.
The river meanders like a giant serpent, winding its way through the valley, disappearing for a while before suddenly rising up against the mountain, transforming into a waterfall that rushes swiftly upwards.
Amidst the clouds and water, a misty haze rises, clouds stretch across the trees, and mountain reflections shimmer in the sky, making it seem as if there truly is a vast lake there...