Before Ji Yuan came calling, Yuhuai Mountain had already received a message from the Little Paper Crane, learning that Ji Yuan would be visiting and that he had come for the Mountain Imperial Conferment Talisman.
Ji Yuan arrived outside Yuhuai Mountain exactly half a day later. Xiezhi looked over the immortal aura surrounding Yuhuai Mountain, then turned his head toward Ji Yuan, who was slowly stepping away on the wind.
"I won't show myself. If they refuse to hand it over, it wouldn't be good for someone of your standing to get rough. Call me out, and I'll help you snatch it!"
Xiezhi was clearly exaggerating, but before Ji Yuan could say anything, he had already turned back into a scroll and flown into Ji Yuan's sleeve.
At that moment, Ji Yuan was standing on the wind amid the dense mist outside Yuhuai Mountain. He had only waited a short while when a crane cry came from afar.
"Screech—"
A Mountain Guarding Immortal Crane flew close. Seeing Ji Yuan standing in the wind, it immediately transformed into a man clad in feathered robes and cupped his hands in salute.
"So Mister Ji has arrived. If you do not mind, I would be willing to carry you into the mountain!"
"Mm. Thank you for the trouble."
Ji Yuan merely nodded in reply. The man transformed back into an immortal crane and slowly flew beneath Ji Yuan's feet. Only after Ji Yuan was sitting cross-legged upon its back did it beat its wings and fly into the mist, heading for Yuhuai Mountain.
Upon entering the Yuhuai Sacred Realm, the immortal crane did not pause at all. From time to time, it let out a cry that carried deep into Yuhuai Mountain, more like a formal announcement.
Within a medicine garden valley in