A Record of A Mortal's Journey to Immortality

Chapter 42: Cloudwing Bird

“You’re getting way too cocky. That kid is very clever, not someone to be underestimated. Don’t think the mission is accomplished only to have it fail at the last moment, and all be lost because of him,” suddenly, another young man's voice echoed in Doctor Mo’s mind.

Doctor Mo’s expression changed drastically, a cold frost seeming to settle on his face as he harshly scolded, “Yu Zitong, mind your own business! I don’t need your lectures. If I succeed, naturally, you’ll get your share. But as for the technique you gave me, there seem to be flaws. You’re hoping I’ll encounter some mishap, aren’t you?” The suspicion in Doctor Mo’s tone was unmistakable.

The voice seemed quite fearful of Doctor Mo. After hearing his threats, it hurriedly explained, “How could there be any mistakes? Didn’t you test it on animals? As for the one that died, that was just because you’re unfamiliar with the technique. Besides, that one death shouldn’t affect your plan.”

“Hmph! I hope that’s the case. Unfortunately, I can’t practice any more, or I’d have a better chance,” Doctor Mo said, pondering the last time he experimented with the technique. The last trace of doubt in his heart finally vanished.

After he finished speaking, the voice seemed to have learned its lesson and no longer responded. Doctor Mo was left muttering to himself nervously, making the atmosphere inside the stone chamber feel especially eerie.

Meanwhile, Han Li was in an inconspicuous mountain valley—more remote and hidden than the place where he met Li Feiyu.

The terrain here was long and narrow, squeezed between two steep peaks into a shape like the character “一” (a horizontal line). Both ends of the valley were blocked tightly by dense shrubs, completely impassable. Aside from a secret rope hanging down from the shorter peak, there was no other way out.

Moreover, there was a thick growth of thorny bushes covering large areas of the land, leaving only a small clearing where Han Li could stand. At the top of the valley, countless unknown vines wove together to form a natural green canopy, allowing Han Li not to worry about anyone accidentally passing by and spotting him below.

Han Li placed his belongings beneath a giant boulder, then returned to the center of the clearing. He closed his eyes to contemplate for a moment, then opened them with a resolute expression and quietly said, “I’ll start with the hardest to master — the soft bone technique.”

And so, Han Li began his solitary path of cultivation.

He had no idea that not far from him, a little yellow bird was perched on a branch, watching him tirelessly day and night. Only after seeing that Han Li had no intention of running away did the bird decide not to fly back and report to its master.

Time passed swiftly. Four months flew by, and half of that time was already gone.

At this moment, the valley appeared empty at a glance; Han Li was nowhere to be seen. Only the little yellow bird remained, calmly staying in place. It preened its feathers with its beak, ignoring the absence of its target, as if it had completely abandoned its mission.

Suddenly, another gray bird passed through the green vines above and flew into the valley. After circling a few times, it landed on a yellow wooden stake at the edge of the clearing, apparently planning to rest for a while before flying away.

The little yellow bird tilted its head and looked at the newcomer with a proud gaze, then showed a human-like mocking expression, clearly disdainful of the gray bird.

The gray bird stood on one leg, glanced around, and finally spotted its fellow bird. It spread its wings, as if wanting to fly over.

Suddenly, an unexpected event occurred: a withered yellow hand descended from above and swiftly grabbed the confused gray bird.

The sudden turn of events terrified the bird. It struggled desperately, but it could not break free from the control of the hand’s owner.

Only then did the bird realize that the wooden stake it was standing on had transformed into a young boy wearing yellow clothes. The boy had dark skin and ordinary looks, with thick eyebrows and big eyes. Apart from a somewhat clear gaze, he had no other striking features.