Chapter 2775: Chapter 2776: Return to the Capital City
"Some ancient sorcerers are beyond our imagination. Perhaps they didn’t intend to harm him, but merely mistook him for a demon, fearing he’d harm the villagers, so they resorted to this method." Bai Ruozhu sighed, realizing that it all stemmed from the Golden Wings Clan’s bloodline causing trouble outside.
Bei Gui remained silent for a while before saying seriously, "We will continue to search for our people and will no longer let them suffer alone."
"That’s good." Bai Ruozhu nodded.
Bei Gui went to call Ling Bo, only to quickly come running back, anxiously saying, "Ling Bo is missing!"
"Could he have flown away? Check under the boat." Bai Ruozhu was a bit exasperated, "Did he hear something and think we were going to kill him? He always seems to overthink things."
The Astrologer pointed to Bei Gui’s wings and said, "He really might have flown away..."
Bai Ruozhu was momentarily speechless, but Ling Bo shouldn’t have flown away. He would have needed to reach the deck first, and no one saw him up there.
Just as they were pondering this, suddenly a sailor shouted, "Golden Wings Clan, stop flying! There’s a storm coming!"
Bai Ruozhu and the others rushed to the deck. The sailor was definitely calling out to Ling Bo.
Sure enough, when they reached the deck, they saw Ling Bo already in the sky, flying into the distance. He probably didn’t have a sense of direction and was flying randomly.
Bei Gui hurriedly spread his wings and flew after him, shouting as he pursued, "Ling Bo, don’t run about. There’s a storm coming. You’ve been cursed, and Lady Bai can help lift the curse!"
Perhaps Ling Bo was accustomed to escaping for his life, for he flew at a decent speed. It took Bei Gui quite a while to catch up, only able to persuade him from behind.
"If you don’t lift the curse of misfortune, trouble will follow you everywhere. Do you really want to live like this forever? I’m your kin, would I lie to you?" Bei Gui anxiously called out.
Ling Bo seemed to take heed, slowing his pace, allowing Bei Gui to breathe a sigh of relief. He said, "Hurry back with me; the Yin Yang Master is waiting."
Suddenly, with a crack, lightning fell from the sky, immediately followed by thunder. Everyone on the boat exclaimed because that blinding strike of lightning just happened to hit Ling Bo!
"No wonder it’s a misfortune curse, too terrifying," Ning Yu muttered.
Bai Ruozhu’s mouth twitched as she saw the charred birdman drop from the sky into the sea. She quickly instructed Teng Liu and the others, "Quick, send some people to rescue him."
Bei Gui was terrified of the water, helplessly flying over the sea as Ling Bo sank below.
The sailors acted swiftly, immediately reaching the spot where he fell and diving in, but for some reason took a long time coming back up.
Bai Ruozhu’s heart raced. Could something else have gone wrong?
"I’ll take a look," Jiang Yichun said as he prepared to dive in when finally someone emerged from the water.
"We found him! But he was tangled in seaweed; it took us forever to cut him loose," a sailor shouted.
Alright, it truly was a series of unfortunate events.
They managed to rescue him without him being in too grave a state. Though he seemed unlucky, Ling Bo wasn’t that easy to kill.
"While he’s unconscious, let’s quickly lift the curse. Even one more second feels too risky," the Astrologer said with a shiver, eyeing the distant lightning. Keeping this up was too strenuous on him.
"Alright, let’s begin now," Ning Yu agreed.
The two brothers swiftly set up a ritual altar, beginning the spellwork. It took quite some effort to lift the curse, during which Ling Bo was in considerable pain, eventually vomiting a pile of dark substance.
Bai Ruozhu instructed the removal of the vomit for safety, then requested the Astrologer to cleanse the deck further.
Ling Bo slept for two days afterward. During this time, no more inexplicable misfortunes arose, leaving everyone much relieved, though they couldn’t help but find it amusing when mentioned.
When Ling Bo awoke, he seemed a different person, no longer so timid, as if affected by the prior curse.
Bei Gui and the others were overjoyed and told Bai Ruozhu, "Lady Bai, we will remember your great kindness. You’ve again helped the Golden Wings Clan."
Bai Ruozhu laughed, thinking that if Ling Bo and his unlucky constitution returned to the Golden Wings Clan, even they wouldn’t have peace.
"We should take our leave now. You’re always welcome to visit our island," said Bei Gui.
Ling Bo landed from above, suddenly kneeling on the deck, kowtowing to Bai Ruozhu, the Astrologer, and Ning Yu.
As the Golden Wings Clan departed, many sailors on the ship marveled that there were indeed people who could fly in the sky.
Even many years later when they recounted this scene to their descendants, they found it incredibly fascinating.
The ship sailed for several days before finally reaching Jade Island. The Village Chief was quite dismal not to see his granddaughter Wa Wei. Bai Ruozhu hesitated to say that Wa Wei stayed behind to perform tail fin surgery for the Merfolk and simply explained that she was in Fusang to see aristocratic patients and would return shortly.
The Village Chief was overjoyed, exclaiming excitedly to others, "My granddaughter can treat people now! My granddaughter is a doctor!"
After staying on the island for a night to replenish freshwater, they continued their journey. After over a month of travel, they finally sighted the mainland of Zhongyuan.
Suddenly, on the deck, the melodious song of the Merfolk was heard. Bai Ruozhu’s expression shifted as she hurriedly checked Jiang Yichun’s condition, thankfully finding him unaffected.
She found it a bit amusing, realizing she was overly nervous.
She slowly walked onto the deck, seeing the ancestor of the Merfolk standing at the ship’s bow, her white hair blowing in the wind as she gazed at the distant horizon, her song joyful yet somewhat melancholic.
Years ago, she chose the wrong direction, failing to find her way here.
Bai Ruozhu chose not to disturb her, hoping she would like it here and find her wishes fulfilled.
As the ship approached the pier, those aboard cheered. Li Jin immediately led a group to the palace to report, while Bai Ruozhu and the others disembarked, filled with emotion.
Teng Ya and her family disembarked too, with Teng Ya breaking into tears of excitement. It was the first time she left the ship and entered the Capital City as a descendant of the condemned.
She looked at Bai Ruozhu ahead, filled with gratitude and admiration. She knew if it were anyone else, they wouldn’t care about people like them. She had seen many officials board ships since childhood, none of whom paid them any mind, and some even didn’t consider them human.
So no matter how long it took, she intended to follow her and repay her benevolence properly.
"Let’s go see our brothers first and enter the palace later to meet the Emperor," Bai Ruozhu said.
Jiang Yichun smiled, "Alright, let the Emperor wait."
Mo Beishan sighed, "You enjoy yourselves. I’ll take the Prince and Princess of Fusang to the palace to report to the Emperor."
Jiang Yichun patted his shoulder, "Thank you for your hard work."
"It’s no trouble; I’m about to resign anyway," Mo Beishan said indifferently.
Tang Feng led Sa Tian to communicate with the Fusang officials, guiding the Fusang Delegation into the palace audience.
