Chapter 367: Chapter 182: The Valiant Bald-headed Gull
They were enormous, each standing over three meters tall. Although their features resembled those of humans, something felt off.
They looked more like a close relative of humanity.
You could still tell them apart from humans at a glance.
Since arriving in this world, Zhao Rui had seen many Exotic Beasts. Even the giant Nine-Orifice Soul-Devouring Worm from the East Sea that had swallowed them hadn’t truly surprised him.
But these giants were different.
’Are these considered Aliens?’
Zhao Rui wondered to himself.
They had human-like bodies and facial structures, but the finer details were clearly different. They were enormous and possessed special abilities.
’Yeah, they probably count. After all, the Engineers from *Prometheus* were more or less the same.’
’How could they not be considered Aliens?’
This world hadn’t discovered the existence of Blue Star. Its technological level was roughly the same as his previous world’s, or perhaps even a little behind.
The mainstream scientific community still had no definitive conclusion about the existence of Gui Xu.
After all, no one had ever truly seen Gui Xu in its entirety, nor had any scientist ever entered it to properly survey its hydrology and geology.
At this thought, Zhao Rui glanced back at Mo Ling’Er. She was fair-skinned and beautiful, with a tall, well-proportioned, and curvaceous figure.
’Logically, she should count as one, too.’
But even though they were in the same world, they didn’t feel like they belonged to the same species.
This confirmed what he had heard before: the people of Gui Xu were a mix of races, and the Twelve Barbaric Races were perhaps the true natives.
And the Gui Xu people, who currently occupied most of Gui Xu, were likely an outside race as well.
’Where did they come from?’
’The Ancient Xia and Shang Period? Or were they visitors from other places, maybe even other planets or dimensions?’
Zhao Rui’s mind raced.
Meanwhile, the Manghuang Race People outside began wielding large clubs, easily killing the Exotic Beasts below, which were too intimidated by the giant bird’s oppressive presence to move.
After killing them, they tossed the carcasses one by one onto the bird’s back.
"They rarely appear near the borders of our former territory! That’s why I don’t know much about them."
Mo Ling’Er, who had also witnessed the scene, couldn’t help but transmit her thoughts.
"ROAR!"
Suddenly, an earth-shattering roar erupted in the distance. The resulting blast of air was like a hurricane, making the trees tremble violently.
The Manghuang Race People exchanged glances and quickly leaped onto the bird’s back. The giant bird flapped its wings, rapidly gained altitude, and fled into the distance.
Just after they left, a huge monster with a human face, a fish’s body, and arms and legs came charging over recklessly.
The roar had come from it.
Seeing the Manghuang Race People flee, the strange fish let out a couple of angry roars, then turned and returned to the sea.
Once the monster-fish was gone, life returned to the isolated island. The Exotic Beasts, which had been acting so high and mighty before, began to roar and fight once more.
’Don’t tell me this entire island is this monster-fish’s private garden and pantry.’
Zhao Rui’s eyelid twitched.
’This place is a total hellhole. A dog wouldn’t even bother coming here... and if one did, it wouldn’t even be enough to get stuck in the teeth of these monsters.’
’I can’t stay here. I have to leave, now!’
"I know this creature. It’s called a Lingyu. And... it’s edible!"
Mo Ling’Er blurted out after a long moment of hesitation.
Hearing her speak, Zhao Rui finally remembered the woman behind him and quickly shot out of the tree hollow.
He rubbed his thigh; it felt like it was probably bruised.
Zhao Rui paid her no mind and flew straight off the island, heading in the same direction the Manghuang Race had gone.
Mo Ling’Er had expected him to be angry, to even punish her, but he did nothing.
He flew away without even giving her a second glance.
Just as Mo Ling’Er was about to give chase, a sudden pressure emanated from her Divine Soul, forcing her to a halt.
When she looked up again, Zhao Rui had vanished without a trace.
"Who wants to follow you anyway!"
Humiliated and angry, Mo Ling’Er flew off in the opposite direction.
After flying for several minutes, she still felt indignant, so she turned around and chased after Zhao Rui again.
...
Over the vast sea, a large bird resembling a bald seagull soared above the waves.
Its wingspan was over twenty meters, like a small airplane.
Zhao Rui sat cross-legged on its back, using his Sword Pointing technique to create gusts of air that directed its flight path.
The bird was quite intelligent. Zhao Rui had captured it by a stroke of luck and made it his mount.
’When I can finally go back, I’ll definitely take this bird with me... It would be even better if it were a crane, though.’
’Like in *Immortal Crane Divine Needle*!’
An image surfaced in Zhao Rui’s mind: the dashing figure of Bai Yunfei from the *Immortal Crane Divine Needle* movies, descending gracefully on the back of a crane.
Ever since he’d acquired this giant bird, Zhao Rui’s journey across the sea had become much easier.
And much safer, too.
At the very least, ordinary birds didn’t dare attack it. And if danger approached, it would cry out a warning well in advance.
This gave Zhao Rui time to prepare.
With the bird’s help, both man and beast had feasted on the meat of many precious exotic birds and strange fish.
"CAW! CAW!"
The bald seagull let out a loud cry.
Zhao Rui looked up and was immediately overjoyed. He could see land—a true continent, stretching as far as the eye could see.
’Dangerous or not, at least a continent is better than an island.’
Zhao Rui directed the bald seagull to land in a relatively secluded canyon.
The vegetation was dense and the area was full of ravines, making it a good place to stay hidden.
Zhao Rui jumped off the bald seagull’s back and patted its head, indicating that it was free to go.
The bald seagull flapped its wings. It looked carefully at Zhao Rui, then up at the blue sky, and with a lift of its head, it took flight.
It circled in the air several times before finally flying far away.
After the bald seagull left, Zhao Rui followed the canyon eastward, heading deeper inland.
Inspired by his experience with the bald seagull, Zhao Rui wanted to catch another Exotic Beast to serve as a mount.
Unfortunately, though he walked for a long time, he saw no Exotic Beasts, only a few small wild animals.
’Could it be that these Exotic Beasts only live in the sea?’
Zhao Rui was a bit confused.
Fortunately, his Power was profound, so crossing mountains and ridges felt like walking on level ground. He didn’t feel tired at all.
He sped through the canyon. When thirsty, he drank from mountain springs. When hungry, he caught small animals to roast, or picked fruits he saw other creatures eating.
He traveled like this for ten days and ten nights.
Finally, at the end of the valley, Zhao Rui saw man-made steps.
’People!’
Zhao Rui was overjoyed, but he also raised his guard to the highest Level.
’Beasts are terrifying, but the hearts of men are even more so.’
Zhao Rui wasn’t sure who he would encounter. Gui Xu people? Manghuang people? Members of Gui Xu’s Martial Arts Sects? Or perhaps beings of some other race?
He cautiously approached the steps, then with a great leap, shot straight up the cliff face beside them.
In just a moment, he reached the cliff’s summit.
At the summit, the trees were lush and filled with the sound of birdsong.
Zhao Rui followed the steps and the man-made stone path, scouting ahead for about ten minutes.
The scenery ahead suddenly opened up. The trees gave way to a wide, flat clearing.
A dozen or so tents were pitched there.
Outside, twenty to thirty people were gathered around a bonfire.
They were chattering away in a language Zhao Rui couldn’t understand.
Their appearance was quite similar to the Manghuang people he had seen before, but they were clearly a size smaller. The tallest among them looked to be only about two meters tall.
’Still the Manghuang Race.’
Zhao Rui was a little disappointed.
He couldn’t speak their language and they were a different race entirely. Communication would be difficult.
Zhao Rui watched them for a while. Their lifestyle wasn’t much different from the primitive tribes of his previous world.
Although they had moved beyond eating raw meat and drinking blood, their every action still had a savage quality.
Just as Zhao Rui was about to leave, he suddenly felt an immense pressure.
’Is it one of those strange birds?’
Zhao Rui quickly hid himself in the canopy of a tree.
A moment later, a strange bird carrying a Manghuang Race member over three meters tall landed in the clearing.
The downdraft from its enormous wings sent the tents in the clearing scattering in all directions.
The entire tribe scattered and fled. Only a dozen or so able-bodied men, holding weapons made of bone, stood their ground, roaring at the giant bird and its rider.
But they were no match for the giant bird.
A few flaps of its wings were all it took to send the men flying.
After a moment of this chaos, the three-meter-tall Desolate Warrior grew impatient. He took a conch-shaped instrument made of bone from the bird’s back.
"WOOOOOOOO..."
In no time, the low, deep drone of the instrument began to spread through the air.
