Author's notes

A tribe continues...

A demon decided...

Near the northern border, a young woman...

Chapter 23 – The escape of the Biyi birds

The Biyi bird tribe was forced to abandon the Fan Yin Valley because of the hunt promoted by demon masters from the Demonic Mountain.

The tribe was made up of a few clans and they all agreed on the leadership of the third princess, Xiangli Aranya, of the white bird tribe because of her battlefield exploits and lethal expertise in handling various weapons as well as spells, in addition to strategy by defending all the bird demons from the brutal attacks of the demon masters along with the fact that she was a companion of Shen Ye who was considered the most powerful bird demon in the tribe and successor to the late Xi Ze who, upon contracting a fatal wound, sacrificed himself taking the maximum number of enemies with you in the last attack they suffered from your hunters.

Princess Xiangli Aranya took the lead because the king, Xiangli Que, as well as his two sisters, one older and one younger, respectively Xiangli Junuo and Xiangli Changdi, were captured a few months ago in one of the master hunt attacks of demons from the Demonic Mountain against them while the last attack was a few days ago, making her question how they managed to find them so easily.

In these attacks, there were those who sacrificed themselves using a suicidal technique to stop the persecution for a while while the other members of the tribe fled. It was the only way to stop the advance of their hunters.

At least for a while, allowing them to get away as soon as possible.

Beside her was her beloved Shen Ye, a member of the nightbird clan, who currently held the position of archmage and general. The title of archmage was given to the most powerful bird demon in the kingdom, thus indicating his status before others. He and the princess loved each other, going so far as to mark each other as companions while they hoped to someday find a safe place for their people and thus be able to perform the traditional wedding ceremony of their species.

Next to the couple was the first prince, Xiangli He, who in theory should be the one who would lead, but he himself knew his limitations because despite being kind, he was weak. Her younger sister was the fittest in that situation due to all the suffering she went through and that shaped her into who she was today. The neglect, humiliation and mistreatment, including in the fearsome cage that was torture for those who were imprisoned, made her even stronger.

The eldest regretted not having been able to help her more due to his impotence in the past and the fact that his uncle Xiangli Que, who became his stepfather and consequently the new king when he married his mother after her death, of his biological father, having done everything to keep him away from the palace.

The prince still remembered the chaos that had been his father's death and that it took several months for the tribe to calm down, with him knowing that it was thanks to the incessant acting of his biological mother Qing Hua's younger brother.

He still remembered his mother who always despised him because she never loved her first husband and who transferred that hatred to her eldest son because he reminded her of him. Xiangli He was treated with neglect and raised by a babysitter, only to be sent to garrison the farthest border of their once kingdom when he grew older.

Therefore, when his mother was expelled after failing to poison the king who survived and revealing the person who ordered his murder, the prince felt nothing because the woman was a stranger to him while he had felt great satisfaction upon learning of his mother's depression monarch because Xiangli Who truly loved his mother.

In fact, she was the main catalyst for him to revolt and kill his brother, who was the king, just to marry the one she loved, acquiring the crown as a secondary consequence in his uncle's view.

After all, his primary interest has always been to marry his beloved Qing Hua and not the crown.

The eldest prince comes out of his thoughts with the voice of his sister who was taking them to a new destination by seeking the most isolated places because he feared that there were still demon masters on the tribe's trail.

After all, she wanted to save her people after the king and their two other sisters were captured by demon masters.

"Is everything okay, my brother?"

"Yes."

"You were distracted."

"I was lost in reminiscence."

"Try to be more attentive, prince. The bastards could appear at any moment and we need to be agile in our escape." Shen Ye speaks as he slightly slows down his running to get closer to the prince who is following close behind.

The young man looks at his cousin's serious face and consents, knowing how irresponsible he was while being grateful that they have members of the Night Bird Clan among the remaining clans, with Shen Ye being considered the most powerful not only in his clan but also, of the entire tribe, with his sister occupying second place in terms of power while he knew that he was one of the weakest and that he only had that level of power above his people because of his lineage.

"He's right. You can't be too careful, brother."

"Yes."

There, Aranya looks at a point just behind him and sees his uncle who was also the bailiff when they had a kingdom in the Fan Yin Valley.

For a brief moment, he looks at her, displaying an angry look that then becomes neutral when he notices the look in her direction.

However, it was enough time for the princess to identify the countenance at the same time that this reaction did not escape Shen Ye's watchful eye, and then, the couple returned to look forward, with the member of the night bird clan speaking to his beloved in front of him approaching her again after making sure that the prince ran again, "I found it strange that the demon masters found us so easily previously. I also found it strange that the king and those two ran in the worst possible direction, ending up falling into the trap of those bastards from the Demonic Mountain."

"I think so too. As for my uncle, he adored my mother who practically raised him as she was the eldest after the death of their parents. I imagine how he must have felt when he had to receive the royal order to expel her If it had been anyone else, she would have been killed. The king was unable to condemn to death the one he loved so deeply."

"I had some soldiers observe him discreetly and ordered them to reveal any suspicious behavior to you as well."

"Thanks."

Some time later, the couple sees something in the distance and after getting closer, they identify it as caves in a rocky wall facing the ocean.

"I think those rocks up above and the fact that the sea is just below will provide good temporary shelter. We should take a break." She spoke while looking at her people behind her, who were looking tired, especially the cubs, although the smaller ones were carried by their parents and their friends who didn't have cubs.

In fact, since they were expelled from their original home and forced to continually flee, it was decided that no one would have new cubs until there was a safe place for them to stay.

After all, it was easy for them to control birth rates because there were fertile periods identified by their keen sense of smell at the same time that only their respective mates were affected after marking each other.

Furthermore, even though there was this stimulus, bird demons were not like animals that could not resist instincts.

Therefore, they were able to deal with it smoothly.

When Aranya communicated the decision not to have cubs, explaining that escaping would be complicated, everyone accepted because they had not yet found a safe place to create a new kingdom and there were demon masters behind them. Having a child in these conditions was crazy.

In the distance, the princes' uncle wrings his fists while looking at the last ones who needed to take revenge because even though it was the king's order to expel his beloved older sister, it didn't change the fact that among the pain and poignant revolt, he still but upon discovering that she was captured by demon masters after being expelled, he decided to avenge her on everyone who had the blood of the royal family in their body at the same time he knew that he needed to be careful because of Shen Ye who was considered the most skilled and powerful of the species.

After all, he would fiercely protect his companion from any threat while the third princess's level was high, making her a difficult target, as well.

As for Xiangli He, he knew he could leave it for last because it would be absolutely easy to get rid of him. His hardest targets were Aranya and especially her companion.

Without anyone noticing, not even the soldiers, the bird demon leaves another trail for the demon masters to find the tribe by taking advantage of the dust that was raised briefly when some fell to the ground exhausted from the time they had been running in their human forms in instead of being in their true forms.

He knew it was dangerous, but his heart filled with pain, fury and bitterness did not allow him to realize the madness he was committing again, making him not care about the innocent people who would pay the price for his betrayal. What mattered was just revenge.

A few minutes later, the princess uses magic and amplifies her voice by imbuing it with demonic power to reach all the members of her tribe.

"Let's stop at those cliffs that border the ocean. This will give us an advantage if we need to flee while also allowing for better reaction time to a possible ambush. Plus, we can hunt fish to eat."

They agree and many are relieved that they can rest at the same time as they can eat something while preparing to organize the hunt and who will go first because they want to prevent the demon masters from finding them easily.

Tens of kilometers away, close to the border with the North, a young woman was walking with a camping backpack along with another bag filled with medicinal herbs.

The girl was an apprentice doctor who came from a long line of royal doctors.

She also had a hidden pulse and thanks to the fact that her grandfather had saved the queen's life, the king offered a reward that could be requested whenever the young woman's grandfather wished.

When it was discovered that his beloved granddaughter had a hidden pulse, he earnestly requested that his reward be to keep his granddaughter with him by allowing her to stay with her family instead of being sent to the demon grandmaster's sect or one of the demon master regions.

As the king agreed to the request, the young woman grew up with her family while receiving private lessons from a demon master to deal with her hidden pulse while studying medical knowledge to the point where she began to emerge as one of the best doctors of the kingdom despite still being young, in addition to being the youngest in history to perfectly master the ancient acupuncture.

At that moment, she crouches down and carefully picks a plant with orange leaves near its roots from the soft snow, then placing it in a kind of travel vase.

Then, the girl carefully puts it inside the large bag that she had hanging on her back, and then walks again while discreetly looking at a beautiful necklace that her grandfather gave her when she left on her family's famous journey to seek new herbs and also to help sick people while seeking to acquire practical knowledge. It was a journey that would take a few years, with the young woman managing to maintain contact as well as her last location through a message stamp, although it was only one-way because her grandfather did not have the spiritual power to send it back or to send a message to she.

Xiao Lanhua was raised by her beloved grandfather because her parents died while saving lives during a terrible accident.

In addition to raising her, he also told her several stories from his past, including when he was young and made his journey, just as all members of his family did once in their lives in search of new knowledge and renewal of learning, aiming to guarantee the best treatment and cure for your patients.

After all, it was not recommended to be confined solely to the teachings of the Imperial Medical Academy because the teaching was limited and on several occasions, wandering doctors demonstrated superior practical knowledge to those who never traveled and who were only restricted to what they learned in books.

As she had a hidden pulse, the young woman sought to specialize in medical and healing teachings using her powers, even going so far as to unite spiritual power and skill with the acquired knowledge of acupuncture, with the king guaranteeing access to books and scrolls from the Grandmaster of Demons' sect because her family were the royal family's personal doctors although they had the freedom to practice elsewhere as long as no member was not caring for the king. When treating the monarch, this doctor had to live in seclusion until the sovereign was cured because no one could know the ruler's real state of health.

While walking away from the place after harvesting that plant that had spiritual properties and that only grew in the mountains and in the cold, the girl looked at the medallion that had a bright blue stone at the tip and when she asked what that jewel was, her grandfather said that it was called the firefly stone.

She confessed that it was a strange name, but it suited because the object seemed to shine by itself in a warm and comforting light.

In fact, as she watched him, she remembered the story behind that necklace and that it was one of the many stories that had fascinated her since she was young.