Luo Binhan looked at her for a while, and then looked at the quiet and peaceful wilderness. Both became different from what he was familiar with.
"Well, the new hair style is nice." He said to Lan Que, "How did you get it?"
"I have to ask you, Luo Han. I don't know what you did, but when the rain came down just now, I felt a very scary ether concentration. That is natural ether that has not been shaped by spells and rituals. When it When I landed on this planet, it seemed to become some kind of directional concept related to life. My work clothes were caught in the rain, and they sprouted immediately. I couldn't protect the ether at that concentration, so I followed its direction. I cast the spell myself and made a wooden shell, and it turned out to be completely smooth! If I cast it normally by myself, I definitely wouldn't be able to make it so delicate and flexible."
Lan Que shook his long hair made of rattan and showed his flexible hands to Luo Binhan. It is grown from the young branches of a new tree and can be bent flexibly inward and outward. Her skin was covered with brown-green bark, but it didn't seem to affect her flexibility - all the joints were connected by roots. That makes the blue magpie look like an alternative wooden robot.
"Actually, I still have the work clothes underneath." Lan Que told him, "It's like wearing a protective suit that can separate me from the ether of the outside world."
She lowered her head to let the dew from her eyes drain away, revealing the hollow tree hole. Sure enough, Luo Binhan discovered the familiar red light from inside.
That cleared up some of his doubts, but more questions popped up. He looked left and right, unable to recognize where he was. This is a field shrouded in morning light, with strings of orange wildflowers with long pointed petals swaying in the wind. The air is moist and cool, with a bit of chill after rain.
He searched for a while and finally found something familiar in this strange world. A few kilometers away, the outline of the Tangchi Mountains is undulating, like a blue dragon lying on the ground.
Luo Binhan grabbed Lan Que's wet arm: "Which side are we on?"
"Which side? Oh, you mean the star layer? I think we are still on the planet where the insect mother butterfly lives, but..."
The blue magpie looked around, and then said as if it was final: "I think it's over. Did you notice those orange flowers? I often see them in the mountains, but not here. But on the other side. Wild. People call it the 'messenger flower'. When it opens it means it's time to harvest the fruits. But this flower is very demanding on the environment and I don't think it can survive in the low ether. There must have been very big changes here. "
"Yes, I can see it." Luo Binhan stared at her face and said, "Fortunately, there are no mushrooms growing on me."
"What are you talking about, Luo Han? Isn't this what you did?"
Luo Binhan didn't quite understand what she meant, but Lan Que looked so sure that he didn't dare to deny it outright. He described to Blue Magpie what he was sure was reality: the two of them were sitting in a flying machine and saw giants fighting on the mountains.
"Then I saw a woman." Luo Binhan said uncertainly.
"You did tell me that." Lan Que acknowledged.
"Then did you see it?"
Lan Que shook her head, but this time she didn't announce to Luo Binhan that it was just a simple illusion. They just looked at each other in confusion, but this time Luo Binhan didn't feel anxious, just a little heavy. He vaguely felt that Lan Que's statement was at least partially correct - the matter was over for the time being.
He immediately thought of Jing Huang and Momo Luo. But in the direction of the mountains, there were neither red clouds rising into the sky, nor gleaming silver giants. Yaleriga, who had witnessed him flying into the abyss, also didn't come to find him - for this, he felt quite lucky now.
"Let's go there to find Lao Mo." He suggested to Lan Que.
Lan Que agreed. She stood up and stood firmly on the ground. Her new wood seemed rather awkward at the joints, relying on pliable roots to provide room for bending. This inevitably makes the blue magpie look a little wobbly when walking, like a tree just pulled out of the ground. But she still walked back and forth happily, and then lifted up her long hair made of ivy.
"Look at this." She said to Luo Binhan, "The Master Shengzhiye I met when I was a child is like this. Her skin looks like leaves, and her hair is also grown from vine branches. I often see her hair blooming and... There are birds singing inside. But those are not overalls, but the blessing of the forest she received - before I entered the White Tower, I thought all mages looked like her! If I pass the mage exam, I will definitely do it A set of robes like this, but I think the texture of Huguang leaves is more suitable for skin, at least the joints need to be improved. What do you think, Luo Han?"
Luo Binhan thinks this look is really beautiful and looks like a magic expert. He didn't mind pretending to be a bird and singing to the blue magpie, but it was a pity that his voice was still mute and his limbs were so weak that he could hardly stand up.
Lan Que immediately came over to help him up and suggested that he rest for a while. But Luo Binhan had no intention of waiting, so Lan Que had no choice but to support him with his wooden arms and walk with him towards the mountains thousands of meters away.
The road seemed extremely long under the stumbling steps, and Luo Binhan remembered their aircraft. He asked Lan Que about the whereabouts of the public property Silence, but Lan Que told him that the aircraft was finished.
"You really don't remember, Luo Han." She said, "You broke it."
Luo Binhan had no idea, so he had to ask Lan Que to explain what was going on. He saw the wooden girl put her fingers on her chin and made a banging sound.
"I can only tell you the part I saw," she mused. "You told me you heard a woman singing, but I didn't hear the sound you described, and then you started talking to yourself and said Writing words about mountains and dragons. At that time, I thought you had fallen into some kind of spiritual illusion, after all, it was very common in the etheric tide. But then I found that you had been holding on to the ritual vessel you brought from the Moon Realm... …That’s a very strange thing, Luo Han, I can tell you frankly that during the time when you were staring at the mountains, I secretly took it out of your pocket and put it under my own seat, Because I was worried that you would do something impulsive. But suddenly it came back to your hands somehow, and I didn't detect any signs of casting at all - maybe I was attracted by other things at that time? You are in my Throw the chip before you stop it and catch it again.”
"Shall I catch it again?"
"Yes. Then something was obviously wrong with you. I couldn't cite much evidence, but at that time I felt as if you had become another person. Not the rude and manic you, but...you made people It feels elegant, but also a little scary.”
Luo Binhan's face twisted. He couldn't imagine what Lan Que was describing. He usually used chopsticks instead of stirring sticks to drink coffee.
"I also don't think it was you." Lan Que said honestly, "You are possessed by something, Luo Han, that's what I thought at the time. It must have been made by the moon creature that gave you the gift. I wanted it to return my body to you, but at that time it glanced at me... My work clothes suddenly lost power. Later I found that a part in the core turned into a crystal, which affected signal transmission. I could only watch It takes you out - out of the air. You go straight through the aircraft and rise as if on a rope. You stay in the air for a moment and then disappear completely. At that time I was trapped in the aircraft and wanted to I flew up and picked you up, but all of a sudden my work clothes stopped."
"You mean it's broken? But you can move it now?"
"No, no, it's not damaged, except for a small replaceable part that turned into crystal. The strange thing is that it completely failed during that time, and all the spells carried on it were temporarily eliminated. Can you understand? , Luo Han? It was as if I fell into a place where ether could not exist, a place...complete nothingness. It's hard for me to explain that feeling, but I was really scared at the time. Fortunately, that feeling disappeared quickly. .My work clothes resumed operation. It was dawn, and the ether rain was still falling. It activated the vitality of this land and made my work clothes sprout. I floated around in the rain and finally found that place where you were sleeping. .”
Lan Que laughed stiffly twice, and then said: "This is really a strange encounter. So what about you, Luo Han? What do you remember?"
Luo Binhan shook his head absentmindedly.
"You don't remember anything?"
"No, I remember it all," Luo Binhan said, "but I can't fucking explain it."
His answer aroused Blue Magpie's curiosity even more. Under the strong request of the White Tower apprentice, he could only lick his dry lips and try to describe his weird nightmare.
"I saw a man with black gloves taking the chips." He said to Blue Magpie, "He said it was going to rain, and then it rained blood from the sky. He walked out of the human-headed boat holding my eyes..."
"Human-headed ship?"
"Don't ask me. When he stepped out of the human-headed boat, the sky was filled with glowing lines..."
They marched hard in the wilderness for a long time, and Luo Binhan finally finished telling his dream. Lan Que listened attentively, as if he was reviewing a very important matter. When Luo Binhan stopped speaking, she nodded solemnly.
"I understand," she said, "but I think the second half is a bit vague. Can you recount it in a little more detail?"
"Okay, where to start?"
"Ship with a human head."
Luo Binhan looked at Lan Que's expression and told her in a serious tone: "You'd better not study this matter."
"Okay, but... Luo Han, I still have to tell you something. When you - or some ancient law attached to you rose into the sky, I noticed that there were exactly two stars twinkling in the sky at that time , to your left and right. You took out the fairy knife from under your coat, and it was burning with fire. I couldn't help but think that image was like..."
"Don't think about it." Luo Binhan said, "It's over anyway."
They kept walking. As expected, Lan Que stopped asking about nightmares, but Luo Binhan couldn't help but think about it. He did not tell any details, such as the face that resembled Zhou Yu at the end of the dream.
That made him feel strangely heavy. When they reached the bottom of the mountain he opened his mouth and called out: "Blue Magpie."
"What?"
“Why do moths fly into flames?”
Lan Que looked at him in surprise.
"What kind of problem is this? Luo Han, there are many reasons. Disya Soul Moth feeds on flames, and Van Lunga Moth relies on temperature to determine the gender of its offspring..."
"No, I'm just talking about ordinary moths, small flying insects with no abilities, you understand?"
Luo Binhan trudged up the hillside and continued to ask: "Why do they put out fires? Is it really because they like light and heat?"
Blue Magpie laughed.
"Of course not, Luo Han, what are you thinking? That was a complete accident - many insects rely on the light of the sun and moon to determine the direction. That is their natural habit. But then there was fire on the ground, which interfered with their ability to sense direction. Control of direction. Of course they are not trying to burn themselves to death, they are just getting lost because of the light... This sounds a bit cruel, right? But it is really difficult to avoid, unless you buy the protection of the White Tower Moth lantern! Have you seen that, Luo Han? That is a very interesting prop, I hope I can give you one if I have the opportunity."
Luo Binhan was actually not very interested in the moth lantern, but Lan Que's words somehow gave him some comfort and made his heart feel a little lighter.
They climbed over the mountains and found Momolo lying under a tree. The latter was looking at the sky with his eyes open. He seemed uninjured, but his expression was a little confused.
Luo Binhan stepped forward and patted him: "Old Mo, where is the young master?"
Momolo doesn't know either. Now there were two people supporting Luo Binhan, and the trio continued to go deep into the mountains, looking for Jing Huang whose whereabouts were unknown. When the last remaining rain stopped completely, they finally found their target under the cliff.
The valley surrounded by cliffs is full of flowering trees. The red and white flowers shone like clouds. Jing Huang turned his back to them and sat under a peach blossom tree, looking up at the flower branches.
Luo Binhan finally felt the weight on his chest disappear. He strode forward and grabbed Jing Huang's hair.
"Hey, Master, why are you sitting here alone..."
Jing Huang's head lifted up with the tug, as hollow and weak as a puppet.
The look in his eyes had dried up.
