The King of Black Fog

"Where are you going to wander later?" Li Changzhou asked.

"Not today." She Man'er showed some reluctance, "It's the Heavenly Mending Gathering, all members of the Nuwa Clan have to go to the Wa Emperor Palace. Zhou Lang, you go to the Heavenly Mending Hall to wait for me first, I'll come find you as soon as I leave."

"Alright, you go first, I'll wait for you."

She Man'er hugged Li Changzhou briefly, waved goodbye reluctantly, took a couple of steps, and then her snake tail appeared, swiftly slithering away.

Li Changzhou leisurely strolled away from the platform, following the mountain path downwards.

Looking around, the path twisted like vines around the mountain, and platforms for practicing martial arts were constructed on either side like leaves growing on a vine.

At a glance, there was even a hint of terraced fields.

"Why so slow? I have plans today!" She Yi'er jumped out from behind a tree and dashed into Li Changzhou's arms.

Li Changzhou laughed and held her slender waist, taking a spin on the cloud-topped mountain path.

She Yi'er wrapped her arms around his neck, giggling; her laughter clear and melodious.

"I was right to teach you, wasn't I? I saw you being praised." Li Changzhou let go of her.

"Hmph!" She Yi'er turned her face away playfully.

"Hmph?" Li Changzhou pinched her nose tip.

"I just hmph!" She Yi'er let him pinch her nose tip, showing her sharp snake teeth in her smile, "It's because I'm clever, not because you taught well. I've known those moves forever!"

"Yes, yes, Yi'er the eldest lady is the smartest, born Divine, but... I wonder if there's still time to bathe and change clothes to go to the Wa Emperor Palace?"

"Ah!!" She Yi'er glanced at the sky, her face turned pale, "It's all your fault! Not good, I must hurry!"

"Where to?" Li Changzhou grabbed her slender shoulders with a playful grin.

"Let go, I really won't make it. If I can't reach the Wa Emperor Palace before the ceremony, I'll be expelled from the Nuwa Clan!"

She Yi'er broke free, her snake tail swaying hastily as she ran towards the station down the mountain path.

Arriving at the station.

"Haha! She Yi'er, see your arrogance now!"

"She Lan!" She Yi'er was furious.

The station had only one flying bird left, with She Lan and her siblings riding on it. If she couldn't get on the last flying bird, she'd definitely be late.

"Bow down!" She Lan's snake tail hissed, "Bow down and I'll take you!"

"She Lan, how dare you stop me, aren't you afraid I'll tell the Elders?" She Yi'er angrily said.

"Complain? Even if you do, what can you do? At worst, I'll sweep Holy Snake Mountain for three years, and you, She Yi'er, the great prodigy, will be expelled from the Nuwa Clan!"

She Yi'er's face turned pale.

"Bow or not?!" She Lan shouted.

"Bow down!"

"Bow down for Sister Lan!"

The others echoed.

She Lan prodded the flying bird, which took a few steps forward before starting to sprint.

"Will you bow?" She Lan asked one last time.

"Even if I die, I won't bow to you!"

"I gave you a chance! Die outside then! Go!"

Boom!

The flying bird shot off the platform, its enormous wings stirring a gale, She Yi'er's hair was in disarray, her fists clenched tightly as she watched the last flying bird disappear with She Lan into the clouds.

She curled up on the ground, burying her face in her snake tail.

Li Changzhou walked slowly, whistling all the way, and when he reached her, he asked with a smile, "Why are you crying?"

She Yi'er grabbed a stone and hurled it at him.

Li Changzhou caught the stone casually, weighed it in his hand, "The Beauty is emotional, is this our token of affection?"

He jokingly put the stone in his arms.

"Still laughing!" She Yi'er sat up straight, pounding his chest with her fists, "I'm about to be expelled from the Nuwa Clan!"

"If crying helps, then I won't laugh." Li Changzhou held her hands and wiped away her tears, "If you're expelled, I'll go with you. We'll become Rangers together, traveling from the Southern Wilderness to the North Sea, seeing all the sights in the world."

She Yi'er didn't seem to hear, sobbing loudly.

After a long time, she reluctantly accepted reality, asking with a tearful voice, "Are you for real?"

"If I lie, let a meteor fall from the sky and hit me."

"...Okay." She Yi'er wiped her tears again, "Then where do we go first? I'm not familiar with the outside at all."

"I don't know either, I used to just follow the direction of the wind."

"Fine!" She Yi'er, with a determined character, gritted her teeth, "From now on we'll go where the wind takes us!"

"Haha!" Li Changzhou laughed heartily.

She Yi'er smiled slightly.

"But—"

"You regret it?" She Yi'er immediately pressed for an answer.

"Before we leave, actually I have a way for us to reach the Wa Emperor Palace before the ceremony starts."

"...What?!" She Yi'er widened her eyes.

Li Changzhou laughed heartily, wrapped an arm around her waist, and soared into the sky.

The gale roared, with the Snake Valley's clear water alike veiling her face, making She Yi'er gasp for breath.

She saw the winding path, the practice platforms usually vast now as small as leaves, the vine of platforms vanished in a blink, numerous palaces, lofts, thatched huts, wooden cabins appeared like sesame seeds in her view.

In an instant, those too vanished, and she saw the Holy Snake Mountain.

Seeing past the endless grasslands, flowers stretching beyond sight, the Snake Valley that could never be crossed now became ribbons, like beautiful patches sewn on the Holy Snake Mountain.

Another blink, she turned her head, countless thousand-foot-high Snake Mountains appeared before her eyes.

"Are we flying?!" She loudly asked, still somewhat dazed.

"We are flying!" Li Changzhou replied with a smile.

"Only Immortal Position experts can fly, how can you fly?"

"Indeed, curious, I'm obviously at the Divine Position, yet able to fly?"