Chapter Seven: The Rainbow Bird

The rainbow bird struggled to flap her wings, tying them together before her chest, and chattered something incomprehensible. Her body began to grow—slowly at first, then faster—until she matched the size of the large blue bird. She seized Li Sibai and soared upward, while the blue bird plummeted toward the dense, dark forest below, crashing onto the trees with a heavy thud.

The rainbow bird ignored her fallen rival, letting Li Sibai ride on her back as she flew toward the distant mountains. Yet she was wounded and burdened by Li Sibai’s weight, so her flight was sluggish. After several minutes, she could not go any further and descended gently onto the mountainside. As soon as Li Sibai stepped down, her body shrank to its original size, and she fainted.

Li Sibai gazed deeply at the little rainbow bird, full of helpless gratitude. He took a moment to steady himself and surveyed their surroundings—they were already deep within the Dark Forest, halfway up a mountain, surrounded by cliffs and precipices with no visible path.

What should he do now? He pondered for a long time but found no solution. He decided to try to revive the rainbow bird, since she had saved his life and brought him here. Perhaps, if she recovered, he might find a way out.

Li Sibai took a pouch from his pack containing some fresh water and gently offered a little to the rainbow bird. He also took out some dried rations and attempted to feed her, but no matter how he tried, he failed. The rainbow bird had fainted—how could she eat, and even if she could, would she touch dried food? Li Sibai could only smile bitterly.

He examined her wounds once more; aside from a gash on her lower abdomen, she was unharmed, and the blood had already stopped. Li Sibai took out his sect’s healing salve and applied it to the wound to prevent infection.

With these tasks done, Li Sibai composed himself, seated cross-legged on the mountainside, and began to meditate, circulating his inner energy through the Xuantian Heart Sutra.

He did not know how much time had passed, but night had fully fallen. Although his energy could only complete one cycle, he persisted tirelessly in his practice...

Beside him, the rainbow bird stirred, as if regaining consciousness.

She awoke and looked at the youth beside her. Li Sibai sensed movement and saw the little rainbow bird. Her wings were large and rippled, adorned with seven colored spots, her feathers resembling a pink skirt. The plumage atop her head was like a pale purple scarf, and she had a pair of sparkling eyes and a tiny beak. At her abdomen’s center was a heart-shaped mark, flanked by rainbow patterns. At that moment, her belly was tinged red, and her gaze was still dazed, not fully recovered.

After a brief hesitation, Li Sibai asked, “Would you like something to eat?”

The rainbow bird nodded obediently.

Li Sibai offered her some dried food, but she glanced at it with weary eyes and closed them in disappointment. Clearly, she had no interest in such fare.

“Heh, so picky!” Li Sibai mocked himself for his ignorance.

He rummaged through his pack and produced some snake meat he’d taken earlier. The rainbow bird sniffed it and began to feast ravenously.

Li Sibai suddenly understood, “So you’re a carnivorous bird.”

The bird rolled her eyes, muttering incomprehensible bird talk.

After eating some snake meat, her spirits visibly improved. Li Sibai gave her more water, and she soon drifted back into sleep.

Li Sibai, feeling sleepy himself, lay beside the rainbow bird and fell asleep as well.

When he woke again, it was already dawn. The morning sun was dazzling, but its warmth was comforting. Li Sibai ate some dried food, and the rainbow bird also awoke. The snake meat was gone, so Li Sibai offered her the snake gall.

To his surprise, the rainbow bird was especially excited upon seeing the gall, chattering incessantly, and quickly devoured it. Once finished, her eyes sparkled, her feathers grew glossier, and she seemed fully recovered.

Li Sibai was equally delighted. “Are you feeling better now? Can you take me out of this Dark Forest?”

The rainbow bird hesitated, then finally nodded. She vibrated her wings, tied them in front of her chest, spoke some bird language, and gradually grew larger.

She allowed Li Sibai to climb onto her back, then took flight with a powerful beat of her wings.

At first, the wind howled fiercely, and Li Sibai could barely keep his eyes open. He was anxious, fearing that the rainbow bird might again collapse mid-flight, so he clung tightly to her neck. After a while, he grew accustomed to the wind, his fear subsided, and he began to observe the scenery around him.

The Dark Forest was indeed lush and vast, with countless towering trees below. They flew for half an hour before finally escaping the forest’s bounds.

The rainbow bird found a flat spot and landed, shrinking to her dainty size. Sweat poured from her head, evidence of her exhaustion.

Li Sibai gave her some water, but now he only had dried food and snake skin left. The rainbow bird glanced around and chose to swallow the snake skin as well.

After eating, the rainbow bird looked at Li Sibai, fluttered her wings, perched on his shoulder, then burrowed into his shirt at his chest, and soon fell asleep.

Li Sibai could only shake his head with a wry smile—a bird that could eat and sleep without care.

He ate some dried food himself, regaining much of his strength. Remembering that his sect would be worried about him, he determined his bearings and set off for the sect.

The place where the rainbow bird had landed was quite close to the Xuantian Sword Sect. After walking for several hours, Li Sibai finally returned to the sect.

Upon entering, he was shocked—the sect was in disarray, nothing like its usual order. Li Sibai stopped a disciple to ask what had happened, and learned that the sect leader had sent people to search for him. He could only laugh and cry at the news.

Li Sibai decided to find Uncle Cai Da to report his safety, but as he walked, he met Yao Xueqing. She had not joined the search for Li Sibai due to other matters. Seeing him, her eyes lit up.

“Xiaobai, you’re back!”

Li Sibai looked at his senior sister, overwhelmed with emotion. Countless words stuck in his throat. Though only a day had passed since their separation, the experiences and the longing in the face of life and death surged forth all at once, and his eyes grew moist.