The Spirit of Gourmet

Chapter 426 The Guardian Bird Clan

"Mr. Song, it's too dangerous here."

Qin Lang couldn't help but speak up, "In your current condition, you could faint at any moment and then be consumed by nightmares."

"Follow me, I'll take you to a safer place."

“No…” Song Lichuan shook his head. After the Azure Silver Pearl dispelled the nightmare power around him, his complexion improved slightly. He took a deep breath and said in a deep voice, “I can’t leave.”

"I'm going to keep going this way."

"This is my mission as a member of the Guardian Bird Clan."

"The Guardian Nightingale Clan..." Qin Lang froze on the spot. "What is that?"

He turned to look at the others, and they all shook their heads, including Di You and Wei Shasha, who were from Lanqiu City.

“You don’t need to know.” Song Lichuan shook his head. “This is not something you need to bear. This old man can bear it.”

As he spoke, he lifted his foot to continue walking westward.

"Mr. Song, you really can't leave!"

Qin Lang was anxious and quickly pulled him back. "If you continue to move westward, the power of the nightmare will corrupt you. Let me take you home. Whatever your mission, we'll talk about it after the nightmare problem is resolved."

“Go home…” Song Lichuan shook his head helplessly and pointed to hope, “My home is not far ahead.”

"As for the nightmare issue you mentioned..."

"My mission is inherently related to it."

"What?" Qin Lang was stunned again.

"Don't worry about me." Song Lichuan shook his head and loosened the object he was tightly clutching in his hand. "This is a talisman left by our ancestors."

"It will protect me and keep me safe."

Qin Lang stared intently, then paused in surprise again.

It was an amulet woven from down feathers. In the night, the down feathers shimmered with a faint light, and the sky-blue color was particularly eye-catching.

Those are... the downy feathers of the Silver Oriole!

The Guardian Nightingale Clan…

Is the guardian nightingale the Silver Nightingale?
Qin Lang's expression changed, and then he spoke without hesitation.

"We'll go with you!"

"You guys?" Song Lichuan was stunned for a moment, and was about to refuse, but Qin Lang raised his hand to interrupt him.

“Mr. Song, you are getting on in years, while we are still young. Perhaps we can be of help to you, and we can also deal with the power of nightmares.”

As he spoke, Qin Lang shook the Azure Silver Pearl in his hand.

Upon seeing that color, exactly the same as the talisman in his hand, Song Lichuan's pupils contracted slightly, and he fell silent.

"Okay!" He nodded emphatically after a moment.

"You all come with me!"

As he spoke, Song Lichuan walked unsteadily toward the west.

"I'll carry you on my back!"

Qin Lang quickly spoke up, and this time Song Lichuan did not refuse.

With Qin Lang and the others accompanying them, Song Lichuan moved much faster. Under his guidance, the group finally arrived at a sea of ​​flowers woven together by night-blooming cereus. In the very center of that sea of ​​flowers stood a stone sculpture that was so dilapidated that its original form was no longer recognizable.

“That is…” Qin Lang’s pupils suddenly contracted.

That's the stone carving in the seventeenth painting of the Traveler's Book!
He originally planned to inquire about the whereabouts of the stone carving after the Magnolia Food Festival to complete his seventeenth visit, but he never expected that the stone carving would actually be here.

"We've arrived." Song Lichuan said softly, then got off Qin Lang's back and slowly walked towards the stone sculpture.

Qin Lang followed closely behind, ignoring the "whoosh" of pages turning coming from within the star vein, and asked softly.

"Mr. Song, what is this stone carving?"

“It’s a stone carving of the Silver Oriole.” Song Lichuan reached out and gently stroked the stone carving, which was so badly damaged that the outline of the Silver Oriole was no longer discernible. “A long, long time ago, it was smashed by angry people.”

"Beneath this stone carving lies the source of the nightmare." The sealed land?

Everyone was startled and looked down at their feet.

No wonder the power of nightmares first appeared in this area; the place where the power of nightmares is sealed is actually so close to the venue of the grand event!
"Mr. Song, so what should we do next?" Zuo Ge looked around and couldn't help but ask.

“There’s nothing we can do.” Song Lichuan shook his head slightly, pressed the amulet in his hand to his heart, and slowly closed his eyes.

All we can do is wait for the Silver Nightingale to arrive.

"This..." Qin Lang and the others stood there, stunned.

Really, is there no other way?
"Why are you here?"

A voice came from behind them.

Qin Lang was startled and quickly turned around. After seeing who it was, a look of surprise appeared on his face. "Captain Zhong, you're alright!"

He instinctively reached out to step forward, but was suddenly pulled back by Zhao Qian.

"Watch out!" Zhao Qian whispered.

"Look what he's holding?"

At Zhao Qian's prompting, Qin Lang looked at Zhong Tu's hand.

At this moment, a creature that looked very similar to the night-blooming jasmine was being held tightly in his hand and had already fallen into a deep sleep.

"drop--"

【Type: Zhenling】

[Level: Lv50]

Flavor profile: Sweet, Salty

Zhen Ling...

Could it be...

"The Flower Fairy?!" Wei Shasha suddenly exclaimed, "The Flower Fairy has been found?"

As she was about to step forward, she heard Zhong Tu shout in a low voice.

"do not move!"

Wei Shasha's steps came to an abrupt halt.

"Waaah~" Awakened by the noise from the outside world, the little fairy opened her eyes wearily. Upon seeing Wei Shasha in the distance, she became agitated and frantically tried to escape from Zhong Tu's grasp.

Upon seeing this, everyone's expressions changed once again.

After a long while, Qin Lang finally spoke with some difficulty, "Captain Zhong, you were the one who captured Zhen Ling from Lan Jin Garden from the very beginning?"

“Yes, I did it.” Zhong Tu nodded in a deep voice.

"Why did you kidnap Little Flower Fairy!" Wei Shasha's emotions instantly flared up. "You're stealing from your own workplace! Someone like you has no right to be the captain of the security management team!"

“You’re right.” Zhong Tu said calmly. “After this is over, I probably won’t be the captain of the security management team anymore. I’ll accept whatever the association decides to do with me.”

"However, the one who has no right to criticize me is you!"

He suddenly looked at Wei Shasha, his eyes filled with complex emotions, boundless anger and hatred.

"All of this is the fault of your Wei family!"

"You... what did you say?" Wei Shasha's face turned pale as Zhong Tu glared at her. "What does this have to do with our family?"

"No relation?" Zhong Tu snorted angrily, pointing to his feet. "If you hadn't moved the Night Orchid King from here to Lan Jin Garden, how could the power of the Nightmare have erupted?"

"Outsiders all believe that the Night Orchid King was originally in Lan Jin Garden, and was left to his descendants by the Warrior of Light, Wei Ran."

"But you Wei family members should know best that you moved it from here to Lanjin Garden without authorization for your own selfish reasons!"

"If the Night Orchid King were to suppress it, how could the power of nightmares possibly break free of its seal, and how could my wife possibly..."

At this point, Zhong Tu was already in tears, covering his face in anguish and collapsing to the ground, "How could I have died..."

(End of this chapter)