Qu wren paid the server and thanked the group of old men for their company. With renewed passion, he ran through the familiar roads.
"Chirp," Feng Mian peaked out.
"We are going to find him.. I can feel it..."
As he was running through a familiar alley way a strong spiritual force hit him from behind and he lost consciousness instantly.
Two men walked out from behind. One figure was someone very familiar. It was Lou Qui, from the magistrate office.
"CHIRP!!!!!!" Feng Mian jumped out from his shirt and attacked the person close to wren. But the man just swept him away.
"Wait, we need that bird as well, idiot. Don't damage the product, geez," Lou Qui whispered softly. With a small scarf, he rolled up the struggling bird and tossed it inside a cage.
Feng Mian burned the scarf with his breath and walked out. The bars of the cage looked brittle and delicate. 'Fucking humans they want to enslave me now,'
A small ball of fire swept out of his wide open beak.
"Look out!!" Lou Qui tossed the cage down in fear. "Oh my god, I think we might have stumbled upon a treasure.... it might actually be a very strong elemental energy beast. I will definitely get a good stack of gold for this,"
He threw a spiritual power enchanted cloth over the cage and carefully carried it.
Both the cage was strongly protected by a fireproof spell. It cans even resist the attacks of a golden core cultivator.
For a small bird like this, it was overkill, but his contractor had provided him with this gear.
Lou Qui handed it to the other guy and gently lifted wren up. "This guy here.. he is going to be our golden goose," he stealthily placed him in a store room nearby.
"Why aren't we going to our contactor?" the other man confusedly whispered.
"Idiot it's broad day light. If we carry around an unconscious man, things are bound to get out of control." he sat down next to him and glanced at wren. "Thought I have to say Ping Yu has good taste. Even his choice in men is spectacular,"
The other guy sat down a little further from him, placing the cage next to his foot. "Sir Lou, is it okay to do this? That guy Ping Yu has kidnapped too many girls and boys in this town. What if our magistrate gets a wind of this?"
"Well, without proof, he is just going to think its rumours. Besides, I am there to cover up his shitty tracks," Lou Qui mumbled, tying wren's hands and feet.
"You, go buy me some food. I am starving,"
The man pouted. "You just want all the fun to yourself,"
"Just get out...."
The other man left....
Lou Qui glanced at wren with an unknown look. "Sadly, you would have to be sacrificed to the belly of that beast. I hope you will not curse me or think badly of me. This is just a job, so I am not to blame,"
For safety measures he clasped on a spiritual powers restrictor on wren's neck tightly. This small band can absorb any amount of spiritual power, rendering the user powerless.
He gently caressed his cheeks. "I will definitely find your friend as well. I think he will suit my taste much better...."
"CHIRP!!!!!!" the cage rattle loudly.
Lou Qui silently walked over and placed huge rocks on the sides of the cage to prevent it from toppling over. "Sigh... I hope you don't have any hard feelings either. The buyer paid me and I'm just doing my job."
The creature inside remained silent.
"Well, I've said my piece. I hope you get a good master..." he gently patted the top of the cage and left the room.
In the dark cage, Feng Mian raged silently. 'That's why human are untrustworthy... but we trusted the wrong one.' he anxiously scratched at his neck. A small snap was heard.
Something small and soft fluttered down next to his feet.
Feng Mian stomped on it. Feeling the soft thing, his feet tingled. He glanced down.
The one feather that he had previously grown had snapped off because of stress.
"CHIRP!!!! CHIRP!!!!"
'I DON'T WISH TO BE BALD PHEONIX NOOOOO!!!!'
His loud chirping woke wren up. He glanced around the dark room, confusedly. A sharp pain in the back of his neck cleared his senses.
"Little bird?"
"Chirp chirp..." a small bundle of cloth in the dark room move around.
He tried standing up, but only then did he realise that his limbs were tied up.
Wren just peered at the rope. "I think we are kidnapped."
Feng Mian rolled his eyes. 'You think! Oh my god man, get your head straight and escape from this place,' he continued kicking and throwing flame balls at the gate of the cage.
Wren, on the other hand, frowned. His spiritual energy was non existing. He glanced at the binds silently.
'I can get these flimsy ropes off so easily though,'
His physical strength drastically differed from others, only because he had been living under water all his life. The harsh waves and force tempered his muscles to be stronger than a normal beast.
His body, even before cultivation, was strong enough to swim though a storm and come out undamaged.
'Wait. Maybe this group of kidnappers can lead me to Hachin.'
With a small plan in mind, he silently closed his eyes in a meditative state. The band around his neck was absorbing most of the energy, but he was still able to store some in the small core in his tummy.
Feng Mian did not hear the sound of struggle anymore. He panicked. 'What if he is crying sadly? Oh, my god I need to get out.' his spiritual energy was already depleted from his previous night act. It was only enough to save himself from grave danger...
'I will wait for the right time to attack. I—I hope he won't be that scared...'