As the wind continuously blew past his ears, Logan saw a vast forest protruding from the surrounding landscape below, 'This must be the residence of the Divine Bird Clan, the 'Paulownia Forest'.
Logan couldn't help but wonder how big places like Mount Myoboku and Ryuchi Cave were. According to the distance that Logan flew this time, the territory of the Divine Bird Clan was already comparable to a small country.
Akiyama and Kotonami descended together, gradually reducing their altitude, and Logan slowly saw the true appearance of the Paulownia Forest.
"Wow, it's so huge..."
From a distance, it didn't seem so large, but as they got closer, Logan could clearly see the true scale of the 'forest' below. Hundreds of towering trees stood tall, resembling pillars that supported the sky and earth. Each gigantic paulownia tree stood like a giant on the ground. Logan estimated that the smallest were dozens of meters tall, while the tallest exceeded a hundred meters.
As they got closer to the territory, Akiyama and Kotonami's flight became steadier. Logan noticed the red and green colors of the forest, different from his previous understanding of paulownia trees. He saw many red trunks and branches. Glancing at Akiyama's fiery wings, Logan couldn't help but wonder, 'Could it be that he was nourished by Spiritual Energy like the one in Xianxia Novel?'
With a spread of their fiery wings, they entered the Phoenix Forest. Logan opened his mouth in awe. The trees in the Ninja World were already tall enough without environmental damage, but now, he is surrounded by a large group of giant trees that are hundreds of meters high. The dense canopy of the massive paulownia trees formed a continuous sea of leaves, covering the sky. The sea of forests was moved up. The ground was hidden, and Logan moved between the sky above and the branches below, perhaps experiencing the unrestrained freedom of the Divine Birds who inhabited here.
The speed had slowed down, and without the strong wind, Logan tried to stand up. As he looked down at each gigantic paulownia tree, he saw many structures that seemed to be residences. However, he didn't spot any other Divine Birds.
"Strange, there doesn't seem to be anyone here." Logan said doubtfully.
Akiyama glanced at the human on his back and finally spoke, "Many of our clan members are not here."
"Why not?" Logan asked curiously.
Akiyama's expression turned cold, 'This human is so troublesome.'
"Because some have matters to attend to or find it boring here and have gone to the outside world." A fiery red figure, Kotonami, appeared alongside Logan. Her flying posture seemed more elegant, and she answered warmly, "Besides us and the clan leader, there are basically not many people left in the Paulownia Forest."
"I see." Logan nodded.
Akiyama said dissatisfiedly, "Kotonami, why tell an outsider so much?"
"What's the harm?" Kotonami ignored her companion's dissatisfaction, "Besides, he already passed the entrance test, so he may not remain an outsider."
Kotonami turned to Logan and said with a friendly tone, " Hey, um, Rai... Raiden Hattori, is the outside world fun? I get so bored staying here every day."
Comparisons highlight differences. From their first meeting until now, Kotonami had been friendly to Logan. This might not have been so obvious, but compared to Akiyama, Kotonami seemed like a gentle big sister.
'Thinking about going to the outside world? That would be great, we can just sign a summoning contract...'
"Is that something you can decide? We should take him to the clan leader for a decision." Akiyama interjected, making Logan swallow his prepared words.
The relationship between these two birds, male and female, seemed tense. Kotonami felt somewhat annoyed but didn't argue further, after all, Akiyama was right. Then, they took Logan to the elder in charge.
Soon, the trio arrived at the center of the Paulownia Forest. Logan saw a paulownia tree much taller than the surrounding ones, probably hundreds of meters high, which is enough to make botanists turn in their graves.
'It was like the World Tree from mythology.' Logan clung to Akiyama as they flew up along the enormous tree. He watched in awe as the ancient tree's trunk seemed endless. They ascended to the top, where the spreading canopy formed a new sky. Navigating through the maze-like branches, they finally landed on a flat area.
Logan jumped down and stepped on the solid red and green bark. Wooden paths, each dozens of meters long, extended from beneath his feet in all directions. Their thickness and width were enough for people to walk on steadily, almost like being on the ground. Logan couldn't help but marvel, 'Can this still be explained by nature's craftsmanship?'
"Follow along, human."
'This seemed to be close to the trunk of the towering tree.' Looking up, Logan could vaguely see the reddish sky through the branches and leaves. Akiyama, who is at the front, reminded Logan, who was gawking like a country bumpkin entering the city.
Kotonami and Akiyama climbed a series of steps, heading upwards, with Logan following behind, "Am I going to meet your clan leader?"
"Yes." Kotonami turned her head and said, "Since you used reverse summoning to find a Summoned Beast, although I don't know why you found the entrance to our Paulownia Forest, we can't just kick you out."
'Wow, such an understanding and gentle bird!' Logan was almost moved to tears.
After climbing the steps, the sky suddenly brightened. Logan found himself in an open plaza. Looking around, he couldn't take his eyes off the scene. A gentle breeze blew, the forest sky was vast, and standing here felt like standing at a window opened in a fantasy world. The grandeur and splendor were intertwined, half ancient towering trees, with green shade within, and half the majestic Pawlownia Forest, rising and falling under the reddish sky.
Logan was immersed in the scenery until Kotonami nudged him with a feather. Realizing the occasion, Logan turned around and saw the large bird sitting on a finely carved redwood seat.
What would the leader of these phoenix-like, mystical creatures look like? Logan had previously made up a series of mighty and domineering images in his mind. However, when he saw the leader, he was stunned. He checked the expressions of Kotonami and Akiyama to confirm that the small red bird before him, sitting while leaning on a cane, with less than pristine wings and a clearly aged face, was indeed their clan leader.
'This bird is too human-like, with a cane… can it even fly...'
Logan thought humorously, comforting himself that it was indeed the style of a Summoned Beast, not a fantasy beast.
"Aki-chan, Koto-chan, you're here." The elder clan leader's eyes were squinted into slits. Logan doubted whether the leader could see him.
Akiyama and Kotonami greeted the elder. Then, Akiyama pointed to Logan and respectfully said, "Clan leader, we have brought the human being who has reverse-summoned himself here."
"He's here, huh? Where is he?" The elder clan leader's voice was warm but aged.
"..."
Logan's eyelid twitched. Right now, he was standing right between Akiyama and Kotonami. The two birds glanced awkwardly at Logan, and Akiyama had to add, "He's right next to me."
"Hello..." Logan greeted with a forced smile, trying to assert his presence.
However, the elder clan leader's next move left Logan bewildered.
The leader slowly took out a pair of reading glasses from his bosom… Yes, reading glasses!
"Oh, there you are." After the glasses fix his vision, the elder finally acknowledged Logan.