As Gu Qinghan was deep in thought, Shen Lang had already returned to the villa.
When Shen Lang opened the door and entered, Wang Yuyan was not at home; she had evidently gone to pick up Wang Yunchuan.
With the Yu sisters at school and Wang Yuyan out, the villa suddenly felt empty. Shen Lang felt stifled and, after watching television on the sofa for half an hour, eventually fell asleep.
Shen Lang slept for an unknown duration. Suddenly, he felt a pair of eagle-like eyes fixated on him, and an icy chill permeated his entire body, jolting him awake.
"Awake?"
When Shen Lang opened his eyes, he saw a woman in white sitting opposite him, holding a cup of clear tea and sipping it leisurely.
"It's you?"
As the face of the woman in white met Shen Lang's gaze, his eyes widened in astonishment.
The woman in white before him was none other than the one who had manipulated hundreds of thousands of birds at the Nanshan execution ground, preparing to abduct Tang Zixuan.
At that time, Shen Lang had made a deal with the woman in white, offering his assistance in rescuing someone from Sichuan as a condition for her temporary departure. He hadn't expected her to come looking for him.
Moreover, given Shen Lang's current cultivation level, she had appeared before him so silently, brewed tea, and he had only woken up now.
If the woman in white had harbored ill intentions, Shen Lang's fate would have been dire.
"It's me. The promise you made to me needs to be fulfilled," the woman in white said. "My sister is suffering in Sichuan right now. When do you plan to accompany me to Sichuan to rescue her?"
"Anytime after tonight," Shen Lang replied. "Tonight, I need to celebrate my fiancée's eighteenth birthday. After tonight, whenever you wish to go to Sichuan, I will accompany you."
"We depart tomorrow morning," the woman in white said, swirling her teacup. "The Tang family learned of Tang Zixuan's execution and believe I failed in my duty. My sister is now enduring much torment, and I must rescue her from the Tang family as soon as possible."
"Actually, with your skill in controlling birds, you could have rescued her yourself even without me," Shen Lang said with a smile.
"I could indeed rescue people alone, but if I were to rescue someone, I would have to kill. And my method of killing is by controlling birds," the woman in white explained. "You yourself said that I consider birds my kin and would not manipulate them to kill unless absolutely necessary. When I manipulated the birds to storm the execution ground, I didn't know there was a second option. Now that there is, I naturally choose you. Of course, the most important reason is that the Tang family excels in using potent poisons. Within a ten-kilometer radius of the Tang family headquarters, there is poisonous gas. If I were to manipulate birds to attack the Tang family fortress to rescue my sister, even if successful, tens of thousands of birds would perish, which I cannot bear."
The woman in white continued, "Your martial arts cultivation is unfathomable. You are the most accomplished person I have ever met. With your intervention, you will surely be able to rescue my sister."
"Alright," Shen Lang said with a smile. "Since I promised, I will definitely help you rescue her. However, before we go, can we get to know each other a little better?"
Shen Lang extended his right hand and said, "Hello, my name is Shen Lang."
"Hello, my name is Shi Wuxie." The woman in white extended her fair and smooth right hand, and shook Shen Lang's.
"Now that we've shaken hands, we are friends. As friends, let's be open with each other from now on," Shen Lang said, looking at Shi Wuxie. "How did the Tang family capture you?"
"It's a simple story. My parents, my sister, and I lived in Mount Wuhou. Two years ago, my parents went hunting on the mountain, were attacked by a wild bear, and fell to their deaths from a cliff, leaving only my sister and me to depend on each other."
"My family has lived in the deep mountains for generations, living alongside the birds and beasts. Therefore, our ancestors mastered the art of bird manipulation, communicating with and controlling hundreds of birds."
"In my family, for a century, only I have mastered this bird manipulation technique. I never expected that an innocent treasure would invite disaster. Because of this technique, the Tang family came after me."
Shi Wuxie sighed. "I don't know how the Tang family discovered I could use bird manipulation. So, one day, while I was hunting on the mountain, they secretly captured my sister and used her as a threat, demanding that I go to Nanling to rescue Tang Zixuan, who was sentenced to death for harboring the wanted fugitive Nalan Wushuang."
"I didn't want to kill, nor did I want to manipulate my bird friends to kill. I initially refused the Tang family's threat, but they were without mercy and administered a slow-acting poison to my sister to torment her."
"Out of desperation, I had no choice but to agree. So, I came from Sichuan to Nanling. I originally intended to wreak havoc at the Nanshan execution ground and rescue Tang Zixuan, but I didn't expect to encounter you."
"Shen Lang, although this is our first meeting, from your understanding of me, I know I can trust you. You will be able to help me rescue my sister."
Shi Wuxie looked at Shen Lang and said calmly, "At the Nanshan execution ground, you owe me a favor. After you rescue my sister, we will be even."
"The tea in your house is good, but it's far inferior to the Tiangong Yunwu Cui I grow myself," Shi Wuxie said with a smile. "After you rescue my sister, I'll give you half a kilogram of Tiangong Yunwu Cui so you can know what the world's top-tier tea tastes like."
"You look beautiful when you smile. Smile more often in the future," Shen Lang said, captivated by Shi Wuxie's bright smile.
"You, you're so sweet-mouthed. No wonder you're always surrounded by women," Shi Wuxie said, her smile as bright and warm as the morning sun. "Give me your ID card, and I'll buy you a plane ticket now. We'll depart from Nanling Airport for Sichuan."
"Here," Shen Lang said, taking out his wallet from his pocket and then extracting his ID card from a slot. He handed the ID card to Shi Wuxie.
Shi Wuxie took the ID card, then took out her phone and quickly booked two plane tickets to Sichuan online.
After doing this, Shi Wuxie returned the ID card to Shen Lang and said, "The tickets are booked. We will depart from Nanling Airport at nine o'clock tomorrow morning and head directly to the Tang family fortress to rescue the person."
"Alright," Shen Lang said, tucking his ID card away. He smiled and added, "I promise, I will definitely depart with you on time."
Since he had made a promise, he had to fulfill it.
Moreover, Shen Lang had deep-seated grievances with the Tang family. Rather than passively waiting for them to seek revenge, it was better to proactively confront the Tang family and settle the score.
The Tang family had not found Shen Lang himself, but had captured someone close to him to threaten him. Shen Lang did not want such a thing to happen, nor could he accept it.