Chương 189: The Meaning of a Hug Attack
Lady Eagle couldn't think straight and operated based on instinct, only seeing blood in her eyes. She chopped off all the heads of the snacks who dared to desecrate the remains of her dearly beloved. Then, her heightened senses were attracted to a familiar aura that had extinguished the last bit of the Eagle Boss' life. Protruding veins snaked around her eyes, as more blood spurted out from her self-inflicted wounded heart. The blood quickly sizzled; the silvery-white translucent flame covering her whole wrecked body increased in intensity.
Lady Eagle immediately launched herself forward while aiming straight for the tiny shrub-like thing which was running away. She largely ignored the menacing black snake barring the way and took off to the air, bulldozing the colorful birds that attempted to block her way. She swatted them down with ease, similarly ignoring them. If not, the group of birds would have faced a certain death since their levels were so wide apart.
Although Hana was running away with Ta-chan with all her might, and her sights were covered with the 'protection', she still could 'see' telepathically from the sights of her pets. She knew they were being targeted and pursued. She frantically patted King's abdomen and urged it to increase its pace, matching Ta-chan's increased agility. Her face was solemn but filled with calmness. It largely came from her absolute belief in Kuro's strength and judgment. She also knew that her presence would only complicate the battle since her pets would have no choice but to divide their attention to protect her from harm while fighting the final eagle.
[Ku-chan. Delay the eagle. I've contacted Q-chan to open a path for the Grand Elder to help. Stay strong.]
[Affirmative.]
She instructed Kuro within the Soul Hall Domain, while her doted pet replied with confidence.
Hana felt somewhat helpless as she realized her team really lacked personnel. It left a bitter aftertaste when one had to resort to asking help from others. The situation was totally different when the Grand Elder proactively came over to help of his own free will. The status-quo will definitely tip to the Waterwave's side during future negotiations where their group had to yield more than before, getting fewer benefits.
Nonetheless, not using all available measures to counter the current problem would be stupid. Although Kuro sounded calm and filled to the brim with confidence as usual, Hana was well aware that Kuro had expended a large amount of energy from the initial chase until now. The additional help from Grand Elder Watershade will increase the chance to subdue the female Silver-banded Eagle faster with less collateral damage and lower the risk of Kuro getting injured.
This situation emphasized Kuro's efforts to expand the team with proper talents to tide through emergencies such as today. In the eyes of true power, all kinds of tactics and plannings were inconsequential. Personal strength was always the best. Without ample power, Hana needed dozens more contingencies with ample amount of high-quality personnel in future clashes to tide through future calamities.
This won't be an isolated case. She had read enough Xianxia books to know the future trends. Their actions today will definitely leave a butterfly effect on the power struggle between strong beasts of the area. She wasn't Zhuge Liang! Just a small-time little aunty who wished to survive! This was so stressful! The smart one was Arash, not her!
The white Silver-banded Eagle slashed roughly with her wings only to find that she couldn't penetrate through the final woody-like shield covering the creatures inside. She changed tactics by jumping into the air for leverage and dashed down with her talons first. Her intentions were clear; she would tear off the barrier with her talons before breaking the necks of the creatures inside with her beak! After that, she would feast on their brain juices! Lady Eagle laughed maniacally while she launched her attack. She smirked at the serpent who was slithering after her.
Just before she could grab Ta-chan's shield, a strong force akin to a punch dislocated Lady Eagle's jaw (mr mooncat complains: do birds even have jaw?).
Lady Eagle's bloody sights lose focus for a fraction of a second. She shook her head to clear off the stinging pain in her head and refocused on the new adversary; her eyes widened! Her berserk state instantly cleared!
It was a miniature brown Silver-banded Eagle with a shiny golden head!
The mini eagle was nearly round, except for the fact that it had two tiny wings sprouted out. Without those wings, it looked just like an A-grade watermelon-sized fluffed coconut husk. Its size was a clear indication that it was just in an infantile stage. The two months spent gobbling up resources in the cave-dwelling had sped up Pi-chan's growth quite a bit. From an ostrich-sized egg once upon a time ago, the baby bird had grew healthily and swelled in size a couple of times to date, but still retained its lovely plushy round shape. After all, it was Hana's current favorite 'bolster pillow' every night.
Hesitation appeared within Lady Eagle's eyes.
For once, she wasn't sure whether she should attack or not. Before Lady Eagle could say a word, the mini Silver-banded Eagle headbutted her again!
[Impossible!]
To her horror, the little one was as strong as her! It subsequently tackled Lady Eagle from various angles repeatedly. All of its attacks were straightforward ones without any technique or technicalities, except for the blindingly bright golden head it used wantonly as its weapon. There were no traces of direct metal-element aerial attacks as well. Most probably, the baby eagle did not know any yet since it was too young.
The baby eagle showed a furious expression at Lady Eagle. Most probably from trying to defend the creatures within the thorny barrier. From her initial shock towards the strength of the 'tackles', it turned into a daze, and later, into acceptance. The female Silver-banded Eagle stopped defending and received all the attacks head-on, observing Pi-chan deeply. At the same time, tears started to pool at the corners of her eyes. Her heart felt pained deeply, and she acknowledged that it was not a physical one. She was reminded of her shattered egg; the cause of the current conflict with these creatures.
She finally noticed that the little one had golden bands; three at that! The number of bands upon a Silver-banded eagles' neck showcased their personal power. A Noble will have two, while a Lord will have three. Overcoming each tribulation will earn one more band, which signifies improved proficiency in controlling the metal element, with silver at the highest. However, feeding the little ones precious metals, ores, and spiritual energy-containing materials will strengthen their abilities, which directly correlates to talent. To date, there was no Gold-banded eagle emerged within their clan. Silver-banded Eagle babies typically had a single silver band, while the more talented ones had double since birth. Lady Eagle herself was a double-banded chick from birth and only recently upgraded to a triple band. Once she did, automatically, she became part of Lord Fearsilver's harem. To Lord Fearsilver, she was just one of his more talented mates, but to Lady Eagle, he was the love of her life which also signifies the elevation of status.
The lifelong dream of Lady Eagle was to produce an offspring with a golden band. A golden band signifies the highest talent and would assure her position and increase her offspring's chance to become the next in line. Her love for the late Lord Fearsilver did not overcome her ambition to be the primary mate with the highest ruling power between the females.
…
Hana, Ta-chan, King, and Kuro were agape with amazement. The thoughts to flee or fight for the sake of survival escaped from their minds as they awkwardly witnessed the strange event unfolding in front of their eyes. The slovenly lazy baby bird who knew to eat, sleep, and shit, was holding its own in a battle with the deranged she-eagle! Additionally, the eagle wasn't even fighting back; she willingly received all the tackles! Her blood was spewing from multiple locations on her body with every tackle until it was hard to watch. The chest wound was especially nasty.
At one point, when Pi-chan rammed its head towards the giant female eagle's chest, Lady Eagle spread her wings and tightly enclosed the little runt within. Pi-chan struggled hard for a long time while it cried out loudly in despair!
"Pi!! Pii! Piii!"
Even without a translator, everyone could understand what it meant. 'Release me! Release me!' was plastered over its distraught expression. It didn't stop struggling since the pressure didn't relent at all. Instead, the 'hug' became firmer.
Hana and co., "O____O"
This was… How should they say, a bit too intense? Should they help or not, was the question. Although the frantic Pi-chan who was struggling with all its might couldn't see what was happening, as a third party, they saw what happened very clearly. The female Silver-banded Eagle's 'attack' didn't look like an attack at all; it suspiciously resembled a hug. A most passionate one at that, bordering on maternal love full of longing. Everyone present was making a complicated expression.
"Pi!! Pii! Piii!"
"Pi!! Pii! Piii!"
"Pi!! Pii! Piii!"
"Pi!! Pii! Piii!"
The 'hug attack' had been going on for a long time as the female eagle selectively ignored the baby Gold-banded Eagle's plea. Hana and co. watched as Pi-chan struggled hard for a good thirty minutes without giving up. It firmly believed that it would die if it didn't manage to free itself from the enemy's confinement. Hana stopped Kuro and the rest from attacking the bedraggled female eagle as she touched her chin meaningfully.
[Pi-chan, Sweetie.] Hana talked to the little one telepathically.
[Pi?] Pi-chan was too little and couldn't respond properly, but it could roughly understand what its mommy wanted from it. So it quickly calmed down and responded with a weak 'Pii, pii' adorable noise.
[Stop struggling. Hug the big bird back. Gently, okay?] Hana cautiously threw a suggestion. Her maternal instinct kicked in, and she had a gut feeling that this matter could be resolved easier than expected. After all, Pi-chan and the female Silver-banded Eagle were the same species. She could read between the lines, as she planned to take this small risk and see what was the female eagle's response.
[Pi?] Obviously, the straightforward Pi-chan was full of questions! It just beat up the big bird!
[Just do it.]
[Pi!] Immediately, Pi-chan loosened up, stopped struggling, and let Lady Eagle give it a good squeeze. It taught that it would die, but instead, after some time, it realized that Lady Eagle had finally opened up her large wings willingly. She was still holding Pi-chan using her wings, just like cradling it using both hands when one scoops up water. In front of the gigantic Lady Eagle, Pi-chan was as tiny as a pingpong ball. The crazed light within the white Silver-banded Eagle's eyes had diminished totally, as she held Pi-chan gently, as if it was the most precious thing in the world.
Seeing an opportunity, Pi-chan immediately flew towards Hana and burrowed at her bosom in fear. The woody shield was long gone. While waiting for the 'hug' to end previously, Hana had asked Ta-chan to disperse the shield. Hana helplessly stroked Pi-chan's fluffy head. This action immediately pulled Lady Eagle's gaze towards her. Both of them locked their gaze to each other for more than five minutes. Hana stood her ground as she knew a single timid action might trigger this spiritual eagle again.
She signaled to Kuro to translate what she said word by word.
"I am Hana. This is my territory, and this little one here is my child, Pi-chan. Similarly, Lord Kuro is my right hand and guardian, hence he is Pi-chan's family too. You provoked us first and attacked. We only counter-attacked. Your Leader is dead because of this. Let's bygones be bygone. Submit to me and call me Mistress. And I will let my child be under your tutelage. It will be the next leader of the Silver-banded Eagles in the future. I assure you."
Lady Eagle broke away first from the staring competition as she shifted her gaze at the little bird longingly. Finally, after a long time, it sat down and prostrated in front of Hana to show that she submitted.
"Mistress."
Lady Eagle chirped gently.
…
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