Chapter 849: Catching Birds, Three in a Row

"It seems we're in a bit of trouble. Getting across doesn't look easy." Han Li withdrew his gaze and muttered to himself.

"The opposite island is only a few hundred zhang away. Can we really not leap across?" Shi Kongkong asked, looking at the far shore.

The Crab Immortal said nothing. He bent down, picked up a brown stone the size of a palm, applied a hidden force, and hurled it violently toward the opposite island.

A sharp "whoosh" cut through the air as the stone shot out like a thin line. But when it reached above the deep black mist, its momentum suddenly ceased.

Midair, the stone seemed to be struck by an invisible hand. The next moment, it plunged straight down into the black mist and vanished.

Han Li and his two companions strained their ears, but after a long while, no sound of the stone hitting ground came back.

"This chasm seems unfathomably deep," Shi Kongkong murmured, scanning the area below.

"If I'm not mistaken, there's nothing beneath this black mist—only endless void. Once you fall in, you'll be trapped in a space of nothingness, falling forever. No one knows when you'll reach the bottom, if there even is one." Han Li's eyes flickered with a faint purple light as he spoke slowly.

"That's troublesome. If so, we'll be trapped on this tiny island. Judging by the situation, night seems to be when the various beasts come out to move. It might be even more dangerous..." Shi Kongkong frowned deeply.

Han Li's gaze sharpened. Just as he was about to speak, a loud fluttering sound came from across the black mist. He quickly focused his attention.

A strange, large bird with an enormous head, an extremely long neck, and a bulky body about two zhang tall was flapping its two huge wings, almost skimming the black mist as it awkwardly "flew" toward them.

A purple light swirled in Han Li's eyes, and he clearly saw the bird's appearance.

Its neck and head were covered in gray-white down, while its body bore stiff, coarse, greenish short feathers. Its wingspan was a full zhang wide.

Its flying posture was very peculiar. Not only did it flap its wings vigorously, but its thick legs also constantly stamped in the void, looking like a duck paddling on a lake—awkward beyond measure.

Strangely, with each stamp, a burst of air seemed to explode beneath its feet, generating a recoil force that helped it resist the spatial pressure above the black mist, allowing it to cross the void.

Seeing this, a flash of joy appeared in Han Li's eyes. He exclaimed:

"The green feathers on this bird seem special, greatly reducing the immense pressure from the void. Combined with the air bursts under its feet, it can fly across this black mist void. If we can catch one, we might be able to ride it to the other side."

As his words fell, the fluttering sound in the black mist grew loud. Hundreds of identical strange birds, maintaining the same odd posture, flew over together and landed toward the island.

The birds paid no attention to Han Li and his companions, showing no fear. After landing, they ran wildly on their two thick long legs, charging toward the ridge in the center of the island.

Han Li and the others quickly dodged and weaved among the flock.

Soon, the birds rushed past them and continued racing toward the rear.

"Great! So many, enough for us!" Shi Kongkong exhaled and then laughed.

"Let's follow them," Han Li said immediately.

So the three of them chased after the flock, running wildly.

However, the birds' running posture was also unusual. It seemed air exploded under their feet with each step, propelling them forward. Each stride covered a great distance, making them extremely fast.

Unable to fly, Han Li and his companions could only rely on their physical strength to chase, but they were somewhat slower.

Han Li fared a bit better, while Shi Kongkong and the Crab Immortal lagged far behind, trailing by over ten li.

As they chased, the sun had completely set. In the deep sky, dotted with stars, faint lights began to appear.

Han Li dared not relax. As he ran, he kept an eye on his surroundings.

On the desolate plain, one dark shadow after another emerged from nowhere. Some were as large as tigers and leopards, others as small as snakes and rats. All lay quietly prostrate on the ground, as if waiting for something.

Puzzled, Han Li did not stop to investigate but continued chasing the strange birds.

By the time they finally reached the ridge, night had fully fallen. The sky was cloudless, with a lone moon hanging high and countless brilliant stars embedded around it.

Beneath the stars, Han Li and his companions saw an astonishing sight.

Looking out from the ridge, tens of thousands of white-armored crabs covered the slope from top to bottom, spreading across the gradually flattening terrain.

At this moment, the shells of the white-armored crabs were all glowing with faint white light, like tiny bean-sized lamps. The light spread across the mountains and plains, creating a starry sky on the ground—a breathtakingly beautiful scene!

Standing on the ridge, Han Li looked around and saw that not only the white-armored crabs emitted this fluorescent white light, but also countless other island beasts of various sizes. Most of them glowed from their heads.

In that light, he sensed a faint but familiar power.

It was the power he had harnessed while cultivating the Great Zhou Stellar Origin Technique—the power of the stars!

The more Han Li observed, the more astonished he became. Could it be that in this desolate Scale Accumulation Void Realm, these white-armored crabs and beasts survived and cultivated by absorbing the power contained in the starlight at night?

As he pondered, a series of "crackling" sounds arose.

Han Li quickly looked over and saw the strange birds that had flown here earlier stretching their necks, using their long, black beaks to peck at the white-armored crabs on the ground.

Under the starlight, the white-armored crabs caused only small-scale disturbances. They did not flee en masse, nor did they attack the strange birds as they had done with the giant lizards and centipedes during the day.

In the distance, on the island's plain, chaotic roars began to sound. Han Li looked and saw large beasts devouring smaller ones.

"So they came here to feed. Should we act now?" Shi Kongkong said eagerly.

"Wait a bit longer. If we act now, we might attract unnecessary trouble. Let's approach slowly and find a suitable spot." Han Li glanced around and shook his head.

So the three crawled forward and found relatively high places with cover to hide.

About half an hour later, the strange birds seemed to have finished feeding. They began to stride back the way they came.

Seeing this, Han Li immediately signaled Shi Kongkong.

As the signal was given, Shi Kongkong moved.

He leaned forward, kicked off the ground, and sprinted with the flock. When a strange bird ran beside him, he leaped up and climbed onto its back.

Just as he was about to land on the bird's back, the bird suddenly tilted, raised a thick leg, and kicked at Shi Kongkong's chest.

Shi Kongkong never expected the seemingly clumsy bird to be so agile and fast. Unable to dodge, he was struck in the chest by the bird's large foot with four toes.

"Not good," he thought. Then a series of popping sounds came from his body.

With a series of "bang bang bang" sounds, light shone from the acupoints on Shi Kongkong's chest, and his body seemed covered in a hazy glow.

When the ninth acupoint on his chest lit up, a sound of air explosion rang out.

A thumb-thick black air hole appeared under the bird's foot, and a burst of invisible force erupted, exploding against Shi Kongkong's chest.

Shi Kongkong felt a tremendous force strike his chest, making it hard to breathe. His body bent like a cooked shrimp and flew backward, crashing heavily to the ground and rolling over a dozen times before stopping.

On the other side, Han Li was also about to mount a strange bird. Catching this scene from the corner of his eye, he had just risen when he suddenly dropped. The bird, like the previous one, raised its leg to kick him, but he dodged just in time.

Han Li slid under the bird, flipped over to the other side, and mounted it directly.

Pressed by his weight, the huge bird only trembled slightly before steadying itself, continuing to run forward without pause.

Following Han Li's earlier instructions, the Crab Immortal did not intervene. He simply walked over to check on Shi Kongkong.

The latter had already gotten up, brushing off dust and the white-armored crabs clinging to his clothes. His expression was normal, indicating he was not injured.

"These strange birds seem to have air holes on their soles. The force from the bursts is quite strong, no wonder they can tread on the void above the black mist," Shi Kongkong said awkwardly, seeing the Crab Immortal looking at him.

With that, ignoring the Crab Immortal's reaction, he looked toward Han Li.

At that moment, Han Li was riding on the strange bird's back, gripping its long neck tightly. His body rose and fell with the bird's movements, looking somewhat comical, but overall he seemed stable, and the bird's actions did not appear greatly affected.

Just then, the huge bird suddenly twisted its head almost completely around. Its sharp beak, gleaming with dark light, stabbed like a black dagger toward Han Li's left eye.

The speed was astonishing!