The Endless Promise

63. A Startling Discovery

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A swarm of cranes flew by a large round window, and within, the bird calls made Immortal Yin Xing open his eyes.

His irises travelled hazily about, taking in a spacious ornate bedchamber.

Hanging from the windows were tinkling bells, filling the air with soothing sounds.

Beneath him was the softest bed he had ever lain on, making it feel more like a nest of hay, and around him was an elegant and beautiful space. The bedchamber was decorated with delicate paintings of birds, bamboo, flowers, and other natural scenery, with elegant silvery embroideries, shimmering in the rays of early sunlight.

There were intricate carvings lined with tiny jewels which gave off a soft, luminescent glow, and hanging right above the bed was a cascading lamp decorated with swallowtails and plum blossom twigs.

But the primary things that jumped out at him were,

'Feathers...' He sat bolt upright. 'Ei?!' Beneath him was not hay, as he had sleepily assumed, but a large bed of soft feathers!

And not just the bed... Around the room entire room were lots and lots of feathers!

From Swallowtail feathers, to peacock, pheasant, and kingfisher feathers, they were woven into the bed curtains and regular curtains, they hung as ornaments, and they were even painted or carved into the walls!

"Where is this place?!"

"You're in my room." An annoyed voice roused from sleep, and Yin Xing's eyes darted to one corner.

There, a couch lined in feather motifs was nested in the perfect spot to catch morning sun rays from a small round window, and atop the couch, a pretty lady stretched in careless abandon.

She turned to Yin Xing, who had frozen and still stared at her.

"Are you going to keep staring at me?" She rose, and her robe of silken feathers settled about her.

"It's not a dream...?" Yin Xing slowly shook his head in disbelief.

After she saved him from the qi deviation, he only saw her face briefly before he fainted, so he now stared at her in open disbelief.

"Yan Linfeng ... You're alive?!"

She swivelled to him with a scowl. "Are you cursing me to an early death?! Why would I die?!"

"Ah, no! It's just-!" He suddenly turned serious. "Are you pretending? Or do you really not know? Everyone in Sky Realm believes the Swallow Clan was wiped out after Liwei's de-..." He paused. "No single Swallow has been seen for the past thirty-thousand years."

He suddenly appeared before her, causing her to stagger back, nearly tripping, but he caught her easily. "I spent thousands of years looking for you, and you simply appear from nowhere?!"

Yan Linfeng's expression briefly softened, but she pushed him away. "Ahem. My dear Night Immortal, 'unfamiliar waters could be shallow or deep'... After such an impossibly long time, I don't know on which side you've built your fortress."

The two held each other's gaze, hers challenging, his still a bit dazed, but he eventually sighed.

"If you don't trust me, say nothing." He simply said, and then held up three fingers. "However, I trust you enough to swear here today... I have never been on the Sky Emperor's side, nor on the side of anything that would harm you or your family. Besides, I would die before betraying my third brother! Whose side do you think I'm on!"

She stared up into his face for a spell, but then hers split into a joyous grin. "Ha! I knew my Xingxing wouldn't change!" She said, placing her hands on her waist.