Simultaneous time travel: But our system is out of sync!

Chapter 70 The Crow Points the Way

The afterglow of the setting sun cast long, dappled shadows on the forest path, making Lin Bei's figure appear somewhat lonely.

He stopped and looked helplessly at the red-feathered raven perched on his shoulder.

The little creature was elegant, its small head held high as it looked down at Lin Bei with its obsidian-like, bright eyes, which were filled with utter disdain.

A few short, clear "quack" sounds came from its throat, as if expressing its strong dissatisfaction with his earlier attempt to get close.

Lin Bei was not annoyed that a crow had so bluntly disliked him; instead, he found it somewhat amusing.

He shook his head slightly, a helpless smile curving his lips.

This scene reminded him of his past life, when he was jokingly called "the friend of small animals" by his friends because of his unparalleled affinity for small animals.

As a recognized friend of small animals and plants, he understands a truth.

To win the trust and affection of these small animals, you can't be impatient or rash.

Only persistent patience and timely feeding are key.

Once the thought was on his mind, Lin Bei did not hesitate at all.

He skillfully reached into the bag on his shoulder, rummaged around inside for a few moments, and then pulled out a small handful of carefully made snacks that exuded an enticing aroma.

These snacks come in all shapes and sizes, including small pieces of dried meat, plump dried fruits, glistening candied fruits, colorful candies, and fragrant roasted beans.

This thing was made by him during his spare time when he was with Tanjiro and Nezuko.

In order to allow the Beans to eat human food, Lin Bei specially added yang energy to them during the production process.

These small snacks, which contain yang energy, can be used to feed the beans, and are also beneficial to other animals, containing life force.

On this trip, Lin Bei deliberately left most of his supplies to Tanjiro and Nezuko. The items in his bag were given to him by Nezuko before he left, fearing he would get hungry on the road.

With a gentle smile, Lin Bei extended his open palm to the proud red-feathered raven. The small snacks in his palm shimmered with a warm glow in the setting sun, faintly emitting a unique aroma that blended the scents of sunshine, fruit, and meat.

"Here, want to try some? It's good stuff."

Lin Bei's voice carried a seductive undertone.

However, he was met with even more obvious disdain from the red-feathered raven.

The red-feathered raven rolled its eyes in an extremely human-like manner.

Its small head suddenly twisted, its sharp beak pointing to the sky, its posture exactly like that of a haughty noble lady who had been offended by the poor.

His entire being exudes an arrogant attitude that says, "Who are you? What do you want?"

The crimson feathers trembled gently in the breeze, adding to their awe-inspiring and unapproachable aura.

but……

The arrogant posture had lasted for less than three seconds when the little red-feathered raven's head seemed to be forcibly turned back by an invisible force!

It suddenly turned its head, its bright black eyes fixed on the inconspicuous pile of snacks in Lin Bei's palm, and the disdain in its pupils was instantly replaced by extreme shock and confusion.

What is that?!

An indescribable, rich, and warm life force, like the first tender sprout breaking through the soil in early spring, or the freshest breath in a forest after the rain, was continuously emanating from that small pile of food!

The aura was so faint, yet so pure.

Red-feathered crows had never seen this kind of food before.

I have never craved food like this before.

At this moment, only one sound remained in its little head.

I really want to eat it! I really want to eat it!

What disdain, what arrogance, what reserve?

They all disappeared.

After all, it was just a bird, so it's normal for it to forget things quickly.

However, just as the red-feathered crow was about to swoop down and feast,

"No!"

"He was so rude just now."

"Does eating his food mean I've forgiven him?"

"This won't do."

"But I'm a crow, and crows are very vengeful."

"And what if the food is poisonous?"

"My master said that humans are bad and we shouldn't eat food given to us by humans."

Thus, an unprecedented and intense intellectual storm erupted violently in the walnut-sized head of the Red-feathered Raven!

want to eat!

You can't eat it!

I really want to eat it!

The owner will be angry!

Just a small bite? A small bite shouldn't be a problem, right?

No way! This is a matter of principle!

Under Lin Bei's intrigued gaze, the red-feathered crow seemed to suddenly suffer from severe epilepsy.

Its tiny head began to swing wildly and uncontrollably from side to side! The speed was astonishing, like a tiny, out-of-control spinning top.

"Quack?! Quack quack quack!!"

The violent shaking lasted only a few seconds before the red-feathered raven let out a short, confused cry.

Its whole body went limp and it could no longer support itself. With a "plop," the little bird's head landed precisely in the pile of yang-infused snacks in Lin Bei's palm! Its sharp beak rubbed against the sweet candied fruit and crunchy beans.

This moment seemed to be the flip of a magic switch. When its little beak touched the tempting aroma of the food, all its entanglements, struggles, principles, and concerns vanished instantly! A simple, pure joy, unique to birds, instantly filled its entire being.

Who cares! Nothing's more important than eating!

Why would a bird turn away delicious food that's practically within its grasp?

If such a bird truly existed, it would undoubtedly be an utterly stupid bird! Utterly stupid!

How could it, the most intelligent messenger under Lady Rose, possibly act like a fool?!

Thus, the red-feathered raven "fell" the moment the food entered its mouth.

It abandoned all elegance and restraint, transforming into a highly efficient rice-cooking machine.

Its small but powerful beak pecked at the snacks in Lin Bei's palm like raindrops.

The dried meat was quickly torn into pieces and swallowed, the candied fruit juice wetting the fuzz at the corners of the mouth, and the dried fruit and beans made a pleasant cracking sound in the mouth.

Lin Bei quietly watched the scene before him, which could be described as a "corruption of a haughty young lady," and the gentle smile on his face finally turned into an undisguised smile with a hint of smugness.

He slightly raised his chin, his eyes gleaming with an air of "everything is under control".

"have a look!"

"That's the absolute power of 'Friends of Small Animals'."

Lin Bei thought to himself with a sense of pride.

"I successfully won over even the most arrogant and unfriendly little creatures in my past life."

"Besides, you're clearly a domesticated little crow, carefully trained by Lady Rose!"

While the red-feathered crow was completely immersed in the sea of ​​food and oblivious to its surroundings, Lin Bei's hand had already landed on it without its noticing.

Feel the extremely comfortable touch coming from my fingertips.

Lin Bei revealed an expression of enjoyment.

Smooth and smooth!

"Hmm, it feels really good!"

Lin Bei sincerely praised, his smile widening even further.

"One word—smooth!"

"Two words—very smooth!"

The red-feathered raven was completely unaware of this.

Or rather, under the dual onslaught of delicious food and incredibly pleasurable caresses, its pitiful wariness had long since vanished.

It only made a few muffled, satisfied "cooing" sounds, rubbed its body against Lin Bei's warm palm, and pecked at the food even faster, as if it wanted to enjoy this double pleasure to the very end.

Time slipped away quietly as they fed and stroked the animals.

Finally, when the last roasted bean in Lin Bei's palm was precisely pecked away and swallowed by the red-feathered crow, the red-feathered crow "died in battle".

It rolled over contentedly and in an extremely ungraceful manner, revealing its little belly covered in soft down, like a drunken little furball, sprawled out on Lin Bei's large palm.

His completely unguarded demeanor was a far cry from his initial aloofness.

Lin Bei's fingers gently glided over the fine, soft fur on its belly. The little guy just squinted its eyes comfortably, looking completely obedient, as if it were ready to be picked... no, as if it were ready to be petted.

Lin Bei contentedly petted the bird, enjoying this rare tranquility and healing moment.

However, this pleasant feeling did not last long.

About half an hour later, Lin Bei looked at the red-feathered crow in his palm, which was still lying on its belly, occasionally letting out a satisfied burp, and clearly had no intention of flying. The smile on his face gradually froze, and finally turned into a bitter smile with a strong sense of bitterness and self-mockery.

"well……"

Lin Bei sighed silently, somewhat annoyed.

"Lin Bei, oh Lin Bei!"

"You're really getting a little too cocky about being a 'friend of small animals'!"

Lin Bei made a mistake—overfeeding!

I was so engrossed in enjoying feeding and petting the bird that I completely forgot about its size and appetite.

He gave the red-feathered crows far too much food!

It ate so much that after it finished eating, it was so full that it lost its ability to fly and could only lie limp in his palm like a plush toy.

"Oh no, this joy has turned to sorrow."

Lin Bei silently questioned the heavens.

Now the problem is: how can this fat bird, which is too full to fly, take him to Lady Rose?

As the sun gradually set, Lin Bei, with a "nothing to lose" mentality, carefully lifted the red-feathered raven, which was still struggling to digest food, from his palm, held it up to his eyes, and spoke to it in as clear and slow a tone as possible:

"Listen, little one. You were summoned by me through the bone whistle left behind by Lady Rose, right? Then, without a doubt, your master is Lady Rose."

The red-feathered raven seemed to understand the word "master," and its bright black eyes flickered as it looked at Lin Bei.

"Your mission, as summoned here, must be to guide me to the location of your master, Lady Rose, isn't it?"

Lin Bei continued to explain patiently, as if communicating with a naive but potentially very clever child.

"But look at you now..." He gently tapped its round little belly with his finger, "You've eaten so much, you definitely won't be able to fly anytime soon. Besides, it's going to be completely dark soon."

Lin Bei looked up at the sky, his tone tinged with urgency: "Time is of the essence; we must set off immediately."

"But you can't fly, so how can you give directions?"

After a moment's thought, he came up with a wildly imaginative plan.

"How about this, I'll put you on top of my head."

Lin Bei pointed to the top of his head.

"You, stay on top of my head and guide me. If I should go to the right, gently peck at the right side of my hair; if I should go to the left, peck at the left side. Understand?"

As soon as he finished speaking, Lin Bei couldn't help but shake his head and laugh, realizing that he had probably lost his mind in his haste.

"Lin Bei, oh Lin Bei!"

He muttered to himself with self-deprecation.

"Why are you being silly again? No matter how clever it is, it's still just a bird! A crow!"

"No matter how smart it is!"

"But do you expect a crow to understand such a long and complex string of instructions?"

"You want to distinguish left from right? You want to use hair to indicate direction? That's utterly absurd!"

"You're hopeless! Absolutely hopeless!"

Just as Lin Bei felt utterly absurd about his "stupid" instructions and was preparing to think of another way,

Out of the corner of his eye, he saw the red-feathered raven in his palm, which had been limp as mud, slowly and with great difficulty (because its belly was too full), raise one of its slender, scaly claws.

Then, under Lin Bei's suddenly wide, incredulous gaze...

That tiny bird claw, with extreme slowness but with unparalleled clarity, curled up its three toes, leaving only the thumb and forefinger (more precisely, the two toes in the position equivalent to a human thumb and forefinger) stretched out, forming a shape that, while somewhat clumsy, was absolutely impossible to mistake—

O! K! Hand gesture!

"Quack!" (Done!)

A short, sharp cry seemed to confirm.

Lin Bei froze instantly!

His mouth was slightly open, and his eyes were wide open.

If he had previously found the red-feathered raven's anthropomorphic eyes and posture merely amusing and clever, then...

So at this moment, this clear and unmistakable "OK" gesture, which transcends species, brought him utter and mind-blowing astonishment!

A crow... not only understands complex human language commands... it also... it knows how to use its claws to make the universal human gesture of "understand/no problem"?

This crow can speak foreign languages!

This is a hundred times more magical than the arrogant attitude it initially put on!

As dusk settled, it began to envelop the earth, and the outlines of the surrounding scenery began to blur.

Time did not allow Lin Bei to delve further into why this crow was so extraordinary.

He forcefully suppressed the shock in his heart, decisively stretched out his hands, and placed the red feather steadily on his head.

"Alright! I'll leave it to you then!"

Lin Bei took a deep breath and stopped hesitating.

He felt a slight treading sensation on the top of his head, as if someone was adjusting his posture. Immediately afterward, he felt something sharp and hard peck at the hair on the left side of his head near his temple—very lightly, but with a clear purpose!

left!

Without hesitation, Lin Bei strode forward and followed the red-feathered crow's directions onto another path hidden by weeds.