Chapter 136: 136. Soaring in the sky
The four propellers spun rapidly, and the drone slowly ascended to a height of 1 kilometer in the sky.
Without GPS in the Otherworld, the biggest issue was the inability to navigate with precision, deprived of the convenient function that allowed for automatic flight with just a light tap.
It required constant manual correction of the flight attitude, or else it would fly erratically and veer off course.
Fortunately, Lu Yao was well-practiced in Spirit Refining Oblivion; micro-managing such a task was not a challenge for him.
The drone quickly arrived above the military camp, sending back clear 1080P footage via the most advanced image transmission system.
It was Lu Yao's first glimpse of the foreign military.
Einheit and Frandi, though Allied Forces, were distinctly divided.
On the Einheit side, there were as many as ten thousand troops. There were "knights" clad in cumbersome full-body Steel Armor as well as ordinary soldiers in khaki uniforms.
The majority were turbaned Tianzhu servant soldiers, who, under the supervision of "knights," strained to drag field cannons from transport ships while chanting in unison.
One servant soldier carelessly pushed a "4.5-inch MK2 Howitzer" into the sea.
A Steel Armored officer immediately came over, cursing loudly, and punched the servant, sending him flying a dozen meters away, then personally dove into the sea and lifted the 1.4-ton cannon back up.
High-ranking officers with a vampire appearance stood in the distance, coldly looking down. They all wore face coverings, revealing only crimson eyes and pointed ears.
Lower-rank vampires could not retract their fangs, and in the current traditions of the Western world, it was considered very rude to show one's fangs.
Lu Yao and the other two saw everything clearly through the tablet computer.
Liao Qe sneered, "These Steel Armored warriors obviously have the strength from Organ Refining, and they can easily bring the cannon down themselves. Why let these ordinary people do the work?"
Liao Ya shook her head and said, "Nothing surprising there; the Government Forces are the same. Martial Artists generally consider themselves superior and believe that physical labor should be done by the lower classes."
As they commented, Lu Yao maneuvered the drone over to the Frandi side.
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This side was much more desolate, with only about 2,000 people, seemingly just making up the numbers.
The ordinary soldiers were dressed in blue uniforms with light green steel helmets; the officers also wore cumbersome full-body Steel Armor, with beak-like steel helmets that had only a slit for the eyes.
The most interesting part was that they were all humans, not a single vampire among them.
Liao Ya leaned in close to the tablet computer and said,
"There was a great revolution in Frandi, with the vampire royalty all going to the guillotine; the civil war in Menes was also won by the Human Race. These two are among the few Western nations where humans hold power."
Lu Yao stroked his chin and said, "Then we'll make Einheit our main target, but they're all gathered in the camp, so it's not feasible for us to attack. We still need to wait for an opportunity."
Lu Yao pondered that his noodles should be arriving soon, and the battle could break out at any time in the next few days.
~~~~~~~
They didn't idle away their waiting time, beginning the training of young falcons for flight.
The three little ones had eaten plenty of live prey, and their wildness was slowly awakening.
Strictly speaking, their flying didn't require human training; it was an instinct ingrained deep in their bloodline, something they were born with.
All Lu Yao and the others needed to do was ensure the young falcons' safety. Because for birds learning to fly, landing was more difficult than taking off.
At this moment, the family gathered atop a tree, the little ones flapping their fully feathered wings, already capable of short-distance flight by beating their wings.
Ping An, in particular, spread its wings adeptly to ride the rising air currents, hovering in mid-air.
But when they landed, they still couldn't gauge the force or maintain balance properly, and they were prone to getting hurt. People often found such injured fledglings in the wild.
The three little guys flew so high they even dreaded descending, only circling round and round in the sky, calling out anxiously.
At that moment, the three parents had to catch them quickly with sharp eyes and swift hands to save the youngsters from a harsh tumble.
After a mix of play and practice until the next day, the three falcons could take off and land by themselves. Although it was still quite clumsy, especially when looking for a spot to land, they could be considered capable of flying.
Lu Yao rewarded each of them with an entire "Wisdom Spirit Pill," a medicine which could not only enhance the constitution of a Spirit Pet and boost its immunity but, more importantly, increase its "spiritual" traits.
The sisters were also very happy, opening a bottle of Golden Elixir Brew to celebrate and also bringing out the barbecue rack Lu Yao had brought along.
Raising Spirit Pets could be quite an interesting affair, without considering the costs.
To witness these three little creatures transform from balls of fluff to raptors that could soar through the sky was a profoundly fulfilling experience.
The family leaned against a tree for support, clinking bottles in a hearty toast, while the three little falcons flitted through the trees, occasionally letting out slightly nasal, joyful chirps.
Liao Qe propped herself up with both hands and looked up, saying softly, "After Spirit Birds undergo Blood-Exchange, can they carry people when flying? How long will that take?"
"Zhou He the daoist's Immortal Crane has been invested with a vast amount of resources, and it's only at. Organ Refining stage now, quite a distance from Blood-Exchange. It's harder for Spirit Pets to advance in realm than for people..."
During such a casual talk, Lu Yao's ears suddenly twitched rapidly as he faintly heard the sound of cannon fire from the east!
He suddenly remembered Li Pei mentioning before he left that he was going to ambush the foreign envoy's delegation!
Lu Yao operated the drone to take off, flying 2 kilometers above the ground towards the east.
The multi-purpose Zen camera fitted to the belly of the drone constantly switched focus, searching in all directions, discovering traces 8 kilometers away.
As the drone circled closer, the camera's smart positioning identified every person in the lens, marking them with a green triangle symbol.
Lu Yao and his companions could see it all clearly; the most conspicuous figure was Li Pei, operating a 60mm rapid-fire cannon.
Priest Zhou and Fu Fangsheng were also there, along with many other experts unknown to Lu Yao, ambushing the foreigners' convoy.
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A stately classic car with six wheels slowly drove along.
Lord Asben, the Queen's Envoy, sat in the back seat, his fingers lightly running over the diamond-studded leather case in his hand, which contained the "Treaty of Tianjin" soon to be signed.
Now, the great powers were acting independently, signing their "exclusive treaties" with the Shun Dynasty.
Einheit was demanding 100,000 overseas laborers; Frandi, on the other hand, insisted on "missionaries being allowed to preach and buy land unrestricted."
"The Shun Dynasty has already submitted; the hunters each have their own spoils. This is a wonderful feast."
Lord Asben, calm by nature, had golden eyes. Seated opposite him was his old friend, Priest Miller.
The classic car's interior was as spacious as a mobile living room, allowing passengers to face each other.
Priest Miller, holding a treaty of his own nation, made a triangle of Sacred Glow over his chest, his voice solemn, "May the soul of the Bishop of Tianjin ascend to the Divine Nation."
A flicker of barely noticeable mockery crossed Lord Asben's eyes, ridiculing these clerics' trivial passion that cost them their lives.
"However, not everyone is satisfied. Jiade and Izumo will inevitably take action for the benefit of their own countries."
"The feast is nearing its end, and they will only be left with a few scraps."
As the two talked, Priest Miller's pupils suddenly lost focus, and in an instant, he kicked open the door and jumped out of the car.
The next second, a three-kilogram cannonball blew the entire luxury car into an exploding fireball, with silver shrapnel shooting out everywhere! Faint screams could be heard amidst the chaos.