The moment the crow heard those words, a smile appeared on its face.
"Hahaha!"
It began to laugh, releasing loud bursts of laughter. After a few seconds of euphoria, it looked at Xie Yun seriously.
"Well, kid, from now on, you'll be the first disciple of this deity. Feel honored—"
It wanted to continue boasting, but an impatient voice interrupted it.
"Explain your legacy already."
Xie Yun was impatient, rubbing his hands together as his eyes shone with anxiety.
"Stop babbling and explain. How will your legacy help me survive?"
He repeated the words. The crow, who had wanted to boast a little, now had frustration marks on its face from the human's impatience.
"Okay, boring kid... Come here."
It moved its feathers up and down, calling Xie Yun, who frowned but took two steps forward, coming face to face with the crow. In that moment, they stared at each other, each with different thoughts.
'I hope this guy can really keep his promise.'
Xie Yun didn't blindly trust the crow. He still had many doubts. But at this moment, there was no choice. If he wanted to live, he had to seize the opportunity before him.
'I hate depending on others for my life! But what choice do I have? If I do nothing, I could die at any second. In that case, it's better to trust this creature that calls itself a divine beast.'
After this inner monologue, he returned to reality. The creature in front of him also came back. The two looked at each other once more.
This lasted until the crow placed its talon on Xie Yun's forehead, and he didn't react. He simply watched as the animal touched him.
At the moment of contact, memories of a cultivator began to flood his mind.
Xie Yun saw before his eyes an immortal figure. He didn't know who the person was, nor their gender—the image was blurred—but the wings on their back were identical to those of the crow.
This figure also suffered from disasters. The heavens seemed to despise it. Every time it made progress in cultivation, lightning would strike, growing stronger each time. But it always survived. Each disaster made it stronger. It used its own misfortune to increase its power.
"Invincible Body Refining Technique!"
That was the method of the figure. An arrogant name, but it lived up to what it represented—for everything in the world was refined by it.
"Black Crow Sir, I have a question."
At this moment, Xie Yun absorbed the memories. His first thought was to call the small animal that was watching him with eager eyes. Upon hearing the question, the crow happily responded:
"Yes! Did you like what you saw?"
"It was quite amazing, to be honest. But as I said before, I have a question. Why did you fall? Isn't this method enough to make you invincible when practiced in a higher realm?"
That was the question tormenting Xie Yun's mind.
"You make a good point, human. And to be honest, I don't even know how I fell. I just know everything was destroyed. As for the reason... I have no idea. Sometimes I think it was the Immortals... but then I quickly dismiss that thought. They're weak... or they were."
The crow wasn't sure. Thousands of years had passed. It knew nothing about the current world, nor the one from which it came.
"Was that figure you? What's your gender?"
Xie Yun raised an eyebrow, demanding an answer. The crow didn't say anything, just gave a sidelong glance.
"It was my clone, which I created to study human cultivation. And about my gender... why ask?"
It didn't want to answer. Xie Yun stared at it again.
'It's a woman. Too sentimental to be a man.'
He was sure of it. And then he cupped his hands in a gesture of respect, without kneeling—he would never do that. Not out of arrogance, but because of a promise he made to himself after almost dying.
"Thank you for changing my life. I will never forget this help. I will repay you in the future, Black Crow."
He thanked it from the bottom of his heart. The Black Crow, in turn, was touched.
"You are filial. Even after almost killing me at first, you're still a good kid, repaying kindness with kindness."
The crow touched Xie Yun's head, finding him quite pleasant to the eyes.
"But why are you talking like we're going to part ways? Kid, do you think I'd miss the opportunity to witness someone with the Disaster Body cultivate? This deity wants to see how far you can go."
The crow spoke casually, its voice full of pure curiosity. As a being that had lived for thousands of years, it was bored—and Xie Yun was a great break from the routine, as his life was unpredictable. The only certainty was that he would always have bad luck.
"Okay." Xie Yun didn't say much. He even found it interesting that the crow lady would accompany him. At least he wouldn't be alone. And the disaster would fall on both of them.
'This Black Queen will help me survive with her life experience. Another source of wisdom.'
These were his true thoughts. And Xie Yun still believed the other party was a woman. He was sure!
The clues pointed to that. If there were a twist, he would definitely be the one hit the hardest.
'What am I thinking? Why am I veering so much off the topic? Is it loneliness?'
He laughed and began walking down the dirt road. The crow landed on his shoulder. Together, they headed east.
But suddenly, in the middle of the road, Xie Yun saw a red blur coming toward him. It startled him, and his first instinct was to dive between the trees.
But before he could react, he was struck in the chest. In that moment, he saw a red bird wrapped in flames, glaring at him furiously. Upon impact, he was thrown backward, flying more than ten meters.
The black crow on his shoulder immediately took flight. Meanwhile, Xie Yun slammed the back of his head against a tree and lost consciousness instantly.
The black crow, still in the air, was stunned.
"Holy shit! The Disaster Body is really... insane."
It muttered, feeling its heart begin to race.
"My disciple isn't going to die after accepting my legacy, right?"
The crow became furious just thinking about it, shooting a murderous glare at the red bird. The crimson-feathered eagle trembled.
At that moment, the entity hovering in the air was a superior being. The eagle, which had wanted to devour Xie Yun for some reason, turned and fled. But what a pity... the Black Crow wouldn't allow it.
Without saying a word, it shot out a black energy from its eyes. Once released, the energy destroyed the space around it, advancing like ink, as if a brush were painting across the sky—but everything it touched disappeared.
The distance between them was closed in the blink of an eye. The ink reached the eagle, erasing it... without leaving a trace.
The Black Crow hadn't been joking when it said it could erase anyone from history.