Yarra’s Adventure Notes
Chapter 987 - 103: Soaring

Chapter 987: Chapter 103: Soaring

The howling wind filled the girls’ ears. As they flew at high speeds, all they could hear was the monotonous and fierce sound of the wind, like the waves of the sea, and nothing else.

Nearly a hundred Horned Eagle Beasts formed a large formation, neatly sweeping over the Sea of Trees. These magical beasts flew at a very low altitude, almost skimming the treetops. The passengers on the backs of the magical beasts could distinctly feel the humid and hot air steaming upward from the Sea of Trees, forming a buoyant force that allowed the Horned Eagle Beasts to maintain a stable height with ease. The flying magical beasts in the Forest of Death usually chose this altitude when traveling, and only when preparing to dive for prey would they elevate their position to form sufficient speed and impact.

The formation of the more than a hundred Horned Eagle Beasts was also quite special. About twenty of them separated to form the shape of an arrowhead, with the other Horned Eagle Beasts closely following behind. In groups of three, they extended backward, each trio arranged in a fish-scale pattern tier by tier downward. Every twenty minutes, the members of the arrowhead group slowed down, allowing an equal number of Horned Eagle Beasts from the second and third rows to take the position at the front. Meanwhile, the original members of the arrowhead group moved to the end of the formation, slowly regenerating their strength with minimal energy consumption. This pattern of arrangement, slightly different from the migratory habits of migratory birds, was unique to the adept high-speed flying Horned Eagle Beasts. The airflow driven by the front row became the driving force for the subsequent rows, allowing them to keep up with the speed of the front row with little effort until the front became fatigued and the formation was reorganized. This method was not taught by the elves who domesticated them; rather, it was the opposite. The elves had learned many techniques of airflow and strength application from the flying formations of Horned Eagle Beasts, so the riders just needed to clarify the direction, leaving the rest to the beasts themselves without giving any further commands.

Pannis’s voice, infused with Aggression, broke through the interference of the airflow and reached Catherine’s ears. In response to Pannis’s teasing, the girl merely played dumb, but in fact, Catherine did not regret her previous expectations, and even though tormented by the fierce wind in an exceptionally disheveled manner, her heart was still filled with joy.

"This is the feeling, yes, this is the joy of flying in dreams, even if only surrounded by howling winds," the knight girl secretly rejoiced. "Of course, it would be nice if the wind were a little lighter."

Indeed, the wind was too strong, cutting into the riders’ bodies like knives. Unlike the Horned Eagle Beasts, human-shaped creatures lacked thick feathers to block out the fierce wind. Continuous slicing from the wind pressure would likely suffocate and kill an ordinary person quite soon; even Lower Rank professionals, after flying for a while, would probably end up in a near-death state. Only Upper Rank professionals, because of their sufficiently strong bodies, could withstand such strong wind pressure. Historically, Horned Eagle Beasts had been exclusively used as mounts by the Elves, not only because they were a specialty of the Lost Forest able to thrive only in such hot and humid environments but also because withstanding the effects of their high-speed flight at a minimum required the constitution of Upper Rank professionals. And in the Yarran World, only Elves, who were born with Silver Rank physiques, could universally use the Horned Eagle Beasts as mounts; other races did not have this capability.

The knight girl bent forward, took a deep breath, and abandoned her attempt to return her hair, which was perpendicular to her body, back to its original state. Somewhat enviously, she looked at the other passengers. To show respect for the guests, the Horned Eagle Beasts ridden by various races did not participate in the rotation of the formation, always staying in the central position. Thus, the girl merely needed to turn her head to see all the passengers. Apart from the few Legendary Rank girls from the adventure team, the other guests seemed very relaxed. Their solidified Aggression and magic shields were sufficient to counteract the effects of wind pressure, allowing them to maintain their usual demeanor even against the fierce wind. They could even occasionally use Aggression or magic techniques to disseminate sound waves into the other’s shield, thereby engaging in conversations and laughter with each other.

However, all the girls could do was sigh helplessly and continue to press their bodies down, reducing the area affected by the wind pressure while allowing themselves to breathe more smoothly. By lowering their bodies, they could see the scenery below, where the trees rapidly receded. The tallest trees at the top layer merged into a line at high speed, making it difficult to discern their original form. Occasionally, they passed over clearings devoid of any trees, where the visual effect resembled a green carpet marred by a stain, appearing highly incongruous. However, sometimes there were pleasant surprises, such as when some of the clearings turned out to be large lakes. As the Horned Eagle Beasts swooped past, the emerald lake waters mirrored the blue sky and the flock crossing the sky like a mirror.

The flock of Horned Eagle Beasts had been flying for several hours, but along the way, no predators had launched an attack on the flock, or even made an appearance. Even when passing nests of Demigod magical beasts capable of flight, the beasts only lazily lifted their heads to glance at the sky, showing no intention to attack. In fact, these magical beasts were smart enough to understand that, even if they were strong enough to capture a prey amidst the flock, they could never match the speed of these green bolts of lightning in the sky. Therefore, it made more sense to target weaker beasts, as the Lost Forest always had plenty of prey to offer and there was no need to desperately chase something they couldn’t catch.

Within the forest, the terrain was not entirely flat. Though they were sparse, the route encountered several mountains and hills. At these times, the Horned Eagle Beasts would automatically change formation, forming a line over a kilometer long, still skimming the top of the forest, and ascending along the terrain.

"Prepare for the second rest," Flare’s voice rang out when they encountered another mountain. The mountaintop was covered with brown rocks and devoid of any vegetation, serving as a natural airfield providing ample resting space for the Horned Eagle Beasts. However, the Horned Eagle Beasts only chose such mountaintops for rests when accompanied by riders; otherwise, the treetops provided plenty of resting places.

"How much longer?" the girls finally managed to speak as the speed decreased. Freya immediately couldn’t help but ask, "It feels like we’ve been flying for years. We must be close, right?"

"Unfortunately," Flare said with a gentle smile, yet her words were merciless, "we’ve only covered half the distance. Hang in there." (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote on qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users, please visit m.qidian.com to read.)