Chapter 685: Shoebill Delivering a Feather

The young swans landed on the water to rest, floating with the ripples and gradually regaining their strength.

"Oh, the once ugly ducklings have now transformed into beautiful swans and started practicing flying."

"Watching them grow is the most touching thing!"

"I think the most impressive ones are these photographers who could probably create a family tree for the swans."

Fang Ye scanned the area, looking for the shoebill stork.

The shoebill, with its large size, is a favorite among visitors, often drawing a crowd, making it relatively easy to spot!

Soon, Fang Ye saw its indigo-colored figure, standing motionless on a lakeside rock, as if frozen in place. Its eyes were fixed in a daze, and a tuft of hair on its head swayed gently in the breeze.

He laughed, "There you go, the shoebill stork you've all been waiting for!"

Many viewers were seeing a shoebill for the first time, having only heard of this internet-famous bird.

They couldn't help but comment, "So this is the shoebill stork? I've heard it's quite dopey, and it certainly looks the part!"

"What a fascinating look, like a Pokémon!"

"Just looking at its face makes me laugh!"

"I heard the shoebill is so dumb it almost drove itself to extinction!"

"Don't believe those marketing accounts. There's no such thing as an animal going extinct due to stupidity. Every animal is an evolutionary success."

"From my understanding, the dumber an animal looks, the more dangerous it often is! Like pandas and hippos! The shoebill is actually quite formidable!"

The shoebill, which had been standing still like a stone, suddenly moved!

It took slow, deliberate steps along the shore, resembling a retired old official taking a leisurely walk in the neighborhood.

It suddenly stopped, looked at the camera, and exuded a mischievous charm!

Instantly, it transformed into a proud and unrestrained CEO-like figure.

The shoebill is such a magical creature; sometimes it looks very handsome, and other times, it appears clumsy and silly.

This depends on its actions and the observer's perspective.

Its typical eye-rolling action looks silly, but if you ignore its wise eyes and focus on its large, scale-like body with blue-gray transitioning to indigo feathers, it appears quite majestic.

After standing still for a couple of seconds, perhaps contemplating its bird life, it blinked, shook its head, and seemed to sigh, as if in self-denial.

No, no, no!

It seemed to spot something.

Lowering its head, it opened its large beak and pecked at the ground, picking up a leafy twig.

Then it stood still again, looking dazed.

"Why does this feel so familiar?"

"Haha, isn't this like Farfetch'd? But instead of holding the leek in its hand, it's in its beak!"

"Not just similar, it's identical!"

"Both silly and adorable!"

"A friend who loves to daydream!"

Behind it, on Waterfowl Lake, a ruddy shelduck flapped its wings, calling loudly as it flew by.

After a couple of seconds, the shoebill blinked, turned its head sharply, and opened its beak in surprise, dropping the twig.

Did something just fly by?

It raised its head, looked up at the sky, then twisted its neck backward, staring blankly at the lake with wise eyes.

Another ruddy shelduck flew by, and the shoebill's eyes followed its flight path without blinking, its neck twisting more than 180 degrees!

Suddenly, it opened its beak wide, as if startled, its body leaning backward involuntarily.

Its wide-eyed expression was indescribably comical!

Its massive wings spread out to maintain balance, adjusting its posture to stand firm again.

"Hahahahahaha!"

"Look how startled the shoebill got, it's hilarious."

"The way it opened its beak and almost fell over reminded me of a scene where Wang Situ is left speechless by Zhuge Liang's scolding!"

"That neck twisted more than halfway around!"

"I don't think the shoebill was scared by the duck; it was probably too engrossed in watching, lost its balance when its neck twisted too far, and looked like it was scared."

The shoebill's amusing behavior had the viewers laughing nonstop!

"Blackened Wufa Jun" gifted a plane!

"G Yun Zhong Xing" gifted 20 rice balls!

Fang Ye couldn't help but laugh as well.

He whistled at the shoebill, attracting its attention and releasing a friendly aura.

The shoebill, which had been standing still, seemed ready to ponder its bird life again.

But sensing the friendly vibe from Fang Ye, it blinked twice and spread its wings.

Swoosh, swoosh, swoosh!

As the shoebill flapped its enormous wings, the grass beneath it, the ripples on the lake, and nearby bushes and leaves all swayed.

It flew towards Fang Ye, creating a visually stunning impact.

"Wow!" "Amazing!"

Nearby visitors exclaimed in awe!

"This thing can actually fly!"

"What did you think its wings were for, decoration?"

The shoebill flew over, looked around at the nearby visitors, its wings still spread as if showing off!

Then it folded its wings, took long strides, and walked leisurely towards Fang Ye.

Thud, thud, thud! Thud, thud, thud!

A series of dull, firecracker-like sounds echoed.

"Whoa, what's that noise?"

"Scared the heck out of me!"

Fang Ye laughed, "That's the sound of the shoebill clapping its beak! It's their way of greeting."

The viewers observed closely and indeed saw the shoebill's beak moving, though it was subtle and hard to notice without careful observation.

"It comes with its own BGM! So imposing!"

"Goodness, did this just return from Syria?"

"Close your eyes, and it sounds like a machine gun firing next to me!"

"It's similar to the beak clapping of the Oriental stork, but the sound is deeper and louder!"

The shoebill stood next to Fang Ye, reaching up to his chest, and gently rubbed its beak against his hand in a friendly gesture.

Fang Ye spread his palm and compared it to the shoebill's beak: "Look, its beak is bigger than my hand!"

He smiled and patted its tuft of hair.

While interacting with the shoebill, he explained various facts about it.

"Director, is it true that shoebills pluck their feathers to give to someone they like?"

Fang Ye laughed, "Why would a bird pluck its feathers to give as a gift? It's like us pulling out our nails—painful and bloody. It's just that the feathers were already about to fall off, and holding them in their beak gives the impression of a gift."

As he spoke, the shoebill nudged his hand with its beak.

It held a large feather in its beak, looking at him with wise eyes.

As if saying, "Here, take it!"

"Whoa, Director, what do you have to say now!"

"The Director's identity as a Grand Druid is confirmed once again!"

Fang Ye took the feather, laughing helplessly, and patted the shoebill's head: "You little rascal, trying to upstage me! Thank you!"

Looking at the camera, he said, "Folks, that's about it for today's broadcast. See you next time!"

"Goodbye, Director!"