The criminal, who was obviously not the sharpest tool in the shed, was escorted away by Minglong Country's formidable security forces. After a quick inspection, the plane once again took to the skies.
To be honest, the entire incident had happened so fast that it was over just as quickly. The plane had barely completed less than a third of its journey.
Shen Yu sat by the window, watching the scenery outside. He noticed the once pure white clouds gradually changing color. They shifted from white to gray, and the gray deepened until they were as black as ink. It felt like a looming storm.
Shen Yu had studied flight with Xia Huanao and Yu Longdu. For instance, most Flying-type Pokémon generally stayed close to the ground, while commercial airliners typically flew in the upper troposphere and lower stratosphere. Thunderstorm clouds resided in the troposphere. Legendary Pokémon like Arceus and Rayquaza, being rarely seen, could be anywhere.
The plane belonging to Da Biao Bird generally didn't venture into the troposphere, meaning it should be flying above the black clouds. It was quite rare for them to be chased by a thunderstorm. Then again, Shen Yu genuinely wondered if thunderstorm clouds were truly black.
Getting off track, Shen Yu felt a twinge of unease watching the black thunderstorm clouds. While he knew planes were generally safe even in thunderstorms, they had been flying for half an hour. Why hadn't they passed through yet? The plane's speed was at least two hundred kilometers per hour. Was this thunderstorm cloud that massive? What must the ground in Minglong Country look like? The only explanation was that the cloud was alive, and it was following them...
As if on cue.
It was true, no matter which airline in Minglong Country you chose, the food on board was characterized by small portions, poor taste, and exorbitant prices. But as the saying goes, a single coin can stump a hero, and a single grain of rice can trap a beauty. For Shen Yu, he could skip sleep, but he couldn't skip lunch.
With no other choice, Shen Yu grudgingly indulged in a plane meal. To his surprise, the food was quite good. While not comparable to a top-tier hotel, it was certainly above average home-style cooking.
Shen Yu couldn't help but ask the flight attendant beside him, "I didn't expect Da Biao Bird Airlines' in-flight meals to be so tasty."
The flight attendant glanced around before whispering to Shen Yu, "Let me tell you, this was all Xia Huanao's idea. You can't tell anyone else, okay..."
What did this have to do with Xia Huanao? It turned out that last time, when Xia Huanao was returning home from Xuetian City, he had taken a first-class flight. He happened to sit next to someone from Da Biao Bird Airlines. They had a pleasant conversation, and Xia Huanao came up with this idea: subtly adjust flight schedules and layover times to ensure that passengers had no time to eat for an hour or two before or after meal times. This would effectively force them to purchase the in-flight meals.
The idea was to moderately improve the quality of the in-flight meals, aiming for small profits but high volume, using sales to compensate for the previously high pricing. As long as the final outcome was profitable, it would be fine. Da Biao Bird was in a precarious situation anyway, so it was worth taking a gamble.
However, Xia Huanao hadn't anticipated that this method would later be used to fleece his own girlfriend.
After a late lunch, Shen Yu continued to gaze out the window. Meanwhile, the captain and co-pilot in the cockpit were having a rough time. Directly ahead, another dense, dark cloud loomed, precisely blocking their flight path.
As the saying goes, a single scare can make one cautious for ten years. The captain immediately instructed the co-pilot to contact the purser still in the cabin to see if the area outside was completely dark.
Although the purser didn't fully understand what was happening in the cockpit, it didn't stop her from reporting that the area behind them was calm. The captain, seated at his post, breathed a sigh of relief. "You scared me! So, it's just a normal cumulonimbus cloud ahead. That's a relief."
Indeed, he had plenty of experience dealing with such clouds. But that was only for normal storm clouds, the kind that at least behaved somewhat reasonably. Where could one find clouds that started discharging electricity before you even encountered them?
Lightning crackled and struck Da Biao Bird Airlines' plane. While it didn't cause any substantial damage, it was like a toad on your foot – it might not bite, but it was incredibly irritating.
Setting aside the captain and co-pilot's ingenuity in their battle of wits with the troublesome clouds, Shen Yu in the back simply felt that the plane he was on was rather unreliable. He had the unsettling sensation that it was falling apart mid-flight.
Puzzled, Shen Yu was contemplating this when a bolt of lightning suddenly flashed past his window. This jolted Shen Yu to his feet. He wasn't the only one; the flight attendants around him also stood up. The situation clearly indicated something was wrong.
However, neither the cabin crew nor Shen Yu had any experience dealing with an unknown air disaster. They could only place their hopes on the two captains in the cockpit.
Fortunately, both captains were seasoned "battle-hardened" pilots. Despite the thunder rolling down, creating an atmosphere of divine wrath descending, the plane managed to narrowly clear the storm zone. As they approached their final destination, Xuetian City, everyone on board breathed a collective sigh of relief. They were finally arriving.
A flight attendant with a cute baby face, as if escaping a near-death experience, patted her chest. "We've finally arrived in Xuetian City! I've never been here before. Is it called Xuetian City because it snows often?"
Hearing this, the purser beside her quickly covered her mouth. "Shh, you can't say that!"
The young flight attendant looked confused, blinking her eyes and asking why. A more experienced flight attendant explained, "Although the weather in Xuetian City is generally good, there was an airplane crash here before due to extreme weather. So, anyone flying this route usually avoids mentioning snow..."
As she was speaking, a loud howling sound came from outside the window. Snowflakes, pure white and in vast swathes, began battering the plane. Looking out the window now, all that could be seen was a blanket of white. The purser slapped her forehead. "What you fear, you get. We've encountered extreme weather after all."
The baby-faced flight attendant's face fell. "It's all my fault. If I hadn't said that just now, maybe..."
The flight attendant beside her quickly reassured her, saying it had nothing to do with her. Meanwhile, in the cockpit, sweat was beading on the captain's forehead. "This is definitely the most thrilling and dangerous flight I've ever taken. If I survive this, I'll never fly this route again. Have everyone in the cabin remain in their seats and fasten their seatbelts. The plane is preparing for landing."
After saying this, the captain took a deep breath and began what felt like the most arduous flight of his life.