Cecile flew around, the muscles on her back cramping from time to time because of all the time she had been flapping her wings, making Cecile grit her teeth in pain and her flight unstable. However, her blue phoenix eyes remained cold and focused.
The four hours went by slowly as she destroyed the creatures. Cecile's inhuman efforts and will made her go through all of that combat, reaching the last wave.
Only ten remained! Between them, there was a single expert wielding a mace looking at Cecile calmly.
Meanwhile, the battered Cecile dodged an approaching laser and shot an arrow while she spun, giving it inertia. The arrow made a curve and passed through the legs of one five-meter-tall construct, hitting a sand creature behind it right in the core.
As she did that, a sand beast jumped from the ground behind her. It reached Cecile's height in less than a second, and before Cecile reacted, it clawed at her back.
Cecile felt the four sharp claws sinking into her flesh and swiping downwards, creating four bloody wounds that reached her bone, "AHH!"
Cecile shouted in pain but reacted quickly and turned, shooting another arrow toward the creature that was in midair. The arrow created a shockwave and pierced its core, destroying it.
Then, she tried to flap to move out of the way of the next attack, but her back muscles didn't listen as that claw attack was too damaging to her back muscles.
The last sand expert realized and jumped high up, holding his mace high up. Cecile saw the bulky man falling toward her powerfully, but she couldn't do anything to dodge the attack.
As the mace came nearer, Cecile placed her arms in a cross before the attack, looking at the sand expert with a chilling gaze.
*BOOM!*
Cecile was shot down from the sky and slammed into the sand powerfully, creating a sand cloud. The sound of bones cracking was definitely heard, and Cecile's situation was unknown.
The creatures rushed forward, and the expert fell from the sky straight toward the middle of the sand explosion with the intention of finishing Cecile off.
However, as he fell, with a silver vortex, a powerful arrow pierced from the dust cloud, slamming onto his chest.
The arrow literally exploded in a rain of arrows, attacking the surroundings while using the falling sand expert as a trigger for her arrow rain.
This attack killed the expert and another four sand creatures, leaving only three alive.
Cecile ran out of the sand cloud with terrible wounds. One wing was broken, her back dripped with blood, and the bone was visible, her leg was still injured, and her arms were purple as she used them to block the expert's attack and were now broken.
However, she pushed her crumbling body to create two arrows with powerful gales around them and tensed her bow. The mere act of pulling the bowstring made her scream, her back felt on fire, her arms as if painful electricity was constantly running on them, and her brain was buzzing with agony.
Regardless, that didn't stop the Moon Phoenix from breaking her limits again and again. With a shout of pain and motivation, she screamed at them. "AAH!! DIE!"
She released the tensed bowstring and shot the two arrows toward two of the three sand beasts charging straight at her.
The arrows flew with extreme precision and shredded the two beasts into pieces.
However, before she could make another attack, the last creature was before her!
It was a brown two-meter-tall quadrupedal beast with sharp claws and teeth.
The creature lunged toward her, and Cecile grabbed her bow with both her arms, using it as a weapon to slam it toward the face of the jumping beast. "SCRAM!"
*BANG!*
The beast was blown away ten meters from the impact of the bow on its face, but its injury healed instantly.
Worse, Cecile had lost her bow!
Cecile continued moving her broken arms as if she didn't realize she had lost her bow. It was as if she was readying herself to shoot another arrow, even if the bow was missing.
Then, a crystal-blue bowstring materialized when she began pulling the invisible bow.
As Cecile pulled the string with blood running from her nose, mouth, and eyes, the crystal blue bow materialized together with a perfect silver arrow.
The beast stood up and ran toward Cecile.
Cecile didn't say anything. This arrow would decide her fate.
If she misses, she dies.
If it hits, she lives.
She didn't have the strength to do anything more than fire this last arrow.
Cecile waited until the beast jumped again and shot her arrow directly into the middle of its mouth.
*BOOM!*
A shockwave spread around when the arrow shot forward, lifting a wave of sand behind Cecile and opening a trench in the arrow's path.
The arrow was extremely fast and powerful.
The beast saw it coming and moved its head midair, successfully dodging it!
However, the arrow didn't just damage what was in its path.
The power inside that arrow literally froze the whole beast as it grazed it and the following gale shredded the frozen creature to pieces!
Cecile stood still, looking at the shredded pieces of the creature.
She would really die if she didn't get the core with that attack.
However, after five seconds, the silver ice pieces remained immobile.
A smile spread on Cecile's bloody and tired face, and instantly after, she fainted.
An unknown amount of time passed until Cecile woke up again. She was still in the middle of the desert. Her grievous wounds were completely healed as if she didn't have them since the beginning.
Cecile didn't stand up. She lay on the sand, face up and with her wings spread open. She took a deep breath as if trying to ensure she was still alive. 'Close. That was way closer than I thought. If I missed the core with that last arrow...'
Cecile couldn't help but smile in ridicule, 'And here I thought I was finally strong enough. I almost died in a trial.'
Cecile closed her eyes and enjoyed the Sun in the sky caressing her body. "But I lived. And I became much stronger."
Suddenly, an ancient voice echoed in the area, interrupting Cecile's rest. "You've shown talent, strength, adaptability, and potential. Your heart is unflinching, your determination as strong as Heavenly Steel, your will strong enough to pierce the Heavens!"
Cecile was about to smile and thank the voice, but the voice continued, "But your motivation is shallow."
Cecile frowned and asked, "What do you mean, senior?"
The voice answered, "Is protecting that person your only objective in life? What if that person is undeserving? Or if that person strays away from the path, you think they will walk?"
Cecile answered with a voice that left no room for arguing. "If she strays, then my path will bend to accommodate hers. If she becomes a cripple, my strength will serve as protection until the day she recovers or dies. If she becomes a ruler, I will be her Queen. No matter what path, I will follow it."
"What if she hates you? What if she wants to get rid of you?"
Cecile didn't even hesitate, "Then, my life will be hers to take!"
The voice answered, angered, "Foolish! A path that follows others will never lead to strength! Don't you want to protect her? How will you do it if your path only follows after hers? You will always be a step behind!"
Cecile didn't answer instantly this time. She knew that her way of thinking was crooked, that her convictions, even if they seemed pure, many would take them as the rambling of a lunatic blinded by love.
Still, unlike others might think, Cecile knew full well what her actions meant.
She wasn't blinded by love but let herself be enveloped by it; Cecile just embraced those feelings back.
Cecile's feelings for Yasenia were the purest form of love.
It was not the best way to love someone or the worst, just the purest. A form of love where a single woman wants to dedicate her everything to that person that captured her heart.
She didn't want anything in return from that person besides wishing for their loved one to be happy forever and not lose sight of them.
Therefore, Cecile just sat on her knees with her wings folded. Her face was calm and impassive. Her voice carried the same tone as before, indifferent. "If you think my Dao is not worthy of your treasures or inheritance. Then, you can send me out of the trial. I will continue embracing this love until I burn myself in it. However, that wouldn't be the end, as I will always be reborn from those flames and come back stronger! That is why I'm a phoenix, to be able to embrace this love without fear!"
An old man appeared before Cecile, wearing a long pure white robe. He had long white hair and a similarly long white beard.
His face was filled with wrinkles, but his eyes carried vitality like no other. Even then, those eyes were as profound as the ocean, full of wisdom.
The old man said, "Your conviction to dedicate yourself to your love is what made me accept you in this trial. You are a good seedling, be it in strength, intelligence, potential, or effort. However, your mind is too stubborn. Your cause is noble, but the way you carry it is wrong."
Cecile didn't even stand up. She just looked at the old man from her sitting position, her eyes still impassive and unmoving from what the old man said.
The old man caressed his beard and thought for a moment. "What if you give your life for your love only for them to become aware of how much they appreciate you? Then, filled with grief, they kill themselves to follow you to the underworld."
Cecile kept her face indifferent.
However, on the inside, she knew that she was wrong.
Nonetheless, Cecile didn't know what to do besides this.
She was a girl that had grown up with limited love, and the person who gave her that little bit of love was killed when she was very young.
She had been alone since that moment, leading to Cecile not knowing how to express herself. Not knowing how to speak of love or show empathy for others. This is what made Cecile always have an indifferent and apathetic gaze.
It was only recently when she was with Yasenia, that she learned what happiness was, what love was, how pleasure felt, and how anticipation felt.
Yasenia saved her life and, at the same time, gave her a new lease on life. Her true rebirth didn't happen in that ritual at the top of the mountain, but much earlier when Yasenia told her that she loved her.
She was her Sun in a cold and dark world.
She was her cozy home in a freezing and fearful winter.
Cecile was extremely intelligent, which is why she was an unrivaled genius until Yasenia arrived. However, she was like a child in matters related to love.
Of course, Cecile had also grown up during these months.
At first, she felt indifference toward the people around Yasenia. Now she felt some comradery and friendliness and helped them strengthen themselves the best she could. It was her way of making contact with the other harem members, a bit clumsy but very Cecile-like.
But now, this senior was putting her conviction in front of her and telling her why it was wrong.
The thing she thought was the reason to live, now it was wrong.
Cecile didn't want to accept it. That is why she was silent, and her face was indifferent. It was like a child placing her hands over their ears when their parents scolded them.
Cecile knew she was wrong but didn't want to admit that everything she thought was right was, in truth, wrong.