Ji Wushuang and the little white night stared blankly at the feather. In the center of the feather, a brilliant red hue blazed intensely, radiating divine light and elegance, yet it also carried an overwhelming aura of ancient, primal power that made the little black fur stand on end, its ears pressed flat.
After much effort, when they finally discerned the aura of the feather, Xiao Baiye's cat eyes shrank to thin slits with excitement.
"Meow! Meow! It's the Phoenix!"
"The Phoenix?"
"Yes! There's no mistake! It's definitely the Phoenix! This is the Phoenix's feather!!!"
Suddenly, Ji Wushuang recalled that this Fire Spirit Stone was originally a prize for Mo Lanyi. She had been the first to provoke her, which led to her taking the top spot in the class and, in the end, claiming the Fire Spirit Stone for herself.
Ji Wushuang: "…"
Tch, this d*mn fate was far too biased!
She grasped the Phoenix fire feather, only to find that the residual power on it was weak, so faint it was nearly on the verge of dissipating, like an immense sea with only a single drop of water left.
Had it not been for this, the appearance of the feather would have surely triggered the fires of heaven.
"What do we do now?"
"I don't know either."
Xiao Baiye regretted bitterly, feeling as though its intestines had turned green with remorse.
Had it known the feather contained Phoenix power, it would never have foolishly torn it open.
Neither it nor Ji Wushuang could absorb the Phoenix's power. Should they let such an enormous opportunity waste away, dissipating into the air without a trace?
"Meow… What should we do? It's too late to call others over now, they won't be able to absorb it in time!"
Ji Wushuang lacked spiritual power and could not activate the communication talisman.
After thinking for a moment, she suddenly turned and left the formation. When she returned, she was holding a dark, ugly creature—was that… a chicken?!
No, wait—it was a low-grade spirit beast, something called a "Fire Furnace Chicken."
It was named so because it was often captured by cultivators without fire spiritual roots to use its beast core's fire energy as fuel.
However, this Fire Furnace Chicken seemed quite different from the usual ones.
It was… exceedingly ugly!
After all, most Fire Furnace Chickens had colorful and splendid feathers!
Ji Wushuang immediately gave the Phoenix feather to the poor little chicken. The chicken blinked, stunned, staring blankly at Ji Wushuang.
Ji Wushuang frowned and said, "Can't you absorb spiritual energy? You look smart, but are you really this slow? Fine, I'll try another chicken."
The little chicken immediately straightened up, flapping its wings and nodding quickly, then cradled the Phoenix feather in its wings, starting to absorb its power…
At first, the Fire Furnace Chicken transformed into a real little fireball.
Flames erupted across its body as it rolled across the ground in pain, looking utterly miserable. Xiao Baiye shuddered, retreating behind Ji Wushuang, muttering, "It's not… roasting into a chicken, is it? If so, I'll eat the drumstick, meow!"
Ji Wushuang: "I'll take the wings."
The little fire chicken, barely surviving the trial of fire, blinked in confusion: "…? Are you even human?!"
This was a long and grueling "tribulation." If Ji Wushuang hadn't been worried about damaging her Heavenly Yuan fruit, she might have dozed off.
Eventually, she plopped down, wrapping Xiao Baiye in her arms and yawning.
Clearly, even the smallest bit of Phoenix power, though dwindling, remained supreme.
For the little chicken, it was the tallest mountain and the longest river.
It had to exhaust all its strength and luck just to scale the peak and cross the river.
Ji Wushuang could sense people coming and going outside the formation but didn't bother greeting them.
Three days and nights passed. Just as Ji Wushuang's stomach growled, desperate for food, the little fire chicken finally absorbed the Phoenix's essence.
It chirped softly, soaring through the sky, displaying its… err… red-black speckled feathers. Honestly, it looked even worse than before, when it was black as coal.
Ji Wushuang and Xiao Baiye exchanged an unspoken glance.
But fortunately, the little fire chicken didn't mind. After a few laps in the air, it landed gently beside Ji Wushuang, bowing its head.
"Greetings, Master."
Contrary to its ugly appearance, the little fire chicken's voice was clear and melodious, surprisingly pleasant to the ear.
Moreover, Ji Wushuang could feel the divine, vast aura emanating from it.
It seemed the little fire chicken was incredibly fortunate. It probably already had Phoenix blood in its veins, and with the feather's activation, it had "returned to its ancestral form."
But then again, Phoenixes were the ancestors of all birds.
Ji Wushuang sighed in relief. At least she hadn't "ruined" the little fire chicken completely. She smiled and said, "You don't need to treat me as your master. I just didn't want to waste the Phoenix fire feather."
The little fire chicken froze.
It couldn't believe that its master didn't want it?!
"Master, please accept me! I… I'm very strong now! After absorbing the Phoenix feather, I awakened my Phoenix bloodline. I'm now a third-tier spirit beast! Although I'm not very powerful yet, I'll continue to grow! Please don't despise me, let me help you!"
After awakening its bloodline, the little fire chicken recognized the identity of Xiao Baiye.
It was a descendant of Bai Ze!
With the Phoenix fire feather and the Bai Ze divine beast in her possession, Ji Wushuang must be someone of extraordinary status, with immeasurable power. The little chicken feared she might not accept it.
But wanting to repay its debt of gratitude, the little fire chicken shamelessly begged.
Ji Wushuang understood the misunderstanding. She pointed to herself and said, "Look closely, I can't cultivate. If you follow me, there's no future for you."
The little fire chicken finally realized that Ji Wushuang's lack of spiritual fluctuations wasn't because she had mastered profound cultivation, but because she couldn't cultivate at all.
It blinked, then suddenly leapt into the air, pecking Ji Wushuang's fingertip with its beak, forcing a blood contract.
A surge of contract power gradually enveloped both master and pet.
Ji Wushuang: "…?"
Wait a minute!
Do divine beast descendants just forge contracts on a whim? Does she not have any pride?!