Chapter 9: Go find your female phoenix over there!
After a brief moment of stunned silence, Yan Jingyu raised an eyebrow.
He hadn’t thought that the piece of divine wood inside his body had such power, capable of making the Qiwu flowers, which had been dormant for many years, bloom once again.
“If I were to be buried here today, would a new divine wood be born in a hundred years?” Yan Jingyu joked casually as he sauntered towards Liao Chen.
He was pondering how to explain the origin of this divine wood to Liao Chen. In the end, this divine wood belonged to the phoenix clan. Although the phoenix clan had been extinct for many years, he had still taken something of theirs, and he was indeed in the wrong in front of the rightful owner.
But Liao Chen didn’t ask about the origin of the divine wood. His gaze was fixed on Yan Jingyu, a crimson light flowing within his pupils, unblinking.
“What? You went through hell and high water to get this face back for me, and now you don’t recognize it?”
Liao Chen seemed completely captivated by him. He slowly raised his hand. Yan Jingyu instantly saw the tiny feathers shimmering on his wrist. The feathers were small and pressed against the skin, crimson and hard, with a texture like scales, but not smooth.
Yan Jingyu grabbed his hand and reached out to touch it. His fingertips immediately felt the dryness and roughness of the area. These were not ordinary fine feathers, but razor-like pinions…
He looked at Liao Chen. Within his ink-black pupils, a hint of crimson was surging. The side of his neck was also dotted with some feather-like red pinions. He eagerly reached out to touch them. The other man tilted his head slightly, docilely allowing him to stroke the pinions there, his expression showing a hint of enjoyment.
Yan Jingyu’s expression was complex. As he withdrew his hand, he said with a touch of sourness, “The Vermilion Bird’s divinity… You came to Jiuyi Mountain for the Vermilion Bird’s divinity.”
Even though he had known that Jiuyi Mountain must still hide a great treasure, and even though he had known that with his Demigod stage, ordinary things would not catch his eye, Yan Jingyu had never imagined that Jiuyi Mountain truly hid the Vermilion Bird’s divinity.
It was well-known that the reason the human race was fortunate enough to ascend to the Great Dao was because the ancient gods had fallen, and their divinity had scattered. The human race was formed from the divinity of the gods, which was why they resembled the gods in form, and why the ultimate cultivation sacred body of all things in the world also resembled the human form.
The phoenix clan, on the other hand, was formed from the Vermilion Bird’s divinity. So although they were considered demons in the cultivation world, they were seen as auspicious signs in the eyes of mortals.
Before the craze for capturing phoenixes, there were also rumors in the cultivation world that after the Vermilion Bird fell, its divinity landed on Jiuyi Mountain and was controlled by the phoenix clan. For thousands of years, countless people had their eyes on the phoenix clan, both overtly and covertly, just to find the Vermilion Bird’s divinity. Unfortunately, it was like a legend, attracting wave after wave of people, but no one had ever seen its true form.
Later, some people said that the Vermilion Bird’s divinity didn’t actually exist, because among the four celestial symbols, one had to die for one to be born. The Vermilion Bird had never died, so naturally, no divinity had entered the world.
But just now, Yan Jingyu had suddenly remembered an ancient text he had once read. It said that the Vermilion Bird’s divinity could only be found by those of the phoenix bloodline, because they were connected to the Vermilion Bird.
Although Yan Jingyu had never seen a real Vermilion Bird, he was well aware of the phoenix clan’s cultivation sacred body. Its final form was infinitely close to that of a Vermilion Bird god. This Shuo Tian Feather, as tough as sunken gold, was one of its most recognizable features.
Liao Chen had gone to so much trouble, spent so much time. It couldn’t have been just to return to a demonic form…
He was so jealous he could scratch his heart out.
There was still some difference between the divinity of the four celestial symbols and that of the gods… Liao Chen had not only broken through to the Demigod stage, but he had also found the Vermilion Bird’s divinity and even forcefully merged with it…
Yan Jingyu slowly backed away, taking several deep breaths to suppress the surging blood and vital energy in his chest.
…Liao Chen is of the phoenix clan. This is one of the reasons he hates the human race. The way he chased after me back then was all due to his demonic nature. He was controlled by Chi Yuan for many years, and his life was no easier than mine.
This is what he deserves. This is Liao Chen’s opportunity. There’s nothing to be jealous of…
“Smack!” Yan Jingyu slapped away the hand reaching for him and said angrily, “What are you doing?”
Liao Chen took a step closer, his gaze extremely gentle, which looked very wrong. Yan Jingyu quickly became suspicious. He observed Liao Chen, watching as he tentatively reached out to him again and gently stroked his head, as if comforting a petulant child…
Yan Jingyu: “?”
He looked Liao Chen up and down, and suddenly understood the crux of the problem.
Liao Chen already had demonic nature in his body. Demonic nature and divine nature were incompatible. If he wanted to forcefully merge with the divine nature, he had to first strip away the demonic nature. In other words, he had to dissolve his Demigod body and temporarily return to a pure demonic form to briefly balance the two completely different divine powers in his body.
But returning to a demonic form wasn’t the same as amnesia. How could Liao Chen have this kind of attitude towards him… Yan Jingyu’s eyes darted around. The Qiwu flowers were still slowly blooming, dotting the green vines like stars, their slender branches swaying gracefully.
The old saying went that demonic nature was difficult to tame. Besides the fact that demonic beasts were inherently violent and cruel, and believed in the law of the jungle, there was another point: they had no concept of shame. Demonic beasts would only follow their instincts. Their demonic nature meant they wouldn’t care about face-saving measures like the human race…
“You haven’t been affected by the pollen… and are courting me, have you?” Yan Jingyu’s expression was dazed, but his eyes sparkled with interest, as if he had finally caught hold of an unspeakable secret of the other man. He suddenly took a step forward, his eyes wide. “Liao Chen, do you like me?”
Liao Chen was stunned for a moment, a hint of confusion in his eyes. How would a demonic beast know what “like” meant? Yan Jingyu changed his wording. “Do you really want to be close to me right now? Do something with me?”
Liao Chen’s eyelashes fluttered. He avoided his gaze for a moment, then firmly lifted his lashes and looked at him seriously.
He didn’t answer, but his expression had already said it all.
The corners of Yan Jingyu’s lips lifted, and he almost burst out laughing. So when a demonic beast has been single for too long, even a human starts to look pleasing to the eye…
But then he thought of the feather jade at his waist and suddenly understood the real reason.
Before, he had only thought it was an ordinary protective charm. Now that he had confirmed Liao Chen’s identity, he realized it must be a relic of the phoenix clan. It must be the residual aura on this jade pendant that made the currently unthinking Liao Chen mistake him for one of his own kind, and thus treat him as a female phoenix to be courted…
“Ahem.” Yan Jingyu quickly stood up straight. “If you’re courting me, you have to show some sincerity, right? Let me see what good things you have in your Qiankun Pouch.”
Liao Chen followed his gaze to his own waist, docilely took it off, and held it out to him.
Yan Jingyu immediately glanced at the opening. As he had expected, there were many weapons inside. Liao Chen had just drawn his heart’s blood to enter the mountain, and the forceful merging with the divine nature had made his state unstable. This was a superposition of two fatal weaknesses. At this time, all it would take was another stab to his heart to surely trigger a rampage of his primordial spirit. At that time, the two forces in his body would surely become unbalanced. At such a critical moment, even if Liao Chen were lucky enough to not die, he would lose half his life.
He might even end up a complete waste like him.
In line with his duty of mutually assured destruction, Yan Jingyu righteously reached into the Qiankun Pouch and grabbed a crescent-shaped dagger.
But in an instant, he sensed the killing intent within the pouch’s space. Even though he withdrew his hand extremely quickly, a sharp pain shot through the back of his hand. Yan Jingyu hissed softly and immediately took a step back.
The Qiankun Pouch flashed with red light, and ‘Lian Feng’ began to ram against the opening.
Yan Jingyu glared at Liao Chen. “Hurry up and make it behave! Do you want it to kill me?!”
The wound on the back of his hand was deep enough to see the bone, and blood slid down his arm. Liao Chen immediately used his magic to suppress ‘Lian Feng’ and quickly walked towards him. Yan Jingyu, while remaining on guard, allowed him to take his wrist.
The other man carefully wiped the blood from the back of his hand, took out some Healing Dew and dripped it on, and then, Yan Jingyu watched with a dissatisfied expression as he tore a strip of cloth from his clothes and gently wrapped his wound.
So you, Liao Chen, also have a day like this… Yan Jingyu finally felt like he could breathe a sigh of relief. But then he remembered the collapsed sternum from when he woke up, the bullying and torment from the other man during this time, and the still-throbbing pain in the back of his hand.
The sigh of relief was forcefully held back before it could even come out. He abruptly pulled his hand back and kicked him.
Liao Chen was caught off guard and looked at him with a somewhat dazed expression.
“What are you looking at? You’ve made me like this, and you still have the nerve to want to be close to me?” Yan Jingyu said. “Do you know how painful the water of the Primeval Spring is? Although it’s far from being as bad as bone-dissolving water… why should I have to suffer this with you? Huh?”
Liao Chen just looked at him blankly and quietly, his expression full of understanding and gentleness.
“We haven’t seen each other for over a hundred years, and you hit me as soon as we met… You know I’m a waste, you know Qin Zhongyou doesn’t recognize me, and you still have to pretend to restore my original appearance for me. Do you really think they don’t recognize me because of this face? It’s because I’ve become a waste! They can’t accept that Yan Jingyu is a waste! What cultivation, what setting foot on the immortal path again, do you think I’ve been doing nothing all these years? Do you think I’ve never tried? But my physical body…”
He abruptly stopped speaking, fell silent for a while, and then suddenly kicked Liao Chen again. “I’m starving! Go find me something to eat!”
Liao Chen looked at him, moved a little closer, and reached out his hand. Yan Jingyu slapped it away again and cursed, “Hurry up! Are you trying to starve me to death?!”
Liao Chen looked at him for a few more moments, then slowly withdrew his hand, stood up, and walked out.
“Hmph.” Yan Jingyu flexed his bandaged wrist, turned his head away from the other’s departing figure, and whispered, “Just you wait and see how I kill you…”
Liao Chen was already a Demigod. If he died, he might be able to obtain his legacy. Although he didn’t know if he would have the life to take it, it might also be an opportunity.
Liao Chen quickly returned with some fruit. Yan Jingyu had already readjusted his mindset. He casually grabbed a fruit, rubbed it on his clothes, and took a big bite. It was very sweet, with a hint of tartness, a crisp texture, and a rather good taste.
Liao Chen squatted beside him, wiped clean all the fruit he had brought back on his clothes, and then placed them one by one in front of him.
Yan Jingyu wrinkled his nose and kicked him again. “I haven’t slept well at all during this time. Liao Chen, aren’t you going to prepare a place for your spouse to sleep?”
Liao Chen looked up. Yan Jingyu was sitting on the trunk of a fallen giant tree, one foot still deliberately resting on his shoulder, his eyes full of fearless provocation.
But a strange light gradually lit up in Liao Chen’s eyes. He slowly moved closer. Yan Jingyu’s leg couldn’t hold his shoulder at all and could only be forced higher and higher. “You…”
He used some more strength, but still couldn’t push the man away. He could only transfer the fruit to his injured hand and press his left hand against the other’s chest. “What are you trying to do…”
Liao Chen gently touched his forehead with his own, then stood up and left.
Yan Jingyu touched his forehead, where the other’s warmth lingered, and inexplicably took a few more bites of the fruit. At the same time, he grabbed the dagger, thinking that the next time Liao Chen got close to him would be his last.
He didn’t know what was in the fruit, but after eating a few, Yan Jingyu started to feel sleepy.
There was no cycle of sun and moon in the chaotic netherworld; everything was gray. Yan Jingyu couldn’t tell how long had passed. When he woke up in a daze, he realized Liao Chen was trying to hold him.
Noticing he was awake, the other man didn’t stop. Yan Jingyu quickly slapped his hand, and only then did he stop and gesture to his side.
…It was a large bird’s nest.
This fiend was indeed a bird-type demonic beast. The nest was built quite well, with fresh branches, some green leaves mixed in, and even some vines of the Qiwu flower. The inside was lined with a white, silk-like natural weaving material that looked very soft.
Yan Jingyu walked over with some curiosity. The nest was made very large, enough for him to stretch out his arms inside. Yan Jingyu sat cross-legged on the silk-like material, then tried lying down and rolling over. To be honest, it was much better than sleeping on a rock.
He stretched inside, but his vision suddenly darkened again. He immediately opened his eyes and saw Liao Chen pressing down on him. Yan Jingyu’s eyebrows twitched. He immediately slipped out from under him, propped himself up, and reached for the dagger at his waist.
Liao Chen reached out to embrace him. Yan Jingyu keenly sensed that the crimson pinions on the side of his neck were opening and closing, and no longer just appearing and disappearing… This was a trend towards complete demonization. He was going into heat.
Was it because he had built the nest, so he thought his courtship was successful? Or was it because the pollen of the Qiwu flowers inside the barrier was increasing?
This should be the only chance.
Yan Jingyu gripped the dagger and looked at the man’s face pressing closer to his. The other’s Adam’s apple bobbed, his eyes were hazy, and his breathing seemed to be becoming ragged.
Yan Jingyu tightened his grip on the dagger…
Killing him might be his opportunity.
The dagger was drawn inch by inch. Yan Jingyu’s gaze gradually became firm. No matter what Liao Chen had experienced in the past, he and the other man were already mortal enemies. If he allowed him to absorb the Vermilion Bird’s divinity and control both the Demonic Domain and the fire element, the entire Hutian would become a hell in the future, and Qin Zhongyou and the others would surely die at his hands.
To be merciful to the enemy is to be cruel to oneself.
His killing intent was contained. Just as the dagger was drawn, a dazzling red light once again emanated from the Qiankun Pouch. Yan Jingyu didn’t dodge or evade, directly stabbing the dagger towards Liao Chen’s chest. The next instant, a wave of sword intent rushed out from the Qiankun Pouch. A sharp, breaking pain shot through Yan Jingyu’s wrist, but he still held the dagger tightly.
In the end, it drew a half-foot-long bloody gash on Liao Chen’s chest.
Yan Jingyu fell to the side in a wretched state, the dagger also knocked far away.
He didn’t give himself time to savor the failure. He looked up at Liao Chen, who had thrown the Qiankun Pouch that had injured him away at the last moment. He was now staring blankly at the knife wound on his chest, as if he had never imagined that the spouse who had agreed to build a nest with him would suddenly attack him.
But in an instant, his face suddenly darkened. The fire scales spread from the side of his neck to behind his ears, and his breathing seemed to contain a thunderous rage.
Not good…
Yan Jingyu made a decisive decision. He immediately took off the feather jade from his waist and threw it out. “Go find your female phoenix over there!”
The air suddenly seemed to freeze.
The sound of breathing in his ears became extraordinarily distant.
Liao Chen’s gaze was like a steel awl, firmly fixed on Yan Jingyu.
The torn-off feather jade took away the spiritual membrane protecting him.
Yan Jingyu flipped over from Liao Chen’s chest, took a step, but his retreating foot was suddenly grabbed firmly.
The slowly blooming Qiwu flowers suddenly began to bloom more rapidly. At the same time, countless vines seemed to come alive. With a rustling sound, the vines moved like snakes, growing several zhang high in an instant.
Yan Jingyu was abruptly pulled back into the nest. He watched as the vines rushed towards them from all directions, the moving vines quickly wrapping the entire nest so tightly that no air could get through. One after another, flower buds grew rapidly like bubbles and then burst open.
In the enclosed space, Yan Jingyu’s pupils contracted.
Even though he was completely unaffected, he could clearly feel the air inside the nest being filled with the repeatedly sprayed pollen.
Yan Jingyu looked at the dark figure above him, at the giant wings rapidly growing from his back, and his scalp tingled.
“Liao, Liao Chen…?”
