Chapter 108: Phoenix Ode to the World Classic · Fragment (II)

Through the sealing array, Cloud Che was surprised to find himself in a flat stone chamber. The chamber was exceptionally spacious, measuring a hundred meters in both length and width. It was large enough to comfortably hold not just two hundred people, but even ten times that number. On both sides of the chamber, long stone staircases suggested an upper level. Directly in front of the chamber, a long passage extended for several dozen meters, ending in a slowly rotating red formation, identical to the sealing array outside.

The array at the sealing entrance blocked vision but not sound. The howls of the Black Demon mercenaries outside clearly and continuously drifted in.

"Blast this formation open!" came Black Demon's voice.

Following that, a faint thudding sound echoed from outside, suddenly followed by a bloodcurdling scream: "Ahhh! Fire! My hand is burning, ahhh!"

"Back off! Everyone back off! Damn it all! This sealing array is so strange, there must be some immense treasure hidden inside! Guard this place in shifts! I refuse to believe they'll never come out!"

Although they had reached a safe place, a shadow of fear still enveloped everyone from the Phoenix remnant clan. The sounds from outside only intensified their despair. Cloud Che frowned deeply, and after much thought, asked Lan Xuewan, "Senior Sister, how much longer until your Giant Snow Condor wakes up?"

Lan Xuewan shook her head, worried, "I don't know. Little Snow not only overexerted its strength but also its life force this time. It might take a long time to wake up—perhaps a week, perhaps a month... or even longer."

"If it does wake up, how many people can it carry when it flies?"

"Ten people should be fine," Lan Xuewan replied.

"Ten people..." Cloud Che's brow furrowed even tighter as he looked at the two hundred-plus people in the stone chamber. If the Giant Snow Condor woke up, he and Lan Xuewan would have no problem escaping. But he knew that given Lan Xuewan's nature, she would never be willing to abandon these people—even though their lives were technically unrelated to her.

"We've finally had to hide here. I hope we don't offend the Phoenix divine spirit," Feng Baichuan said, standing by the entrance, his face etched with worry, resentment, sorrow, and helplessness.

"At least you've temporarily preserved your lives. The Phoenix is a sacred spirit; it wouldn't blame you for something like this," Cloud Che said, walking beside him.

"I hope so," Feng Baichuan sighed. "For many years, our clan has lived cautiously and diligently, never daring to do anything that might anger the Phoenix spirit, because we truly feared it. We never imagined that today... And even now, we can only find temporary peace. You heard the voices of those villains. They clearly intend to guard the entrance indefinitely. There's no food or water here; we won't last more than a few days. The elderly and children even less so... Sigh."

"Regarding food and water, I do have some here. For over two hundred people, if used sparingly, it could last ten days to half a month," Cloud Che said.

"You?" Feng Baichuan looked at Cloud Che, incredulous. Cloud Che was clearly unburdened, carrying nothing. How could he have enough water and food to sustain over two hundred people for over ten days?

Without further ado, Cloud Che swept his left hand and handed six azure spatial rings to Feng Baichuan. These spatial rings were also obtained from the Xiao Sect's treasure vault. They were filled with water and various foods. Clearly, the treasure vault was used by the Xiao Sect's branch not just for storing valuables, but also as a refuge during crises. The formidable defenses guarding the vault were difficult to breach; in case of emergency, they could escape into the vault, where the specially stocked water and food would sustain them for a long time until the disaster passed.

Feng Baichuan examined the spatial rings, and a look of pleasant surprise appeared on his face. Just then, Cloud Che's voice reached his ears: "Clan Leader Feng, there are a few things I don't understand. Your clan possesses the Phoenix bloodline, and the Phoenix is an ancient divine beast. The Phoenix bloodline should be far stronger and nobler than a mortal bloodline. Why is it that your profound strength cannot even break through the Elementary Profound Realm? I recall you mentioning a 'curse' before; is it related to that?"

Feng Baichuan's expression froze, and he remained silent for a long time.

"My apologies for being presumptuous. This must be a secret of your clan, and I shouldn't pry," Cloud Che quickly said, seeing Feng Baichuan's silence.

"No!" Feng Baichuan shook his head, laughing self-deprecatingly. "What family secret? It's merely the punishment and retribution we've suffered."

"Punishment? Retribution?" Cloud Che was surprised.

Feng Baichuan closed his eyes slightly, his face grave as he said, "The Phoenix is an ancient divine beast. Many years ago, it descended upon the Profound Sky Continent. To leave its flames on the continent, it established several trial grounds. Those who passed the trials could obtain a bloodline inheritance, and this trace of Phoenix bloodline could be passed down through generations. Thus, the Phoenix clan was born. According to our ancestors' records, the Phoenix left two trial grounds on the Profound Sky Continent: one in the distant Divine Phoenix Empire, and the other here. However, the one in the Divine Phoenix Empire is well-known to the world and led to the creation of the immensely powerful 'Divine Phoenix Sect,' while this one in the Cangfeng Empire was discovered accidentally by our ancestors and is completely unknown to the world. No one would have imagined that this desolate and dangerous Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range would contain the remains of an ancient divine beast."

"So, this is merely a trial ground, and not some treasure as those villains outside imagine?" Cloud Che asked, stroking his chin.

"Exactly," Feng Baichuan nodded. "Our ancestor passed the trial here back then. At that time, the 'Divine Phoenix Sect' of the Divine Phoenix Empire had already become the empire's protective sect, its power overshadowing all, even causing the empire's name to be changed to 'Divine Phoenix.' That trial ground also became the Divine Phoenix Sect's highest forbidden area, where only the highest-ranking disciples were qualified to enter. The Phoenix bloodline was their greatest pride and glory. If they knew that the Phoenix bloodline existed elsewhere, what they might bring wouldn't be kinship, but destruction."

Cloud Che nodded inwardly, fully agreeing. The Divine Phoenix Empire was originally named the Herro Empire. Later, the Divine Phoenix Sect rose powerfully, supporting a new imperial family, and even the national name was changed to the Divine Phoenix Empire. Thus, the Phoenix bloodline became the Divine Phoenix Empire's glory and unique symbol. If they truly discovered the existence of other Phoenix bloodlines, they would undoubtedly use any means necessary to eradicate them.

"Our ancestor, after passing the trial, passed down the Phoenix bloodline through generations. By the twelfth generation, it had developed into a powerful sect, but they never claimed to be the Phoenix clan, and the Phoenix mark on their foreheads was always concealed from others. In that generation, an ancestor, while battling someone with the Phoenix Flame, inadvertently unleashed overwhelming flames that affected a small town, incinerating all thirty-two thousand innocent people within it."

Cloud Che remained silent.

"Such a heinous crime provoked the wrath of the Phoenix spirit in the trial ground, and a cruel punishment was inflicted. A curse mark was placed on the Phoenix bloodline of all clan members in that generation, forcibly suppressing all their profound strength to Elementary Profound Realm Level 10, preventing them from advancing further for the rest of their lives. Furthermore, even the Phoenix mark turned dark red and could no longer be concealed, seemingly as a mutated mark to ensure all clan members remembered the monstrous crime they had committed."

"Our ancestors had many powerful enemies. With their strength suppressed to such a low level, they had no choice but to go into hiding... Later, they discovered in horror that this bloodline curse would actually be forcibly inherited. Their descendants were born with the dark red Phoenix mark on their foreheads, and their profound strength, similarly, could not break through the Elementary Profound Realm for their entire lives. Our ancestors tried countless methods to lift the curse mark, but how could something left by the Phoenix divine spirit be interfered with by humans? Now, a millennium has passed, and the curse mark remains in our bloodline, never fading. Our clan can only remain hidden in this Ten Thousand Beast Mountain Range, living cautiously and praying daily to atone for our ancestors' sins, begging for the Phoenix divine spirit's forgiveness."

"To this day, our clan has dwindled to this state. A small mercenary group can drive us to such despair, heh..." Feng Baichuan let out a sorrowful, bitter laugh. In his heavy voice, there was too much helplessness and unwillingness.

This was indeed a secret that should never have been revealed to outsiders. But now, having fallen to such a tragic and withered state, the so-called bloodline and clan secrets had become a joke. Perhaps the greatest desire of all their clan members was not to be born bearing the Phoenix bloodline, but to be like ordinary people. Cloud Che also suddenly understood why, even facing the massive crisis of their entire clan being slaughtered, Feng Baichuan hadn't immediately thought of having his clan members hide in this Phoenix remnant ground. Yes, they were afraid. Their clan had spent a millennium, dozens of generations, atoning for their sins, and dreamed of the Phoenix divine spirit's forgiveness. How could they dare do anything that might be disrespectful to the Phoenix divine spirit?

He turned around, looking at the red sealing array at the end of the passage, and asked, "Clan Leader Feng, is what's behind that sealing array the trial ground left by the Phoenix?"

"That's right," Feng Baichuan nodded. "These two seals were left by our ancestors back then, and only those with the Phoenix bloodline can unlock them, precisely to prevent outsiders from entering."

Cloud Che immediately made up his mind and said, "Then can you help me unlock that seal?"

"...Are you thinking of...?" Feng Baichuan looked sideways at him.

"Exactly!" Cloud Che nodded. "I want to see what kind of trial this ancient divine beast Phoenix left behind. Since I have this opportunity now, of course, I want to try."

Feng Baichuan did not refuse immediately but instead asked, "Young brother, what is your current profound energy level?"

"Level One of the Nascent Profound Realm," Cloud Che answered truthfully.

"Absolutely not!!" Feng Baichuan's eyes showed disappointment, and he then decisively refused. "It's not that I don't want you to enter. It's just that... when our ancestor passed this Phoenix trial, his profound strength had already reached the Spirit Profound Realm, and he possessed fire-attribute profound arts. Even so, he passed it with extreme difficulty to obtain the Phoenix blood and Phoenix God Pill. Later, some other ancestors passed the trial and obtained the Phoenix God Pill, but none of these ancestors had a profound cultivation lower than the Spirit Profound Realm."

"After the bloodline curse descended, no one has been able to pass the trial again. Not even the first trial could be passed by anyone. After all, how could the strength of Elementary Profound Realm Level 10 possibly withstand the trial of the Phoenix Flame? And over the years, some clan members who tried to forcefully pass the trial even died inside and never returned. You only have Level One of the Nascent Profound Realm strength; there's simply no possibility of passing the trial. You might even face life-threatening danger."