strokinit Chapter 520 - 393: Five Phoenix Eggs
Chapter 520 - 393: Five Phoenix Eggs
Soren Phoenix didn’t seem to care about Malachi Arcanus’s words; on the contrary, he laughed aloud, "Well said! Those old fools really do deserve a lesson."
With a flick of his fiery red sleeve, he rose to his feet, peach-blossom eyes narrowing dangerously. "Come, your clan leader will show you an amusing spectacle."
As soon as he finished, he was striding out of the side hall in great strides.
Corbin Crowley, Rhys Blackwood, Kian Sterling, Zeke Veridian, and Malachi Arcanus exchanged a glance, but said nothing and followed behind him in turn.
As for the children, the Phoenix Clan’s female slaves were watching over them, so they had nothing to worry about.
They followed Soren Phoenix to the forbidden area behind the mountain.
From afar they saw several elders garbed in intricate feather robes, each one a witch, elder, or priest of the tribe.
At the head stood Quillon Phoenix, the Phoenix Clan’s High Priest, his face twisted in grief and anger, beard and hair as white as snow.
They knelt before a massive stone stele inscribed with ancient runes, and behind that stele was said to be the very spot where the Ancestral Phoenix slumbered, sealed away.
"Clan Leader."
When Quillon Phoenix saw Soren Phoenix approaching with a group, he did not rise. Instead, he lowered his head harshly onto the cold earth, his voice both sorrowful and indignant:
"Abolishing the living sacrifice is a betrayal of our ancestral teachings; it will shake the very foundation of our clan. Heaven’s punishment looms, extinction lies just ahead. I beg the Clan Leader to rescind the order, else we elders will kneel here for eternity, pleading for the Ancestral Phoenix to manifest and judge right from wrong."
The elders behind him likewise kowtowed heavily, each with the air of one facing death unflinchingly.
"Heh..."
Soren Phoenix let out a cold laugh on the spot, his peach-blossom gaze sweeping over these stubborn old relics as an icy smirk curled his lips. "Kneel to death, then let it be so. That’ll save your clan leader the trouble of cleaning house by hand."
His voice wasn’t loud, but it cut with a bone-chilling frost, making the kneeling elders shiver to their bones.
They had intended only to pressure the clan leader, not to truly perish here. Now, caught in a bind, they found themselves riding a tiger with no way to dismount.
"Soren Phoenix."
Quillon Phoenix suddenly jerked to his feet, his aged eyes bloodshot, even addressing Soren Phoenix by his full name—clearly driven to the point of fury.
He jabbed a trembling finger at Soren Phoenix’s face and cursed: "You are willful and self-serving, bewitched by a female from the Lower Domain, willing to cast aside a million years of our Phoenix Clan’s inheritance. Abolishing the living sacrifice will only enrage the Beast God! Now, all the clans are abuzz with rumors, casting shame upon us; this is utterly disastrous for our people! You would sever our bridge with the Beast God as well—are you not afraid the Beast God will smite us and bring calamity upon the entire Phoenix Clan? When that day comes, you will be the sinner for all our kin!"
"The sinner of the Phoenix Clan?"
Soren Phoenix acted as though he’d just heard the greatest jest in the world, lazily fanning himself with the feather fan as his gaze turned icy sharp. "The High Priest is skilled at affixing blame upon his clan leader’s head. Abolishing the living sacrifice was the command of the Beast God Envoy. What now? Is the High Priest dissatisfied with the decree of the Envoy?"
"You!"
Quillon Phoenix found himself choked into silence, his wrinkled face flushing scarlet.
Of course he dared not openly challenge the Beast God Envoy’s decree, only... He simply refused to recognize Luna Sutton as the true Envoy of the Beast God.
So what if she could tinker with little trinkets or conjure up things no one else understood, or had pulled off a few good deeds? She called herself the Envoy of the Beast God?
It was, frankly, a farce.
The Envoy of the Beast God... it wasn’t a title for just any cat or dog, was it?
Fools from the savage Lower Domain were easy to hoodwink, but Quillon Phoenix wasn’t nearly so gullible.
"What virtue or worth does that Lower Domain female have, that she might serve as the Envoy of the Beast God?"
He spat each word through clenched teeth. "I beg the Clan Leader to open the seal of the Ancestral Phoenix and beseech the Ancestral Phoenix to manifest, to judge this matter."
Soren Phoenix’s eyes flickered, a sardonic smile on his lips, as he looked upon him. "Is the High Priest so sure the Ancestral Phoenix would stand with you?"
Quillon Phoenix’s answer stuck in his throat, his gaze wavering.
Truthfully, none of them were certain—for the Ancestral Phoenix had been sleeping for over a hundred thousand years, and none had ever seen it manifest.
But there was no turning back now—they’d have to tough it out and gamble on their luck.
"For the sake of the Phoenix Clan’s future, this old man is willing to try."
Once more, he knelt, pressing his forehead to the earth, his grief and sincerity unmistakable: "Please, Clan Leader, grant this request."
Soren Phoenix did not reply, his gaze locked coldly on Quillon Phoenix kneeling on the ground. Suddenly, he burst into laughter. "Very well! Since the High Priest insists, your clan leader shall grant your wish."
The Ancestral Phoenix had been dead for well over a hundred thousand years—he didn’t believe some spirit would suddenly appear now.
When the outcome came, he’d like to see how this old fool would save face.
So, he walked to the stone stele, performed a few spell gestures in deliberate ceremony, then slammed his palm onto the stele.
"Wong——"
The stone stele trembled slightly, emitting a deep, muffled hum.
Yet, the anticipated manifestation of the Ancestral Phoenix did not occur.
Quillon Phoenix and his companions exchanged glances, a flicker of panic in their eyes.
Soren Phoenix sneered inwardly, but affected an air of feigned surprise. "Huh? Why hasn’t the Ancestral Phoenix answered? Could it be your clan leader’s strength is lacking?"
Turning to Corbin Crowley and the rest, he said, "You are all among the strongest—why not assist me in this rite?"
They looked at each other knowingly.
This was Soren Phoenix’s play—making a spectacle, ridiculing the old fossils.
Still, they had no intention of exposing him, and all stepped forward, solemnly imitating the casting of spells.
As expected, the stone stele remained wholly unresponsive.
"This..."
Quillon Phoenix and the others fell into utter panic, not knowing what to do.
Soren Phoenix seized the opportunity, "It seems the Ancestral Phoenix does not support the High Priest’s course. Thus, the abolition of the living sacrifice is settled. If anyone dissents hereafter, it shall be considered a defiance of the Ancestral Phoenix’s will and punished by the clan’s laws."
His tone was icy and brooked no debate.
Though Quillon Phoenix and his cohort were resentful, none dared speak again.
After all, the Ancestral Phoenix hadn’t manifested—they had no excuses to raise further trouble.
What’s more, Soren Phoenix’s power was overwhelming; they simply could not oppose him.
"We shall obey the Clan Leader’s decree."
In the end, Quillon Phoenix and the others could only bite back their anger and submit.
Just like that, the storm subsided.
Soren Phoenix, in excellent spirits, left the forbidden area with Corbin Crowley and the others. Yet, as they passed the Beast Graveyard at the back mountain, he suddenly sensed a faint pulse of life.
His brow instantly furrowed. The Beast Graveyard was where Phoenix Clan cast-off sin slaves or Fallen Beasts were buried—in plain terms, a boneyard.
Corpses or skeletons, nothing more. How could there be signs of life?
Could someone have been cast here and yet not perished?
Suddenly, Soren Phoenix halted, his peach-blossom gaze sweeping the area, narrowed to slits.
"What’s wrong?"
Corbin Crowley also stopped, surveying the vicinity, unsure what Soren Phoenix was searching for, but certain something unusual had caught his attention.
"No, there’s a living thing here."
Rhys Blackwood’s expression was peculiar.
Kian Sterling suddenly chuckled. "Quite amusing, this Boneyard—hiding a spark of life."
Soren Phoenix kept silent, but narrowed his peach-blossom eyes even further. He was utterly certain that the faint life fluctuation from earlier had been real.
There was a living creature—and quite certainly not an ordinary one.
His early-stage Foundation Establishment Divine Sense swept out, instantly blanketing the entire Beast Graveyard.
Countless bones were buried in this Boneyard, but among a patch of unremarkable weeds, he discovered a strange anomaly.
Soren Phoenix’s eyes focused, his expression odd. "There are Phoenix Eggs here. Five of them!"
"What? Phoenix Eggs here? Impossible! You jest, peacock, surely?"
Malachi Arcanus was instantly dumbfounded—even someone unfamiliar with the Phoenix Clan knew that Phoenix Eggs were an exceedingly noble thing. How could they appear in the Boneyard?
Corbin Crowley, Rhys Blackwood, Kian Sterling, and Zeke Veridian were all left in shock as well.
Their Divine Senses swept out, and sure enough, they detected five Phoenix Eggs hidden in the weeds. Their expressions were as strange as could be.
Not to mention noble Phoenixes, even ordinary birds would not abandon their eggs in the Boneyard.
"Let’s go take a look."
Soren Phoenix withdrew his Divine Sense, strode toward that clump of weeds and stooped to part the undergrowth.
They beheld five enormous Phoenix Eggs lying quietly among the weeds. Their shells glimmered faint red, a lustrous light shimmering at the surface, clearly having been nurtured for a considerable time.
Corbin Crowley and the others were no novices when it came to Phoenix Eggs. Seeing these five, they could not help but feel bewildered.
Soren Phoenix narrowed his peach-blossom eyes, and suddenly glimpsed a half-hidden corpse in the nearby weeds. The flesh long since decayed, only spectral white bones remained, and from the skull’s proportions, one could tell it was a female.
Upon closer inspection, he noticed a hole at the throat—clearly slain by a single, ruthless strike from some sharp weapon.
"Interesting."
Soren Phoenix suddenly laughed low, his gaze locking onto the corpse’s abdomen. "To think your clan leader never knew he had five younger brothers."
Corbin Crowley, Rhys Blackwood, Kian Sterling, and Zeke Veridian were utterly baffled by his words.
Xylon Phoenix was dead. Soren Phoenix was an only son—where would five brothers come from?
"Is there something wrong with these eggs?"
Rhys Blackwood, ever perceptive, caught his odd tone and blurted out a question.
"Extremely wrong."
Soren Phoenix abruptly laughed, a chill in his eyes. "Do you recall what I spoke of with you last year?"
"I remember—your father had a new favorite, Ruby. She fell pregnant, and your father intended to raise the child in her womb, then depose you..."
Corbin Crowley trailed off, instantly understanding, eyes fixed on the five Phoenix Eggs. "So, these five eggs were produced by that Ruby?"
Soren Phoenix nodded, his peach-blossom eyes filled with complex emotions. "Indeed, these five eggs are technically my brothers."
"The eggs are alive, but their vitality is faint."
Rhys Blackwood suddenly crouched, scrutinizing the five Phoenix Eggs. "Judging from the Spiritual Energy fluctuations, they’ll hatch before long. But without a natural birth, their potential won’t be much."
Zeke Veridian glanced at the five eggs in the weeds. "Surviving at all in such circumstances—that’s one tough fate."
Kian Sterling mused aloud, "Stillbirths born of grudges—an ill omen, I’m afraid."
"Ominous, fortunate, who cares—just five Phoenix Eggs of mediocre aptitude."
Malachi Arcanus seemed unconcerned. "If it were me, I’d just hand them off for someone to raise. Hide their origins, and they’ll never know the previous generation’s enmities—just let them be ordinary clan members."