Zhang Fei - The Abandoned Son

They had arrived at a clearing, but there was nothing there except a sea of fire filled with small fire beasts on its surface. The salamander suddenly came out of Zhang Fei [4]'s body and jumped into the sea of fire, joining those fire beasts.

"Hehe." Feng Yao chuckled. "I knew that your fire spirit would like this place."

Zhang Fei [4] turned to her. "Why did you choose to stay near me? The fire element here is much stronger than in the volcano in the Nine Stars Realm, so this place is much better for studying the fire elemental law, right?"

"Don't you already know the answer?" With a faint smile, Feng Yao responded, then put her little finger to her lips and whistled.

*Rumble... Rumble...*

The surrounding ground shook quite violently, and the sea of fire repeatedly exploded upwards. In a few seconds, a giant fire phoenix shot out from within it, and its size was several times larger than Feng Yao's phoenix form, with each of its wings stretching out to the side about 300 ft.

Zhang Fei [4] took a deep breath as his body trembled before the presence of the fire phoenix ancestor. Ever since he became a cultivator, he had never felt such fear in his heart.

The fire phoenix opened its eyes and stared at Zhang Fei [4] with its fiery eyes, exerting even heavier pressure on him. Even though they were mythical beasts, it was older and stronger than him, and its aura intimidated him. 'Scan him, Mei.'

[Alrighty.]

===

Name: Feng Shen

Gender: Male

Age: 500,000+

Race: Phoenix

Rank: Mythical Beast

Cultivation: 5-Moon Divine Ascension Realm

Element: Fire [Peak Stage]

Elemental Law [Perfection Stage]

Core: Peak-Rank Fire Core

Physique: Phoenix Bird

===

'What the fuck! His cultivation has already reached the 5-Moon Divine Ascension Realm!' Zhang Fei [4] screamed in his heart after he saw that. 'Back then, Feng Yao said that the Nameless One was the strongest in the universe, but this old phoenix is much stronger than him! Furthermore, how can I beat him? He's already at the peak of mortal cultivation!'

'Are you surprised by his cultivation?' Feng Yao playfully asked.

Zhang Fei [4] slightly nodded at her. 'What exactly is going on? His cultivation is already at the peak of mortal cultivation, but you said that the Nameless One is the strongest.'

'As an active cultivator, the Nameless One is the strongest.' Zhang Fei [4] responded to Feng Yao by folding his forehead. 'Actually, my ancestors and the ancestors of the other mythical beasts are the strongest in this universe, but they never appear on the surface again, and they live in solitude to break through to the next stage. However, they can never do so because the Qi in the three mortal realms is too weak, and they must go to the Paradise Realm first to be able to break through to that stage.'

'What are the stages of cultivation after the Seven Divine Realms?' Feng Yao shook her head with a smile, causing Zhang Fei [4] to sigh in his heart.

"Why did you bring him here, Little Yao?" Feng Shen suddenly asked.

Feng Yao looked up at him. "Ancestor, Zhang Fei [4] is considering staying in this realm, but there are many humans and demons on his side. Additionally, he wants to know about the lost treasure, so I brought him here to talk to you."

Feng Shen narrowed his eyes at Zhang Fei [4]. "If you want to talk to me, you have to bring your original body here. The current you is no different from your original body, but I can tell that you are a clone."

Zhang Fei [4] released a soft sigh, but he quickly switched places with his original body. "Are you satisfied now, Old Phoenix?"

Feng Shen changed to his human form first. Despite his old age, his appearance is no different from a man in his fifties, and his figure is tall and sturdy, with long red hair. He then landed in front of Zhang Fei, touched his forehead with his index finger, and tried to read his memories.

*Swoosh*

The powerful Qi wave that emerged from Zhang Fei's body immediately pushed Feng Shen back, causing him to stumble several steps back. "I didn't expect that you had such a powerful protector internally, which could push me back even though I'm stronger."

"I met my protector because of death, Old Phoenix." Zhang Fei casually answered.

"Oh?" Feng Shen naturally knew that Zhang Fei was a heavenly fox, and he knew that the fox race did not have the ability to rebirth like the phoenix. "Have you really died before?"

"I died once." Zhang Fei replied with a nod. "Fortunately, someone brought me back to life, so I can stand before you today. Old Phoenix, I know it's none of my business, but can you tell me about the lost treasure?"

"The lost treasure is the Divine Phoenix Totem." Feng Yao and Zhang Fei looked at Feng Shen with questioning looks. "The totem is a sacred relic that amplifies all phoenix bloodlines, both fire and ice phoenixes."

'Can you locate the totem, Mei?'

[Master, the system is still mapping this realm, so we have to wait for it to finish, and I will find it after that.]

Feng Yao then asked Feng Shen. "How could such a sacred relic disappear, Ancestor?"

"Have you heard of the dark phoenix?" Feng Yao nodded to Feng Shen. "The dark phoenixes are actually ordinary fire phoenixes like us, but they are tainted by the demon aura and turned dark, and their dark flames can scorch the souls of living beings, preventing them from reincarnating. In the past, one of my peers was contaminated by the demon aura and turned into the dark phoenix, and he stole the Divine Phoenix Totem to strengthen himself. At that time, a big fight occurred between them, and the totem disappeared after the fight was over. For hundreds of thousands of years, we have searched all corners of this realm and nearby realms, but we have never managed to find it."

"Did the dark phoenix survive that battle, Old Phoenix?" Zhang Fei asked.

Feng Shen nodded in response. "The dark phoenix managed to escape after killing several phoenixes, but he suffered heavy injuries. Since then, he never returned to this realm again, and we initially thought he had died from his heavy injuries. Unfortunately, our guess was wrong; one day we heard news that someone saw him together with a demon, and he helped the demon to destroy several realms, one of which was the Starry Sky Realm."

"The demon is Xereth." Zhang Fei muttered with a glimmer of killing intent in his eyes.

"How did you know about that name?" Feng Shen asked in surprise.

Zhang Fei immediately told him. "I am acquainted with a demon from the Abyssal Realm, and she told me that Xereth was once one of the ancestors of the demons from that realm. After he killed their demon emperor, he disappeared from their realm, but he reappeared by destroying many realms."

"I see." Feng Shen nodded in understanding before warning Zhang Fei. "If you are thinking of hunting down Xereth, then you should forget about that desire before you reach the peak of mortal cultivation. The dark phoenix's strength should be equal to or higher than mine, so I'm sure the demon is stronger than him, or else he wouldn't submit to him."

Zhang Fei then turned to Feng Yao. "If Xereth is stronger than the dark phoenix, doesn't that mean he has surpassed the Seven Divine Realms? Is that possible?"

"Did you forget about the tower, Ma Kuangyu, and Nalan Yushu?" Feng Yao asked Zhang Fei back.

Naturally, Zhang Fei would not forget about the three. "If that's true, someone from that realm helped Xereth until he could reach that stage. However, I can't understand that person's purpose in helping him, especially since the three mortal realms are useless to them."

"You are mistaken if you think these three are useless to them." Zhang Fei furrowed his brows as Feng Yao provided a clear explanation. "Even though the Qi here is useless, the cultivation resources are still very useful, especially for demons. In that realm, it is difficult for demons to move freely, so their best choice for finding resources is to descend here."

Zhang Fei fell into deep thought after hearing that, and he began to deduce Xereth's actions in destroying the realm. 'Do you think the two impostors in the Xian and Tian Realms have something to do with Xereth, Mei?'

[I don't have an answer for that, especially since there are no valuable resources in those two realms. However, the possibility exists because the impostor who disguised himself as Seraph is clearly a demon, and that person hid his real body in another realm. Furthermore, the impostor in the Xian Realm was also so cruel, and that person slaughtered all the inhabitants of that realm without leaving anyone behind.]

"Kid." Zhang Fei looked at Feng Shen. "I will allow your people to live in this realm, even though some of them are demons. However, all of you must live in the north, far from our kingdom, or their presence will disturb the people of our race."

Zhang Fei nodded in understanding. "Actually, I haven't decided to bring them to live in this realm, and I'm still considering several other realms, such as the Starry Star Realm, the Evergreen Spirit Haven, and several others. I connected this realm with my place for the sake of my big sister, and she can come here anytime once she's ready."

"Ready for what?"

"Ancestor, one of Zhang Fei's wives is Feng Gongxue's heir. She not only got her bloodline but also her soul, so she is part of our phoenix race now." Hearing that, Feng Shen immediately looked far away, specifically toward the coldest area in their realm. "You're right, Ancestor. She will soon undergo the ice phoenix ritual, and I think she will be the first to successfully go through it."

Feng Shen shook his head after hearing that. "Even if she inherited Feng Gongxue's bloodline and soul, it would be impossible for a human to pass the ice phoenix ritual, and she would freeze to death like those who came before her."

"Hehe." Zhang Fei chuckled at that. "Old phoenix, you underestimate my wife. She may be a human, but she has me by her side, and I will help her pass the ice phoenix ritual."

"I never underestimate anyone, kid." Feng Shen let out a soft sigh and looked at Zhang Fei. "You may be a heavenly fox, and your fire element has reached the peak stage, but you will never be able to help your wife pass the ice phoenix ritual as long as you don't have the ice element. If you really want to help her pass it, you must first obtain the ice element. Unfortunately, it will not be easy for you to obtain it, and you will probably freeze to death before you obtain the ice elemental seed. Even if you succeed in obtaining the seed, your chances of obtaining the ice element are simply too small."

"The lower-grade ice elemental seed, right?" Zhang Fei then asked the female AI. 'Where is the nearest ice elemental seed located, Mei?'

[There is one low-grade ice elemental seed in the ice phoenix's lair, but it is located deep within the icy lake, and the temperature is below -100 degrees Celsius. By the way, you don't have to bother asking Feng Jinqiu for help; I'm sure she won't be willing to help you.]

'Below -100 degrees Celsius, huh? Do you think my big sister can withstand such cold temperatures at her current level?

Mei first calculated everything before answering him. [Zhang Yue might be able to withstand the temperature, but she can't stay there for too long. If my calculations are correct, she can only stay there for 10 minutes, so you have to reach the deepest part of the lake before the time runs out. Unfortunately, you won't be able to move freely there, even if you use your teleportation or nine cloud steps.]

'I will think about that first, and Cheng Gaoji might have something that can help me dive into it.' Zhang Fei then spoke to Feng Shen. "In that case, I will go see the ice phoenix ancestor first, and I want to measure my strength before diving into her icy lake to take the ice elemental seed."

"Hmm?" Feng Shen frowned at Zhang Fei, but he could see the determination in his expression. "All right, you can go there, but you better not force yourself, or you will freeze to death there."

"We will go now, Ancestor." Feng Yao spoke.

.

.

.

Sometime later, they had arrived at the side of the icy lake, and the surrounding area was also filled with thick snow, which was much colder than Zhang Yue's ice element, forcing Zhang Fei to use his fire element throughout his body.

"Why did you bring this little fox to my place, Little Yao?"

===

[Quest: Meeting the fire and ice phoenix ancestors.]

[Quest rank: Easy.]

[Status: Done.]

[Reward: Easy gift pack x 1 sent to the inventory.]

===

Zhang Fei looked far away, finding a giant ice phoenix, whose body size was the same as Feng Shen's phoenix form. 'Scan this phoenix, Mei.'

[Wait.]

===

Name: Feng Xueying

Gender: Female

Age: 500,000+

Race: Ice Phoenix

Rank: Mythical Beast

Cultivation: 5-Moon Divine Ascension Realm

Element: Ice [Peak Stage]

Elemental Law: Ice [Perfection Stage]

Core: Peak-Rank Ice Core

Physique: Phoenix Bird

===

Zhang Fei sighed inwardly when he read that. 'No wonder those cultivators are so afraid of the phoenix race! Their two ancestors stood at the peak of cultivation!'

"Ancestor, one of Zhang Fei's wives is the heir to one of your ice phoenix descendants." After Feng Yao said that, Feng Xueying immediately looked at Zhang Fei with a cold gaze. "Sooner or later, Zhang Yue will undergo your phoenix ritual, and he would rather not let her go through it alone. He knows there is a low-grade ice elemental seed in this lake, so he wants to try to take it."

"Can you let me try first, Old Phoenix?" Feng Xueying wanted to refuse Zhang Fei, but he quickly spoke to convince her. "I know my ability may not be enough to dive into this lake, but I still want to try, and I will get out if I am unable to withstand the cold."

Feng Xueying immediately changed into her human form, captivating Zhang Fei with her beauty and figure.

Feng Xueying has long, light blue hair that stretches all the way to her waist, and it has a special kind of icy color, dazzlingly beautiful beneath the sunlight. Her oval face is beautiful but cold, with slanted crescent brows, misty light blue eyes, and soft pale lips that could witch the soul and contain an indescribable charm.

Feng Xueying's figure was extremely alluring, filled with a kind of attraction and charm. A snow-colored ribbon was tied around her slender waist, and the snow robe covering her chest looked so round and full, as if something would burst out of its trappings at any moment. The buttocks below her slender waist were also rounder and firmer.

Feng Xueying noticed Zhang Fei's reaction to her human form, but she said nothing and warned him. "I will allow you to dive into my lake, but I will not save you if something untoward happens. You must understand your own limitations and avoid pushing yourself, or else you will freeze to death."

"Thank you, Old Phoenix." Zhang Fei did not immediately dive in but instead squatted on the edge of the icy lake. "Hmm? How deep is this lake?"

"A hundred miles, and there are many ice beasts living in it." Feng Xueying answered.

"A hundred miles, huh?" Zhang Fei immediately sent one of his clones to meet Cheng Gaoji, but unfortunately, the old man had nothing that could help him with that. 'I guess I'll have to dive in with my abilities.'

- To Be Continued -