Chapter 1232: The Divine Bird is Hatching
It was not a problem to activate his tenth Birth Chart in the human region of his Birth Palace using a beast king’s life heart. However, he would need better life hearts to activate Birth Charts in the earth and heaven region. After all, it would affect his strength significantly.
Lu Zhou thought about the Fire Phoenix.
The Fire Phoenix was known as the Immortal Bird. Did it really mean that it could not be killed? It was unlikely. After all, if it was truly immortal, there was no need for it to run away earlier and even abandon its child.
“It’s a pity… If I only I can obtain a divine beast’s life heart…” Lu Zhou shook his head. In any case, a beast emperor’s life heart was very good for now. He would think about divine beasts’ life hearts in the future.
Lu Zhou observed the changes in his Birth Palace. The rate it was sinking was not bad; it was better than he had expected. He nodded in satisfaction.
Taking advantage of his free time, Lu Zhou activated his power of hearing.
The closest ones were Little Yuan’er and Conch.
…
“It won’t crack open, right? Conch whispered.
“It should be fine. I didn’t use much strength…”
“We didn’t know it’s not a life heart; life hearts are very strong…” Conch said.
“Should we tell master?” Little Yuan’er asked.
Crack!
A clear cracking that was more distinct than the one before rang from the bag.
The two girls looked at each other again.
Little Yuan’er opened the bag to have a look.
The crack that was like a strand of hair before now resembled a spider web.
“Ah!”
Little Yuan’er was really afraid the egg would crack open. If it broke, the consequences would be unimaginable. She hurriedly said, “Let’s look for master.”
Little Yuan’er no longer hesitated. She carried the bag and made her way toward an ancient tree not far away.
…
At the same time, Lu Zhou cut off the power of hearing.
‘This girl, what crack? What kind of trouble did she cause again?’
Lu Zhou leaped down from the ancient tree and left his lotus on the tree.
After waiting for a while, he saw Little Yuan’er and Conch walking over nervously with the bag.
When the two girls saw their master standing under the tree, they fell to their knees immediately.
“I admit to my mistake. I accidentally broke master’s treasure!” Little Yuan’er said truthfully.
“Broke it?”
After telling Lu Zhou what happened, Little Yuan’er brought the phoenix egg out from the bag.
Lu Zhou looked at the phoenix egg with web-like cracks on it. He found it strange. How could a phoenix egg break so easily? There were many comprehensive records of fierce beasts in the ancient books, and their cla.s.sifications, mammals and non-mammals alike, were similar to those on earth. The difference between the beasts here and the ones on earth was that the beasts here knew how to cultivate. Through cultivation, the fierce beasts’ bones, meridians, hearts, and vital parts were much stronger than ordinary beasts. This should apply to their eggs or offspring as well.
Moreover, the egg was laid by a divine beast, the Fire Phoenix. Its toughness should not be any less than that of a heaven-grade weapon. There was no reason for it to break after being poked once.
“Alright. Don’t worry. Let me have a look.”
With that, the two ignorant girls accompanied the old man who pretended to know everything and looked at the egg. They surrounded the egg and studied it carefully.
Crack!
The cracking sound this time was louder than the previous two times, shocking the trio.
Little Yuan’er exclaimed, “Oh, it’s hatching!”
Lu Zhou frowned. It did not make sense. He witnessed the Fire Phoenix laying the egg; how could it hatch so quickly? Was that not too fake? There was only one possibility: the Fire Phoenix had laid the egg a long time ago and was trying to protect it. However, the imbalance disrupted its plan. The appearance of the Equalizer frightened it, and it had no choice but to abandon its egg to lure the Equalizer away.
Lu Zhou nodded. ‘So the strange noises it made before… Was it telling me to take care of its child? This… This seems like the only explanation…’
Lu Zhou rolled up his sleeve and pushed his hand out.
A lotus imbued with the divine power fell on the phoenix egg, and the egg absorbed the rich vitality energy.
After a short while…
Crack!
It cracked again!
“…”
‘You’re still cracking! It seems like it’s really about to hatch…’
After thinking about it for a moment, Lu Zhou thought it would be inconvenient to carry a cracked egg around. Hence, he decided to help it hatch. He sent even more lotuses out, but he did not use too much divine power. Even then, it should be enough.
After two hours…
Kacha!
The top part of the sh.e.l.l flew away as a small red turkey-like bird popped its head out.
The trio could not look away from it.
“It’s a turkey?”
“It’s a Fire Phoenix,” Lu Zhou corrected Little Yuan’er. Then, he flicked his sleeve.
The egg cracked open, revealing a very small Fire Phoenix. Its body was red, and only a few feathers on its tails were green. It looked much better than a chicken. Its feathers were longer, and it was more slender. It had a red phoenix crown that pointed at the sky. It wobbled as it took its first step out of the sh.e.l.ls. Then, it began to chirp.
“h.e.l.lo, little one.” Little Yuan’er waved her hand.
The Fire Phoenix used its wings to support itself before it fell on the ground. It tried standing a few times and kept falling before it finally managed to find its footing.
Lu Zhou studied the little Fire Phoenix carefully. Apart from the lack of flames, it resembled the divine beast from before.
The little Fire Phoenix raised its head and took its first proper look at the world. Then, it suddenly spread its wings and squeaked before it pounced toward Little Yuan’er.
Little Yuan’er was startled. She hurriedly leaped up and hovered in midair. “Hey, hey, hey, I didn’t mean to hurt you before this!”
The little Fire Phoenix spread its wing and flapped it clumsily as though it was preparing for battle. It had to be said that the fierce beasts’ adaptability was very good. In less than 15 minutes, it was standing steadily and was no longer wobbling like before. Its wings’ positions were also no longer awkward.
The little Fire Phoenix stared at Little Yuan’er, who was hovering in midair, before it flapped its wings. Just as it rose a few meters into the air, it suddenly fell headfirst.
Swoos.h.!.+
“…”
Conch looked at it helplessly.
The little Fire Phoenix quickly rose to its feet again and began to fly again, following its instincts.
“Master, what do we do now?” Little Yuan’er asked as they watched the little Fire Phoenix flying and falling.
Lu Zhou did not know what to do. He could only keep watch for now. However, he did not have much time to spare. In the end, he said, “Yuan’er, take care of it. If there are any changes, report to me immediately.”
“Ah?” Little Yuan’er looked at the little Fire Phoenix that was still flying and falling. “Take care of it?”
Lu Zhou glanced at Little Yuan’er and said, “This little Fire Phoenix came from the Fire Phoenix, a divine beast, earlier…”
Recalling the magnificent scene of the Fire Phoenix soaring into the sky earlier, Little Yuan’er’s eyes lit up. “So it’ll become a divine beast in the future?”
“Maybe…” Lu Zhou was not too sure so he only answered ambiguously. After all, not all fierce beasts could turn into divine beasts. It could only be said that the little Fire Phoenix’s genes were better so it had a higher probability of becoming a divine beast.
Little Yuan’er said happily. “Alright, I’ll look after it!”
Lu Zhou nodded and said, “It’s still young, but its features are quite distinct. Find a way to disguise it…”
After thinking for a while, Little Yuan’er said, “That’s easy. I’ll get to it!”
“Alright, you may leave.”
Little Yuan’er flew toward the little Fire Phoenix and caught it in her hands.
The little Fire Phoenix squeaked and flapped its wings to struggle.
Conch. “…”
Little Yuan’er asked, “Junior sister, since you know the beast language, what is it saying?”
Conch shook her head, indicating that she did not know.
Little Yuan’er patted its wings and said, “Don’t be afraid. I’ll take good care of you.”