Shen Tianxu's advantage lasted exactly seventeen seconds.
Then the leader recovered from his shock and began fighting seriously. The realm difference was still too large.
Bone Forging meant his skeletal structure could withstand impacts that would shatter Shen Tianxu's newly tempered muscles.
Each exchange pushed Shen Tianxu closer to his limits.
'He's adapting to my technique,' Shen Tianxu analyzed while dodging a palm strike that cratered the ground where he'd stood.
'Learning my patterns. In thirty more seconds, he'll have counters for everything.'
Then voices called out from deeper in the forest.
"Boss! We heard fighting!"
The second group of slavers emerged through the trees. Seven men, all at least Muscle Tempering Realm. They'd been the group returning empty-handed from their hunt.
They saw their leader fighting and immediately moved to assist.
"Surround them!" one shouted.
The twins pressed closer to Shen Tianxu. They were terrified but determined. Shen Yue raised her fists despite knowing it was hopeless. Shen Xian prepared her defensive stance even with tears streaming down her face.
Shen Tianxu's mind raced.
'Current condition: Injured, exhausted, one realm breakthrough just completed. Energy reserves at thirty percent.'
'Opponents: One Bone Forging Realm, seven Muscle Tempering Realm.'
'Victory probability: Zero-point-zero-three percent. Survival probability: Zero-point-one percent. Optimal strategy: None available.'
He'd survived trillions of years through calculation and logic. But sometimes, the numbers just didn't work. Sometimes, you couldn't logic your way out.
'Phoenix Fate System,' he thought with unusual calm. 'You're supposed to be useful in moments like this. Now would be a good time to prove it.'
The leader smirked, blood dripping from his mouth where Shen Tianxu had landed a lucky hit. "Impressive showing. But it ends here."
The seven Muscle Tempering cultivators completed their encirclement. Escape routes were blocked. The twins moved back-to-back with Shen Tianxu, forming a small circle.
Shen Xian spoke quietly. "Shen Tianxu. Thank you for trying."
Shen Yue's voice was defiant even now. "If we're dying, we're taking some of them with us."
She had already determined with her sister to die rather than submit but they want to do so while fighting.
Shen Tianxu noticed this about them and thought, 'Not mere pretty faces at least.'
Then he found himself smiling slightly despite everything as he responded. "I appreciate the optimism. But let's not plan our funerals yet."
"Why are you smiling?" Shen Yue demanded. "We're about to face a fate worse than death!"
"Because," Shen Tianxu said calmly, "I've learned that sometimes, the universe has a sense of timing."
The leader raised his hand to signal the attack.
Then a sound echoed through the forest. Deep. Primal. A roar that made every living thing freeze in instinctual terror.
The sound came from above and behind them. From deeper in the forest where ancient trees grew tallest.
Every slaver's face went pale. The leader's hand dropped. His eyes widened with sudden recognition and fear.
"No," he whispered. "No, that's impossible. We checked! The tracking arrays said we weren't followed!"
One of the Muscle Tempering slavers looked at his leader with horror. "Boss, is that—"
"The Vermillion Bird," the leader finished. His voice was strangled. "We stole her spirit fruit two days ago. But she shouldn't have been able to track us! The concealment talismans should have—"
He stopped mid-sentence. His eyes snapped to the ground where Shen Tianxu had fought. Where blood and energy had been spilled. Where the impact of techniques had disturbed the earth and air.
During their battle, specifically when Shen Tianxu had broken through, energy had flooded the area.
His breakthrough had released a wave of power that disrupted everything nearby. Including, apparently, the concealment effect of whatever talismans the slavers were using.
The spirit fruit they'd stolen must have had a distinctive energy signature. One that had been hidden until Shen Tianxu's breakthrough disrupted the concealment.
"You..." the leader looked at Shen Tianxu with dawning horror. "Your breakthrough. It broke our concealment arrays. The energy dispersed the talisman effects. She tracked the fruit's signature here."
Shen Tianxu's smile widened slightly. "Oops."
The roar came again. Closer now. The trees shook. Birds that had been silent erupted into panicked flight. Small animals fled in every direction.
[Phoenix Fate System Triggered]
[Detecting life-threatening situation...]
[Detecting powerful spirit beast approaching...]
[Analyzing beast temperament and situation...]
[Spirit Beast Assessment: Enraged bird whose treasure was stolen]
[Slaver Assessment: Thieves who stole said treasure]
[Host Assessment: Innocent party caught in conflict]
[Calculating optimal resolution...]
[Resolution Found: Beast will eliminate thieves, spare innocents]
[Fortuitous Encounter Activated]
[Fated Beast Companion: Vermillion Bird Descendant]
[Compatibility: Maximum Due to Phoenix Fate System]
[Arrival: Imminent]
Shen Tianxu saw the notification but said nothing. The twins couldn't see system messages. Neither could the slavers.
"Boss, we need to run!" one of the Muscle Tempering cultivators shouted.
"Run where?!" another screamed. "That's a Fourth Order spirit beast! She's equivalent to Organ Refinement Realm! We can't outrun her!"
The leader's face twisted with desperate calculation. He looked at Shen Tianxu and the twins. Then at his men. Then toward the sound of approaching wingbeats that now shook the entire forest.
"Grab the elves!" he ordered suddenly. "We'll use them as hostages! Maybe we can negotiate—"
He never finished the sentence.
The forest canopy exploded inward. Massive crimson wings spread overhead, each feather seeming to burn with inner fire. The wingspan was enormous, at least fifteen meters across. The bird's body was magnificent, covered in scarlet and gold plumage that shimmered like living flame.
A female Vermillion Bird descendant descended into the clearing with the force of a meteor. The impact cratered the ground. Dust and debris exploded outward. Trees bent from the shockwave.
Her golden eyes burned with intelligence and rage. They fixed on the leader who still held the stolen spirit fruit in a pouch at his belt.
The leader froze. His earlier confidence shattered. "P-please, great spirit, we didn't mean—"
One talon lashed out. It moved faster than the Bone Forging cultivator could react. The talons, each as long as a sword, pierced straight through his chest.
Bone Forging Realm body meant nothing to a Fourth Order beast. His reinforced skeleton shattered like glass. His organs pulped. Blood sprayed.
The leader's eyes went wide. His mouth opened but only blood came out. Then his body went limp.
Dead instantly.
The remaining slavers screamed and fled in every direction. The Vermillion Bird pursued with methodical precision. She wasn't hunting. She was executing. Each slaver who'd stolen from her nest died within seconds.
The twins pressed against Shen Tianxu's back. Both girls were shaking. Shen Xian's eyes were squeezed shut. Shen Yue was forcing herself to watch but her face was pale as snow.
The Vermillion Bird finished her execution. Seven corpses joined their leader's. Then she turned slowly toward the three elves.
Her golden eyes studied them. Intelligent and calculating. Trying to determine if they were threats or accomplices.
Shen Tianxu met her gaze calmly. He didn't move aggressively. Didn't show fear. Just stood there with blood on his clothes and exhaustion in his limbs.
The Phoenix Fate System pulsed strongly in his consciousness.
The massive bird's eyes narrowed. Then she moved forward. Each step was careful despite her size. She lowered her head toward Shen Tianxu.
The twins gasped. Shen Yue tried to pull Shen Tianxu back. "Don't—"
But the Vermillion Bird wasn't attacking. She nuzzled against Shen Tianxu's face gently. The contact was warm. Affectionate. Her feathers were soft despite looking like flame.
Shen Tianxu slowly raised his hand. Touched her beak carefully. "Hello there."
The bird made a pleased sound. A trill that seemed impossible from something so large and dangerous.
[Bond Established]
[Fated Beast Companion Acquired: Vermillion Bird Descendant]
[Species: Fourth Order Spirit Beast]
[Loyalty: Absolute]
[Special Trait: Phoenix Bloodline (Minor)]
[Name: Awaiting Designation]
The twins stared with their mouths open. Shen Yue's fist was still raised, completely forgotten. Shen Xian had opened her eyes and now looked like she was questioning reality itself.
"What..." Shen Xian whispered. "How..."
"Fourth Order beasts don't just submit to people," Shen Yue said in shock. "They're intelligent. Proud. Even true cultivators have trouble contracting them."
By true cultivators she meant those about the Meridian Cleansing Realm.
Shen Tianxu stroked the bird's feathers gently. "I think we just understand each other."
The Vermillion Bird chirped happily. Then she did something unexpected. She picked up the pouch containing her stolen spirit fruit from the dead leader's belt. Held it in her beak. And offered it to Shen Tianxu.
He blinked in surprise. "You want me to have this?"
She nodded. Actually nodded like a person would.
Shen Tianxu took the pouch carefully. Inside was a fruit that glowed with inner light. A Vermillion Spirit Fruit. Something that could enhance fire-attribute cultivation and strengthen the body. Incredibly valuable.
"Thank you," he said sincerely. "I'll name you Feng Yan. Does that work?"
The bird's eyes gleamed with happiness. She nuzzled him again.
***
Hidden in her spatial fold, Yue Lianxing watched everything with growing amazement.
"A Fourth Order spirit beast just submitted to him voluntarily. Gave him her treasured spirit fruit. And he's treating her like an old friend rather than being terrified."
She found herself smiling behind her veil. Actually smiling.
"You continue to surprise me, Shen Tianxu. Perhaps..." She trailed off, then caught herself. "No. Stop that. You're three thousand years old. Stop thinking like a maiden."
But she kept smiling. And watching. And planning.
The Phoenix constellation in her sea of consciousness burned brighter than ever.
'I don't have much time here. I wonder what more surprises you will give me,' she thought once more.