Rosy Clouds churned and rolled as vapor billowed. When the golden light faded, a woman stood in its place: she was sixteen, with her cloudlike hair swept into a high coiffure and a golden hairpin slanted through it. She wore a long golden-feathered dress, her eyes were like autumn waters, and her bearing was graceful and captivating.
"I bestow upon you the name 'Golden Phoenix.' You shall be my mount, serving and attending to me in your daily duties and remaining at my side. Are you willing?"
The maiden bowed gracefully, her voice clear as a bell. "This servant is willing to follow Empress for all eternity, never to abandon her!"
Nuwa took that step forward. Holy light shot into the heavens, laws coiled around her, and she finally seized the Sage's Dao Fruit that had drifted within the Chaos. Her eyes shifted slightly and fell upon Su Yang, who stood silently nearby, deep as an abyss. She said softly, "If not for Sage Su Yang's assistance this time, Nuwa would never have proven the Great Dao."
Su Yang's expression did not change, and his tone was as faint as wind brushing across an ancient pool. "There is no need for such courtesy. From now on, just address me as a fellow Daoist."
"This..." Nuwa's brow trembled faintly, and her heart tightened. "How could Nuwa dare stand on equal footing with Saint Father?"
Su Yang raised a hand and pressed downward. His voice was not loud, but it carried its own authority. "You have only just proven your Dao Fruit, and your foundation is still unstable. You need to enter the depths of Chaos to consolidate your cultivation. The human race has just been born, and its bloodline is weak, so I shall look after it temporarily in your place."