"Great King, is this the noisy phoenix? Was it swapped out by Western Qi? Why is its aura so weak?"
E Lai could not resist kicking Colorful Phoenix's corpse twice. How could this thing, merely at the Golden Immortal realm, have caused such a huge commotion?
"Still, its appearance does look exactly the same."
"Ji Chang doesn't have the guts to deceive me."
Di Xin reached out and stroked the dazzling feathers. Even though Colorful Phoenix had been dead for two months, its corpse was still warm.
But how should he deal with it? What a headache.
Kong Xuan was, after all, the Crown Prince of the Phoenix Race. Although Colorful Phoenix's bloodline was impure, she still counted as a member of the Phoenix clan. He could not possibly butcher the corpse right in front of Kong Xuan.
So, while Kong Xuan had not yet returned, should he have a large plate of phoenix meat first? Or set up a stove and make some roasted phoenix wings?
"Several hundred zhang long—it isn't small, but phoenixes are birds of fire virtue. Ordinary flames won't cook it through."
"Great King, just eat it raw. That best preserves its essence, and besides..."
E Lai was speaking enthusiastically when he suddenly felt a chill down his back. He immediately shut his mouth sensibly and even hunched his neck.
A burly man had forcibly turned himself into a tiny quail.
"E Lai, E Lai! Did the ancient sage Sui Ren Shi drill wood to make fire so that you could keep eating raw food?
"Did the Three Sovereigns and Five Emperors advance human civilization and teach people farming and cooking just so you could return to primitive times?
"Did I painstakingly hunt down a great bird just so you could swallow it whole?
"Childish! Crude! Utterly senseless!"
Di Xin glanced toward the east, grinned, and turned back to continue:
"Forget it. If I let you take it home, you'd only ruin good ingredients. I'll give you one hour and two chefs. Cleanly process this bird for me. I'll go find some good things. Today, we'll have some meat and taste what it's like."
"Great King, you summoned me here just to... just to...?"
E Lai kept gesturing with both hands. He could not help feeling that this world was filled with profound malice.
He, E Lai! A Grand Master by official rank, the dignified commander of the royal guards, and one of the top generals in all of Yin Shang! Yet he had actually fallen so far as to become a butcher?
No, he was not even a butcher. A butcher had to turn something living into something dead. He was turning something dead into something even deader.
"Work hard."
Di Xin smiled in satisfaction, patted E Lai on the shoulder, and left the courtyard, heading toward Chaoge's eastern gate.
His cheap son was about to arrive. Everything had worked out perfectly.
"C-Commander E Lai, the Great King, the Great King said to have you, have you lend a hand."
"Tell me what to do."
"First, pluck the feathers and, and skin it."
"Damn it! Watch me use Dragon-Turning Phoenix-Reversing Great Sorrow Palm!"
"Mother, that city ahead is so big!"
"It's even bigger than Chentang Pass!"
"Jin Zha, Mu Zha, that's Chaoge. It's where Mother used to live. Even though I haven't returned in a long time, it still hasn't changed."
Inside a huge carriage pulled by two strange beasts, Madam Yin lifted the curtain and looked at the magnificent city drawing closer and closer.
After half a month of travel, they were finally about to arrive. Husband, guard Chentang Pass well and wait for me!
"Sister-in-law, are you worrying about Brother Li again?"
Di Xin's clone rode forward on horseback, his expression gentle.
"I guarantee that nothing will happen to Brother Li. You mustn't worry every day. If you upset the baby because of it, I won't be able to answer to Brother Li."
"With the Great King's guarantee, Suzhi naturally feels reassured."
Madam Yin stroked Jin Zha and Mu Zha's heads, sending them to play on the other side of the carriage.
They were almost at Chaoge. It was time to lay everything out.
"Speaking of the royal family, I should call you Royal Brother, Great King."
"Ahaha, since you recognized me long ago, why are you only saying it now?"
Di Xin awkwardly rubbed his nose and asked curiously.
"I didn't say anything at Chentang Pass because I wanted to put Li Jing at ease. I'm saying it now, just before we reach Chaoge, because I wanted to obtain a guarantee from Royal Brother."
Madam Yin stroked her bulging belly. Sensing the child's movements inside, much of the worry on her face faded.
"My poor child. First, his father mistook him for a demon and spent all day thinking about how to get rid of him. Just when his father finally stopped treating him like a demon, he's about to lose his father again."
"Stop, stop! Sister... sister-in-law, I guarantee that Li Jing will absolutely be fine! Once you reach Chaoge, settle down without worry. I've already purchased and furnished a residence. Everything inside is fully equipped. If you want to return home for a look, palace guards will protect you in secret. I guarantee your safety and that of the two little ones!"
Di Xin wiped the cold sweat from his forehead. He was good at dealing with men, but women—and a woman related to him at that—were another matter entirely...
I'll admit defeat for now! Once my true body arrives, I'll hand her over to him and be free!
"Moreover, right beside the residence is a school I prepared for several children like them. There, all of them will receive the best education!"
"Thank you, Great King."
Madam Yin suddenly broke into a radiant smile. All her troubles and worries vanished without a trace.
I fell for it!
The corner of Di Xin's mouth twitched. With acting and brains like these, no wonder Li Jing was completely under her thumb. It seemed that next time he tried to fool Li Jing, he would have to do it behind his wife's back.
It made sense. After Nezha cut out his bones and carved away his flesh, Madam Yin had managed to build a temple and worship her own son right under Li Jing's nose, while hiding it from him for nearly three years. An ordinary woman could never pull off such a thing.
"Ah, a woman's heart is like a needle at the bottom of the sea."
A moment later, the convoy entered the city gate. Without anyone noticing, Di Xin withdrew his clone and led the convoy toward the residence from earlier.
After taking in Mo Xuan, he had purchased the residence for those children to study in. To save trouble in the future, he had even bought the entire street.
As it happened, he could now use it both to settle Madam Yin and to have Madam Yin look after those children.
"Sister-in-law, familiarize yourselves with the residence first. The courtyard on the left is where the two of them will study in the future. Once you've settled in, bring them over to meet their new friends."
Since Madam Yin had brought servants, Di Xin only arranged some "guards"—or rather, the entire street had been placed under the strict protection of these "guards."
Moreover, after the Kongtong Seal returned, he planned to leave a clone here, in case anyone tried to raid his home.
After finishing his visit, he arrived at the rear courtyard of "Mo Residence." E Lai was running his hands all over a nearly naked phoenix, having the time of his life.
"How is it? Is it cleaned up?"
"Great King, this thing is way too tough."
E Lai freed one hand to wipe the sweat from his forehead. His weapon had been chopped into several notches, and when facing strange beasts and divine beasts like this, humanity was simply too weak.
"Move aside. I'll do it."
Di Xin extended his right hand, and the Kongtong Seal appeared once more. Under Di Xin's urging, a golden Great Treasure Sword materialized in the air.
The Human Emperor's supreme treasure—the projection of the Xuanyuan Sword!
As sword light surged, Colorful Phoenix's body instantly fell apart, cut into pieces with astonishing precision!
Then, the phantom of a massive cauldron and a wisp of flame appeared in the courtyard...
Inside Huoyun Cave, the Yellow Emperor Xuanyuan clenched the sword in his hand. Watching the scene transmitted through the Xuanyuan Sword, his teeth itched with rage.
"That little bastard! I'm going to skin him alive! I left the mark of the Xuanyuan Sword inside the Kongtong Seal, and he actually—actually used it to chop vegetables!"
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