"The upheaval is over. The divine formation has been lifted."
With a soft murmur from the Willow Deity, the Heaven's Reach divine formation that had shrouded all of Stone Village for months finally faded away, and sunlight streamed into the ancient village once more.
"Is the battle over? Time to head out and scavenge for the spoils~"
In a corner of the village, the little fellow gazing at a crystalline Heavenly Bone in rapt fascination stretched lazily. Six scarlet Grotto-Heavens could be glimpsed faintly, floating in the Void.
Qiongqi, the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow, Zhu Yan, and the Vermilion Bird—four pure-blooded creatures of the Venerable Realm—had fought for over two months. In the end, the Mountain Treasure fell into Zhu Yan's hands.
But Zhu Yan had been gravely wounded and fallen unconscious at the bottom of a lake. The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow, which had followed close behind, snatched the Mountain Treasure away. Even so, this was not the end.
The Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow's master, the Swan Goose Avian Saint, had once had a spirit avatar swallowed by his own disciple in his later years. He had seized the chance to fake his death and flee. Now the weakened Divine Fire Realm expert had appeared as well.
He had decided to purge his sect and kill the unfilial disciple who had survived the great calamity of the Eight Regions. He took the Mountain Treasure and studied it for over twenty years, but still gained nothing.
The Mountain Treasure contained not only the complete inheritance of the Supreme Hall, but also the middle volume of the Original True Interpretation, Transcendence. Its significance was immense.
Therefore, Shi Hao had to bring the Mountain Treasure and the gravely wounded, unconscious Zhu Yan back to the village before the Heaven-Swallowing Sparrow found Zhu Yan's hiding place.
Just then, a blinding scarlet ray tore across the sky.
A tiny, scarlet bird fell from the heavens in a sorry state. The light around her had dimmed, and her aura had grown feeble to the extreme. It seemed she had suffered a grievous injury to her Dao.
She landed headfirst right in front of Shi Hao.
"Well, well. Where did this little bird come from? I was just about to leave the village, and prey has come right to my door. Hmm, feathers red as blood. I bet the meat's pretty good, too."
Shi Hao's eyes lit up at the sight. He crouched and grabbed the scarlet bird.
"Chirp! Chirp! Chirp!"
The utterly dispirited Little Sparrow had a pair of black-and-white eyes, clear and sparkling as gemstones. Fury filled her tiny gaze.
"Sure, sure. Steamed or braised, either way works."
Shi Hao listened for a moment, then nodded seriously, as if he had understood her. Then he picked up the little red bird and started toward a large cauldron in the clearing.
"Little brother, you there! I was wrong. I shouldn't have insulted you. Let me go, please, let me go! My meat really isn't tasty, I swear..."
Seeing that she was about to be plucked and tossed into the pot, the little red bird couldn't hold back any longer. She hurriedly begged for mercy, plainly terrified to the extreme.
"Oh, you can talk? I thought you were just a stupid bird that could only speak bird language."
Shi Hao stopped and feigned surprise as he looked at the Fire Kingdom's Sacrificial Spirit.
Nice try. You really thought I couldn't deal with you?
"You're the stupid bird! Your whole family's stupid!" the Vermilion Bird cursed inwardly, but she put on an ingratiating smile and nodded repeatedly. "I can talk. Please don't eat me. I'm very kind, I—"
"Little One, that's enough. Don't tease her. Bring the little Vermilion Bird over to me."
Just as Shi Hao was about to tease the Vermilion Bird some more, a strand of divine thought came from the Willow Deity.
"Who was that?"
The Vermilion Bird, struck by the enormous wave of divine thought, stiffened abruptly. Alarm filled her face, as though someone had instantly seen right through her.
"Come with me. The Willow Deity wants to see you."
Little Shi smiled without a sound and carried the injured Vermilion Bird toward the village entrance.
"An odd willow-tree Sacrificial Spirit... Could it be..."
Beneath the charred willow tree, the Vermilion Bird shifted uneasily. Worry filled her black-and-white eyes.
Now she was gravely injured. She had failed to obtain the treasure she had fought for, her strength had plummeted, and she had ended up in a strange village. She had no idea whether this would bring fortune or disaster.
"Little Vermilion Bird, let's make a deal."
"I sense that the sacrificial power around you is dense and pure. You must be the Sacrificial Spirit of an Ancient Kingdom. Now that you're badly wounded, even with trillions of people offering sacrifices to you across the whole kingdom, it'll take years for you to recover. If you heal on your own, it might take decades."
"I'll heal you. In return, you'll give me the Vermilion Bird Precious Technique. How does that sound?"
The charred willow's branches drooped down, quiet and serene.
"Heal me? Give you my inherited precious technique?"
The Vermilion Bird fell silent.
If the willow-tree Sacrificial Spirit could fully restore her strength, it would be a fair trade.
After all, she was the Sacrificial Spirit of a kingdom. If she went back to the Fire Kingdom in such a sorry state, the Fire Emperor would laugh himself silly. Besides, the journey of hundreds of thousands of li wasn't safe.
But the inherited precious technique was, after all, a great secret of her race. To hand it over so easily—wasn't that, well, a little too shameless?
At the thought, the Vermilion Bird was torn with indecision.
"Little Vermilion Bird, don't forget: when you're the fish and we're the knife, your life is in our hands. If the Willow Deity really wanted to take your inherited precious technique by force, do you think you'd have a chance to destroy your original precious bone?"
Shi Hao's casual remark gave the Vermilion Bird such a fright that she jolted.
That was right. First, she had to stay alive and get out of here. There was no point worrying about anything else.
"Then I'll be in your hands, honored one."
The Vermilion Bird composed herself and spoke meekly.
"Don't worry. I have no habit of bullying those weaker than me. Besides, I've met your ancestor—the Primordial Vermilion Bird—a few times."
The Willow Deity offered a word of reassurance, and a Tender Green Willow Branch dipped down. In an instant, countless rays of rosy light burst forth.
"You've met my ancestor? Does that mean..." The Vermilion Bird's gemstone eyes widened. She was just about to cry out when a boundless, indescribable divine power surged into her body like a tide. A tingling, ticklish sensation swept over her from head to toe.
The hideous wound on her chest healed rapidly. The tears that had nearly pierced through her skull closed up without a trace. Her scarlet feathers gleamed once more, and endless Divine Radiance flowed through her body.
The astonishing change filled the Vermilion Bird with warmth. She relaxed and simply enjoyed it.
"Willow Deity, thank you for your help."
A moment later, the Vermilion Bird, radiating overwhelming divine might, respectfully lowered her proud head. Her bearing was even more imposing than before, like a divine being awakening.
"Alright, alright. Show some sincerity. Where's the Vermilion Bird Precious Technique?"
Shi Hao interrupted the Vermilion Bird at an inopportune moment, grinning as he held out his hand.
"Hmph!"
The Vermilion Bird snorted disdainfully, and a scarlet feather detached itself from her body.
Now that her strength had fully recovered, her old sense of superiority over Shi Hao returned. Thinking back to what had just happened, if the Willow Deity hadn't been there, she would have loved to roast him to a crisp with the Vermilion Bird Heavenly Fire.
"The Vermilion Bird Precious Technique! The village kids can get even stronger now~"
Shi Hao took the scarlet feather and imitated the old clan leader's singsong way of speaking. The Vermilion Bird ground her teeth in frustration.
"Boy, come visit me in the Fire Kingdom sometime. I'll be sure to give you a warm welcome."
The Vermilion Bird spread her wings to fly away, then glanced back and made the invitation as if it were an afterthought.
"Not going. Do you think I don't know you're the Fire Kingdom's Sacrificial Spirit? You want me to visit you in the Fire Kingdom? That'd be like walking right into a tiger's den. You'd be the one playing with me."
Shi Hao snickered. This little Vermilion Bird was hopelessly naïve.
"Argh! Boy, just you wait! I'll be back!!"
The Vermilion Bird exploded with rage. With a sharp cry, she turned into a streak of scarlet light and shot into the sky, quietly staining half the Heavenly Domain red.
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