They had a Vermilion Bird now. Could the Azure Dragon, White Tiger, Black Tortoise, and Qilin be far behind?
"Don't get carried away. A Vermilion Bird doesn't fit this world's rules." San San agreed that the creature resembled one, but it didn't agree with Ye Chuqi. It searched its store of knowledge for a better match. "This looks more like a Phoenix."
Ye Chuqi stared at it blankly. "..."
Did it think she knew nothing? Phoenix translated into “fire phoenix,” didn't it? It differed a little from the phoenix of Eastern legend, but the idea was much the same. Phoenix was also known as the immortal bird.
That raised another question for Ye Chuqi: could a Phoenix die?
A Phoenix periodically burned itself and was reborn through Nirvana, its life force never extinguished, continuing endlessly. Yet the one before her looked as though all its vitality had been drained away. It was barely alive.
The surrounding flames burned on instinct alone. For all their fearsome heat, they posed little real threat. They were mostly a bluff.
After a moment's hesitation, Ye Chuqi stepped inside.
Little White had refused Ye Chuqi's request to enter her space and stood firm on her shoulder. It knew it had been absent for a long time and had lost much of its "understanding" with her. Now that it was awake and most of its injuries had healed, it could stay by her side. Its ruby-red eyes glimmered, and its little claws tightened their grip on her shoulder.
The flames could hurt neither Ye Chuqi nor Little White. They enveloped Little White in a bright red glow that made its snowy fur shine all the more.
Ye Chuqi glanced at Little White. Once she was sure it was unharmed and untroubled, she turned her attention to