The young girl emitted a pleasant incantation, raising her hand and pointing it at the small vial. A strand of silvery light shot from her fingertip. The vial trembled and rose into the air, flying straight toward Han Li's position. Han Li said nothing, merely moved his body and settled himself onto the jade platform. At that moment, Xu Elder and the beautiful woman each raised their hands, releasing objects of their own. One was a fresh, blood-red bloom; the other, a vibrant, emerald-green banana leaf. They appeared to be a palm-sized lotus flower and a green banana leaf, respectively. The lotus rotated gently, expanding to the size of a person and releasing a subtle fragrance, while the banana leaf, glowing in a soft green hue, grew to human size and revealed a series of strange green symbols that shimmered brilliantly, radiating an exceptional brilliance. Han Li's brow furrowed slightly, still unable to fully grasp the purpose of these two items when the lotus flower gently settled upon his head. Han Li was startled—his body felt suddenly loose, as though gently lifted by the weight of the lotus. At once, the air around him filled with the delicate fragrance emanating from the lotus, giving him a slightly drowsy, hazy sensation. Han Li did not panic. With his eyes slightly half-closed, as if half-asleep, he maintained the last trace of mental clarity within him. Xu Elder gave a low command, and the petals of the blood lotus began to slowly converge toward the center. In a moment, all the petals contracted and gathered into a single fresh crimson bud. Upon witnessing this, the young woman snapped her five fingers simultaneously toward the small vial. "Pffft—pffft—" several strands of green silk shot out, swiftly vanishing into the vial. The vial burst forth with a surge of green light, and its lid suddenly disappeared as if by magic, rising a beam of green light from within. A clear chime echoed, and the light orb condensed into a young green phoenix, about an inch in size, ready to take flight with its wings spread. Yet the young woman had already prepared for this. With a gentle sweep of her golden wings against the empty space above, she stabilized the scene. At once, the golden light of the wings settled down, and waves of golden mist surged forth, instantly enveloping the green peacock. Within the mist, the bird rolled several times before transforming into a compact mass of green liquid, subtly shimmering with silvery glimmers. The maiden then adjusted her hands, pressing a gesture toward the green liquid in the air. The golden mist trembled, then carried the liquid downward toward the flower buds. With a deep thud, the liquid vanished into the blood-lotus, merging seamlessly with its vibrant bloodlight and golden radiance. At that moment, Elder Xu materialized like a ghost beside the lotus, raising one hand and instantly pressing against one side of the bloom. A sharp sound followed as the silver wings behind the elder unfolded, and a steady stream of silver light flowed into the lotus from his hand. The beautiful woman likewise drifted to the opposite side of the lotus, her palm pressing against it, and a stream of white light surged forth. Immediately, the entire lotus emitted a resonant hum, its surface flashing with vibrant bloodlight, now fluctuating wildly. At that moment, the floating green banana leaves in the air drifted down. But as soon as they touched the blood lotus, they burst open spontaneously, releasing countless streaks of deep green filaments that shot out in all directions and then vanished into the blood lotus, leaving no trace. Immediately, intricate patterns of deep green emerged on the surface of the blood lotus, their shapes strange and unusual. Then, as the blood glow subsided, the continuous humming sound ceased abruptly. "After saying this, the young woman glanced at the other senior members of the Tianpeng Clan standing nearby, and suddenly her voice grew cold. 'You all have witnessed this event firsthand. This person's fate is directly tied to the survival of our clan. Therefore, every detail concerning this individual must remain absolutely confidential. From now on, this person's identity will be that of the third Sacred Prince secretly cultivated by our clan overseas. I expect you all to remember this.' 'The Grand Elder may rest assured—we will absolutely keep everything secure,' the several Tianpeng elders at the level of Lingxu affirmed, all visibly stirred. 'I also trust that none of you will act in a way that would harm our clan. In two months, I will select a few of you to accompany me and the Sacred Prince on this trial to the Deep Earth.' The young woman nodded, her tone softening. 'Two months! How could it be so early? Didn't we previously have a full year?' Someone immediately exclaimed. 'This request was jointly submitted by the Chirong Clan, the Duyu Clan, and over a dozen other clans, asking for the trial to be held earlier.' Although our clan elders vigorously advocated for this matter, the majority still agreed. "Why would they agree? There must be some reason, surely." Another person grew increasingly dissatisfied. "The reason is clear. They claim that the Underworld has recently been experiencing unrest. It would be wise to advance the originally scheduled trial date, to avoid unforeseen developments should the situation worsen." The young woman spoke calmly. "The creatures of the Underworld have always been our mortal enemies. When have they ever been at peace? It's clearly aimed at our several weaker offshoot branches." The sky-pidgeon speaker was furious. "Enough with the excuses. Since the joint council of elders has already secured a majority vote to advance the trial, our clan has no choice but to accept it. Beyond this trial matter, we have recently seen frequent appearances of members from other clans within our territory, who are systematically looting and raiding. You, as representatives of one of our branches, should immediately lead your forces out and eliminate these opportunistic raiders—none should remain." To teach the other branches a lesson—no further ambitions toward their own lineage until the trials are over. "As the girl spoke the last few words, her voice grew cold and resolute." "Understood!" The dayspinner people bowed in unison. Then, the girl began assigning tasks, and everyone promptly accepted and departed. The jade platform was now empty save for the girl herself, the three elders—Xu and the other two—still engaged in meditation, and the serving maid standing behind her. The girl turned her gaze once more, settling upon the lotus flower by the side. This lotus, continuously infused with spiritual energy by two beings at the combined stage, had grown not only larger but by nearly half compared to before. Moreover, the deep green patterns adorning its surface began to shimmer and pulse, as though coming to life. Suddenly, the girl reached into the air, grasping with her hand at the silver platter held by the maid behind her. A sound of rushing air echoed. A round, milky-white orb shot forth from the platter and was caught instantly in Jin Yue's hands. The young woman gently pressed a round pearl between her slender jade fingers and presented it before her, then focused intently, studying it closely. Suddenly, a strange expression crossed her face. "Is this the relic of a senior abbot who passed away in meditation?" she asked. "Yes, it is the relic of the ninth abbot," the attendant replied respectfully. "As instructed by the abbot, this is the oldest one preserved. The inner energy has likely diminished by half over time." The ninth abbot—precisely the one who originally invented the Shattering the Earth technique and ultimately died madly—said the young woman, her expression slightly shifting. "Indeed, it is the ninth abbot's relic. Since the abbot's passing was unusual, his relic contains not only the power of the Kungpeng but also traces of his final spiritual consciousness. When absorbed into a body, these traces may pose potential complications for the recipient. That is why this relic has been kept securely in the inner chamber, and no one has dared to attempt its refinement. Should the abbot find it unsuitable, I shall immediately replace it with another." The attendant explained, a touch of unease in her voice. "No thanks, this one will do." The young girl glanced at the crimson lotus, her expression returning to its usual calm. At that moment, the green patterns on the lotus surface began to twist and thicken, causing the entire flower to swell and rise upward. Two days later, above the jade platform. A large green bird darted up and down in the air, its body shimmering with golden arcs and soft, misty hues of jade light. Suddenly, it halted mid-motion, remaining still, and then powerfully grasped the void with its claws. Ten streaks of white claw-light shot forth, leaving faint white trails before vanishing instantly. With a sudden flap of its wings, a surge of jade light expanded and rolled forward, condensing into a palm-sized blade of wind that densely enveloped a space of over a hundred paces in front of it. "Boom!" A tremendous sound echoed as the green bird opened its mouth, expelling clusters of golden lightning balls. These balls collided with one another, transforming the area ahead into a dazzling expanse of electric light. After another sharp cry, the large blue bird flapped its wings and suddenly vanished amidst a surge of strong wind. At once, a powerful gale rose in the higher sky, and the blue bird reappeared. Yet within successive rings of emerald light, its form swelled rapidly—within moments, its size expanded from several zhang to a colossal scale of over a hundred zhang. With a single wing spread, it completely obscured the vast jade platform beneath it in a dense, dark shadow. The three figures standing on the platform gazed up at the immense form of the bird, their faces now pale with astonishment. "Senior, did you really administer to him merely the fragment of the relic from the Ninth Senior Elder?" said Jin Yue, her expression uncertain, as the voice of the red-bearded elder reached her, filled with disbelief. "Is it possible that Senior Xu suspects I've given him some other precious elixir or medicinal compound?" Jin Yue's face darkened, and she replied coldly. "How could Senior Xu even entertain such a thought? Yet this person has mastered the art of transformation so swiftly, and the true form of the phoenix they have manifested—perhaps even surpassing the capabilities of a spiritual commander—makes one wonder if they are truly of human origin. "You yourself assisted them in fusing the true blood of the kūpēng; surely you must know whether they are of our Fei Ling clan, right? Still, the sheer power they now wield after transformation greatly exceeds my expectations. Perhaps the feather of the kūpēng they have assimilated truly contains the spiritual blood of a kūpēng true saint, having already altered certain fundamental aspects of their very constitution." The young woman pondered for a while before offering this explanation. "Then it does make sense." The graceful woman sighed lightly. Yet the elder still appeared skeptical, clearly unconvinced by the young woman's reasoning. (Second update!)