"Hiss—"
The Nether Phoenix felt Chen Xiao's killing intent, let out a furious cry, and then flapped its wings at Chen Xiao. With each flap, a vast expanse of netherfire spread out, covering Chen Xiao.
Chen Xiao stood his ground, neither dodging nor evading. After all, he hadn't died so many times for nothing. This mere netherfire couldn't harm him anymore.
"After being burned by you for so long, it's my turn now!"
Chen Xiao suddenly swung his arms, and countless cracks appeared on his body, from which fierce flames erupted!
Boom—
A ball of intense fire shot out from Chen Xiao's body. Compared to the Nether Phoenix's massive form, this flame was insignificant. However, once it ignited on the Nether Phoenix, it became unstoppable! The fire grew larger and larger, quickly engulfing the Nether Phoenix!
The blue netherfire that had originally covered the Nether Phoenix was now replaced by Chen Xiao's inferno! This inferno contained Chen Xiao's own Qilin Fire, as well as the recently burned netherfire. It was able to burn the Nether Phoenix because Chen Xiao's spiritual energy served as its fuel. During his countless rebirths, Chen Xiao had assimilated a portion of the netherfire, merging it with his own Qilin Fire.
Simultaneously, the frantic circulation of the Nine Revolutions Azure Wave Art had sustained him through so many transformations. Thus, he had absorbed a large portion of the spiritual energy contained within the surging dark river, causing his cultivation to skyrocket. In short, although he had endured unprecedented pain from being burned, he had also benefited greatly. He was even closer to the seventh level of the Nine Revolutions Azure Wave Art than he had ever imagined.
"Hiss—"
"Hiss—"
...
"Hiss..."
The Nether Phoenix continued to struggle, but its cries had shifted from initial ferocity to pain, and finally, a hint of pleading. Chen Xiao, however, was not about to relent. The suffering he had endured far surpassed that of this damned bird!
Finally, the Nether Phoenix could no longer hold on. Its massive body crashed to the ground, kicking up a huge cloud of dust. The smoke and dust mingled, obscuring Chen Xiao's vision!
Just then, Chen Xiao's brow furrowed slightly as he suddenly realized something was amiss. He sensed that the Nether Phoenix's rapidly fading aura had suddenly surged a hundredfold! Moreover, this aura was vastly different from before. The previous Nether Phoenix carried a thick aura of resentment and death, but this new aura, though explosive and powerful, exuded a sense of sanctity!
"Hiss—"
At that moment, a clear and crisp phoenix cry echoed from within the flames. Following this cry, a phoenix, reborn from fire, soared into the sky! Chen Xiao's eyes widened. This was a true phoenix, a divine beast phoenix! Not a demonic beast like the Azure Luan Fire Phoenix, nor a half-living monster like the Nether Phoenix... this was a genuine phoenix!
"Could it be that this guy also underwent rebirth from fire?!" Chen Xiao swallowed hard, his entire body becoming alert. After all, when it came to rebirth from fire, the phoenix was the expert! Although Chen Xiao had also achieved it, he had undergone countless rebirths and still couldn't compare to this phoenix's single transformation. Now, this phoenix's aura was immeasurably stronger than the previous Nether Phoenix! Chen Xiao's scalp tingled, and he felt almost despair! Was there no end to this? Couldn't he be allowed to live? He had some desire to fight the Nether Phoenix, but facing this phoenix, Chen Xiao simply wanted to give up, to completely lie down and surrender! There was no other way; the difference in strength was too vast! Chen Xiao felt that to even have a chance to fight this creature, he would need at least the seventh level...
The fire phoenix soared into the sky and after flying for a long time, it descended again. However, Chen Xiao was surprised to find that he could not sense any hostility from it. Did its temperament also improve after its rebirth from fire?
The fire phoenix slowly landed before Chen Xiao, and then its body began to shrink rapidly. By the time it had shrunk to Chen Xiao's size, it transformed in place into an incredibly voluptuous woman with a beautiful yet sacred countenance. Her attire was simple, covering only her most private parts... but due to the avant-garde and bold design of the clothing, it didn't fully conceal them. The overall visual effect was one of tantalizing modesty, like a pipa player partially veiled. It was quite explosive!
Chen Xiao couldn't handle such stimulation and immediately... he was still completely unclothed.
"Hehehe..." The fire phoenix let out a series of charming laughs, rolled her eyes at Chen Xiao, and spat, "Tsk, aren't you ashamed!"
Chen Xiao smiled awkwardly, then his expression turned displeased: "You're blaming me? Do you think I want this? You burned all my clothes off!"
"Don't talk nonsense, that wasn't me just now... Oh dear, can't you find something to cover yourself? Why is that thing of yours always like this? It's quite frightening!" The fire phoenix stared at Chen Xiao's nether regions, exclaiming in alarm.
"..." Chen Xiao was speechless, "Do you think I want this? It's all because of you. Why don't you turn back into your phoenix form?"
"If I turn back into a phoenix, I won't be able to talk to you."
"Then there's nothing I can do. This is the abyss ten thousand feet deep. Where am I supposed to find clothes? I can't exactly burrow into the scorched earth to hide, can I?" Chen Xiao thought to himself that even if he burrowed into the scorched earth, he would still stick out, unless he lay flat... but how uncomfortable would that be!
The fire phoenix thought for a moment, then suddenly had an idea: "Got it!" With that, she took a hair ornament from her hair. It seemed to be a phoenix feather, golden yellow in color, and very striking! The fire phoenix blew gently, and the feather slowly drifted down, swaying as it landed on Chen Xiao. Then, a dazzling transformation occurred. Finally, it turned into a golden battle armor that perfectly fitted Chen Xiao's body. This perfectly solved the previous problem, and Chen Xiao also gained a cool set of armor for free, made from phoenix feathers!
Only then did Chen Xiao finally remember that he hadn't asked for her identity.
"Who... who are you?" Chen Xiao felt that using the word 'person' wasn't quite fitting, but he couldn't ask what she was, as that would be too impolite!
The fire phoenix blinked, and said playfully and cutely, "Master, I am your phoenix servant!"
"Phoenix servant? Master?" Chen Xiao looked bewildered.
"Master, don't you like me?" the fire phoenix asked pitifully.
"Like, like..." Chen Xiao thought to himself that she could kill him with a single blow, so why wouldn't he like her?
"Alright, Master, then quickly drip your blood for me to recognize you as master!" The fire phoenix bit her index finger and looked at Chen Xiao expectantly. "Master, as long as your blood and mine merge, the master-servant relationship will be established!"
Although Chen Xiao hadn't fully processed everything, taking such a powerful servant seemed to have no downsides. So, he also bit his index finger, squeezed out a drop of blood, and let it drip onto the fire phoenix's index finger.
"Hiss—" Chen Xiao's blood dripped onto it and instantly turned into a wisp of white smoke. The fire phoenix shook her head and said with disappointment, "Failed!"
"Why did it fail? I did as you said." Chen Xiao was puzzled.
The fire phoenix said frankly, "Because you are too weak, and not worthy of being my master..."