In a nameless valley in the Sai Bei Wild Wolf Mountains, a badger with a flat head, pointed nose, short ears, and a short, thick neck waddled up to a plant. It used its pointed snout to dig up the roots, incidentally unearthing several earthworms, which it swallowed and chewed carefully. Its front paws left the ground as it stood, its round ears perked to listen for any sounds in the surroundings.
Its pair of small eyes, like black pearls, also scanned for any movement, and its pointed nose twitched incessantly.
The badger relied on its hearing, sense of smell, and sight to monitor everything around it. Any unusual disturbance would be immediately detected, and it would vanish.
Of course, the badger primarily depended on its hearing and sense of smell, with sight serving as an auxiliary. However, this was sufficient. Without special tools, hunters could not capture such a sensitive prey.
There's a common saying: "An old badger is a spirit." This means that badgers are inherently clever animals, and an old badger is even more so, almost to the point of being a spirit. Thus, almost no one would waste their effort trying to catch one.
This badger, however, was not old but in its prime. It had elders to support and young to care for: an eighty-year-old mother above and three hungry young badgers below… Today, it had come out to forage, not just to feed itself but also to bring back food for its family.
While badgers were rarely caught, "rarely" did not mean "never." When desperate with hunger, some would eat anything. Take Zhou Fugui, a deputy general of the Great Yan Kingdom.
With a "whoosh," about ten feet away from the badger, a "humanoid monster" covered in leaves suddenly stood upright, letting out a series of "chirps and squawks." The noise was exceptionally loud, enough to awaken sleeping beasts. The badger, with its exceptionally keen senses, immediately detected this anomaly.
Startled, the badger darted away with lightning speed, so fast it made one's eyes water. In the blink of an eye, it was gone without a trace.
Even though the badger had already fled, the "humanoid monster" seemed unwilling to give up. It pursued with loud shouts, its noise growing steadily, like the sky collapsing and the earth shattering, further frightening the already startled badger and making it run even faster.
The frightened badger sped towards its burrow, driven by the instinct that only its home was truly safe.
The badger ran rapidly towards its burrow, getting closer and closer. It was on the verge of disappearing into its den when, in its panicked flight, it failed to notice a chilling gleam of light amidst the piled grass at the entrance.
The relentless "humanoid monster" intensified its pursuit. The badger glanced back in terror and turned to dive into its burrow.
The "humanoid monster" rejoiced. A sharp dagger, positioned among the grass, was about to slice the badger in two.
But fate intervened. Just as the badger was about to hit the dagger, a burst of flame erupted from somewhere. With a "whoosh," the flames shot out, and after a plume of black smoke, the badger, with elders above and young below, was reduced to a pile of roasted badger meat…
"Aha!" Zhou Fugui, the "humanoid monster," was first shocked, then delighted. With a cry, he rushed towards the roasted badger.
Lin Yue had lost his flint and tinder, and Zhou Fugui was already fretting about how to make fire. Friction was not easy. Now, this sudden flame had roasted the badger, saving him the trouble of rubbing sticks together!
"Delicious roasted meat, here I come!" As Zhou Fugui charged towards the roasted badger, shouting, another strong gust of flame erupted, rushing towards him.
Zhou Fugui felt an intense heat wash over him. He instinctively threw himself to the ground, dodging the fiery attack. Looking up, he was furious. The fragrant roasted badger meat had vanished…
"Squeak… squeak…" An unfamiliar fledgling bird had swallowed the roasted badger meat in one gulp. It then flapped its little wings as if to taunt Zhou Fugui.
The fledgling's feathers were all fiery red, like embers. Its beak was black. The red feathers bore colorful, subtle patterns, and its two small eyes sparkled like rubies, as if it could see through everything.
"You little brat, how dare you snatch my food?" The fledgling was incredibly strange, almost magical. But the delicious roasted badger meat had been snatched by it, and Zhou Fugui could not tolerate this insult. He cursed, grabbed his dagger, then thought better of it and tucked it back into his waist. He reached out to catch the ember-like fledgling.
Could the fledgling breathe fire? If he caught it and tamed it, wouldn't it be a ready-made "flame thrower"?
"Whoosh!" Seeing Zhou Fugui lunging, the fledgling showed no fear, nor did it flee. It flapped its wings, and a burst of searing flame shot from its beak towards Zhou Fugui's head.
The fledgling could indeed breathe fire!
Zhou Fugui hastily twisted and turned to dodge the flames. The fire grazed his nose, burning off a few strands of hair, which turned to ash and scattered in the air.
"Good! You're quite capable, little one!" Zhou Fugui, instead of being alarmed, cried out in delight after dodging the fire, and lunged towards the fledgling again.
"Whoosh… whoosh… whoosh…" Seeing Zhou Fugui approach, the fledgling was undeterred. It flapped its wings, continuously spitting flames, engaging in a fierce battle with Zhou Fugui.
Zhou Fugui dodged and weaved, desperately evading the flames, retaliating when he could. But despite his vigilance, a stray flame scorched his backside.
Zhou Fugui felt a searing pain in his rear, even smelling the scent of roasted meat… Enraged, he turned, spread his arms, and leaped into the air, determined to prevent the damned fledgling of unknown origin from escaping.
But the fledgling was no ordinary creature. It flapped its wings and soared higher, landing on Zhou Fugui's head. Its iron-hook-like claws tightly gripped his hair. From above, it opened its beak, intending to roast Zhou Fugui from head to toe.
"Ah? You beast, you dead bird! Get down, you rascal! I was wrong, I was wrong, I admit it! Good bird, divine bird, immortal! Please come down! If you come down, I'll hunt for you from now on and treat you like an ancestor!" If the flames hit him squarely, Zhou Fugui would be left with not a single hair on his body, even if he survived. Terrified, Zhou Fugui shouted and ran frantically, stopping suddenly, then crouching and leaping, trying to shake the fledgling off his head.
The fledgling remained unmoved, chirped twice, and opened its beak to its widest…
"Cough… cough… cough…" The fledgling.
"????????" Zhou Fugui.
The fledgling intended to roast Zhou Fugui from above, but this time, instead of flames, a thick cloud of smoke billowed out, leaving Zhou Fugui completely sooty, except for his two sparkling eyes. He was darker than a Kunlun slave…
The fire in the fledgling's belly had been completely expelled…
"Aha!" Zhou Fugui was overjoyed. Reaching over his head, he grabbed the fledgling's two claws and roared with laughter, "I see you're not one for gentle persuasion! You've fallen into my hands now, haven't you?"
The fledgling flapped its wings and struggled fiercely, possessing great strength. It chirped and dragged Zhou Fugui along the ground, but its strength was nearly depleted. With a mournful cry, it fell from the air.
Zhou Fugui pounced like a hungry tiger, pinning the fledgling beneath him. As the fledgling continued to struggle, Zhou Fugui drew his dagger, its sharp blade pointed at the bird. He said fiercely, "Little thing, dare to move again, and I'll shave off all your feathers and turn you into a broiler chicken…"
"General Zhou, you must not harm this divine creature!"
A person and a bird had been struggling for a long time, creating quite a commotion. How could Lin Yue not hear it? Rushing over, believing Zhou Fugui was about to harm the fledgling, he spoke to Zhou Fugui.
"Chirp… chirp…"
Seeing Lin Yue arrive, the fledgling treated him like a savior. It flapped its wings desperately, struggled powerfully, and managed to break free from Zhou Fugui's grasp. It flew to Lin Yue's shoulder and immediately noticed something unusual about Lin Yue. A small fire phoenix mark on Lin Yue's shoulder and back was faintly glowing red through his clothes.
The fledgling seemed surprised, staring blankly at the fire phoenix mark beneath Lin Yue's clothes, chirping continuously.
"General Zhou, what happened to you?" Lin Yue, not noticing the fledgling's unusual behavior, asked Zhou Fugui, who was pitch black, with a smile.
"It's all this damned stupid bird." Zhou Fugui glared fiercely at the fledgling and asked, "What divine creature are you talking about? You mean this little thing is a divine creature?"
"It should be a fledgling flamingo, a descendant of the fire phoenix," Lin Yue replied.
"Flamingo?" Zhou Fugui shook his head. "I know what flamingos look like. How could this stupid bird be a flamingo? A descendant of the fire phoenix? That's too fantastical!"
Flamingos were entirely red, but their necks were long and slender, bare. This fledgling, however, had a short, stubby neck covered in feathers.
"General Zhou, come with me." Lin Yue rolled his eyes at Zhou Fugui and said.
"Oh…" Zhou Fugui glanced at the fledgling on Lin Yue's shoulder and agreed.
The two walked one after another to the bank of the valley's hot spring. A small stone tablet stood by the spring. Zhou Fugui, having arrived in the valley, had been searching for food everywhere, thus neglecting this tablet. Lin Yue, however, was a meticulous person.
"Fire Phoenix Valley?" Three large characters, "火烈谷" (Huo Lie Gu - Fire Phoenix Valley), were carved on the stone tablet. Below them was a line of smaller characters in a language unknown to Zhou Fugui. Upon seeing them, Zhou Fugui suddenly seemed to understand, stroking his chin and murmuring, "The northern lands are frozen and covered in ice and snow, yet there is such a warm place. So that's how it is, so that's how it is."
"Flamingos are the divine beasts of my tribe," Lin Yue said.
"Which tribe?" Zhou Fugui asked.
"The Tuge tribe," Lin Yue replied softly.