Chapter 282

Chapter 282: The Attributes of the Feng Clan

You You quickly counted the awakened phoenixes—over a thousand, nearly matching the total number of disciples in the Zhen Yan Sect.

The Feng Clan split into two groups: one consisted of couples clinging to each other, cooing affectionately, while the other was a cluster of single phoenixes radiating a sour lemony aura, forming their own little FFF squad.

Every phoenix buzzed with activity. Though Rong Fu and Rong Mu had explained the situation, none seemed to care about such trivial matters. Even Rong Fu and Rong Mu veered off-topic, bragging about their descendants as if forgetting their original purpose. You You cleared her throat loudly, scanning the crowd for a leader.

“By the way,” she asked, “has the Feng King awakened yet?”

Silence fell. All eyes turned to her.

“Uh… Did I say something wrong?”

After a pause, the phoenix who’d spoken earlier sighed. “The Phoenix Empress sacrificed herself for our clan. Naturally, the Feng King wouldn’t sleep alongside us.” The group’s mood sank.

So the Feng King had perished long ago. You You stiffened. “My apologies…”

The phoenixes soon brightened again. You You changed the subject. “Is everyone from the Sacred Tree space awake? Let’s do a headcount.”

The phoenixes sobered up and tallied their numbers. One reported, “Most have awakened, but two eggs on the mountainside remain dormant.”

“Mountainside?” You You exchanged glances with Feng Rong and Yuan Papa before rushing over.

Amid the earlier chaos, they’d missed the two unhatched eggs. Unlike the others, these lacked the faint glow.

Feng Rong examined them, brow furrowed. “Only a sliver of vitality remains. No signs of awakening.”

“How?” You You turned to the others. “Any more dormant eggs?”

“None,” said a blue-robed man nearby. “I was the last to leave the Sacred Tree space. These two hadn’t hatched yet, so I brought them out before the collapse.”

“So only these two?”

“Yes,” a young boy confirmed.

You You frowned. They’d all slept and been awakened by the Yin volume together—why were these eggs different? Yuan Papa inspected them but found nothing unusual. Summoning ‘Momentary Retention’ yielded no results. With time short, they returned to the sect with the phoenixes.

You You pitied Ling Qi—managing finances just got twice as hard.

——————

Ling Qi, ever competent, stabilized the sect despite the sudden doubling of members. He prepared Five Peaks for the phoenixes, choosing “Five” for its auspicious homonym “Wu.” The phoenixes approved, immediately planting Phoenix Trees across the once-barren training peaks. By dawn, the peaks teemed with towering trees shimmering with divine energy.

You You reviewed the clan’s status. Aside from the two eggs, all had awakened—mostly fire and ice phoenixes, some wind or wood types. Notably absent were thunder phoenixes, the royal lineage.

Rong Fu and Rong Mu explained thunder phoenixes were rare. Only the Feng King had possessed a pure bloodline. His son, lost defending the clan during its fall, likely perished too.

Leaderless, the clan needed a representative. Within hours, they presented their choice in the main hall.

You You expected a venerable elder or mighty warrior. Instead, they brought a boy who looked thirteen—younger than a Soul Beast.

“How… old are you?” she blurted.

“Under a hundred years post-hatching,” he said, pointing at Feng Rong. “Younger than him by human reckoning.”

A child!

“Are you truly their chosen leader?”

“Of course.” The boy shrugged. “Among singles, I’m youngest—that’s how we pick leaders.”

“Why only singles?”

“You didn’t know?” He grimaced. “Once mated, phoenixes toss their brains aside. Why bother leading when you’ve got a partner?”

You You: “…”

Yuan Qi: “…”

Ling Qi: “…”

So the entire clan suffered from Love-struck Brain—except the singles.

(And why did the boy sound so bitterly jealous?

Feng Rong—stop nodding like this makes sense!)