Five years ago, after Yaohua mentioned the black mist, he had once gone to the Dragon Clan in search of clues, but ended up finding nothing.
For a long time after that, he kept thinking about what that black mist was. However, even after scouring through ancient books, he couldn't find the slightest bit of useful information.
Still, it wasn't a complete waste of time.
The eyeball left by Zhuzhao, after being refined, could allow one to see things that were otherwise invisible.
The black mist he and Yaohua saw in the Thunder Dream Swamp, he was almost certain, was the very black qi Yaohua had once talked about.
That day, he saw clearly that Yaohua had activated a red light to dispel the black mist on Xie Ling's body, but she didn't faint as she had five years ago. This showed that as long as Yaohua cultivated to a certain level, she could resist that mysterious black qi.
Time was running out for Yaohua.
The Demon Clan had been frequently showing up in the Divine Land, causing chaos everywhere and keeping them constantly on their toes. If the black qi were to join in the chaos, the Three Realms would be thrown into turmoil. Only Yaohua could resolve the crisis with her own power.
Rong Chu was right, but how could he bring himself to say such a thing?
The gods gathered in the Celestial Realm to protect all sentient beings, yet they had to rely on a little girl to save the day.
"Rong Chu, you've overstepped your bounds," Chongming said, lowering his eyes to hide the pity in them.
Rong Chu was taken aback. Just as he was about to apologize, he saw that Chongming was already looking into the distance.
The Phoenix's Blessing was coming to an end.
The siblings landed on the ground together.
"Finally done," Mo Qing let out a long sigh. Then, without any warning, he closed his eyes and toppled to one side.
"Sixth brother!"
Yaohua's small arms and legs could only barely support him.
Chongming stretched out two fingers and placed them on Mo Qing's forehead.
Mo Qing slowly opened his eyes. His gaze shifted from a daze to clarity. "Thank you, my lord."
Chongming nodded. "Let's leave this place first."
According to reason, the curse should have been dispelled when the phoenix bestowed its auspiciousness. But for some reason, the faint sense of oppression in Chongming's heart resurfaced.
When he circulated his spiritual power, it felt a bit sluggish.
On the outskirts of the city, dawn was approaching.
Yaohua sat cross-legged under a tree, trying to calm the turbulent spiritual power within her body.
She had joined her sixth brother in bestowing the blessing, so she had consumed some spiritual power. But for someone who had just survived a thunder tribulation like her, there was still an excessive amount of chaotic spiritual power left in her body. If she didn't absorb it in time, it might leave behind hidden troubles.
After a while, she opened her eyes.
Chongming was sitting by the river, looking down at the rushing water with a slight frown. Yaohua watched him for a long time, but he didn't seem to notice.
"Master?"
He looked up, a smile playing on his lips. "Your cultivation has improved a great deal."
Yaohua rarely saw him looking so preoccupied. In her mind, her master lived alone in the Cangling Hall, held the authority of the Heavenly Dao, and judged all sentient beings. He was the supreme ancient god, and nothing seemed to be a problem for him. This included last night when he had lost his spiritual power and still dared to go into the enemy's camp alone.
But just now, he had been sitting there, staring blankly at the river, which was very different from his usual self.
"Master, what's wrong?"
A strange look flashed across Chongming's eyes. He looked at his outstretched palm, but no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't circulate even the slightest bit of spiritual power.
"Yaoyao, my spiritual power has disappeared again."
Just now, the last drop of his spiritual power had vanished into thin air, just like a drop of water falling into a scorching desert.
"How could this be?" Yaohua exclaimed in surprise, her mouth agape.
"The Soul-Burning Curse in the city hasn't disappeared," Chongming concluded after some thought.
To make matters worse, the false god still hadn't shown up.
"Master, don't worry," Yaohua said after a moment of surprise. She threw herself onto his lap. Her somewhat round phoenix eyes were filled with determination. "I'll find a way to help you restore your spiritual power!"
She remembered that during her tribulation, the power of the phoenix fire had exceeded that of the Soul-Burning Curse, and the power of faith had reached its peak.
As long as she could attract the tribulation thunder again, her master's spiritual power would surely be restored.
"The tribulation thunder is no ordinary thing. It appears in accordance with the Heavenly Dao," Chongming said with a smile in his eyes. "There's no need to force it."
"Isn't there any other way to summon it?"
"I still have a long life ahead of me. I don't need you to sacrifice yourself," Chongming sighed as he gently stroked her hair. "Your hairpin is loose. Let me comb your hair for you."
Yaohua sat in front of him. The stream reflected her worried face. "Master, is there any way to completely get rid of the Soul-Burning Curse?"
This curse was really annoying. It had suddenly appeared and almost harmed her master.
"Don't force it."
The little girl was charming, with fair skin. She often wore colorful clothes, had two buns on her head, and adorned them with phoenix flowers. It was the most suitable attire for her.
Ten years ago, after Chongming picked up the phoenix egg, he had once checked the ancient books on how to raise a daughter. Although he had only had that thought for a moment and didn't really end up keeping the little phoenix, he had learned how to do hair buns very well.
"Master is so amazing!" Yaohua was still worried about his spiritual power. But when she looked down and saw the hair bun on her head, her eyes immediately lit up.
Like a child, Yaohua's mood changed quickly. Now that she was distracted by the beautiful hair bun, she stopped talking about the spiritual power.
Chongming took out a phoenix flower hairpin, examined it from both sides, and then placed it in the middle of the hair bun.
Yaohua sat still, her eyes wide open. After he had finished, she touched her head and looked into the stream.
"What a beautiful phoenix flower!" she thought. She was about to take it off and put it into her space to treasure it.
"Yaoyao is the only little princess of the Phoenix Clan," Chongming stopped her and said gently. "You should be matched with the most beautiful things in the world."
"Master!" Yaohua's eyes sparkled brightly, but her cheeks were flushed. She turned around and threw herself into Chongming's arms. "Thank you, master."
Chongming was stunned for a moment. Finally, he placed his arms on her back and gently patted her twice. "I hope Yaoyao won't blame me."
"Why would I blame you, master?" Yaohua took a deep breath of the fragrant scent on Chongming's body, contentedly. She just nestled in his arms and didn't want to get up.
"Don't blame me for making you grow up so quickly."
Among the goddesses in the Celestial Realm, at the age of ten, they were still enjoying their parents' love. But this little phoenix had been living a nomadic life with him, training and cultivating, just to face a possible catastrophe.
Chongming felt guilty in his heart, so his attitude towards Yaohua became even more gentle.
"It's so nice to be with master every day," Yaohua said, lying on Chongming's lap. She reached out to grab his long hair. The hair was as soft and smooth as silk. She wrapped it loosely around her fingers. "I just like being with master."
Just as she finished speaking, she heard a faint sobbing sound.
Mo Qing, who was lying beside them with his eyes closed, frowned tightly. "It's so noisy!"
The Phoenix Clan had extremely sharp hearing. Sounds that were very faint to ordinary people could be magnified infinitely in their ears.
Yaohua got up and frowned slightly. "Master, someone is crying."
She thought of the old man's family who had been persecuted by the false god's sacrifice. Her long-suppressed compassion began to stir.