"Fu Hua, can you tell me how old you really are?"
"I can't remember clearly. Probably over fifty thousand, but not counting the time I was asleep, it should be a few thousand years, I guess?"
Ryn thought for a moment, then hugged Fu Hua's thigh.
"Ryn? What are you doing?" Fu Hua was a little surprised and tried to shake him off.
"A woman three years older is a gold brick, a woman thirty years older will give you the world. Fu Hua, you're thirty thousand years older than me, isn't this a direct ticket to success!"
"Ryn, you're overthinking it. If we can't defeat the coming of Finality, I can't help you fly, but I can certainly die with you."
"Ehehe."
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Fu Hua and Ryn spent over a month on Mount Taixu, successfully turning the place upside down.
Ryn had also looked through most of Fu Hua's memory feathers, but most of them were from before Fu Hua joined Fire Moth. Ryn wanted to know what happened after she joined.
Fu Hua said she hadn't kept those memories.
"There is already a place that records all my memories, so there's no need for me to keep another copy. I'll let you go there when I have the chance. You should go there too."
"I hate riddle-speakers. Can't you just tell me directly?"
Ryn gave Fu Hua an eye-roll, and Fu Hua patted his head in exasperation.
"The Gatekeeper has not yet returned, and I don't know his attitude right now. Until I've figured him out, I can't let you appear before him."
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Ryn and Fu Hua sat on a giant purple Azure Empyrea Bird. This phoenix was the best-looking, strongest, and most like the phoenix of mythology that Ryn had picked from the two hundred-plus birds.
"Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix, let's go! Target, St. Freya High School!"
"Cheep—"
"Shut up!" Ryn angrily kicked the phoenix beneath his feet.
"You're a phoenix! Don't you dare chirp like a chicken!"
"Cheep! Cheep cheep!!"
"I said you are, so you are! Don't look down on yourself, you idiot! The mere gap between species can definitely be overcome by the omnipotent Honkai energy!"
Fu Hua put on an eye mask and began to rest. What was there to see in a purple phoenix? It couldn't compare to her former Jingwei at all.
(Fu Hua has a mount named Jingwei in Honkai Gakuen 2, it's quite good-looking.)
Several hours later, Theresa at St. Freya High School received an urgent communication from Himeko.
"Principal, a Honkai Beast has been detected approaching St. Freya's airspace at high speed. Should I notify Kika to shoot it down?"
"What kind of Honkai Beast is it? Is it highly dangerous?"
"Its shape is very similar to the phoenix recorded in Shenzhou legends, but its flames are purple...."
Himeko's voice paused for a moment as she received the latest intelligence.
"Never mind, Principal. Cortana sent a message saying it's a new Honkai Beast Ryn cooked up..."
"Oh... then that's not strange at all. I wouldn't be surprised by any stunt he pulls."
Theresa ended the communication with Himeko, took out the "Homu Adventure" manga from her drawer again, and opened it with a grin.
Himeko, on the other hand, organized the data on the Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix according to the information sent by Cortana and uploaded it to Schicksal's system. By standard metrics, this Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix should be rated at the Imperator-class. If Ryn lost his mind one day and gave it a Pseudo-Herrscher core, it would probably be rated as a Judgment-class Honkai Beast without a doubt.
And what was our Imperator-class Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix doing? It was currently chirping away, trying to escape from Kiana's arms.
As it got closer to St. Freya High School, the Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix's body shrank from over twenty meters to less than one meter, turning into a plump purple Azure Empyrea Bird pillow.
Cute, soft, and cuddly, Kiana fell in love with it at first sight and excitedly carried the Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix around to show it off to everyone.
When Ryn, who was still organizing his things, turned around, Kiana had already vanished with the Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix.
"It's been so long, but Kiana is still as impatient as ever... She didn't even get to see the Azure Empyrea Birds I brought specifically for her."
Ryn shouldered a large sack of Azure Empyrea Birds, planning to take them home as gifts for Kallen and the others.
Although the signal on Mount Taixu was poor, Ryn still had Cortana make daily video calls to Kiana and everyone else with a communicator. So, everyone wasn't overly excited about Ryn and Fu Hua's return, but they still planned to hold a banquet in the evening to welcome them.
Kiana initially thought the Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix was a pet pillow Ryn brought back. But in the kitchen, the Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix unfortunately let out a few chirps.
That sound made Kiana's eyes, which were in the middle of introducing the phoenix to Mei, light up, and drool couldn't help but trickle from the corner of her mouth.
Because Ryn had said he would bring back many local specialties from Mount Taixu, a type of chicken called "Azure Empyrea Bird," to cook for everyone. So this thing in her arms was it!
Kiana and Mei brandished their knives and looked at the Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix.
Boom—
The Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix immediately grew larger, broke through Kiana and Mei's cage, and fled. If it didn't run, Mei's knife would have come down.
The loud noise made Theresa, who was on her way home to welcome Ryn and Fu Hua, tremble.
Then she saw smoke and purple fire coming from Himeko's house, with a giant chicken perched on the roof.
"RYN!!"
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"Why didn't you say this one wasn't for eating..." Kiana, who had been lectured by Theresa and was now being punished by standing in the corner, poked Ryn, who was standing next to her, with a wronged expression.
"Silly Kiana... you ran off so fast, how was I supposed to know you were planning to slaughter my Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix to eat it..."
"Didn't you say you brought back that chicken, the Azure Empyrea Bird, to cook for me?"
"Azure Empyrea Bird, Azure Empyrea Bird, of course it's red.... This one of mine is purple, so of course you can't eat it!"
Ryn leaned down and whispered in Kiana's ear, "But if Kiana wants to eat it, we can secretly cut off a little piece to cook. It regenerates fast anyway!"
"Cheep cheep!" The Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix, standing in the corner with them, seemed to have heard its fate and chirped defiantly.
Ryn kicked the fat bird in exasperation.
"What are you chirping about... you choose. Either follow me into battle and get beaten half to death by others, or stay at home and contribute some meat from time to time!"
"Cheep!"
The Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix ran off thoughtfully, then returned from the kitchen with several plump Azure Empyrea Birds in its beak.
"Cheep cheep!"
"Alright, alright, better you than me, huh!"
Ryn patted the Purple Flame Mystic Phoenix with a laugh. This dumb bird meant that it wanted to stay at home and not fight, but it also didn't want to lose any flesh, so it was telling Ryn and the others to eat the other Azure Empyrea Birds instead.