The Long Journey to Immortality

This "Zhiyuan Daoren," who calls himself "Zhiyuan," is certainly not a fool lacking in intelligence and foresight.

After thinking for a moment, he had an idea.

After flying a few meters ahead, Daoist Zhiyuan bowed and said, "I am Daoist Zhiyuan from the Yundong Chamber of Commerce."

"I have been to the Central Plains and have heard people mention the True Phoenix Fairy of the Zhengyi Sect."

"Although I can't say I've long admired your name, I still have great respect for Fairy Zhenfeng."

Daoist Zhiyuan spoke in such a way as if he were merely being polite and courteous, and not actually having heard of Han Lu's name or known anything about her situation.

As expected, Han Lu was fooled by these polite words and simply nodded slightly, not taking these superficial gestures to heart.

Immediately afterwards, Daoist Zhiyuan continued, "If the fairy is merely acting on a whim and wishes to protect this fledgling phoenix that is about to be captured by us, please give the Yundong Chamber of Commerce some face."

"If there are other reasons, please speak them out. If they are reasonable, we will step aside and make peace with the fairy, abandoning this deal."

By deliberately negotiating in this way, Zhiyuan Daoren, who was well aware of Han Lu's situation, had already come up with a legitimate reason for Han Lu to give. He was just waiting for Han Lu to make the offer so that he could lead his colleagues and comrades to leave gracefully according to the plan.

As expected, upon seeing the other party's stance, Han Lu did not hesitate to activate the "True Phoenix Manual," transforming herself into a four-winged true phoenix three or four times larger than the fledgling behind her in front of the five people.

Upon seeing Han Lu reveal her true spirit and true form, the Yundong Chamber of Commerce cultivators, who had previously been skeptical of Zhiyuan Daoist's introduction, immediately opened their mouths in astonishment.

Another cultivator who had previously launched a domineering provocation against Han Lu was even more relieved.

Fortunately, among my companions was a man well-versed in the Central Plains, such as Daoist Zhiyuan.

Fortunately, I didn't make the first move and dig my own grave, which gave me room to maneuver and end the matter gracefully.

The reaction of the fledgling phoenix behind Han Lu was not much different from that of the five cultivators.

They also feigned surprise.

The young phoenix, who was only seventy years old, had never seen a phoenix like Han Lu among its kind.

However, upon seeing this scene and knowing that her sister beside her was of the same clan, the young phoenix felt completely at ease, and while feeling safe and secure, her curiosity was aroused.

He was secretly curious about which clan this phoenix sister, who was said to be from the Central Plains, belonged to.

Seeing that Han Lu had transformed into a phoenix as he had predicted to prove her identity, Daoist Zhiyuan breathed a sigh of relief.

He knew very well that this matter could be resolved beautifully.

Although they would lose the 100,000 spirit stones that they had not yet received, the lives of the individuals and the reputation of the merchant guild would be perfectly preserved.

Transforming into a phoenix, she let out two phoenix cries, and then transformed back into human form. Han Lu held the spirit sword in one hand and gently stroked and wiped it with the other, saying, "Is this reason sufficient? Can the fellow Daoists of the Yundong Chamber of Commerce please leave? The grudges you previously inflicted on my kin can be wiped clean."

Upon hearing this, Daoist Zhiyuan laughed and said, "So that's why Fairy Zhenfeng intervened. We were wrong."

"We'll stop now."

"We urge Fairy Zhenfeng to keep her promise."

Han Lu said, "Of course, let's hurry up and leave. It's better to do less of this kind of business, as it damages good karma."

"Yes, yes." The others all responded, though somewhat perfunctorily, they still gave each other face on the surface.

Without further hesitation, the five cultivators from the Yundong Chamber of Commerce turned and left.

As he was leaving, an exaggerated and somewhat dangerous thought flashed through Zhiyuan Daoist's mind.

"If we capture Fairy Zhenfeng and sell her through clandestine channels, we might be able to fetch two or three hundred thousand spirit stones."

He shook his head, quickly banishing the dangerous thought to avoid getting into trouble.

The five cultivators from Yundong Shop headed west instead of east, clearly intending to seek other high-value targets on the other side of the dividing line to continue this somewhat shady but highly profitable business.

Han Lu did not say anything to stop it.

These are the rules of the East Sea. Although she dislikes them somewhat, it is indeed as Daoist Zhiyuan said, and it is not appropriate to interfere without cause.

Just as the five people left, Yi Qiyan and Wen Erya arrived late.

They only decided to rush over to help Han Lu after they saw her transform into a phoenix.

However, because Han Lu did not take action after transforming into a true spirit, he eventually stopped himself and waited for a moment to make sure that his outburst was not out of control before reuniting with Han Lu at the time of a successful reconciliation.

Upon seeing the arrival of two more cultivators whose backgrounds and strengths were unclear, the fledgling phoenix, already somewhat overwhelmed, instinctively hid on Han Lu's other side, feigning fear.

Han Lu quickly stroked the fledgling phoenix's feathers to comfort it, "Don't be afraid, these are my two good friends, you are safe now."

Upon hearing this, Chu Feng breathed a sigh of relief and quickly expressed the words of gratitude that had been bottled up in her heart, conveying her agreement.

"Thank you, sister, for saving me."

"It's nothing, it's your business. We'll talk about it later." Han Lu smiled, her hands continuing to soothe the fledgling phoenix as if it were her own younger brother, Feng Hong.

Chapter 863 Escorting Home

Although they arrived late, Wen Erya and Yi Qiyan immediately inquired about what had just happened.

"So, Han Lu, is it completely resolved smoothly?"

The vast majority of cultivators focus on improving their eyesight, one of the five senses, while only a small number of unconventional cultivators pursue supernatural abilities such as "super hearing".

Although Wen Erya and Yi Qiyan were able to see Han Lu confronting the five cultivators from a distance of ten miles, their inability to extend their divine sense that far and their only hearing ability prevented them from knowing exactly what was happening.

Han Lu smiled and said, "It has been resolved satisfactorily, and there are no troublesome follow-ups."

"Those five cultivators are from the Yundong Chamber of Commerce, specializing in hunting magical beasts and true spirits."

“Although we don’t know how they found it,” Han Lu said, stretching her arms wide to embrace the young phoenix beside her, “we just happened to run into it.”

"After a brief negotiation, it seems that the other party has also heard of my name and knows about the Central Plains Zhengyi Sect."

"I made a few threats and revealed my true spirit identity, and the other party backed down and gave in."

Nothing happened, everything is fine.

After listening to Han Lu's brief account of what had happened, Wen Erya and Yi Qiyan were relieved, and at the same time, they looked at the young phoenix beside Han Lu with curious eyes.

Yi Qiyan asked, "Han Lu, which clan does this fledgling phoenix belong to? Are there phoenixes in the East Sea too?"

"It's a rock crevice. As for your second question, the story begins nearly 100,000 years ago."

Han Lu then introduced a story about the Phoenix Clan that had not been passed down among the human race.

The young phoenix listened attentively to the story, clearly indicating that his elders had never told him this story.

"As the victors of the ancient cultivation era's great war, the Phoenix Clan naturally obtained a piece of land in the wilderness that was richest in resources and had a huge area. On that land, the Phoenix Clan not only established a new habitat, but also rebuilt the Phoenix Perch Forest, and regained everything that had been lost."

"However, the peaceful life had just begun when disputes arose within the Rock Phoenix clan."

"During the ancient cultivation era, the Rock Phoenix Clan Chief, who fought between the north and south, successfully ascended to the Spirit Realm, but he forgot to designate which offspring would succeed him as clan chief."

Hearing this, Wen Erya and Yi Qiyan had already guessed the answer to the question.

“Naturally, when a power vacuum appears, disputes will erupt.”

"The many sons of that Rock Phoenix Clan Chief split into two factions and began fighting for the position."

"Although it wasn't a tragic event and there were no casualties, and other members of the Phoenix Clan eventually intervened to mediate, they could no longer unite as one and live together politely."

"Those who considered themselves the losers took the initiative to lead their supporters away and settle in the East China Sea."

"Thus, the traces of the phoenix appeared in the East Sea."

At this point, Han Lu paused again and said, "However, over the past 100,000 years, there have been quite a few phoenixes that have chosen to live in the East Sea alone, and other types of phoenixes have also appeared in the East Sea."

"As for the grudges from back then," Han Lu glanced at Chu Feng, who was listening attentively, and said, "they should have long since faded away."

Han Lu patted the phoenix chick's wings forcefully beside her and asked, "Little guy, what's your name? Why did you sneak out on your own?"

"Sister, my name is Feng Zeng."

Feng Zeng was a little embarrassed to answer the question, and vaguely said, "My mother and father are busy with cultivation and don't pay much attention to me, so I flew out to have some fun."

"I had planned to travel for three days and then go back, but I didn't expect to run into those five cultivators from earlier."

"They were very fierce; they tried to hit me without even warning me."

"I started trying to fly home to call for help, but they forced me to run westward all the way."

"Luckily, I flew fast and met my sister here, otherwise..."

"Otherwise, I'm afraid I'll never be able to go home again."

In the end, the young phoenix, who would reach adulthood in another twenty or thirty years, spoke with a hint of sobbing.

Although, as a true spirit, his neglectful parents had not taught him anything about slavery, he could still imagine what the consequences would be if he were captured by these villains.

Clearly, today's experience has caused him immense psychological trauma.

Although she had little experience in coaxing children, Han Lu had been an older sister before, so she was still able to display some of her "older sister qualities."

Han Lu whispered words of comfort, speaking in a somewhat clumsy human form, trying to put the young phoenix at ease.

Wen Erya and Yi Qiyan also uttered a few rare curses from the sidelines, making their stance clear and distancing themselves from the villains of the Yundong Chamber of Commerce.

This approach did work, and the young phoenix's emotions calmed down considerably.

He looked at Han Lu with pleading eyes and asked, "Sister, can you take me home?"

It was not surprising that these words came from the young phoenix, Feng Zeng.

Having encountered such dangers along the way, he naturally placed absolute trust in Han Lu, who had stepped forward to protect him, and also felt more worried about the road home.

It's perfectly normal for Han Lu to be able to protect Yi Er.

As for Han Lu, she couldn't think of a reason to refuse either.

Even if Feng Zeng doesn't bring it up, she will still do her best to escort the playful phoenix home safely.

However, since she had two friends with her who were not suited to venture deep into the East China Sea boundary, Han Lu felt she needed to give them a heads-up before making a decision.

Without answering for now, Han Lu looked at Wen Erya and Yi Qiyan and said, "Senior sister, Yi Qiyan, why don't you go back to Dragon Head Islands first and wait for me there?"

Wen Erya had no objections, but Yi Qiyan asked another question with concern, "How many days will this trip take?"

Han Lu looked at Feng Zeng.

Feng Zeng quickly said, "With your flying speed, sister, you can take me with you and we'll be home in three or four days at most."

Han Lu thought to herself, "Feng Zeng has been chased by those five East Sea cultivators for almost a day and a night."

Han Lu's desire to protect Feng Zeng intensified. Seeing that her two friends had no objections and had already made arrangements, she simply replied, "Feng Zeng, I'll take you back and make sure you're safe."