Chapter 128: Phoenix

That made things easy, Ethan had no intention of picking fights with anything, he looked at Liora, she seemed to understand the gist of the conversation and was eating her sandwich without fuss.

"You be careful too, Liora."

Liora lifted her juice, took a sip, patted her round belly, and nodded, Pearl picked up a handkerchief and wiped a bit of sauce from the corner of Liora’s mouth.

"Let’s clear the table and get moving."

"I’ll wash the dishes, what about lunch?"

"Already prepared."

"Oh? Then you guys go ahead and take a break." Zharok scooped up the basin of dirty dishes and headed for the river.

Ethan stretched his arms. "I’m going to tidy up the greenhouse, then we’ll head out."

By the time Zharok returned, everyone was ready, Ethan brought along the Holy Sword and the Hammer of Gaia, just in case, and pulled out a handcart, Zharok volunteered to pull it.

After Ethan, Pearl, and Liora climbed in, Walter summoned a blood construct in the shape of a bird to hover overhead and keep watch along the route, Walter himself elected to stay behind and continue reading in the cabin, the handcart sped westward.

As they traveled, the trees thinned out, the undergrowth changed too — the soft mosses and ferns of the inner forest gave way to dry scrub and bare stone, the air grew noticeably warmer despite the winter chill, and the faint smell of sulfur drifted in on the breeze.

"We’re getting close, meow~"

Before long, the entrance to Flame Canyon came into view. Jagged rock walls rose on both sides, their surfaces glowing a dull orange, pillars of fire danced in the crevices between the stone, and heat shimmered off the ground in visible waves, even in the dead of winter, the temperature here rivaled midsummer.

"So this is Flame Canyon," Ethan murmured, wiping sweat from his brow.

"It’s hot...!" Zharok tugged at his collar and exhaled sharply, his thick fur clearly wasn’t doing him any favors.

"Meow, it’s always like this here, the fire veins beneath the flame canyon keep it burning year round, meow~" Pearl hopped off Liora’s head and sat on her shoulder instead, tail flicking against the warm air.

They climbed down from the handcart and continued on foot, the canyon narrowed as they entered, the walls pressing in and channeling the heat, the stone underfoot was warm through the soles of Ethan’s boots.

Flame Flowers bloomed along both walls — vivid crimson blossoms that thrived in the extreme heat, their petals flickered like tiny flames, and a sweet, smoky fragrance rose from the clusters, some grew in thick patches; others clung to the bare rock in solitary stubbornness.

"There are so many Flame Flowers," Ethan said, crouching beside a thick patch, he reached out and touched a petal — it was warm, almost alive, pulsing with faint fire attribute energy, these blooms were exactly what Fire Bees needed, the nectar would be rich and concentrated, far superior to anything a temperate flower field could offer.

"Meow, look, Fire Bees~" Pearl pointed a paw at a rocky overhang further ahead, a cluster of Fire Bees hovered in and out of a natural hive nestled in a crack in the stone.

Ethan moved closer and observed them, their bodies glowed with a faint orange light, and their wings shimmered like embers caught in the wind, they were larger than regular bees — at least twice the size — and the hum of their wings carried a low, resonant note.

"This is perfect, there’s a queen hive here, and the Flame Flowers provide more than enough nectar." Ethan’s eyes lit up, he turned to Zharok.

"Let’s build the first bee box right here."

He gathered timber from the canyon’s edge, pulling sturdy Ironwood branches from the surrounding trees, with practiced hands and the Hammer of Gaia, he assembled the box in short order — cutting the planks, fitting the joints, setting the internal frames in place.

"Zharok, set it down near that overhang."

Zharok lifted the finished box with one hand and carried it over to where Ethan pointed, placing it on level ground beneath the overhang, Ethan activated the Bee Queen’s Bracelet and channeled mana into it, the Fire Bees stirred, rising from their stone hive and circling the new box in a cautious cloud. One by one, they began settling inside.

"It worked, meow~"

"Now we wait for them to take to it properly." Ethan stepped back and wiped his forehead, he looked deeper into the canyon, where the orange glow of the rock intensified.

"Let’s explore a bit further while we’re here, I want to know how large this canyon is and whether there are more hives."

They ventured on, the heat climbed with every step, and the canyon walls rose higher on either side, fire monsters lumbered through the far end of the passage — hulking beasts wreathed in flame, their footsteps leaving glowing prints on the stone, true to Pearl’s description, they paid no attention to Ethan’s group at all, wandering past like cattle grazing in a field.

Liora walked beside Ethan, expressionless as always, but her eyes tracked the fire monsters with quiet curiosity, Pearl rode on her head, ears swiveling at every sound.

Then Ethan stopped.

At the far end of the canyon, perched atop a towering rock formation, was a bird made entirely of blazing blue flame, its wingspan was enormous, its talons scorching the stone beneath them.

"What... is that?"

Zharok’s jaw dropped, Pearl’s fur stood on end.

"A Phoenix, meow!!"

A Phoenix.

The divine bird that could be reborn from its ashes even after being reduced to dust.

Ethan looked at the Phoenix perched atop the canyon and turned to Zharok. "Did you know there was a Phoenix here?"

"If I knew, would I be making this face?" Zharok’s expression made the answer clear, he and Pearl were just as blindsided.

Just as they stood there at a loss, the Phoenix cast a glance their way — then dove down and began attacking the surrounding monsters.

"Are we just going to watch?"

"Let’s observe the situation first."

"No, meow," Pearl said firmly, if the Phoenix were simply passing through, they could ignore it, but something about this felt different.

All they could do was stand there and watch.

The Phoenix swept through the canyon like a storm, its azure flames engulfing one fire monster after another, each creature it struck disintegrated to ash in an instant, and the Phoenix consumed them as they fell — drawing the essence into itself without slowing.

Monster after monster vanished, until the canyon was empty and still, only then did the Phoenix glide over to Ethan’s group, landing with a satisfied air, as if it had merely been warming up.

It resembled a Fire Spirit in shape, but the colors were entirely different, blue flames wreathed its wings as it descended and landed before them.

Its burning gaze settled on Liora.

’The World Tree?’ Could the Phoenix have come with ill intentions? Ethan’s hand drifted to the Holy Sword at his waist.

"Wow, this kid has a lot of nerve," Zharok muttered.

"To actually want to fight an immortal bird — that’s crazy, meow," Pearl added.