Evan Yang laughed, "I've already said it—your jealousy runs deep. What did I ever do to provoke you? It's just because you abused your clan members, and I simply intervened to rescue her. Now you won't let it go."
April Moon snapped angrily, "You—"
"Enough, stop arguing. Both of you explain the situation to everyone, then let the council decide." The Black Tortoise Elder said to Evan Yang and April Moon.
Evan Yang laughed, "Alright, I'll speak." He then explained what had happened, leaving April Moon red-faced with embarrassment. Still, she stubbornly retorted, "That was internal clan business—what does it have to do with a human like you?"
"Everyone, be fair—if my friend was being bullied and she did nothing wrong, tell me, if I didn't stand up for her, would I even deserve to stand here?" Evan Yang said to the council.
His words made perfect sense to everyone present—if Evan Yang hadn't helped April Lei, he'd have even less right to stand here. Hearing this, April Moon fumed, "You—"
"I'm just stating the facts. You can argue back, or you can explain why you targeted my friend," Evan Yang said.
"Why I targeted her is none of your business! Damn it!" April Moon was already furious and struck out with her palm. Just as Evan Yang moved to respond, the Black Tortoise Elder snorted, "How dare you start a fight here?" He rushed forward, blocked April Moon, and slapped her aside with his hand.
April Moon was shocked and quickly said, "Sorry."
"Sorry? Vice-Patriarch April Moon, how did your Phoenix Clan ever choose you for this role? Honestly, after today's events, you need to reflect deeply! If you behave like this again, next time you'll be handed over to the council for punishment." The Black Tortoise Elder said angrily.
April Moon realized there was no way to keep arguing, so she could only say, "Understood."
After April Moon finished, the Black Tortoise Elder said to Evan Yang, "On behalf of the Phoenix Clan, I apologize to you."
"It's nothing." Evan Yang hadn't expected the Black Tortoise Elder to be so polite, so he quickly smiled and replied.
Then the Black Tortoise Elder said to everyone, "Does anyone else have anything to bring up?"
No one raised any issues. Seeing this, the Black Tortoise Elder said, "Alright, let's begin—it's time to welcome the Goddess."
Everyone then stepped aside as the elder walked to the center, holding a transparent staff and planting it into the ground. Suddenly, a bolt of lightning struck the staff, which released mist that drifted through the air. At that moment, a woman descended from the sky, dressed in white robes and wearing a veil. Her eyes were bright and clear as she looked at everyone. When she landed, the crowd said, "Welcome, Goddess."
The woman said, "Everyone, please rise."
Everyone stood up, and after the woman glanced around, her gaze settled on Evan Yang and Brocade. "Who are you two?" she asked.
"I'm a human, Evan Yang." Evan was already startled by her tone—even though she spoke calmly, her presence seemed to affect his emotions and made him answer almost involuntarily.
Brocade replied in the same way, "Brocade of the brocade-furred mouse clan."
The Goddess listened and said, "I see. Not bad. I hope you will reach even higher realms in the future—not just stay at the Heavenly Dao level."
Evan Yang's eyes flashed. His strength was at the Heavenly Dao level—unless someone knew him personally or had seen him fight, nobody could know this. Yet the woman before him saw through it instantly, leaving Evan unsettled as he stared at her.
Then the Goddess said to Brocade, "You are an ancient holy beast. If you keep evolving, you'll be even stronger than the divine beasts."
Brocade was delighted to hear this. "Really?" he asked.
"Of course," the Goddess smiled.
Evan Yang grew more and more curious about the Goddess—just what was her true identity, that she could see through people at a glance?
The Goddess glanced at Evan Yang and smiled, then said to the other divine beasts present, "This time, I have no special requests. Here are some seeds—just take them home and plant them."
"Yes, Goddess," the divine beasts replied respectfully.
Then the Goddess smiled, "Alright, I'm leaving now." With that, she vanished, leaving the crowd still full of reverence, while Evan Yang remained stunned.
"Boss, what's wrong?" Brocade asked Evan Yang.
Evan Yang came back to his senses and said, "She's way too mysterious. Where exactly did she come from, and what's her true identity?"
"No idea," Brocade shook his head.
Evan Yang sighed, "I forgot to ask her who she was just now. Headache."
"Alright, everyone take your seeds home and plant them," the Black Tortoise Elder said to the group. Then everyone left one by one. Evan Yang curiously looked at the seed in his hand—Brocade had one too.
"Boss, what is this?" Brocade asked suspiciously.
Evan Yang looked at the seed in his hand and muttered, "I'd like to know too. I have no idea what this is."
"Why don't we just plant it and find out?" Brocade asked, curious.
Evan Yang nodded, "Yeah, let's go outside and find a spot to plant it."
Brocade followed Evan Yang out of the area. Before leaving, Evan took a careful look around, then left with a sigh. Once outside, they immediately ran into April Moon and her group, all radiating hostility.
Evan Yang laughed, "What? You still want to start a fight?"
"Damn it, brat, today I'm going to kill you!" April Moon shouted furiously. The surrounding Fire Phoenixes immediately shifted into battle stance, and waves of flame surged forward, attacking Evan Yang and Brocade.
As the attack came, Evan Yang wrapped himself in an ice-fire shield. Brocade stood beside him, grinning, "Boss, how long do you think they'll keep this up?"
"That depends on them," Evan Yang laughed.
After April Moon waited for a while, she ordered everyone to stop. She was surprised to find Evan Yang still standing there, smiling. "What? Not going to keep going?" he asked.
"How are you unharmed? This is the Fire Phoenix clan's exclusive flame!" April Moon couldn't believe it.
"So what?" Evan Yang laughed.
"Boss, I say let's stop wasting time with them. Let's go." Brocade really didn't want to play along anymore.
Evan Yang nodded, "Yeah, let's go." He and Brocade left through the crowd of Fire Phoenixes.
April Moon was left fuming, "Damn it, I swear I'll kill them!"
April Moon angrily led her group back to Phoenix Mountain, then entered the Phoenix Cave. Inside, she saw a statue—one much like the Dragon Clan Patriarch's statue.
"Patriarch, there's something I must tell you," April Moon said respectfully, standing before the statue.
"What is it?" a voice came from the statue.
"April Lei has returned," April Moon said.
"What? Where is she? Take me to her at once!" At that moment, the statue came to life and a person stepped out.
April Moon felt bitter—she had spent years here, always hoping the Patriarch would emerge, but he never did. Yet news of April Lei made him come out without hesitation.
"Where is she?" the Patriarch asked April Moon.
April Moon said, "She failed her mission and feels ashamed before you, so she left."
"Nonsense, that's impossible! Find her for me!" the Patriarch said angrily. April Moon added, "Actually, she left with a human—she went with him and refused to stay here."
"What? Is that true? Where are they now?" The Patriarch was skeptical after hearing this.
April Moon said, "I don't know. I tried to stop the human just now, but he got away."
"Find them immediately and tell them I want to see them," the Patriarch said after pacing for a while.
"Yes, Patriarch." After April Moon finished, she left and immediately ordered everyone outside to search for their whereabouts. Inwardly, she was furious: "Damn it, I will become the next Fire Phoenix Patriarch!"
Fuming, April Moon walked along a small river, eventually reaching a pool. She looked around to make sure no one was there, then entered the water.
Under the pool, there was a whirlpool. Without hesitation, April Moon went in. It was completely dark inside, but as a Fire Phoenix, she could summon flames at any time.
She entered and approached another statue—this one entirely black. She said, "Master."
It was a human-shaped statue. The statue asked, "What is it?"
"I ran into some trouble—a human rescued that Fire Phoenix," April Moon said with a frown.
The statue asked skeptically, "What? Didn't I tell you to capture her for me? How did you let her get away?"
"There was a very powerful human—I led the other Fire Phoenixes, but we couldn't defeat him," April Moon replied respectfully.
"What human?" the statue asked skeptically. April Moon described Evan Yang's appearance, and after hearing it, the statue pondered, "Here's a bottle of medicine. Find a way to get it to that person—once it touches him, he'll change, and someone will take care of him for you."