Chapter 509 — Promotion, Wealth, and Marrying the Empress

A madman—the Golden-Winged Roc had realized it. This bear before it was a complete madman, and it was better not to reason with it.

"It would've been so much easier if you'd done this from the start." Shi Yan chuckled.

One piece of god-level resource—got it!

This was faster than Elder Gu Yun spending six years exploring a mythical ruin.

As for that so-called Golden-Winged Roc God not wanting to hand it over? That was even simpler—once Chitong broke through, at least three demigods would come knocking. Hand it over or don't, their choice.

Their own son had struck first; refusing to pay compensation on top of being in the wrong would be going too far.

"You can't possibly be completely out of resources right now, can you?" Shi Jin looked again at the charred Golden-Winged Roc.

"I..."

"Zzzz, zzzz..." Rings of electricity rippled at Eleven's fingertips, and the Golden-Winged Roc's face crumpled into a sob. "I do, I do—I happen to be carrying one metal-element legendary resource, and I'm willing to offer it to the lord."

"Spare my life, lord."

"Don't shock me."

With that, the Golden-Winged Roc, in a panic, took out a legendary resource from its portable ruin—a golden flower, exceptionally beautiful, blooming like a peacock's feather.

"Awooo!!!" At the sight, Eleven was overjoyed. It yanked the thing over with electromagnetic force, held it in its paws, then looked at Cen Yu.

"Eat it," Shi Li said.

"Yip!" Eleven gleefully crammed it into its mouth, crunch-crunch-crunch, and under the Golden-Winged Roc's wide-eyed stare, wolfed the whole thing down.

Before the Roc could even react, the Relic Feather it carried was plucked away by psychokinesis, giving the Golden-Winged Roc yet another shock.

"My relic——!!"

"Huh, so it really is just one legendary resource. You're a poor excuse for a demigod's son." Shi Jin, holding the Relic Feather, could not help but scoff.

Aside from that single legendary resource, there was nothing inside but a pile of rank-eight-and-below materials.

At that, the Golden-Winged Roc began cursing and swearing.

Except that now it was somewhat puzzled—the way this human and the totem got along... which of them was really the master?

At first it had assumed the totem was master and the human the servant, but now it was not so sure at all. What in the world was going on!

"Forget it, take it back." Shi Jin flung the Relic Feather straight back, and the Golden-Winged Roc looked utterly astonished.

"Sir..."

"Hurry and recover your strength using the resources inside, then condense a clone and go back for more supplies," Shi Li said. "In your current state, I doubt you have the strength to move."

Golden-Winged Roc: ???

The Golden-Winged Roc cursed and swore all over again.

Then, under Shi Ying's supervision, it tearfully healed its injuries, recovered its strength, condensed a clone, and sent it home to deliver word—while its true body was kept firmly by Shi Jin's side.

"There we go." Shi Zhao was pleased. "From here on, so long as we work together happily, I won't take your life. I seek only wealth, not blood."

Cursing and swearing ×3.

"Sir, heh heh, sir." The Golden-Winged Roc kept cursing inwardly, but to avoid another shock, it smiled with the most fawning expression.

Though it doubted its royal father would ransom it with a divine-tier resource—after all, it was not a favored child—it was certain of one thing: for the humiliation of this slap in the face, its father would surely come to take this man's miserable life.

Curse it. It would endure.

"I won't put a leash on you, but don't think about running. I know where your home is, and I doubt you want the Garuda Empire turned upside down," Shi Li said.

Golden-Winged Roc: ???

How was it that it could not understand a word this man said? The fellow truly had no fear of consequences!

"So then, sir, where do we go next?" The Golden-Winged Roc wore a tearful look. How had it been caught by such a madman?

Even another demigod, upon learning it was the crown prince of the Garuda Empire, would have spared it for the sake of its demigod father and not stooped to quarrel with a child.

"I believe it's called the Phoenix Empire now." Shi Cen was not certain. "Anyway, it's the continent ahead. Just keep up."

Qi had spoken somewhat prematurely; whether the Empress was at the legendary tier was still up in the air. Shi Jin had the sense that the Empress's dynasty had not yet been founded, though he was not entirely sure.

"The Phoenix Empire?! You're going there too? Could it be..." The Golden-Winged Roc was startled.

Shi Qi looked at it. "You too?"

"What for?"

The Golden-Winged Roc wore a tearful face. "To propose marriage."

Shi Jin: "Propose marriage?"

The Golden-Winged Roc said, "You don't know? The Phoenix Empire holds its special 'Feng Qiu Huang Festival' every year. The demigods of the Phoenix Empire are exceedingly fond of the human race and often recruit human geniuses as consorts—it happens during that very festival!"

"You see, the Phoenix clan has always pursued pureblood lines. A situation like this is rare beyond words."

"It's rare to find a Phoenix faction so open-minded, so my royal father sent me to propose, to see whether we might form a marriage alliance with the Phoenix clan." The Golden-Winged Roc kept sobbing. "Though I doubt there's much hope—after all, I've only heard of Phoenix demigods favoring humans, never of them favoring mixed blood with other races."

"And besides, the gift I brought to propose with—it just got eaten..."

Eleven: "..."

A sin, a sin. Yip yip yip.

Shi Li: "Whom do you intend to propose to?"

"Princess Huang Xi of the Phoenix Empire! I hear that at a young age she became an eighth-rank beast tamer. Not only does she carry demigod blood and rank as the demigod of the Phoenix Empire's most beloved daughter, she herself has the makings of a legend. If I could win her favor and sign a marriage pact with her..." The Golden-Winged Roc suddenly snickered foolishly.

Its royal father would surely regard it with favor then!!!!

True, human blood dominated her, but she also had Phoenix blood, and it too was of the avian kind. It could work.

Sssk.

An electric arc flashed past.

"Aaaargh!" The Golden-Winged Roc let out a wretched shriek.

"Why did you shock me again?"

Shi Li: "Because watching you daydream annoyed me."

"Take a good look at yourself... Princess Huangxi was already contracting totems across ranks when she was only Tier Eight. Even her overlord-class beasts could beat you as easily as breathing."

"You are not even worthy of the phoenix she contracted, and you still dream of proposing to her—tell me now, why did I shock you?"

Golden-Winged Roc: ???

Cursing up a storm in its heart, it said with a black-lined face, "My lord, you are not going to the Phoenix Empire to attend the Phoenix Seeks Phoenix Festival too, are you? Surely your target is not Princess Huangxi as well..."

Sssss.

Before the arc even flew out, the Golden-Winged Roc was scared half out of its wits.

"I'm sorry! I truly did not know Princess Huangxi was that strong—it was this toad dreaming of swan meat, and it's all my father king's fault—"

"Enough nonsense. Lead the way." Shi Li: "To the Phoenix Empire."

Right now, Shi Jin had a rough idea of Shi Yun's level. So the Empress really had not yet become a legendary beastmaster—still only Tier Eight?

And the Phoenix Seeks Phoenix Festival... Shi Cen had learned a thing or two about it from the Undying Dark Phoenix's fragmented memories.

The Phoenix Empire founded by the Undying Dark Phoenix had always been researching mixed bloodlines, so it naturally needed a great many talented human prodigies.

This Phoenix Seeks Phoenix Festival was, in truth, a martial-arts matchmaking contest of a different sort.