"The Nirvana Phoenix lingered and wouldn't leave..."

As A Lian finished this part of her story, her eyelids drooped, and her lips suddenly began to tremble. Then, in a shaking voice, she said something that surprised both Su Xuan and the Third Elder.

"Since it wouldn't leave, I captured it!"

The Third Elder asked doubtfully, "You knew the Nirvana Phoenix was a spiritual bird from the Immortal Mountain, so why would you capture it? Didn't you know this would provoke their retaliation? And what did you plan to do with it? Stew and eat it?"

The Third Elder then added, "Did Fu Yong make you do it? A Nirvana Phoenix is a treasure trove, a rare and exquisite material for alchemy!"

"He would never dare," A Lian countered. "It was my own idea. I wanted to capture the Nirvana Phoenix to save someone!"

"Save someone? Who?" the Third Elder asked, astonished.

"There's another story behind this." A Lian glanced at the Third Elder, then at Su Xuan, and continued, "Fu Yong and I lived together for decades, but we were never able to have a child. He wanted one desperately, as did I, but it was impossible. The problem wasn't with me; it was Fu Yong. He knew the state of his own body and was constantly trying to research a pill that could cure him. He did eventually manage to create one, but that very pill caused me to give birth to a half-dead infant not long ago!"

The Third Elder and Su Xuan looked at A Lian with solemn faces. The Third Elder suddenly understood why A Lian was so frail. She had given birth recently.

"The child didn't cry or open its eyes after being born, but it had a heartbeat," A Lian continued. "No matter what kind of elixir Fu Yong tried to use to heal our child, every attempt failed."

"So you turned your attention to the Nirvana Phoenix?" The Third Elder seemed to understand. "The 'Nirvana' in its name is there because its blood is said to revive the dead and bring the withered back to life!"

"Yes!" A Lian nodded in confirmation. "I saw the Nirvana Phoenix perched on the roof ridge, refusing to leave, so I thought I would borrow some of its blood. I wasn't greedy. I just wanted a tiny amount, and then I would let it go."

"Foolish girl!" The Third Elder slapped his own thigh. "The Nirvana Phoenix is an extremely proud creature. Forget borrowing its blood; it would fight you to the death if you so much as plucked a single feather. Didn't Fu Yong tell you this? He must have known, right?"

"He knew. He told me." A Lian lifted her head as large tears welled up and spilled from her eyes. "But my child was barely alive. I had to try!"

"Sigh!" The Third Elder sighed and shook his head.

Su Xuan pursed his lips, listening quietly to the rest of the story.

"Then, the terrible thing happened. I forcefully drew the Nirvana Phoenix's blood. It shrieked in rage, over and over, there in the cage..." A Lian's gaze flickered. "It struggled itself to death!"

"What about the child? Was the child saved?" Since the Nirvana Phoenix was already dead, the Third Elder didn't press the matter and asked about the child instead.

"No." A Lian shook her head. "The Nirvana Phoenix's blood wasn't miraculous at all. In fact, it had an adverse effect. After I used its blood to nourish the child's body, the child... died completely."

"Sigh!" The Third Elder let out another heavy sigh.

Su Xuan, however, murmured to himself, "Nirvana..." He suddenly looked up and asked the Third Elder, "Could the legends be wrong? What if the blood of a Nirvana Phoenix isn't for saving people, but for killing them? The word 'nirvana' can also mean to bring about an end, can't it?"

He wasn't just guessing. In ancient texts, nirvana had many interpretations, including 'extinction,' 'cessation,' 'quiescence,' and 'release.' It could certainly imply being ferried to the afterlife.

Neither A Lian nor the Third Elder spoke.

After a long moment, A Lian wiped her eyes with the back of her hand and said, "The Nirvana Phoenix is dead, my child is gone, and people from the Immortal Mountain have arrived..." She fixed her gaze on Su Xuan. "If it weren't for Young Master Su, I would be gone, too..."

"Let's not talk about that," Su Xuan said, shifting his gaze to the doorway. "What about Feng Zhengyuan? Is he dead?"

Feng Zhengyuan was now the most immediate crisis. Last night, he had personally stated that he had come to the Ten Cauldrons Sect on a mission from the Immortal Mountain. If he died from Su Xuan's palm strike and failed to return, the Immortal Mountain would certainly dispatch an even more formidable expert to "visit" the Ten Cauldrons Sect and offer some "guidance."

At that point, it wouldn't be as simple as setting fires and killing people. They would probably annihilate the entire Ten Cauldrons Sect.

A Lian, also aware of the gravity of the situation, began to tremble. She opened her parched lips and said, "He's not dead, but he might as well be."

The Third Elder gave Su Xuan a bitter smile. "Brother Su, that palm strike of yours was incredibly domineering. It took half of Feng Zhengyuan's life. He's now..." The Third Elder glanced at A Lian and trailed off.

Su Xuan, however, understood what the Third Elder meant. He was implying that the palm strike had reduced Feng Zhengyuan to a state similar to A Lian's infant.

"Let's go. Take me to him!" Su Xuan stood up and walked toward the door. A Lian quickly led the way.

Inside the Spirit Grass Hall of the Ten Cauldrons Sect, its walls blackened by the previous night's fire, a man was lying down. His clothes were in tatters, and his body was covered in gashes.

It was Feng Zhengyuan.

"Young Master Su, he's been like this ever since your palm strike," A Lian said, stopping by the sickbed where Feng Zhengyuan lay.

Su Xuan narrowed his eyes, using his mutated vision to examine Feng Zhengyuan's brain. His palm had struck the crown of Feng Zhengyuan's head, the force crushing its way down through his body. His mind was now a chaotic mess.

But he wasn't completely catatonic.

Because...

GURGLE...

Feng Zhengyuan's eyes suddenly fluttered open, his gaze darting left and right.

When he saw Su Xuan, his body shuddered.

"So scawy..."

"Want a hug..."

Acting like a small child, Feng Zhengyuan stretched his hands out toward A Lian.

The sight nearly made Su Xuan and the Third Elder spit out their tea. Feng Zhengyuan, a man who normally carried himself with an otherworldly grace, had been reduced to this?

This... He was little more than an idiot!

"Young Master Su," A Lian turned to Su Xuan, her expression grave. "The Immortal Mountain is one of the supreme 'Three Mountains,' and its power is beyond imagination. With him in this state, they will surely seek justice. No one can bear their wrath."

"That's inevitable," Su Xuan nodded.

"What should we do?" When A Lian asked this, she looked not at Su Xuan, but at the Third Elder.

"...It's simple!" The Third Elder pondered for a moment before speaking decisively. "The Ten Cauldrons Sect is in shambles. The best option is to disband. As for you and I..." He gazed at A Lian. "We can retire to the countryside and live out the rest of our days in peace!"

The Third Elder then looked at Su Xuan.

Before he could speak, Su Xuan stated his own intentions.

"I need to borrow the Huo Yun Furnace to refine some pills right away."

"And then, I'll happily go home..."

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