Chapter 084: Radiant Sparrow — A Branch of the Radiant Phoenix

“These little bird eggs were found by my youngest grandson up in the mountains. He told me to bring them here and sell them so he could have money for sweets,” the old woman chuckled. “But how much can you really get for such tiny eggs? Miss, if you like them, just take them as a gift.” She placed the four little bird eggs into a palm-sized basket lined with soft, dried grass and handed it to Qinghu.

Qinghu, grinning, stuffed the thirty red gold coins her fourth brother had taken out into the old woman’s hand. “If your grandson wants sweets, then take this and buy him some. We can’t let you climb the mountain for nothing, can we?”

The old woman continued to shake her head with a smile. “That’s much too much, far too much. Three red gold coins are enough—one basket of hen’s eggs only gets a single red coin. Three coins would feed my family for a month.”

“That won’t do, Granny. Please, keep it. You’ll find use for the money, I’m sure. Oh, and Granny, you should hurry home. I think your son is looking for you,” Qinghu said suddenly.

“What? How did you know?” The old woman looked at her in surprise.

“Just head east, and don’t forget your things. Your son is waiting there. And Granny, you’re so kind and lovely, you’ll live a long and happy life, with all your wishes coming true,” Qinghu said, beaming with an air of playful mystique.

“You’re such a sweet talker, young lady. But these gold coins are really—” she started, but Qinghu dragged her brother away into the crowd before she could finish.

The old woman wanted to chase after them but worried about her things. After a moment’s hesitation, both siblings had vanished from sight.

She thought of the girl’s words and glanced at the coins in her hand. With a decisive nod, she packed up her stall and, basket in hand, headed east—the road home.

She’d barely been gone a quarter of an hour when a gang of ruffians led by a young leader came down the street, collecting stall taxes. When they saw anything they fancied, they’d simply take it by force, even beating people.

When they passed by the old woman’s former spot, the young leader paused, as if sensing something had just slipped away.

In another thread of fate, he would have knocked the old woman to the ground, leaving her bleeding and dying, and seized the four unbreakable bird eggs. He would later hatch them, and with those eggs, gain great fame and infamy in the Eastern Wastes.

He would have become a notorious villain.

But as luck would have it, Qinghu had come by first, taken a liking to the four little bird eggs, and, in passing, glimpsed the old woman’s fate. Not only did she bestow a blessing of longevity and fulfilled wishes upon the old woman, but she also helped her avoid a deadly disaster.

“What are these? What use are such tiny eggs?” Qingzhen asked, puzzled, as they walked along.

“Aren’t these just Wind-Drill Sparrow eggs? They’re rare as eighth-tier beasts go, but they don’t have phoenix blood, do they?” Shao Kaiyun’s face suddenly appeared beside them, scrutinizing the eggs with disappointment.

“What’s wrong with your eyes?” Qinghu retorted crossly.

“What do you mean? Aren’t these Wind-Drill Sparrow eggs?” Shao Kaiyun pressed, pointing at the eggs.

“If you can’t tell, don’t butt in,” Qinghu shot him a disdainful look. “Come on, brother, let’s go back and hatch them.”

“So what are they, really? You haven’t told me. And didn’t you say I should raise chickens? Why the sudden change to birds?” Qingzhen protested.

“No other egg in the market matches these four for quality,” Qinghu said, trying to convince him.

In truth, these weren’t the most promising eggs in the market. However, their attributes matched Qingzhen perfectly.

In one shop, there was indeed an egg of the Frostfire Phoenix Bird—a richer phoenix bloodline, with fire and ice attributes, and even greater potential. Qinghu’s four eggs truly were just Wind-Drill Sparrow eggs and no match for the phoenix. Yet, inexplicably, within the bloodline of these four eggs was the faintest trace of Glorious Phoenix—a top-tier light-element beast.

“Really?” Qingzhen looked at the basket in surprise.

“Of course it’s true. Now move aside. We’re leaving.” Qinghu tugged her brother toward home. The market was fun, but hatching eggs was more interesting—and Shao Kaiyun was getting annoying.

The two siblings returned to the inn; Qingjin and the others hadn’t come back yet.

The siblings pressed their heads together, studying the four tiny eggs intently.

“Are you sure about this?”

“I guarantee it.”

“Then I’ll form the contract. But this takes blood, you know?” Qingzhen said, uneasy.

“Just hurry up. It’s only a few drops. Why are you hesitating?” Qinghu chided, exasperated that her brother had been staring at the eggs for almost an hour since their return, unlike their decisive eldest brother.

Little did she know, Qingzhen was simply filled with anticipation for his first contracted beast. He was only afraid of making the wrong choice.

“Are you going to do it or not? If you don’t, I’ll give them to Xiaobai for the contract,” Qinghu threatened.

“Fine, fine, I’ll do it now.”

Xiaobai stood nearby, hand over mouth, trying not to laugh at the sight of the fourth young master being browbeaten.

Qingzhen pricked his fingertip, letting a drop of blood fall on each egg, then began to recite the secret art to form a contract.

“I’ve finished the contract, but why do I feel like the little ones inside are motionless, limp, almost dead?” Qingzhen asked worriedly.

“That’s your imagination.” Qinghu reached out and touched one.

Immediately, a faint chirping came from within, and the eggshell began to crack.

Then the second, the third, and the fourth eggs all began to break open as well.

After another half hour, four tiny, featherless chicks—each no bigger than a fingernail—climbed out of the shells.

“Xiaobai, bring the rice porridge!” Qinghu shouted, then ordered her brother to reshape a silver spoon so it could fit into the chicks’ beaks.

What followed was a rather rough attempt at feeding the birds.

Watching the poor chicks being nearly force-fed, Qingzhen couldn’t stand it anymore. He rolled up his sleeves and took over.

He’d just finished feeding the second chick and picked up the third when a voice piped up beside him, “Are you sure these aren’t eighth-tier Wind-Drill Sparrows? They look exactly like them!” Shao Kaiyun had slipped into their room again.

“What’s wrong with your eyes? These are fifth-tier Glorious Sparrows,” Qinghu snapped back. Glorious Sparrows were a genuine offshoot of the Glorious Phoenix.

Though only fifth-tier, their future potential was remarkable.