Return of the Immortal Emperor Daddy-Chapter 272 - 274 Divine Skills: Growing and Shrinking

"Look, look! A phoenix! That's really a phoenix!"

"I can't believe I'm... I'm actually seeing a phoenix!"

"Legend tells of a phoenix crying out on Mount Qi. I imagine this is what that miraculous sight must have looked like."

The soldiers and students who witnessed the spectacle looked on in astonishment. Many people on the street saw it too and were equally shocked, standing there agape as if they had turned into statues.

The Phoenix, also known as the Mighty Phoenix, is the king of birds in ancient legends. The male is called the 'Feng' and the female is the 'Huang', but they are collectively known as the Phoenix, or alternately as the Red Bird or the Firebird. They are often seen as a symbol of good fortune. In the Dragon Country, everyone knew of the Phoenix, but to see one with their own eyes was simply unbelievable.

Ye Tianshi was the calmest among the onlookers, but even his pupils couldn't help but dilate.

"A phoenix?" he muttered. "What on earth is going on? How could a phoenix fly out of this forest? Could there be legendary divine beings inside?"

Ye Tianshi's mind was a complete mess, and he couldn't make any sense of it.

Beside him, Xia Wanjuan's expression was even more colorful.

"No, no, no! This must be fake!" As a man who believed science was everything, Xia Wanjuan's tone grew frantic. "It has to be a projection! With today's technology, creating an image like this is entirely possible! Shoot at it! See if it's real!"

Yet not a single soldier moved. Before Zhou Weimou left, he had placed Ye Tianshi in charge of all matters here. A soldier's first duty is obedience, but not to Xia Wanjuan.

Enraged, Xia Wanjuan rushed toward a soldier and, in his frenzy, snatched the man's handgun.

"What are you doing?" Ye Tianshi roared. The mindset of a civil official is fundamentally different from that of a military one, just as a scholar's is from a soldier's. Ye Tianshi couldn't comprehend Xia Wanjuan's actions, but seizing a soldier's firearm and firing it randomly was, in military terms, a crime.

Xia Wanjuan ignored Ye Tianshi, his eyes locked on the phoenix in midair.

The bullets struck the phoenix, but they instantly froze solid and shattered, falling to the ground as chips of ice.

"The phoenix is real, not some projection," one of Xia Wanjuan's students said in surprise.

"It seems there really are phoenixes in the world," Liu Ju exclaimed in awe.

"Impossible! How can a creature like the phoenix exist? It defies science! If they were real, why is there no record of them in history?" Xia Wanjuan said, shaking his head.

One of the students spoke up. "But everyone knows the story of the phoenix crying out on Mount Qi. Perhaps Earth was once filled with countless wonders, but one day, for reasons unknown, they all disappeared."

Ye Tianshi nodded. The student who had spoken was Hua Bofei, the same one who had debated with Xia Wanjuan earlier.

"Don't talk nonsense! You're talking about mythology, not science!" Xia Wanjuan grew agitated, unable to tolerate his views being questioned. He roared, "You're questioning science, do you realize that?"

Hua Bofei sighed and remained silent.

I'm not questioning science. I'm questioning you. Do you think you alone can represent all of science?

「In the New Holy Land」

Qin Yuhan's beautiful eyes were wide with astonishment. She had just seen a phoenix hatch and fly out from that egg.

"Is... is this real?"

Wu Tian smiled faintly. "You must believe what you see. The universe is vast, the firmament is wide, and there are many things you don't believe in that nevertheless exist."

Qin Yuhan was slightly taken aback, not expecting Wu Tian to say something like that. She was quiet for a moment before replying, "In the four years you were gone, you must have experienced things others can't even imagine, right? Something like... Alice in Wonderland?"

"Yes," Wu Tian nodded. He stood with his hands clasped behind his back, looking like a divine being as he gazed up at the firmament.

He watched as the phoenix danced through the air, followed by a hundred other birds. The spectacle attracted a crowd of reporters, all scrambling to get the story. Many onlookers even knelt to pray and make wishes. Others took photos and videos, immediately uploading them to WeChat and Weibo. This moment, like the first UFO sightings, was destined to be remembered.

How were the pyramids built?

No one knew.

Why did a phoenix appear now?

This question would become a mystery as enduring as the pyramids, a legend to be passed down through the ages.

「In the New Holy Land」

"Will this phoenix listen to you?" Qin Yuhan asked doubtfully.

"It will." Wu Tian smiled at her, and then, under her astonished gaze, he snapped his fingers. But this wasn't an Illusion Technique; he was calling for the phoenix.

Having just been born, the phoenix was overjoyed.

Yay! It's not dark anymore! This place is so colorful and fun! And look, there's a whole flock of followers behind me! the phoenix chirped happily to itself.

But the next moment, it heard Wu Tian's call.

Dad's calling me. I have to go back.

Instantly, it dove from hundreds of meters up in the air, plunging toward the ground.

"What is it doing? At that speed, what kind of force will it generate on impact?" Liu Ju muttered, running some quick calculations based on physics. She concluded that it would be impossible for it to "brake" in time.

Xia Wanjuan was focused on something else. "It can enter the New Holy Land! Quick, get the helicopter! Follow it in!" Fearing Ye Tianshi and the others might object, he yelled again, "Hurry up, you fools! Are you going to miss this opportunity?"

Annoyed, Ye Tianshi still nodded and went to call the pilot. The original pilot was a young man named Xiao Li, but just as he finished putting on his flight suit, his good friend knocked him out with a single punch from behind. The friend then emerged from the tent. "My buddy isn't feeling well today, so I'm taking his place."

This is a chance to make history. I can't let it pass me by.

The new pilot started up the helicopter. Xia Wanjuan immediately boarded. There was no room for anyone else, as the cabin was packed with his scientific instruments. The helicopter lifted off at once, following the descending phoenix, hoping to enter the Sacred Land with it.

But just as the helicopter ascended, everyone below witnessed an unforgettable sight. As the phoenix descended, the massive bird began to shrink until it was no bigger than a sparrow or a parrot. It then slipped neatly into the New Holy Land.

The helicopter was far too large to follow.

"That phoenix... it can actually change size?" Ye Tianshi and the others were dumbfounded, at a loss for words.

The reporters and the public were utterly stunned. The journalists, especially, had seen many strange things in their line of work, but never a phoenix—let alone one that could grow and shrink at will.

「Inside the helicopter」

"No, that's impossible! The object was huge! How could it shrink? That's not scientific! It's absolutely not scientific!" Xia Wanjuan was dumbfounded. Coming to his senses, he lunged forward and grabbed the pilot's collar in a frenzy. "That was just special effects, right? We were watching a movie, weren't we?!"

The helicopter rocked violently. The pilot panicked, shouting, "Let go! You have to let go!"

"Answer me first! You have to answer me!" Xia Wanjuan screamed, completely unhinged.

The helicopter spiraled out of control and crashed.