By dawn, the storm clouds over the basin were still there. Thunder rumbled beneath the ground, and all the animals in the Trial Grounds moved around nervously.
Chen Ho walked along a ridge path with Phoenix proudly perched on his shoulder. There were golden threads running through the red feathers, which glowed with a steady inner fire.
But he wasn't by himself.
A voice cut through the path like a knife.
"Chen Ho!"
Zhao Yunxian walked toward them from the other side of the ridge. His emerald robes were spotless even after days in the wild. His red lizard crawled next to him, its scales glowing slightly and its eyes red with hunger.
Zhao said, "You've been strutting long enough." "Your luck runs out here."
Students whispered in the dark. People were talking about how Chen Ho had beaten the Fire Scaled Apes, the ambush at the ravine, and the Rockback Bear. Now they were all there to see if the boy from City H could survive Zhao's anger.
The Problem
Chen Ho stood still, with his eyes fixed. "Do you want to lose again?"
Zhao's smile was weak. "You think mercy is loss." Today, I'll show everyone what a real monster looks like.
He clapped his hands. The red lizard hissed, and its body started to move. The scales got darker and turned a bright red. Its frame grew longer, its jaws got wider, and its muscles rippled. A loud crack echoed as horns pushed out of its head.
The lizard's tail hit stone hard.
The students who were watching gasped.
"It changed!"
"Rank-2 beast—inside the trial?!"
"He made it happen with potions!"
Zhao Yunxian's eyes shone with pride. "Look at the Crimson Scale Serpent! More powerful than any fire-bird.
The Phoenix screamed, its wings spread wide and flames burning bright.
The Fight
The snake struck first, its body curling like a whip. Its tail smashed down, breaking stone and sending shards flying. Chen Ho rolled to the side, and the knife flashed across its scales, but the blade didn't hurt it.
"Sad," Zhao said with a sneer. "Break him."
The snake lunged at Chen Ho, its jaws snapping.
"Get up," Chen Ho said softly.
Phoenix jumped, and Fire Feather Burst lit up in the air. Flames fell down, hitting the serpent's strike. The snake hissed and pulled back, its eyes narrowed.
It roared, its scales got hotter, and then it let out a blast of red fire.
The people in the crowd gasped. "Does it breathe fire?"
The phoenix dove, folding its wings, and the flame turned into a spear of light. Flame Peck hit the fire-breath in the middle, sending sparks flying.
Chen Ho ran forward, and the knife slid into the snake's belly where the scales were thinner. It roared, its body thrashed, and its tail whipped. Chen Ho hit the cliff wall hard, and blood came out of his mouth.
"Hey!" a student yelled.
But Chen Ho got up again, his eyes steady and the fire in them.
Phoenix Rises
"Now," Chen Ho said softly.
Phoenix cried, and the sound was sharper and stronger than ever. Flames shot out in a golden-red color, not just heat but power. The snake hesitated, its instincts pulling back in front of the Phoenix's ancestral fire.
Phoenix's wings burned brighter, and the flames turned into a storm of burning feathers. They hit the snake's body, burning through the red scales.
The snake screamed and thrashed around.
Chen Ho jumped, and the knife went deep into the wound Phoenix had made. The snake roared, and its coils fell apart.
Phoenix dove with a last cry, hitting its head with blinding light. The snake stopped moving, shuddered once, and then fell to the ground.
What happened next
The ridge was quiet.
Zhao Yunxian's face went pale as his beast fell to the ground, smoking and dead.
The phoenix landed on Chen Ho's arm, its feathers shining bright gold and its eyes fierce. The flames got steadier, hotter, and deeper.
"Lv.38," Chen Ho said softly as he fed it a piece of snake meat. The Phoenix ate it up, and the flames shone with happiness.
The students who were watching started to whisper.
"He beat a rank-2 snake with a Phoenix chick?"
"That's not a mutation." That's something else.
"Could it be...?"
You could hear Zhao Yunxian's teeth grinding. His eyes were full of hate and shame.
He hissed, "This isn't over." "I'll crush you at the Academy." Then no one will call you chosen.
Chen Ho only changed his pack, calm. "We'll see."
Suspense
The ridge shook a little as Zhao pulled his snake away. A low roar echoed across the Trial Grounds again, this time closer and as heavy as mountains.
The Phoenix raised its head and its feathers glowed, as if it was answering.
Chen Ho held onto the Dragon Scale in his pouch, his heart steady.
Not much longer.