The moment Ian was taken away by the Phoenix.
The entire small town was plunged into a brief silence.
The people who had originally been immersed in the miracle and joy brought on by the Phoenix's arrival were now frozen in place, staring at the golden light dust slowly dissipating in the sky above the cliff.
As if they hadn't yet realized what had happened.
The golden tail flame of the Phoenix still lingered in mid-air, like a sunset gradually fading away. The crowd in the square seemed to have been cast with a Petrification Curse, hundreds of eyes fixed on the empty center of the square.
The silence lasted for a long time.
"Dis... disappeared?"
The uncle who sold fish mumbled in confusion, while his octopus assistant was equally shocked, releasing its tentacles, causing several silver-scaled fish to "plop" into the tank, splashing water everywhere.
"Just now… was that the Phoenix God taking Ian away?"
"Oh my god! He, he's gone!"
Only then did the crowd start to stir.
Voices of discussion arose one after another.
Like a pot of boiling soup.
Xiao Ya was the first to react, she quickly rushed to the central square, and failing to find any trace of Ian's disappearance either, she could only look up and shout.
"Ian brother?"
The voice echoed in the empty square.
No response was received.
Indeed, Ian was taken away from the small town by the gigantic Phoenix, not flown into the sky. Upon realizing this fact, the already noisy crowd instantly exploded further.
"The Phoenix God took away the foreign hero!"
"I always said he wasn't a regular trainer!"
"It's obvious the Phoenix God is taking him to the Holy Land!"
"Nonsense! Clearly, it's a test of his strength!"
"You all don't understand, this is the legendary 'Extradition Ceremony'! I read about it in a book, yes, by the author from the neighboring island... novels surely wouldn't lie to me!"
"Didn't you see? The Phoenix God let him touch its foot! Never before had anyone been able to touch the foot of the Phoenix God!"
...
The blacksmith's loud voice overpowered all the discussion, perhaps he had a foot fetish, so he was particularly attentive to this detail, causing many townspeople to glance sideways at him.
On the other side.
The young trainers surrounded the nearest Fantastic Beasts King Kong, asking questions.
"You were the closest at the time, what did you see?"
"Did that Wizard launch some new superpower? It must be he who left with the Phoenix God, not the other way around, adults aren't as smart as us!"
"Could he be a legendary Fantastic Beast too?"
...
One must say.
These young ones surely have a bigger imagination.
Upon hearing this, Iron Palm King Kong scratched his head.
He uttered a puzzled growl.
He gestured for a long time, indicating that what he saw was no different from what everyone else saw, that the eyes of Fantastic Beasts and human eyes don't actually differ much.
At least, that's how it was for him.
However, the young trainers failed to understand, leading Iron Palm King Kong to feel quite helpless, eventually mimicking Ian's action of grabbing the Phoenix's little foot by grabbing his own trainer.
How to put it.
Perhaps due to the accuracy of the reenactment.
The strength used was too great.
As a result, he accidentally tore the trainer's shoe in half.
Prompting a burst of laughter.
The young trainers were indeed only shocked that the Phoenix God had taken away the foreign hero, unlike the adults who loved to gossip about why the Phoenix took Ian away.
Of course.
There were young people who were quite concerned about this.
Xiao Ya felt very melancholic.
Because her newly made friend hadn't even said goodbye to her.
"Why did the Phoenix God take that Wizard brother away?"
Odin lay beside her.
Drawing crooked pictures of the Wizard on the ground with a stick.
"Sister, will the Wizard brother come back?"
Xiao Ya gathered her melancholic emotions.
"He should, right?"
She wasn't very sure either.
And just at this moment.
"This matter is also recorded in ancient documents." An elderly woman supported herself against the wall, seemingly finding an answer, she began to speak to everyone with an astonished voice: "The Phoenix God never appears easily, nor does it casually take away mortals... Could it be... could it be that the foreign hero is a chosen child?"
Her words carried some uncertainty.
And the words she used made others feel puzzled.
"Chosen? What does that mean?"
A young mother holding her child was full of curiosity.
"Don't you know?" Another elder took over the conversation, "Legend has it, the Phoenix God descends every fifty years, and besides granting us restorative powers, it also takes a child from each island, who will receive a task from the Phoenix and gain a Fantastic Beast companion that can evolve continuously."
One has to say.
This familiar deja vu.
If Ian were still here, he would definitely interrupt—the Titan clearly patched not only a Pocket Monster but also another plot known as Digimon.
Who knows where this Titan learned this information from.
"Was there such a situation before?" As the elder spoke, many did not question it but rather directly entered a state of sudden realization.
They doubted nothing else.
Only felt they had gained new knowledge.
"Can these chosen children eventually return?" Xiao Ya did not doubt the elder's words, she was just very concerned about Ian's unannounced departure.
Odin also very much wanted to see the Wizard again.
"They will return, but most of them won't stay home for too long, those accustomed to adventure can't stay put." The elder softly explained why the previous generation of 'chosen' children weren't seen in the small town.