After being reborn, the villain comes with a spoiler tag.

Long Yucheng was very curious and quickly asked Lian Hu and Murong Yu how they had figured out their identities.

Upon hearing this, Lian Hu laughed heartily, a hint of pride in his expression:

"Those of us in this line of work deal with all sorts of people every day. As we meet more people, we naturally accumulate some ineffable experience."

"Back to Young Master Li, this 'fate to immortality' should be called 'spiritual root' by cultivators like you two. However, in this Vermilion Bird City, fate to immortality alone is not enough. If you want to join the Fire Worship Cult, you must also form a bond with the sacred fire at the Thousand Candles Ceremony."

"Only after forming a bond with the Sacred Flame can one be considered to have gained Lord Suzaku's approval, and be able to use spiritual power within Suzaku City, and naturally be able to cultivate."

Upon hearing this, Long Yucheng immediately understood, nodded, and then asked another question:

"Can outsiders like us participate in this Thousand Candles Ceremony?"

"Of course!"

Lian Hu's affirmative answer was tinged with enthusiasm and anticipation.

"This Thousand Candles Ceremony is not only a ritual for the Zoroastrian Church to select those destined to be connected with the sacred fire, but also a grand celebration for the entire Vermilion Bird Kingdom. His Majesty will also be present at the ceremony, and there will be a variety of colorful parades and temple fair activities. You two have come at the perfect time!"

As they chatted and laughed, the three of them walked out of the gate of the Dragon Tiger Escort Agency and saw a man dressed in gray coarse cloth standing by the gate.

The man was thin and had a sallow complexion. His long-term physical labor made it difficult to determine his exact age. At this moment, he was standing quietly at the entrance of the security escort agency, carrying a bamboo basket in his hand.

Upon seeing someone step out of the security agency, he immediately looked up, then quickly looked away and moved to the side, as if afraid of blocking the three people's way.

Lian Hu glanced at this person and his brows furrowed, a hint of disgust flashing in his eyes.

The man in gray seemed to notice Lian Hu's expression and quickly moved two steps to the side, almost shrinking himself into the crack in the wall, but he never left the gate of the escort agency.

After taking a few steps, Long Yucheng finally couldn't contain his curiosity and turned to ask Lian Hu:

"Who was that person just now?"

"Sigh, don't even mention it. That person was a refugee that my senior sister rescued outside the city a few years ago when she was returning from escorting a caravan."

Lian Hu sighed and explained:

"My senior sister is kind-hearted and found him a job as a coachman at the carriage shop across the street. Who knew he would cling to her like a piece of chewing gum. Whenever my senior sister is at the escort agency, he comes here every few days, which annoys her to no end."

"I see."

Long Yucheng nodded thoughtfully.

Huo Yu, on the other hand, had been carefully observing everything inside and outside the escort agency with his divine sense from beginning to end.

From the young master Li earlier to the man in gray later, he saw every subtle movement within the escort agency clearly.

Apart from Young Master Li and Lian Hu, everyone inside and outside the escort agency was a mortal without spiritual roots.

Young Master Li possesses dual spiritual roots of water and fire, while Lian Hu has a mixed spiritual root of five attributes, also known as a useless spiritual root. Both of them have the eight characters "[Low-level cannon fodder, no hope of ascension]" above their heads.

As for the remaining mortals without spiritual roots, they naturally did not have Heavenly Prism Crystals.

Among all the镖局 (escort agency), only Murong Yu appeared to have no spiritual root, yet he possessed the Heavenly Dao Prism and annotations.

Huo Yu had several guesses in his mind, but he couldn't verify them at the moment. Since he couldn't figure them out, he simply listened to Long Yucheng and Lian Hu chatting.

Lian Hu was clearly not doing this kind of guide work for the first time, and he really knew every street and alley in Zhuque City like the back of his hand.

If Huo Yu and Long Yucheng glanced at any shop, he could talk endlessly about it, starting from the first owner and continuing to the current owner.

That makes sense. Escort agencies not only provide escort services but also undertake the responsibility of guarding, and the work of guides is also considered part of the guard business.

After listening to the long-standing traditions of several century-old shops, Long Yucheng finally couldn't help but ask the question that interested him most:

"Brother Lianhu, how much do you know about the history of Zhuque City?"

Lian Hu had clearly answered this question more than once, and said with a smile:

"You two have come from afar, you must not have heard of the legend of the Vermilion Bird. This matter begins with the founding of the Vermilion Bird Kingdom..."

Legend has it that before the emergence of the Vermilion Bird Kingdom, this land was ruled by a regime called the Great Yue Kingdom. The ruler of the Great Yue Kingdom was incompetent and tyrannical, and the government was neglected.

A severe drought struck, leaving farmers with no harvest. Faced with the cruel exploitation of corrupt officials and exorbitant taxes, they were forced to rise up in rebellion to survive.

One night, the leader of the rebel army met Zhuque in his dream and made a promise to establish a country where all living beings are equal. Zhuque was moved by his ambition and transformed into a spirit bird to accompany him and guide him on his path.

However, in the final battle to capture the capital of the Great Yue Kingdom, the rebel army encountered an unprecedented challenge. The Great Yue Kingdom, at an unknown cost, had summoned a powerful cultivator, whom the mortal-based rebel army was utterly unable to resist.

With Suzaku's help, the rebels finally achieved victory. However, this victory came at the cost of their leader's life.

The Vermilion Bird inherited the leader's will and unleashed its power in the city where he died, causing all cultivators who entered the city to lose their spiritual power and become mortals.

Subsequently, Suzaku transformed into a radiant light and slept eternally beneath the city, becoming its eternal guardian.

This city, now known as Suzaku City, is a sacred city in the hearts of all the people of Suzaku Kingdom, the place where Suzaku sleeps.

Under the will of the Vermilion Bird, cultivators could not shake the city in the slightest, but the Vermilion Bird's protection attracted the covetousness of the surrounding mortal nations.

They wanted to annex Suzaku City when it was at its weakest, but they were afraid of disturbing Suzaku, so they could only wait and see, and the stalemate lasted for twenty years.

During this period, Suzaku City maintained a fragile balance with the surrounding countries, a balance that could crumble at any moment.

Just as the surrounding countries were beginning to stir, a person bearing the mark of the Vermilion Bird appeared in Vermilion Bird City. This person was not only a brilliant strategist, but also incredibly brave on the battlefield, capable of taking on a hundred enemies single-handedly and achieving victory after victory.

Under the leadership of this legendary figure, Zhuque City not only successfully repelled several small groups of troops that came to probe its strength, but also took the initiative to expand outwards, gradually gaining a foothold in a series of legendary battles where the few defeated the many.

After conquering city after city, Suzaku City eventually became the Suzaku Kingdom.

Most importantly, this person's every move, even his facial expressions, are strikingly similar to those of the rebel leader who swore an oath to Zhuque.

As a result, rumors spread among the people that this person was the reincarnation of the original leader, and that the Vermilion Bird mark on his body was irrefutable proof that reincarnation could not erase.

In the three thousand years since the founding of the Vermilion Bird Kingdom, countless reincarnations bearing the Vermilion Bird mark have appeared, each possessing both literary and martial prowess, wisdom and courage. Upon emerging as a leader, they are spontaneously chosen by the people to be their new ruler.

It was under the guidance of these reincarnated beings that the Vermilion Bird Kingdom was able to retain its original name while the surrounding mortal kingdoms experienced dynastic changes, and gradually expand from its initial territory to its current vast borders.

Since the Great Zhou Dynasty, whenever the previous ruler bearing the Vermilion Bird mark passed away, the royal family would send special personnel to examine every newborn child among the common people.

Once an infant with the mark is discovered, he is immediately taken to the palace and carefully raised as the future crown prince, to inherit the throne as soon as he comes of age.

The Great Zhou Dynasty actively recruited those who held the Vermilion Bird Seal in this way, thus avoiding dynastic changes. Now it is the 927th year of the Great Zhou calendar.

However, those bearing the Vermilion Bird mark are not always able to reincarnate on schedule; sometimes, there can be gaps of decades or even centuries. During this period, the direct descendants of the previous person bearing the Vermilion Bird mark take over the reins of power.

To this day, it has been a full six hundred years since the last emperor bearing the Vermilion Bird mark passed away.

In these six hundred years, not a single baby with the mark was born; such a long gap was unprecedented.

Rumors even circulated among the people that "the Zhou royal family has angered the Vermilion Bird, and the Vermilion Bird has abandoned Vermilion Bird City."