That idiot from the Sword Sect turned out to be a lucky charm.

When the brothers found out that Lin Zhifeng had bought a black egg, they all came to watch because they were bored.

When Lin Zhifeng proudly introduced it as a phoenix egg, none of Lin Jun and his group believed him.

What do you think a phoenix is? It's one of the Four Divine Beasts, a legendary creature. Although 550,000 high-grade spirit stones is a huge sum for Lin Jun and his group, they simply wouldn't believe they could buy a phoenix egg.

Lin Jun kindly reminded Lin Zhifeng, "Little Lin, don't let the people from Hundred Beast Valley fool you. It's alright, before we leave, have Elder Jiu take you to their Valley Master, they'll definitely be able to give you a refund."

Lin Zhifeng rolled his eyes at him: "Retreat? What do you know? I'm afraid the Valley Master will regret it!"

Now that he's pulled this stunt, it's really hard for the brothers to persuade him otherwise. Lin Zhifeng usually seems so cunning and shrewd; how could he possibly fall for this?

First of all, we don't know if this egg is a phoenix egg; even if it is, it must be a dead or rotten egg that can't be hatched.

With those unscrupulous merchants from Hundred Beast Valley, which Sword Sect disciple didn't have their pockets emptied this time? Buying a high-level spirit beast just costs at least a thousand high-grade spirit stones.

If Lin Jun hadn't thrown a tantrum and begged his father, the Seventh Elder, to sponsor him with spirit stones before leaving, he probably would have made a wasted trip.

The other brothers were in a similar situation; in order to buy a suitable spirit pet with similar attributes, they basically emptied their own pockets.

Thus, all they managed to buy were high-level spirit pets with slightly better attributes.

Think about it carefully!

If this black egg were truly a phoenix egg, would Hundred Beast Valley really sell it to you for only 550,000 high-grade spirit stones? It would take the entire Sword Sect's resources to afford it.

Lin Zhifeng obtained a legacy in the Illusionary Realm; he also participated in two grand competitions and won some prize money; not long ago, he went to work for the Crown Prince Longquan of the Divine Dragon Dynasty and earned a lot of spirit stones... Lin Jun and the others knew all of this.

But even adding all that up, Lin Zhifeng's total wealth is only around a million spirit stones. Could he really afford a phoenix egg? That's ridiculous.

Seeing that everyone was seriously skeptical, Lin Zhifeng patiently explained his experience of finding a bargain.

Lin Zhifeng concluded by saying, "The egg is definitely a phoenix egg, but it's true that it's very difficult to hatch."

Lin Jun still disagreed with his statement: "Since you know it's difficult to hatch, and even the Hundred Beast Valley failed to hatch it, how can you be so confident that you can hatch it?"

Lin Zhifeng said, "The reason why the egg can't hatch in Hundred Beast Valley might be due to the wrong method. Or perhaps the egg is waiting for a good owner."

His brothers chuckled softly as they listened to his boastful words.

Lin Zhifeng said, "Don't you believe me? This egg is a good egg. In the near future, I will definitely be able to hatch a phoenix."

Lin Jun shrugged, giving up on trying to persuade his friend. Whatever!

Since Lin Zhifeng refused to return the goods and insisted that the black egg was a phoenix egg, everyone took turns crowding over to take a closer look at the 550,000 high-grade spirit stones.

Lin Zhifeng generously made way for them. He hadn't had enough of the egg since he got it, and it hadn't left his side for more than a meter.

After seeing the black egg, people expressed their opinions, such as its ugly color and rough surface.

Lin Jun even secretly asked Lin Zhifeng, "Do you think the phoenix egg contains only egg white and yolk? Or was it already a chick inside the egg the moment the phoenix was reborn?"

Lin Zhifeng patted Lin Jun on the shoulder and said, "That's why we call each other brothers! You have the same question as me! It's a pity that the phoenix hasn't hatched yet. When it hatches and grows up, it can talk, and I'll ask it for you."

Although Lin Jun didn't think that day would come, he nodded and agreed for the time being.

After examining the black egg, Jinzi returned to Lin Zhifeng's side and asked, "Linzi, what do phoenix eggs taste like? Do they taste the same as regular bird eggs?"

Lin Zhifeng laughed and scolded, "How dare you! This is a phoenix egg, do you intend to cook and eat it?"

Jin swallowed hard and explained, "No, no, I was just discussing it."

Lin Zhifeng glanced at him and shouted to the brothers in front who were watching the black egg, "Brothers in the front row, wipe your drool, don't drip it on my phoenix egg."

After saying that, he said to the people around him, "You just want to know, so bring me 500,000 high-grade spirit stones, and the remaining 50,000 will be my share. Let's crack it open and see if it's an egg white or a yolk, or a little phoenix."

Everyone said, "No need! Actually, we don't really want to know."

In less than a day, Black Egg was targeted by these gluttonous foodies so many times, leaving a huge shadow on his young mind.

After everyone finished watching Black Egg, they wanted to show off their own spirit pets, but unfortunately, there wasn't enough space in the flying vehicle.

If anyone were to ask Lin Zhifeng to go outside now, Lin Zhifeng would not give them the courtesy they deserved and would refuse them without hesitation.

"I hereby declare that until the black egg hatches, I will be bound to my little black egg—wherever the egg is, I will be there!" Lin Zhifeng said.

Lin Jun's attempt to persuade Lin Zhifeng failed, so he tried to use the black egg as a hostage to threaten Lin Zhifeng into going out with him. However, Lin Zhifeng saw through his plan and ruthlessly drove him away.

The people weren't angry at being chased away; they just liked to tease the children for fun.

With Lin Zhifeng's anticipation, the aircraft carried everyone back to the Sword Sect.

Upon arriving at his cave dwelling, Lin Zhifeng immediately prepared a nest for the phoenix eggs.

Because the Sword Sect's architecture is all minimalist—just caves carved into the rocks—Lin Zhifeng placed his den by his bedside.

That way, you can face it every day, and once the phoenix egg hatches, you'll see it immediately.

It's said that when birds hatch, they mistake the first person (or animal) they see for their mother (or father). Scientifically, this is called the imprinting effect.

They develop a sense of closeness and dependence on the first living creature they see upon hatching, and this bond remains unchanged throughout their lives.

Although the phoenix is ​​a mythical beast, it may not necessarily be limited by the instincts of such birds.

But Lin Zhifeng would never dare to take the risk.

Therefore, Lin Zhifeng made up his mind: "The first person Little Phoenix sees after she is born must be me!"

When he first got home, he was still full of excitement, as if the little phoenix was about to hatch. He didn't even dare to sleep, afraid of missing the moment of hatching.

But as time went by, a week, a month, and several months passed, and the black egg remained unchanged.

After returning to his sect, Lin Zhifeng searched for the recipe for the Spirit Pet Pill. He collected all the listed medicinal herbs and used the system's alchemy furnace to refine a batch.

This alchemy furnace is also a treasure; throw in a set of medicinal herbs, and it will return ten spirit pet pills.

Although Lin Zhifeng was not a pill refiner, he knew that pill refining was not easy.

At least for an amateur like him, if he were given a pill-refining furnace in the real world to refine pills, he probably wouldn't even be able to refine a basic pill.

Given his clear understanding of his own situation, it would be good enough if the furnace didn't explode and cause loss of life and property.

But with the system in place, he didn't need to worry about the dosage of the medicinal herbs, the time and heat required for alchemy...

He only needs to put the raw materials for the pill he wants to refine into the system's alchemy furnace, and once the furnace shows that it is ready to start refining the pill, he just needs to click confirm.

This is like having a cheat code!

Isn't this even more convenient than hiring a dedicated high-level alchemist?

Unfortunately, even though the spirit pet pills were all prepared, the phoenix egg showed no signs of life.

Lin Zhifeng had already visited the nine elders with the phoenix egg when he returned to the sect; he even went to the library. The elder in charge of the library did not escape Lin Zhifeng's "interrogation".

The elders had only heard of the mythical phoenix, but had never actually seen one. As for how to hatch it, they dared not offer any advice.

Everyone said, "If even the Valley of a Hundred Beasts couldn't hatch it, there must be something wrong with this egg."

After being pestered by Lin Zhifeng for a long time, the elders finally said, "Just incubate it like a bird egg. If it still hasn't hatched after ten years, we'll go to Hundred Beast Valley to find them!"

Lin Zhifeng wanted to remind the elders: the seller said they don't accept returns or exchanges!

However, he didn't dare say anything, because the Sword Sect elders didn't care about "no returns or exchanges." In their view, making money was hard, so if something was defective, you had to get a refund. No discussion!