Soon after, Jian Ruyan also finished her seclusion.
"Little Yanzi, here, play with this."
Mu Jinyu opened the stone gate, let Jian Ruyan in, and casually grabbed the Little Phoenix, tossing it to Jian Ruyan.
"What is this thing?"
Jian Ruyan was startled to see a bald thing flying towards her. Instinctively, she wanted to dodge, but it looked somewhat familiar, so she reached out to catch it.
"This is... a Demon Phoenix?"
Jian Ruyan held the bald Little Phoenix, paused for a moment, then quickly recognized its identity, and looked at Mu Jinyu and Wen Rou in surprise.
She didn't expect that the Phoenix egg would actually hatch under Wen Rou's care.
"Hmm? You recognize it?"
Mu Jinyu initially intended to tease Jian Ruyan but was surprised when she instantly identified the Little Phoenix.
Jian Ruyan nodded and said, "I once saw a newly hatched Demon Phoenix that looked similar."
"I see." Mu Jinyu, hearing this, nodded thoughtfully. Knowing Jian Ruyan wouldn't say more, he didn't ask further.
He then noticed the Little Demon Phoenix was not resisting Jian Ruyan as it did with Wen Rou, although not entirely comfortable, and said, "For now, why don't you help me take care of this little fellow?"
"Alright." Jian Ruyan agreed with a nod.
She knew the Hidden Dragon Conference was about to begin, and since Mu Jinyu didn't have a Spirit Beast Bag for proper Beast Mastery, he needed someone else to care for the Little Demon Phoenix.
Otherwise, taking it onto the Combat Platform, and accidentally getting it killed would be a significant loss.
The three of them chatted for a while longer; Mu Jinyu offered the two women some advice on their cultivation insights. Then, realizing they weren't planning to cultivate any further, they left the cultivation room and went downstairs to check out.
The original plan was to cultivate for a month, but they finished refining the Phoenix Saliva Grass in just twenty-five days, so Mu Jinyu saw no need to continue.
After receiving the refunded eighteen hundred superior-grade spirit stones, Mu Jinyu took Wen Rou and the other woman to a nearby restaurant for a good meal.
Upon arriving at the restaurant, Mu Jinyu ordered a table full of good food and listened to the discussions of other diners while waiting for the dishes.
"Hey, what do you think about that strange phenomenon just now?"
"The rolling thunder, the Fire Qi of cultivators in the city going out of control, this phenomenon seemed quite powerful. Maybe a disciple of a hidden sect has emerged?"
"Speaking of which, there's only seven days left until the Hidden Dragon Conference begins. Most of the Heaven's Pride and Monsters from all countries have arrived, but those from hidden sects and super clans haven't shown up much."
"Indeed, there were rumors about disciples from the Dragon Elephant Sect and the Xuanyuan Clan, but we haven't seen them in the imperial capital yet."
"If these monsters don't come to the Hidden Dragon Conference, do you think the one who caused the phenomenon earlier could claim the first place on the Hidden Dragon List and become the True Dragon?"
"If those monsters don't show up, the chances of them claiming first aren't that high, because even if the hidden sects' and super clans' disciples don't appear, the Crown Prince of the Dayan Dynasty, Ji Changxin, isn't to be underestimated!"
"Yeah, you're right..."
Listening to their discussion, Mu Jinyu's mind was set in motion, and when he spotted someone, his eyes lit up. He approached and asked, "Brother Wu, what happened in the imperial capital just now?"
"Oh, Brother Mu, what a coincidence to see you here." The person looked up at Mu Jinyu's greeting, their eyes lighting up and spoke with a smile.
This person was Wu Zhiming, the number one Heaven's Pride of the Wu Kingdom, whom Mu Jinyu had met in Demon Slaying City.
Unexpectedly, they were dining in the same tavern.
After recalling Mu Jinyu's question, Wu Zhiming looked at him quizzically and said, "You don't know what happened?"
Mu Jinyu shook his head and said, "I was in seclusion until just now, so I'm not very clear."
Understanding, Wu Zhiming nodded and proceeded to recount what had happened in the Dayan Imperial Capital to Mu Jinyu.
After listening, Mu Jinyu calculated his timing of leaving seclusion and felt it was too coincidental.
Could the phenomenon have been caused by the hatching of the Demon Phoenix, triggering the Hundred Birds Worshiping the Phoenix?
Something didn't feel quite right.
If it were a Demon Phoenix at the Merging Paths stage causing such a phenomenon, it would be understandable.
But this Little Demon Phoenix had just been born, with no real power, easily handled by Jian Ruyan. How could it cause such a phenomenon?
Was it caused by consuming the Phoenix Saliva Grass?
This thought crossed Mu Jinyu's mind, but he then laughed it off.
He had only just reached the early sixth layer of the Fanxu Realm—how could he cause such a phenomenon?
At this moment, Wu Zhiming, having calmed from his reunion with Mu Jinyu, looked him up and down in shock.
"Mu... Brother Mu, you've... broken through to the sixth layer of the Fanxu Realm?"
Wu Zhiming's voice trembled with disbelief.
A month ago, when they parted in Demon Slaying City, Mu Jinyu, though capable of easily slaying Demon Kings at the late stage of the Fanxu Realm, was still at the peak of the third layer of the Fanxu Realm.
How had he jumped from the peak third layer to the sixth layer in just a month?
That was too quick!
At the time, Wu Zhiming himself was at the peak fifth layer, yet after a month, he hadn't managed to break through to the sixth layer!
This left Wu Zhiming struggling to accept it.
Hearing Wu Zhiming's exclamation, Mu Jinyu realized he couldn't explain much, so he just laughed, "Actually, I was hiding my strength before. I was already at the Peak Fifth Layer of the Fanxu Realm and only recently broke through to the sixth layer."
"Is that so? Then it's no wonder..."
Hearing this, Wu Zhiming instantly felt he could understand everything, and he sighed with relief.
Indeed, if Mu Jinyu had jumped from the third to the sixth layer in a month, it would have been a tremendous pressure.
But if Mu Jinyu was originally at the peak of the fifth layer, it was understandable and acceptable.
This also clarified why, when he and the city lord struggled against the Five Great Demon Kings, Mu Jinyu, supposedly only at the peak third layer, could slay the Demon Kings effortlessly!
And when confronting emissaries from the Heavenly Palace, he could still hold the upper hand!
This clarification made everything suddenly clear for him.
Wu Zhiming then congratulated Mu Jinyu, "Congratulations Brother Mu, on your advancement in strength. You should achieve a good rank in the upcoming Hidden Dragon Conference."
Mu Jinyu, upon hearing this, glanced at Wu Zhiming and smiled, "Just a good rank? Does that mean there's no hope for first?!"
Wu Zhiming smiled wryly, shaking his head, "Brother Mu, it's not to underestimate you. This Hidden Dragon Conference is said to have even more outstanding prodigies than before. Your current strength, in previous times, would have secured first place without a doubt, but now it's more challenging..."