Chapter 22: Accidentally, I Became a Dad

The golden bird egg slowly cracked open.

Before long, a small, fuzzy head poked out from within.

This fuzzy little head blinked its golden eyes, curiously sizing up Zhang Yi.

The little fellow was golden all over, with a tuft of bright red feathers on the top of its head, looking like a miniature version of a Jinwu.

Zhang Yi was bewildered by this sudden little fellow.

What was this?

However, before he could react, the little fellow opened its mouth and chirped in a milky voice, "Daddy!"

"You, what did you just say?"

Zhang Yi stammered, thinking to himself that the little fellow before him was definitely no ordinary bird hatchling.

"Daddy!"

Taking advantage of Zhang Yi's daze, the little fellow called out once more.

The little fellow's voice was milky and sweet, making it sound particularly endearing.

Seeing that Zhang Yi remained unmoved.

The next second, the little thing even mustered the courage to rub back and forth between his wings, feeling as if it were acting spoiled.

"You, you, you... wait a minute! I am not your daddy!"

Zhang Yi's mind was a mess, feeling completely thrown off by this little fellow.

He had just wanted to explain, but was instantly healed by the little fellow's naive and cute appearance; for some reason, he felt an inexplicable warmth.

"I am a descendant of the Jinwu, and I only regained consciousness after absorbing enough fire-attribute energy."

The little fellow continued in that milky voice, seemingly dismissive of Zhang Yi's confusion.

"I know of the Jinwu, but why would you call me daddy?"

Zhang Yi suppressed the confusion in his heart; he had better get the situation straight first.

"Because I gained energy from your body, and it felt very comfortable!"

The little fellow looked innocent, its golden eyes sparkling.

Zhang Yi felt instantly charmed by the little fellow, and even the initial tension in his heart relaxed slightly.

"So it's because of me, and not because of your mother?"

Zhang Yi felt a sense of relief in his heart, although this meant the responsibility now fell on him.

"Mm-hmm!"

The little fellow nodded like a pestle pounding garlic, its voice childish, and its little eyes looking at Zhang Yi were full of anticipation.

"Will you take care of me?"

"I remember when I was still in the egg, Mother once told me that my name is 'Xiao Pu'!"

"How about you call me Xiao Pu from now on!"

"'Xiao Pu'?"

Zhang Yi's mouth twitched; this name sounded truly interesting.

"Yes! Xiao Pu-Pu! Also, I have fire-attribute energy and can help you become stronger! Pu-pu!"

Xiao Pu excitedly flapped its little wings and began to spin around in the nest like a happy little ball.

"Become stronger?"

Zhang Yi rubbed his chin.

This was like a pie falling from the sky!

Not only did he accidentally become a father, but this little thing could actually help him break through; this was simply too awesome!

Perhaps realizing that his previous actions were a bit unseemly.

Soon, Zhang Yi calmed himself down and began to ponder the current situation.

The identity of this little fellow was so special; it was very likely the descendant of the Jinwu that fell here, as mentioned by the Red Fire Demon Apes and the others.

If that were true, there might be even more powerful strength hidden within this little fellow.

Since it could help him become stronger, keeping it by his side was not out of the question.

Just as he was calculating this in his heart.

At this moment, the anxious call of the Ju Niao Mu Qin came from outside the lava pool: "My child! Are you alright? Where are you? Come out quickly!"

Zhang Yi's heart sank; did he have to face this Ju Niao Mu Qin?

He began to feel nervous; after all, confronting a giant bird that might possess overwhelming strength was definitely not the act of a wise man.

"Xiao Pu, it seems we need to find a way to leave this place first!"

Listening to the urgent calls of the Ju Niao Mu Qin above, Zhang Yi felt extremely anxious at this moment.

Previously, he had only been focused on increasing his strength, forgetting that he was still trapped in this godforsaken place.

Thinking about it now, his scalp felt like it was about to explode.

You must know, when he was first sucked in, he had tried to struggle.

However, his meager strength was completely useless against that terrifying vortex of fire.

Just as Zhang Yi was looking up at the vortex of fire above in a daze, full of anxiety.

At this time, Xiao Pu beside him suddenly spoke up.

"Daddy, are you troubled by that thing?"

"You have a way?"

Zhang Yi subconsciously lowered his head to look at Xiao Pu beside him.

"That's simple, just swallow that fire and be done with it!"

Xiao Pu raised her head and patted her slightly protruding little belly with immense confidence.

"Are you sure?"

Zhang Yi looked at her with some uncertainty.

Seeing that her own father actually doubted her strength, Xiao Pu did not dawdle; she directly tilted her head back and took a fierce gulp toward the void's vortex of flames.

"Whoosh!"

The next second, the vortex of flames above their heads that had given Zhang Yi such a headache seemed to be affected by some kind of gravitational pull and began to slowly deform.

Zhang Yi felt as if everything before his eyes had lost its center of gravity in an instant; the vortex of flames was actually being gradually swallowed by Xiao Pu, transforming into a long dragon of fire coiling between her little wings, as if it were dancing.

"Oh! You really can swallow it?!"

Zhang Yi exclaimed, his gaze fixed in disbelief on the miraculous scene just as Xiao Pu had described.

"Of course! I am a descendant of the Jinwu!"

Xiao Pu proudly blinked her large golden eyes and answered him without a hint of modesty.

"Daddy, don't worry. Once we get out, I will quickly make you as powerful as Mommy!"

"Xiao Pu, you really are a genius!"

As Xiao Pu began to frantically absorb the vortex of flames.

The vortex of flames being swallowed by her suddenly became uneasy, seemingly emitting an invisible wail, and actually began to spread out in all directions.

Just at this moment, golden light suddenly began to flicker around Xiao Pu's body.

It was so dazzling that it was hard to keep one's eyes open.

The next second, something even more astonishing happened.

In just this short moment, the vortex of flames above Zhang Yi's head that had been such a headache completely dissipated.

Not until she had swallowed the very last wisp of flame into her belly did Xiao Pu let out a satisfied burp.

"Burp! This was much tastier than I imagined!"

The little one's voice clearly revealed a hint of excitement.

Just when they thought the trouble had finally been resolved.

A sudden, thunderous roar caused both the big bird and the small bird to instantly have their hearts leap into their throats.

They saw that above the two birds, the shadow of a Jubiao with a body surging with scorching flames was gradually unfolding.

That powerful aura rushed toward them.

Zhang Yi did not hesitate in the slightest, instinctively reaching out to grab Xiao Pu beside him to make a run for it.

"Xiao Pu, run outside quickly! If we don't leave now, it'll be too late!"

However, Xiao Pu was still immersed in the recent act of swallowing and seemed not to have noticed the danger before her; she merely widened her eyes and stared straight at that fiery phantom in the void...