The firestorm in his soul subsided.
The kiss was over.
The world rushed back in, a cacophony of pouring rain, distant sirens, and his own ragged breathing.
Li Wei lay sprawled on the wet pavement, his mind a scorched battlefield.
He felt... connected.
Like a Wi-Fi signal had been permanently hardwired into his brain.
A very loud, very angry Wi-Fi signal.
He sat up, groaning.
"Feng Yue?"
The space in front of him was empty.
The rain-soaked courtyard was deserted.
Except for the bird.
**
It was not a normal bird.
It stood twenty feet tall at the shoulder, its form wreathed in shimmering, heat-distorting air.
Feathers of pure, liquid flame shifted from crimson to gold, each one a tiny, controlled inferno.
Its eyes were twin suns, burning with ancient power and utter confusion.
It was majestic.
Terrifying.
And it was currently trying to nibble on a lamppost.
This, Li Wei's frazzled brain supplied, used to be Feng Yue.
Well, this is a new problem, he thought.
**
Then the voice screamed in his head.
It wasn't Yin.
It wasn't Yang.
It wasn't even the old strategist.
It was pure, unfiltered emotion.
A tidal wave of
It was her.
She was in his head.
The giant phoenix let out a screech.
It was a sound of cosmic power, a cry that echoed with the birth and death of stars.
In his mind, it translated to a very loud, very eloquent
"Okay, okay, calm down!" Li Wei yelled, holding up his hands.
The phoenix stopped screeching.
It tilted its massive, fiery head and looked at him.
A new wave of emotion washed over his mental Wi-Fi.
This time it was softer.
<...Li Wei?> followed by a surge of
Then, a blast of pure, concentrated
The phoenix's flames flared, and the lamppost it had been nibbling on melted into a puddle of slag.
**
Okay.
So they were linked.
Telepathically.
Sort of.
He couldn't hear her words. Just her... vibes.
And her vibes were currently set to "catastrophic meltdown."
The phoenix took a hesitant, stomping step toward him.
It opened its beak, a gateway to a furnace of creation.
And chirped.
It was a tiny, delicate, sound, completely at odds with its city-block-sized body.
The mental message, however, was a frantic jumble of
She was trying to talk to him.
She stomped a massive, taloned foot in frustration.
The ground shook. A nearby car alarm went off.
Then, she seemed to have an idea.
She lowered her head and began to scratch at the pavement with one of her talons.
The talon was the size of a scythe.
It tore through the stone courtyard like a hot knife through butter, sending sparks and chunks of rock flying.
She's writing a message! Yin Mode thought, a flicker of hope in his mind.
The structural integrity of the university's central plaza is now compromised, Yang Mode noted dryly.
Li Wei squinted at the massive, destructive carving.
It was a single, wobbly, and very angry-looking letter.
"F".
The phoenix looked at her work, then let out another frustrated chirp-screech.
The mental message was clear:
She tried again, this time with more force.
The talon slammed down, cracking the earth, and carved a deep, jagged line.
She had successfully written the letter "I".
And also destroyed a water main.
A geyser of water erupted from the ground, spraying everything.
The phoenix shrieked as the water hit her fiery feathers, creating a massive cloud of steam.
She flapped her wings in a panic, sending a wave of superheated air across the courtyard that melted the tires on a row of parked bicycles.
**
This was not working.
Subject is in a state of emotional distress, Yang Mode's voice cut through the chaos in Li Wei's head. Her inability to communicate is causing her power to destabilize further. A solution is required.
The golden light flickered in Li Wei's eyes.
He saw the phoenix, not as a panicked goddess, but as a system.
A biological and energetic system undergoing a catastrophic error state.
Transformation reversal is possible, he calculated. It would require a precise counter-frequency of chaotic qi, applied directly to her spiritual core. The equation is complex, but feasible.
He began to formulate it in his mind.
He needed to calculate her mass, her energy output, the atmospheric pressure, the half-life of her emotional state...
The phoenix, meanwhile, had given up on writing.
She was now trying to play charades.
She pointed a wing at herself.
Then she made a motion like she was drinking tea.
Then she pointed at Li Wei.
Okay, so... you're a bird... who wants tea... with me? Yin Mode guessed.
The phoenix let out a furious squawk that mentally translated to
She stomped her foot again in frustration.
And accidentally set the philosophy department building on fire.
Just a little bit.
**
Li Wei's phone buzzed in his pocket.
It was a campus news alert.
[CAMPUS ALERT: GIANT MYSTERIOUS BIRD CURRENTLY TERRORIZING UNIVERSITY. STUDENTS ADVISED TO SHELTER IN PLACE AND/OR GET GOOD CONTENT FOR TIKTOK.]
This was getting out of hand.
And then, through the mental link, through the storm of her frustration and panic, he felt something else.
A deeper layer.
A quiet, cold, and vast emotion hidden beneath all the fire.
Loneliness.
It hit him like a physical blow.
It was an ancient, profound loneliness. The loneliness of a princess on a throne. The loneliness of a goddess on a pedestal. The loneliness of someone who had always been powerful, always been revered, but never, ever been understood.
He saw flashes. Not memories, but feelings.
A little girl, standing alone in a vast, empty palace of gold.
A young woman, training relentlessly, pushing everyone away with her pride and her power.
A princess, bearing the weight of a dying realm on her shoulders, with no one to confide in.
She was just as scared as he was.
Just as confused.
Just as alone.
She was just... better at hiding it.
He looked at the giant, terrifying, world-breaking creature of myth in front of him.
And for the first time, he didn't see a princess.
Or a goddess.
Or a solution to a problem.
He just saw Feng Yue.
**
The analytical light in his eyes faded.
The panic in his soul quieted.
He was just Li Wei again.
He looked at the burning building.
He looked at the panicked, fiery bird.
He looked at his watch.
"Oh, crap," he said out loud. "We're going to be late for class."
The phoenix stared at him, her mental voice a blast of pure
An idea sparked in Li Wei's mind.
It was a stupid idea.
A terrible, idiotic, and completely insane idea.
It was perfect.
He walked toward the giant phoenix, his hands held up in a placating gesture.
"Hey," he said calmly. "It's okay. I have a plan."
He pointed a thumb toward the other side of campus.
"Just... give me a ride?"
**
The professor for "History of Ancient Dynasties" was a patient man.
But his patience was wearing thin.
The storm was making the lights flicker, and half his class was missing.
He was just about to dismiss the few students who had shown up.
Then the shadow fell over the lecture hall.
The students gasped, pointing toward the window.
The professor turned.
And saw a twenty-foot-tall bird of pure fire land gracefully outside, a single, soaking-wet student perched on its back.
Li Wei slid off the phoenix's wing, landing on the ground with a squelch.
He ran into the lecture hall, dripping rainwater and residual divine energy.
"Sorry I'm late, Professor!" he panted. "My... uh... ride had some engine trouble."
The professor stared at him.
He stared at the majestic, terrifying creature of myth preening its flaming feathers outside his window.
He looked back at Li Wei.
He adjusted his glasses.
"Mr. Li," he said, his voice perfectly deadpan. "Thank you for your dedication."
He made a note in his attendance book.
"I'm marking you present," he declared to the stunned classroom. "With extra credit for... creativity in your transportation solutions."
Outside the window, the giant phoenix puffed out her chest, a wave of pure, unadulterated
She had gotten him to class on time.
She was a good bird.
📣 [SYSTEM NOTICE: AUTHOR SUPPORT INTERFACE]
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