Chapter Fifty-Four: The True Solar Flame

Gritting his teeth, Li Yang urged the Golden Toad forward, leaping toward the direction of the Furious Sunshine Chicken, determination flashing in his heart: I have to risk it all!

He lifted the fallen Furious Sunshine Chicken from the ground and, reaching into his robe, pulled out a Yin Vein Stone and forced it into the bird's beak.

“You impudent brat! How dare you—”

Suspended in midair, the Bone-That-Does-Not-Decompose saw Li Yang’s actions and flew into a rage, diving straight toward the Golden Toad.

Watching the figure plummeting from the sky, Li Yang’s face contorted, veins bulging on his forehead as his blood surged so fiercely that he seemed a burning red gem, waves of heat radiating outward, warping the air around him.

“Caw! Caw! Caw!”

Just as Li Yang braced himself for a desperate fight, the Furious Sunshine Chicken, having swallowed the Yin Vein Stone, let out a furious cry. Its feathers suddenly ignited with gold and crimson flames, soaring skyward in a blaze.

“Caw! Caw! Bang—!”

Like a blazing meteor, it collided violently with the Bone-That-Does-Not-Decompose, thunderous crashes splitting the night.

“The True Solar Flame! Impossible—!”

In the sky, the Furious Sunshine Chicken now shone like a miniature sun, radiating heat and light. The Bone-That-Does-Not-Decompose staggered midair, glancing at the scorched skin on its body, fearfully watching the Furious Sunshine Chicken ascend ever higher.

With each piercing cry of the Furious Sunshine Chicken, the flames around its body grew brighter and more blinding. Suspended in the pitch-black night, it was like a great sun illuminating the world, bathing the land for a hundred miles in daylight.

...

At the same time, in the direction of Ren Family Town, Uncle Nine was startled awake by the celestial anomaly. Staring at the sun in the night sky, his face grew grave.

“Master... what’s going on? The sun’s come out in the middle of the night?”

In the mortuary, Wen Cai, bleary-eyed, wandered out, gazing at the daylight-bright sky, rubbing his eyes in disbelief.

“That’s Young Li’s Furious Sunshine Chicken. I’m afraid he’s run into some trouble...”

Uncle Nine didn’t elaborate; at such a time, he had no mood for explanations.

...

“Madam, look…”

At a villa outside Ren Family Town, Jin Ling supported Madam He into the courtyard, both gazing in wonder at the small sun in the sky.

“I’ve been uneasy since just now. I fear something’s happened to Li Yang. I only hope he’s safe...”

Madam He stared at the tiny sun in the heavens, worry clouding her expression. Though she had begun cultivation, her abilities were meager; she couldn’t see through to the sun’s true nature, only felt a nameless dread and a vague sense of foreboding.

Nor was she alone; throughout Ren Family Town and neighboring villages, residents woke in confusion, marveling at the blazing sun in the night sky, voices rising in astonishment.

Records of the Grand Historian: In the mid-spring month of the ji-mao year, at the hour of the Rat on the day of the vernal equinox, a great sun appeared in the sky, casting daylight for a hundred miles. The people were amazed; from within the sun, a shadow of a bird emerged, its cry piercing the heavens—some suspected a crow, as its call echoed far and wide. The people shouted that the Golden Sun had descended, the great sun scorching the skies! This day would later be known as the Solar Calendar.

...

At that moment, Li Yang stared at the Furious Sunshine Chicken in the sky, momentarily stunned.

He hadn’t expected the chicken’s potential to be so great. Though it possessed a trace of phoenix blood, which was extraordinary, the Furious Sunshine Chicken was after all a rare spirit bird that only appeared under certain circumstances—not a true divine beast with a stable bloodline.

“Damn it... this isn’t over…”

Sensing the situation had turned, the Bone-That-Does-Not-Decompose found its body scorched by the sunlight, white smoke rising from its skin. Casting a fearful glance at the Furious Sunshine Chicken in the sky, it turned and prepared to escape underground.

“Caw! Caw! Caw!!”

At that instant, the Furious Sunshine Chicken let out a shrill cry, its flames surging. The grasses and shrubs below began to wither, the dazzling light forcing Li Yang to shield his eyes.

“Pfft—”

“Awooo—”

The Furious Sunshine Chicken spat a pillar of gold and crimson fire. Instantly, a massive pit was incinerated into the earth, and the Bone-That-Does-Not-Decompose, not far into its escape, was forced from the ground as a blazing fireball, letting out a blood-curdling scream. In moments, it was reduced to a pile of black ash.

At the same time, the flames around the Furious Sunshine Chicken began to withdraw, transforming into silken threads of energy, cocooning it tightly. Slowly, the bird descended from the sky.

“What’s this—?”

Gazing at the enormous egg formed by the Furious Sunshine Chicken, Li Yang found himself bewildered.

“I’ve never heard of a bloodline transformation resulting in an egg…”

The egg stood about as tall as a man, lustrous as red jade, its surface covered in golden runes, warm and smooth to the touch.

“It seems I’ve truly gained a great treasure this time. The energy from that Yin Vein Stone has given the Furious Sunshine Chicken tremendous benefits. When it hatches again, it may shed its mortal form and become a true divine beast, not just with greater potential, but with far more formidable power.”

It was a while before Li Yang collected himself, his face breaking into a broad grin as he stroked the smooth eggshell.

“Ribbit! Cluck cluck…”

Just then, the Golden Toad shuffled over, its tongue flicking greedily at the giant egg, eyes shining with longing as if wishing to swallow it whole.

“You glutton, don’t even think about it! You want to eat this too? Get lost!”

He slapped the toad’s tongue away, shaking the sticky slime off his hand with a helpless laugh.

“Ribbit!”

The Golden Toad’s bulbous eyes rolled pitifully, and with a low whimper, it nuzzled its huge head into Li Yang’s chest, seeking comfort.

“All right, enough. I know you contributed this time too.”

Li Yang took out two Golden Marrow Pills, feeding one to the toad and the other to the Six-Winged Golden Centipede, whose carapace was cracked all over.

“Ah… you’ve really suffered this time.”

He shrank the centipede and slipped it into his sleeve, gazing with heartache at the cracks in its shell.

“What a pity about all that power the Bone-That-Does-Not-Decompose had!”

Looking at the pile of ash on the ground, Li Yang sighed in regret.

For both the Furious Sunshine Chicken and his other spirit creatures, the corpse energy of the Bone-That-Does-Not-Decompose would have been a rare tonic. Such fully-formed aberrations were rarer and rarer in the current age. To have the Furious Sunshine Chicken incinerate it so thoroughly was truly a waste.

Thinking this, Li Yang kicked at the ashes, and a red orb rolled out.

“What’s this? An inner core…”

He studied it for a long time, unable to make out its nature. It resembled an inner core, yet contained no corpse energy.

Still, whatever it was, it had belonged to the Bone-That-Does-Not-Decompose. He decided to keep it for now, tucking it away before walking over to the Golden Toad.

“All right, time to head home! We’ve been out so long, I wonder if Madam is worried about me.”

Shaking his head, Li Yang bent down and lifted the giant egg, placing it atop the Golden Toad’s head, then leapt up himself.

“Ribbit!”

With a powerful kick, the Golden Toad launched itself more than a hundred meters in an instant. In a few quick bounds, they vanished into the boundless wilderness.

...