The two Sun-Veil elders struggled wildly against the shadow tendrils, their golden Qi flaring in a desperate attempt to burn through Li Chen’s dark bindings. Flame erupted from their meridians, but the moment their heat touched the violet-black mist, it was instantly snuffed out and converted into pure energy for the Dark Dan.
— Impossibility... — the elder on the left choked out, his eyes bulging as he felt his cultivation base rapidly draining. — Our solar Qi... it’s being consumed!
— You call it solar Qi, — Li Chen said, stepping slowly toward them, his shadow blade scraping against the marble floor with a harrowing hiss. — I call it unrefined fuel.
Without giving them another second to speak, Li Chen flicked his wrist. Two needles of concentrated shadow Qi shot forward, piercing cleanly through the foreheads of both elders. Their eyes went glass-like as their bodies withered into dry husks, their Golden Cores forcibly yanked from their Dantians by the suction of the Abyssal Heart Cauldron hovering overhead.
BOOM!
Across the valley, chaos reigned supreme. Iron-Hide’s heavy armors smashed through the fleeing guards, while Ghost-Blade’s assassins danced through the shadows, cutting down any sect disciple who attempted to signal the main sect. Within half an hour, the screaming died down, leaving only the crackle of burning watchtowers and the heavy footsteps of the dark vanguard. The source of this chapter is NovelPing.
Xiao Feng sprinted up the grand steps toward Li Chen, his short blade dripping with fresh blood.
— Master! The outer guards have been completely cleared, and the miners have fled into the mountains, — Xiao Feng reported, bowing deeply. — We have opened the main vault. The yield is far greater than we anticipated.
Li Chen walked into the subterranean vault beneath the central pavilion. The vast stone hall glowed with an intense, amber radiation. Stored in massive obsidian crates were thousands of refined Solar-Gold ingots, along with five pristine Solar-Core Vein Hearts—the condensed spirit crystals formed over ten millennia deep beneath the earth.
Iron-Hide stood beside an open crate, grinning wildly.
— Selling it would be a waste, — Li Chen replied, his scarlet-violet eyes reflecting the warm, golden glow of the crystals. — Sun-Sunder uses these veins to prolong his decaying life. By taking them, we have cut his lifespan in half. Now, we shall use his own foundation to temper my physical body.
Li Chen raised his hand, commanding the Abyssal Heart Cauldron to land at the center of the vault. With a wave of his sleeve, he hurled all five Solar-Core Vein Hearts directly into the furnace, followed by the remaining herbs recovered from the elders' storage rings.
— Iron-Hide, Ghost-Blade, take the vanguard and seal the valley entrance, — Li Chen ordered, his voice echoing with absolute authority. — No one enters or leaves for the next three days. I am going to refine the Solar-Abyss Body.
— Yes, Master! — the dark leaders responded in unison, retreating swiftly to secure the perimeter.
Li Chen sat cross-legged before the roaring cauldron. The dark crimson furnace burned with a terrifying combination of abyssal flame and swallowed solar heat. As the precious materials melted down into a golden-black liquid state, Li Chen closed his eyes, preparing to undergo a physical transformation that would bridge the gap between Core Formation and the terrifying strength of a Nascent Soul titan.