Chapter 393: Your Highness
Translator: Ninetales Editor: DarkGem
"Fatty Dragon!" Hu Ling'er called out.
The dragon qilin understood the severity of the situation. He shook his body and transformed into his true form. Ling Yuxiu and Si Yunxiang jumped onto his back while Yan Jingjing said, "They are at the Sun Shrine of our Sun Herd Tribe. Head over in that direction and it will be the highest shrine!"
The dragon qilin immediately exerted his strength to sprint toward the place where they were choosing the next sun guardian.
When they came to the Sun Shrine, they saw the symbol of a three-legged crow within the picture of a sun on the doors. Two giants, propped up on their battle axes, stood guarding them. They were adult sun herders, and their bodies were extremely tall and sturdy. Their battle axes were crossed in front of the door to prevent people from going in.
"Stop, outsiders!" The two sun herders had solemn looks as they shouted out in dull voices. "The shrine is a sacred ground; outsiders can't barge in!"
Hu Ling'er jumped down and said, "It's your sun guardian who has asked us to come! Quickly inform your chief that something big is going to happen!"
"Wait a moment!"
One of the sun herders immediately went into the shrine. After a moment, he walked out and said respectfully, "Chief has invited all of you inside to observe the ceremony."
They entered the shrine and instantly felt minute. The giants of Sun Herd Tribe were all gathered there, standing tall. When the girls walked among them, they were merely up to their ankles.
The giants were surrounding a circular platform upon which a selection was taking place. Sounds of astonishment came from time to time. Hu Ling'er jumped up as she wanted to take a look at the situation, but how could she do it when the fence was simply too high. Her body was too short so even if she jumped fifteen yards into the air, she still wouldn't be able to see what was happening.
Hu Ling'er swayed her tail in a hurry, and her body started to float up. She could then finally see the platform.
There were numerous young men and women separated in two groups. In the center of the platform were three god statues, and every one of them was a mutant with three legs and wings that were spread opened. Their bodies were bent, carrying a giant furnace.
It was different from usual, since it was circular and its sides had openings. There was nothing like medicinal stones in the furnace.
A strong youth of the Sun Herder Tribe cutting his wrist and letting his blood flow into the huge circular furnace. He then executed true fire and reigniting the furnace.
A ball of fire soon appeared, its flames growing larger and larger. Instantly, blazing rays burst forth from the openings in the furnace, becoming more and more dazzling.
Terrifying pulses came from the furnace along with the roars of strange beasts that would grip the heart or anyone who heard them.
The sun herders in the surroundings revealed delighted expressions, but at that moment, the rays suddenly dimmed and the flames in the furnace died down.
"Next!"
An unbelievably muscular girl went up and sliced open her wrist. She also failed, but she had fared slightly better than the youth before her. An apparition of a fire dragon had actually taken shape in the flames of the furnace.
It was just that it lasted for a short while before vanishing.
Hu Ling'er looked on the other side of the platform and saw the old chief and some other white-haired elders of the Sun Herd Tribe. They were observing the test below. Hu Ling'er's heart stirred slightly, and she simply flew over to them.
She heard an elder say, "The body of pure yang is simply too hard to find. Jingjing held out for ten years, but if we don't find another body of pure yang, tonight might be the night when Sun Well will get invaded."
Worry entered the expressions of all elders. For anyone but the body of pure yang, it was difficult to withstand the terrifying and boundless energy of Sun Ship. If one tried to forcefully master it, they would soon be incinerated.
"There are simply too few bodies of pure yang." The old chief sighed and said, "If we can't find one, I will control Sun Ship and fight those devil gods with my life!"
His constitution wasn't the body of pure yang, but his cultivation was dense, so he could last for some time.
Below, on the platform, young men and women tried to light up the sun furnace, but they all failed. This caused the elders' face to grow more and more solemn.
Ling Yuxiu and the rest came to where the old chief was, and he raised his hand. A green slab under their feet rose up and lifted them up to observe the ceremony.
"Chief, Human Emperor Qin is currently helping you guys reignite the sun. If he succeeds, he'll turn into ashes!" Ling Yuxiu said in a hurry. "May Chief please go forward and assist the human emperor!"
She was very clever. She knew his other identities would hardly push the chief of the Sun Herd Tribe to aid him, so she just took the identity of the human emperor.
The old chief shook his head and said, "It's impossible for him to reignite the sun. It has long died down and only the appearance of a fire god of pure yang could reignite it. Don't worry, Little Friend Qin not only won't be able to reignite the sun, he won't even get near it; it's too hot over there. Even though it's an extinguished sun, its power is still no small matter. Look."
He raised his arm which was as long as a flying bridge. He then pointed below them and said, "When we, the sun herders, choose our sun guardian, we look for a person with a natural born pure yang so their blood would assist the true fire in order to ignite the sun furnace. It's merely an ordinary treasure, but lighting it up is already so difficult; it's even more impossible to reignite the sun."
"Human Emperor Qin has a god's eye, he might just be able to—" Ling Yuxiu said angrily.
The old chief cut her off and said, "We, the sun herders, had also found numerous god's eyes and god's blood over the years to reignite the sun, but none of them had worked. There's no need for you to say anymore, observe the ceremony."
Ling Yuxiu was furious. "We had come to help you reignite the sun, rushing over full sincerity, yet you aren't willing to, so aren't you sun herders bitterly disappointing us with your actions?"
The old chief's gaze landed on her and he said seriously, "It's not that we, the sun herders, are not reasonable. It's just that we need to choose the next sun guardian. After the sun sets, the darkness will invade and that's when the soul of Sun Guardian will return to Sun Ship. She can no longer hold on anymore. Without Sun Guardian, our Sun Herd Tribe will surely be unable to defend against the invasion of those evil devils.
"The moon herders are already wiped out, and if the sun herders are wiped out as well, the devil gods will come to control Great Ruins. Do you think the world outside Great Ruins will be able to defend against them? Right now, choosing the next sun guardian is of utmost importance!"
Ling Yuxiu was stunned.
Si Yunxiang sneered and said, "Even if you choose the next sun guardian, so what? Aren't they still going to die in Sun Ship, fusing into it?"
"It's an honor to die protecting the tribesmen and Great Ruins," the old chief said solemnly.
"Little friends, don't worry, Little Friend Qin will be fine. He won't be able to get near that black sun and he will retreat when he finds out what it's really like," another elder nearby said.
The other elders all nodded, but at that moment, a vast heatwave suddenly pulsed through the building. The expressions of the old chief and the few elders changed instantly. They got up with astonishment evident in their eyes. "This pulse… that extinguished sun! This is bad! Little Friend Qin!"
Boom!
The old chief and the elders rushed into the sky, opening a hole in the majestic Sun Shrine's roof. Hu Ling'er immediately shouted out, and the dragon qilin brought them after the giants. Once out, they looked at the sky.
The sunlight was dazzling.
The black sun had vanished without a trace, having been replaced by a sun blazing with yellow-white rays and emanating heat.
"Young master will be fine, right?"
Hu Ling'er immediately made the dragon qilin fly toward the sun. Ling Yuxiu was also anxious as she hurried the dragon qilin again and again. Only Si Yunxiang's heart bloomed with joy. 'I'm going to become a charming widow…'
They flew into midair, but the dragon qilin suddenly changed his direction. He flew toward the pillars below, stunning the girls. They then looked there and saw two figures as well as a group of flood dragons.
The dragon qilin landed, and the three girls immediately jumped down. They saw Qin Mu laying down a frail and thin girl from Sun Ship on the floor.
Ling Yuxiu hurriedly went forward. "The one who herds cows, you…"
"Shush." Qin Mu put a finger on his lips and said in a low voice, "She fainted. I'm quite skilled in nursing girls; my reputation of the divine physician comes from Flower Alley."
Ling Yuxiu pinched him with ruthlessness under the armpit and grumbled. "I was worried to death!"
"I said that there will be no danger. Awaken!" Qin Mu said with a smile.
Layers of formations swirled in his eyes as he opened Cinnabar Heaven's Eyes. He then executed Secrets of Dragon Control and a flood dragon flew over. It leaned on his shoulder while its body coiled around his waist.
With the borrowed dragon qi, Qin Mu's cultivation rose drastically, and more layers of formations surged in his eyes. He opened all nine layers of Heaven's Eyes to check on Yan Jingjing's body.
After a moment, he dispersed Secrets of Dragon Control, and the layers of heavens in his eyes faded away. However, the flood dragon didn't leave his shoulder and continued to lay there comfortably.
"Ma ha." The flood dragon opened its mouth to yawn, growing sleepy.
Hu Ling'er immediately ran over and grabbed onto the corner of Qin Mu's shirt to climb up. "Go down, go down! Go sleep elsewhere, this is my spot!"
That flood dragon could only scramble down.
Hu Ling'er sat on Qin Mu's shoulder and swung her feet from side to side. Her snow white tails swayed around proudly.
Qin Mu muttered to himself for a moment before saying, "Ling'er, I will read the prescription and you will grab the herbs."
Hu Ling'er gave a sound of acknowledgment and transformed back into a little fox which jumped into his taotie sack. Qin Mu read the names of all the herbs he needed, and a whirlwind in taotie sack brought them out.
Ling Yuxiu saw their chemistry and felt slightly jealous of the little fox. She took a glance and smiled at Si Yunxiang. "No more chance to be the charming widow."
Si Yunxiang giggled and said, "Cult Master likes to play with his life, so he will play himself to death sooner or later. It's still very likely that I'll become a charming widow."
Qin Mu refined a few furnaces of spirit pills and fed them to the fainted Yan Jingjing. He was separating the rest of the pills when the old chief brought the elders back from the sun. From far away, their loud voices could be heard. "We didn't find Little Friend Qin, he has most likely turned into ashe—"
Before the elder could finish his sentence, he saw Qin Mu.
The group couldn't hide its astonishment. Qin Mu in the meantime finished separating the medicines. "Ling'er, feed her a portion every day and night. Chief, mission accomplished."
The old chief suppressed the throbbing in his heart and asked, "How did Little Friend Qin ignite the sun? How did you come back alive?"
Qin Mu smiled and said, "It's very simple. I used Secrets of Dragon Control to have the fire flood dragons lend their magic power to me. I then adjusted the power of Sun Jade Eye to its maximum and threw it into the black sun, which then ignited it."
He gave a simple description, but the old chief knew how big was Qin Mu's sacrifice. A treasure that could ignite the black sun was no little thing, yet he'd had no hesitation in parting with it.
He couldn't help feeling guilty in his heart. Qin Mu was so selfless yet he wasn't willing to come forth and assist him earlier. Comparing the two acts, he was ashamed to show his face.
"Sister Jing needs to rest for a few days. Her body is too exhausted, and my spirit pills will only help to replenish some of her vital qi." Qin Mu had a solemn expression as he added, "Her lifespan was exhausted, and it's hard to retrieve it. I can only help nurse her back and stop her lifespan from deteriorating."
The old chief let out a sigh of relief and said, "It's already a huge kindness to save her life. What's more, Little Friend Qin even helped our Sun Herd Tribe by igniting our sun. Such a kindness I won't forget until my death. Little Friend Qin, now that Jing'er is unconscious, we still need a sun guardian to defend against the invasion of the devil gods tonight, may little friend come and observe the ceremo— You mustn't!"
Qin Mu's palm came into contact with a pillar and the old chief's expression changed. He immediately went up to stop him, but he was a step late. Qin Mu's palm had already touched the surface of the pillar.
Instantly, boundless energy burst forth and flooded Qin Mu. In an instant, he roared fiercely and true fire blazed around him. His corporeal body became larger and larger, and his other arm took hold of the other pillar without having a choice in the matter.
His muscles expanded, and two more arms came out from under his armpits to grab hold of the remaining two pillars. In a split second, he transformed into a god that was bathing in the sun's true fire!
God's prestige surged out wave after wave and smacked the surroundings, making people feel like they were standing in fierce waves.
The old chief protected Hu Ling'er, Ling Yuxiu, and the rest. With a dazed look, he raised his head up to see the three hundred yards giant. Suddenly, he came to realization and knelt down on one knee.
He lowered his head and greeted, "Your Highness."
Behind him, the elders also knelt down on one knee and lowered their heads. "Your Highness."
Ling Yuxiu, Si Yunxiang, and the rest were puzzled. They saw the giants of Sun Herd Tribe walking over, coming to the pillars in silence. They all knelt down on one knee.
"Your Highness."
Si Yunxiang moved to Ling Yuxiu's ear and whispered, "Princess Xiu, the one who herds cows seems to have an even more powerful background than you…"