---o---
Fuyan fell silent.
It was hard to imagine that this Fuyan, who was practically the reincarnation of a bratty little gremlin, who never had a single good word to say and was constantly, instinctively, verbally antagonizing others, would now be as silent as a cold, hard stone.
But what else could he do besides shut up?
He, now... no, it was no longer appropriate to refer to him in the singular.
It should be they—the Heliobi who had just merged with Fuyan—who began to fall apart the very moment Ron ignited them with the Flame of Hope. Countless Heliobi tumbled through the air. As beings of formless starlight-fire, they now seemed to have solid bodies as they crashed to the ground, utterly disoriented.
Although according to the records of the Xianzhou's ancestors, aside from methods like using the Furnace of Creation to drain a Heliobus's power over many years as a source of energy, there was almost no way to completely extinguish one. They possessed an immortal, undying life...
To the people of the Xianzhou, the best way to deal with a Heliobus was to imprison it in a formless forcefield, isolating it from intelligent life. When the Heliobi once ran rampant, the Ten-Lords Commission provided suitable artifacts for the judges and emissaries on the front lines to capture them, such as the Cangyue Gourd given to HuoHuo—
But now, for Fuyan and the others, they were facing a true life-and-death crisis.
The Flame of Hope ignited by Ron had effortlessly burned away a part of the concept upon their bodies... The sacred, resplendent golden fire of Salvation was now dancing together with their own burning turquoise flames, a brilliant and beautiful tapestry of color.
But for them, these golden flames surging into their very selves were certainly not a good thing... Although the flames made them swell in size, the turquoise light of their bodies grew dimmer and dimmer, making the golden sacred fire runes within them shine ever brighter.
The life of [Salvation] was burning their concept of "burning." If this continued, once the concept of "burning" was completely burned away, these essences of starlight-fire would likewise cease to burn—
And once the Heliobi completely stopped burning... that would be the end of their lives.
After all, although a Heliobus could be crushed by infinite power or suppressed in the Xianzhou's power furnaces and drained for thousands of years while still continuing to burn, maintaining the last wisp of its flame, none of them could resist a power that was on the level of an Aeon, one that struck at their very essence...
When the concept of "burning" itself was completely lost, even the eternally burning Heliobi would be extinguished.
Therefore, not more than a few seconds after Ron had ignited the Heliobi and calmly threatened them, countless weak voices could be heard:
"Let... let me go!"
"I'll help you! I'll help you! Let me go!"
"It's hot... so hot!"
...
Amidst the miserable howls of these pleading Heliobi, Fuyan's familiar, grating voice was the easiest to distinguish.
He was extremely weak, but because he had just merged with countless Heliobi, his body was in the strongest and most secure state when it encountered the sacred fire of [Salvation]. Although he was in immense pain from the burning, he had maintained the best condition among all the Heliobi, allowing his voice to ring out loud and clear...
Hearing the Heliobi's pleas for mercy, Ron lightly snapped his fingers. The indifferent golden light in his pupils gradually faded, revealing his original dark black eyes.
The golden flames burning on the Heliobi's bodies also vanished with that snap, completely stopping the burning of their essence.
In the next moment, the countless Heliobi, who had been suppressed by the sacred fire of [Salvation] to the point of near extinguishment, saw their turquoise flames flare up once more. Then, like travelers in thin clothes on a winter's day, they began to frantically huddle together for warmth...
This was in line with the Heliobi's behavioral characteristics—their actions were like a swarm of bees. These essences of starlight-fire could split and merge, exchange information and experiences with each other, and enhance their power to repel enemies.
They had just emerged from a state of extreme weakness, on the verge of being extinguished. It was only natural for them to instinctively seek out their kin to merge with, to make their own flames burn brighter and avoid being snuffed out by a sudden gust of wind.
As the turquoise flames merged once more, a giant, burning turquoise eye appeared above the Artisanship Commission...
Fuyan, as the Heliobus who had suffered the least damage, naturally became the main body of the Heliobi once again.
However, although he was now the same as before, floating in the sky above the Artisanship Commission as a mountain-sized entity, exuding an immense sense of pressure as he looked down at Ron on the ground, he no longer dared to show even a hint of arrogance or pride...
He merely lowered his eye humbly and spoke carefully to Ron, his voice still tinged with a bit of weakness:
"My... my loyalty to you, Milord, is as true as heaven and earth! If Milord tells me to go east, Fuyan would never dare to go west..."
How could he not be humble? Fuyan, since birth, knew best how to be a person... ah, no, a Heliobus.
Although this fellow had always been a vicious talker, that was only when he held the initiative, or after he had thrown all decorum to the wind...
But when faced with an enemy who was on a completely different level of power—like Ron, an enemy far stronger than the General of the Luofu in Fuyan's memory—if someone told him to shout and fight like he did with the Luofu's General, he would slap that person across the face with his backhand, then immediately kneel and beg for his life.
As a Heliobus, his main principle was to follow his heart. When it was time to be a coward, he had never once hesitated...
Seeing Fuyan's humble performance, Ron was a bit speechless.
He actually preferred the more rebellious and unruly Fuyan from just a moment ago... Ahem, now was not the time for jokes.
He looked at Fuyan, who had been thoroughly cowed by the burning of the sacred fire of [Salvation], and pointed a finger outside the Artisanship Commission with confidence.
"Since you say so, then I can rest assured... The current General of the Luofu, Jing Yuan, and the Master Diviner, Lady Fu Xuan, are currently leading a massive force of Cloud Knights and the main strength of the Luofu's Six Commissions to sweep through the entire Xianzhou [Luofu], all to find the hidden [Lord Ravager Phantylia]."
"After you leave, just go find them... They are probably on their way to the Artisanship Commission right now, so there's no need to waste any more time."
Ron laid out the detailed plan for Fuyan:
"When you find the main force led by the Master Diviner, don't just suddenly appear. You don't want to cause a panic when you ghoulish things show up..."
"Just go and find the Master Diviner and Jing Yuan discreetly—hide yourselves, create an illusion, you know how to do these little tricks. I don't think I need to teach you."
"The Master Diviner will understand your intentions... After that, just lead the main force to find Phantylia. As long as you can find her, the conditions I promised you before still stand—"
"Jing Yuan certainly wouldn't mind having a match with you for a matter like this... After all, he is the most reliable general in the history of the Xianzhou [Luofu]."
But upon hearing Ron's words, Fuyan couldn't help but shudder and quickly said:
"What conditions or not? To do things for Milord is our honor!"
He was about to continue with his sharp voice in a fawning tone, but before he could even open his mouth, he was forced back by Ron's disgusted and cold glare.
"...What's the point of you acting like a eunuch when I'm not some emperor?"
Ron waved his hand in disgust, shooing Fuyan away.
"I don't care if you still want a reward or not. I just want to see you find Phantylia for me, and quickly—what you do after you find her will be none of my business. I won't bother with you again..."
Fuyan heard the disgust and warning in Ron's words. He didn't dare say another word and immediately streaked away, flying off to follow Ron's instructions and find the main force led by Fu Xuan and Jing Yuan.
And in the next moment, Ron shifted his gaze away, moving it to the Furnace of Creation before him—
The image on the light screen gradually faded.
Seeing the situation in the simulation developing steadily in the direction he had hoped for, Ron couldn't help but breathe a small sigh of relief.
His purpose in coming to the Artisanship Commission was now half complete. The other half lay with the Furnace of Creation, the focus at the end of the previous scene.
Releasing the Heliobi and having them help Fu Xuan and Jing Yuan find Phantylia was actually just an additional reason for Ron's visit to the Artisanship Commission.
The main reason was, just as Herta had thought before, to complete that miracle design, to push forward the "Sharpening the Blade" project...
The Furnace of Creation, as a great treasure of the Artisanship Commission on the Xianzhou [Luofu], was not merely an object for imprisoning and draining the fire of the Heliobi.
Its most important function was as a forge for countless mechanical creations, using the infinite firepower of the Heliobi as its foundation to forge all sorts of objects and tools...
Although for the Lantern of [Salvation], the Heliobi's fire was no different from a hand-warmer that had been filled with hot water and left to sit for half a day, Ron had never expected the Heliobi to have any effect on the Lantern.
From the very beginning, Ron had only counted on the sacred fire of [Salvation] as the sole option for forging the Lantern of [Salvation]—
Otherwise, why would he have gone to such great lengths to burn the concept of [The Abundance] on the main root of the Ambrosial Arbor, to supplement the Lantern of [Salvation] into a true Aeon-grade object?
The so-called power of an Aeon, when brought into reality, was precisely these resplendent golden flames...
And the Furnace of Creation was the most likely vessel on the entire Xianzhou [Luofu] to be able to contain the sacred fire of [Salvation].
Although even the Furnace of Creation wouldn't last long if he truly unleashed the fire and prepared to directly forge the Lantern, it could at least hold out for a period of time...
...Which was much better than other objects that would be directly burned to ash by the sacred fire of [Salvation].
Time was of the essence. No one knew exactly how much more time would be needed to solve this project. Ron was not prepared to waste any more time. He had to act decisively and quickly complete this miracle design...
In any case, all the necessary preparations were complete. No matter what, it was time to get started—all that came next, there was nothing that could help them. They could only rely on themselves.
With this thought in mind, Ron saw new lines of text appearing on the light screen before him:
[You have arrived at the Artisanship Commission on the Xianzhou [Luofu], successfully opened the Furnace of Creation, and released the fragmented soul pieces of the great Heliobus "Liaoyuan," which was once defeated by General Tengxiao...]
[Although they wildly mocked your actions of daring to release them, after you chose to thoroughly ignite them with the fire of [Salvation], no one dared to laugh anymore.]
[Under your threats and inducements, the Heliobi frantically left the Artisanship Commission in the fastest way they had ever moved in their lives. Following your instructions, they went to find Master Diviner Fu Xuan and General Jing Yuan, leading them on a search for the scent of a Heliobus, intending to find the hidden [Lord Ravager Phantylia] in the shadows of the Xianzhou [Luofu].]
[But you did not choose to leave the Artisanship Commission. Instead, you cast your gaze upon the great treasure of the Artisanship Commission, now bereft of the burning Heliobus fire—the Furnace of Creation.]
[Now... it is time to sharpen the blade.]