Chapter 32: Main Inscription
The early sun rose at the horizon, and invisible flames surged furiously from the depths of the Meteor Fire Land. Even from a great distance, Su Xiao felt the wave of heat rushing toward him.
Hiss, hiss~
The bandages wrapped around Su Xiao turned to ash and scattered. Seeing this, he crouched down and ducked into a tent-like small shelter, pulling the door latch down inside. With a click, the shelter's door sealed shut.
This shelter was very small, only about 5 square meters in area and roughly 1.4 meters in height. Sitting inside or lying down wouldn't feel cramped or stuffy, but standing up was impossible.
Because the shelter was made from over a hundred layers of composite materials, it was opaque and completely sealed. Various auxiliary systems had activated, casting a pale blue light inside. A fine, cool mist drifted out from around the circular cold-light lamp above, quickly dispelling the accumulated heat and dryness within Su Xiao's body.
"So there was this shelter. Looks like you were well-prepared for the 'Flame of Truth.'"
Saint Hymn spoke, holding a cup of iced lemonade with a straw in her mouth.
"..."
Su Xiao didn't reply. He raised his hand and pressed it against the inner wall of the shelter, feeling the temperature change.
"Don't just stay silent. At least give me some confidence..."
Before Saint Hymn could finish, the invisible flames outside surged in. The impact caused the shelter to vibrate slightly. The alarm inside screeched, and the cooling system kicked in at maximum, barely managing to keep the interior around 26°C. All warning lights were flashing, and various readings were off the charts.
Even so, the shelter held firm. After all, it was a high-tech black-market purchase from the Goblin Merchant Guild at a steep price. Though the goblins were shady, greedy, and charged exorbitant prices, the quality of their goods was always guaranteed. That was the goblins' style—cunning and avaricious, but with extremely strict standards for their merchandise. That was precisely why the Goblin Merchant Guild had reached such a scale.
A few minutes later, the shelter gradually adapted to the impact of the invisible flames and stabilized. Outside was a terrifying heat capable of vaporizing steel, while inside was a cool 23°C. Staying here felt exceptionally safe.
"It actually held."
Su Xiao opened the shelter's energy core and inserted four Soul Crystals (Complete) into it, ensuring the shelter could operate steadily.
"What do you mean? Are you saying you weren't sure this shelter could withstand the 'Flame of Truth' just now? If it hadn't held, my body would have been burned to ashes. And if my reaction hadn't been fast enough, this flame might have even consumed my soul."
"No, I was very sure it would hold."
"You just said 'it actually held' yourself."
"Your imagination."
"I..."
Saint Hymn wanted to argue, but then she realized that this space was only 5 square meters, and sitting across from her was a Melee Grandmaster. She was a Healing Type. Even though they were cooperating, at this distance, if he suddenly grabbed her and started hitting her, she had virtually no chance to fight back.
"Maybe I misheard. I'm a bit dizzy too. Going to sleep now."
Saint Hymn lay comfortably on the soft blanket, feeling the cool moisture soothing her arms and neck. Her expression gradually relaxed.
"Want me to help restore your condition?"
Golden energy gathered in Saint Hymn's hand, both sacred and brimming with life force.
"..."
Su Xiao didn't respond. He shared the content of the "Sun Trial," which instantly jolted Saint Hymn, who had been drowsy from the coolness, wide awake. She sat up halfway and said:
"What kind of damn trial is this? Is this meant for people? Well... okay, someone with over 600,000 health points does have the qualifications to attempt this trial."
Saint Hymn lay back down flat. Back when she was at the top tier of the Eighth Rank, she had thought she was part of that elite group. But after meeting people like Su Xiao, Kaisa, Solomon, Zuiyasi, Wude, Shenfu, the Undead Girl, Kayn, and Water Brother, she suddenly felt that the world was still a very dangerous place.
Su Xiao sat cross-legged in meditation, checking his health. It was at 60.2%. Here, his natural health regeneration was heavily suppressed. He estimated that after resting for 14 hours—basically getting through the daylight—his health would at most recover to around 65% to 68%. Self-healing was too restricted.
As for other methods, they were obviously unusable. This "Sun Trial" required the participant to face the blazing sun directly. Any cheating or shortcuts would result in failure. That was the style of the Sun Faction.
Just as Su Xiao was meditating and Saint Hymn was about to drift off, the shelter shook with a heavy thud. The vibration wasn't large, but the impact was exceptionally solid.
Thud, thud, thud~
The tremors approached one by one, stopping right beside the shelter. Clearly, something massive was moving through the invisible flames.
Saint Hymn pointed upward, silently asking if she should buff Su Xiao to prepare for battle.
Su Xiao raised his index finger to his lips, signaling for silence. He had no idea what gave Saint Hymn the illusion that he could fight whatever was outside in the invisible flames, even with a ton of buffs. It was impossible.
Creak~
The entire shelter groaned under strain. Clearly, the massive entity outside was studying this unfamiliar object.
A moment later.
Thud, thud, thud~
The heavy footsteps gradually faded away. Everything returned to calm, with only the faint hiss of the invisible flames brushing against the shelter's exterior.
Three hours later, a rustling sound came.
Dong, dong~
It sounded like something sharp and hard was tapping on the shelter's door. A few seconds later, a voice came from outside:
"Are... you travelers? I am... a Sun... believer. Do you... need help...?"
After saying this, there were two more soft taps.
Outside the shelter, a giant scorpion, seemingly made of semi-molten metal, was observing the shelter with a single eye on its tail. The tapping sound came from the venomous stinger at the tip of its tail striking the metal outer layer of the shelter's small door. As for the voice, it came from a human head on its back. The bizarre scorpion's back was densely packed with human heads—at least a few hundred squeezed together. Some of the heads' eyes occasionally blinked in a strange, unsettling manner.
Dong, dong~
Dong, dong~
The bizarre scorpion tapped a few more times with its tail stinger, then lost interest in the shelter. It soon disappeared behind a distant sand dune.
Over a dozen minutes later, a towering figure nearly four meters tall, clad in full heavy armor and holding a scepter, passed by. Upon seeing the shelter, it changed direction and, somewhat mechanically, used its three-meter-long metal scepter to smash all the eggs the bizarre scorpion had laid on the shelter's outer wall. Then it thrust the scepter into the sand, raised its arms toward the sun as if embracing the sky, and stood there for a while. After a moment, it pulled the scepter from the ground and continued wandering through the Meteor Fire Land like a ghost.
Inside the shelter, Saint Hymn was wide awake. She had originally thought that since no enemies appeared during the desert night, the daytime when the "Flame of Truth" spread would be completely dead. But who would have guessed that the daytime here was far livelier than the night.
Saint Hymn didn't last long before falling asleep again. After all, if the shelter were destroyed, she would wake up immediately. It was better to just rest well.
Time passed quickly. When the shelter's timer emitted a beeping sound, Su Xiao opened his eyes and ended his meditation. He reached out and touched the inner wall of the shelter. It was no longer hot, meaning the temperature outside had dropped sharply.
He opened the small door. Sure enough, it was already night. The entire desert was not dark, thanks to the faint orange glow emanating from the sand grains on the ground.
He packed up the shelter and stored it in the team storage space. Su Xiao continued deeper into the Meteor Fire Land. For some reason, with every few steps he took, he felt an increasing difficulty in moving forward. He glanced at Saint Hymn, who, aside from being more alert than yesterday, was still searching around after every short distance. It seemed she was addicted to finding Fire Gold.
Unable to use his perception, Su Xiao could only rely on vague feelings. He looked at the sun ring imprint at the center of his chest, which had appeared only after accepting the Sun Trial.
Su Xiao felt as if countless threads were spreading out from this sun ring imprint, their other ends disappearing into the surrounding space. With every step he took, he snapped a few of these invisible threads, but at the same time, more threads emerged from the imprint. It seemed the Sun Trial wasn't something that could be completed just by having enough health.
Su Xiao walked steadily, one step at a time. His footprints grew deeper and deeper. Sweat beaded on his body, evaporating almost instantly, making it look like faint white vapor was rising from him.
Each step became more arduous. After continuing for over nine hours, Su Xiao's vision even started to blur.
[Prompt: You are undergoing a Willpower test from the "Blazing Sun." Willpower assessment in progress...]
[You have passed this assessment.]
[Your True Willpower +1 point.]
[Your True Stamina attribute +1 point.]
[The warm sun shines upon you, restoring 10% of your health.]
...
"Hoo~"
Su Xiao exhaled a puff of white steam. He looked at the distant rising sun and knew it was time to rest. He took out the shelter again, activated it, and it expanded.
Inside the cool, mist-filled shelter, Su Xiao sat cross-legged in meditation again. This time, it wasn't just a matter of his health being at 42.5%; his stamina was also severely depleted.
When the shelter withstood the second daytime, it was noticeably less stable than the day before, but it still managed to hold out for 14 hours. Su Xiao estimated that the shelter could last at most another 20 hours or so.
Packing up the shelter, Su Xiao continued onward. Saint Hymn, his companion, was still trying to find a third piece of Fire Gold. Instead, she found a wooden chest. She opened it with great anticipation, only to be cursed. However, the curse was so ancient that its effect lasted only a dozen or so minutes.
The sand crunched underfoot as Su Xiao walked. This was his third night in the Meteor Fire Land. If he couldn't reach the central meteor crater before dawn, he would face trial failure. If even over 600,000 health points couldn't pass this trial, Su Xiao wouldn't regret the failure.
After another four hours of painstaking progress, the temperature ahead suddenly skyrocketed. All the sweat on Su Xiao's body evaporated instantly. The searing heat nearly made him collapse.
Looking ahead, a massive fire pit, at least dozens of kilometers in diameter, appeared. This was the meteor crater at the center of the Meteor Fire Land.
The interior of the crater, scorched by high temperatures for years, was jagged and uneven. Inside, it was a dazzling, scorching red. The bottom of the pit glowed a golden red, looking like an irregularly shaped sun—as if a sun had fallen here.
Su Xiao looked back at Saint Hymn, who was standing a few hundred meters behind him. He wondered why she had stopped. In truth, Saint Hymn was dumbfounded. She couldn't understand how Su Xiao could so calmly approach the crater. How was he resisting the 15% max health per second True Sun Flame damage in that area?
In reality, Su Xiao wasn't taking that damage at all. The sun ring imprint on his chest, while causing him difficulties along the way, had other functions.
Stopping at the edge of the crater, Su Xiao gazed at the magnificent sight. Besides the shock, there was an indescribable feeling. The sun had fallen here, and the Sun God Cult of this world seemed to have perished here as well. The feeling was especially strong at this spot.
Su Xiao carefully recalled the situation of the Sun God Cult in this world. It seemed that after the thousand-year war between the Alliance and the Northern Empire, the Sun God Cult had given the impression of retreating to the Desert Kingdom. Due to the Desert Kingdom's backwardness, the cult became even more low-key, to the point of no longer recruiting members or interfering in the power struggles among major factions.
Thinking back to his interactions with the Sun God Cult, aside from the Platinum Archbishop, the Red-Eyed Woman, and the Beast Knight, Su Xiao hadn't really seen any other members of the cult in this world. It was said that the other members were in the Desert Kingdom, but even there, he hadn't seen much trace of them.
It felt as if, in the last few centuries, all the Sun God Cult's presence had been propped up by the Platinum Archbishop alone. It gave the impression that the cult still existed, but where its members had gone was anyone's guess.
There was another point. Earlier, when Su Xiao was in a conflict with Vice Dean Yexinge, he had allied with the Platinum Archbishop—essentially allying with the Sun God Cult. The Alliance's four Grand Councilors hadn't even issued a warning. In contrast, Vice Dean Yexinge, who had allied with the Dawn God Cult, had died in the Council Hall, and the four Grand Councilors hadn't even pursued the matter. It was simply dropped.
Su Xiao's alliance with the Sun God Cult had no consequences, while Yexinge's alliance with the Dawn God Cult led to the Alliance abandoning him. Was it because the four Grand Councilors were especially kind to Su Xiao? No. There was another possibility: allying with the Sun God Cult didn't matter because it posed no threat to the Alliance. The cult was already a shell of its former self.
With a snap, Su Xiao felt the immense pressure around him vanish. The sun ring imprint at the center of his chest disappeared, and a prompt appeared.
[You have passed the Sun Trial.]
[You have gained the Sun Protection effect (lasting 24 hours).]
[You have obtained the qualification to enter the Sun Temple. With Sun Protection active, jumping into the meteor crater will not cause Sun Flame burns.]
[You may obtain the "Supreme Blazing Sun (Origin-Level Inscription)" from the stone tablet in the Sun Temple.]
...
A warm energy enveloped Su Xiao's body. Even the heat radiating from the crater disappeared. Instead of jumping in immediately, he took out the [Sun Disk] and tossed it into the crater.
The [Sun Disk] spun as it fell into the crater. Suddenly, it stopped, and a powerful suction force erupted from within.
Like a whale drinking water, the high-concentration Sun Flame in the crater was sucked into the [Sun Disk]. Even the massive, sun-like fireball at the bottom began to dim.
The [Sun Disk] had absorbed the Sun Flame from the explosion of "Wrath of the Sun: Apollo" in an instant—maybe even less than 0.5 seconds. But now, it took nearly three hours, and the Sun Flame in the crater still wasn't fully absorbed.
After absorbing for over four hours, the once blazing red crater turned into a translucent, black glassy color, with not a trace of Sun Flame left. The surrounding temperature gradually returned to normal.
Su Xiao tried to pick up the floating [Sun Disk]. With a sizzle, a burning sensation reached his hand. The [Sun Disk], originally rock-like, had become a translucent, blazing red, with dense patterns at its center.
[Sun Disk]
Quality: Immortal Rank (Upgrading...)
Type: Auxiliary Equipment.
Equipment Effect: Sun Power (Unique, Passive), Activating...
Absorbed Sun Flame: 158.59% (Exceeds required amount).
Rating: Upgrading...
Description: Praise the sun.
Selling Price: This item is a representative artifact of the Sun Faction. If you sell it, your Sun Faction reputation will be permanently reduced by -8000 points.
...
Taking out a charcoal box, Su Xiao stored the [Sun Disk] in the team storage space. Even if it emitted high heat in the storage space, it was fine. The authentication authority would prevent it from burning other items.
Su Xiao looked at the bottom of the crater. There was a sloping downward hole with visible steps. This should be the Sun Temple.
Jumping to the bottom of the crater, Su Xiao followed the descending steps into this underground structure. The passage he was in showed signs of being scorched by high temperatures, and there were multiple doors, all burned away.
When Su Xiao reached the end of the descending steps, he was blocked by a silver-gray metal door. He tried pushing it open but failed. Stepping back, he delivered a straight kick.
Boom!!!
A shockwave of air exploded. Su Xiao held his kicking pose for a few seconds before retracting his numb leg. He stood there for a moment, waiting for his right leg to regain feeling.
Couldn't push it open. The universal key also failed. Su Xiao began to examine the door. Without a doubt, the method to open this door was likely the final step of a ticket quest required to enter this dangerous area. The problem was, he had no idea what that quest was.
To be precise, the normal process to come here would be:
Negotiate with the Platinum God Cult → Join the Sun God Cult → Gradually discover the Sun God Cult's secrets → Ask the Platinum Archbishop → Show sincerity → The Platinum Archbishop sends the Red-Eyed Woman and the Beast to cooperate with the quest activator to go to the Ghost City → Finally, steal the key to the Sun Temple and the "Sun Talisman" from the Abyss Lord, using the talisman to resist the environmental damage of the Meteor Fire Land.
In this long process, Su Xiao had skipped some steps. For example, after learning about the Meteor Fire Land from the Platinum God Cult, he simply came here. Going to the Ghost City for the key and talisman wasn't a priority.
After resting for a moment, Su Xiao coated his right calf and foot with a crystal layer and delivered another straight kick.
Boom!!!
The silver-gray metal door dented inward slightly. Seeing this, Su Xiao knew the universal key was still viable. He took out a few potions, drank one, and poured another over his right calf. A few minutes later.
Boom!!!
Boom!!!
Above the crater, Saint Hymn, who was waiting, suddenly felt the ground beneath her feet tremble. She instinctively looked toward the source of the sound—the hole at the bottom of the crater. After a moment of hesitation, she decided to jump down. After all, they had promised to cooperate, and since it seemed they were now in combat, she wouldn't just stand by.
At the bottom of the crater, Saint Hymn found that the imagined high heat was absent. The disk must have absorbed all the flames, making the area safe.
When Saint Hymn reached the deepest corridor, she saw Su Xiao repeatedly kicking the metal door. The silver-gray door, clearly an ancient and extraordinary object, was now severely dented.
With a crash, the door could no longer withstand the assault. Su Xiao's kick sent it flying inward. Immediately after, Saint Hymn, who was in a team with Su Xiao, received a prompt.
[Prompt: Your teammate, Hunter Bai Ye, has opened the Sun Temple door.]
[Your team has opened the Sun Temple door by bypassing 2 related side quests and 3 faction quests. This action will forfeit the corresponding event rewards but will grant the following rewards.]
[Team leader Hunter Bai Ye has obtained the Miracle Soul Chest (opening yields 1 to 100 Soul Crystal Cores).]
[You have obtained the Soul Chest (opening yields 1 to 10 Soul Crystal Cores).]
[Due to your combat support status, you have unlocked the following achievement title for this event.]
[Achievement Title: Fearless Explorer (★★★★★★★).]
...
"This..."
Saint Hymn was stunned. She looked at the Soul Chest in her hand and the newly added seven-star title in her title list. She couldn't help but ask:
"Bai Ye, what title did you get?"
"..."
Su Xiao didn't answer. The crystal layer on his leg dissipated.
"I really like collecting titles. I've even compiled an illustrated guide. If you're willing to let me record the title you got, I'll give you a copy of this guide, which already has over 1,900 titles recorded. It even includes many nine-star title entries."
"..."
Su Xiao still didn't speak. At this moment, Saint Hymn, who had a collector's obsession with title designs, hadn't yet realized the severity of the situation.
A moment later, Su Xiao had a title guide in his hand—Saint Hymn's Collector's Edition. It contained methods for obtaining several eight-star and nine-star titles. Behind him, Saint Hymn's smile was "gentle," but her gaze seemed to say, "Just you wait, bitch."
Su Xiao walked into the Sun Temple. Upon entering, he found that this was likely the lowest level of the temple. As for the upper levels, they had probably been blown away.
At the center of the Sun Temple's floor was a circular, irregularly edged black ring. Su Xiao crouched down and pressed one hand into the ring. The moment he touched it, he determined that this was the residual of a forcibly closed Abyss Passage. The passage's original location was slightly higher up. It had been forcibly closed, leaving this residual imprint on the floor just before it vanished.
Judging by the floor height and the temple's level, this was probably the sixth underground level of the Sun Temple. The Abyss Passage's original height was likely around the fifth underground level.
This world had the Dark God Cult, a faction that worshipped the Abyss. The appearance of an Abyss Passage wasn't surprising. What was truly astonishing was how the world's natives had dealt with it.
Even if this was a Ninth Rank world, once an Abyss Passage appeared, it would be difficult to survive. The Gloomy Continent, a Transcendent Primordial World, had ultimately declined due to multiple Abyss Passages. In this Shadow World, a single Abyss Passage would have been enough to corrupt the entire place.
If his guess was correct, this Sun Temple was originally the Sun God Cult's headquarters. When the Abyss Passage appeared, the cult's members rushed here. After deliberation, they decided to relocate their headquarters and build the Sun Temple here to suppress the gradually opening passage.
The result was that the Sun God Cult became increasingly low-key. When the Abyss Passage reached an irreversible point, the cult made a decision: gather all their power to disperse the not-yet-fully-opened passage. The result was obvious. They succeeded. The violent Sun Flame explosion created this Meteor Fire Land and this crater filled with Sun Flame. Only the sixth underground level of the Sun Temple, directly below the Abyss Passage, was preserved.
Su Xiao looked at a stone tablet a few meters away. It was engraved with many names, all former members of the Sun God Cult. The top three names caught his attention, especially the first one, which had a platinum mask embedded beside it. The three names were:
'Sun Archbishop: Silvervis.'
'Red-Eyed Woman: Hilde.'
'Beast Knight: Gal.'
...
Below the tablet, about a meter from the ground, was embedded an inscription emitting a faint, blazing red glow. This was the first Origin-Level Inscription Su Xiao had ever seen. Beside the inscription was engraved a line: "For those who dare to face the Sun Trial."
[You have obtained Supreme Blazing Sun (Origin-Level Inscription).]
[Supreme Blazing Sun]
Origin: Sun Faction.
Quality: Origin Level.
Type: Inscription Class, Main Inscription.
Usage: Insert this inscription into an Inscription Base type equipment.
Prompt: Inscription Base equipment can hold 3 to 5 inscription pieces (exact number depends on the equipment's quality).
Prompt: The smaller the Inscription Base equipment, the rarer it is. Rare Inscription Base equipment can even be worn as a pendant on the waist.
Prompt: Inscription Base equipment has no initial attributes. It gains benefits based on the inserted inscription pieces.
Prompt: This inscription can only be used as a Main Inscription.
Supreme Blazing Sun Inscription Effect: Immune to 55% of Sun Flame damage, including True Damage caused by Sun Flame (for each secondary inscription inserted into the Inscription Base, this main inscription's effect increases by 0.1% to 5%, up to a maximum of 75% immunity to Sun Flame damage).
Rating: 3000++ points (Origin Level equipment rating is 1500 to 3000 points).
Description: Those who face the sun have no fear of its flames.
...
PS: (Sunday, rest day to prevent old ailments from recurring. Please understand, dear readers.)