After a century of worship, I became the ancestor of the tribe.

Chapter 292 Drawing the True Fire of the Sun

Shen Can hadn't expected that the Way of the Stars could bring such profound power; if he had known, he would have gone to the Star-Guiding Array to comprehend it as well.

In his view, the improvement of a low-level wizard's comprehension and spiritual awareness was indeed insignificant; what he valued was long-term change.

Yes, the newly built star-attracting array needs to be modified. I need to create a cultivation cave under the starlight for myself, and also to broaden my mind.

After Huo Yun stepped down, Shen Can looked at the clan land renovation plan again. Since the power of the stars was so mysterious, it should be used to the maximum extent.

……

In the northern part of the tribe's territory, on a vast open field, golden light shimmered, forming a witch formation with a diameter of about a hundred feet.

Inside and outside the magic array, there were more than a dozen third-tier wizards, as well as thousands of other wizards, apprentices, and craftsmen of various ranks, all busy at work.

"Witchcraftsman" is a term for people in the tribe who are not witches but can assist witches in inscribing witchcraft, cultivating witchcraft medicine, and preparing witchcraft medicine.

In terms of titles, they can be distinguished by adding prefixes such as "shamanic craftsman" or "shamanic medicine craftsman" according to their classification.

"Be careful."

Yan Chong steered the small boat, loudly admonishing the busy crowd.

"Be careful, make sure to keep the distance between the two array bases right, so that the heat doesn't touch and cause a chain reaction in the other Crimson Fire Crystals."

After everyone embedded the last piece of the completed array base into the large array that was a hundred feet in diameter, Yan Chong breathed a sigh of relief.

"Alright, now everyone leave the formation immediately. Watch your step and don't get burned."

"Do not provoke the witchcraft, all of you restrain your witchcraft power, all of you step back, step back."

Yan Chong relaxed only after seeing his clansmen slowly retreat from the great formation.

This relatively flat area had long been a patchwork of black and yellow, and there were no fist-sized rocks in sight.

It wasn't that it had been prepared in advance; rather, the experimental array failed, and the energy from the explosions blasted this area into this state.

Then, the tribesmen leveled the large crater they had created, burying some of the scorched areas in the soil, resulting in this black and yellow landscape.

The Star-Guiding Array can draw in the essence of stars and moonlight, but drawing in the power of the sun is not so easy.

The sun, perched atop the Great Wilderness, appeared no larger than a ceramic bowl, yet the fiery streams it drew down were incredibly intense, causing the great formation to struggle to withstand them.

The clan has tried dozens of times, all of which have ended in failure.

The previous star-attracting array had repeatedly failed, and it is still only in a usable state, constantly being maintained and improved.

Of course, it can't compare to the scale of the Star-Drawing Array. Currently, only a few thousand of them are working on drawing the power of the sun.

Yan Chong piloted the small flying boat and began to retreat. Huo Fu was also there, about ten feet outside the formation.

"Master, that's enough. Please step back a little. I'm about to activate the magic array."

As Yan Chong spoke, he looked up at the sky. The sun was about to reach its zenith.

He was Huo Fu's second disciple.

Huo Fu had a total of six disciples. His eldest and third disciples followed him in cultivating the art of witchcraft and talismans, while the other disciples had a wider range of interests.

For example, this second disciple came to set up a witchcraft formation.

Apart from the sixth disciple, who was newly accepted and whose cultivation level was still somewhat low, the other five disciples had all advanced to the third-tier wizard realm.

"Bah!"

Before the sun had even risen to the top of the sky, a crimson-gold light suddenly shone within the massive array, which was hundreds of feet in size.

Wu Wen, like lightning, outlined a hundred-foot-long circle of fire.

Just as the flames appeared, the array base crackled and popped, and then a burst of crimson fire surged up from the ground.

In that instant, the sunlight above the witch formation suddenly distorted, and the sun's supreme yang power surged into fire, forming hundreds or thousands of flames that fell down.

"careful!"

In an instant, Huo Fu grabbed Yan Chong and fled into the distance with him.

Rumble!
The collapsing array and the falling fire rain collided, and the energy rippled in all directions, with a surge of crimson fire energy rushing towards Huo Fu.

Even though he managed to take out a talisman and stick it on his body in time, forming a bear-shaped defensive shield, the talisman was still instantly dispersed by the bursting energy, which poured onto his body.

In the blink of an eye, the fire transformed into a streak of light and crashed two hundred feet away.

"Master!"

Just as Yan Chong got up after falling to the ground, the lingering shockwave knocked him down again.

The other clansmen who had retreated were also shaken and staggered.

Yan rushed to the spot where Huo Fu had fallen and saw a steaming, blood-soaked figure. He frantically shouted for the witch doctor to save him.

Because the experimental array was very dangerous, a witch doctor was assigned to oversee it from the beginning.

The witch doctor guarding the place took one look and immediately knew that it was not something he could cure.

"The injuries are too severe; we need the healing elixir made by the medicine-pounding rabbit."

Yan Chong carefully lifted Huo Fu, jumped onto the flying boat sent by his people, and rushed with the witch doctor into the spirit forest deep in the tribe's territory.

……

Ancestral Temple, side hall.

Ayu stood at the door and glanced inside. She saw Shen Can still busy at his desk. After thinking for a moment, she looked away, but then her head popped out again.

"Ayu, what's wrong?"

Shen Can's main seat faces the palace gate, and in the past, A Yu would come in directly to ask questions when she had something to say.

"The temple was severely damaged by fire and is still undergoing treatment."

Shen Can put down the animal skin paper in his hand. "What happened?"

Although only one of his disciples advanced to the fourth rank, the remaining six, under his tutelage as a fifth-rank martial artist, were indeed quite useless.

However, all seven disciples were taken in when the scorching sun was at its weakest, and their talents were not very good to begin with.

However, it made undeniable contributions during the initial development of Zhiyan.

"It was an accident during the experiment of the solar array. He was standing behind his disciple and was hit by the energy of the exploding array."

As Ayu said this, Shen Can had already walked out of the hall.

"Where is the person now?"

"He was saved by the combined efforts of the witch doctor and the medicine-pounding rabbit."

Then, Ayu saw Shen Can's figure disappear into the night.

He paused for a moment, then sat on the steps, lost in thought. He wished he could fly like that too.

……

Today, the Blazing Flame Tribe is filled with branch trees that have grown from the Blazing Flame Spirit Tree. In addition, with the increase in source power in recent years, witch medicines can be planted all over the tribe's territory.

Some commonly used witchcraft medicines in the wilderness are found all over the tribe's territory.

However, to the east of the clan's territory, there is still a place with even more abundant source energy, where spiritual trees flourish and fruit trees can be seen everywhere.

Beneath the tree grew various rare witchcraft herbs, and occasionally one could even spot a fourth-tier precious herb running about.

This is also where the Medicine-Pounding Rabbit and the Innate Little Spirit Clan live.

In the middle of the surrounding spirit trees, on a wooden platform, the moonlight was drawn to a group of dozens of medicine-pounding rabbits dancing and pounding medicine.

Below the platform, Huo Fu, whose body was covered in a layer of green, nectar-like ointment, twitched occasionally, and heat still emanated from his body.

A group of people surrounded Huo Fu.

"Master."

"Master."

"Grandmaster!" As Shen Can descended from mid-air, the crowd below the platform knelt down.

Yan Chong, who was slower to react and was originally kneeling below the platform, turned around and knelt down.

His body was also battered and torn by the flames, bearing burn marks.

"Grandmaster, Master was seriously injured while saving me. Your grand-disciple is willing to accept any punishment."

Shen Can looked around and saw that not only his disciples had all arrived, but also his grand-disciples.

More than a hundred years have passed, and the number of disciples has grown from seven to more than fifty, including thirty-one disciples of the third rank.

To be honest, he hadn't really met some of these grand-disciples much, and he had only met the others a few times when his disciples took him around during his free time.

"Everyone, get up."

Upon hearing Shen Can's words, all of his disciples and grand-disciples stood up one after another.

Shen Can raised his hand and waved it towards Yan Chong, who was kneeling on the ground.

Yan Chong felt himself being pulled up from the ground by an irresistible force.

Shen Can had already figured out the cause and effect before he arrived, and the first thing he did after arriving was to check the state of Huo Fu.

It was discovered that the fire injury was indeed very severe; the body was charred black, and there was a surge of fire inside the internal organs, indicating that the organs were severely burned.

Through the void, Shen Can reached out and grabbed the fire energy from Huo Fu's internal organs.

This fiery aura was tinged with a hint of gold, like overflowing golden rays.

Fortunately, the array was not large enough; otherwise, not only would the fire have been extinguished, but the entire clan that built the array would have suffered heavy losses.

The disciples breathed a slight sigh of relief when they saw that Shen Can had removed the fire from Huo Fu's body.

They felt at ease when their master arrived.

As dawn broke, Huo Fu, lying on the wooden bed beneath the high platform, finally stabilized his breathing thanks to the combined effects of the Moon Essence Elixir prepared by the Medicine-Pounding Rabbit and the ointment made by the witch doctor. However, it would still take some time for him to fully recover.

Then, Huo Fu was sent to recuperate.

Shen Can then led a group of disciples and grand-disciples to the side hall of the ancestral temple.

The disciples didn't actually see Shen Can very often, and it was rare for them to get together, let alone with so many grand-disciples.

As for his grand-disciples, they saw Shen Can even less often.

“Ah Chong.”

At this moment, Shen Can spoke up.

"Master."

Huo Chong got up and came to Shen Can's side. After years of participating in the clan's forging, he had become bald and his face was ruddy.

Huo Zhong's eight disciples also stood up and followed behind Huo Zhong, kneeling down before Shen Can.

“Master, this is my eldest disciple, Yan Tan, whom you have met before. He is now in charge of forging warships within the clan.”

Yan Tan had naturally paid his respects to Shen Can, but not many times. In addition, Shen Can had been in seclusion for more than 20 years, making his disciples and grand-disciples feel even more unfamiliar with him.

"This is the second disciple, Yan Shu. He has now taken over the forging of witch weapons. Not long ago, after learning and integrating the forging techniques of the Bi Fang Bo tribe, he has already forged a fourth-grade low-level witch weapon."

"This is my third disciple, Shi Chang; my fourth disciple, Zhong Yang; and my fifth disciple... They are all currently assisting me."

Following the order of the seven disciples, each of them paid their respects to Shen Can. Huo Fu's disciples, who were still recuperating, were led by their senior master, Huo Zhong, to pay their respects to Shen Can on Huo Fu's behalf.

Shen Can saw excitement and trepidation on the faces of his disciples and grand-disciples, and even more so, deep reverence.

When Shen Can took on disciples, there weren't many people in the clan with the talent for witchcraft. At that time, being able to practice witchcraft was already considered good.

Nowadays, the disciples are all highly talented individuals recruited from within the clan.

After receiving better training than their masters, each of them showed a tendency to surpass their teachers.

The practice of these disciples in the shamanistic path encompasses many categories, including talismans, medicine, spiritual plants, arrays, artifacts, medical treatment, and elixirs.

"Nowadays, the witchcraft in Yongyi is in decline. Apart from my Zhiyan tribe, the other tribes can only forge low-level witch weapons and concoct some simple witch medicines."

"In order to pass on the Hundred Arts of Witchcraft, I plan to start the inheritance of the Hundred Arts of Witchcraft, and select talented people from within the clan to become the leaders of each category of the Hundred Arts."

"Those who become the master of all crafts represent the pinnacle of a certain craft of our tribe."

"The best craftsman is judged not by their level of skill or age, but solely by their achievements in craftsmanship."

As my grand-disciples, you may pursue further study in your respective fields if you are interested.

"In addition, there will be a big move in the clan soon. That will be the time for you to make contributions and advance to the fourth rank. You must seize the opportunity."

At this moment, Huo Zhong was no longer dull and suddenly spoke up: "Master, there are so many categories in the art of forging and refining weapons. Take our clan for example, it includes forging cannons, flying boats, warships, and witch weapons. There is only one leader position. Isn't that a bit unreasonable?"

“Witchcraft artifacts can be comprehensive or specifically divided into categories such as shipbuilding, weapon forging, and cannon casting, and other categories will also be further subdivided.”

In Shen Can's view, the current number of wizards in the Blazing Flame Tribe has laid the foundation for detailed classification.

He could not possibly neglect his own grand-disciple.

He opened the cave's protective barrier, allowing everyone to enter their private treasury and select a gift for them.

His small vault contained quite a lot of things, including witch weapons, witch medicines, ancient books, witchcraft, various five-element crystals, wild beast meat, animal bones, and so on.

After all his disciples and grand-disciples had finished their selections and left, Shen Can left behind only Yan Chong, Huo Fu's disciple.

"Grandmaster, I..."

Yan Chong knelt nervously in front of Shen Can.

"Get up."

Shen Can did not blame Yan Chong. It was only natural for a master to save his disciple in such a critical moment.

"Tell me your thoughts. Do you want to continue researching the magic array that draws upon the power of the sun?"

Yan Chong was filled with trepidation, never expecting Shen Can to ask him this question.

He steadied himself and said, "Master, I have always been interested in studying witchcraft formations."

Thinking that the power of the sun is hundreds or thousands of times greater than the power of the moon, if one could successfully draw upon and transform it, the effect on cultivation would be greatly enhanced. If one could fully control it, it would also be of great help to forging.

As Yan Chong spoke, he gradually grew bolder and described in more detail the dozens of experiments he had conducted with others.

Many people had been injured before, so he had made preparations long ago. Unfortunately, he did not expect this to cause such a big disturbance, and even his master was seriously injured while trying to save him.

As his grand-disciple described the scene, Shen Can recalled the scene when the Golden Crow passed through the area.

Heavenly fire descended from the sky, burning everything to ashes.

If one can control real fire, it is equivalent to having a means similar to unleashing a 'natural disaster'.

More importantly, there is a plague-ridden fat man in the Juyue Mountains.

Heavenly fire is its nemesis.

Although we haven't encountered it yet, it's essential to have methods to control Fei Yi.

At this moment, Shen Can also thought that in addition to restraining Fei Yi, he should also prepare witch medicine to prevent the plague in advance.

After all, Zhiyan is preparing to expand outwards. Whether it's Dai or Yongyi, if the killing is too excessive, Feiyi is very likely to spread the plague.

Furthermore, once Fei Yi realized that Zhi Yan had made a move, he would secretly push for an expansion of the battle's scale in order to amplify the effect of the corpses spreading for thousands of miles.

These are all things that need to be prepared for in advance, so that there is no cause for concern.

"When you go back, go to the clan chief and get a fourth-tier battle suit. Just say that I specially approved it for you."

As he spoke, Shen Can raised his hand and opened a small cave, allowing Yan Chong to enter.

"Go inside and choose a spiritual item that you like; consider it a gift from your master."

As he spoke, he wrote down the matter of stockpiling plague-curing witchcraft medicine and receiving battle armor on a slip of paper, stamped it with his seal, and asked Ayu to deliver it to the clan chief.

(End of this chapter)