Chapter Nine: Refining the Flame of the Heart (Part Two)

When Wang Luo was just eight months old, he could already walk miraculously, and even speak. It was around that time that he decisively and willingly weaned himself, despite his lion mother's milk being sweet, delicious, both thirst-quenching and filling, not to mention highly nutritious. Yet, since his soul was not truly that of a child, he felt distinctly uncomfortable about nursing from his lion mother.

After he was weaned, his lion father found him much more agreeable. When Wang Luo asked his lion father to catch a monster for him, his father happily obliged and brought back a red-horned ox. Unlike his lion parents, who could go ten or fifteen days between meals, Wang Luo was baffled by their ability to endure hunger for so long.

Wang Luo, unwilling to eat raw meat like his lion parents, decided to roast the meat himself. Fortunately, he possessed Heartfire, so there was no need for primitive methods like rubbing sticks together to make a fire.

Before actually roasting, Wang Luo worried that his Heartfire's temperature was too high and would char the meat instantly, especially since he had only recently begun to cultivate it and couldn't control its heat well. But when he finally tried, he found his fears unwarranted—a single piece of meat took half a day to cook through, even though he had compressed the Heartfire's temperature to over a hundred degrees. It still took that long to cook! This frustrated him greatly. The meat looked no different from normal beef, but was so tough—he couldn't imagine how his lion parents could eat it.

When the meat was finally done, it was a blackened lump, thoroughly unappetizing. Under the astonished gaze of the lion family, Wang Luo took a small bite. Thankfully, it was still edible. So, he happily devoured the large, charred hunk, grinning foolishly as he ate.

Afterward, he sought out a piece of leftover meat his lion parents had eaten to test its hardness, only to be further dismayed. The meat itself was unremarkable, but the hide was extremely tough. The piece he’d roasted? It was actually a chunk of hide. Realizing the truth, Wang Luo happened to glance at his lion father and saw him snickering on the side. Wang Luo was momentarily stunned, then instantly understood—the heart of a lion is still hidden beneath its skin, after all.

While eating, Wang Luo also noticed something odd: after swallowing the meat, an inexplicable warmth would rise within him, leaving him feeling cozy and comfortable. Yet, after swirling inside for a while, the heat would quickly dissipate—no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t hold onto it.

As Wang Luo roasted more meat, his skills improved rapidly. The little white lion cub was the first to join him in enjoying roasted meat. Soon after, persuaded by Wang Luo and the cub, the lion parents also began to eat roasted meat.

But in a matter of days, Wang Luo began to regret it. Why had he ever encouraged his lion parents to try roasted meat? After just a few meals, they refused to touch raw meat again, leaving Wang Luo in a bind. The pair’s appetite was astonishing; though they only ate once every two or three days, each meal required Wang Luo to roast meat for the entire day. If the flavor wasn’t good enough, they wouldn’t eat it, demanding he do it over. Thus, under the threat and cajoling of the lion couple, Wang Luo embarked on his career as a chef.

Becoming a chef wasn’t without its benefits. With each use of Heartfire, his control grew stronger, and the fire’s temperature steadily increased. Now, roasting enough meat to feed the lion family took him just about an hour.

Since roasting was so time-consuming, Wang Luo began to experiment with multitasking. He ruined dozens of skewers in the process, but eventually managed to master the art. Now, whenever he roasted meat, he could control the Heartfire with one hand while practicing cultivation or pondering various matters with the other.

About an hour later, the aroma of red-horned ox meat wafted from the grill; the lion family immediately selected their skewers, ready to feast. Watching the golden droplets of fat drip into the Heartfire with a sizzle, the three lions swallowed in unison. At this sight, a faint smile crept onto Wang Luo’s lips. With a subtle gesture, the Heartfire’s color faded, its temperature gradually lowering, until it vanished from the air, leaving only skewers of golden roasted meat, rich with aroma.

The three lions pounced eagerly on their portions the instant the Heartfire disappeared, while Wang Luo joined in as well. Despite the meat still being piping hot, he had no choice—none of the lions would ever save him a portion, and if he was late, he’d go hungry.

After feasting, the lion couple lounged contentedly on the ground, grooming their golden manes, while the white cub rolled across the floor, patting his full belly.

Meanwhile, Wang Luo picked up his bone sword and walked over to the red-horned ox’s head—he still needed to extract the gem inside, and it would be a terrible waste to leave it behind.

The bone sword, modeled after the thin swords of ancient China, was forged from monster bones and teeth, and felt perfectly balanced in Wang Luo’s hand. Occasionally, he would add a tooth or two, repeatedly tempering the blade with Heartfire, striving to maintain its original shape.

Forging the sword had been no easy feat; the bones were so tough that even the Heartfire could not melt them quickly. Determined, Wang Luo multitasked relentlessly, refining the blade day and night. In the end, perseverance paid off, and he finally forged the bone sword.

Standing before the ox’s head, Wang Luo stirred inside it with his sword and soon retrieved a ruby the size of a chicken egg, glowing with a faint red light, warm to the touch. In fact, every colored gem in the lions’ den had a distinct sensation: red for warmth, blue for coolness, yellow for solidity, green for lightness, and so on.

In this land of eternal heat, Wang Luo naturally favored blue gems. In the left cave of the lions’ den, where he slept, he kept a dozen or so blue stones.

After taking the gem, Wang Luo removed the red ox’s horn as well, and picked up a few bones to melt into his sword later, hoping they might make it stronger.

Once everything was tidied, Wang Luo approached another red-horned ox—this one not destined for dinner.

Standing atop its belly, above five wounds from which the blood had stopped flowing, Wang Luo closed his eyes. When he opened them again, his pupils had turned into eerie blood-red orbs, his entire being radiating a demonic, icy aura. His black hair lifted as if caught by an unseen wind, and even the air around him grew colder...

Otherworldly Azure Dragon 9 – Chapter Nine: Heartfire (Part Two) Complete!