Every citizen of Great Yi has endured countless hardships. Back then, they had no cultivation, no training—yet they survived through sheer resilience. Now, as cultivators, the strength honed through suffering has become their greatest treasure, their deepest foundation.
Most importantly, after the Golden Crow Celestial Eye was suppressed by the national divine artifact, the curses on countless children throughout Great Yi were also forcefully subdued. As long as a child hasn't cultivated, the Golden Crow curse remains dormant. This ensured that the children of Great Yi would not be harmed. Otherwise, with their fragile bodies, once the curse erupted, it would almost certainly mean death.
Had that happened, most of Great Yi's future would've been extinguished.
This was something Yi Tianxing absolutely could not allow—hence why he was willing to use the national divine artifact to forcibly suppress the curse.
In Great Yi, children begin literacy at age three, body tempering at four, and only at nine do they officially start cultivating, opening their Divine Sea and entering the path of cultivation. This means the curse, even if triggered, would only affect children around nine or ten—when their bodies are stronger, and their status as cultivators grants them some resistance.
At that age, they wouldn't die helplessly under the curse.
Without that looming fear, the people of Great Yi held steadfast confidence: they could endure this curse.
Swish!
Almost exactly at noon, Yi Tianxing felt the curse within his body erupting. First, the previously hidden Celestial Eye totem emerged again between his brows, transforming into a golden vertical eye. This eye seemed to suddenly form a mystical connection with the sun in the void. Invisibly, strands of True Sunfire followed a mysterious path and appeared within the Golden Crow Celestial Eye.
From there, the Sunfire spread throughout the entire Great Yi Dynasty, passing into the bodies of its citizens—divided and diluted into billions of wisps. Each individual only received a tiny portion, thinned out before manifesting.
Screech!!
A sharp cry from a golden crow seemed to pierce the soul.
A searing flame erupted from the Heavenly Eye, immediately boring into flesh, bones, internal organs, even the soul—all exposed to the Sunfire.
Yet this True Sunfire, influenced by the curse, had become strangely yin-like, no longer as overbearingly destructive as one would expect.
As it burned inside, it brought unimaginable pain—as if blood was boiling away, the soul disintegrating, the Nascent Spirit melting.
"As expected," Yi Tianxing muttered, feeling the changes inside,"the Golden Crow curse, after being suppressed, has been weakened by more than half. Even the Ice Crystal King didn't expect to incinerate the people of Great Yi in one go. His intent is to inflict pain repeatedly, eroding their will, depleting their vitality bit by bit. Eventually it becomes fatal. But under suppression, the curse is even weaker. With true essence and mana, it can be resisted."
He discovered that even without the suppression, the Golden Crow curse alone wouldn't have killed everyone instantly. Its purpose was clearly to torment and exhaust them slowly. Naturally, those with weaker constitutions could still die immediately under such torment.
Yet—even diluted, even as a single thread—it still carried the power of the True Sunfire.
Having your very soul and body burned from within—how terrifying is that?
The burning pain was intense and overbearing—like being roasted alive, but even worse. It penetrated deep into the soul.
Mmhh!!
Across the Great Yi Dynasty, countless citizens groaned in unison. Sweat poured from their bodies like rain. The searing pain made it feel as though their flesh would melt.
Everyone immediately circulated their cultivation techniques, using their true essence to suppress the cursed flame. This did help ease the pain.
Though excruciating, it was not lethal. Most could endure it. In fact, it was within a tolerable threshold.
"Interesting..." Yi Tianxing thought,"This suppressed curse actually brings benefits. The True Sunfire—one of the world's top divine flames—although diluted countless times, still carries power. While enduring it, it tempers the flesh, bones, organs—even the soul. The burning removes impurities. Isn't that also a form of refinement?"
Feeling his internal changes, Yi Tianxing couldn't help but reveal a strange expression.
This Golden Crow curse, under suppression, felt more like it was aiding those afflicted. Because it first burned away impurities in the body and soul—only then would it harm the person.
A normal curse wouldn't care about that—it would obliterate everything, impurities and essence alike.
This—unexpectedly—was a form of fortune.
Of course, it was a twisted type of body tempering—and the pain required to endure it was monstrous. No one had a choice in the matter.
"Ah! I feel the impurities in my body burning away. Why does this feel... comfortable? Am I imagining it? It hurts so much—but I can feel my soul being purified!"
"All the residual toxicity from pills I've taken—it's turning to ash. Incredible!"
"Strange... I feel physically stronger. My power has increased. Isn't this a curse? Why does it seem to be helping us?"
Across Great Yi, countless people noticed changes within themselves, and their emotions grew complex.
Originally, they feared the curse would cause irreparable damage. Yet now, not only was there no harm, there was even unexpected benefit.
Of course, the agony was very real—bone-deep suffering that most couldn't bear. Still, as they noticed improvements in their bodies, that pain seemed to fade.
Joy began to spread.
Some were even ecstatic. Residual pill toxins burned away by the curse meant they could safely take more pills to improve their cultivation. With every future curse activation, the Sunfire would purge the toxins. It was like having a cheat code for training.
"How amusing," Yi Tianxing smiled coldly,"This curse is useless against me. But perhaps... I can amplify it."
To him, this level of refinement was meaningless. His body had already been purified to the extreme—no impurities remained. This diluted flame couldn't even raise his body temperature.
Still, he was curious what would happen if he increased the amount of Sunfire.
With a thought, he let the Xuanhuang Imperial Seal slightly loosen its suppression on the Golden Crow Heavenly Eye—allowing it to draw in more True Sunfire, faster and in greater quantities.
But instead of dispersing it to the people, he redirected all of it to himself, avoiding any unintended consequences for others.
A tidal wave of True Sunfire surged forth, appearing in his brow's Heavenly Eye mark, then transforming into golden flames that surged through his body.
Heat, pain—it felt like being barbecued alive. But still, it didn't bother him much.
With his willpower, this pain was trivial.
More importantly, this fire—even now—had little effect. His body was already so refined, even this divine fire couldn't do much. Raising his physical strength further required far more extreme methods.
"Come on... Let me see what the limit of this curse's eye is!"
Yi Tianxing didn't stop. He compressed the massive Sunfire into the Heavenly Eye mark, trying to see how much it could hold.
He maintained the link with the Golden Crow Eye, drawing endlessly on True Sunfire.
Unconsciously, the eye between his brows grew brighter, emitting waves of golden divine light. A terrifying heat surged from his brow—it felt like his forehead might burn through entirely.
Eventually, what emerged was no longer diluted flame—it was true, undiluted Sunfire.
And he could feel it. If it erupted now, it would blow his head clean off, reducing him to ashes.
"Suppress it—Hongmeng Heavenly Emperor Tower, suppress!!"
A sense of dread flashed across Yi Tianxing's heart. The fire he had drawn in was far too potent. If it broke loose, it would be disastrous. Without hesitation, he summoned the Hongmeng Heavenly Emperor Tower to forcibly suppress and stabilize his body.
Crack!
Screech!!
As True Sunfire continued pouring in, the Celestial Eye mark between his brows shone with blinding brilliance.
Then—a high-pitched cry of the Golden Crow echoed out—full of sorrow, full of frenzy.
The Celestial Eye... shattered.