Their luck with waiting this time was not very good.
The Black Feather Fire Heron did not return until the sky was nearly dark—Tang San had been exactly right; it really showed up just as the sun was about to set.
By the light of the setting sun, everyone finally got a clear look at this foolish bird whose own flames scorched its feathers:
Its entire body was covered in charred black feathers, which did not reflect even a hint of luster beneath the sunset glow;
Its neck was very short, and the feathers covering it were equally charred black;
Its mouth—or rather, its beak—was not long. Under the sunset, it appeared a vivid orange-red, much better-looking than its blackened feathers;
Its claws were not charred black either. Like its beak, they seemed dyed by the sunset, a bright orange-red;
Most astonishing of all were its wings—they were truly enormous!
The body that bore those wings instead seemed like an embellishment, as though such gigantic wings could not possibly have grown from it.
Beyond that, the most eye-catching thing about this Black Feather Fire Heron was its high temperature.
Even from dozens of meters away, the group could still feel the intense heat radiation pouring off its body.
"Black Feather Fire Herons shed their feathers every year and grow new ones. To judge their age, you can only look at their beaks or claws."
Tang San watched the Black Feather Fire Heron fly overhead. "Every hundred years, their beaks and claws grow an inch longer, while another ring of charred markings appears at the roots of their beaks and claws. This Black Feather Fire Heron has... seventeen charred markings on its beak. Its cultivation should be around seventeen hundred years!"
"The temperature is so high! For a thousand-year Soul Beast,