Raphael lay on the cold ground with his eyes shut, and his chest unmoving. His life was reduced to a stillness that permeated his being.
"This is…? Huh…" Shao Jin's eyes narrowed. A low hum emanated from his massive frame as confusion turned to astonishment, because never had a meal, or indeed a future victim done such a thing in his long existence.
The bats that hovered just out of reach began a flurry of whispers. "Is… Is the creature dead?"
"He's truly dead? My share! My share!"
"You want to steal from me? It was my ancestor that touched it first!"
"What rubbish! It was mine! I was right beside him!"
Their screeching, and squawking amplified Shao Jin's irritation. "Silence! You lot. Shut the fuck up! I can't hear!"
There was instant silence. Their master was displeased. Those bat bastards wouldn't get a bone or any other delightful meat today!
Even without being alive, this meal was giving Shao Jin trouble, first with bargaining then passing out, what other annoyance did it have in store for him? He wouldn't wait to find out, not today, not ever!
"This human… could it have faked its death…?" His hooves tapped against the floor before leaning over the corpse which exuded a scent that amplified his previous intention.
However…
"Why isn't there a heartbeat? This is… troublesome." He muttered. It seems he was looking forward to savoring a screaming, succulent dish after millennia, but that dream of his has died with the boy!
"Oh Emperor, give the corpse to us your humble servants! Our jaws are hungry!" A bat cried from the horde, breaking the uncomfortable silence. It seems death was good business for some creatures, but who was Shao Jin to deny their devotion when his needs were already met, sort of…
"Right! Master, let us dine upon this fleshy delicacy!" A louder screech from those shadowy ranks fueled their intentions and desperation, causing those that stayed silent to express their bloodthirsty hunger.
This caused the tension to ratchet higher, so much that Shao Jin's golden horns released an unnerving buzzing sound.
The Golden Bull Thork let out a snort of irritation. "Hmph! I'm starting to…"
BOOM!
Just as he was about to deliver a scolding that would send those insects to hide in their shadows for a decade or two, a blinding light burst from Raphael's seemingly lifeless form, engulfing Shao Jin's immense size, blinding his blood-filled eyes and silencing his words as those echoes from the depths of chaos.
"What in the name of…"
Even the bloodthirsty bats that waited for a command to rip and tear the human's bones into nothingness covered their eyes.
And it was in that momentary lapse of surprise and awe, that a strange sight materialize over that young man's corpse.
"Could it be…? A Solar Consciousness?" This time however, there wasn't any laughter or ridicule from the Golden Bull Thork. This time there was just, disbelief, and it wasn't directed at the bats, nor the food it was about to eat earlier but at itself, his judgment and a tinge of fear for what appeared above the corpse now!
Floating serenely, as if dancing to an unheard melody, were two radiant orbs.
The larger one pulsed with an ethereal blue light. This one had an innate pressure that resembled those potent beast's Solar Consciousnesses he had witnessed before.
Beside the blue orb, and seemingly circling it in a tilted orbit, was a smaller, pearly-white orb. Its intensity and raw energy left even Shao Jin speechless. He was fixated on their hypnotic dance as an unnerving chill seeped into its being. Those were indeed a treasure!
"Two… Two Solar Consciousnesses?"
"It's possible…? Can this be?"
It seemed those cowardly shadow bats couldn't contain their surprise and was bold enough to whisper those questions while trying to appease their fear, however…
"Shut it you fools!" It wasn't the pronouncements of those insects that bothered him as much. It was that pulsating blue and white radiance and how potent they actually were.
They couldn't be simple Soul Planets or Soul Stars orbiting the main one as he had witnessed in the past. These were two distinct and powerful Solar Consciousnesses inhabiting the same... body without being refined. How was this possible?
Shao Jin racked its brain trying to remember any records, history or ancient text detailing such an anomaly.
When a Solar Consciousness is fused with a Soul Orbital, it loses its innate will and become an immutable servant to the core consciousness. However, what he was looking at were two unmerged Solar Consciousness coexisting independently.
Had he ever encountered a human, indeed any creature with a dual core like this before? Was such a thing even possible? He dismissed it all and settled on logic. There was none.
Those whispers continued unabated until he decided it was time to silence them, "Could this be another trap? No… even those cowardly humans wouldn't pull such a stunt..."
His contemplation was disrupted by the faint flap of wings followed by movement that came from a hungry bat, approaching those dazzling balls of power as if ready to devour them.
"DON'T TOUCH IT, YOU DUMB SHIT!"
The sheer dominance, fueled by concern in its assertions silenced them all, even the dancing fires seem to have stopped their swaying. Such was the power radiating from the Golden Bull Thork.
Shao Jin's thoughts now turn to himself, his situation.
"Hm… I've absorbed Balphazar's Soul Consciousness to mend my broken horn and gain shadow manipulation capabilities, but these…" His burning gaze was filled with awe as he stared with renewed focus.
He observed the two pulsating orbs more keenly, especially that smaller white Solar Consciousness. The aura it exuded… It was far more powerful than the blue one, yet smaller. The anomaly was undeniable! Such powerful souls emanating from such a fragile vessel. This defied logic!
A smile stretched across his muzzle as Shao Jin took a deep breath and made a decision. "No matter! If I consume them, I might be granted a mysterious and greater power. Hahaha! Who knew a delicious human meal could be so entertaining and provide such an unexpected treat!
And without a shred of mercy…
He leaned down, opened his massive jaws and, in a single gulp, swallowed the dual Solar Consciousnesses along with the human body, not even leaving a single speck of flesh or bone on the icy earth. It was as if the human and his pulsating blue and white Solar Consciousness never existed!
The witnessing shadows buzzed again with whispers but much fainter than earlier, a clear sign that they were also fearful of how callous and vicious their new master truly was,
"Master is too greedy…"
"Hmmm…" Shao Jin snorted at them before turning to those fire waterfalls with a smirk of satisfaction then returned to address his meal's remnants, "Silence. It is time for me to fully assimilate this power."
In a gesture mirroring the Shadow Bat Emperor's former throne of darkness, Shao Jin's hooves radiated an intense golden light which pulsed then a comfortable throne manifested into existence.
His monstrous form then gracefully alighted with a small echo of power upon it. He closed his eyes and focused inward. Slowly, his spirit dove deep into his vast Cosmic Mind Sea to unravel and tame this potent energies he had just devoured with his powerful jaws and even more hungry ambitions.