Repeatedly confronting Nightmare Power had left Aviana exhausted.
She also bore the responsibility of protecting Ganil, the Mother Tree, so she had to personally intervene every time, only returning after confirming that all Nightmare Power had been eradicated.
What made Aviana even more disheartened was that Gale always had to be the one to act; she couldn't help at all.
This made her doubt her own abilities, feeling that she was completely incapable of fulfilling the duties of a Guardian.
The reason Aviana was able to become a demigod was not due to her own strength, but rather power bestowed upon her by other demigods.
She was originally just an ordinary Storm Crow, very fortunately chosen by Elune.
She then became a messenger among the demigods, and the demigods were very satisfied with her honesty and speed, so they bestowed a portion of their power upon her, thereby making her a demigod.
During her messaging duties, she guided refugees as much as possible, earning the love and respect of the people.
As a result, the Druids developed the Feral Druid specialization, serving as the main force in aerial combat.
Even after becoming a demigod, Aviana was the weakest of them all.
It was only because she lived within the Emerald Dream that not many people paid attention to this fact, including herself.
The Emerald Dream had always been safe, and no one expected enemies to appear here.
Although Ganil, the Mother Tree, had faced a crisis before, that was merely an effect of the Well of Eternity's explosion.
After the Nightmare crisis erupted, Aviana finally realized her uselessness.
At this moment, she finally desired to possess greater power.
However, her power originated from other demigods, so if she wanted to increase her strength, she could only ask other demigods to bestow more upon her.
This method was clearly not what Aviana wanted; she was not a selfish person.
So, she asked Gale for a way to increase her strength.
Gale thought for a moment, "If you simply want to increase your power, you can draw energy from the eternal holy grail."
Aviana said, "Drawing energy from the eternal holy grail cannot deal with Nightmare Power."
Gale spread his hands, "I knew it."
There were many ways to increase one's strength, and Aviana didn't need to ask him for ideas.
She was a follower of Elune, and praying to Elune could grant her power.
However, power obtained through other means could not deal with Nightmare Power.
Now, only Gale's Sun God Power could confront Nightmare Power.
"To use Sun God Power, you will likely need to pay a certain price."
"What is the price?" Aviana asked.
Flames ignited in Gale's hand, "Sun God Power comes from the Sun; its energy is too immense.
You will need to endure extremely powerful pain.
Even if you survive it, your body will be transformed, burning with flames all over, turning into a firebird."
"I can bear all of that!" Aviana said in a deep voice.
"Not only that!"
Gale said in a deep voice, "From now on, you will not merely be Aviana; you will no longer be able to worship Elune."
To use Sun God Power and still worship the Moon Goddess?
Was this a slap in Gale's face or Elune's?
Aviana fell silent, her heart filled with struggle.
She could accept any change to herself, but being told not to worship Elune was even harder to accept than death.
However, Elune's divine magic could not counter the invasion of Nightmare Power.
Her fundamental power came from the Emerald Dream, and Nightmare Power was the bane of the Emerald Dream, and thus her bane as well.
If not for Gale, the Emerald Dream would turn into a Nightmare Dream, and she would also become a Nightmare creature.
This—this was absolutely unacceptable to her!
The Emerald Dream was above all else, including her life, her faith!
"I... I think I can accept it."
Gale looked at her but did not draw a conclusion.
"I can accept it!"
Aviana was much more decisive this time.
She came before Gale, "As long as I can defeat the Nightmare, I am willing to pay any price."
Gale then shook his head helplessly, "I hope this is the last time I hear you say something like that."
Aviana looked at him, puzzled.
"The reason we consider ourselves righteous is because our bottom line is higher than that of villains.
When we resort to any means necessary, we are already on the verge of corruption.
You should be glad that I am not the Burning Legion or the Old Gods."
Saying this, Gale injected the flames in his hand into Aviana's forehead.
Aviana instantly burst into flames, the scorching fire burning her body into a crystal.
During the crystallization process, her body was reshaped.
Just as she was about to be burned to ashes, a powerful surge of vitality erupted from the flames, transforming her back into flesh and blood.
However, her reshaped body was covered in flames, the flames forming feathers, brilliant and dazzling.
Aviana recovered from the intense pain and looked down to examine her body.
Lightly flapping her wings, sparks flew, landing on the surrounding flowers, grass, and trees, where they immediately ignited.
The flowers, grass, and trees were not burned to ashes; they merely provided the energy needed for the flames to burn.
Once the energy was depleted, the flames immediately extinguished.
Gale curiously plucked a burning flower and immediately felt the Sun Power within it.
This seemed to be a very magical material, and its use would require further study.
He crafted an arcane crystal bottle, placed the Sun Spark inside, and put it into his magic satchel.
He looked at Aviana; the current Aviana was no longer the same.
The Sun God Power ignited the demigod power within her, assimilating it into Sun God Power.
The refined Sun God Power was not abundant, but it unexpectedly suited Aviana perfectly.
She was even more favored by Sun God Power than the Sun Sprites, even though the Sun Sprites had been exposed to Sun God Power for several centuries longer.
Aviana suddenly shot into the sky, returning to her true form, a giant raven burning with flames, soaring freely in the sky.
Sun Sparks rained down on the earth, turning this forest into an ocean of sparks.
The forest was not destroyed; instead, it grew somewhat.
Ancient forests always produce a decaying aura, just as life inevitably meets death at its end.
The Sun Sparks seemed to burn away half of the decay, injecting vitality into the forest.
Gale sighed, "This is the true Sunbird.
The Golden Crow constellation is finally no longer an imagined masterpiece; Aviana is the Golden Crow of this world."
After soaring for a while, Aviana descended.
She excitedly said, "Gale, I can already feel the power of the Sun; I think I can now deal with Nightmare Power."
Gale nodded, "Indeed.
According to my conjecture, these sparks alone can purify those Nightmare creatures."
Aviana was overjoyed by this conjecture.
"Really? That's wonderful."
Gale reminded her, "However, your power alone is always limited."
Aviana agreed with him, "I will do my best to strengthen the flock."
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